Page 62 of Bad Blood

He stiffens. “Yes.”

“Did you get one of these?” I pull the worn subpoena envelope from my lab coat pocket, holding it up.

His eyes follow my movements, stopping at my hand. He runs his tongue over his teeth and sneers. “Yes.”

“Why did I get one? I have nothing to do with this. And you know it. I shouldn’t even be named in this lawsuit.” I lower my voice, closing the distance between us and stopping at the entrance to the doctors’ lounge. “What do they think I know?”

He drops his gaze to the floor, shaking his head. “I have no idea.”

The blatant lie stings.

“I don’t believe you.” My chest tightens, and I ball my hands at my sides, trying to calm my fury.

“I don’t care.” Angry eyes flick to mine, his jaw tightening as he snatches the envelope from my hand.

I dive for it, but the asshole holds it out of reach before pulling out the slip of paper to peruse the contents.

“My deposition is at the end of the month.”

“Mine is too.” I try to keep the quiver out of my voice but fail.

He quirks his head to the side, glancing at me over the paper. “And you won’t have to go to trial?”

“I don’t know yet. Guess it depends on what they ask in the deposition. Luca said I have nothing to worry about.”

“He’s right.” He folds the sheet and stuffs it back in the envelope, offering it to me.

I cram it in my pocket, heat settling on my cheeks. I keep my eyes trained on the floor. I need more time. I’ve found more charts with problems, but it’s done nothing but create more questions.

“How’s the kid?” He leans against the wall and stuffs his hands into his pockets, looking me directly in the eye.

“Liam?” I pull my brows together, stunned at his change in subject.

“I saw his file come through.” He reaches for the charts in the crook of my arm. “May I?” He doesn’t wait for an answer before he’s flipping through them, pulling Liam’s free.

He gazes over the findings as my need to disappear resurfaces. Liam was here for the port placement this morning. No signs of Dax until the end. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he was avoiding me. He seems to have no issues sticking around if it’s only Lauren. And he doesn’t seem to realize I’ve noticed. But when I’m around, he’s nowhere to be found.

“Could be worse.” Kline’s voice pulls me from my thoughts.

“Worse than what?”

“What I expected.”

I narrow my eyes, extending my hand for the chart. “Liam’s handling things better than we could have hoped for.”

Kline turns, keeping the file out of my reach. “For his age.” It’s a low blow, but I ignore it.

“How’s his pain?” He continues to flip between sections of the chart. His line of questioning reminds me of my first years in residency. I try not to take it as an insult, but he’s wearing on my patience.

“Mild.” I cross my arms over my chest, tapping my foot against the linoleum. “We’ll consider pain meds after he’s had a couple of rounds of chemo.”

A frown etches his brow. “That’s a little early. We usually wait until after the midpoint CT.”

I snatch the chart from his hands, curious why he dares to question me. “He’s my patient. And we all have our specialties. You don’t need to concern yourself.”

“I know.” He leans his head toward his shoulder. “Following best practices?”

“Every time.”

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