Page 89 of The Masquerade: Room 2

Adrenaline courses through my veins as I open the door to the waiting room, and I’m met with somber faces, fear evident as they collectively stand to greet me.

“Where’s Dr. Harrison?”

“He has been called to consult on another patient. I’m Dr. Perrington. I work with Dr. Harrison and was in your…”

“Brother. John is my brother.”

“I was part of John’s surgical team.”

“Is he… dead?”

“No. He’s recovering up in the ICU right now. Surgery went well. Dr. Harrison was able to get the whole tumor.”

The hulk of a man in front of me drops to his knees. “You got it all?”

“Yes, sir. We won’t know more until he wakes up, but he is in recovery and tumor-free right now. I will come back when he wakes up and get you up to see him.”

“Thank you so much. You saved his life. I can’t believe it. We’ve been sitting here all day, waiting to hear the worst. Bracing for it. Expecting it.” When he stands up, I reach out my hand to shake his, but he pulls me into his embrace. “Thank you.”

“Dr. Harrison is the best surgeon you’ll find. Your brother was in good hands today.”

“No one else would take a chance on John. They gave him six months to live.”

“He’s got a long road to recovery, but we’ll keep you posted every step of the way.”

“I… thank you.”

“You’re very welcome. I’m going to go and check on him now.” I acknowledge the rest of the family with a nod and a smile before leaving them with the news and making my way up to the ICU. It’s not long before my pager starts beeping for the ER. Pierce must be in surgery already with the boy he went to consult on. They always page him unless he’s already tied up elsewhere. I’ve become his proxy for consultations these days.

When you get paged by the ER, you don’t take your time getting there. As a resident, everywhere I’m paged is at a run, but when it’s the ER, you’ll see me sprinting down the hallway.

I come to a halt at the nurses’ station when I take in the sight before me. My brain doesn’t even know what I’m looking at.

It can’t be.

Pierce is in handcuffs, his knuckles bloody, being led out of the hospital by a police officer.

I rush to his side. “Pierce, what’s going on?”

“Call Dalton. His number is in my phone. His wife is a lawyer. Call him now, Freya.”

“I will.”

Shit. Shit. Shit.

The moment he’s out of sight, I turn back to the nurses. “What happened?” My pulse is racing so hard it’s whooshing in my ears. “Why is he in handcuffs?”

“A kid was brought in by his mother. He had major head wounds and was badly beaten. Dr. Harrison took one look at his films and confirmed what we feared. The kid has been abused for years. Old breaks showed up on his X-rays. The father turned up with bruises all over his knuckles, shouting that ‘the bitch can’t keep him away.’ Dr. Harrison told him to leave, but he started shouting all kinds of terrible things at both the mother and boy. Dr. Harrison just lost it. They started fighting, and he took the father down right here in the hallway.”

That’s not the Pierce I know. He doesn’t hurt people. He heals them. My hands are shaking as I cover my mouth to stop the sobs fighting to break free. Then, his words kick in. I need to get his phone now.

I quickly make my way to the attendings’ lounge, grab his bag, and rummage for his phone. My heart sinks at the sight of the passcode lock. I don’t know the number to open his phone. With my mind racing a million miles a minute, I rush to my locker in the residents’ lounge and dial Celest. I’m out of breath when she answers.

“Hey, Freya. Long time no see.” Shit. I forgot about the last time we saw each other. I’ve been putting off talking to her for weeks, and I’m a bad friend for avoiding her.

“Celest. I’m sorry, but I can’t talk right now.”

“What’s wrong? You sound weird.”

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