Page 4 of Lethal Game

She got up from the bed. "I'll call you later tonight."

"I'll probably be asleep, so don't worry if I don't answer. Now, give me a kiss, and I'll see you in the morning."

She leaned over and pressed a light kiss on her mother's cool cheek, which thankfully wasn't as cold as it had once been. Maybe this nightmare would be over soon.

As she turned to leave, Henry Cavendish, a longtime friend of her parents, entered the room. Henry was the director of the oncology research center at Wexford University, and his lab was in the building next to the hospital. Henry was one of the first people to encourage her to go into nursing when she'd been trying to figure out what to do with her life. After she'd graduated, he'd helped her get her current job. Since her mom had gotten ill, both she and her father had leaned on him for advice. But Henry had not been able to offer an explanation, either.

A tall, thin man with dark hair, graying at his temples and also his sideburns, Henry wore glasses and always seemed like someone who needed to get out in the sun more. His skin was extremely pale. But then, he spent a lot of time overseeing the groundbreaking research being done in his lab.

In one hand, he held a vase of flowers, while in the other hand was a small white bag.

"Hello, Alisa," he said, giving her a smile before he turned to her mother. "Pamela, I hear you're doing better."

"I'm on the road to recovery," her mother said.

"That's excellent news. I brought flowers to brighten your room." He paused, his gaze coming to rest on the vase next to her bed. "I guess I wasn't the only one who had that idea."

"I don't know who those are from," her mother said. "I woke up and there they were. I think Dan might have sent them."

"I'll put yours on the dresser," Alisa told Henry, taking the vase out of his hand and setting it on the dresser by the window.

"I also brought you something to tempt your appetite, Pamela." Henry handed her mother the bag. "Chocolates from your favorite place."

"I can't believe you went all the way to Claire's to get these,"her mother said as she peeked into the bag. She gave him a big smile. "This is so thoughtful, Henry. I'm going to love them later, but I haven't had much of an appetite today."

"Hopefully, it will be back soon." He put his hand on her shoulder as he finished talking. "We've all been anxious about you, Pamela."

"I appreciate the concern," her mother replied.

"You must be happy to see your mother so improved, Alisa."

"I am. I just wish we knew what caused her symptoms," she replied.

"We're not getting into that discussion right now," her mother said. "I don't want to think about it anymore tonight. I want to just chat, and you can tell me about your work, Henry. Alisa is going home now." Her mother gave her a pointed look. "Right?"

"I guess," she muttered as Henry pulled a chair closer to the bed and sat down. At least her mother wouldn't be alone, and she was pretty exhausted and ready to go home.

"By the way, Alisa," Henry said as she turned to go. "Do you know what's happening downstairs? I saw a lot of security gathered in the lobby. Is there a patient of importance?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Maybe they just came in. I'll call you later, Mom. And Henry, make sure she eats something when dinner comes."

"I will," he said with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. Your mother is in good hands."

Her mother should have been in her father's good hands, but Henry wasn't a bad backup.

After leaving the room, Alisa went downstairs to the nurse's lounge and opened her locker, putting a sweater on over her blue scrubs and then grabbing her large tote bag. She set it down on a table in the center of the room and took out her phone.

She hadn't heard from Tim since last night, and she was more than a little annoyed. His absence during this crisis in her life had definitely made her question their relationship, if she couldeven call it that. She sent him a text with a quick update on her mom's condition and then stuck her phone back in her bag and headed out of the lounge.

When she got to the lobby, she saw a security guard talking to her friend Robin, who was working at the information desk. As he left, she walked up to the counter, wanting to make sure she wasn't leaving her mother alone in the hospital with some situation going on. "What was that about, Robin?" she asked. "There seems to be a lot of security in the hospital tonight."

"They're looking for some guy," Robin said. "But I haven't seen him walk past my desk, not that I see everyone, but I'm usually pretty observant."

"Did they say why they're looking for him?"

"No, they did not, and I asked—twice. Security told me there was no reason for concern. It was just someone they wanted to speak to."

She felt uneasy about Robin's answer, but the guard was no longer in sight, and everything seemed to be normal in the lobby, with visitors coming in and out, heading for the bank of elevators behind her or to the cafeteria or gift shop. "Okay," she said, stepping away from the desk.

---