Page 6 of Fixation

Reina pursed her lips. “Dr. Williams is a prejudiced and biased man.”

“Fucking wanker,” both of them said at the same time. They burst out laughing, the joke commonplace between them.

They looked at one another once again, allowing the reality of the situation they were in to wash over them.

“Reina, please accept that we are in this situation because you took a call to operate on Vedant. I’m not saying it was wrong. But now that we are being pushed to the wall, why not be free from the wrath of that wanker Dr. Williams for a whileandemerge richer? I’m aware of how he cancels all your leaves, gives you the worst shifts, rejects all your suggestions even if they are brilliant, and picks on you all the time. And he does this because he got away with?—”

“—I know Su Min. I know.”

Su Min shook her head. “You should have registered a complaint against him with the management.”

“Unfortunately,heis the management, and the board listens to him. Do you think they would have listened to me if I’d told them that their senior most surgeon, trustee, and generous benefactor bumped me off his team because I threatened to file a sexual harassment complaint against him? They need his money more than they need me. And now that door is forever closed for me. If and when he decides to fire me, which he will at some point, then any complaint I make against him will sound like that of a disgruntled employee. He will invariably get away scot-free, and I will forever be that woman doctor who claimed sexual harassment against her boss just because he fired her.”

Anger at her situation gnawed at her insides. A year back, Dr. Williams had joined the Princess Mary Hospital as the chief doctor. She’d thought herself lucky that she’d caught his favour right from the beginning. Initially, he used to call her to assist him with all the operations he performed and during all his routine patient visits. Dr. Williams was a brilliant surgeon and she’d been delighted to be a part of his team. It was only several months later that he’d made his move and told her that he expected repayment in sex for all he was doing to advance her career.

Appalled and disgusted, she’d rejected his offer immediately, and they’d had a massive fallout. She’d even threatened to complain about him, but he had brushed it off confidently stating that he was the management. He’d further kicked her off his team and put her under Dr. Banks, another senior surgeon, but one less experienced than him. And then he’d gone on to make her life miserable. After she’d openly disagreed with his assessment of a patient under her care during a staff meeting, he’d shifted her to the ER and banned her from the OT. That vile, horrible man.

“Let’s leave that problem behind for a while,” Su Min suggested. “We have this opportunity handed to us; let’s runwith it. Besides, if Mihir is here, it means that Vasily will be here too. I look forward to spending some time with him. As it is, we have so little of it. This has been a rather fortunate occurrence for me, don’t you think?”

“Why are we forgetting the fact that the Oshnovs are dangerous?”

“Because, like I’ve always said, they only hurt people who mean them harm, and none of us fit into that category. Hence, we are safe.”

With a happy smile, Su Min entered the room, leaving her behind alone. Reina understood why all of them would want to do this. She sighed. Perhaps, her friend was right. Maybe this was the break she had been craving for a long time. Perhaps this opportunity would be good for her as well.

A lone thought crossed her mind. She could announce who she really was to Mihir Oshnov. He would have to let her go then, wouldn’t he?

However, considering the past, he may just use her to gain leverage over her brother, and that was the last thing Reina wanted. Rajiv was happily married now with two adorable kids, who she loved dearly. She and her sisters had decided years back to never do anything that would compromise Rajiv’s happiness. And she knew Rajiv would move heaven and earth for her, which meant she didn’t really have a choice. She was going to have to do this.

Vedant was her patient, a deep inner voice said. When she’d become a doctor, she’d pledged to look after anyone who came under her care. She’d saved him, agreed. But he did have a long road of healing ahead of him. Might as well stay and ensure he fully recuperated. Besides, she was being given a breather from the clear dismissal Dr. Williams had surely planned for her, which meant she had a few weeks to plan the next course of action for herself.

She straightened her spine. Okay, she was going to do this. She was going to stay and care for Vedant Oshnov, even if her gut was warning her that he was going to be the most difficult patient she’d ever come across so far. She pursed her lips. She could handle anything if she put her mind to it.

Including him.

2

Vedant Oshnov opened his eyes, blinking against the bright sunlight coming through the open curtains. The clock on the wall across from him showed the time to be just past noon. He licked his dry lips. This was the first time in what seemed like forever that he hadn’t drifted back to sleep mere moments after he’d woken up.

All his memories raced to the forefront. Him leaving alone for his meeting with the bankers without his bodyguard Tyrion… A group of four men attacking him in the basement parking lot where he had parked his car...

He recalled Tyrion arriving and the two of them fighting those men off. Tyrion and he had killed three of them before the fourth one had managed to shoot Vedant in the chest and leg.

His heart pinched. He thought he would die that night. Mihir and Armaan would never have been able to recover from his loss. And Karina, their sister… For years, they had believed that she’d deserted them. But now they knew the details of what had truly happened with her, and they were searching for her. Had he died, he never would have been able to see her again. But now he could. He had been given a second chance, and he would useit to do better. To be better. Thanks to Tyrion, who had managed to get him to a hospital on time, Vedant had lived. He was injured, yes, but he was alive, and that’s what mattered.

As if in response to that thought, various aches and pains in his body made themselves known. He winced. Shit. Ivan’s men had really done a number on him. Ivan Oshnov—nephew of his late adopted father, Alexander Oshnov—held a huge grudge against his brothers and him. He had made his intentions towards them clear—he wanted them out of the way to stake his claim on the Oshnov empire, which Vedant, Mihir, and Armaan had inherited after Alexander had passed away five years ago.

Mihir had been warning Vedant for days to be careful, to reduce his outings, to not step out at night and to always take his bodyguard with him. But one break in protocol was all that Ivan needed to make his move. Fucking asshole. Anger filled his veins. His body tightened, and a shooting pain stabbed his upper chest and shoulder.

He must have made a sound because, from the side, a stern looking woman stood and came to him.

“Mr. Oshnov, you’re awake?” she said. “Good.”

Her voice. Had he heard it before? She moved closer and began checking him with her stethoscope. Her floral scent washed over him. It was strong, like a punch to his system. He blinked, studying her. She was the same doctor with whom he’d exchanged some not so nice words that first time he’d woken up after being shifted home.

Mihir had assured him that he was home and being cared for by a team of doctors. How long ago had that been? A day, a week ago? He had no clue.

“How many days has it been since I’ve been brought here?” he asked her. Lack of use had made his voice all gravelly and hoarse.

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