Page 27 of Compelling Urges

“Um, yeah. Thanks.” Bodhi had no idea how to process this woman’s concern, and it was one more example of Blair’s weird fixation on him. And she apparently had the good doctor snowed about what a “lovely” person she was.

“I think perhaps it would be a good idea for us to speak face-to-face. I don’t feel right about having this conversation over the phone. Do you have some time?”

Bodhi snorted and answered, “I have all the time in the world.”

“Do you think you could come by my office today? I’m at the Maylor-Essex Clinic in the Oncology Department. Or, if you’re too far away maybe we could meet somewhere.” She told him the address.

“I’ll be there in an hour,” Bodhi said and went to shower, trim his unkempt beard, and make himself presentable. As he wolfed down a quick sandwich, he wondered what in the world she could have to say to him.

∞∞∞

The clinic turned out to be an ultramodern, sprawling property just off the freeway, so it was easy to find. Now he realized why the name was familiar. He’d seen it on the side of the building for years as he’d driven by. He’d just never paid much attention to it.

Bodhi was shown into a cluttered office by an assistant, who immediately checked out his left hand for a ring and then gave him a look that seemed to waver alternately between flirtation and compassion. He figured she probably wondered if he had terminal cancer and was gauging her odds with him. He smiled politely and thanked her dismissively. No reason to get the woman’s hopes up.

Dr. Finch rose from her seat and shook his hand. “May I offer you some coffee? Water?”

“A water would be great. Thanks.” Bodhi sat down as she pulled a couple of bottles out of a small refrigerator behind her desk.

“So, I’m very sorry to inconvenience you, Mr. Monaghan…”

“Please, just call me Bodhi.”

“Yes, right. Then you should call me Marjie.” She gave him a pleasant smile. “Again, let me offer my sincere condolences for your tragic loss, Bodhi. I know you must have been gearing up to the inevitable with Blair anyway, but suicide is so difficult for the grieving survivors.”

Bodhi took a chug of water and tried not to snort. “I need to set the record straight. Although I appreciate your compassion, I barely knew Blair. She showed up at my house claiming to be carrying my baby after a brief encounter that may or may not have actually happened. Apparently, I’d had too much to drink to remember sleeping with her but woke up to find her naked in my bed. I’m not saying it didn’t happen—only that I have no recollection of it—which is odd. That’s never happened to me before, and I hadn’t hadthatmuch to drink. So anyway, I got her some decent health insurance because I wanted to make sure that if she had my baby, she had the best possible care. Then I planned to arrange for full custody because Blair was completely unhinged. I frankly couldn’t stand the woman, and you have no idea what she’s put me through over the past few months. I was sure she’d killed herself and my child for her own twisted reasons until I learned about her lack of pregnancy and advanced stage of cancer from the coroner.” He paused and saw the effect his words had on the doctor and added, “That about sums it up. Oh—I should add that she jumped off the Coronado Bridge after she stole my car to get there.”

“Oh!”

“Yeah, oh. So, you can see why I may have some lingering fucked-up feelings, but I’d hardly characterize myself by saying I’m her grieving lover. I’m sure-as-shit not her husband. This fixation she had on telling everyone I was married to her is just…” He closed his eyes and shook his head. “So, what is it you wanted with Blair? You were trying to call her? Her phone has never been recovered and neither has her purse with her ID in it.”

“Blair came to see me not too long ago and I had to turn her down for a special clinical trial she desperately wanted to be included in.”

“That must have been the day she poisoned me so I couldn’t accompany her to her so-called OB-GYN appointment.”

Marjie gasped, “Poisoned you?”

“Yeah, just a tasty dollop of ipecac in my coffee. It’s quite the way to start the day,” he said with a grim expression. “Fuckin’ bitch,” he muttered under his breath.

“What a bitch!” exclaimed the doctor over his muttering. “Excuse me.” Her hand flew to cover her mouth, and she had an embarrassed expression.

They stared at each other a beat and then she dropped her hand and continued, “Blair thought that if she had a robust health insurance plan the trial would accept her, but I made it clear that insurance companies donotcover experimental procedures. I’m sorry if she tricked you into paying for coverage for her, especially on a fool’s errand. She finally seemed to accept the insurance limitation and told me that her husband—I assume she meant you because she filled out forms with your name and phone number on them—would be more than willing and financially able to foot the bill. She was rather poetic about how much you loved her and how devastated you’d be if she passed away. She went on and on about how optimistic and excited you were for her to have a spot in the program. I thought that was admirable and frankly wondered why you weren’t with her, but I had to let her know that her cancer was far too advanced to be accepted into the program. That was a hard conversation to have, believe me. We here at the clinic didn’t think it would be fair to deprive another individual of the real chance of survival if she took up one of the limited spots. It sounds cold-hearted, I know, but we sometimes have to make very tough decisions.”

“It’s all quite understandable. I’m sorry she tried to dupe you and yanked on your heartstrings to get what she wanted. But… why were you trying to get hold of Blair so badly if you’d already turned her down?”

With a disparaging look, Marjie explained, “We have a drug that’s just become available that I thought would alleviate some of her terrible pain and give her a bit more energy during the time she had left. Even though she wasn’t admitted into the program, she was still under my care. I’m frankly amazed at how well she was getting around as it was, but it would have made her final weeks or months much more tolerable. I’m so sorry I was too late reaching out to her.”

Bodhi nodded. He felt guilty for thinking Blair was lazy and unhelpful. The woman had been dealing with a lot. “I would have done anything to save our baby. I’m just glad there wasn’t one that she… you know.”

“I’m so sorry. That must have been a terrible experience for you,” she offered with eyes full of compassion. It made Bodhi realize how often she had to deal with grieving loved ones.

Thinking it was time to be practical, he said, “So far no one has been able to locate any relatives, and she wouldn’t ever tell me anything about her family. Did Blair give you any information? Family history? Where they live—that kind of thing? They ought to be informed.”

She looked thoughtfully at her computer screen and tapped a few keys. Bodhi watched as her eyes scanned the monitor. “It says here her next of kin and the responsible party is you. Under the category for her father, it says, ‘none’ and for her mother it lists a Lauren Henry in Chuckwalla, Arizona. Does that help?”

Bodhi nodded. “More than I had before.”

“There’s no address or phone number listed, I’m sorry to say.”

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