Page 36 of Trial Run

With a shaking hand, she unlocked her phone and handed him the device, showing him a photo of her new prescription.

As the words on the label registered, Ben stopped himself from swearing, but the urge was strong. His own hand shook as he handed the phone back to her, part adrenaline and part his old friend, anxiety.

He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Penny, I think you’re having a reaction to taking two medicines that don’t mix well together. Your antidepressant doesn’t work well with the new medicine.”

She turned her face to him, tears sliding down her cheeks. “Am I going to be okay? Did I do something wrong?”

“You’re going to be fine. This isn’t an emergency, but it is serious. You didn’t do anything wrong. But we need to get you to the hospital so they can monitor you while the medicine wears off. I’ll have one of our nurses drive you there. You should stop taking that new medicine. I’ll call your doctor and discuss it with him.”

“Okay.”

He held out a hand to help her stand, and looked her in the eye. “I’m glad you told me. You made sure someone knew things weren’t right.”

He didn’t want to think about her driving here in this state. She was lucky she’d come before 7:00, when there wasn’t much traffic.

“Thank you, Doctor.”

“Wait here, and I’ll get Sophie to help you out.” He moved calmly, as if everything was under control. But as soon as he cleared the door of the sitting room, he sped into action. Vanessa waited for him in the hallway.

“We need Sophie,” he said. “She’ll drive Penny to the ER for a vitals check, wait with her while they monitor symptoms, then drive her home.”

“What was it? Did she tell you?”

“Drug interaction. Her doctor prescribed her a muscle relaxant and didn’t check her other meds.”

“Son of a bitch,” Vanessa hissed. “It would have taken them two minutes to check.”

“I had to restrain myself from saying the same thing in front of her. He could have prescribed her anything. Sleep aids would have been a disaster. This could have been so much worse. As it is, the meds she took should wear off in a couple of hours. As soon as I get upstairs, I’ll put in a call to her doctor. And try not to raise my voice.”

“I say, raise it. Who the hell do they think they are? She’ll be okay, though?” Vanessa asked.

“Yes, I think so. But I want them monitoring her heart rate for a couple of hours. And I want Sophie there to tell them what meds she took.”

“I’ll get her.” Vanessa disappeared in a swish of skirts.

Ben sagged against the wall in the hallway. As the adrenaline wore off, his hands continued to shake, and he shoved them in his pockets. The sheer effort to come here had eaten away at his energy reserves. He had no stamina for the real world.

But another part of him thrummed to life, the part that had forgotten what it felt like to help someone in need. This was what he was supposed to be doing. This place was his, and the patients counted on him. He hadn’t been giving them everything he could. But you couldn’t pour from an empty cup.

He watched from the window as Penny got into Sophie’s car. He’d given the nurse a written note explaining the situation to give to the ER doctors. After they pulled away from the clinic’s parking lot, he went upstairs to his office.

Cameron, Ben’s administrative assistant, sat at his desk in the reception area outside Ben’s office, head bent over his laptop, wearing his usual suspenders and bowtie. He startled, eyes widening, as Ben appeared.

“Ben. You’re early.” To his credit, Cameron didn’t stare. The younger man, a grad school student, was used to unusual events at the clinic.

“I am. Bit of an emergency. You’re here early, too.” Was everyone at the clinic working longer hours, or was it his imagination?

“Mondays are always hectic. I heard a patient showed up here at 6:30 today.” Cameron glanced at his computer screen. “Your first appointment isn’t until 10:00, but let me know if you need anything. There’s already a water bottle on your desk.”

“Got it. Thank you. I’ll be in my office.”

That sounded self-assured enough. Ben went into his office and shut the door. He sank into the chair behind his desk and scanned the room.

The last time he’d sat on the couch had been with Nell, two days ago. He had a ridiculous urge to call her and hear her voice. But that would be too much, too soon. They weren’t dating. It could wait until tomorrow.

He booted up his laptop and pulled up Penny’s patient records, getting to work.

After his second in-person appointment left for the day, Vanessa poked her head in the door.

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