Page 50 of Sinful Deception

“Okay.” No one is dying, and nothing horrible is transpiring. Because if it was, she’d have led with those details. So I go to the fridge and search its contents for a snack to eat. “What’s happening? And if you tell me a D.B. woke in the fridge again, I’m gonna flip a table.”

On the other side of the room, Cato snorts.

“No one woke, Chief. But as it turns out, one of the cases that rolled in a little earlier was picked up by Doctor Chase.”

“Annnnnd? Doctor Chase is an alien from outer space, and his medical degree was a forgery?”

She rolls her eyes. I justknowit.

“No. He’s not an alien, so far as I can tell. But he had a mishap during autopsy that led to a torn glove and a puncture wound on the side of his finger. The wound is tiny,” she adds quickly, knowing mythis is fineattitude dissipates in an instant. “Needle prick size. Chase alerted me immediately, at which time, we flushed the wound and followed all protocols. The issue is…”

“Shit.” I slam the fridge closed and groan. “There’s an issue.”

“Yeah. As luck would have it, the D.B.’s medical records arrived a little after that incident. He died from HIV-related complications.”

“Dammit, Patten!” I turn from the fridge and startle when I find two Malones staring straight back at me. Alerted by my tone, and concerned, because that’s who they are. But I close my eyes and focus on my call. “Shit. This is bad.”

“I know. I’m sorry, Chief. It was a freak accident. Chase is a veteran M.E. and he’s never had something like this happen before. He’s entirely capable and not a?—”

“He’s not being fired. Relax. Send him to the hospital immediately for testing, and?—”

“Already done. I had two others escort him down while I stayed behind to close the D.B. and put him away. I wanted to make sure it was done right, and no one else was at risk.The suite has been sterilized, of course, and Chase is already having blood drawn. We’ve followed protocol, but it would have been a mistake not to make this call and inform you of what’s happened.”

“You did the right thing.” I draw a long breath and exhale until my lungs constrict. “How’s he handling all this? Chase,” I clarify. “Being stuck and mixing your blood with HIV positive is gonna mentally screw with even the healthiest people.”

“He’s okay so far. He’s always been my toxically positive doctor on staff. Kind of like Emeri is for you. Reality probably won’t smack him for a few more days.”

“What comes next is your call, then.” Frustrated, I run my fingers through my hair. “If you think he needs time off, give it to him. Paid. But if you think he’d benefit from normalcy and routine, then bring him back for shift tomorrow. Some prefer time away, others need everything to be business-as-usual. I’m leaving that decision in your hands, and whatever you decide can be revisited if something should change.”

“Something… like his mental state?”

“Yeah. Exactly like that. Do you need me to come in tonight?”

“Oh, no,” she brushes me off. “It’s fine.”

“My staff are my flock, Patten. Just as your staff are yours. And one of yours got hurt tonight. It might be nothing, or it might be a lot. And that’s a lot for anyone to process. If you need to be set free for a few hours, or a few days, tell me and I’ll pick up the slack.”

“I’m one of the business-as-usual types, Chief. I’m also aware you’re planning a funeral and have your own things happening. I’m sincerely sorry for interrupting, especially this week.”

“No need to be sorry. I’m a business-as-usual type, too.” I drag my eyes open and stop on Archer’s while he waits. His hands on his hips and his bottom lip trapped between his teeth. “If you need me to step in, you’ll call.”

“Yes, Chief. I won’t drop the ball until you’re here and ready to catch.”

“And you’ll have an incident report on my desk by tomorrow morning. The mayor will want to know what happened, and he won’t shut the hell up unless he’s certain both flocks are being cared for. Make it thorough and ensure there’s a section in there about how we’ll keep this from happening again.”

“Yes, Chief. Will do.”

“Any word on how long Chase will be at the hospital?”

“Probably a few more hours. There isn’t a lot to be done tonight except draw a little blood and shove prophylaxis down his throat. The real testing begins a few weeks from now, and as you know, won’t stop for several months after.”

“Yeah.”Three months of hell, at least. “I know.”

“I imagine they’ll tuck him away and feed him juice and ice-cream until his hands stop shaking. His wife is a nurse over there, so that’ll be a big discussion, too. I doubt I’ll hear much until I head down there after shift in the morning.”

So he’s married, and now he can’t safelybewith his wife until this is all straightened out. “Alright.” Sighing, I drop my head back and stare up at the ceiling. “Don’t run away until we have time to talk in the morning. Unless youneedto leave,” I amend. “You know, like, mentally, you feel like you have to check out. Keep me informed via text as you get new information. Hopefully, I’ll wake to something along the lines of, ‘Psych. We were totally kidding.’”

She snorts.

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