Page 66 of Sinful in Scrubs

I grabbed a short glass from the cupboard and dropped in a couple of ice cubes before carrying it out to the cabinet in the dining room where the good stuff was kept. I selected a fine-aged scotch and poured myself a couple of finger widths’ worth. After all, I wanted to sit and savor and think about the universe and Emma. I wasn’t doing this for some kind of quick buzz.

Unfortunately, that’s when my watch pinged with an incoming message.

“Who the hell would be texting me now?” I said aloud as I set the glass down and tapped the front of my watch. It was late, and I didn’t really know anybody who would be texting me other than the kids, and they were both asleep. My gut clenched temporarily as it occurred to me that Blair’s parents would still contact me in an emergency.

It was an incoming message from the hospital. I let out a slow breath knowing it wasn’t my in-laws. I had just left my shift, and I wasn’t on call, so this message was concerning. I set the scotch down on the table and went to the other room to retrieve my phone.

I dialed into the department. “Walker here, what’s up?”

“Oh, good, Dr. Walker. Are you available? There was a subway accident, and we need everybody we can get.”

“That bad, huh?”

“It’s bad. It’s already all over the news, and it’s going to be the leading story for the next couple of days. I know you just got off a shift, but if you are capable, yeah, if you can get in here, we need you.”

“I’ll head right in,” I said.

I picked up the glass of scotch and looked at it as if it were an old friend I was going to have to pass on a dinner meeting with. I shook my head with disappointment.

Momentarily, I thought about pouring the scotch back into the bottle, but the ice had already started to melt, and I certainly didn’t want to taint what was left. I carried the glass and its contents into the kitchen and poured everything down the sink. “Maybe next time.”

I rummaged in the kitchen junk drawer until I found a notepad and left the kids a note. If I sent Jason a text message, the ping would wake him from his sleep. Lily still didn’t have her phone back from her punishment.

With everything at home set, I called a cab and headed in to the hospital.

On the ride in, my cabbie asked, “What brings you out in this weather? Where are you headed this time of night?”

“Manhattan Memorial,” I said.

“Wait, you want me to take you to Manhattan Memorial? The hospital? City General is closer if you need an emergency room.”

“I don’t need an ER. I need to get to Manhattan Memorial.”

“It’ll be a little longer than normal. Traffic is a mess. It’s like a little rain and people forget how to drive. Plus, there’s been something going on with the subways, got some streets mostly shut down. You heard about that?” he asked.

“That’s why I’m headed in.”

“Oh, no, you didn’t have somebody involved, did you?” he asked with what sounded like genuine concern.

“No, no, I’m an emergency doctor. They called me back in to help out.”

“Oh, they’re gonna need you tonight. I heard it’s really bad.”

“Do you know anything? Have they given out any details?” I asked. “I only heard about it when they called to see if I could come back in. I haven’t had a chance to look any information up on my phone.”

“No real details, yet. I’ve only heard that a car went off its rails, and lots of people got hurt. And we got some lines that are going to be shut down for days. It’s going to be a logistical nightmare getting around the city for a while. As if it isn’t already, am I right? That just means more cab fares for me. Not that I’d wish this kind of thing on anybody just to get me more fares in my pockets, you know what I’m saying? But when the subways aren’t working and it’s raining out, I always put in a few more hours a day. The wife doesn’t complain about the overtime when it brings in extra pay. Am I right?”

“I hear you,” I said.

His chatter entertained me during the drive. He was right, traffic was a mess tonight, and it took longer than usual.

As soon as I got to the hospital, I went straight to the emergency department to see what the situation was, and it was absolute mayhem when I arrived.

“Oh, Dr. Walker, I’m so glad you’re here, “Rosa Hernandez said, relief in her tone.

“What have we got?”

The details were sketchy, but apparently, several cars were off the tracks. There may have been a collision of some sort, but I never found out if it was between multiple trains or if a train had collided with some equipment.

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