Page 100 of Misery and Ecstasy

Her mother has pulled away from her, and the two of them are talking quietly while Alexander stands behind the couch taking it all in.

“You explained it all to them?” Crossing my arms, I briefly glance at Olivia.

“Everything.”

Alexander leaves Kins and her mother to join me and Olivia in the kitchen.

“I want to thank you again for contacting us. And for taking care of our girl. I’ve noticed an excitement in her voice recently when we’ve spoken. I know you’re the cause of it.”

Nodding my head, I appreciate his honesty. “My only goal in life is to make sure that girl in there is happy.”

We’re quiet for a few more minutes before Royce enters the kitchen through the French doors that lead to the deck.

“Draven, I was just-Oh…” Halting, he startles when he sees Alexander.

“This is McKinsey’s stepfather, Alexander. Alexander, this is Royce.”

“Uh-nice to meet you.” Royce nods from across the kitchen. “Draven, can I see you in my office?”

“Sure. I’ll be right back, Liv.” Pushing off of the counter, I follow Royce down the hallway and into the foyer.

He closes the door behind us when we enter his office.

“What’s up?” I take a seat in the chair in front of Royce’s desk as he sits in the one beside it.

“I asked around a little, throughout the club, to see if anyone could help the doc at all.”

His admission shocks me, but I’m beyond grateful. Confused, I wonder where he’s headed.

“There’s a … member in the Helena, Montana chapter with a medical background; Morwyn. She said she’d be willing to look at the doc’s records and give a second opinion.”

Conflict erupts in me. I’m scared to let any amount of hope in, yet I’m willing to try anything to get Kins the help she needs.

“Wow, okay. That’s good news. I’ll talk to Firewall to see what he can get from the hospital’s servers.”

Royce shakes his head, confusing me.

“No, we already did that and sent everything over to her a couple days ago.”

I eye Royce questioningly.

“I didn’t want to say anything to you until we had more information. I just got off the phone with her.”

Holy shit.

My breath catches in my throat as I wait for Royce to continue.

“She said there looks to be something off with the scan from the MRI. She explained that this can happen if the patient moves during the exam, or if there‘s something wrong with the machine itself. A broken coil or something, I don’t really understand the specifics she mentioned, just that it could skew the image.”

Rage soars through me. Kins is smart enough to stay still, so I know she didn’t have anything to do with it. How can a hospital fuck around with someone’s life like this? Don’t they have people to maintain the machines?

“She has a contact at Hudson in Baltimore. She said they would be the best chance the doc has at deciding how to fight this thing. I told her to give them your information, so if you get a call from a random Maryland number, you may want to answer it.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

MCKINSEY

Walking into the Evergreen Cancer Center takes every bit of strength that I have in me.

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