Page 116 of Legacy of Danger
Chapter 34
Damn Vaughn Taggart anyway.
And damn herself. For a person who gave out advice all day long, she had a hell of a personal blind spot.
It took all of her energy to focus on each patient in the office today and not make mistakes. But her eyes burned as she tried to read the blurry medical record on the computer. Picking the right doses of medication became dicey. The day dragged along, slower and longer than it ever should.
It wasn't like she had tons to look forward to after work.
God, she had been so stupid.
Which hurt worse: trusting Vaughn and being wrong or trustingherselfand being wrong?
Moot point. He made a choice and it didn't involve her. Then why did it feel like an ice pick had been driven through her chest?
Get a grip. Do your job.Personal issues needed to wait until after work.
An urgent add-on showed up on the end of her schedule. Izzy Brand.
At 5:45 p.m., Mariah knocked and entered the exam room.
"Hi, Izzy." She forced her upbeat tone.
The woman stared at the floor. "Hi." Her voice came out flat.
"What can I do for you today?" Settling on the rolling stool, Mariah rested her hands on crossed legs and waited.
Izzy shoved her golden blonde hair away from her face. Tears shimmered in her stunning blue eyes, underscored with dark circles. The woman's lower lip trembled. "Do you... um, do you have something I could take so I don't care about my life?"
Whoa. Mariah leaned forward, medical radar on high alert. "Could you explain that a little more?"
No words emerged for thirty seconds. Izzy brushed at the tears with the heel of her hand, and Mariah offered a box of Kleenex. "It's like I can't take the stress with my mom, my family, and everything anymore. Life. Right now."
"Do you feel like you want to harm yourself or someone else?" Oh, God. Was this vibrant, pleasant woman suicidal?
"No. I wouldn't do anything like that." She sniffed and crumpled a tissue in her hand. "It's that... there's no end in sight. I'm doing most of the work to help Mom. And that's okay. I mean, she's my mom and all. I understand that she's got a difficult medical condition where complications happen. It's not her fault. Then my brother, Hank, disappeared not long after he went off the rails. Now people in town look at me like I'm bad, too. I can't handle the judgment, especially from people I—"
"What?"
"Nothing." She blew her nose. "Now Wyatt and Tommy are bossing me around."
"Are they threatening you?"
"No. Not really. Just being mean."
"Mean, how?"
"You know how brothers are, right?"
Mariah nodded, but truly, Kevin had never, ever been mean to her.
Izzy touched her damp cheek. "Their comments to me are cruel, like why can't I do more to help around the house and why am I so nosy about their business. Good grief. I'm twenty-six years old. Time for my own life, right? But every time I get fed up and think about moving out, the guilt about Mom stops me. My brothers make me feel like, if I leave, Mom'll die." She whispered, "It's like I'm trapped."
"Trapped?"
"Sometimes, yes." A grim smile flickered across her face. "No matter what I do, it's the wrong answer. And I don't understand this other thing going on." She leaned forward, elbows on her worn winter pants. "But there's something else happening. At home."
Mariah tilted her head. "I don't follow."
