Page 14 of Forbidden Romeo

Aisha gives me an odd look. “Of course. I thought for a second you were going to ask me to hide a body for you. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“If he asks about me, you don’t know me. You don’t know my name or how long I’ve been here,” I whisper urgently.

This sobers her up instantly; she glances over my shoulder, too, and replies simply, “Okay.”

“Thank you,” I say and give her a look that I hope expresses the depth of my gratitude before moving on to Dr. Lous’ office.

The attending physician is hunched over her desk, tapping away on an ancient computer as I enter. It seems her distaste for technology stretches beyond just the pagers.

“Maguire,” she says after she glances up at me. “How’s the nine-two-two?”

I don’t bother correcting her. “Under control. I’m here because I need to file for a name change urgently.”

“You get married in the half-hour since I last saw you or something?” Lous says dryly.

“Or something.”

Lous looks up at me properly. “Listen, I don’t know how you did things back in LA, but administration here is more of a marathon, not a sprint. I’m not sure they understand the term ‘urgently.’”

“I thought maybe if it came from you–”

“I have a thousand other things to do before I even get half a second to myself. Unfortunately for you, that time will be spent napping and not arguing with the admin department,” Lous replies matter-of-factly before softening a little. “I’m sorry, but you’ll have to take it up with them yourself.”

“I have a stalker!” I blurt out suddenly—the story forms in my head milliseconds before the lie leaves my mouth. “That’s why I moved from LA. But I just saw him here today. I think he’s tracked me down somehow, and I don’t know what else to do.”

Dr. Lous stares at me in shock. “Why did you not make the request sooner?”

“I did,” I reply. “But I think there was some kind of admin error. My lanyard came through with my old name, and I haven’t had a chance to change it.”

The older woman pinches her nose and reaches for her phone. As she punches in the number, she says, “Give me your lanyard and leave out the staff exit. I want you back here tomorrow morning to collect your new one. Understood?”

“Yes, thank you,” I say, not having to fake the relief that fills my voice.

She waves me away, and I retreat.

As I quietly make a beeline for the exit, I squash down the guilt of lying and abandoning my post when I know the team needs me. But if the shoot-out did involve theDead Eyes, there could be even more people who would be able to identify me.

I leave the hospital behind me and make my way to the subway on foot.

All I can do is hope that my name change will be enough to throw them off for a while until I can think up an excuse to change hospitals. Maybe Lous will be able to give me a referral letter. However, she was right about one thing—admin takes a long time. For now, I’m going to have to make do.

As I’m thinking this, I pass by a beauty supply shop, and I pause.

There’s one more thing I can try.

Back home, I immediately run to the bathroom and lock the door behind me.

Thankfully, Roisin is still in class. Otherwise, I know she’d murder me for even attempting this. But, as I coat my hair in the dark, semipermanent dye, I know it’s the right thing to do. We’ve been here less than a week, and already my worst fear has been realized. There’s no way Roisin will be able to make it through school at this rate.

I rinse and dry quickly and stare at the new reflection looking at me in the mirror. Her brown eyes look somehow duller now that her hair matches their shade. My fair skin looks paler in contrast too, and Lord knows I’ll need to work on my tan before the summer. But it’s a start.

Besides, no one cares what you look like when you’re giving them life-saving care, and it’s not like I moved here to start dating, either. I can live with being brunette.

My reflection offers me a tentative smile.

It’s going to be okay. Ithasto be okay.

What the hell have I gotten myself into?

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