I told Gene to use the money he’d raised to buy back his car, pay back Dave and then put the fifteen thousand he made from selling the photograph of June into June’s bank account for when she wakes up. I also told him to speak to his father – seeing as he’s the only one Robert will see – and update him on everything.
When I reach the ICU I’m met by two men in Sheriff uniforms, one of whom is Jonathan. He waves me through with a nod of the head and a smile and I can see why Hannah is attracted to him. He’s a good-looking guy, and she’s always gone for the athletic, all-American types. I’m glad she has him supporting her at a time like this.
As soon as I walk through the door into the ICU I see the hospital administrator walking out of June’s room. Today she’s wearing a tailored black pantsuit and heels, her trusty clipboard still welded to her chest. My stomach muscles contract at the sight of her, like armor locking into place, and I look around desperately for escape routes. There are none.
‘I was just coming to find you,’ she says, noticing me.
‘Oh,’ I answer, and for a brief moment hope soars in me. Is it June? Have they done another MRI?
‘If we could just take a seat in here,’ she says, gesturing towards the relatives’ room, and I follow her, pulse quickening.
But if it was good news about June I’d expect the doctors to be present, and there’s no one in the room. The wind taken out of my sails, I turn back to the door. I have things to do. The specialist is due any moment and I want to check in on June first, relieve Hannah from duty.
‘You know what?’ I say to the woman. ‘I don’t have time for this.’
I make to move past but she stops me. ‘This will only take a moment.’ She gestures at a seat but I stay standing.
She sighs. ‘As you know we’re sorry there was a lapse in security that allowed what happened to happen.’
I open my mouth to tell her it wasn’t so much a lapse in security as a total fucking fuck-up but she keeps going, obviously rattling off a pre-prepared statement that she must have learned by heart.
‘While we recognize our limited role . . .’
‘Limited?’ I hiss, eyes bugging.
A muscle by her eye twitches in response. ‘In respect of the situation the hospital board has drafted the following contract, which we would appreciate you looking over.’
She hands me a sheaf of paperwork and I take it, bewildered. I scan the pages, the words bouncing nonsensically in front of my eyes. Concentrating hard, I’m able to put together the gist of it and after a few minutes I look up. ‘You’re trying to buy us off?’
The muscle starts to ping by her eye again as though someone’s tugging on it. She gives me a polite but pained smile. ‘I wouldn’t call it that. We are aware of what our liabilities might be and we also know what your liabilities are, as regards the health insurance situation. If you sign this contract all those liabilities go away. You won’t have to pay a single dollar for June’s care, retrospectively or going forwards.’
‘If we agree not to sue the hospital.’
She nods.
I look at the number with six zeroes after it, and the dotted line where I’m supposed to sign. When I glance up she’s holding out a pen. On seeing my expression she quickly withdraws it. ‘Of course, take your time, speak to a lawyer.’ She stands up. ‘But the offer is only on the table for twenty-four hours.’ She crosses to the door and starts to open it.
‘I can give you your answer now,’ I say. I slowly rip the contract in two and then drop the pieces to the floor. Stepping over them I walk towards her, stopping when I’m just a few inches away. ‘The thing is, my husband is innocent. And when he’s released from prison our insurance will pay out and cover all our medical bills. And then,’ I say, reaching for the door handle, ‘we’ll take great pleasure in suing your asses into the ground. Here.’ I pull a card from my pocket and give it to her.
She looks down at it, frowning.
‘If you have anything else to say to me you can say it through my lawyer.’
I got the business card from Raul. It’s their lawyer. The woman in the thousand-dollar suit. Now, happily, our lawyer too. And it turns out I didn’t even have to pay her a retainer. I just offered her a percentage of the payout.
I don’t bother to wait for the woman’s reaction. I stride past her and out the door, slamming it behind me. Let her stew in that.
I find Gene asleep in a chair beside June’s bed. He wakes with a start when the door closes behind me and leaps to his feet, disorientated.
‘Where’s Hannah?’ I ask him, looking around.
He shakes his head. ‘She wasn’t here when I got here.’
‘What?’ She was meant to be here, watching June. Where did she go?
‘The nurse said she left about midnight, just after Laurie.’
‘Laurie was here?’ I ask, even more confused.
Gene shrugs again. ‘That’s what they said. I didn’t see either of them. But I only got here an hour ago. It took me a while to arrange a time to visit Dad.’
I nod, pulling out my phone. ‘Did you try calling her?’ I ask.
‘I couldn’t. I can’t make a call from here and I didn’t want to leave the room. You told me not to.’
I nod. Damn. ‘OK, I’ll be back
