Page 19 of Icy Heart, Empty Chest

Fifteen minutes before he was due to speak, I made my move.

“Excuse me, Dr Ziedlin? I’m trying to load your presentation and I’m having some issues with the file. Can you follow me?” I put on my most charming smile and let him down the thoroughfare away from the crowd and around the corner.

Knocking him off balance, I pushed him into a nearby closet. I felt bad for this, truly. I heard him hit the ground with a loud thud, pretzel remnants flying.

“Hey! What are you doing?” He was on his side, arms up defensively.

I groaned internally. This was no hardened criminal.

This was a desperate scientist. While he had about forty pounds on me, he was breathing like he was running laps.

I barely had to bump him. This would not go down as my proudest moment in any career.

I reached a hand into my boot and pulled up the knife hidden there, flicking it open.

I let out a breath and advanced on him, kneeling, putting the knife to his throat.

“Listen to me very carefully and don’t try to scream. I need to know where the heart is.”

“What are you talking about?” he babbled. Tears were gathering at the corners of his eyes.

“Don’t do this, you’re expected up there in a very limited amount of time,” I remarked dryly.

Why do they always deny? “I know you bought a kelpie heart on the black market. I know you’re going to use it in your cancer research.

I know the owner and they need it back. Where is it?

” The knife was biting in enough to form a red dot on it.

“You’re mad!” he howled and tried to pry my arm away from his throat. I winced at the volume.

“First, lower your voice,” I said, pressing harder.

“Of course I’m mad but since you know what I’m talking about, give me the location of the heart or I lead you out onto that stage and tell every coworker you’ve ever had that you’re resorting to black-market organs, how much you paid and where you got it.

I will tank your entire reputation without batting an eye.

You won’t be able to get another grant for as long as you practice. ”

He stilled. He didn’t have to know me to see how serious I was. Threatening a scientist with their own review boards was low but I wasn’t taking any chances.

“You don’t understand,” he pleaded. Both hands were up in the air and I could see tremors.

“I do actually, better than most.” I gave him a sympathetic look that was entirely genuine. “It doesn’t change the fact that the owner needs it back.” I sighed as he took his deep gulping breaths.

“Look, you don’t understand,” he said again. I was growing even more agitated.

“Doc, what am I not getting? Make me understand.”

He stood up slowly and reached for his back packet. I closed in, thinking he may be going for a weapon but instead he produced an old leather wallet. With trembling fingers he opened it and passed me a picture of a little girl.

“My daughter. I didn’t even know I had her until late in residency.

I knew the mother during med school. We hooked up a few times but both knew it wasn’t heading anywhere, both busy.

Just stress relief. She messaged me out of the blue about five years later saying, ‘Hey, here’s your daughter, by the way, she has an extremely aggressive form of brain cancer.

’ I was stunned, to say the least,” he stammered.

“I didn’t even know she had been pregnant, let alone gave birth, and now this little life is coming to me for treatment.

It changes you and your priorities. I felt compelled to treat her.

It’s my specialty even if it’s not the most moral or ethical. ”

“Tick tock, doctor.” I patted my watch, thinking of Damien.

He rushed on. “Her case was one of the most aggressive I’ve ever seen and she had tried almost every treatment in the book.

I didn’t want to but I came to care about her as more than a patient, more as my daughter.

Her mom is trying so hard to hold on, just like she is. But the survival rate is just dismal.”

I saw his eyes getting watery.

“Doctor. I think you’re an honorable man.

I think you want to help sick kids. I am entirely sympathetic to that, I can’t imagine being in your shoes.

But I cannot let you keep this heart. The owner made a mistake and he needs it.

He will die. I cannot allow that. Besides, you were going to tank your entire career on an unproven treatment?

What happens if she doesn’t survive it? You know it’s risky.

I’m giving you an out. Tell me where it is and no one ever has to know.

You have seven minutes though. I can either prove with pictures what you were going to do with it, or you tell me where it is. ”

“She still has it!” he said a bit breathlessly.

“Who does?”

“The witch!”

“You took it back to Filla the witch?”

“I thought it was safest there! I was going to pick it up after the conference.”

“Take out your phone,” I commanded. He complied with shaky hands. “Send her a message that the original owner will be coming back to claim it and she can keep your money as a consolation fee. Do it. Now.”

I watched him shakily type the message and hit send.

“Good. I walk away now and you go do your presentation. Wait two minutes then go. No harm done. And believe me, you don’t want to know the whirlwind of shit I can dump on you if you tell anyone what just happened here.

” I adjusted his bow tie and stalked to the door.

I flicked the light off and exited, finding the nearest door and casually walking back to my car, gunning it as soon as I got the key in the ignition.

People remember those who run. No one cares about a doctor that skips out on a lecture at a leisurely pace.

The drive back was on adrenaline, with the occasional giggle bubbling out of me.

I knew where it was.

I tried to call Damien but it went to voicemail.

Maybe he was still asleep, I reasoned. I tried again forty-five minutes later as I got closer to the town line, still no answer.

I realize how many laws I would be breaking today but I just added speeding and reckless driving to the pile.

My gut was saying that something was wrong.

There was no way that he was at work. He was an early riser too, being in bed would be odd.

I pulled up in front of his place, throwing the car in park and knocking on the door.

His car was still there, so clearly he’s not at work.

I didn’t hear anything from within and the tension in me skyrocketed.

I looked through the outside window. I didn’t see anything immediately but further back…there! Part of leg on the ground. Oh no. Dammit.

I was just racking up misdemeanors.

I took off my coat, wrapped it around my fist and punched at the window. I reached in, ignoring the scrape of glass on my skin and manually unlocked the door, dashing inside.

He was green, well, greener than normal. He was slumped awkwardly on his couch breathing heavily, coated in a deep sweat.

“Damien! Oh gods, oh gods.” I didn’t see any injury but his color was pasty, sickly. He was cool to the touch. This was not good.

“If you can lean on me and walk a bit to my car, I know where it is. I know where your heart is. But you’ve got to stay with me OK?” I urged. He gave me a sad, pleading look and rested his head back on the couch.

I didn’t think time was this short. I took his hand and squeezed, hard.

He gave me a weak laugh and reached for me slowly. “That’s my girl.” His usual tenor was raspy.

I pulled his arm around me and nearly got pulled down trying to stand him up.

He was pure deadweight. The sweat from his arm coated the back of my neck and I gagged a bit.

“Dae,” I gasped, “use your legs a bit more.” He groaned, complying.

I was able to get us upright and he took a few heavy steps towards his door.

His muscular frame was heavier than I thought it’d be.

“Mind the glass. I’ll replace it later.” I was hoping I was coming off more confident than I actually was.

His leg slipped down from the first step to the second and I was starting to perspire myself.

The steps were one at a time, slowly. If he went back down, I’m not sure if I could get him back up.

I could try to heal him but I couldn’t drive while that drained.

I doubt it would help that much either. Not at this stage.

Propping him on the car’s side, I threw open the back door and unceremoniously stuffed him in, awkwardly throwing the seatbelt into place. Now, instead of slumping awkwardly and over his couch, it was the backseat of my car. I prayed to all the gods that I would not get pulled over.

I tapped my phone back to life and dialed a number.

“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes, clear a table.”