Maddy's Floor (7 page)

"Drew, welcome. Glad to have you here, finally."

Wilson Carter walked toward him, arm outstretched. They'd worked together for years, then apart for the last two when Wilson had transferred to this unit. He'd worked on Drew, slowly, inevitably persuading him to join the Cold Case department. Drew hoped to find that sense of job satisfaction here that eluded him in his former position.

Solving old cases with forgotten victims and helping out the families that had been waiting for closure since forever, should give that to him.

He shook Wilson's hand and listened as his old friend gave him an overview of the work area and the cases in progress. "Wow, it seems like we have some work to do."

"Ya think?"

Drew grinned, feeling a weight slide off his shoulders. "And I'm damn glad to be here." He glanced at the one wall beside the doorway that held several kids' pictures. "Where do we start?"

"We have several cases that have been reopened. It's going to take you some time to get up to speed on everything so I suggest you start with one. Go over it so you can become familiar with it, and then go on to the next. However…" He walked over to study the board in question. "This isn't really one of them. Although, when we have a lull or spare time, feel free to look deeper. However, unless you come up with some concrete lead – well, it's not in the budget. We have to use the limited man hours where we can make a difference."

Drew stepped closer to the old photos on the wall. Six of them, boys and girls, one black and one of mixed race, Mexican maybe. The others were Caucasians. The fresh happy faces tore at his heart. If they were on the wall, they were victims. Victims he'd come here to help. He read the brief notes interspersing the old photos.

Glancing over at Wilson, he said, "I'll find time to go over this case though, even if it's in my spare time. I remember my uncle telling me about this one. Fascinating stuff."

Wilson nodded. "And very odd."

***

Doris glared at the small black cell phone. Her hand trembled so hard, she could barely hold the receiver to her ear. Her perfect asshole of a brother was gloating. Again.
Jerk.
In truth, he wasn't really her brother. Her mother had married his father when they were young enough to share their parents and old enough to hate having to do so. A difference she'd come to appreciate over the years. She tugged ruthlessly at the blankets, pulling them higher on her chest.

"You got a bed on Maddy's floor? I don't believe you." And she didn't. Her application had been in for months – if not years. Who could remember? The days rolled into one hellish moment after another. "How did you get accepted before I did?"

"Money. Something I have a lot of and you don't."

John's joy made her sick. How dare he bribe his way in? And gloat about it. No siree, she wasn't letting this slide. The Haven would pay for this insult.

With the new wing opening, she'd hoped her application would finally be accepted. So far, only a couple of new patients had heard about their transfer requests. If she trusted the gossip, there were another ten beds or so still to fill. Patients had been in a frenzy trying to get transfer requests in as fast as possible, only they needed their doctor's approval too. Surely, one of those beds had her name on it?

She closed her phone while her brother was mid-sentence. There was only so much gloating she could handle. Besides, the second floor of The Haven was chaos. Doris watched the organized mess continue, as it did at this time of day every day. There was no weekend off from being poked, prodded and asked silly questions, with answers noted on the clipboard for all to see. Who in the world cared if she'd had her fiber and whether it was working or not? Peace was a prized commodity. Still it was better than the being in the morgue. Doris shook her head, her busy fingers pleating the sheets on her chest.

She studied the others in her ward. She'd had the same three neighbors for the last six months or so. No one left here except in a coffin. They should paint the walls black to prepare everyone for that certainty. Instead, someone had painted a happy yellow color on the walls. Yuck.

Still she'd been here close to a year. If John would give his head a shake, he'd understand that she was the one who deserved to be on Dr. Maddy's floor – not him. She didn't mind if he joined later – after he'd done his time on the other floors.

The higher the floor here, the closer to God. At least that was the rumor. She could believe it. The few times, she'd been privileged to see Dr. Maddy, she'd given off such a peaceful serenity it made Doris want to reach out and touch her. So young and so beautiful… Doris just knew she'd been graced by God.

That her stepbrother should get to Maddy's floor before her was intolerable. Settling back into bed, Doris pondered her next move.

Something had to be done.

***

Maddy, carrying her big ceramic mug, clipped down the open hallway at an astonishing speed. She wanted this over as quickly as possible. She had to curb the negativity and the fastest way to deal with that was to face the issue. Smiling at the patients as she walked past, her steps slowed as she reached the new wing.

"Dr. Lenning." She turned her groomed smile on her new arrival. Only by drawing on her years of experience did she keep her shock at his appearance from showing. The tall arrogant doctor who had made her life hell had turned into a shrunken and obviously very ill man – a shell of his former self.

"Welcome to The Haven."

His response?

A glare.

She raised an eyebrow and waited him out. Everyone knew the only way to beat an aggressive dog was to make sure he knew who was boss. Maddy had no intention of backing down to anyone on her floor – especially him.

Keeping her professionalism firmly in place, she let him see the amusement in her gaze. If he wanted to pout, let him. She'd dealt effectively with similar patients before. To that end, she walked forward and straightened his sheet, tucking it up to his shoulders, shifting his little table closer so he'd be able to reach his water. Lifting his glass, she asked, "Would you like a drink? I'm sure your mouth must be dry from the air in here."

His glare deepened.

She smiled as if he were an obstinate child. "No? Okay, maybe you'll feel like it later." She replaced the glass and stepped back. As if by rote, she rambled off the traditional greeting. "Welcome to The Haven. Here your comfort, your health and your state of mind are important to us. Our guarantee, our promise to you, is to make your visit as happy as can be. We'll give you the best medical care we can and hope you enjoy the rest of your stay here with us."

As she finished, she grinned down at him. "That's the professional version. Now for my version. I'm not sure what brought you to my floor or why; however I take my responsibilities and my residents' care seriously. I will do everything I can to maintain a loving and peaceful state among the residents and staff. As harmony is a prime goal, those that find 'being nice' on a regular basis too challenging will be moved to a different floor immediately. This floor is for those who are interested in improving their quality of life for however long they have one to enjoy."

His glare, had it been lasered, would have left her in tiny pieces strewn across the floor. Maddy didn't care. For the first time, the reality sank in. So what if the high and mighty Dr. Lenning had made her life hell before? This man was dying. He was incapable of getting up off that bed and attacking her again. His words would never have the same impact they'd had before, and knowing this was his last stop before death's door put the control firmly in her hands.

She relaxed. She didn't need to fear him. She could sympathize with his situation.

She could do that.

It was a long way from compassion and love but it was equally far from fear and hate.

For her, life was all about balance.

She smiled at the silent patient and continued. "Your doctor, Dr. Paul Cunningham, will be here this afternoon. You know the drill. He'll review your information then make his way here to go over your treatment options with you."

Shock lit his eyes. "What?"

"Oh, didn't you know? My caseload is full. Dr. Cunningham, however, who has been reducing his load for the last year, has agreed to take on your case. He's a specialist of repute, as you well know. So you are in good hands."

She stepped back, her heels clicking on the hardwood. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have other patients I must see." With a final nod in his direction, she repeated her greeting, this time with real feeling. "Welcome to The Haven."

THURSDAY

H
alfway to work the next morning, a light misting rain started, soaking Maddy. Typical coastal weather – although technically Portland wasn't on the coast. What a day to decide she needed fresh air. Just as she resigned herself to getting drenched, a car honked and pulled up beside her. Maddy turned and recognized Gerard driving his charcoal beamer. She smiled with relief.

As she slid into the front seat, her suit jacket started to steam and her hair started to curl. She clipped in her seatbelt. "What a mess."

He pulled back into traffic, his movements sure and confident like the CEO he was. "You will walk."

"I know," she said ruefully. "Most of the time, it's fine. Then there're days like today."

He shot her an admiring glance. "Even soaking wet and imitating a duck, you're damned gorgeous."

Maddy laughed. Gerard had been making backhanded compliments to her for years. She refused to take them seriously. It went against her personnel policy. Dating coworkers was bad business. Messy. She didn't do messy. "Thanks, I think."

"I'll be sorting applications today to fill that bed as soon as possible."

She frowned, a knot forming inside. She had no empty beds "What bed?"

He frowned at her. "Didn't Dr. Cunningham call you?"

Alarm triggered her nervous stomach, making it want to empty on the spot. "No. What did I miss?" Maddy pulled out her cell phone. She checked but there were no messages and no missed calls.

She frowned. Dr. Cunningham was usually good at staying in touch as a professional courtesy. If something had happened to one of her patients, he'd have called her.

"Jansen Svaar passed away last night."

Maddy stared at him, uncomprehendingly. That wasn't possible. "What?"

Gerard kept an eye on the traffic before darting a quick glance at her. "Apparently he died in his sleep. He was found by the nurse around three this morning."

That didn't feel right. In fact, it felt incredibly wrong. She chewed on the inside of her lip as she turned the information over in her head. Jansen had not been on death's door. She knew that. She'd have known if anything were going on. In fact, she'd scanned his system two days ago, after that weird visitation that had scared her so badly. Everything had been fine. Strong and healthy.

She didn't have all the answers to life and death. In fact, the more she learned, it seemed the less she knew. Particularly with energy work. And people died all the time - except, the last death on her floor had been eight months ago. Eight months was a long time for terminally ill patients. And she wouldn't have taken Jansen Svaar for the next candidate; far from it.

Jansen shouldn't have died.

And Dr. Cunningham should have informed her.

Gerard pulled the car into the underground parking lot. Disturbed, Maddy strode with him to the elevators.

"I'll speak with Dr. Miko. See what she has to say about his death." The in-house pathologist hated mysteries and could usually be counted on to come up with the answers Maddy wanted.

He nodded. "Remember Maddy, people die. Especially here."

Maddy tilted her lips slightly. She knew Jansen's bed would be filled within hours.

She understood, although she didn't particularly like it.

An hour later she closed the door to her office, relieved. She needed a few moments of peace…to adjust. A few minutes to mourn the loss of someone who'd been a joy to have on her floor. She couldn't believe how personally devastating she found Jansen's death. He'd been doing so well.

A knock sounded on her door.

"Come in," she called out, trying to compartmentalize her feelings and lock them down until she had space and time to sort through them.

A tall imposing man stood in her doorway. "I'm looking for Dr. Madeleine Wagner."

Maddy's gaze widened at the dignified stranger in her doorway. "Yes, that's me. What can I do for you?"

He smiled, walked forward, held out his hand. "Nice to finally meet you. I'm Dr. Chandler of Madison House. I'd like to speak with you, if you have a couple minutes to spare."

She stood up, smiling at one of the most respected surgeons and researchers on this side of the country. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Chandler. Please, have a seat." She motioned toward the seating arrangement out on the covered deck. The earlier rain had stopped, letting the sun peek out. "May I offer you some coffee?"

At his surprised nod, she fussed at her machine for a few minutes, then picked up the two cups and joined him outside.