Whispers of the marrow, p.34
Whispers of the Marrow, page 34
Aryn dismissed Taylor’s explanation, her alarmingly hazel eyes hardening. Taylor had never seen her look so determined. “I won’t give up on her. I won’t abandon her again,” Aryn said fervently.
“I know you won’t,” Taylor whispered, her eyes soft. “That’s why you should say your final goodbyes now.”
“What are you going to do, forbid me from seeing her?” Aryn challenged. The affirmation went unspoken, only serving to make her defensive. She looked like she wanted to scream. And she did. “She needs me! Don’t you get that? We need each other!” Aryn dissolved into tears. “I’ll fight you on this,” she whispered weakly as Taylor brought her into an apologetic embrace.
“I know, sis.”
Nathaniel ascended the stone staircase, arriving at the forest green main entrance of Shiny Hymns. The Lion Foundation, a non-profit he had established post-doctorate, had become the primary private funding for the clinic for the past seven years. Shiny Hymns had come a long way from the dilapidated county institution he had visited so many years ago, yet with the recent mysterious incident resulting in numerous injuries, an explosion of some sort, a coma, a vehicular accident, and a missing patient and employee, things were less than copacetic.
The foundation’s public relations team and law firm had certainly both earned their paychecks in ensuring it all remained in-house.
Nathaniel slipped his master key card through the slider and entered the facility in a comfortable navy suit. Approaching the check-in desk where orderlies went out of their way to appear busy, he was pleased with the perceived normality Shiny Hymns had found once again. Two business administrators were standing rigid in their observation of the employees, no doubt hovering due to one of the rare personal visits from the board president.
“Dr. LaConte,” one of them greeted, rounding the raised office platform with his hand extended. “It’s wonderful to see you again.”
“Likewise, Dr. Jacobs,” Nathaniel said, grudgingly returning the shake. “Always a pleasure.”
Laramie Jacobs wasn’t his favorite person, however. During the man’s fifteen-year running of the facility, Jacobs had never turned down a pharmaceutical kickback and had become a fundamental pill pusher who had driven the clinic to near ruin. Long-term care until insurance stopped paying out for patients defined the operation, thus the Lion Foundation’s first order of business was demoting Jacobs from chief to middle management.
And Nathaniel ensured his own personal financers oversaw monthly billing reports, allowing profits and public opinion of Shiny Hymns to grow steadily since. “I only wish it could be under better circumstances,” Nathaniel added.
Jacob’s lips thinned at the implied failure, his bushy eyebrows arching in challenge as he replied, “Yes, but I assure you things are back on track and a full investigation is still—”
“Ongoing,” Nathaniel interjected tiredly. “I’m here to conduct my own investigation as one of my patients was involved. I have little interest in the other matters you’ve neglected to prevent, except to say they should never occur again.”
“Interesting. I heard you were no longer seeing patients.” Dr. Jacobs said, never one to be dismissed in the eyes of any of his subordinates failing to hide their eavesdropping.
“And I fail to see how that’s any of your business,” Nathaniel returned. “Perhaps if your attentions were on the daily tasks given to one in your position, you could’ve saved me the trip.”
Laramie’s fists clenched at his side. “I beg your—”
“I have an office all set up for you, Dr. LaConte,” the second administrator cut in. The dark-haired woman in a black pantsuit walked closer, forcing Laramie to take a step back. “Dr. Matilda Oxendine,” she said as she shook Nathaniel’s hand.
Nathaniel offered her a friendly smile. “Dr. Oxendine, that’s right. I’m sorry we’ve yet to meet in person until now, but I’ve heard of the great things you’ve accomplished since coming aboard as our outpatient chief.”
“Well, you have my sincere thanks for the opportunity. And I can assure you, all the great things are true.” Matilda chuckled, pushing her hair behind her ear. She gestured to a small conference room across the entrance hall. “Shall we?”
“Thank you,” Nathaniel said, following her toward the door.
“Dr. LaConte,” Laramie called out, halting his irked employer. “Considering it has been such a long time since you’ve graced us with your presence, I took the initiative of arranging a small visit with your father.”
Nathaniel’s eyes narrowed, and before he could smite Jacobs for his unappreciated assumption, a male nurse pushed a wheelchair-bound man into the foyer. The patient’s scraggly gray hair lay combed to the side and he wore a forest green sweatshirt with the Shiny Hymns logo. And even with the support system keeping his head erect, the crystal blue of his eyes—long faded by an ongoing undetermined affliction—remained cast toward the ground.
Nathaniel bit the inside of his cheek at the sight of his father, a man he had avoided seeing for several years.
“How are you feeling today, Lynn?” Laramie asked. He kneeled beside the wheelchair, placing a gentle hand on the patient’s shoulder, and in response to Lynnard LaConte’s twenty plus years of catatonic silence, he grinned wolfishly. “You have a visitor.”
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About the Author
Faine Bird was born and raised in North Carolina. She currently resides there with her partner and houseplants.
When she isn't writing, she's kickboxing, reading, listening to music, or taking a walk.
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Ransom Publishing LLC is a small publisher based in Raleigh, NC. They aim to reshape the publishing landscape and promote a more inclusive literary community.
Read more at Ransom Publishing LLC’s site.
Faine Bird, Whispers of the Marrow
