A light rain had started up, coating my hair and my jacket as soon as I stepped out of the car into the night. My feet splashed in black puddles as I hurried across the pavement. The familiar sound of sirens made me stop abruptly, heart hammering. But they weren’t for me; an ambulance’s lights flashed as it whooped into the emergency bay.

Cass was coming out the revolving doors as I entered. She lifted her coffee cup in a wave, her crooked teeth gleaming. I smiled but kept walking, not wanting to give the impression that I could linger to talk.

I found Gabe in the café eating a bowl of teriyaki.

“What the hell are you doing?” I hissed.

He shrugged and spoke with his mouth full. “What? I haven’t had dinner.”

I watched as he chewed, the food sliding slowly down his throat, and had the sudden urge to shove him off his chair. Anger and fear and adrenaline coiled in my veins.

“We don’t have time for this!”

“Sure we do. Sit down.” He shoved a chair out with his foot. After a moment, I dropped into it. “Are you sure you want to do this?” He looked closely at me.

“We don’t really have a choice.”

“We could just find someone to hack into the system.”

“There isn’t time.”

Had he always been this spineless? Back in high school, he’d been a bad boy with an attitude. If he saw a boundary, he’d cross it; a rule, he’d break it. I’d followed happily along, like a cow, stupid and naïve, desperate to be included.

He lifted both hands. “It’s your funeral, sweetheart.”

“Here’s what we’ll do. I’ll go upstairs and find out if anybody’s in the office. Once I know, I’ll text you. You have the phone I gave you?”

“Yeah.”

“Break into her car, and then come back and sit in the café. That’s all you have to do.”

I slid a piece of paper toward him with her license plate number, which I’d grabbed on my way in from the parking lot, written on it.

“There’s a black-and-white bumper sticker on the back,” I told him. “Grateful not Hateful.”

“What are you going to do?” he asked.

“I’ll tell the security guard I saw someone breaking into her car. He’ll call to let her know, and when she leaves the clinic, I’ll go back in. I just need you to tell me when she heads back upstairs.”

He shoveled the last of the rice into his mouth and stood. “Let’s do this.”

CHAPTER 17

I OPENED THE DOOR to the clinic loudly, clearing my throat as I entered. “Marjorie?”

Marjorie came into the reception area, looking surprised.

“Dr. Sweeney! Hello, dear. Are you okay? How is sweet little Josh?”