your patients?”
“Only those patients who think they know more than the doctor.”
Jack eased the sling off his left arm but gripped his right shoulder with his fingers as he stepped into the warm bath. Moments later, Natasha entered and used a sponge to gently wash his back. Jack hunched forward in the water, hoping not to embarrass himself, or if he did, to make sure that Natasha didn’t notice.
“Sit up straight, I’ll wash your front,” she said.
“No! That part I can do myself!”
Natasha seemed amused. “An undercover cop who’s bashful. Interesting. Okay, soak in here for a while and I’ll wash your clothes.”
Jack relaxed when Natasha left the room. He had to admit the bath did feel good, and the warm water seemed to ease the pain. He heard Danny arrive so he got out of the tub and carefully patted himself dry and replaced the sling. When he was finished, he wrapped a towel around himself and walked into the kitchen where Danny and Natasha were having coffee.
“How do you feel?” asked Danny.
“A little like they succeeded in driving over me last night, but I’ll be okay.”
“They tried to drive over you, too?” Natasha asked.
“Yeah, don’t you hate nights like that?” replied Danny with a grin.
“Danny, I’m sorry. I never even thanked you last night. If it hadn’t been for you, I wouldn’t be standing here. I owe you one, brother.”
Danny’s expression became sombre. “After hearing the shots and seeing the blood on the road, I figured they had taken you to either finish you off or dispose of your body. You don’t know how relieved I was to see you! I wasn’t thinking that you would use Marcie’s trick.”
“Marcie’s trick?” asked Natasha.
“He hid under a car.”
“I knew they would find me pretty fast,” said Jack. “I saw their feet as they followed the blood up to the curb. It wouldn’t have taken them long to find me.”
“You mentioned Marcie,” said Natasha. “Is this the same Marcie I treated earlier? You’ve seen her again?”
“Seen her!” said Danny. “Jack’s got her living with his sister and brother-in-law out in the Valley. We were concerned that Social Services might have a leak too.”
“She’s been there less than two days,” said Jack quietly. “I don’t know if it’ll work out.”
Natasha looked at Jack. This guy is pretty special.
Jack flinched as he eased himself into a chair.
“Pansy,” said Danny.
“I’m impressed you were able to convince her to leave her life on the street,” said Natasha. “Most street kids I’ve met are either too addicted or too caught up with the excitement of this whole new world to ever be convinced to leave.”
“Uh … well, actually, it was Danny who took a chance and talked to her. It was a shot in the dark, but it appears to have worked out well.” He turned to Danny to change the subject. “Did you talk to Louie this morning? Does he suspect anything?”
“I told him you decided to take a few days off and go fishing.”
“Fishing! God, you’re a lousy liar.”
“So I’ve been told, but he didn’t say anything.”
“I don’t think I could stand any of his lectures right now. I’ll wait a few days and then let him know we’ve got a new game plan.”
“A new game plan?” asked Danny.
“Time to take the gloves off,” said Jack. He gave Danny a hard look. Danny caught the message and didn’t pursue it.
An uncomfortable silence followed. Everyone took a sip of coffee, then Natasha got up and said, “Well, let’s take a look at you.”
Jack felt her fingers gently remove his dressings.
“The wound across your shoulder blade and the hole punched through your biceps look good, but infection could still set in. I’m still worried about damage to your rib cage. You’re definitely not going anywhere for a day or two.”
Jack waited until she finished placing clean dressings on him before standing up. He saw Danny give Natasha a knowing look.
“Well, thanks, Natasha,” said Jack. “I really appreciate what you’ve done for me, but I need to be going. Don’t worry, I’ll be careful!”
“I told you he would be like this,” said Danny.
“So, if I can just have my clothes back I’ll be out of your hair. I’m sorry for the inconvenience I’ve caused. I’d like to call you in a day or two. I owe you at least one dinner, not to mention new sheets. I bled on them during the night.”
Natasha scowled and didn’t respond for a moment. Then she said, “Your clothes are in the bedroom, but you’re a fool for not listening to me!”
“I probably am,” he admitted, slowly making his way to the bedroom.
Moments later, Jack returned to the kitchen where Natasha was sitting alone.
“Did you say my clothes were in the bedroom? I couldn’t find them.”
“Danny has them.”
“Where is he?” asked Jack, glancing around.
“He’s not here. He left.”
“He left! I’m supposed to go with him!”
“No.”
“What do you mean, no?”
“What part of that statement don’t you understand?”
Jack looked down at the towel he was wearing, then back at Natasha.
“Now, I’m going to make you breakfast and then you’re going back to bed. You lost a lot of blood last night and I’m going to see to it that you get some rest.”
“But … what about my clothes?”
“If you behave yourself and do what I tell you, then I’ll let you keep the towel.”
Jack paused to think about the predicament he was in.
“Are you angry?” she asked, out of idle curiosity.
He paused, then said, “I’m being held hostage by a beautiful woman who’s stolen my clothes and is demanding I sleep in her bed. I think I can live with it for now.”
Later that afternoon, Jack wrapped a blanket around himself and plodded out
