“Dr. Matthews! Dr. Matthews! You’ve got a call!” she called out from fifty feet away.
Sat phone rule number one: the phone was only to be used for calls from the investor and emergencies, and when it came totheir investor, his calls were emergencies. At least in Mr. Vautour’s eyes. Meaning chewing out Corrie would have to wait.
Sunny ran up, out of breath, and handed him the phone. Sat phone rule number two: don’t delay. With the cost of the calls, running was a necessity. Otherwise, a single phone call could cost them a few hundred dollars. Again, cutting into their bottom line.
And Ford’s profit.
He walked toward her, then took the phone and waited a few seconds for Sunny to hurry away. Rule number three: don’t listen in. Once she, Ethan, and Corrie were out of earshot, he answered.
“Hello?”
“Dr. Matthews?”
“Yes?”
“This is Dr. Snyder over at Sacred Heart Hospital calling about your mother, Catherine Matthews.”
Ford’s heart sank. The doctors at Sacred Heart had never had to call before. His mother was still well enough that she could make her own phone calls, and they weren’t scheduled to have another one until Friday. Something must have happened.
Oh God... no...
“Don’t worry, your mother is fine,” Dr. Snyder continued, and Ford let out the breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. “I know this number is only for emergencies, so I’ll keep this short. A spot opened at Lakeview Rehab Center. Your mother can be moved as early as Thursday, although I recommend you wait until at least this Saturday, after she finishes the next round of treatment here.”
Lakeview? Ford had been trying to get her into Lakeview since she’d first been diagnosed. Not only was it located closerto where he lived than Sacred Heart, meaning he could visit her multiple times a week rather than the every-other-week schedule they’d been on before he left, it also had the best care for cancer patients like her in world-class facilities.
Albeit at world-class prices.
He’d hoped that by the time a spot opened up, he would have the money to pay for it. The money from this dig. Although he was getting paid to be here, unless they actually found something worth discovering—like the tecpatl or Chimalli’s bones—it wouldn’t be enough to afford Lakeview. Only then would Ford get a nice fat million-dollar check. A check that meant his mother could live comfortably, and hopefully for much, much longer. It was unusual to get paid like this for work on a dig, but Dr. Crawley had assured Ford that Mr. Vautour had both the wherewithal and the obsession with Chimalli to pay for their success.
But how was Ford going to afford his mother’s expenses in the meantime?
“That’s great news,” he managed to say. Because, yes, from one perspective, it was fantastic news, and with all the ups and downs with his parents over the last few years, he’d welcome any positive news. “What do I need to do?”
“They need a deposit, and on her move-in day, they need the first month paid in full. Her insurance will continue to cover the treatments she’s currently on, but as I’m sure you are aware, the cost of Lakeview versus Sacred Heart is... significant.”
Significant? Ford would have laughed if it wasn’t so depressing.
“Do you know if they take credit cards?” Credit was all Ford had at the moment.
“I’m sure they do.”
“Then I’ll arrange for the payment today,” he told Dr. Snyder. “Can you please tell them to hold the spot for her?”
“Of course. Look, I know this is a huge sacrifice, but your mother will be in excellent care over at Lakeview. Catherine is lucky to have a son like you.”
Lucky to have a son thousands of miles away? A son who was gambling everything on an archaeological discovery that no one in hundreds of years had been able to find? Sure, Dr. Snyder. Sure. At least, had he stayed in New Haven, he would have been able to collect his comfortable salary. But his salary alone wouldn’t have been enough, not in the long term. Having to settle all his father’s debts and pay for his mother’s apartment and living expenses since his father passed had eaten into Ford’s savings.
So when the opportunity to lead this dig had come up with the potential to make out big, he’d taken it. Literally. Right out from under Corrie’s nose, and she didn’t even know it. If she ever found out—well, she’d probably murder him. This was her life’s work. Corrie would probably go so far as to say it was her life.
But Ford’s mother’s lifeactuallydepended on this. So life’s work or not, in his eyes, his needs trumped Corrie’s. Besides, if she stayed, she could still get what she wanted while at the same time helping him get whathewanted.
“Thanks,” he finally responded to Dr. Snyder. “I’d better get going. Tell my mother I’ll talk to her on Friday.”
The instant he got off the phone, he immediately dialed his assistant in Connecticut, asking her to handle the payment for Lakeview using his credit card. He wasn’t supposed to use his assistant for personal matters like this, but being in a Mexican jungle left him little choice otherwise. Hopefully they’d make itback to the States before his assistant would have to start taking calls about his maxed-out credit cards.
He needed this dig to go right, and, until this point, the only thing he’d done was fuck it up.
He glanced at Corrie and Ethan, who were crouched over a small hole in the ground as Corrie lifted a trowel and traced it through the air along the ridgeline with Ethan nodding beside her. Great. She was right. The only way this dig had even a remote chance of being successful was if he trusted her.
