“What’s the name of the company?”
“Vet Adventures. They organize hunting, fishing, and camping trips. One of the guys running it said their main goal is to get guys back out and be part of a team again, even if it’s just a few days.”
“It sounds like a good program.” Her thumb palpated the inside of his elbow, searching out knotted tissue.
He winced when she found an especially tender spot, but didn’t react otherwise. “I think that’s one of the things I miss most about the Army, you know?”
“What’s that?” she asked.
He turned his head to watch her work his arm. “The camaraderie. Just being with a bunch of guys who get you. They don’t ask stupid questions or want to know how many bad guys you killed. They just get it.”
Bree gave Ryan a small smile. She got it. It was one of the reasons she applied only to military hospitals after she completed her degree.
At the end of his session, she handed Ryan a list of exercises to do at home to help strengthen his shoulder muscles. “Do me a favor? Be more careful next time. Ask for something to protect your arm.”
“I will. Thanks, Doc. See you in two weeks.”
She took a bite of spinach salad before typing “Vet Adventures” into the internet search engine. The first link was a website for Veteran Excursion Team (V.E.T.) Adventures that listed a North Carolina address. She clicked on the link and navigated to the contact page. Grabbing her phone, she dialed the number listed. An off-hook tone sounded in her ear, as if the receiver on the other end hadn’t been set in the cradle properly. She’d try again in a little while. Maybe they’d figure out that their phone was off the hook.
“Dr. Marks?” Cindy knocked on her open office door.
“I’m almost done eating. Is Mr. Barns here already?”
“The ER just called up. Mr. Barns was admitted a little while ago and when they looked him up in the system, they saw he had an appointment today.”
“Did they say why he was in the ER?”
Cindy cringed a little. “He fell and broke his other hip.”
Bree’s face fell. “Please tell me you’re kidding.”
Cindy shook her head.
She tossed her fork into her almost empty plastic container. “Why doesn’t anyone listen to me? I told him and his wife if he continued to overdo it, he was going to fall again.”
“Also, your four o’clock had to reschedule.”
If she left after her three o’clock appointment, she could probably make it to V.E.T. Adventures before they closed. She’d check their hours before she left, just to be sure.
“Block off that time slot for me, please. I’m going to run some errands this afternoon.”
“Sure. Also, Chad’s called four times today. He didn’t leave any messages,” Cindy said.
“Is he calling my line or the main line?”
“The main line.”
Bree scrubbed her hands over her face. She had told him not to call her at work unless it was an emergency. He knew that. She was going to have to open a door in her wall of silence to tell him to fuck off and quit bothering her.
“Do you know if we can block numbers on the office phones?”
“I don’t know. I can find out.” She wrung her hands and shifted her weight. “Can I ask?”
“I caught him cheating on me.”
“Oh. That’s…what the hell? What a shitty thing to do. Especially to someone as nice as you.”
“Thank you, I really appreciate that,” Bree told her.
