“Bye.”
I waited around until Wes was wheeled back from radiology and settled back on the bed by a helpful nurse. “Your doctor will be in as soon as she reviews your films. It shouldn’t be too long,” she said sweetly, before pulling the curtain around the bed, leaving us alone.
Wes looked sheepish as he readjusted the blanket he’d been given to cover the lower half of his long body. “The radiologist says the bullet isn’t buried too deeply.”
I smiled. “That’s good news then.”
He nodded. “Hopefully, the doctor can remove it with just a local.”
I winced. “It sounds painful, so it does.” I hated being poked and prodded but I’d been in hospital for nearly two weeks after Candy and the guys came to get me. There’d been poking and prodding every day. And pissing me off.
Wes opened his mouth to say something when the curtain was pulled back by an Asian woman with long, dark hair drawn back in a neat ponytail. She looked at me and then smiled at Wes. “Hello, I’m Dr. Han. Would you like to tell me what happened?”
Wes glanced at me, and I gave him an encouraging nod. “I was in a convenience store last night when a man came in to rob the store. He shot me.”
“I see. Well, that tracks. I looked at your films just now and it seems you have a bullet lodged in your left bicep.” She glanced at me. “Excuse me, but the nurses said you’re from the FBI. Is this man under arrest?”
I blinked at her for a few seconds and shook my head before standing, pulling out my creds to show her my ID. “We don’t arrest victims of crimes, ma’am.” I was being a bit of a wankerby not referring to her as doctor but she’d just completely dismissed Wes’ statement which pissed me off. When she narrowed her eyes at me, flattening her lips into a thin line, I said, “No, he’s not under arrest. As he said, this man was an innocent bystander who was shot durin’ a robbery last night.”
“I see.” She glanced back at Wes. “You know we’re obligated to report all gunshot wounds to the police.”
“Yes.” Wes looked wide-eyed. “Which is why Agent Good is here. He was at the convenience store when I was shot last night and already gave a police report on the incident.”
“Fine then.” She pulled an X-ray out of a sleeve and snapped it into the light box. The bullet lodged in Wes’s bicep, wasn’t far from the surface. “I can remove the bullet without surgery since it’s not buried too deeply and then I’m going to have the nurses run an IV of antibiotics since you have a fever,” she said to Wes, sliding the film back into its sleeve. “Why didn’t you come in last night?”
“I-I—”
“It was late, so Mr. Chaudry was savin’ ya the bother until mornin’,” I said quickly.
She frowned before seeming to accept what I’d said, turning back to her patient. “Well, then, let’s get that bullet removed. I can’t promise it won’t hurt a bit even with a local.” She turned to me. “You’ve done your part, Agent, if you need to go.”
“I’ll be staying if Wes doesn’t mind.” I looked at him, happy to see him nod.
“I’m fine with it.”
“As you wish.” She turned to the nurse who’d come into the room and gave her instructions as I looked at Weston. He didn’t look frightened but then again, he shouldn’t be. The questionsabout reporting it to the coppers had been done. Once this was over, and he had his new job, things would be looking up for him.
Two hours later, Wes was discharged. The bullet removal had been fast and relatively painless, according to him. After giving him a bag of IV antibiotics, they discharged him and sent him home with a bottle of painkillers, more antibiotics, and instructions to finish them all.
“Thanks for staying with me and vouching for me, Patsy,” he said as we climbed back into my Beetle.
“It’s no bother, Wes, I told ya.” My mobile rang and I looked down, surprised to see Napoleon’s picture come up on my screen. The second I saw his smiling face, I remembered what day it was and groaned. I glanced at Wes. “Sorry, this is my friend. I need to take this.” I swiped the mobile when he smiled at me, putting it on speaker and hooking it into the dash bracket. “What’s up, Napoleon?”
“What’s up! What’sup? Why the hell didn’t you call me? I had to find out from Candy that you were nearly murdered last night!”
“Oi! First of all, I wasn’t nearlymurdered. What the bloody hell did he tell ya guys?”
“That you were in a convenience store at one in the damn morning when a robber came in and shot someone…and you were unarmed, Patsy! You didn’t think it was a good idea to call your best friend instead of letting the boss tell the team?”
Wes looked right uncomfortable. I suspected his expression had nothing to do with being shot in the arm. I shifted gears and gunned the engine. “Sorry, Nap, had a lot on me mind. By the way, the man who was shot is sittin’ right beside me in the car and he can hear every word comin’ out of yer gob.”
“Oh…ah, sorry, total stranger who my friend hasn’t introduced sitting next to him.”
I snorted, glancing at Wes. “His name is Weston.”
“Nice to meet, you…Napoleon is it?” Wes asked, staring at the phone.
“That’s right.” He paused. “Did you forget we have a date tonight, Patsy?”
