Chapter Six
Ellie watched the dynamic between the upper-level staff as she waited her turn to pick up her new technology. One look at Wes’s face confirmed what she already believed: Troy Bremen was his injured friend.
“How are you feeling, Ellie?” TJ Poole asked.
“Sore but happy to be here.” She smiled.
“I can see that.” His eyes raked her muddy appearance.
“One of the horses gave me a playful nudge. Valentino is a real charmer.” She chewed her lip. “I don’t know where any of my electronics are.”
“I collected them when I brought your stuff inside. Like I said during my speech, once we verify your technology is clean, we will give you back your files.”
“Thanks, TJ.” She gathered her new materials.
Inside the cafeteria, her staff and the medical staff sat together around a large table. “Ellie, are you alright?” Theo Harding asked as he sat down right next to her.
“Lucky. I look worse than it is,” Ellie said. “It could have been much worse.”
“Ellie spent the night at Mr. Crockett’s. Mr. Clarke signed out Toradol last night. I had to reconcile the drug count when I came in,” Tara Blanchard, a PA, said.
Eleanor swallowed hard.Here comes the gossip.
“She spent the night in Mr. Crockett’s guest room. The clinic wasn’t open, and she needed someone to check on her. She wasn’t alone with him. This morning, I helped her shower and change, and Mr. Walter drove down from DC to take her to a specialist,” Nadia corrected the PA.
Eleanor bounced her knee beneath the table. “Mr. Crockett’s executive staff was very gracious. I have to say, as a patient, being blind, even temporarily, was frightening and disorienting. A point to remember.” Her expression turned serious.
Brandon Finch leaned into her. “We’re here for you, Ellie. Therapists aren’t immune.”
“Thank you, Brandon.” Eleanor smiled at him.
“Brown-nosing much, Brandon?” asked Aaron Bain, one of the other therapeutic counselors.
Ellie turned quickly. Her head pounded, and she fought back the desire to vomit, but her temper was intact. “Aaron, the program has not begun yet. Let’s not dig holes we can’t climb out of. Comments like that make me uncomfortable.”
He glared at her. “Sorry,” he grunted. “I’ll meet you at the barn with the others.”
* * *
Eleanor appeared unaware that Wes was watching her interactions. He frowned. “Who is the man in the red shirt?”
“Aaron Bain. Therapeutic counselor,” Christian replied.
“I want eyes on him,” Wes said.
“No problem. I’m working on assigning a security team to each new division. I’ll brief Ken,” TJ said.
“Who’s the female PA?” Wes knew her position by her uniform.
“Tara Blanchard. I’ll pull her file too,” Christian said.
After lunch, the senior staff sat around Wes’s office. He pinched his brow. “Looks like a good start. We go live tomorrow.”
“It will give all of us some time to meet the staff. See if anyone else raises your hackles,” Troy said.
Christian opened a file drawer. “Aaron Bain. Tara Blanchard.” He handed Wes the files.
Wes scanned them. “Looks benign. Kieran signed off on them. Could just be a personality thing.” Something about them still bothered him.
