“I don’t know. He wasn’t responding, and then the ambulance came, and—I don’t know what to do, Sarah. I just—fuck.” I press a hand against my chest, trying to scoop the growing panic out. What if something is wrong? What if his illness is further along than we thought?
Sarah goes quiet for half a second. When she speaks, her voice is soft and steady. “Okay. Breathe, hon. Tell me where you are.”
“ER waiting room.”
“Here at Scripps?”
“Yes.”
“Well, that’s lucky, isn’t it? I’ll be down in a few.”
“You don’t need—”
“I work two floors above where you are, Fletch. Of course, I’m coming down.”
As soon as she disconnects the call, I lean forward, my elbows on my knees.
Less than five minutes later, Sarah rushes off the elevator toward me. I exhale hard. She pulls me in for a long hug, then rubs my back.
“I’ll go see what I can find out. Hold tight.”
She walks to the check-in area to talk to the staff.
I try to listen, but it’s too far away. The room is too noisy.
A few minutes later, the waiting room door slides open again and Declan enters, followed by a train of over a dozen people. He heads straight for me when he sees me.
My eyes widen. “What are you—”
“I closed the bar,” he says simply.
“You what?”
“It’s Vince,” Piper says, eyes brimmed with concern. “So, of course, we came. Have you heard anything?”
I’m stunned they closed the bar down. I knew they cared about Vince, but damn. Vince will never believe this. He thinks he’s barely a blip on anyone’s radar. Thinks he exists on the fringe of everything, unwanted and unnoticed. He even shrinks from attention like it’ll burn him. Yet here they all are anyway.
Piper sits beside me, touching my arm. “Are you okay?”
“I—yeah. I’m just…”Overwhelmed. Terrified. Relieved I’m not here alone.“Worried, I guess.”
Declan’s eyes narrow slightly. “What did you say to the paramedic?”
I shake my head. “I can’t tell you that, Dec. I’m sorry.”
His jaw clenches. “You obviously know something! What’s going on with him?”
I chew my lip, looking at each of their faces. There must be twenty people here who all care about Vince. Not just employees, but a few of the regular customers too. Would he forgive me if I told them the truth?
No, I can’t bring myself to. It’s not my secret to share.
I pick at my fingernail.
Declan huffs in frustration. “Well, how bad is it? Can you at least tell me that?”
“It’s nothing fatal or anything. But other than that, I don’t know. And I don’t think even he does, honestly. Not yet. He’s seeing a doctor, but… it’s gonna take time.”
“How do you even know about it?” Melody asks. “I didn’t think you guys were friends.”
