A Meeting of Two Minds

Chapter 1

"It's just a sprain, Grady. I'll be all right."

"All the same, Aunt Jess, I'd feel better if we got it checked."

"Well, if it would put your mind at ease, I'll acquiesce."

Grady pulled over to the curb and shouted out to the nearest passer-by. While he was asking for directions to the nearest hospital, Jessica smiled to herself. Although she didn't feel that a visit to the hospital was necessary, she appreciated her nephew's concern. She and her late husband Frank had raised Grady following his parents' death and, since she had never had any children of her own, her nephew was the closest thing she had to a son.

A few minutes later they pulled into the parking lot of Community General Hospital. Jessica stepped out of car and winced as she placed her weight on her sprained ankle. Taking her arm, Grady helped ease her up to the hospital's main reception, where, upon explaining the problem, they were told to take a seat and that someone would see them as soon as possible.

After forty-five minutes of waiting, Grady was growing fidgety. It was not that he was an impatient man, far from it - Jessica knew that it was the hospital environment that was making her nephew uneasy. Although they were currently removed from any major medical trauma, prolonged stay in hospitals usually made Grady feel uncomfortable.

"You know," Jessica murmured, sensing her nephew's unease, "if you'd rather leave now, I'm sure it won't be a problem."

"No, no, Aunt Jess, we should get your ankle seen to. I'll be fine."

"If you're sure." Jessica returned to her paperback.

Half an hour and two chapters later, Jessica herself was growing rather fidgety, more out of boredom than anything else. She was also thirsty and feeling the beginnings of hunger. She wondered if perhaps she could walk to the hospital cafeteria without too much discomfort. However, as soon as Grady saw her start to stand, he immediately leapt to his feet.

"Is there something you need, Aunt Jess?"

"Well, I'm feeling quite thirsty. I'd like a coffee. Maybe a bite to eat too."

"Well, you wait here. I'll find the cafeteria."

Despite being given directions, Grady got lost twice before he finally found the cafeteria. In that time he had seen a man with two fingers missing, accidentally walked into an operating room and walked past a man with a hole in the side of his head. His relief to have found the place he was searching for did not dispel his jitteriness, which had increased twofold, nor the intensely queasy feeling in his stomach.

So sickened had he been by the injuries that he could not take his mind off them as he bought a coffee and a piece of cake for Jessica. He walked vaguely towards the doors, lost in disturbing images, failing to notice the yellow cones warning that this section of the floor was wet. He felt himself starting to skid. Yelling out in surprise, he threw his arms out and tumbled straight into the doctor who was passing by. Both men fell to the floor.

"I am so sorry. Are you all right?" stammered Grady. The doctor's lab coat was stained with coffee and the cake had ended up in his hair.

"Get off me!" The doctor gave him a shove. Grady climbed to his feet and offered the man his hand. The doctor didn't take it.

"Didn't you see the cones?" he demanded.

Grady shook his head. "No. I…"

"Well next time, you might want to think about watching where you're going."

Grady nodded, unsure of what to say. The doctor was clearly annoyed. Although not overly tall, he looked like the kind of guy who would do well in a fight. Intimidated, he stared at the doctor's badge, which identified him as Jack Stewart. "I'm really very sorry, Dr Stewart. I…I'll go set some more coffee."

He hurried away, feeling the doctor's glare behind him. Now that the other people in the cafeteria could see that neither man was seriously hurt, titters of laughter had started to break out. Grady's face was burning. In addition to the replacement coffee and slice of cake he bought for his aunt, he decided on getting a bowl of soup for himself, figuring that some warm broth might steady his nerves.

Coming away from the till, he saw Dr Stewart had found a table to himself and was brushing cake crumbs out of his hair. Never liking to be on anybody's bad side, Grady decided to make another go of apologising. He walked over and placed the coffee and food on the table.

"I just want to say," he said, "that it was entirely my fault…"

"You got that right," Jack Stewart grumbled.

"…and that I am very sorry and I…whoa!"

Grady's hand had knocked against the bowl of soup, which he had unfortunately placed close to the edge of the table. Hardly able to believe that it was happening again, Grady watched as the bowl tipped into the doctor's lap. Lumpy broth seeped over his jeans.

"You idiot!" The man jumped up, but Grady, grabbing the coffee and the cake, fled.

************

"My, you've been a long time," Jessica observed when she saw her nephew. "Long queue?"

"Um, no," Grady said, not wishing to tell his aunt of his clumsiness. "Just had trouble finding my way around."

Jessica had just finished her coffee and cake when a nurse came over and said she was ready to see her. As Jessica had suspected, she had only sprained her ankle. The nurse told her that she would be able to get around well enough, although it would likely be painful for a few days, and advised her to rest her ankle for a day or two.

"Well, the party isn't for a couple of nights," Grady reminded her. "So if you just stay in the hotel until that night, your ankle should be healed enough."

Jessica nodded. "You're right. Although it's disappointing that I won't be able to look around while we stay here. I've heard there's a lovely beach in this area."

"You two are going to a party?" the nurse asked.

Grady nodded. "Vincent Heimer's."

"Vincent Heimer? Are you serious?"

"Yes."

"You are so lucky," the nurse enthused. "I've read his book. I couldn't put it down. He's tipped to become the next big-selling mystery writer."

Jessica pursed her lips but said nothing. Not noticing, the nurse asked if the two were friends of Vincent Heimer.

Grady cleared his throat. "Well, not friends exactly…" He had never before met the man.

"We're acquaintances. Very modest acquaintances, actually," Jessica admitted. "I am anxious to see him, however. I have a matter to discuss with Mr Heimer."

"Well, I hope you have a great night," bubbled the nurse.

"Yeah," Grady muttered, "but I somehow have my doubts."

************

Jack had had a long day and his encounter with the cafeteria klutz had only served to worsen what had already been a bad mood. He usually thought to bring some spare clothes along with him - working in a hospital, one did sometimes get messy - but today, of all days, he had forgotten. So when he entered the office of Mark Sloan and saw Mark and Amanda Bentley there, he scowled at them both.

"Someone get up on the wrong side of bed this morning?" Amanda asked.

"No, someone had a horrible experience in the hospital cafeteria."

"Was the food that bad?" Mark asked.

"It wasn't the food. Although food was involved."

"Is that soup on your pants?" Amanda asked him.

"Yes." Jack sat down. "There was some guy in there, a walking disaster, he fell on top of me, spilled coffee all down my coat…"

"Is that cake in your hair?" Mark pointed.

"…spilled cake in my hair. Then, as if that wasn't enough, he spills a bowl of soup all down my pants." He glared at Amanda, who was giggling. "It's not funny."

"Trying day?" Mark was sympathetic.

"Yeah, and this just rounded it off perfectly."

Mark sighed. "Would this be a bad time to tell you that your date cancelled?"

"What?"

"Sorry," Mark said. "She called the hospital earlier and left a message for you. Something's come up and she has to go to Chicago for a week."

"Perfect!" Jack couldn't believe the kind of day he was having. "So now I have to show up at this Heimer guy's party alone."

Amanda sat up straight. "Heimer? As in Vincent Heimer?"

"Yep," Jack said moodily. Amanda opened her mouth but he held up his hand. "Stop. Every time I mention this party, I hear someone gush about how wonderful his Heimer hotshot is and how much they love his book. I'm not in the mood."

"Well, Jack, the man is a celebrity now," Amanda reminded him. Something occurred to her. "Wait! You have an extra ticket. That means I could come along!"

"I'm afraid not," Mark said. "You and I are both down to work that night."

Amanda rolled her eyes. "It's times like these that I envy the unemployed."

"Well, I don't want to go alone," Jack grumbled. He shook his head. "Forget it. I just won't go at all."

"Won't go where?" The question came from Norman Briggs, who had just entered.

"There's such a thing as knocking, Norman," griped Jack.

Norman eyed him coldly. "Yes, Dr Stewart there is. Something which you yourself seem to forget every time you enter my office."

"Don't mind Jack, Norman," Mark said. "He's had a difficult day and he's a little grouchy."

"And the girl he was going to take to Vincent Heimer's party cancelled on him," Amanda added.

Norman regarded Jack with astonishment. "However did you get invited to Vincent Heimer's party?"

"My date is loosely connected with someone who knows him. I forget. It doesn't matter anyway, because I'm not going."

"Oh yes you are," Norman told him, beaming. "You're coming with me."

"What? Norman, no."

"Yes. Yes, Jack. You can be my date." Off the looks that everyone gave him, he corrected his sentence. "Well, not my date, date. But you can be my partner." They were still eyeing him questionably. "Not my partner, partner. My companion. My friend."

Jack groaned inwardly. Spending an evening at a party with Norman was not something he relished.

"Norman, I really don't think…"

"Please, Dr Stewart, I really want to make a good impression at this party," Norman said. "And I will stand a better chance of doing so if I show up accompanied by a friend. If I show up alone people will think I have no friends. They will think I am inadequate company. They won't want to talk to me. But if you come with me, Jack…who knows, I may even get to speak with Vincent Heimer himself! I could get his autograph. My mother would be so proud."

Mark and Amanda were both grinning. They knew that Jack would rather do a lot of things than go to a party with Norman, but they also knew that he was inherently good-natured and, even in his bad mood, wouldn't have the heart to let Norman down.

"Okay, okay." Jack put up his hands in defeat. "We'll go together."

"Wonderful." Quite having forgotten what he had come in there to talk about, Norman bustled out, smiling widely. "You and me, Jack. Partners in crime," he said, not realising then how ironic his statement would turn out to be.