Danger Lurks in the Shadows
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Chapter Five: Paranoia
Susan walked into the ambulance bay to see Abby standing by the front desk.
"Hey, so nice of you to grace us with your presence this early," she joked as she walked over beside her. "I thought you weren't supposed to come in until tomorrow."
Abby greeted her with a big smile on her face. "Yeah, well, John and I both plead temporary insanity. We actually asked Weaver to allow us to come today." She answered with a grin. "Uh huh, I never knew until now that extreme boredom could actually cause it."
Susan jokingly pondered on this information. "Is that so? That's really terrible," she said as she slightly nodded her head in agreement.
"Yup, consider yourself warned." Abby chuckled.
"By the way, how's your arm?" Susan asked, suddenly growing serious.
Abby's smile slightly faltered. "Uh, it's okay now. I had it checked yesterday, and they told me that it's almost complete healed."
Susan nodded. "So, no trauma for you, then?"
"Well, not for a couple of days anyway," she answered. "I guess that means I'm stuck doing menial work for the rest of the week, at most." She added with a smile.
"I guess so," Susan agreed with a grin. "And how's Carter?"
"He's fine. He went in for a suture removal yesterday afternoon."
"Boy, that was fast," she commented.
"What can I say, we're both fast healers." Abby remarked.
Susan was about to say something when she suddenly jumped as she felt someone tap her from behind. She whirled around to see a very annoyed Dr. Weaver standing in front of her.
"Dr. Lewis, may I ask you what time is your shift?" she asked.
Susan nervously smiled at her. "8 am," she answered.
"Then what are you doing out here? Your shift started five minutes ago," she remarked sternly. Before she could open her mouth to say anything, Weaver shoved a couple of charts on her hand. "A bowel disimpaction on curtain three, and an abscess draining on exam one." Susan glanced over Abby, who tried hard hiding her smirk. "Oh, and since you seem to be getting along pretty well with Abby, she's going to help you out." Abby's face fell, while Susan flashed her a triumphant smile. Without a final word, Weaver stomped away from the two.
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A few hours later, Abby strode over to the front desk and rummaged around for a chart. "Frank, where's the chart of that patient with the dog bite? He came in for suture removal and Susan wants his chart."
"Bottom shelf," he answered without looking up.
Abby found what she was looking for. "Got it, thanks," she said and turned to leave.
The phone rang and Frank promptly answered. "Hey, Abby," he called out. "There's a call for you on line two."
Abby stopped in her tracks and quickly turned around. "Who is it?" she asked as she strolled over.
"Don't know, didn't say," he answered.
Abby looked at him curiously and picked up the phone. "Hi. Who's this?" she quickly asked. Her question was only answered with an eerie silence. "Hello?" she repeated as she began to get terrified. From the other line, she heard a faint sound of breathing, which only terrified her more. She looked around nervously, hoping this was some kind of sick joke someone played on her. But deep inside, she knew better. This wasn't the first time. Someone had been calling her home these past few days. She tried once again to get a response from the other end. "Who the hell is this?" she hissed. A chill went down her spine as her question was answered with the sound of a gun being cocked. She slammed the phone down hard and looked at Frank furiously. "Never accept phone calls for me unless they tell you who they are. Don't accept anything, either."
"Is something wrong?" Frank asked curiously.
Abby didn't bother to answer as she stormed off.
"Hey Abby!" Frank called out. "Abby! What's wrong?" Frank watched as she disappeared around the corner.
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"Okay sir, just a little bit more," Susan said as she delicately removed the suture on a young man's arm.
The man looked at her with admiration. "Will I ever see you again?" he asked dreamily.
Susan tried hard not to roll her eyes. "I don't know about that," she answered. 'Not unless you roll in here as an MVA victim or something.' She bit her lip to refrain herself from saying it.
Abby stood from across the room, trying hard not to snicker at Susan's expression.
"There you go sir, all done." Susan announced with a smile. After a few final instructions, the man finally went out the room.
"Don't say it," Susan warned as she tore off her gloves.
"What?" Abby asked with a laugh. "I haven't said anything yet!" She looked at her mischievously. "Except that, the guy was practically drooling over you." She teased.
"Oh, shut up," she retorted. This only made Abby laugh out loud more. Both women exited the room.
"So, how about girls' night out tonight?" she asked as they walked in the hallway.
Abby looked at her in trepidation. "Um, I'm not sure." She remembered well the fight she and Carter had the last time they went out.
Chen suddenly came out from one of the rooms. "Not sure about what?" she asked as she came up behind them.
"I declared that tonight is officially girls' night out but Abby here is hesitant." Susan answered. "How 'bout you?"
"Count me in!" she answered with a glee. "I'll see you later." She walked away and left the two behind.
"Come on, Abby," she pleaded.
Abby gave her a wry smile. "We all know how out last girls' night out ended, so I think I'll take a rain check this time."
Susan was persistent. "Please, it wouldn't be fun without you."
Unfortunately, Carter was just around the corner and heard their conversation. "Hey, what's going on?" he asked.
"Uh, I was asking Abby to join us tonight." Susan answered. A feeling of slight tension filled the air.
Carter looked at Abby, and then at Susan, then back to Abby. "Why not go, Abby?" he finally said.
"What?" she choked out. Abby glanced over at Susan, and both of them looked at him dubiously.
"Sure, go with them," he repeated. He bit his lower lip. "Just make sure that, you know……" he trailed off.
Both women understood what he was about to say. "Don't worry, Carter," Susan assured him. "I'll keep an eye on her. I won't let her go off with a male stripper without me." She joked. The tension around them finally broke.
"I guess I'll be all by my lonesome tonight, then," he said with a smile.
"Okay, it's set then. I'll tell you later where and then we'll all meet there. I have to dash to my apartment for something."
Abby nodded at Susan. "Fine, see you later."
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"This might not be a good idea, after all," she mumbled to herself. She had decided to take the El, but the station was a good couple of blocks from the place Susan had specified. "Nope, not a good idea at all." Her eyes darted furiously around the darkened streets. She pulled her jacket tighter around her. Just as she was about a block away, she heard something that made her heart stop. From behind her, she heard a faint sound of footsteps following her. A feeling of dread formed in her gut. She quickened her pace, but her heart was beating faster. 'Shit!' she exclaimed, as she heard the footsteps behind also quicken. She quietly turned into an empty alley and turned out onto the next street. She turned right and ran towards the alley back to the other street. Her heart was beating furiously, as she took a peek from behind a garbage bin. 'Where is he?!' She tried to catch a glimpse of the man following her. Unfortunately, the street was surprisingly empty. She leaned back again, and heaved a sigh of relief. However, it became stuck in her throat as her blood ran cold as ice. Someone was standing behind her. Her hand shook as she waited for the man to make her move. When she felt that he was not moving, she summoned up the courage to face him. She slowly turned around, and stood face to face, or rather, face to chest, with her 'stalker'.
Abby's eyes went wide. "Luka!" she cried out. In front of her, the tall Croatian stood. "What are you doing?!" she asked him furiously.
"What?" he looked at her confusedly. "I saw you walking fast and so I thought you might be in trouble." He told her. "I followed you, and when I saw that you doubled back, I really thought you were in trouble." He said with genuine concern in his voice. "Are you alright?" he asked. "Who's out there, anywhere?" he craned his neck to take a look.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered with a nod. "I thought someone was following me, that's all. Turns out it was you, anyway."
Luka looked at her sheepishly. I'm sorry," he apologized.
"Good, 'cause you almost gave me a heart attack!" Abby silently chided herself for being so paranoid. "By the way, what are you doing here?"
He looked at her, embarrassed. "Actually, I was about to meet someone at that restaurant across the street." He confessed.
"Oh, a date, huh?" Abby teased.
He quickly tried to change the subject. "Are you headed for the bar? Let me walk you there."
Both of them walked out of the alley and back to the streets. "I don't think your date would be happy if she sees this." Abby teased him.
"I doubt that," he answered. They continued on walking towards the bar. "So, are you meeting Carter?" he asked.
"No. Actually, I was here to meet Susan and Chen." She answered as she shoved her hands into her pocket.
"Oh, I see. You ladies seem to be going out a lot now." He observed. They stopped as they reach the entrance of the bar.
Abby nodded and smiled at him. "I really should go in now. They're probably wondering where I am."
"Yeah, you should," Luka answered. Abby thanked him and disappeared inside the club.
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Two men sat inside a car. The man on the passenger seat handed a folder to the one beside him.
"We might have a hard time to get to the girl." He said to his companion. "We'll get him to cooperate, instead." His companion opened the folder. "Dr. John Truman Carter III." He said.
"When?" his companion asked.
It took a moment before the man answered. "Let's wait until another contact is made." He took out a cigarette and lit it. "Let's go." His companion started the car and they sped off into the night.
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There, sorry if it took so long. I hope you enjoy. Thanks! And please, read and review! ^_^