A couple of days later, Quinn had to go see Zander Smith as a follow up the ICU nurses always did when their patients were out of ICU but still in the hospital.
She found his room number, and knocked on the open door. He looked up. His eyes lit up when he recognized her.
"I'm here to post-check on you. How do you feel? You look pretty good."
"I feel a lot better. It's getting hard to just sit here."
"Any heart fluttering?"
"Not until I saw you."
"Flattery. OK, that means I can note down you're feeling really good."
"How are things up in the Intensive Care Unit?"
"Why, how kind of you to ask. Patients never ask that. Much quieter, thank you."
"If it's too quiet I can always come back."
"No, not because you need to. You could come visit Elizabeth, though."
"How is she?"
"Hanging in. She showed me her letter from little Emily. She knows Emily may get mad at her for showing it to you."
"That may be."
"Do the members of that family expect to control everybody in their lives?"
"Didn't think of it that way, but you're right. I guess she grew up spoiled. You know how rich people are."
"Sorry."
"I wasn't thinking of me."
"OK. What did you see in little Miss Emily?"
"Well, she helped me out. Don't forget - I was in jail."
"What did she do for you that Alexis couldn't do? Unlock the prison door with her own nail file?"
He had been going to say something. He tried, but he started laughing and couldn't stop. This set Quinn to giggling over her own comment.
"Well," he said, finally. "Nobody before had paid that much attention to me before. In my life. And no one has since."
"Awww," she said.
"Wait, I take it back. There is one person who has."
"Who?"
"You. It's just a different type of attention."
"How so?"
"She said she loved me. You investigate."
"She helped Alexis get you out of jail. I helped Alexis dig up your parents. It may not be romantic, but Alexis and I might have saved your life."
"Poor Emily."
"Poor Emily indeed! Poor thing. Other people have put her through so much."
"But I didn't want to get you on her side. You're the only one I know who is on my side of this. Everyone else just feels bad for lit- for Emily. But I kind of like having my own supporter – it is a new experience."
"There are a few others who might be on your side."
"If you're talking about my family, then still – you're the only one on my side who has any sense. The only Irish one."
Quinn laughed. "Thank you. I guess the red robe doesn't have a chance," she added, patting his green lapel, "and Peter picked it himself!"
"He hasn't noticed. Don't remind him, OK? I'm superstitious. I need Irish luck, not Russian."
"I was reading the chart about your family history. It's sad. Take the Irish - they had to leave Ireland because of the famine, and it was generations ago. And they always blame it on the English. You know, the English have been cruel, and so on. Their color is red too. But this is only two generations ago and they didn't leave, they got killed or imprisoned. And their own fellow countrymen did it."
"I guess it really is true. I never believed him. – I mean, I never believed Sergei. I think I just didn't want to. It's creepy. It bugs me, and I don't know why."
"I can understand why it could bug you. Most people know their grandfathers. If they didn't, their parents knew them, and can tell about them. But this - somehow it cuts you off, as if you come from nowhere."
"It's worse for Sergei, though. At least I know him."
"Did you talk to him yet?"
"I'm thinking about it."
"Good. Take your time."
