Episode 1
It has everything to do with Jennson
Sonia
“Here is to the first first-year resident to be published in Breakthroughs!” Sonia raised a margarita and clinked her friend’s glass. Around them, the North Vault’s speakers blasted music across the dance floor, large screens alternating between zooming in on dancing guests and patching the feeds of the professional dancers of both genders twisting lithely atop lit pedestals. The three bartenders danced with the beat as they flowed expertly through their domain. If not for the fact that Sonia hated the man who owned the place, the North Vault would be perfect. She grinned at Win. “A small step for Dr. Winafred Carrell, a large step for victims of rare diseases everywhere. What’s your secret?”
“I hacked China and big pharma.”
Sonia winced. Win was probably only half kidding. Possibly quarter kidding. Outwardly, with her shiny golden curls, perfectly drawn facial lines, and petite stature, she looked like a doll. Gorgeous and tiny and delicate. What she lacked in physical presence, she made up for in spades on the darkweb. Though only a few people in the world knew who she was.
“Right,” said Sonia. “Doctor Carrell and Ms.—what’s your moniker again?”
Win sipped her drink. “Nothing you need to worry about, counselor. But if you are in the mood to talk laws and rules—and let’s face it, you are never not in the mood to talk about laws and rules—tell me you found some loophole to get me out of the ER rotation?” She gave Sonia a pleading look as if Sonia had some mythical power over either Colorado state law or the administrative policy of Denton Memorial Hospital. “I’m a geneticist. Give me a blood sample and a computer and I’ll get you the world. Give me a screaming patient with a broken arm, and I pass out. So me being in the ER is a lose-lose proposition for everyone.”
“And none of that has to do with Sith’s best friend being your attending?” Sonia asked. She’d only met Win’s older brother Sith a few times, the last being at Sonia and Win’s college graduation. He was in the SEALs, and leave was difficult to come by.
“Matthew Jennson? Oh, it has everything to do with Jennson,” said Win. “I’ve no idea why he left the joyful military world of crawling around battlefield mud, because he clearly thinks that to be the superior lifestyle. Speaking of the devil. Or, asshole.”
Sonia followed Win’s glare to a tall black-haired man joining a group of other former military types at the corner of the bar. Denton had a collection of them. Casey McKenzie—the North Vault’s proprietor and former Delta operative—was currently holding court. In addition to Casey, Sonia’s boss Liam was also there as was Cullen Hunt who ran Denton Memorial. The men greeted each other with low grunts and Casey slid Matthew a drink across the top of the polished bar.
“The superiority complex does seem to be endemic to the Tridents,” Sonia murmured.
“Tridents?”
“The cabal of special forces guys in Denton Valley. They all know each other, train together, and act as pains in the ass to various degrees. I don’t know how the nickname started, but they ran with it. I mean Liam’s company is literally called Trident Security and Rescue. The Tridents are like a mix of gods and the mafia around here, and it doesn’t hurt that they either own or run all the major businesses in the area. Anyway, back to Matt Jennson, what’s he doing?”
“Oh, it’s Matthew, not Matt.” Win rolled her eyes. “Besides confusing the ER with a bootcamp?—I swear he takes a perverse joy out of seeing if he can’t make me cry at least once a day.” Her shoulders sagged, energy and the will to fight leaving her like air rushing from a punctured balloon. “I see enough of him in the hospital, I’d rather not deal with it on a night off. We should find a different place for drinks.”
“And yield ground to a bunch of idiot men? No way in hell,” said Sonia. “In fact, that is going to be our new motto. We shall survive, we shall grow, and we shall never yield to idiot males. Especially ones who think they are god’s gifts to humankind.”
Win smiled shyly, but raised her glass in a toast. “Survive, grow, don’t yield.” Her eyes sparkled as she took a sip of her drink and pulled out her phone, typing furiously.
“What are you doing?” asked Sonia.
Win kept her attention on her screen. “Hacking the Vault’s camera feed to the screen. We could put the Tridents’ nose hairs up there instead of the dancers.”
“Don’t.” Sonia snatched Win’s phone away. “Seriously, are you twelve? That’s, you know, illegal.”
Win threw up her hands. “If you are going to play rule-keeper, put that legal mind of yours to getting me the hell out of the ER.”
“Well, does anything about this rotation violate medical ethics?”
“Forcing a geneticist to work in the emergency room? It violates my ethics.” Win gulped from her drink and waved it between them. “You know what they have in that place?”
“Patients?”
“Exactly! Living, breathing, talking patients. With feelings, and complaints, and convoluted stories that don’t actually make any sense and then change whenever Jennson walks into the treatment room.”
“Have you talked to your brother?”
“Twice. His knee jerk reaction is that Jennson can do no wrong, because brothers in arms and all. I finally got Sith to admit that he has no idea why Jennson left the navy, for all the good that does me.”
“I could talk to Liam,” said Sonia. “Since I’m in his legal department I see a lot of him and he has sway. But, honestly? It might do more harm than good. Bullies smell blood in the water, so if Matthew knows how much he is getting to you, he could just double down.”
“Good point. What’s worse is that Ivy West-Keasley, the other ER attending, is on bed rest with preeclampsia. It will be months until she is back.” Win growled under her breath, then focused on something behind Sonia’s shoulder. “Speaking of our favorite people, yours has separated from the pack.”
In the mirror panes built into the decor behind their booth, Sonia saw Casey’s approaching reflection. Tall and broad shouldered, he wore a designer black suit that cost more than Sonia’s monthly apartment rent. The expensive cloth was tailored perfectly to his chiseled body, and somehow made his blond hair and gray eyes even more stunning. The bastard was beautiful. Beautiful and arrogant and self-centered. But that’s not what made Sonia’s blood boil every time she ran into him.
Casey McKenzie had made a point of humiliating Sonia in court last year, manipulating and playing her for his personal amusement before the whole world. To add insult to injury, Casey didn’t even practice law in civilian life. He’d swooped in for a single case that involved his cousin, turned Sonia’s reputation and self-esteem inside out, and swooped out again to do what he liked—run North Vault Night Club.
She glanced at the door. Maybe Win’s idea of getting out of this place wasn’t a bad one.
“Survive, grow, don’t yield to idiot men,” Win whispered.
Right. Sonia straightened her back.
Casey snatched a whiskey off a passing waiter’s tray and wrapped his long fingers around the glass as he sauntered over to Sonia and Win’s booth. He moved with an easy, confident step, the fingers of his free hand tapping his thigh in rhythm to the music. Waiters and patrons shifted slightly to clear a path for him. A parting of the sea. No wonder the prick had an oversized ego.
“Good evening, Winafred. Counselor. Shouldn’t you be over at the courthouse, dazzling the jury?”
“At eleven at night? If you have trouble reading the arrows on that expensive watch of yours, get yourself a Disney one with a numbers display.”
“At any hour. From what I hear, you plea out most cases these days.” His sultry voice was a caress that made Sonia’s thighs tingle, even as she contemplated possible ways to cut off his balls. He swirled the whiskey in his glass. “If you need help, all you need to do is ask. I’m at your full disposal.”
“I want your help about as much as I want an STD.”
Casey’s gaze roamed over her, lingering with deliberate drama on her small breasts and wide hips. “I’d not recommend the latter myself, but to each their own.”
“You are disgusting,” Sonia told him.
“I am no such thing. That’s not just my personal opinion, by the way. I’ve several references who could vouch for my—“
“What do you want, McKenzie?” Sonia asked, cutting him off.
“Oh, many things. At the moment though, sex.”
Sonia blinked. “With who?”
“With you, obviously,” said Casey. “Did you imagine I came to you for help getting someone else into my bed? I don’t usually require assistance in that regard, your case notwithstanding.”
Win made a small snorting noise.
Sonia choked on her sip of margarita. He was serious. In that absurd, arrogant mind of his, Casey was serious. “Are you… Are you out of your mind?” she asked. “Why would I want to have sex with you?”
Casey motioned to his body, as if showcasing the perfection. “Because everyone does.” His brows pulled together. “It vexes me that you don’t share the general opinion. Is it the suit?”
Sonia rose, collecting her clutch, and slapping a twenty on the table to cover drinks and tip. “No, McKenzie. It’s not the suit. Or the music. Or me. It’s you. Really, it’s just you.”
Sonia held her ground, making sure Win could walk safely behind and to the exit before turning on her heels and joining her friend. Once outside, she gave Win a sideways glance. “That wasn’t yielding,” she said. “That was making a deliberate decision to retreat.”
“No argument here.” Win touched her arm. “Are you alright, Nia?”
She took a breath and let it out slowly. Win was one of the few people in the world who knew what Sonia’s father’s business partner had done to her that day during their senior year of college. Simple conversation didn’t usually trigger that buried part of her, but Casey had a way of making even words feel like roving fingers.
“I’m fine. McKenzie and his quest for another notch on his bedpost are not going to ruin this evening for either of us.” She linked her arm though Win’s and steered them toward her apartment. With the wind ruffling Sonia’s hair just enough to caress without being downright cold, it was too nice of a night to bother with an uber.
A flock of motorcycles zipped passed as they walked, the star-filled sky twinkling brightly. “One thing I love about Colorado is that I can see the little dipper,” Sonia said after a while.
“Goes well with the bikers,” said Win. Indeed, there seemed to be more motorcycles out than usual on the streets. Maybe some club had a ride out or whatever they called it when they put on leather and rolled out in a herd of helmets and wheels. “The ER will have some donors tonight.”
“That’s morbid,” said Sonia.
“It’s Darwin’s Law. Natural selection.”
Turning off the main road, Sonia steered them toward the first floor apartment she was renting in a three family house. She was the only tenant there currently. The top floor required more repairs than the landlord was willing to invest in, and the family from the second floor had moved a month earlier. Sonia missed their familiar faces, but she did sleep better without the three teenagers stomping around like elephants. Liam paid a good salary, but with her student loans—and the other debts she’d had to take on after she cut ties with her parents—this place was all she could afford.
“You’ve got mail,” Win pulled a shiny postcard from the mailbox while Sonia struggled with the front door lock. “You are cordially invited to a week-long cruise aboard the Belle Nuit, sailing from Newport, Connecticut. Staterooms starting at only ten thousand dollars.”
“What a bargain. Marketing companies could save themselves a great deal on postage if they went by something beyond my occupation for targeting criteria. Plus, Connecticut? Why would I go from Colorado to Connecticut for a cruise?”
“Because it’s a special reunion for Yale Law grads and you miss your classmates that much?” said Win.
“We just graduated a few years ago.” Sonia shook her head. Some of her classmates came from serious money. “Someone probably wants to show off and rub elbows. Either that or try to poach each other for their firms.”
“So what should I do with this?” Win waved the postcard in the air.
Sonia shrugged. “The recycling bin is just inside the door. File it there.”
“Will do.” Win paused on the inside of the door and then grinned. “You know, this cruise sounds like exactly the kind of thing idiot men would be at. So staying home is actually a strategic decision, and I for one salute you.”
This has been a Kindle Vella story preview. You will need to log into Amazon to read episode 2. Don’t worry, it’s still free.
