Authors: Phoebe Conn
“May I see it, please?” Libby took the paper and quickly scanned the brief article. “Santos sent her flowers, but I didn’t think the accident left her that badly injured. Maggie and I talked with her a couple of weeks ago, and she didn’t even mention Alejandro.”
Joe’s eyes grew huge. “You know her? Can you get me an introduction, if she survives?”
“She will,” Libby assured him, but she wouldn’t promise he’d meet her when she doubted Ana would enjoy meeting him.
At lunchtime, she shared a table with Maggie. Joe came to sit with them, still carrying the tabloid. “Have you seen this? Libby says you both know Ana.”
Maggie hurriedly read the article. “We know her. Alejandro looks a little like Santos, don’t you think, Libby?”
Libby studied the photo between bites of salad. “How can you tell? He looks as though he’s telling the paparazzi to go to hell, but he’s still a handsome man.”
“He’s got the looks and the money, but I doubt he can play basketball worth a damn,” Joe interjected.
“Do you still have her number?” Maggie asked. “Maybe you ought to call and ask how she’s feeling.”
“You have her number?” Joe moved his chair closer to Libby. “Do you mind if I listen in?”
“Yes, I do,” Libby replied. She carried her phone out to patio opening off the teachers’ lounge. When Ana answered, she greeted her warmly. “It’s Libby. I’m so glad you’re well enough to answer the phone.”
“Despite what the tabloids print, a broken leg isn’t fatal.”
Libby turned to send Maggie a thumbs-up. “That’s a relief. Maggie and I would love to come visit you.”
“Please don’t. Let’s plan to get together when I’m better.”
Libby leaned against the doorway. “We’ll look forward to it. Is anything the tabloids report true? Have you married Alejandro Ortiz y Vasquez?”
“Yes, and he’s a devoted husband who insists I end our call to rest. I’ll talk to you soon.”
Libby returned to her table. “She did break her leg and got married, although I’m not sure which came first.”
“Well, she’s not going to die,” Joe remarked. “People do get divorces, so there’s still a chance for me if you’ll help me meet her.”
“You mustn’t impose on your friends,” Maggie advised. “It’s a very bad habit.”
“Well, I had to try.” He bit into his sandwich and let the matter drop.
Ana kept hold of her phone. “Libby’s engaged to Santos Aragon. She’s a sweet girl.”
Alejandro knew he’d sound like a jealous ass, but he couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “You told me you knew Santos, but the story was too long to tell. We’ve got the whole day.”
She smoothed her hair out of her eyes. “Isn’t there a disaster somewhere—wild fires or floods, a war or famine to discuss?”
“Does Santos belong in such a dismal category?”
“It depends on who you are. All I’ll say is that we were close when his father was ill. Please let it go at that.”
He tried but failed. “It’s difficult to believe a matador could offer much in the way of sympathetic comfort.”
She sat up but quickly collapsed into her pillows. “I’m still dizzy. Maybe I’ll be able to use a wheelchair tomorrow. I’d hate to be carried on board the
Siren
on a stretcher.” Her phone chimed, and she handed it to him. “Who is it?”
“Speak of the devil, it’s Santos Aragon. Should I leave the room?”
“No, stay. I thought he wasn’t speaking to me, so this ought to be good. “Santos, Libby just called to say hello.”
His voice was hushed, as though he didn’t wish to be overheard. “I wanted to make certain you weren’t near death.”
“That’s very kind of you. Thank you for the beautiful roses. It was thoughtful of you to send them.”
“I’m sorry you were hurt. I hope you know I mean that.”
“Thank you, Santos. Stay well.” She ended the call and kept the phone. “He has his father’s deep voice, but now I know who’s calling.”
His heart sank. “When Miguel was alive, you couldn’t tell them apart?”
“I hate to disappoint you, but we were never a ménage a trois. If you have any other questions, ask Santos.”
He got up and paced by the bed. “I doubt he’d enjoy the conversation any more than I would. Maybe I should meet him, just to say I’d shaken hands with a matador. I need to check on the details for the cruise. You must have a passport.”
“I do. It’s in my office desk. Fatima knows where it is.”
“I’ll get it Thursday when I pick up your clothes. Do you want me to bring you anything?”
“Some chocolate, please, but don’t go out of your way.”
He kissed her brow. “I’ll find something good.”
Even his lightest touch brought a teasing tingle that made Ana wish for more, even if she weren’t well enough to do more than kiss him back. She struggled to fluff her pillow and was sorry she’d not asked him to bring one from home. He’d been so accommodating, and she didn’t want to take advantage. Still, she wished she’d thought about a softer pillow sooner. She simply wasn’t cut out for bed rest. After he had gone and Maja brought her some juice, she was grateful for her company.
“Where’s Prince Charming?” the nurse asked.
“He’s running errands. He must have lots to do if he’s not going to stay with me. All the people here are wonderful, but I’ll be so glad to leave.”
Maja moved the visitor chair back to the wall. “That’s our mission. We want everyone to feel good about going home.”
While Alejandro waited for the elevator, a man wearing a white doctor’s coat and holding a clipboard came through the stairwell door at the end of the hall. He was about six feet tall with shaggy blond hair and a burly build. While Alejandro possessed no psychic traits, he had a very bad feeling. The man wore no identification badge attached to his pocket. Alejandro took a backwards step into his way. “Maybe you can answer a question for me, Doctor.”
The man brushed by him. “Sorry, not today.”
Alejandro watched him walk on down the hallway toward Ana’s room and alerted the nurses at the desk. “Call security.”
“Wait a minute!” he called and loped down the corridor to overtake him, but just as the man reached Ana’s room, Maja came out carrying an empty tray. The man caught the nurse’s arm, flung her into Alejandro, and the tray clattered to the floor. Sidestepping the spinning tray, Alejandro caught Maja before she fell, and the white-coated man darted through the exit doorway at that end of the corridor.
Maja grabbed hold of Alejandro’s arms to regain her balance. “Who was that?” she cried.
“Someone who shouldn’t have been here.” He looked into Ana’s room. “Are you all right?”
“Of course. You left only a minute ago. What’s going on out there?”
Two uniformed security guards came sprinting from the elevator, and Alejandro pointed them toward the exit door. “He’s a big blond guy in a doctor’s coat.”
Alejandro picked up the tray and handed it to Maja. “Did he hurt you?”
She straightened her uniform. “He just rattled my teeth, that’s all. He’ll be on the security cameras. They’ll catch him.”
“I hope so.” He went into Ana’s room and gave her a quick account of the scuffle in the hall. “I’m calling Montoya. Maybe the guy is an ambitious paparazzo, but he could have been someone more dangerous.”
“A big blond guy you said? Ask Montoya to bring the S&M photos from Campos’s studio. There was a blond with a mask, but maybe you can recognize him from his build.”
“I will, and as soon as we’ve talked to Montoya, I’m taking you out of here,” he said, his tone emphatic.
A wide yawn took her both hands to cover. “It would be so nice to go home, if they’ll let me.”
“Not home. We’ll board the
Siren
a few days early.”
She cocked her head slightly. “Can we do that?”
He laughed and kissed her. “It’s an Ortiz ship, Ana. I can do whatever I like.”
“I suppose that’s good.” She caught his hand as he drew back.
“You don’t look convinced.”
She licked her lips. “Some believe it’s important for people to earn things for themselves in order to really appreciate them.”
He squeezed her fingers before releasing her hand and leaned against the foot rail as he pulled Montoya’s card from his wallet. “Even if you don’t count how difficult it is to be Orlando Ortiz’s son, I deserve credit for earning two college degrees on my own.”
“Of course you do.”
It was a quick call, and Montoya promised to be there within ten minutes. Alejandro shoved his phone back into his pocket. “Do I strike you as being ungrateful?”
“No, not at all. You’re generous and kind.”
“Thank you. I’d hate for you to suddenly decide you’ve married the wrong man.”
She finished her juice and set the glass on the night table. “Not yet. Did you make a wonderfully romantic proposal?”
He paced beside her bed. He’d already strayed so far from the truth he might as well embellish it. “It was extraordinary, poetic and so passionate you threw yourself into my arms.”
“I’m trying to picture it but just draw a blank. It must be worth repeating. Please propose to me again so I’ll remember it this time.”
With a befuddled gaze, she was so innocently appealing he wished he had actually proposed. “It was spontaneous. I could never recapture the moment.”
“You could give it your best effort.”
“I don’t want to disappoint you. Let me work on it.”
“Please do. The
Siren’s
captain could marry us, couldn’t he? Then I’d have a wedding ceremony to remember.”
He swallowed hard, but with a man posing as a doctor to get into her room, this was an odd time to plan a wedding. “Captains can marry people at sea, but let’s talk about it after we’re safely on board.”
Her voice was feather soft. “Have you decided you don’t want to be married to me?”
“Impossible,” he assured her. He was grateful her beautiful green eyes still couldn’t see clearly, because his perplexed expression would have instantly given away the whole preposterous fantasy. Marrying her on board the
Siren
would simplify everything. He was grateful she’d thought of it before he had to convince her an ocean wedding would be wonderfully romantic and suit them perfectly.
Chapter Thirteen
Montoya spoke with the director of the hospital security force before entering Ana’s room. “The hospital security cameras caught it all. The man came through the kitchen carrying what appeared to be a food delivery. It proved to be a carton containing a white coat and clipboard. He went up the service stairs, pulled on the white coat, grabbed the clipboard and came out on this floor. He dropped the clipboard running back down the stairs, and we’re checking it for prints. He eluded the guards and walked out the front entrance with the white coat tucked under his arm. The whole time he kept his chin tucked to his chest, so we have no clear images of his face, but he could very well be the blond in Mr. Campos’s S&M scenes.”
Alejandro studied the photos Montoya had shown Ana at the police station. “From the width of the shoulders, he could have been the man here. Didn’t Jaime have any photos of him without a mask?”
“He may have, but they weren’t in his files when we went through them. You said the man spoke to you. Did he have an accent, or an unusual way of speaking?”
“He was brusque, as though he were needed elsewhere. It was his size that caught my attention. He simply looked out of place, but the fact he had no ID badge gave him away.”
“What do you suppose he planned to do if he’d gotten into my room?” Ana asked.
Montoya shrugged and straightened his tie. “He may have only wanted to make certain you aren’t half-dead as the tabloids reported. Or, he could have planned to take a photo to prove it. He ran when you confronted him, Mr. Vasquez, but if he’d meant to do Miss Santillan any serious harm, he would have struck you hard enough to knock you out and incapacitated the nurse.”
“You’ve no proof of what his intentions actually were,” Alejandro replied. “If a man without an ID can get so close to Ana, it’s clear she isn’t safe here.”
“With a well-known patient, it’s an unusual situation,” Montoya began, “but I believe hospital security can handle any other intruders.”
“Really?” Alejandro challenged. “If no one is observing the security cameras until after an event occurs, they aren’t a force I’ll trust. We’ll move to the
Mediterranean Siren
. She’s in port, and on Friday, we’ll leave on a two-week cruise.”
The detective regarded Alejandro with a dark stare. “I don’t believe it’s necessary for Miss Santillan to leave the country.”
“I don’t care what you believe. If the elevator had come any faster, I’d have been gone when the man reached this floor. He could have easily knocked the nurse senseless and done whatever he intended to do. I won’t risk it happening again.”
“Alejandro is right,” Ana added softly. “It’s bad enough to be confined to a bed. To have to be on guard for dangerous intruders is too much. If Dr. Pallares won’t release me, I’ll leave on my own. I can ride in the backseat of your SUV, Alejandro. You needn’t hire an ambulance for me.”