Chapter 205
[ 485 words ]
Chapter 205:
Brenna looked at the schedule, then at Finchley. The anger in her eyes fought a violent battle with ambition. Finally, she let out a heavy, defeated sigh. “Fine. You win. But I’m going to hate every second of it.”
Finchley turned to Caroline. He couldn’t look her in the eye.
Caroline stared at the piece of paper. Her gray eyes were perfectly calm, but her brain was processing the data at lightning speed.
She saw the trap instantly.
She noticed the specific allocation of the hardest, most physically demanding tasks. She noticed Finchley’s rapid blinking and the nervous, tactical swallow he made before speaking. He was terrified.
This wasn’t a flu outbreak. This was a targeted hit. Someone with massive power had forced Finchley to do this. And Brenna was just collateral damage, thrown in to make the schedule look less suspicious.
Caroline knew that if she complained or refused, HR would get involved. It would create a paper trail. It would draw attention.
𝗡𝗈𝘃еlѕ і𝘯 𝘁𝗿е𝗇𝘥 𝗈n ga𝗅n𝗼v𝘦𝗅ѕ.соm
She looked up at Finchley. Her voice was flat, devoid of any emotion.
“Understood, Doctor,” Caroline said. “I will be here.”
Finchley looked incredibly relieved. He turned and practically ran back toward his office.
Brenna stared at Caroline like she had lost her mind. “Are you crazy? We are going to die this week.”
“It’s for the promotion,” Caroline lied smoothly, offering a tired smile.
But beneath the surface, Caroline’s blood was turning to ice. Her competitive, operative instincts were fully awake. Whoever was pulling the strings thought they could break her with physical exhaustion.
They had no idea who they were dealing with. During some of the more grueling phases of her past training, Caroline had endured seventy-two hours of sleep deprivation while undergoing highly realistic simulated interrogations. Compared to that, two sixteen-hour shifts in a hospital were a joke.
She folded the paper and shoved it into her scrub pocket.
She had accepted the challenge. But a sudden realization hit her stomach. She would have to cancel her upcoming lunch with Julian — whenever that ended up being rescheduled to.
Caroline walked away from the chaotic nurses’ station and slipped into the quiet, empty employee breakroom, letting the heavy door swing shut behind her and cut off the noise of the ER.
She walked over to her metal locker and pulled out her civilian cell phone. The screen lit up with three unread messages from Julian, confirming the reservation at the pet-friendly patio in Alexandria.
Caroline let out a slow, heavy breath. Her thumbs moved quickly across the glass screen, typing out a text.
Julian, I am so sorry. The hospital just hit us with mandatory emergency scheduling. I have to work a double shift all weekend. I have to cancel tomorrow.
She hit send and stared at the screen, waiting for the inevitable disappointment.
Ten seconds later, the reply popped up.
Don’t apologize! The ER needs you. Please make sure you eat and stay hydrated. We will reschedule when you survive the weekend. Good luck!
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