chapter 45

word count: 1266

hank had taken the call, just as he was pulling out of the hospital parking lot.. he could hear the panic and confusion in little adam millers voice,, as he explained to him that his father had taken desperately ill,, and that he had instructed adam to call 911,, and then his uncle hank in hopes that he would come and get adam and keep him until either his mom or his dad was able to come home from the hospital and care for him themselves.. 

hank had immediately popped the flashing blue bubble light on the roof of his crown vic, allowing him to accelerate through traffic with the urgency the situation deserved.. he had arrived just as the EMT”s were loading the gurney into the bus..

“what the hell is going on here?” hank barked at one of the EMT”s as they secured the gurney in the back of the bus,, and secured its doors.

“he is in acute gastrointestinal distress.. his vital signs are weak.. he claims he has been poisoned,, but we will not have any further information till a tox screen has been run. we are transporting to new albany general,, you can get more information from them detective bower,, but right now we gotta move.” 

hank joined adam in the front yard and together they watched the bus disappear around the corner,, in route to new albany general, lights and sirens blazing..

“everything is gonna be alright,” hank reassured adam,, as they headed toward the house,, hanks arm resting comfortingly on adam’s shoulder,, “they are both in the best possible hands.” 

although a cloud of doubt overshadowed his every word, hank put up a strong front for the sake of the boy.. ‘this poor kid,’ he thought to himself, as he helped adam pack an overnight bag, ‘how much more can he take before he ends up on a gurney himself?’ 

a dreaded silence overtook them as they traveled toward hanks daughters house, punctuated only by the occasional code being called out over the police radio..

“you’re gonna like my daughter lisa, and her son, my grandson, erik.. he’s just a little bit older than you but i’m gonna bet ya, you two are really gonna hit it off..”  hank kept his tone upbeat as he fought off the worst possible scenarios that were playing out in his mind.. 

‘what if jeannie can’t beat this cancer? how was adam going to react when hank finally explained the seriousness of her condition to him?? was the boss really being poisoned?? and if so, who the hell could possibly be trying to poison him? what if one or both of them never made it out of the hospital? what on earth was to become of little adam, even if they did??

as hank turned into his daughters apartment complex,, they passed right by a playground full of kids of all ages.. “see there,,” he said, feigning delight, “a whole playground full of kids!! you’re gonna have a ball over here,, i just know it!!” 

adam just gazed emotionlessly out the window. he looked at all the kids having fun, and wondered if he would ever be able to have fun again. he wished someone would tell him, why his mom had passed out at the hospital,, and what was she doing there in the first place?? but mostly,, he wondered why the petals of the pretty oleander flowers that he had chopped up and mixed so carefully into the mayonnaise his mom put on his dad’s sandwiches had not killed him,, like it had killed his little dog, tiny,, overnight and without warning??  

***

detective brenda simmons fired up her ford bronco and eased it passed the miller home,, as if she would get a clue as to what was going down by simply staring at the house as she drove by.. something was up,, as she had witnessed buzz being carted away in an ambulance,, and hank bowers coming over and leaving with the kid..  a maniacal smile crossed her lips as she allowed herself to fantasize that whatever it was that had sent buzz screaming  to the hospital,, was a direct result of the smack down she had laid on him earlier in the month,, right there in that very driveway… 

“you son of a bitch” she seethed to herself, “i fucked your brains out to get that promotion,, and you passed me right over, and gave it to that limp dick friend of yours, bettencourt, instead..  i vowed right there and then you would pay,, and pay dearly, you bastard.. you better hope whatever is going on with you right now kills you, because if it doesn’t, i assure you i will!!”

as she pulled into the parking lot of new albany general,, she placed her emergency parking placard in the front window of the bronco and pulled up into the red zone directly in front of the emergency entrance.. she assumed a look of only the sincerest  concern,, to mask her true exuberance, and slipped thru the automated double doors, badge and ID in hand..

“detective simmons, homicide, new albany PD, she announced to the nurse at the emergency room reception desk. “i need a status report in detective william ‘buzz’ miller, and i need to see him right away.”

“let me see.. miller, william.. yes i see he was brought in about ten minutes ago,, he is currently in ICU, and not permitted any visitors.. that’s funny,,” said the startled reception nurse as she peered deeper into the list of patients currently receiving treatment,  “it seems as though he is in a double occupancy room with someone by the name of jeannie miller, who just happens to have the same street address and insurance carrier.. hmmm, would you happen to know if that is his wife?”

“it sure is!” exclaimed brenda. “what time was she admitted??”

“according to the information we have here,, 3:45,, and it looks like the conditions surrounding her admittance have yet to be updated.”

“jesus christ!!  what the hell is going on here?? i need more information and i need it now!!” demanded brenda in her most authoritative law enforcement tone.. “who do I have to talk to gain admittance to ICU??  whoever they are,, get them down here stat!! it is very possible a crime has been committed here,, and valuable time is being wasted wading thru this bureaucratic crap!!”

“i’ll see what i can do detective.” the nurse stammered as she picked up the phone,, and began explaining in detail the situation at hand to whomever was on the other end of the line.

as brenda waited for the reception nurse to get someone down here that could authorize her entry into the ICU,, she couldn’t help but congratulate herself on her new found good fortune.. with buzz and jeannie both in ICU,, and the kid safely spirited away by hank bowers,, the miller home was lying dormant.. 

the task at hand was palpable.. all she needed now was to get a time frame from the doctors,, and once she had that,, she could set the wheels in motion on the second stage of her attack on that fucking bastard, buzz miller.. she had been planning it all along,, but had not counted on the gods smiling so favorably upon her,, as it was evident they were doing right now.. 

‘i will ruin everything that means anything to you,, you sick bastard!!’ she hissed to herself.. ‘first your health,, then your spotlight,, and now your home!!!...”