Chương 7
Maya looked at Grant.
“You called me that?”
“I don’t think I called you anything.”
Claire said, “Security mentioned a bakery employee when I asked what happened.”
Maya nodded.
“Good. I was worried my title had become permanent.”
Claire turned back to Grant.
“There’s another issue.”
“Of course.”
She lowered her voice.
“The network producer asked whether this had anything to do with the river anniversary segment.”
Grant stared at her.
“How would they know I’m here?”
“They don’t. You told me you found the paramedic. I canceled an interview that includes the river story. They asked if those facts were related.”
Grant exhaled.
“What did you say?”
“That I couldn’t discuss it.”
“Good.”
Claire’s eyes searched his face.
“What are you thinking?”
“Not here.”
“That means something bad.”
“It means not here.”
Maya stood.
“I’m going to find Rachel.”
Claire watched her leave.
“Who is she?”
“She gave Lucy a cake.”
“Okay.”
“Do you have a problem with that answer?”
“No. I expected something complicated.”
Grant sat.
Claire remained standing.
He said, “The story is false.”
She did not pretend not to understand.
“Parts of it.”
“The central part.”
“You were in the vehicle.”
“I did not get myself out.”
“The earliest city report said you were extracted after partial self-evacuation.”
“Because I got one shoulder through a window before losing consciousness.”
“I know.”
“I never reached the bank.”
“I know.”
“Erin held my head above water.”
Claire sat beside him.
“I know.”
Grant turned.
“You knew?”
“I read the complete incident report six years ago.”
“Why?”
“Because a magazine requested rights to a long-form profile and legal wanted every claim verified.”
“What happened?”
“We declined the profile.”
“Why?”
Claire looked through the open door toward Erin’s room.
“Because the report did not match the public version.”
Grant stared at her.
“Who made that decision?”
“I recommended it.”
“And me?”
“You said you were too busy to care.”
He looked away.
The hallway had become warm.
Or perhaps his face had.
Claire continued quietly.
“You didn’t invent the original reporting, Grant.”
“I benefited from it.”
“Yes.”
“And you protected it.”
“Yes.”
He hated her calmness because it left him nowhere to hide.
“What would happen if I corrected it?”
“Tonight?”
“Not tonight.”
Claire studied him.
“Depends how.”
“The truth usually works.”
“In communications, the truth is a category, not a strategy.”
Maya, returning with Rachel, overheard the last sentence.
“That’s bleak.”
Claire looked at her.
“It’s my profession.”
Rachel sat across from them.
“What truth?”
Grant felt Claire go still.
He could have avoided it.
There were arguments for waiting. Erin was dying. Rachel was exhausted. Lucy was ten feet away.
But Rachel had already accused him of discovering gratitude too late.
She deserved an answer.
“The public version of my accident says I escaped the vehicle and fought the current until rescuers reached me.”
Rachel’s eyes narrowed.
“I remember.”
“I didn’t.”
“No.”
“Erin got to me while I was still trapped.”
Rachel leaned back.
“My sister always said the article was garbage.”
Grant nodded.
“She was right.”
“You going to fix it now?”
“Yes.”
Rachel laughed once.
There was no humor in it.
“Why?”
“Because it’s false.”
“It was false yesterday.”
Grant had no answer.
Rachel’s eyes reddened.
“Don’t put her face in some foundation video.”
“I won’t.”
“Don’t make Lucy part of your apology.”
“I won’t.”
“Don’t name a building after Erin.”
“I wasn’t—”
“You people love buildings.”
Claire looked down at her hands.
Grant said, “I won’t use Erin’s name without your family’s permission.”
“You don’t have my permission.”
“Understood.”
Rachel stood.
“Good.”
She walked back into the room.
Maya whispered, “That went well.”
Claire glanced at her.
“Is that your professional opinion?”
“No. My professional opinion is about laminated dough.”
At nine, Dr. Sameer Shah came in.
Grant left the room automatically.
Rachel asked him to stay.
Dr. Shah looked surprised but did not object.
He was younger than Grant expected, perhaps early forties, with tired eyes behind black-framed glasses. He spoke first to Erin even though her eyes were closed.
“Erin, it’s Sameer.”
Her eyelids moved.
“Still you?”
“Unfortunately.”
“Was hoping for Idris Elba.”
Dr. Shah smiled.
“Budget cuts.”
Lucy laughed from the chair.
Grant watched the doctor assess Erin without turning the moment into a performance. He checked her breathing, asked about pain, waited for answers that took time.
Then he asked Rachel and Lucy to step into the hall.
Erin opened her eyes.
“Lucy stays.”
Dr. Shah paused.
“Erin.”
“She stays.”
Rachel sat back down.
Lucy climbed onto her chair.
Grant saw Dr. Shah make a decision.
“All right.”
He lowered himself so he was not standing over the child.
“Lucy, your mom’s body is getting more tired.”
“I know.”
“She may sleep more.”
“I know.”
“At some point she may not wake up when we speak to her.”
Lucy’s fingers tightened around the edge of her dress.
“Will she hear?”
“We think people may still hear voices even when they can’t answer. I can’t promise exactly what she’ll experience.”
Lucy nodded.
“Will she reach midnight?”
Rachel closed her eyes.
Dr. Shah looked at Erin.
Then back at Lucy.
“I don’t know.”
“You told Aunt Rachel she wouldn’t.”
“I told your aunt I would not be surprised if your mom died tonight.”
“That means no.”
“It means I’m not good enough at predicting the exact hour to promise you yes or no.”
Lucy considered him.
“So she could.”
“Yes.”
“She could not.”
“Yes.”
Lucy did not like that.
Grant could tell.
She wanted the world to hold still long enough for an answer.
Adults built entire corporations around the same desire.
Dr. Shah asked, “What happens at midnight?”
“My mom turns thirty-nine for no more minutes.”
Erin opened one eye.
“That is a terrible sentence.”
Lucy looked at her.
“You know what I mean.”
“I do.”
Dr. Shah nodded.
“All right.”
He stood.
“I’ll be nearby.”
May you like
After he left, Erin slept again.
Lucy took the wedding ring from the bedside table and rolled it between her fingers.
