The rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor filled the room, blending seamlessly into the quiet hum of the hospital morning. Dr. Teal pushed the wooden door open, his clipboard in hand. "Morning—" His words caught in his throat, and his eyes widened.
Madison froze mid-bite, her spoon halfway to her mouth, dripping with cookies-and-cream ice cream.
"Are you serious?!" Dr. Teal's voice rose as he stormed toward her, his brows knitting in disbelief. His face flushed as he yanked the ice cream out of her hand, marched to the bin, and dropped it with a loud clank, the lid snapping shut over the evidence of her defiance.
"What is wrong with you? Smoking, eating sugar—feeding your cancer?!" His tone was sharp, his frustration finally boiling over.
Madison blinked at him innocently. "Morning," she said, drawing the word out lazily. She reached over, popped the bin's lid, and retrieved the ice cream, brushing it off casually. "Your bin's pretty clean, so it's not stopping me."
Dr. Teal watched in sheer disbelief as she scooped another bite into her mouth. "I've gone through worse," she said through the spoonful, shrugging as if her defiance was perfectly justified.
Dr. Teal grabbed a handful of his hair, turning in circles in the room, clearly at his wit's end.
"Dr. Teal," Madison called, her voice sharp enough to slice through his frustration. He stopped mid-step and looked at her.
"You don't need to humor me," she said, leaning back casually against the pillows. "There are plenty of patients—real patients—for you to entertain."
He stared at her, his brows furrowing as he stepped closer to the edge of her bed. "Why are you doing this to me?" His voice was low but carried the weight of his exhaustion. "Have I wronged you in some way? Did I offend you? Steal your partner?"
She chuckled, the sound light but laced with mockery. "You're weird," she said simply. "But you're really entertaining."
She tossed her half-finished ice cream into the bin with a lazy flick of her wrist. Reaching for her bag, she pulled out a book, holding it up with a sly smile.
"I've got this," she said, waving the book slightly. Then, nodding toward the TV mounted on the wall, she added, "That." Digging into her bag, she pulled out her laptop with a flourish. "This." Finally, with a triumphant smirk, she revealed a pack of cigarettes. "And, of course, these."
Dr. Teal's face hardened. Before she could react, he snatched the cigarettes from her hand.
"If you're throwing it away," she said, unbothered, "I'll just pick it up later."
He shoved the pack into his coat pocket and grinned. "Oh, I have a better idea."
She tilted her head, her amusement unshaken. "Do tell."
Dr. Teal leaned forward, his smile widening. "I'll make sure you can't leave this room. Ever."
She scoffed, her arms crossing tightly against her chest. "Like that worked before."
"Oh, it will this time," he said, confidence dripping from his words. "I'll assign guards to this room. Since you're in the VIP suite, that makes it very easy to arrange."
Her posture straightened, the playful smirk slipping ever so slightly. "You wouldn't."
He leaned even closer, his grin victorious. "Try me."
Dr. Teal left the room, satisfaction evident on his face as he passed the guard now stationed at Madison's door. From behind the closed door, muffled shouts of Madison's fury slipped through but faded quickly into silence.
A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as he strode down the hallway. His pager beeped repeatedly, pulling him from his thoughts. He pulled it out, glancing at the alert before pocketing it again.
Pausing by a nearby bin, he retrieved the confiscated pack of cigarettes from his coat pocket and dropped it in with a decisive clunk. With that small victory secured, he continued down the corridor, his pace steady, his mind already onto his next task.
The hallways felt quieter this time of night, the hum of fluorescent lights and distant monitors filling the air. Eventually, his steps brought him to the inventory room. He pushed the door open, the sterile scent of supplies hitting him immediately as he entered. Rows of shelves stretched before him, neatly stocked with syringes, IV bags, and other necessities.
Dr. Teal ran a hand over his face, sighing heavily as he leaned against the door for a moment. It was supposed to be just another day, but Madison Faye had proven to be anything but ordinary.
The sun hovered high, its rays streaming through the cafeteria windows, marking the approach of lunchtime. The hum of conversation filled the air, blending with the sterile scent of the hospital and the less-than-appetizing aroma of cafeteria food.
A tray clattered onto the table as Dr. Teal sighed and slumped into the seat across from his colleague, Ryan, who was already mid-bite of a sandwich.
"So, the chick's giving you hell, huh?" Ryan said, his words muffled through a full mouth.
"Chick?" Dr. Teal raised an eyebrow, genuinely taken aback.
"Yeah, man. Madison. She's hot for a cancer patient," Ryan said with a casual shrug, taking another bite.
"You're disgusting," Dr. Teal replied flatly.
"No, she's sick. And hot," Ryan countered with an unapologetic grin.
Dr. Teal rubbed his temple. "I can't figure her out. She's taking every treatment except for cancer. Her psych report came back normal—completely normal."
"Yeah, but didn't you say she's a professional liar?" Ryan said, leaning in slightly.
"You should've seen her performance. It was chilling," Dr. Teal said, his voice dropping. "She even ate ice cream out of the trash without flinching."
Ryan paused, chewing thoughtfully. "Ice cream and acting aside, she shoved her parents out of the picture and refuses surgery. Doesn't that say something? Like, major red flags?"
Dr. Teal sighed. "Ryan…" Then his expression shifted, eyes narrowing with intent. "Wait, your brother-in-law's a private investigator, right?"
Ryan's chewing slowed. "Yeah, why?"
Dr. Teal's lips pressed into a thin line. "I need his help. Strictly for medical purposes."
Ryan dropped his sandwich, leaning back in his chair. "You're unbelievable. You're seriously digging into this woman's life? You're down bad, Stuart. Like, rock-bottom bad."
"It's not like that," Dr. Teal said, though the defensive tone in his voice wasn't convincing anyone—not even himself.
Ryan shook his head, smirking. "Yeah, sure, buddy. You keep telling yourself that."
Dr. Teal and Ryan stepped out of the bustling cafeteria, their conversation trailing off as they headed down the corridor.
"You know," Ryan said, stuffing the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth, "if you're gonna dig into her, you better hope she doesn't find out. That woman looks like she could chew you up and spit you out."
Dr. Teal smirked, adjusting his coat. "She already has. Twice."
Ryan laughed, clapping him on the shoulder. "Good luck, man. You're gonna need it."
Before Dr. Teal could reply, a sharp, incessant beep cut through the air. He paused, fishing his pager out of his pocket. His stomach tightened as he read the message:
Room 003. Seizure. Immediate response required.
"Damn it," he muttered under his breath.
"What's up?" Ryan asked, leaning over to glance at the pager.
"Madison," Dr. Teal said, already sprinting down the corridor.
Ryan called after him, "See? She's already got you running!"
Dr. Teal ignored the remark, his focus narrowing as his shoes pounded against the tile floor. The sight of nurses rushing ahead of him confirmed the urgency. He reached Room 003 to find Madison's body jerking violently on the bed, the heart monitor beeping erratically.
"Nurse, how long has this been going on?" Dr. Teal asked, snapping on a pair of gloves.
"Just under a minute, doctor," one of the nurses replied, adjusting the bed rails to prevent her from falling.
"Roll her to her side. Let's protect her airway," Dr. Teal ordered, his voice steady despite the adrenaline pumping through him.
Madison's face was pale, beads of sweat forming on her forehead. He noted her clenched jaw, her limbs stiff and trembling.
"She's stabilizing," another nurse said as the convulsions began to subside.
Dr. Teal exhaled, grabbing his stethoscope to check her vitals. "Oxygen saturation?"
"Eighty-nine percent and climbing," the nurse replied.
He turned to one of the junior doctors who had arrived. "Get me her seizure meds list and check her glucose levels. I want a full blood workup after this."
The room fell quieter as Madison's body relaxed, the convulsions fading into exhaustion. Her chest rose and fell heavily, her eyelids fluttering but not fully opening.
"Madison," Dr. Teal said gently, leaning closer. "Can you hear me?"
Her lips twitched, but no sound came out.
"She's postictal," he explained to the team. "Let's give her a moment."
After ensuring her vitals were stable and the immediate danger had passed, Dr. Teal stood back, his hands on his hips, watching her.
The moon rose high, casting a faint, silvery light into Madison's room through the half-drawn curtains. The rhythmic beep of her heart monitor filled the quiet space, its stable peaks matching the slow rise and fall of her chest as she slept.
Dr. Teal stood in the shadows, his arms crossed, watching her. Her face was peaceful, a stark contrast to the fiery attitude she carried when awake. He sighed quietly, then let his gaze drift to the small bag on the chair beside her bed.
Curiosity got the better of him. With careful steps, he moved toward it, his shoes making no sound against the cold floor. Slowly, he opened the bag and pulled out a well-worn book. He flipped through the pages, noting underlined passages and handwritten notes in the margins. Setting it down, he glanced toward her laptop.
The faint glow from its power indicator caught his attention. He opened it, and the screen blinked to life, revealing the password prompt. He frowned. At the edge of the laptop, he noticed a small rectangular dent. A thumbprint scanner.
He hesitated for a moment, then looked toward Madison. She was still fast asleep, her breathing steady. He carefully lifted her hand, avoiding the IV line taped to her arm, and pressed her thumb against the scanner.
The laptop vibrated lightly before the screen unlocked.
He froze as Madison stirred, her lips parting.
"Jason..." she mumbled, her voice soft, almost inaudible.
Dr. Teal held his breath, standing perfectly still. When she didn't wake, he lowered her hand back onto the bed and retreated into the shadows. The glow of the laptop screen illuminated his face as he scanned the open tabs and search history.
His eyes narrowed, reading the entries:
"Saint Kitts and Nevis citizenship requirements"
"Best Korean plastic surgeons"
"Blepharoplasty risks and recovery"
His brows furrowed deeper with each line, his mind racing. Why was she looking into plastic surgery? And dual citizenship?
His frown deepened with each tab. He scrolled further, uncovering more searches and bookmarked pages—some seemingly unrelated, others downright suspicious.
The more he read, the more tabs he opened. Each new discovery changed the picture he was trying to piece together. But the puzzle wasn't coming together. The pieces felt scattered, fragmented. Worse, there were pieces missing altogether.
Dr. Teal sat back, his jaw tightening, his thoughts spiraling.