Open House(36)

The cop cleared his throat as he cruised toward the hospital. “Here we are,” he said, and Haley wiped tears from her eyes as he pulled into the parking lot of Waverly Memorial. She just needed to make sure Josie was okay, and go from there. One day at a time, her mom was fond of saying. Haley had her laminated badge from med school in her bag, and she was pretty sure, with her credentials as a medical student whose college was affiliated with the hospital, that she’d be allowed in the room—unless they were forbidding visitors because of the investigation. It was worth a shot.

The officer pulled up to the front entrance and parked. Wipers slashed away the snow, and Haley fought the temptation to ask when he thought Dean might be released. “Thanks for the ride,” she said instead.

She didn’t look back as she stepped onto the curb, feeling thankful that no one she knew was standing outside the hospital to see her exit a police car. The last thing she wanted was to see any of the other med students with whom she’d made tentative friendships and have to explain any of this. Freezing air blasted her face, and wet snow landed on her nose as she hurried toward the revolving doors. Inside the hospital it felt so stifling that she tore off her scarf and jacket. She flashed her badge at the guard sitting behind the desk, and the mere action of that strengthened her. She was going to be a doctor. She didn’t know which kind, or what it was all going to look like, but she knew she was going to help people. The thought of it kept her buoyed during every day of class and every night spent studying past midnight.

The security guard waved Haley past, and she sped through the hospital, breathing in the familiar stench of cleaning products. In the ICU, she didn’t need to ask which room was Josie’s; she headed toward the one with a uniformed cop posted outside the sliding door. She didn’t recognize him from the station. “Hi, I’m one of Josie’s friends,” she said when she reached him, and then she held up her hospital badge. “And also . . .” Her voice trailed off, and she prayed the cop wouldn’t look too close and see that she was only a student.

The officer rose from his chair. “You can go in,” he said, glancing at the badge. Haley shoved open the door. Her breathing had quickened, and her cheeks felt warm, and she felt eternally grateful when the cop didn’t follow her inside the room.

“Josie,” Haley said in a whisper. Josie’s blue eyes were open and blinking, her head slightly inclined.

“Hi,” Josie croaked out.

Haley sat carefully on the edge of the bed.

Josie looked so thin beneath the bedsheets. “The cops have been here all day, asking me questions and freaking me out,” she said, tears spilling over her cheeks. “I don’t remember what happened, Haley. I just don’t.”

“That’s normal,” Haley said. “Do you want to talk about it? What you do remember?”

Josie shook her head gently like she was trying hard to piece things together. When she finally spoke, her speech was slow and filled with doubt. “I remember being at the open house setting up,” she said, “and then Noah came to switch cars with me because of the snow. I remember that. And I remember talking with Chris because he came to help shovel the walkway, and I remember putting the flowers out in the foyer . . .”

Haley wanted to ask if Noah and Chris had been to the hospital yet—if the cops had even been able to get ahold of them. But she didn’t know how to ask without upsetting Josie, and wouldn’t they be here if the cops had gotten through?

“I don’t even remember going into the kitchen,” Josie said, “and that’s where the cops said they . . . where they said you guys found me.” She began to sob, losing her breath to the heaving of her chest, and Haley knew she’d made a mistake. She took Josie’s hand, trying to calm her down. “Josie, shhhh,” she said, “it’s all right. Just try to relax. It’ll help you get better faster, okay?” Josie kept crying, and after a few beats Haley put her arms around her as gently as she could. She hadn’t hugged another woman besides her mom in a long time, and Josie’s bones felt like they were made of nothing at all. “It’s okay,” Haley kept saying, even though everything felt far from it.

They sat together in silence as Josie caught her breath, the only sounds coming from the monitors beeping and the radiator humming. When a nurse entered the room, she took one look at Josie and her mascara-ridden cheeks and red-rimmed eyes, and then she turned to glare at Haley. “I hope you’re not upsetting my patient,” she said, making her way to the bed. “I’ve had just about enough of that today with the police and such.” She spotted Haley’s badge. “You’re a student?”

Haley nodded, embarrassed. She prayed she wouldn’t get in trouble for coming to the hospital for non-school purposes and using her badge. Josie shifted her weight, and a warning beep sounded from the pulse oximeter. The nurse lowered her gray-haired head, readjusted the oximeter on Josie’s index finger, and then patted her shoulder. “Remember what I said,” she warned Haley, and then she left the room.

Haley turned to catch Josie studying her, and it made her blush. The door opened again, and in came Detective Rappaport. “What are you doing here?” he asked Haley. There wasn’t reproach in his voice, only what sounded like genuine concern for both of them.

“Visiting my friend,” Haley said.