Hand of Fate by Lis Wiehl Read Free Book Online Page B

had interrupted the trial. Thinking about the Bratz Bandits seemed absurd and unreal. Reality was slogging forward with a child like a deadweight on her hip. Reality was looking at the frightened faces around her and wondering if any of them would make it.
    Allison had expected the emergency room to be crowded, but what she saw shocked her. Dozens of people stood, sat, or lay in the parking lot and next to the sidewalk. A lucky few were on gurneys. Some children or small adults were even doubled up. The rest sat or lay on their coats or right on the blacktop. Some coughed and moaned; others were silent or talked quietly. One well-dressed woman who leaned against a brick planter called, "Nurse! Nurse!" over and over, but didn't seem to be suffering.
    Among them moved a dozen people in scrubs and street clothes, taking pulses, blood pressures, and temperatures. The faces of the doctors and nurses were calm and determined, and just looking at them made Allison feel a little better. They moved quickly, but they didn't appear panicked. And although most wore latex gloves, they didn' t s eem to be worried about contamination. Here there were no face masks, no moon suits.
    And then Allison caught sight of a familiar face--Dr. Sally Murdoch, a pediatrician she occasionally consulted about crimes she was prosecuting. Sally wore an open black leather jacket over green scrubs.
    Allison waited until Sally straightened up from talking to a middle-aged woman and then said, "Sally, this child and I were both--"
    A hand yanked her back. "Wait your turn!" growled a man in a business suit.
    On any other day, she thought, he would have held a door for her, graciously waited for her to get off the elevator, offered her a nod and a smile as they passed on the sidewalk. But this was not any other day.
    Allison realized that a half-dozen people were waiting in a ragtag line for Sally. She had the baby to think of, and Estella, but she didn't think even that argument would hold any sway. Sally gave her a sort of smile and a shrug, and Allison joined the end of the line.
    Sally spoke to each person in turn, her words a soft murmur, putting a stethoscope to their chests, looking at their eyes and throats, laying a consoling hand on their arms. The businessmen took whatever news she delivered stoically, but the woman ahead of Allison burst into ragged tears. Allison's heart lurched. She didn't want to imagine what the message had been.
    When it was Allison's turn, Sally said, "Who's this?"
    "Estella. I think. I found her downtown, crying. I don't think she speaks English. And Sally, you need to know that we were only a block from whatever happened. So we were exposed. Can you help us?" She hesitated, and then said in a rush, "And you should know that I'm--I'm pregnant."
    Sally shot Allison a quick glance, then murmured, "Hey, baby girl."
    She gently touched Estella's knee before she slipped her stethoscope inside the girl's coat. Estella's arms tightened around Allison's neck.
    Sally listened intently, and then shook her head. It had to be bad news. Allison felt like her heart would crack.
    But then Sally said, "This child is fine. And just from looking at you, I can tell you're fine too. Just like all these people here are fine, except for the ones who got hit by a car trying to run across a street or who ended up with a heart attack from the stress. But everyone else is fine."
    "Fine?"
    "Fine," Sally said definitely.
    "How can you say that?" Allison protested. "I was downtown. I saw it. People were falling to the pavement all around us, gagging and coughing. And we were right there. We were breathing in whatever they did."
    An old man tugged Sally's sleeve. "Please, miss, please, I was downtown. You've got to help me."
    Sally turned and pointed at the line. Allison now saw how tired she was.
    "Go wait over there with those people. I'll be with you soon." She turned back to Allison. "We've run dozens of blood tests, and they've all come back negative.