Page 27 of Dirty Monsters
“She’s fresh, so I don’t see her trying to pick a fight with you. We had a patient show up this morning who was supposed to get Miss Carrington’s room. We need to move her out so we can keep the cycle moving along.”
I stood, and the chair rolled out from behind me quickly. I froze, hoping I didn’t seem too aggressive, too adamant. I wanted to leave before she changed her mind. I was also anxious to see Wren.
Once I played off my audacious attempt to get up and get out, I nodded and walked to the door.
“You have some demons, Rohlen.” I paused at her words but didn’t turn around. “We can all see it written all over your face. You hold yourself together, but on occasion, the darkness seeps through in your eyes. I do not believe Molly’s story, but other people probably will, based on your reputation alone. Keep your shit together.”
* * *
I walked as fast as my feet would travel to get to Red House. It wasn’t dark out yet, but it was after lunch. Much later than I should have been in getting over here.
The words Mrs. Tessier had said kept playing in my head.
“You have demons.”
“Keep your shit together.”
“She has no reason to pick a fight with you.”
Her claims were legit, I had a past, and I needed to be careful. But she was a thousand percent wrong about Wren. Wren was worse than Molly. Wren could not only cost me my job but also my life and my sanity. She wouldn’t simply go for the heart; she was a soul stealer, and I was half tempted to let her.
And she knew it, which made it even more dangerous.
I walked briskly into the lobby of the Red House and went straight to reception.
“I’m here to get Wren Carrington,” I said as politely as I could.
“Oh, okay. I will call up to her room and tell her to come down,” she said sweetly.
“No,” I snapped before I realized I was out of line. “I mean, please tell me what room she is in. I will need to help her with her things.” I shook my head. “It’s been a long day, sorry.” By the end of my sentence, my voice had leveled back off, but I could tell the one loud word was enough to scare the poor lady.She simply nodded and agreed.
She knew who I was, and she knew what my job was. She hit a few buttons on her computer before reading the room number.
“Thanks,” I said and cut off whatever she was thinking of saying to keep me there. I could see the wheels spinning inside that pretty head of hers, and I wasn’t in a mood to answer questions.
I took the stairs two at a time until I reached Wren’s door. I knocked and noticed no one else was around; no one was monitoring her room or floor. Was this normal?
Wren opened the door with an angry expression, ready to snarl at whoever she pictured was on the other side. I expected her to snap at me, to wonder where the hell I had been.
Maybe she would have too, except at the sight of me, her features softened, and her face fell, “Ro? Oh my God, are you okay?”
She pulled me into her room and peered down the hall both ways before shutting her door. She leaned against it to keep her space, but her eyes lowered.
“Are you okay?” she asked again, this time trying to appear less frantic.Had she heard about what happened?
“What makes you ask?” I crossed my arms over my chest, putting up a wall of sorts between us.
“Your face just looks anxious,” she started to walk toward me, and I took a step back. I wasn’t letting her anywhere near me. I still wasn’t sure of her intentions, and after the day I’d had, I was taking Mrs. Tessier's words to heart.
She stopped and cocked her head sideways at my retreat. "Scared, Ro?"
"Not at all, only here to make sure you get over to Orange today."
"You're late."
"It's been a busy day," I shrugged.
"I know what happened over there, Ro. I know about the incident." She said the last word with punctiliousassurance. Did she? Had word spread that fast among the patients?