Distractions (30 page)

Racks of bikinis lined the front of the

store.

“You need to buy at least four. We

will be in the water most of the time and

you really don’t need a yeast infection.”

I scrunched my face at her in

disgust; it was nice knowing that was her

biggest concern for me at the moment.

As I looked for a bikini that covered

most of my rear end and chest, she shook

her head and kept grabbing smaller ones.

“I can’t cover one of my nipples

with that thing!” The tiny triangles were

barely held in place by what resembled

dental floss.

Her hand went to my shirt and

pulled the collar to look down. “You

must have some big nipples; let me see.”

Covering my chest and backing

away, laughing, I ripped the bikini out of

her hand.

“One skanky one, just for you.

Deal?”

Shaking her head she snapped up a

few more. “No deal. If I am going to be

parading around my smarty pants little

sister, I plan on showing off your ass,

too.”

“I am not here to meet someone!” I

looked up at her for a second while

flipping through the rack. I plucked a

bright red and white polka dot suit that

looked like it was from the fifties and

provided plenty of coverage. It was very

pin-up and sexy, and more along my

taste.

As I held it up for approval, she

started to give a sour look before

cracking a big grin.

“Yes, that’s a great one – definitely

you.”

After collecting a few more, we

headed to her small house near Mallory

Square. It was no bigger than a shoebox

and cost a fortune, but it was hers.

Small,

ocean-themed

Christmas

ornaments that I had sent her over the

years hung from her bathroom ceiling.

Several framed photos, many of us

together,

littered

her

mantel

and

stairwell. Touching the glass lightly, I

replayed the memories in my mind. They

were good – all of them. I needed to be

reminded I had those; not all of them

were bad, even though it felt that way.

She walked up to me with a plastic

cup full of sickly sweet frozen margarita

with an extra shot of tequila floating on

the top.

“I’ve done some stupid shit on

tequila; I hope you don’t mind

babysitting.”

Stirring her cup with the bright

straw, she sipped and looked at me with

delight. “That makes two of us. Just

remember you can’t touch the coral;

everything else is secondary.”

Shaking my head, I had no idea

what she meant, but I was sure I would

find out. We walked towards the

restaurant near a set of docks. The

Conch Farm was a popular spot that had

bands playing at night and would be

crowded. Right now, it was relaxed with

a few families sitting about, enjoying

lunch. Vivienne ordered a chicken wrap

and calamari. I ordered the fish tacos

and a water with lemon. She eyed the

glass as if it were out of place.

“Hey, I am dehydrated as hell. If I

am going to be drinking, I need as much

of this stuff as possible.”

Grabbing the glass and taking a sip,

she smacked her lips and let out an

exaggerated “Ahhhh…”

“Whatever.”

“Booze has water in it.”

“Really? Didn’t know that.” I

rolled my eyes, hoping she wasn’t

serious. She grabbed my glass again and

sucked down the rest of the water.

“Thank you, I didn’t want that.”

Our banter was wonderful. We

hadn’t laughed like this in years. I could

not remember the last time we had so

much fun; it had been far too long. While

waiting for the food to arrive, she eyed

my necklace curiously.

“I didn’t know you owned an

Esperanza piece; did I send that to you?”

Reaching up to rub the smooth coin

in my hands, I shook my head.

“No, Shepard gave it to me on a

trip.”

I looked out into the water, thinking

about how similar the surroundings were

to the islands we stopped at. Now

realizing she touched a nerve, she leaned

in towards me.

“There’s something I need to tell

you. I know it’s late, and it won’t change

anything, but you should know. He was

at the hospital. As soon as he heard, he

was there. Every day he waited, hoping

he could see you. I sat with him in the

waiting room while they were doing

tests on you. I don’t think I have ever

seen someone so heartbroken. This

doctor told us he couldn’t come back; it

tore him apart. Then they moved you.

Dad told me you kept asking for him, but

I guess his family blamed you, so the

lawyers nixed that.”

I clutched the necklace painfully in

my palm. He came and no one told me. I

bit my cheek in an attempt to not cry in

public. I wasn’t afraid to make a fool out

of myself. I could blame it on too much

booze and sunburn, even though I was

pale as an albino rat. I dropped my head

and let the tears pour down the bridge of

my nose into my lap. The server placed

our meal on the table and asked if

everything was okay. Vivienne nodded

and he walked away.

“Who was the doctor?” This was

the first I had heard about my care in

Cincinnati. The details were always so

vague.

“Thompson

or

something.

I

remember that much. I guess she was

really good, but kind of a bitch. The

other doctors stayed out of her way. She

never left your side; it was weird.”

“Thomas?”

“Yeah, that was it. She was a tall

blonde. That’s her.”

My heart kept sinking. She knew the

whole time. It was she who transferred

me to Loyola. The past rushed in like an

avalanche. Some of the pieces never fit

and instantly they clicked into place.

Vivienne just confirmed what I was

never able to.

“Her name is Claira, and she is

good. She’s the best. She only comes

across that way because she’s a woman.

That’s why I am at Beacon. She knew

Doc.”

Vivienne put down her wrap and

looked confused. “How do you know

that?”

Finishing the bite of fish taco, I

chewed slowly at the revelation. “You

just told me.”

Vivienne rocked back and forth on

the barstool to get more comfortable as

the conversation grew deep. “I don’t get

it. Why wouldn’t she tell us that at the

hospital?”

“I don’t know.” She knew I was

lying, but didn’t push it. I wanted to

change the conversation and put my

conspiracy theories to sleep for now.

“What are we doing today?” I

grabbed my purse so I could grab the tab

before she could. While I slid my wallet

into my hand, she kept eating, knowing

what I was doing and not fighting it in

the least.

“We’re going out on a boat, what

else?”

I walked around the table and gave

her the biggest hug I could muster. “I

missed you. I am so happy I am here. I

hope you don’t get sick of me too fast.”

Shaking her head and taking another

sip of my water, she said she was just as

thankful for my presence. “No way, I

have waited too long. You’re never

going to leave. We can find some algae

or other shit for you to study.”

Walking away with a chuckle, I

said, “Some other shit, please.”

***

it. Summer was approaching and the

humidity increased with the water

temperature. To keep busy, I took a

temporary job as a mate on one of my

sister’s boats. Giving tours of the

mangroves was usually what I got stuck

doing, but I didn’t mind. The company

owners loved my background and having

a pseudo celebrity giving a spiel to the

passengers. I was hardly famous, yet

Vivienne went on and on about how her

sister created amazing drugs to make

people happy. I would always have to

step in and tell them what I did so they

knew my job was legal and legitimate.

I loved taking the kids out to

snorkel. That was probably my favorite

part, next to swimming with stingrays. I

made sure that at least three times a

week, one of the captains took me to a

spot they knew the Spotted Eagle rays

frequented. With beautiful grey skin and

white dots across their backs, they

would play with me as I floated in the

calm waters. I would chase them and

they would circle around and dart

beneath me and around, taunting me to

follow them. I wondered if they

remembered me as they came closer

each time. Their sweet faces reminded

me of a dolphin and manatee hybrid.

Vivienne would join me occasionally

and revel in witnessing me delight in the

beauty of the reef.

After an evening of eating fried

chicken over a hundred feet away from

the shore on a sandbar, we returned to

her house to find a large envelope

waiting for me in the mailbox. Alessa

was the only one who knew where I was

and she was kind enough to check on my

apartment. I had my mail forwarded to

her indefinitely until I figured out what I

would do. She sounded so elated,

hearing my tales of adventure. I thanked

her every chance I could for what she

and Kimberly did. I needed this more

than I realized. Inside of the envelope

was a certified letter from a company

called the Swiss Science Consortium,

but mailed from Munich. Noting that it

was dated a week previous, I carefully

broke the seal to see what it was about.

May 9, 2012

To: Ms. Violet Phillips, PhD

Greetings Doctor Phillips,

It is our great pleasure to inform

you that we have been following your

work and are very impressed by your

contributions to medicine. We would

like to discuss with you in person the

possibility of recruiting you to lead our

growing department of Neural Science

Medicine. Every expense will be

handled by our financial department,

including travel arrangements for you

to come to Munich, Germany. You will

also be compensated for your time

without obligation to the position.

Please take time to familiarize yourself

with us through the included materials

and our website. You may contact my

assistant, Linbek Kretzer, through

electronic mail or telephone to begin

your journey. I strongly encourage you

to consider this offer as it is not made

lightly or without great deliberation on

our part.

Sincerely,

Viktor Balashov, PhD

Director of Education

“Holy Crap!”

My hand covered my mouth after

reading the words in front of me. This

was too good to be true. I didn’t need to

look into who they were – I already

knew. They were on the cutting edge of

research in Genetic Engineering. I

followed them ruthlessly with every

publication they released. If ever I was

to leave Beacon, it would be for this

reason.

I dropped the letter to the ground

the second it hit me. It was him.

Dropping to my knees, I wept heavily as

Vivienne picked up the letter and read it.

“Violet, holy crap, this is amazing!

You need to do it! This is perfect. I

mean, you don’t have to, of course. You

can stay with me as long as you want,

but really, this is your life, right here.

You can have a fresh start, and I can

visit you!”

She mistook my weeping for tears

of joy and I didn’t correct her. There

was no way I was going to crack now

that I knew the end was in sight. After