A Billionaire in Disguise #2 : A Perfect Plan(7)

"Are you kidding me? This was the ultimate deal!"

"Just do it, Russ. I'll talk to you more later." Parker didn't want to argue with his brother. He realized how hard Russ had worked to find the prime property, but Parker worked even harder to squash Emily Carson. I could have killed her.

He spotted some medical staff pushing a gurney down the hallway. Emily was lying on it, her right arm elevated in a big cast that went all the way up underneath the sleeve of her hospital gown. Her face was showing even more bruises. Parker quickly followed the staff to the third floor.

There was a clerk sitting at the front desk who smiled as he spoke. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, I'm family of Emily Carson. May I see her?"


 

 

 

"Give the staff a little time to get her in the bed and admitted. You can check with her nurse afterwards and see if she can have visitors."

Parker walked over to the lobby and sat down. An hour later an older nurse approached him.

"Hello, are you here with Emily?"

"Yes, may I see her?"

"She's admitted now, so you can go in there, but Emily's still sleeping from the anesthesia. She might not talk very much."

Parker thanked the nurse and then slowly entered Emily's room. Just the sight of her was making him feel more guilt than he'd ever experienced in his life. He stood next to her bed and placed his hand gently on top of her good arm. Emily slowly opened her eyes a little and looked at Parker with concern.

"Hi, Emily. You just got out of surgery and you're in your room now."

"Yeah I know. The nurse told me." Emily's voice was soft and raspy.

"Do you remember the fall?"

"I couldn't see. The hallway was dark. I remember the fall, but I don't remember landing."

"Do you remember me being with you?"

"Kind of..."

"Do you want me to call anyone for you?"

"Oh God, my job. Can you call Mick Lander at Baldwin Veterinary Clinic?"

"Yes, I'll call there right away," said Parker as he turned to go out of the room.

"And I can't move out right now if this is why you're here..." Her voice trailed off.

"You don't have to move, Emily. I'm going to give you back the land." Parker gently squeezed her arm, but Emily was fast asleep.

He sat down at the foot of the bed for a while, hoping she'd wake back up, but he'd have to call the clinic for her as promised. Parker walked out to the nurse's station, got the phone book, and quickly found Baldwin Veterinary Clinic.

"I'd like to speak to Mick Lander, please."

"Could I tell him who's calling?"

"Parker." He listened to the music while on hold.

"This is Doctor Lander, can I help you?"

"You have an employee there named Emily Carson?"

"Yes, she's my partner."

"I'm sorry, but I have some bad news. Emily fell down the stairs and broke her arm. She also has a concussion and is in Springfield Memorial Hospital, on the third floor. She asked me to notify you."

"I'm on my way."

Parker listened to the dial tone.

The coffee in the lobby was old, but he poured himself a cup anyway. He wanted to go back inside and sit with Emily but didn't want to miss seeing Mick.

Finally the elevator dinged and Parker watched as a man approached the clerk asking for Emily Carson's room. He knew it had to be the doctor he'd spoken with. 

"Doctor Lander?"

"Yes, you can call me Mick. Were you the one who phoned me?"

"Yes, I am. Emily fell back to sleep. She hasn't been out of surgery that long so she's still pretty sedated."

"I'm going to go see her." Mick walked off and headed inside the hospital room. Parker walked behind him.

Mick bent down and kissed her cheek, while Emily slowly opened her eyes and gave her best attempt at providing a smile.

"Hey, Mick."

"Emily, what happened to you?!"

"Just a small tumble down some steps at my grandfather's house."

"How did you fall?"

"Remember me telling you about how Davis Enterprises stole my grandfather's property?"

Parker cringed but remained quiet.

"Yeah, I remember."

"Parker Davis was forcing me to move, and originally he was giving me a week. He shut off all the utilities at the house. I hadn't gotten around to finishing all the rooms because I didn't want to leave. But then he changed his mind and told me I had to be out the next day, which would have been today. I packed the last box and started to take it downstairs. There wasn't any light in the house, making it too dark to see the steps. With the awkwardness of the box, the darkness, and my blurred vision from tears, I fell."

Mick spun around, quickly putting two and two together. "You're the Parker who called the office?"

"Yes, but--"

Mick slammed his fist in Parker's face, knocking him back against the door. The staff appeared quickly and security wasn't far behind. They were both escorted out of the hospital. Once outside, Mick cocked his fist back again.

"Wait! Look, I don't want to get in a boxing match with you." Parker knew he could have easily brought the man harm.

"This is your fault, you bastard! You have hurt that woman more than anyone ever has..."

"I was an arrogant fool, that's for sure. I was only thinking about making a lot of money and did everything I could to get the project started on that land. I'm the one who found Emily at the bottom of the stairs and called an ambulance. I went to the house to tell her I was sorry. But I was too late. I'm giving Emily her grandfather's land back. She doesn't have to move."

"When did you decide to come to your damn senses?! When it was too late, that's when!"

"It doesn't matter when. I'm having the papers sent to me and I'm getting my lawyers to draw up another set. I'm going to sell it back to Emily for a dollar." Parker could taste blood in his mouth from his swollen lip.

"She's a good person. I've known her since she was a kid. What you pulled was unforgiveable."

"I know this already. We need to have our focus where it should be. Emily didn't just break her arm; she might have nerve damage in her right hand. The doctors won't know for a bit."

"Emily's right handed. If she can't practice anymore she'll be devastated. You can go on home, and I'm not sorry about the punch in the mouth. You totally had it coming. I'm going back inside if they'll let me. You can go back inside that hole you and your company crawled out of." Mick turned and walked away.

Chapter 6

Parker drove back to the property with his mind a thousand miles away. He wished he could swap places with Emily. Mick was right; she didn't deserve any of this. It wasn't his brother's fault either. He had no one to blame but himself. Had he not been so hell-bent over having the upper hand, Emily wouldn't be lying in a hospital bed. He knew how to succeed in the corporate world and demolish the competition. Luring investors wasn't a difficult task, especially when his reputation was solid. He knew how to wine, dine, and brush elbows with the elite. His social skills outside of the business world, however, totally lacked.


 

 

 

The inside of the RV had been ransacked by God knows what kind of animal. Unfortunately, he'd left the door partially ajar, and it had been stocked with food. There were definitely well-fed creatures running around. Parker, not wanting anything else to have to deal with, turned to walk back to his car. He certainly couldn't sleep in the RV tonight. He'd have to stay at the motel. The house loomed there like a big black mark on his conscience. Parker found himself walking past his car, around to the back of the house. The door displayed its damage where he'd kicked it in. I hope the animals didn't have a good time in here as well. There was no evidence of unwelcomed visitors other than himself. With his head spinning, he went to the couch and sat down. Parker closed his weary eyes. He had to somehow make it up to Emily. Looking at all the evidence of someone he'd forced to pack in a hurry made him sick. Look what I've done...



The next morning, Emily ate a pretty healthy breakfast. The closest she got to actually eating had been the fish that fell to the ground. Bastard! There was a knock at her door, bringing her out of her hateful thoughts.

"How's the arm feeling?"

"Pretty sore."

"We did an open reduction on your humerus, the long bone in your arm. We had to go inside and put it back together with pins. The surgery went well, and we don't anticipate you having any complications from that. My concern, though, is the length of time that pressure was on the nerves from the misplaced broken bone. When we get the swelling a little more under control, we'll have a specialist come and take a look."

Emily only nodded. Nerve damage...right hand...

Parker didn't mean to fall asleep on the couch. The sun coming through the window brought him out of a deep sleep. He certainly wasn't going to get anything accomplished to help Emily by sitting on his duff. The first thing he needed to do was to get some calls made.

Parker arranged for the RV to be removed from the property. He offered them plenty of money to clean it up, repair the tire, and deliver it to his brother's address. Surely Russ and his family could use a forty foot RV. That, or they'd kill him. Next, he checked on the status of the paperwork he needed. He was promised to have the file in his hands before morning. The utilities were back on and a repairman was working on the installation of a new back door. Parker went outside and sat on the swing. He was saving the most dreaded call for last.