"I'm okay," Kristin replied. "I just finished with Doctor Peters and he says I'm cleared for duty."
"We moved some of next week's patients to keep a light schedule until you regain your full strength," Mary said. "We can work on the following week when we know how you are doing towards the end of next week, but we decided not to add any more patients to the schedule for now unless it's an emergency. Most of the parents will understand."
Kristin smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Ladies. I know this can't be easy for any of you."
"We just want you to get better," Kimber responded. The ladies all talked for awhile asking Kristin questions. If they had not been forewarned of her amnesia, they would not know she did not remember any of them. She did a really good job of hiding it. If she was able to interact with her patients the same as with them, her patients would never know she had lost her memory.
Mary was proud of the way Kristin conducted herself with her staff. She knew Kristin was still struggling with not remembering all of them but she did such a good job, no one felt uncomfortable or awkward.
Kristin was slightly relieved when Matt came back in and scooped her off her chair. He took her on a tour of her own office with Mary as the tour guide, much like Kristin had given Derek and Amber the day they visited with her. She loved the exam rooms. It was a great office. She was proud of herself and she could see the pride in the ladies who worked for her also. She had a great staff.
Matt took her back to the car and she waved goodbye to her staff as they gathered at the back door to see them off. As they were pulling out of the parking lot Matt noticed the tears gathered in her eyes. He reached over and took her hand in his. When Kristin looked at him, he smiled.
"I have a good staff," Kristin said.
"Yes, you do. And they love you dearly," Matt replied. "They were so glad to see you today."
♥ Chapter 11 ♥
Kristin woke on Monday ready for her first day back to work. She stretched and smiled at the man lying beside her. Her mind drifted back to the night before when he thoroughly ravished her. She was so sated after their lovemaking she had slept soundly.
She rolled over and kissed Matt, smiling as he began to stir. "Time to wake up, Sleepyhead," she teased as she crawled out of bed gingerly. Kristin had worked hard all weekend to be able to walk more than just a few steps at a time. She and Amber had gone shopping yesterday for comfortable shoes after stopping by her house to gather work clothes. They found a pair that felt like she was walking on clouds and she bought them in black and brown to wear with any outfit she chose.
She walked into the bathroom and turned the shower on. Yesterday had been the first time she had been able to take a shower, but Matt insisted on helping to ensure she didn't slip in the tub. At least that was the excuse he gave. What followed next proved he was lying.
She smiled at the memories. Kristin climbed under the hot spray. As she was shampooing her hair she almost screamed when she opened her eyes to find Matt grinning at her.
"What are you doing," she asked. She tried to put some aggravation in her voice but her smile told him she was faking.
"Same as yesterday. I don't want you to slip and fall. We can't have you forgetting any of the memories we have been making now can we," he said as he wrapped her in his arms. Besides I love washing your very lovely body."
Kristin sighed as Matt began running soap over her back. "I guess it's a good thing I got up early."
Matt laughed. "I knew you were pretty smart, Doc."
An hour later, Kristin and Matt emerged from the bedroom fully clothed and ready for the day ahead. Amber had breakfast almost ready when the couple walked into the kitchen.
"How many pancakes, Matt," she asked over her shoulder.
"Oh, about five should do me until lunch," he responded. "Kristin zapped all my strength in the shower, better make it six."
Kristin slapped him playfully.
Amber smiled at the happy couple. "You can have three," she told her brother-in-law, "And if you are still hungry after that I will make a few more."
"Deal," Matt responded.
Amber carried the hot pancakes to the table as Kristin reached for the plates. Matt also pitched in and grabbed juice glasses from the cabinet. Derek joined the family in the kitchen and they all sat down to breakfast together.
"Amber, you are such an amazing cook," Kristin said as the pancakes melted in her mouth.
"Oh, yes. My brother is a lucky man," Matt replied.
"Thank you, Kristin," Amber smiled, pointedly ignoring her brother-in-law.
"Uh-oh. I'm not on the good list, am I," Matt asked.
"You forgot to get the paint for the baby's room," Derek answered.
Matt slapped his forehead. "I'm sorry, Amber. I did promise and I forgot all about it. I promise to get it this afternoon. I'll have your nursery painted before the end of the week."
"There are more pancakes on the stove," Amber said. She couldn't stay mad at Matt for long. She knew he wouldn't let her bring his niece home to an unfinished nursery.
"Where does he put it all," Kristin asked.
"I'm not sure. Between the two of them, they can put away some food," Amber said.
Finishing up their breakfast, Kristin and Amber cleaned up the kitchen then headed out the door. Amber drove and talked as Kristin listened. Mary had sent her a copy of the files on all of the patients they would be seeing that morning. She tried to prepare Kristin as best she could.
When they got to the office, only Mary had arrived. She was at her desk preparing for the day. Kristin said a quick hi, then walked to her office to settle in. Amber followed her with the files.
Kristin glanced through them and thought how strange it was that she understood all of the shorthand notes in the file. When the rest of the girls came in Kristin and Amber joined them in Kimber's office. Kristin listened as Kimber addressed the staff. She reminded them all that Kristin would not remember the patients and it was up to them all to help her through the day and catch any mistakes or cover any awkwardness.
After the meeting, the ladies all went to their respective offices and Kristin settled into hers. After the first couple of patients, Kristin quickly settled back into routine. She introduced Amber as a visiting intern to those who questioned her presence.
Just before lunch, Kristin stepped into the ocean room to find a little blond headed imp on her exam table.
"Doctour Woung," little Johnny shouted. "I get my stitches out..." Johnny stopped in mid sentence. "Doctour Woung, what happened to you?"
"I was in a small accident," Kristin smiled as she answered Johnny's question.
Johnny grinned. "We wook wike twins," he said pointing to his forehead where there were stitches Kristin needed to remove.
"We do look like twins," Kristin answered as she laughed. "Are you still catching all the bad guys?"
"Uh-huh," Johnny answered. He told Kristin all about his latest adventures as she worked carefully to remove his stitches. Before the child even knew it, she was finished and picking him up off her table.
"You know where the suckers are, Johnny," she said as she turned to the mother. "Well, Susie, he's all patched up for now. Just one more scar to add to his collection."
Susie laughed. "Thanks, Doctor Young."
Kristin left the exam room and went back to her office. By now her feet were really starting to hurt. Amber made sure she sat in between each patient but this was the most she had been on her feet since she had been injured. She pulled off her shoes and sighed.
"Are they swollen," Amber asked as she also sat down. She still had a nagging ache in her lower back and her feet were also beginning to swell.
"Yeah, it looks like they are swelling a little," Kristin answered as she held up her feet.
Amber also held up a foot. "Look, Doctor Young, we can be twins," she said.
Kristin and Amber laughed. Both were exhaus
ted even though it had been a fairly light schedule. Kristin because she had not been able to do anything but sleep and sit for a week and Amber because she was nearing her delivery date.
Amber looked up when she heard a commotion in the hallway. Matt and Derek walked through the door with Chinese takeout. Both ladies smiled.
"We thought you might be hungry and wasn't sure if you would want to leave the office," Derek said as he kissed his wife.
Matt walked around Kristin's desk, scooped her up, sat down, and placed her on his lap. "Not enough chairs," he said when she looked at him.
She snuggled into his lap and opened the box he handed her. As they ate, the couples talked about the day the girls had so far. Amber told Derek about the charming, little, blond headed boy that Kristin had seen last.
"That's Johnny. He is always getting into some kind of scrapes. That child is full of rambunctious energy and is afraid of nothing," Kristin said.
"And he idolizes the police and FBI. He would get a kick out of meeting the two of you," Amber responded.
"Maybe we can arrange a meeting sometime," Derek replied.
"Oh, he would love that," Kristin smiled as she looked at Matt.
"Well, we had better let you girls get back to the patients. We need to get back to the office and follow up on a few leads," Matt told her. He kissed her thoroughly, stood up, and placed her back in her chair where she had been sitting when he walked in.
Derek also leaned over and kissed his wife and the men left the office.
The ladies finished the rest of the afternoon and Amber drove them back to her house. Feet still hurting and swollen, she called Derek to have him pick something up for dinner.
As the week wore on, both ladies became more accustomed to the work they had not done in awhile and by Friday, were having no problem with tired, achy feet. Amber's feet were still swollen because of the baby, but she assured Kristin she was fine.
They made the decision to thin the schedule for one more week and hoped by then Kristin would be fully recovered from her injuries, at least physically.
The men were also making progress on the case. So far, no more bodies had been found linked to TGT but information was starting to pour in on the evidence found.
"The old hospital was first build by the Quattlebaum family in 1912. That family pretty much owned the town the hospital was built in and the surrounding county. Richard Quattlebaum was the patriarch of the family and he founded the town and several of the starting businesses," Dale informed Matt.
"From what we can tell, the land or the facility has never been sold or transferred out of the family. Someone in that family still owns that property. Our researchers are still trying to piece the old records together."
"Good work, Dale," Matt said. "Have we learned anything from the blood evidence yet?"
Derek spoke up. "The one spot on the wall that we assumed belonged to the killer probably does. It was male while all of the other samples came back female. So far there have been no hits on a DNA match. Without a fingerprint to point us toward a suspect, the DNA tells us nothing. We need something to compare it to."
"Yes, and unfortunately we cannot assume that just because someone owns the abandoned facility, he is the one using it," Matt sighed. "Let's look into the Quattlebaum family discreetly. If there is a relative that works in the medical field then we may have something to go off of."
"You got it, Boss," Dale said and jumped up from his seat in Matt's office. "I'll inform the team."
Just as he was about to leave, Jeremy Richardson, another team member opened the door. "Boss, you've got to see this."
The men followed Jeremy to the conference room they were using for this case. On one board were pictures of the victims. Another board had been set up with a map of Georgia. The map had pins and yarn spread across the state. Matt looked questioningly at Jeremy and his partner Rebecca Sinclair.
"We've diagramed where all the bodies have been found, where the victims were taken from, and the amount of time it would take to get to and from these locations and the abandoned hospital," Rebecca said.
"Yes, and we think we may have something," Jeremy finished.
"There places the girls were dumped is almost exactly a halfway point from the abandoned hospital to a surgery center," Rebecca exclaimed. "And until Doctor Young, no activity had occurred anywhere close to the Atlanta area."
"Then suddenly, after we raid the hospital, two girls are taken from close to Atlanta then dumped close. It's out of character but still gives us information," Jeremy said.
"We believe the guy we are looking for possibly lives and works right here in Atlanta, but travels to these other surgery centers on designated days," Rebecca continued.
"I'm not sure I'm following," Matt said.
"It's like this," Jeremy stepped in. "Last year my mother had to have cataract surgery. She could have traveled an hour to Atlanta for the evaluation with a surgeon then back again for the surgery, but instead, the surgeon visits specific towns on designated days for the evaluation, and then comes back to the surgery center for the surgery. My mother was able to get all of her care the next town over instead of driving to Atlanta."
"This is very helpful information," Matt congratulated his team. "Good work. Dale, take this information with you to the team as you're looking into the Quattlebaum family."
"Will do boss," Dale said as he walked out of the conference room.
"Thanks guys," Derek said as he followed Matt out of the conference room and back to his office.
"If that bastard lives here in Atlanta, he could run into Kristin at anytime," Matt said slamming his fist into his desk.
"Yes, but we will catch him before that can happen," Derek replied.
The men continued discussing the facts they had gathered.
~
After seeing the last patient on Friday, Amber and Kristin once again collapsed in Kristin's office.
"You have a wonderful practice, Kristin. I am so envious," Amber said. "This definitely beats twelve hours at the hospital."
"You should come to work for me," Kristin said.
"Oh, no. I wasn't looking for a job offer, Kristin. I was just complimenting. I just think you have a wonderful facility. You are great with your patients and your staff does a good job. It's nice to see how you all work together."
"I was serious, Amber," Kristin replied. "I like working with you. You would be a good fit. Besides, Kimber just told me this morning that my nurse, Jennifer, is moving away in three months. Her husband is in the military. I am going to have to find a replacement."
"Seriously," Amber asked.
"Yeah, you're a good fit. The girls like you, the patients love you, and I have enjoyed working with you. You can have the baby, spend the time off you need with her, then start here when you're ready."
"Wow, I would love that. Let me talk to Derek," Amber said.
Mary walked into the office at the end of that statement. "Kristin, I know you probably don't remember this, but there is a convention this weekend that you had wanted to go to. One of the speakers is going to be talking about juvenile diabetes and you wanted to be in that session."
"Where is it being held," Kristin asked.
"At the Sheridan downtown. That particular lecture is at ten in the morning," Mary answered. "You've already paid for the ticket."
Kristin looked at Amber. "What do you think?"
"I think that would be a good lecture. You should go."
"You know Matt will not let me go without a chaperon."
"Agreed. I'll go with you," Amber said.
"Okay. Mary, would you like to go," Kristin asked.
"No," Mary answered. "Lectures are not my strong suite," she laughed. "You two go and have fun. Take notes for me."
The girls laughed together.
"It has been a long day," Amber said. "I have a roast that should be about ready by the time we get home. W
ant to join us for dinner, Mary?"
"Sure, beats going home to an empty apartment and another frozen meal," Mary replied.
Kristin snapped her head up. "That's what I usually do," she said.
Both girls looked at her. "I remember that," Kristin said. "I remember heating up microwave dinners after work."
"That's great, Kristin. Not the microwave dinners," Amber said making face, "but the memories are returning more frequently."
The girls talked for a little while longer then left the office to travel to Amber's home. When the men walked in later, the ladies were gathered at the table with glasses of wine, giggling about a story Mary was telling.
"Hey, Ladies," Matt said as he walked over and kissed Kristin.
Amber stood up and said, "I have supper ready. You two sit and we will eat shortly."
After she started into walk into the kitchen, Derek followed, grabbed his wife, and kissed her soundly on the mouth. "How are you, Sweetheart?"
"I'm good. The baby has been active and my feet are slightly swollen, but it has been a good day. Kristin wants me to work for her. I told her we would discuss it and get back to her."
"Wow, Honey. That's great. Do you want to work for Kristin?"
"I would love to, Derek. I've enjoyed this past week. It would be steady hours, no weekends. That would make it easier to hire a nanny."
They continued to talk as Derek helped her gather plates and silverware. Amber carried the food to the table and Derek laid out the plates. Kristin got the glasses and ice and everyone sat down to eat.
Matt and Derek did not tell Kristin and Amber what they had discovered. Matt didn't want to worry Kristin with the knowledge that her kidnapper might be close by.
Instead they talked about Kristin's patients and the week the girls had at work. Amber told Derek about the convention she and Kristin would be attending the next day.
"It's a lecture Kristin was interested in before she lost her memory. We all have to get our continuing education credits so it will be helpful for me as well," she said.
"That's a great idea. Matt and I have some stuff to catch up on at the office anyway. You can stay with Kristin while we're there," Derek said.
"Good, it's all settled then," Kristin smiled.