Dirty Secrets

Part 30

In the morning, Lyla stood on the hospital walkway, scanning the windows' reflections. She noticed nothing out of the ordinary: pedestrians, local traffic, and hospital staff. She looked over her shoulder. No sign of Keenan Ames lurking around the hospital grounds. 

She kept her eyes fixed on the sliding glass doors, her own reflection growing larger as she drew nearer. Each time they opened and closed, a fresh set of images glided across the glossy surfaces. 

"So you're not gonna send me that selfie."

Startled, Lyla turned. Packer's grinning face looked down at her.

"The one you promised to send," he said.

"Promised? When did I promise?" She shielded her eyes against the morning light. "How tall are you, anyway?"

"Don't change the subject. I'll even take one with you not smiling even though that wouldn't be my first choice."

"Jesus. If I knew you were gonna freak out on me." She searched through her pics.

"I'll overlook the fact that you took the Lord's name in vain if you just send me the selfie."

"I didn't know you were so religious. Here." She sent the picture.

"Maybe I'm not. I'm just very mysterious." He smiled when he saw the selfie on his phone. "I think mystery adds an extra layer to our relationship."

"You are extremely weird."

They entered the building and made their way to the east wing, Packer persistently working to charm her. Lyla queued up behind Natalie who was signing in at the security desk. When she handed the pen to Lyla, she noticed a purplish bruise beneath Natalie's eye.

"Phone," said the security officer, his hand outstretched. Natalie obliged.

"Can I give you a ride home after?" Packer asked.

"I'll think about it," said Lyla as she removed her phone from her back pocket.

"Awesome. I'll steal a car. What's your favorite color?" He winked at the security guard. "Joking. I got my own car."

She was about to pass her phone to the guard when she received a text.

Message from Darcy, probably?

The message: "Who's the new guy, Kitten?"

Sender: Keenan.

A new message: Unfinished business.

She turned off her phone and shoved it at the guard with a trembling hand. Her eyes searched the hospital hallway for signs of her tormentor.

"You okay?" Packer asked.

.......

When she entered Matthew's room, Lyla was disturbed to discover a slab of plywood replacing the broken window pane that had been shattered by the blackbird. She took her usual seat.

"Temporary measure," Matthew said. "They should have it fixed by tomorrow."

Lyla nodded. Shaniece gave her a reassuring smile.

"The bird must have seen a reflection in the window, maybe even saw itself and mistook it for an aggressor. I was doing some reading. Birds exhibit odd behaviors in urban environments. Reflections, shadows and bright lights confuse them. Apparently, happens all the time. Not uncommon at all."

The more Matthew tried to explain it away, the more uncomfortable Lyla became. She knew he didn't believe a word of what he was saying. Everybody in the room knew what had really happened.

"So, anyway," Matthew transitioned with one of his infamously clumsy segues. "Let's be honest with ourselves, ladies. It's kind of a good feeling to let go of your phones, am I right?"

A bunch of mumbled negative responses from the group: No. Not really. Sucks.

"Studies show that there is a correlation between heavy use of social media and depression."

The only sound filling the space between his questions was Natalie's nail picking.

It was more challenging than usual to focus on Matthew's mental probing. Lyla was consumed with thoughts of the blackbird, Clarisse's warning, Clover's visit, and Keenan's text message.

"Why do you think that's true?"

No response.

"Shaniece?"

"You said it's true. I didn't."

Lyla grinned.

"It's about isolation. Researchers see similar data with seniors, particularly those who have lost their spouses. They're cut off from communicating with the outside world. They get lonely. They get depressed."

He paced across the front of the room.

"That's what you're doing when you spend hour after hour staring at your phone. It should be called anti-social media."

Shaniece rolled her eyes. Natalie took a break from nail-picking to offer a sarcastic golf clap.

The day nurse knocked on the door then entered.

"Lyla." She gestured for her to follow.

Lyla turned to Shaniece, shrugged, then accompanied the nurse into the hall where Dr. Haden was waiting. Instead of her typical friendly, smiling demeanor, she was solemn and business-like. She opened a folder, her eyes on an official-looking document.

"We got your lab results." 

"Huh?"

"The results of your urine analysis. You're not taking all your meds." She locked eyes with Lyla. The day nurse crossed her arms and shot Lyla a sharp look.

Kill me right now.

"Yeah, well, that pink one made me feel totally confused and really out of it."

"Trouble concentrating?"

"Yeah. Can't do my homework."

"These kinds of medications don't work overnight. It's a delicate balance of chemistry."

"I get that but it's getting worse. I don't wanna take it anymore."

"Well, you can't just decide to stop taking it on your own. You need to discuss it with me before making a decision like that."

"Whatever. I'm not taking it." Lyla stood her ground.