The Architect of Revenge: A September 11th Novel Read Online Free

“Thank you.”
    “Word gets around.”
    “At this point that may not be good.”
    Morgan’s professional reputation was stellar, his personal one perhaps not so much. He wasn’t confident what Caroline might have heard, but if she knew Janie, no secret was safe. With Caroline’s fortuitous companionship, his past was abruptly haunting him. All he could hope for was that she enjoyed his company enough to see him again—that her present behavior wasn’t just Southern politeness.
    After suffering several more interruptions at their table and speeches from the podium, the guests in the room settled down to enjoy the meal.
    Once the rhythm of the conversations blended, Morgan asked Caroline, “Do you miss New York?”
    “I lived there about four years.” A slight shake of her head suggested she was editing the answer. “No, I don’t…though I have to keep going back.”
    “Work?” Morgan hoped he was right.
    “My firm’s developing a full-service clinic in the city. Call it community outreach.” She smiled directly at him. “For Downs kids. I’m in charge of the project.”
    “That’s incredible!”
    He sat back in disbelief, elated that they shared that common interest. Many of his little patients were Downs; one unfortunate consequence of the syndrome was that they were often born with heart defects.
    “The original children’s hospital here was named in honor of Willis Potts,” Morgan began, “because he was one of the first surgeons who figured out an operation to keep those kids alive.” A knowledgeable smile followed a quick grimace. “It was a major thing back then, but like everything else in surgery, it’s all changed—the techniques, anesthesia, the bypass pump.”
    He paused, assessing Caroline’s face for cues of boredom. Relieved when the slight forward motion of her head toward him suggested she was waiting for more, he said, “Today, we operate on all sorts of problems—and they’re routine…I suppose. After years of training, it becomes intuitive. In the OR I guess I get in a zone, and my fingers know what to do. Does that sound odd?”
    “Not at all,” Caroline said, slowly gliding her palm down the length of her arm to her wrist.
    As he watched, Morgan felt his own arm tingling. There were so many things other than surgery he wanted to talk about with her.
    “How did you get interested in Downs?” he asked. His heart was pounding.
    “A really dear friend has a little boy…just a sweetie…wants to grow up and get a job chasing butterflies.” Her napkin wiped a tear. “So I jumped at the opportunity…What a blessing!”
    “I understand completely,” he said, realizing he’d been listening intently—that appreciating her for just her looks was long departed.
    “Wes…Can I ask you something?”
    “I hope so.”
    Caroline put down her fork.
    “I guess it’s just natural to love babies…” Her eyes became shiny again. “How do you deal with it when they’re that innocent?”
    “That’s…a tough question.” His lips curled up as he released a muted whistle. “They’re angels…dealt a bad hand. Guess I want to help them.”
    “Does it scare you?”
    “You mean operating on them?” he asked. “Surgeons never think about that.” He smiled. “We’re trained to make decisions…Rules our persona. I’ll tell you, though…The kids are braver than I am.”
    He never confided this way to anyone—but Caroline was drawing it out. He wanted to tell her.
    “Most of the time, whatever you throw at them, they get better.”
    Caroline’s eyes remained focused on his face.
    “It’s tough when they don’t do well…and very humbling.” He confessed more. “I’d go to the ends of the earth for them. Stay up all night…Whatever it takes. They make me understand what caring truly means.” He laughed self-consciously. “Did you really want to hear all this introspection?”
    Caroline’s hand had been resting on his the entire time. She nodded gently.