Read Online False Positive by Andrew Grant - Free Book Online

adventure in this departure from their everyday routine. Others were more hesitant, focusing on the marks on the walls or the stains on the ragged carpet tiles rather than the people asking the questions. But regardless of their style, each of them told a variation on the same story: Mary Lynne wasn’t the best nurse in the world. She wasn’t the worst. She was good at interacting with patients—especially younger ones. She was bad at keeping records, occasionally dropping the ball toward the end of busy shifts. Good at staying on top of new clinical research. Bad at accommodating last-minute shift changes. And so on.
    Two of Mary Lynne’s co-workers embellished the picture with a few less-flattering details. She was a poor timekeeper who took more than her share of sick days, according to one woman, though Loflin soon led her to admit that her own recent attempt to adopt a child had been unsuccessful. Mary Lynne sucked up to management and stabbed her peers in the back, said a guy who Loflin quickly pegged as a rival who’d lost out to her for a promotion.
    The door clicked shut behind the last of the early-shift nurses, and without a specific task to focus on, Devereaux felt the familiar catch in his chest at being cooped up in a relatively small space. He turned to Loflin, who was studying the old photographs. Neither detective spoke. The seconds became a minute. The minute became two. Allthe while the silence seemed to grow in intensity, bearing down on Devereaux until he could feel his head starting to swim. He closed his eyes, forcing himself to focus, eager for a distraction to latch onto.
    â€œAre you OK?” Loflin reached out and touched his arm.
    â€œMe?” Devereaux’s eyes snapped open. “I’m fine. Thanks. I just don’t like waiting. Where’s the next batch of nurses? We need to get this show back on the road.”
    â€œWe do.” Loflin drew back her arm. “But, Cooper, listen, while we’ve got a minute, can I ask you something?”
    â€œSure. Fire away.”
    â€œGoodness, this is awkward. OK. Here’s the thing. I really want to make it work in your squad, so I was wondering, I mean, I’m worried…”
    â€œDon’t be. Spit it out. Whatever it is.”
    â€œCooper, are there stories about me? Rumors? About why I’m not with Vice right now?”
    â€œI heard something about you coming back from disability?”
    â€œRight. Only, I didn’t get hurt. Not physically, anyway.”
    â€œOh. I see. Well, OK.”
    â€œYou’re not freaked out?”
    â€œShould I be?”
    â€œNo. But a lot of people are. Psych problems are treated worse than leprosy, a lot of the time. Especially in the department.”
    â€œNot by me.”
    â€œThanks for understanding. I’m glad to get this out in the open. In case you do hear any rumors. Because, bottom line? The doctor doesn’t think I’m ready to go back undercover. That doesn’t mean I’m not ready to be a good detective again. And a damn good partner. If you’ll let me.”
    â€œReceived and understood. But what about longer term? You see yourself heading back to Vice, when you get the green light for the sneaky-beak stuff?”
    â€œI don’t know. Talk about stressful. You don’t like the waiting in this job? Try undercover work. There’s no waiting. You’re always working. Working to get accepted. Working to make your mark interested in you. Working to make him
want
you around. There’s norespite. It’s like trying to breathe someplace where there’s not enough oxygen. It’s suffocating.”
    â€œIt sure sounds like it.” Devereaux checked his watch. “You know, Jan, I need to make a call, real quick. Give me a minute?”
    â€”
    Devereaux paused in the corridor and checked the directory in his phone before selecting a number. His call was picked up after one