And Dad.
He hung there in the silence.
Sometimes I thought Neil and Dad were so much alike. The same drive, the same demanding type-A personality. It’s probably why they got along so well.
“Any updates on the chief position?” she asked.
“Not yet,” I said. “I haven’t seen Gibson yet,” I added.
I know Dad had basically informed me that I’d be taking this job, whether I wanted it or not. But fortunately I actually did want it. I’d always wanted it. If I hadn’t been with Neil, I’d probably be chief already. It had come up a few times over the years, and he always found a way to talk me out of it.
I don’t think he wanted me to advance. Like it made him feel threatened that I might end up his equal in any way. I think he liked the trophy aspect of having a Montgomery for a girlfriend, as long as I stayed beneath him.
It was funny that the very thing Dad was upset about—my lack of ambition—was brought on by the same man he was demanding I reconcile with.
“I think you’d make an excellent chief, Alexis.” Mom put a hand over mine. “I know how overwhelming all this is, but you’ll find your stride. There’s so much you can do at Royaume, especially in a position of leadership. You will never find this same influence anywhere else. You will never be able to change the world the way you can here. I can’t wait to see what you do with it.”
I smiled a little.
That was the difference between Mom and Dad. Dad didn’t want me to embarrass him. He wanted to be able to brag about me and my accomplishments at dinner parties.
Mom wanted me to be effective.
She wanted to help people. And you know what? So did I.
I didn’t want it. I didn’t sign up for it. But Mom was right. I really could do amazing things here.
I just had to figure out what those things were going to be.
Two days later Bri found me in the supply closet by the chief’s office. “What are you doing?” she asked, peering over my shoulder in the doorway.
I surveyed a shelf of baby formula. “Gibson said I could have whatever I want out of the free sample stash. I think I need a trauma kit for my car.”
“For what?”
I picked up a can of Enfamil and started reading the label. “I keep going on medical calls in Wakan. I delivered a baby last week, and I didn’t even have PPE.”
“You delivered a baby,” she deadpanned.
“Yeah. With a double nuchal cord.” I nodded at a machine gathering dust on a shelf. “Do you think Gibson would let me have that portable EKG?”
She shrugged. “I don’t see why not. A rep gave us that two years ago to test in the ambulances. We’re not using it, and they don’t want it back.” She peered at the pile I had started. “What else you got?”
“Gauze, Kerlix wrap, Ace bandages, butterflies, liquid stitch, needles, syringes, lidocaine—you know they’re stitching each other up with a fishhook over there?”
She scoffed. “Probably using Krazy Glue too.”
I paused, holding a C-collar. “I bet they are…”
She started pulling things. “So what are you doing tonight? Want to have dinner?”
“I can’t. I’m having dinner with my parents. They want to talk about the quasquicentennial.”
She grabbed a box of instant ice packs. “How about dinner tomorrow then? Or are you going to that thing at Gabby’s?”
I shook my head. “I’m not really hanging out with them right now.”
“Why? Because of the TripAdvisor thing?”
I shrugged, tossing a few eye shields into the keep pile. “That. And I don’t know. I just don’t think I have as much in common with them as I thought I did. But I can’t go tomorrow either. I think I’m going to Daniel’s.”
I was definitely going to Daniel’s.
I’d stolen a different hoodie on my way out the other day. This one was from Cabela’s. It was gray and it had deer antlers on the front. Daniel had a cherry ChapStick in the pocket that tasted like his mouth. It was like a tiny bonus prize, and I loved it.
I’d turned the thermostat down to freezing last night just so I could sleep in it. I’d lain in bed wearing it, talking to him on the phone until almost midnight. Even thinking about it made me smile.
“So I took a page out of your dating playbook this week,” Bri said. “Went on a Tinder date with a twenty-six-year-old.”
I arched an eyebrow. “And?”
“And the guy’s entire apartment was a TV, an Xbox, and a recliner parked in front of it. His mattress was on the floor. He only had one plate.”