Consult (6/14)
Damian Grimaldi sat at the desk in Fairwinds, skimming the folder his private investigator had dropped off earlier. There was the basic information on Reid Oliver - his family, schooling and professional reputation. Some hints about academic impropriety in regard to a fellowship, but the accusations had been dismissed. Unfortunately, while it seemed the doctor cut corners sometimes or maybe didn’t go entirely by the book, the gambles always paid off and there was nothing he could hold over him.
Damian really hated people without pasts to exploit.
There was one angle he could work, though. He’d have to be careful with it, obviously. It couldn’t get back to Luciano, especially considering the nature of the threats he’d have to make.
But he was running out of time. He needed to get back to Malta, Luciano in tow, and get him to sign over the trust so Damian could pay off the people he owed. And the only way he could convince Luciano to come was to make him think he had no connections or obligations to his family here. He needed to keep the boy and Holden Snyder away from each other.
Damian thought he had more time, but then Holden had shown up, demanding to see “his” son. Luckily, Luciano had not come downstairs early enough, and Damian was able to get rid of Holden and make up an alternate explanation.
The phone rang, and Damian reached out, answering it quickly.
“You’re running out of time,” the voice on the other end said. "There are other ways of getting what we want. Remember, the terms of the trust state that if the boy predeceases you, the money reverts back to you."
“I know,” Damian replied tersely. “I’m handling it.”
He hung up, effectively ending the conversation, put the folder in the desk drawer which he then locked, and then stood up. Grabbing his coat, Damian walked out of the office purposefully.
**
Reid looked lovingly at the sandwich in front of him. It had been a crazy morning - an emergency surgery, and one of his other patients had crashed, and then there was a freak glee club accident at the junior high that filled the ER (Oakdale scared him sometimes). But finally, he could sit down and eat his lunch. He opened his mouth wide around the sandwich, and just when he was about to take a bite, there was a knock on the door.
The person on the other side walked in without waiting for a reply. Reid raised his eyebrows.
“This is the doctors’ lounge,” he said. “Non-employees are not allowed in here.”
“I won’t take much of your time, Dr. Oliver, but I think you’ll appreciate if we keep this conversation as private as possible.”
Curious, Reid set his sandwich down, leaning back in his chair as he stared at Damian Grimaldi.
“I assume you know who I am,” the man continued.
Reid tilted his head in acknowledgement.
“I have a favor to ask you. As you may have noticed, Luciano hasn’t visited his mother often, only once in the past week and even then only for a few minutes. This is not good for him. He needs to see her.”
“I’m waiting to hear what this favor is.”
Damian made a display of sighing in concern as he sat down on the couch in the corner. “The reason Luciano has stayed away is because of a disagreement with Holden. He doesn’t want Luciano here. I thought, perhaps, you could call me when Holden leaves the hospital, and I could let my son know it’s safe to stop by. I’m afraid that if they see each other…”
Reid smiled mockingly. “Let me get this straight. You want me to take time out of my day to spy on my patient’s husband and report back to you.”
“For Luciano’s sake. And Lily’s. My son told me you suggested it was good for her condition to receive visitors.”
“Maybe. We don’t know enough about comatose patients to say for sure. But Mr. Grimaldi,” Reid said, leaning forward. “I don’t answer to you. And you have no familial relationship with my patient. To reveal anything about her treatment or status would be a breach of doctor-patient confidentiality. If - if - I were to consider your request, I would call Luciano directly.”
Damian leaned back on the couch, crossing his legs. He stared at Reid for a beat. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”
Reid furrowed his brow. “I beg your pardon?”
“The age of consent in Illinois is 17; my son is 16. It’s aggravated criminal sexual abuse if someone commits an act of sexual conduct with a victim under 17 and they are at least five years older than the victim. It is also illegal for a person to commit sexual acts on someone under the age of 18 if he holds a position of authority or trust over the victim. Say, as a medical professional, particularly one treating the boy’s mother.”
Reid stared at the other man, speechless, blood boiling. Finally, he managed to say, “Excuse me?”
Damian Grimaldi stood up, turning his back on Reid and walking away from him. “Your sexual orientation is no secret. And people have seen you two talking outside the hospital. Do you really think it’s a good idea for your number to show up, repeatedly, on Luciano’s cell phone records?”
Reid stood up. “Are you serious? There is no - I have done noth - ”
Damian turned to face him. “The truth is irrelevant; only perception matters. How would it look to a jury? To the medical board? A young boy like that. Scared for his mother, confused about his sexuality. Do you know, I wonder, that that is what they were arguing about when she…fell? I imagine he would agree to just about anything if he thought it would help her.”
Reid closed his eyes, exhaling. “It is one thing,” he said slowly, “to threaten me. To imply you would put your own son at risk of - ” Reid swallowed. “Get out. We have nothing more to say to each other.”
Damian stared at him for a few moments. “I suggest you consider my request,” he finally said before walking confidently out of the room.
Reid fell back against his chair, breathing out shakily. He stared at the door that swung shut behind Damian, and he shook his head in disbelief.
**
Three days passed with no further contact between Reid and Damian Grimaldi. However, three days passed with no sign of Luke at the hospital either. Reid stared through the window, watching Holden Snyder talk quietly to his wife. It was close to 5:00, the time he usually left to spend a few hours with his young daughters. It was the time that Luke, if he came at all, would most likely show up.
Reid shook his head. He shouldn’t get involved in this.
Five o’clock came and went. Minutes ticked by, and Reid finally went into Lily Snyder’s room. He acknowledged Holden with a nod and proceeded to pretend he was checking up on his patient.
“You’re not usually here around this time,” Reid said, inwardly rolling his eyes at his attempt to be casual.
Holden didn’t seem to notice. “The girls are at my mother’s tonight. I’ll try to catch them before bedtime.”
“And your son?” Reid asked, feeling slightly breathless.
Holden looked away. “Luke and I are…not talking a lot these days.”
Reid made a noncommittal noise and left the room with no further comment. Walking directly to the nurse’s desk, he leaned against the counter and tried not to feel like an idiot. He couldn’t believe he was actually thinking about getting involved in this.
The sound of footsteps caught his attention and Reid turned. Luke Snyder had walked past him without even noticing him. As he drew closer to his mother’s room, he peeked through the window and stopped abruptly. He made a slight motion, as if he didn’t know which direction to turn, and then he quickly kept walking, rounding the far corner.
Reid gnawed at his lower lip.
**
Reid met Katie at Metro for a drink that night. Katie wasn’t paying much attention, however, as she was trying to catch the eye of the bartender.
“So you know the Snyder family, huh?” Reid asked.
“What?” Katie asked, glancing at him. “Yeah.”
“Luke too?”
Katie nodded. “He’s a real good kid. Had a rough couple of years lately.”
“What do you mean?”
“Oh, with the kidney transplant and everything. And obviously, his mom.”
“Kidney transplant? Never mind. You know him well enough to call him, or would that be weird?”
Katie turned to look at him again. “I’m…not following you.”
“Maybe if you paid attention instead of flashing your cleavage at the bartender.”
“Hey, at least I’m trying. I bet you haven’t had a single date since you came to town.”
“How many gay guys do you think there are in Oakdale?”
Katie shrugged. “You’ll never know if you don’t try to find out. And hell, if nothing else, we might get some free drinks out of it.”
Reid turned, glancing at the bartender. He had dirty-blond hair, a slightly upturned nose and an easy grin. Deceptively built. College-aged, maybe, or a few years older. And clearly gay. “Only if I go up there. Apparently the only thing I have to do to find a date is stick with you.”
“What?”
“You have the worst gaydar.”
Katie scowled. “Really?”
“Mmm,” Reid replied, nodding as he lifted his bottle of beer to his lips.
“How can you tell?”
“I can tell. Can you please focus now? Would you call Luke, if I asked you to?”
“When? Why?”
Reid sighed, looking away and taking another sip. “He hasn’t been to see his mother. He and Holden are estranged, and so he hasn’t stopped by the hospital a lot. I figured we could let him know when it was safe to come around, but I don’t want him to know it's coming from me.”
Katie narrowed her eyes, leaning over the table. “This does not sound like you.”
Reid shrugged, refusing to meet her eyes. “The kid seems sad. And besides, it might help my patient.”
“Oh my God,” Katie said, grinning. “I didn’t want to believe it, but it’s true. I take it your gaydar knows something about him that I don’t, then.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You have a taste for veal,” Katie shot back.
Reid choked on his beer. “Don’t be ridiculous. I'm 13 years older than him. Oh, and he's sixteen.”
“Age is only a number,” Katie replied, sing-song.
“Except when it’s a felony,” Reid sang back.
Katie laughed, shaking her head. She turned serious. “Look, with my relationship history, I’m in no place to judge. Just please be careful, OK? For him and for you.”
“I am not going to do anything with Luke Snyder. I just want you to call him whenever I let you know his dad is not at the hospital.”
Katie sighed. “Fine,” she agreed.
Continued