“Does it matter?” he asked.
Shelly sat back down, still holding her head. She wanted to cry. She wanted to scream, but that would only cause a scene. She needed to compose herself.
“Shelly, the most important thing in my life, today and always, has been you. Of all the things I have accomplished in my life, keeping you alive was my greatest accomplishment. You asked what was going on, and I told you. Whether Hans had something to do with it or not, my first miracle does not change. It’s still you.” Shelly wanted to ask if he was just keeping this a secret so he wouldn’t lose face; if it came out, the miracle doctor would not be the miracle doctor after all. She thought better of disrespecting the man who had virtually raised her, miracle doctor or not. Instead,
she stewed in silence.
“Another thing you need to remember,” he said. “There are a lot of people out there who make a lot of money treating cancer who would love to take Hans out of the game—or anyone with a potential cure—so we have to keep this among us. You, me, Nick, and Barry. Okay?”
She peered at him. “Anything else?”
“Oh, yeah,” he said with a smile. “Don’t tell Dottie I said you are the most important thing in my life. It might upset her.”
Shelly rolled her eyes and walked out into the hall. She stopped at the window to watch the children on the playground. Even knowing the treatments they were undergoing, she envied the simplicity of their lives.
*****
Nick walked out of the sound stage as his cell phone rang. “Dr.
White’s fan club. Big fan, here. How can I help you?” “Hi, Nick, got a minute?”
“Sure, we just got done shooting the last scene for our latest UPS commercial.”
“Is it funny?”
“No. In fact, if I did my job right, it should make you cry.” “Really? What’s it about?”