Chapter 12

Although Suzan felt a pang of guilt and remorse, she still had no idea how to help the man.Could he be for real or was he just a good actor?Reaching over, she opened the middle drawer of the desk and took out one of the medical referral cards kept there.This one contained the information for Dr. Brian Goetz.She held out the card."Here is the phone number for Dr. Goetz.You can call his service and explain your situation.I'm sure the doctor will be willing to return your call and try to help you."

When Lambert didn't take the card from her hand, Suzan set it down on the edge of the desk."Now if you'll excuse me, I have to close down the lab and lock up for the evening.The building security guard should be downstairs and will let you out the front door."She stressed the words security guard so that he understood her ability to call for immediate help.

"So, sorry," Lambert murmured as he pulled out a monogrammed handkerchief and wiped his eyes and cheeks, "to have troubled you, doctor."With remarkable dexterity, he spun around and walked quickly toward the door that led to the outer hall.

But just before he left the office, Suzan called out, "Wait, Mr. Lambert!May I have your phone number and your address?I may be able to help...if you give me a little time to look into things and perhaps consult with Dr. Goetz."

"I live at 654 P Street NW, in Georgetown," Lambert told her, his back to the door."But I have very little time left."With that, he opened the door and disappeared into the darkened hallway.

For a moment, Suzan simply stared at the door that had automatically closed behind him.She gave a start when Vanda came to her side and touched her elbow."Oh, sorry to startle you, Suze," the assistant said."But I couldn't help listening."Despite her plan to the contrary, Vanda had huddled by the lab door, opening it a crack to catch every word of the conversation between the determined visitor and her boss.

Now she speculated, "So what do you think?Is the guy shamming or the real deal?Of course, he has an obvious problem besides a blood disorder.The guy looks and sounds certifiably nuts."

"I just don't know," Suzan offered with a slow shake of her head.

"And what about that costume he wore?He must have changed into his old man outfit when I left the office.That wasn't the Mr. Lambert I talked to earlier.Someone probably hired him to pull a practical joke on you."

Although she had been thinking along those very lines, Suzan harbored a twinge of doubt. The man's tears had seemed real enough when she told him she couldn't help him.But his story!It was too fantastic to believe.Of course, Charles Lambert believed he was immortal, believed his blood had become tainted and now caused him to degenerate rapidly.But immortals belonged in science fiction movies, not in real life. Perhaps she should have referred him to a psychologist friend she knew who could help the poor man with his delusional thoughts.Then again, if this had been a trick...Yet, Suzan couldn't think of one possible culprit among her friends, acquaintances and colleagues-even her own family-who would concoct something this strange.She certainly didn't suspect Davis Breen, her live-in lover.Davis had many admirable qualities as well as a sense of humor, but he never acted on impulse or possessed a creative imagination.After all, he was a noted orthopedic surgeon.He studied and repaired bones, even funny bones, not tickled them with off-the-wall jokes and pranks.

But Suzan would tell him of this encounter when she met him for dinner in just thirty minutes.She glanced at the wall clock.Make that five minutes...Retrieving her android phone, she called Davis to let him know she was running just a bit late.

He answered on the second ring."Hello, darling, I'm here at the bar, waiting for you."This morning he had proposed dinner at Cavetto's, a nice Italian restaurant in Rockville and not too far from where they lived.But Suzan worked at the Institute of Allied Health Services in Arlington which was south of the Potomac and across town from the restaurant.She would have to hustle if she wanted to join her mate within a respectable time frame.

"I'm sorry, Davis, but I just had an encounter with a strange man who came in the office this afternoon and waited for me.Well, I'll tell you all about it at dinner.I'm running a bit behind but I should be with you in about twenty to thirty minutes.Can you wait that long?"

He chuckled."Darling, I've been waiting for you for the last two years.A few more minutes won't hurt."Suzan could take his statement two ways:either he had to wait for her since she always seemed to be running late whenever they made plans, or Davis had been waiting for her to make a commitment, as in marriage. She opted for the latter and hoped that was what he meant.