Date: Appx one week after the events of Open Wounds and Stitches

Time: Late Afternoon

It had been about a week, Billy had taken care to change his bandages as instructed, and he even took a trip and managed to keep himself from splitting open. Today he was going to make sure to get the damned stitches out because they itched like crazy. He told Integra she could meet him here if she wanted so that she could meet this doctor that had impressed Billy the other day enough to send the woman flowers.

And so, there he waited in the emergency room, easily the biggest man in the room, surrounded two of his bodyguards, Ricky was outside taking a smoke break.

"Mister, Mastrosmone?"

Billy had heard his name called. This was the third time.

"Yeah, that's me, Id doctor Eva ready yet?"

The nurse shook her head.

"Mister Mastrosimone, this is the Emergency Room, you get treated based on your need and time of arrival, you don't get to pick..."

Billy stood up and stepped forward toward the nurse.

"Yes I do. I put the goddamned donation to the board last year that bought this hospital those fancy iron lungs  and two new ambulances. Besides, I don't mind waiting, let other people go ahead of me I'm not in a rush. But I won't see any other doctor and you can't make me leave without seeing me. That'll just be a shit storm in the papers."

Billy smiled then and watched as the nurse threw her arms into the air with a sigh and then went into the back area marked for employees and patients only.

"Yes, Mum, everything is fine, how is Father?"

Eva Hadley was propped against the edge of her desk, looping her finger in and out of the telephone cord as she talked. It was almost daily that she was calling home now. She smiled as her mother talked about the garden and the vegetables, the new gas street lamps in the town, and all the other little mundane things that let Evan know that everything was normal. At least, for them.

As Magdalena Hadley chittered on, one of the registration nurses appeared at her office door. She looked somewhat flustered. Eva covered the mouthpiece of the receiver.

"Everything ok?"

"There's a patient here that insists on seeing you. A Mr. Mastro..Mast..."

Eva stood up straight.

"Mastrosimone? He's here?"

The nurse nodded and pointed toward the waiting room.

"He won't leave until he sees you. I tried to explain to him that you're not on ED rotation, but he'll not have it."

Eva shook her head and whispered.

"It's fine, put him in the next available room and I'll take care of it. Come and get me when he's ready."

When the nurse left, Eva hesitantly cut her Mother off.

"I'm sorry Mum, I have to go. I have a patient...thank you, I love you too.  And tell Father that I love him."

Resting the phone in the cradle, Eva sighed softly and looked down. She knew this day was going to have to happen, and up until this exact moment, she thought she was ready. This wasn't her job. She was a healer- that's all she was supposed to be. 

"You blow this, Evelyn, you know what happens."

Alex's dark and gravely voice echoed in her mind like a nightmare. Taking a deep breath, Eva grabbed her lab coat from the back of her chair and pulled it on over her gray trousers and black cashmere turtleneck.

Integra had slept a bit better after her run-in with Alucard, but in truth, it only confused her more, just what were they now? She knew she had upset Billy that night because it'd seemed like she'd disappeared, so since then she was sticking close to him, which in turn made her feel better because she could keep an eye on him and make sure nothing happened.

Sighing softly as she ran a hand through her long hair, Integra glanced around the waiting room, curious as to why they were here... she knew she didn't need a checkup and from what she could tell, Billy was fine. Which made her a bit uneasy as she shifted her weight in the chair, moving her right leg from being on top of her left leg, and draping said left leg over her right leg, for the third time.

"Billy... what are we doing here again." She glanced at him, knowing full well Aaron, Jason, Martin, and Lyle were around somewhere. All four of them alert for anything that might happen, but keeping pretty well blended in. "Is this the doctor you were telling me about..."

She glanced up when the nurse returned to take them back to a room, stating that Dr. Eva was indeed ready now. Integra kept a close eye on the woman as she would follow Billy back to the room, somewhat wishing she could light a Cigar back here, but she was trying to cut back on those ever so slightly...and that was hell.

Billy nodded.

"Yep, this is gonna be her. I'm telling you, she knew right away something was wrong that wasn't just stitches. She's not just a doctor, she knows people."

He stressed this part for what seemed like the fifth time.

"I read the Paulie situation wrong. I read the party situation wrong, hell half the time I can't figure out what's behind your eyes besides smoke, booze, and maybe somewhere buried deep at the bottom of that bottle, some love too."

He stuck out his tongue at her and then took a seat as the nurse close the door to the room. He began to take off his jacket and unbutton his shirt.

"Plus, I want her to take these damned stitches out, they itch like mad."

A soft knock came at the exam room door. 

"Mr. Mastrosimone?"

Eva's voice came through the door before her. She had a pair of reading glasses perched on the bridge of her nose, and a hint of a dusty rose colored rouge on her lips.

For whatever reason, she'd expected to see him clad in the jeans and black tee-shirt, but when she looked up, Eva saw a whole different person- and Billy Mastrosimone wearing a suit.

The female with him was well dressed, smartly suited with extraordinarily long, blonde hair and round, wire rimmed glasses. Transferring his chart to one arm, Eva extended her hand to the woman.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Hadley."

Giving the woman a firm handshake and confident smile, she nodded politely and then turned to her patient.

"You're looking a good bit better than the last time I saw you. How are my stitches holding up?"

She suddenly remembered the barrage of flowers that passed through her office and felt the skin of her cheeks blush slightly. 

"Thank you, by the way...for the flowers. That was awfully kind of you. I don't think my apartment has ever looked so nice."

Reaching into the breast pocket of her coat, she took a pen and started making some notes on the chart as she awaited his reply.

Billy smiled bright.

"See?"

He looked to Integra asking her out loud.

"Went right to you first knowing you make all the decisions. I told you."

Then he turned his attention to the doctor.

"Hey doc, stitches seem to be fine except that they are itching like crazy and I was really hoping you could pull em out of me today. I know you're crazy busy, but I'm a paranoid guy so I only trust people who I've met before unless it's an emergency. Can you take a look?"

Billy took his button-down shirt off and rolled up the sleeve of his undershirt so the doctor could clearly see the shoulder wound and the hole in his arm both.

"Oh, and don't mention the flowers. I own a little shop, and I needed to thank you for keeping me alive that night, and well, from being stupid after. My sister here helped a lot with that too, but you deserved the flowers."

Billy smiled and then gave a questioning look to Integra to see what she thought upon first impression.

Integra rolled her eyes slightly at her brother as she sat in one of the chairs provided before taking the Doctor's hand and giving it a firm shake.

"Pleasure to meet you, Dr. Hadley, I'm Integra."

She kept an easy eye on the woman as she watched her go about her business, her right left draped over her left leg and her hands clasped around her knee. She wasn't wearing her usual trench coat, hadn't been wearing those since Kenzi, but she did have a pair of suit pants on and a button up shirt. Hearing Billy talking about sending the woman flowers, she grew curious, even though she had known he was sending flowers, she hadn't remembered him sending them to this woman. 

"Maybe. Though, someone has to keep you from doing stupid shit..." She grinned slightly, watching the interaction in front of her.

Since this was indeed the person who kept him alive that night, Integra was grateful for the woman. She seemed to have a good personality, but she was still cautious. She'd always been cautious of people though, especially after returning from England the second time. She glanced towards Billy as he gave her a questioning look, shrugging her shoulders a bit. She didn't dislike the woman, but she didn't know her well enough to know if she really trusted her. The doctor seemed nice enough.

Eva washed her hands in the sink as Integra spoke, chuckling softly. It was time to do her job, though she wished that it was just the stitches she had to attend to. She turned to him once more with a pleasant, relaxed smile on her face. 

"Of course, I understand completely. And you're not keeping me at all. I'm not on ED rotation today, and my next surgery isn't until this afternoon."

With a careful, trained eye, she examined the wounds, which were all healing very nicely. Satisfied with the healing and the condition of his skin, Eva reached for a pair of small scissors and gave him a cheeky grin, along with a wink of her dark eyes.

"You've healed beautifully. I would have hated to see my pretty stitches torn up."

There was no need for meditation this time. She snipped the rows of stitches, then used a pair of tweezers to remove the strings easily. After cleaning the areas once more, she placed a simple adhesive bandage over them.

"These can come off in twenty-four hours.  You won't even see the scars in a few weeks."

As she spoke, she laid a slender, gentle hand on his unwounded shoulder for a moment before moving to clean up the stitches. 

"Are you feeling alright otherwise?" 

Billy screwed up his mouth in a mock frown at the doctors words.

"Well that's kind of disappointing. You know, battle scars and all."

He shrugged his shirt back on and began to button things up.

"I'm alright doc, but I got a question. How are you doing? Cause I was kind wondering if you're the kind of doctor who might be willing to make house calls. You know I can pay in cash."

He had to tiptoe around this kind of thing with most people. He had learned that much. Integra had told him to be smarter, and be coy, and not give away too much at once. So instead of continuing to talk. He shut his mouth and let the doctor speak next. He hoped Integra was noticing, he was trying to do what she said.

Whether it was dumb luck or her bedside manner, she wasn't sure; but whatever it was that prompted the Don to ask about house calls, it was exactly what she needed. Leaning back against the counter, Eva casually crossed her arms in front of her, relaxing her posture slightly. 

"Absolutely. The only time I'm unavailable is when I'm in surgery, but those are scheduled and I know in plenty of time. If you have need of my services, I can be anywhere you need."

Not to seem too easy or too eager, she raised her eyebrows slightly.

​​​​​​"That being said, my hourly rate for house calls is $135. Extra if I have to provide my own transportation."

Eva glanced to Integra briefly, then back to the Don. 

"I don't expect that will be a problem for you, though."

The homework had been done for her as soon as she saw Alex a week ago. He was more than well off, from his own business interests and from connection to the Ligambi family. She was careful about how she showed her cards, but he needed to know that she knew more than she was saying aloud. 

​​​

Integra leaned back in the chair slightly as she simply listened to the interaction between the two of them. She was definitely cautious, seeing as she knew nothing about this woman and even more so with the idea of house calls being made. She'd have to remind Billy that said house calls shouldn't be made anywhere where they actually lived or worked... at least not yet. It would be a stupid idea to have someone you barely know find out where you live, and when a gut feeling was urging on the side of caution, Integra tended to listen to it.

She didn't say anything until the Doctor mentioning that she didn't expect it to be a problem for them. She didn't let it show, but she was watching the doctor closely. Something about that sentence seemed weird, strange even to Integra but she wasn't sure why. Hell, it could just be the woman's judgment based off of the clothes they wore. She didn't know if Billy was picking up on it or not, but she'd talk to him when they were alone again, without ears to listen in on their conversation.

Billy nodded.

"You did your homework then? Good. That makes this easy. I need a phone number from you so I know where to reach you directly. I'm going through other people. I will pay you $1000 per visit, and you will tell not a single soul who you saw, or where you have been any given time that I call. If you're amenable to those terms, then we have a deal. If not..."

He gestured to Integra.

"She steps in and wallops the crap out of whatever your counter offer is because she knows more about you than you are comfortable with anyone else knowing."

Billy was entirely confident that it was not a bluff. He had told Integra the Doctor's name and Integra was the smartest and most dedicated person Billy knew. She had done the research before they came here, he was sure of it.

Eva gave a light chuckle in response to his "warning" about Integra, but behind the smile she thought she might throw up. Just how much had Mastrosimone's woman dug up? If she knew about...no, she would have put a stop to everything if that were the case.

She nodded once, then reached into her pocket for her prescription pad.

"This is my telephone number. It goes directly to me. If I do not answer, you'll get my assistant, Ilya. He knows where I am at all times. I must ask you not to call the hospital under any circumstances. Contractually, we are not supposed to conduct house calls, but I've got rent to pay and I'm sure Miss Integra can tell you exactly how much I don't make."

She tore off the page and handed it directly to Billy. 

​​​​​​"You may consider me on call for you, Mr. Mastrosimone." 

Integra had indeed looked up the woman, she could use the help with Bills, of that she was sure of. While everything seemed to have checked out and that the woman seemed outstanding in all ways, the British woman was still cautious... as one should be when someone checks out as a model citizen with absolutely no blemishes. She didn't think too many people lived without some kind of blemish on their record, or if they did, then it was rare.

She allowed a slightly crooked grin to slip over her lips as she leaned back in the chair, her hands moving as she loosely crossed her arms in front of her chest as she watched Dr. Hadley. Once the woman made the comment of being on call for Billy, Integra stood up and moved to a spot on the wall to lean against it as she stretched her legs out after sitting. She noticed the female doctor was a few inches taller than her but that didn't seem to make any difference for Integra as she tried to ignore the urge to want to smoke. She'd grab one later, or find something to keep her hands busy and her mind off of it.

Billy nodded simply.

"Then I'm sure you will hear from us soon doc. Do you want me to keep calling you doc, or is Eva better?"

He began to put his shirt in order and put his jacket back on.

"You're the employer, Mr. Mastrosimone, so that is your discretion; but Eva is fine."

As the Don pulled his jacket back on, Eva turned and spoke again to his companion.

"It was nice to meet you, ma'am. Of course, should you need anything, I'm at your service, as well."

Gathering his chart in her arms, Eva pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose and nodded politely. 

"If you'll excuse me, I need to prep for an appendectomy. Thank you for stopping by."

She cast a soft glance to Billy before walking out. 

"I'm happy to see that you're doing better. Time heals."

With that, she slipped out. 

The blonde leaning against the wall seemed to watch the two interact, standing straight as the taller woman by the name of Eva started talking to her, her sapphire colored eyes watching her closely. 

"It was a pleasure to mee you as well, Dr. Hadley. I'll keep that in mind."

She waited until the woman walked out completely before giving Billy a bit of a side look before heading towards the door.

"Shall we head back?" She opened the door to having her guard Jason head out to grab the car, so it would be ready for them by the time they got there. It was then that she seemed to catch a glimpse of someone with blonde hair follow Dr. Hadley into her office. She furrowed her eyes slightly as it seemed to confirm her gut feeling that something was off. For all she knew it could have been another doctor, but her gut was thinking something different.

Hastily, Eva shut the office door behind Ilya. She gave him a frustrated look, and he returned it with a dry, emotionless stare from raised eyebrows.

Eva slammed the medical chart on the desk, wanting to shout at the man casually lurking in the corner. 

"Well, there you go. I'm in it now. Your bastard boss has an in with the Italians. I'm losing my job, possibly my career, and most likely my life if they find out; but as long as Alex is getting what he wants, right?" 

Ilya, standing six feet tall with the looks of a Grecian statue, shrugged and took out a cigarette. 

​​​​​​"Relax. You still get to play doctor, yes? And it's a pay raise."

Scowling, Dr. Hadley sighed. 

"Oh, sure, big deal. I'm sure my costs for 'protection' are going to suddenly go up too, hm?" 

Ilya gave another shrug, and Eva pushed past him toward the door. 

"I have to go remove an appendix and then completely ruin my life. I'll be done in three hours."

Eva slammed the door behind her, hard enough that others glanced up to stare. With a huff, Dr. Hadley made her way down the hall toward her last surgical procedure at St. Andrew's.