The Safe House Read online

  “Don’t forget to put some of that pot roast aside,” I reminded her.

  “I won’t,” she said, and right before I hung up, I heard her add, “Don’t forget my meds either.”

  My only response to that was a head shake.

  2

  WHAT AN EYE OPENER

  I headed back over to the pharmacy after I finished eating my lunch. When I walked through the front door there were two people waiting for their prescriptions, but Sanjay was nowhere around.

  “Has anyone been helped?” I inquired as I circled around the customers to get behind the counter.

  “No. We’ve been standing here for about five minutes,” an elderly man said.

  “He’s right.” Another white man spoke up. “I even peeped around the counter to see if anyone was there,” he continued.

  “Well, don’t worry. I’ll help you two gentlemen,” I assured them as I walked around the counter.

  I took both men’s prescriptions and then I logged them into our system. Immediately after I did that, I searched the storage room where we kept our drugs and medical devices. I thought I might find Sanjay in there, but the room was empty. Alarmed, I walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door.

  “Sanjay, are you in there?” I asked. But he didn’t answer. So I knocked on the door again. “Sanjay, are you in there?” I repeated, and when I didn’t get an answer, I grabbed ahold of the doorknob and twisted it lightly, opening the door calmly. It was plain to see that Sanjay wasn’t in there.

  The only other place I figured Sanjay could be was in the back of the building. So I closed the bathroom door and headed in that direction. The back door was slightly ajar, so I pushed it open.

  “Sanjay, there you are,” I said after I laid eyes on him shoving boxes in the trunk of his brother Amir’s car. I could tell that he wasn’t expecting to see me. He looked very nervous. While Amir continued to maneuver boxes that obviously came from the pharmacy, Sanjay walked toward me.

  “Did you need something?” he asked me in a weird kind of way. The way he said it sounded like a mafia boss asking an innocent bystander who witnessed a murder, did he see something?

  I was taken aback and I really didn’t know what to say. But then it hit me. “We have two customers in the pharmacy who said they’ve been waiting for over ten minutes for someone to help them.” I twisted the truth a little.

  “Take care of them,” Sanjay insisted.

  “I already have,” I lied.

  “So, what’s the problem?”

  “There’s no problem. I just wanted to make sure that you were still around.”

  “Well, I’m here,” he said.

  “Okay, well, I’ll go back in and take care of everything while you’re out here . . .” I said, and then I turned around and left him standing at the back door. I heard it close behind me as I headed back inside to the waiting customers.

  “Sorry about that,” I said. “The pharmacist is in the back of the building signing for some deliveries from the UPS driver.” It seemed like a solid excuse.

  “He may not want to do that the next time around, because instead of me and this other fella waiting around, it might be some young kids robbing you guys of all of your prescription drugs,” the younger man said.

  “I agree,” the other man said.

  Seriously? These two watched too much TV. “I will definitely make mention of that as soon as he gets back in here,” I assured them.

  Since Sanjay had basically given me the green light to process these gentlemen’s prescriptions, I ran straight over to the cabinet where the Percocet pills were stored. I knew I had a small window of opportunity to get these pills for Jillian so we could make a few extra dollars. Immediately after I grabbed the pill bottle I heard Sanjay open and close the back door of the pharmacy. My heart started racing while I struggled to open the plastic bottle. But to no avail, it didn’t open for some crazy-ass reason. I’ve never had a problem opening and closing a pill bottle.

  “I’m so sorry, you guys,” I heard Sanjay say. So I knew he was standing behind the counter near the cash register. Frozen like ice, I stood there not knowing whether to put the bottle of Percocet back in the supply cabinet or stick it in my pocket. I heard Sanjay walking in my direction, so I nearly panicked.

  “Misty, who are you working on first?” he called out to me.

  Feeling like I was about to have an anxiety attack, I shoved the bottle of Percocet into my pants pocket.

  “Hey, there you go,” he said as soon as he saw me. “What are they waiting on?” he continued as he stood in front of me.

  “Mr. Lewis is refilling Trexall. And Mr. Williams is getting another refill of Metformin,” I told him while I placed my right hand over my pants pocket to prevent Sanjay from seeing the bulge.

  “Get the Metformin and I’ll get the Trexall,” he instructed me.

  “I’m on it,” I said and walked away from him. I swear, I couldn’t tell you how scared I was when Sanjay walked up on me. I would’ve shit in my pants if he saw me with that bottle of Percocet in my hands. I couldn’t lie and say that I had it because I was refilling one of those guys’ prescriptions. No, that wouldn’t have made any sense. I needed a cover, so I wasn’t going to take any more pills unless I was filling a prescription for the same drug. Other than that, I was gonna chill.

  * * *

  A few hours later, Sanjay said, “You can leave now.”

  I looked at my watch. “Are you sure? I mean, we’ll be closed in fifteen minutes.” I needed to delay leaving cause I needed a chance to put the bottle of Percocet back.

  “Don’t worry. I’ve got everything covered. There’s a storm coming our way, so get home safely,” he insisted.

  I sighed heavily. “Okay,” I replied reluctantly. I mean, what other choice did I have? He was my boss, so I wouldn’t dare tell him that I had just pocketed a brand-new bottle of Percocet from the storage cabinet and now I wanted to put the bottle back. If I did, I’d be asking this man to fire me on the spot.

  “Don’t forget to drive carefully,” he reminded me.

  “I will,” I assured him as I grabbed my jacket and purse. Sick to my stomach, I dreaded leaving the store. Why couldn’t I be more careful? If I hadn’t listened to Jillian, I wouldn’t have this fucking big-ass pill bottle in my pocket. I could see it now: After Sanjay goes through the inventory in the morning, he’s going to look me in the face and ask me where the missing Percocet bottle is. And I’m going to have to tell him the truth because who else could’ve moved it? I was the only employee there. Or, let’s say that I did deny it, all he would have to do is look through his security camera. Now it wouldn’t show me actually taking the meds because of the angle, but it might show the bulge of the bottle in my pants. Damn! I’d really fucked up now.