Nick and I split the evening chores as the sun was setting. Working in twilight, we managed to feed and water eight llamas, a dozen turkeys, a cat, a snake, and a cockatiel. We were almost home free when Nick turned his back on the turkeys to open the pasture gate.
“Look out,” I yelled, but it was too late. I watched helpless from the garden as the dominant gobbler lunged at Nick and dug a spur in the back of his upper thigh. Nick came through the gate muttering under his breath. I resisted any impulse to joke about his getting kicked in the butt by a turkey. Or to point out that farm life requires its own set of survival skills—even for a fearless pilot with a drawer full of sharp-shooter medals.
Nick spent a few minutes in the bathroom of the main house with antibiotic ointment and some sterile strips. When he came into the kitchen, he wore an expression that said, I don’t want to talk about it. Nevertheless, I had to ask one important question.
“Are you current on your tetanus shots?”
“Yes.”
“Just checking.”
He pulled two of Jack’s beers from the fridge. I found a stash of homemade turkey burritos in the freezer. We nuked our dinner and sat in the family room, feasting on our plunder. Ginger sat at attention between us, head swiveling back and forth to see who might offer her a bite. After Nick finished his food, he gave the dog a treat and a chin scratch and then turned to me.
“How sure are you about the woman in that truck?
“Are you asking if I’m sure enough to fly to Idaho?”
“Unless you have a better plan. Like going to the police.”
“If Laurie wanted the police involved, she’d have called them instead of me.”
“If she knows anything about a murder, she’ll have to deal with them sooner or later.”
“But she has to stay alive in the meantime. What happens if the police start talking to people at the hospital? To me, for instance. I’d have to tell them about breaking into her house, and about Idaho, and then whoever is after her might find out, too. Right now, she’s probably safer without the police involved.”
“Then so are you.” Nick opened the slider and let Ginger out into the fenced backyard. “Who else knows you’re trying to find Laurie?”
“Just Cleo Cominoli, and she wouldn’t tell anyone. And Harry, of course.”
“All right. Let’s decide whether we’re flying or not.”
“I think we have to. Two and a half years ago, Cody’s comatose wife was transported to TMC from a hospital in Idaho. Now Cody’s nurse, who knows something suspicious about his death, may be headed to Idaho.”
“So we’re going to find out if there’s any connection, but if we come up empty, that’s where it ends. Deal?”
“Deal. By then, someone else might have called in the police. We’re not the only people who want answers.”
“That’s right. One of them is your friend James.”
“Yes. He wants to know why his brother died.”
“I suppose your coworker at the hospital would like some answers, too.”
“Cleo? Of course she would. This all started because her fiancé is scheduled to go under Dr. Poole’s knife.” I picked up our paper plates and took them to the kitchen.
Nick followed me, reaching out to touch my shoulder. “Hey, we’re going to do this, but I don’t want you getting your hopes up. What’s more, if this Laurie’s in danger, you’re heading down the same road. I don’t like it.”
“I’m not giving up on her now. Finding her is the key to solving this mystery—and maybe to keeping her alive.”
Nick stood close behind me with his hands on my shoulders. “If you’re determined to risk your neck, I’m stuck. I don’t want to be the one to face your grandparents if they come home and find you’ve gone missing, too.”
“So we’re flying to Idaho. When?”
“How soon can you get away?”
“Friday, after work. I’ll try to take off early.”
“Good. Where in Idaho is the hospital you need to visit?”
“It’s in a small town called Dunnsville. Near Boise.”
“All right. I’ll check it out and file a flight plan. In the meantime, you’re going to fix me up with Cody O’Brien’s intimidating lady doctor.”
I’d forgotten about that. The thought of Nick dating anyone but me was bad enough, but the thought of him with Phyllis Poole, even if it was a pretense, stirred an emotion different from jealousy. It felt like fear.
“I’ll see what I can do, but let’s call it a night. I have to go take a shower.”
“Why not stay here in the main house with me?”
I searched his face for the meaning behind that suggestion, but I couldn’t read him and didn’t ask.
“The barn is my home. I like it out there. And you don’t have to babysit here. Aren’t you still living in Buck Sawyer’s pool house?”
“For the time being. Rella’s still subletting my apartment while she waits for her escrow to close.”
“How much longer?”
“It’s unclear, but I don’t really care.” Nick sat at the kitchen table. “I like the pool house, and it’s free. Buck won’t let me pay.”
Nick had saved the life of his boss’s wife a few months earlier when she fell and cut herself on a piece of broken glass and nearly bled to death. After Delta Sawyer’s accident, Buck began treating Nick like the son he’d always longed for and never had.
Nick pulled a small notebook from his pocket. “What’s the lady doctor’s name?”
“Phyllis Poole—with an E.” I watched him write it down. “What are you going to do?”
He put the notebook away. “I thought I might watch some TV, have another beer. Want to join me?”
“You know what I mean. What are you going to do about Dr. Poole?”
“First, you’re going to set me up with an appointment so I can get my prostate checked.”
“You can’t be serious.”
Nick laughed so hard Ginger jumped up and nuzzled him, whining. “It’s okay, girl,” he told her. To me, he said, “Then you think of something.”
“What makes you think she’ll go out with you? If she’s ethical, she won’t date a patient.”
“Technically, I won’t be a patient if there’s nothing wrong with me. Let me take care of that.”
“Don’t count on your charm being irresistible. Remember, she’s already fatally attracted to Dr. Fausset.”
“So you say. Now, give me a reason to make an appointment. Something simple that doesn’t require a hands-on physical exam.”
“Okay, tell her you’re considering a vasectomy. The first visit should be a consult, with clothes on. If you tell her you don’t have kids yet, she should try to talk you out of it.”
“Sounds good. I can take it from there. How soon can I see her?”
“Right away, if I pull some strings.”
“How about tomorrow?”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
“Good. Can you meet me at the hangar by four thirty on Friday?”
“That should work. But what about your dog? Harry agreed to watch the ranch again. Did you ask him to watch her, too?”
“No need. She’ll spend the weekend with her trainer.”
Thursday morning I called the office of Timbergate Urologic Associates and introduced myself to the appointment secretary as an administrator at Timbergate Medical Center. I explained that my cousin urgently needed an appointment, preferably with Dr. Poole. She scheduled Nick for late afternoon on the same day.
I fought a losing battle trying to clear my mind of the impending scene in her office. Virile Nick, all cute and bashful, showing deference to her profession.
Just as I reached the point where I was about to castrate him myself, my phone rang and saved Nick’s manhood. James O’Brien was on the line. Perfect.
“Aimee, it’s James. Is this a bad time?”
The library was empty and Lola was out making the rounds with the mobil
e book cart.
“No. It’s fine. What’s on your mind?” I’d encouraged him to have his father see an internist almost a week ago. Then I’d learned how dire Seamus O’Brien’s prognosis was. If he hadn’t told James, I knew in my heart I could not tell him. More medical opinions weren’t really necessary based on what I’d learned about Seamus’ tick-borne illness and his missing spleen.
“I wonder if we could get together again,” he said. “There are a couple of things I’d like to bounce off someone, and you’re the ideal sounding board.”
“Is this about Cody or your father?”
“Both, I think.”
If James had any pieces to the puzzle, I wanted to know about them before Nick and I left for Idaho.
“It would have to be this evening. Are you free?”
“More than free,” James said. “Desperate to get away from the O’Brien clan. Shall I pick you up? We can grab a bite somewhere.”
“I’ll have to do chores first. The folks are in Africa for three weeks.”
“Right, Jack told me about their trip the day I visited. Why don’t I come by and help with chores?”
I wasn’t crazy about James dropping by the ranch to take me out while Nick was there playing resident watchdog.
“That’s a nice offer, but it isn’t necessary. Let’s just meet somewhere.”
“Tell me where.”
I was about to answer when I spotted Jared Quinn sauntering through the door. Of course he’d show up when I was on the phone making a date.
“Aimee, are you there?” James said.
“Yes.” I murmured rapid-fire directions. “There’s a steak house at the junction in Coyote Creek. It’s convenient. We can meet there at seven.”
“I remember a feed store there. It’s a restaurant now?”
“That’s it. They call it The Feed Bag. It’s not as bad as it sounds. It’s new and considered trendy.”
“Then I’ll see you there. And you might check your phone. I can barely hear you.”
“Okay, see you.” I hung up, hoping Quinn would give me a break. He didn’t say a word. Just stood there, smiling.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt your phone call. Sounds like your voice is still a bit compromised. Are you feeling better?”
I was puzzled for a moment then remembered I was supposed to be recovering from a sore throat.
“No problem,” I said, affecting a slight whisper. “I was arranging to meet James O’Brien. He wants to talk about Cody.”
“Hey, I didn’t ask, but since you offered, let me know how that works out.”
“I will. What else can I do for you?”
“It looks like Beardsley’s left you on your own. He’s given me notice that he’s going to take an extended break. He’ll be out of the country for at least a month.”
“Wow, that’s a shock. I expected him to be back any day.”
“So did I, but it looks like we were wrong. In light of this news, it looks like I’m officially your acting supervisor again. I thought I’d better ask about the CME program. How are the urology reviews coming along?”
“I have appointments lined up with Quality Assurance and Medical Affairs this afternoon. Cleo and Rocky are working on the peer reviews, and we’re on track for Wednesday night, October thirty-first.”
“Halloween.” Quinn smiled. “Easy to remember. Let me know if you need my help with anything.” He hesitated, seeming to weigh his next words. “What did you think of the combo last Friday?”
“I enjoyed it very much.”
“We weren’t sure how it would go over without Laurie, but Phyllis Poole saved our bacon.”
“She’s certainly multi-talented,” I said, wondering what other skills she possessed and whether she used them for good or evil.
“She is talented,” Quinn said, “but so was Laurie. I hope she’ll find another combo when she gets settled.”
What was he saying? Quinn knew where Laurie had gone? I tried to keep my surprise from showing. “You know where Laurie is?”
“Only what she told Edna Roda. Laurie has family somewhere up north in Idaho. Edna was disappointed about losing one of her best nurses.” Quinn gave me a puzzled look. “Why do you ask?”
“Her leaving seemed so abrupt. Do you know why she left?”
“Some kind of a family emergency. She left without notice, but called in and explained it to Edna. She said she needed to be closer to an ill parent, something like that. Laurie’s a talented nurse and a fine person. I’m sure she’ll do well wherever she is.”
Of course he didn’t know about Laurie’s phone calls to Cleo and me, or what I’d discovered by sneaking into her home twice and tracking her in the wilderness. Since all that amounted to was a patchwork of suspicion and speculation, I kept it to myself. But Edna Roda told Quinn that Laurie had family up north in Idaho. That was good to know.
“Before I go, there’s one other thing,” Quinn said. “I don’t mind acting as your supervisor for the time being, but there’s been speculation that Beardsley might retire. If he does, I’m thinking about restructuring your department, and the change will affect you.”
That produced a hit of anxiety. Restructuring usually implied downsizing.
“What would that involve?” I tried for mildly curious, but my question came out sounding a little squeaky. Not bad, since I was already faking a scratchy throat.
“Nothing much where your job duties are concerned, but you’d be reporting directly to me. It would be considered a promotion, and I suppose I’d have to give you some sort of raise if you were running the show by yourself. Are you willing to take on the added responsibility?”
The prospect of a promotion and a raise made me seriously giddy, but I managed to whisper a casual, “I’m sure I could handle it.”
“I’ve been considering this for a while, but I don’t want to go ahead and create the position unless you’re willing to fill it.” He glanced at his watch. “I’ve got to go. Take some time to think about it. We’ll talk again. And take care of that throat.”
What was there to think about? All I could do was pray Dr. Beardsley would retire.
I spent the next two hours working with Rocky Taylor in Quality Assurance to identify all urologic surgery deaths and complications from the previous twelve months. Every urologist on the staff had at least one complication. Dr. Fausset had three, but Dr. Poole was the winner hands-down. She had seven complications and the only death, other than Cody. His didn’t count as being related to urologic care. At Jared Quinn’s request, I’d included his record as a complication, although his leaving the hospital against medical advice the night before surgery meant I was fudging a bit in the complication category.
Truth is, administrators aren’t thrilled when patients escape, and to have one escape and promptly die under unusual circumstances was a huge red flag. Quinn was covering his backside big time on this one. Likely the hospital had nothing to do with any of it. TMC’s lawyers were wary just the same.
I called Cleo Cominoli to give her an update about the case review, and she immediately went off on a tangent.
“I can’t believe this. Dr. Poole’s office called Sig about a cancellation in Dr. Poole’s surgery schedule. They asked him to move his surgery back to his original date.”
“It’s back on for November first?”
“Yes, and I can’t talk him out of it. Aimee, he’ll be in surgery the morning after the CME program. Even if Poole’s cases are out of line with the rest, she’ll be able to operate for at least a month while the committees decide whether to revoke her surgery privileges.”
“I thought there was something called a summary suspension that could be done immediately.”
“Sure, the chairman of Urology Department can do that,” Cleo said. “That’s Tobias Fausset, so don’t count on it.”
“Doesn’t anyone else have that power?”
“The Chief of Staff, who if you recall is the truant Vane Beardsley, and I jus
t heard he’s in Aruba. Then there’s Quinn, who just recruited Poole into Code Blues. Fat chance he’s going to pull her privileges. She’d have to be caught snorting coke in the operating room.”
“Then you’ll have to tell Sig to cancel it himself.”
“It might come to that, but he’s convinced she’s his angel of mercy. I won’t be able to change his mind unless I have some hard evidence of her incompetence.”
“We’d have to prove it before November first. Are the charts already pulled and assigned to the reviewers?”
“As of this morning.”
The charts would be divided among the urologic surgeons. Each one would evaluate the other’s cases, with none having an opportunity to re-evaluate their own before the special meeting.
“Try not to worry, Cleo. We won’t let anything happen to Sig.”
With that angst-filled conversation out of the way, my work day was over. Time to think about dinner with James O’Brien.
Chapter 15
The Feed Bag was doing a brisk business Thursday evening.
I spotted James waiting for me just inside the door and said, “Sorry. Hope I’m not late.”
“No, I’m early. I wanted to make sure I could find the place.”
In faded jeans and a crisp white shirt, James could have passed for a cowboy, except he smelled more like lemon meringue than alfalfa. We were shown to a table and given menus. I asked for iced tea. James ordered a beer, then glanced around the room.
“I like what they’ve done here. Thanks for coming on short notice.”
“I’m glad you called. I’ve been wondering how things are going with your family.”
“Not well. Keely and Echo are at each other’s throats when they’re not falling all over themselves to cater to Dad.”
“That must be hard on Seamus.”
The waiter arrived with our drinks, and James waited for him to leave before responding.
“Echo and Keely’s ongoing war is bad enough, but Cody’s death is tearing him up. He can’t accept it. Keeps asking why it happened.” James stared at the label on his beer bottle as if he might find an answer there. “Dad keeps asking why Cody left the hospital. Has anyone come up with an explanation for that?”
Checked Out Page 12
