Page 35 of Deranged
His eyes widened, and I knew I had him. I continued. “I can’t go into details about Kory as she is technically my patient, but I have reason to believe her mother has been stashing her troublesome daughter away in mental institutions to keep her silent and under control while she organizes her political campaigns.”
He paused in writing. “I’m not sure what that means? You said she’s your patient. Is she mentally ill?”
I shook my head. “I can’t talk about what she is or isn’t. Just know she doesn’t belong in the hospital, in my professional—and personal—opinion.”
“How many times has she been in?”
I stared down into the coffee. “I can’t say how many times as I can’t divulge any details about her treatment, or care, hell I wasn’t even supposed to tell you she is my patient.”
He put the pad on the table and leaned in. “I understand the ethical code and all that, but you are the one who called me. If you want this story out there, you are going to have to give me a little more than the bare facts here. I need something to write. Senator commits daughter for unknown reasons for unknown number of times doesn’t exactly make a story…or hell…not even a headline.”
Obviously, he was right. I couldn’t just give him the minimum and hope he could spin a story from it. I was already going down. My ethical code had been shattered that night at the bar when I lost myself to her the first time, even if I hadn’t known it at the time.
I nodded. “Of course, you’re right.”
“There are such things as whistleblower laws and stuff. I’ll try to keep you and anything that can tie to you out of the piece, but I can’t even sell my editor on it if I don’t have the details to give him.”
I needed to grab my balls and commit if I was sticking to this plan. A part of me wished I’d talked to Kory about it before coming here. She should be warned her personal details might be disclosed to the public. “No, I get it. Kory has been committed several times, it seems, for years with a pattern of being institutionalized every six months. She doesn’t have any reason to be in the hospital as she is not suffering any mental illness that needs long-term institutional care.
He scrubbed furiously on the pad and flipped the page. “How long have you been treating her? What made you think something was suspicious?”
“I took the job at the hospital the same day she showed up. It was suspicious when I didn’t seem to have any other patients. And her records were all over the place. She didn’t have a single diagnosis despite being in the facility multiple times over multiple years.”
I watched him continue scribbling and waited for the next question. “Have you spoken with the Senator since you started treating her daughter?”
“Yes, on the phone. Also, she came to see her daughter one day, and I met her in person then.”
“And did she seem remorseful for actions?”
I thought about it and shook my head. “No. It seemed like the two had some sort of deal going on. A one-sided deal, but Kory seems resigned to it all. She knows she’s not sick, but she also thinks there is nothing she can do to break the pattern and her mother’s hold on her life.”
He sat back in the chair and stared down at his notes his lips moving as he read them back to himself. They were a mess, and even I couldn’t read the scribble across the small pages. “I have to run this by my editor. I’ll just step outside and call him, and then I’ll let you know.”
I trapped his notebook under my fingers. “You do understand the sensitivity of all this right?”
The look he gave me reminded me of Kory. The exact same head tilt and lip purse she used when I’d apparently asked a stupid question.
He slid out of the chair and out the door in a few steps. I watched him from my seat as he paced back and forth on the sidewalk talking to his editor. The minutes stretched until he finally returned. He sank into the chair and shook his head. “I’m sorry, my editor doesn’t think it’s enough to go on.”
I did not just tank my career for nothing. “No, what else do you need to sell him on it? You know I’m not some crackpot trying to catch my fifteen minutes.”
He shrugged and slid his notebook into a jacket pocket. “Don’t worry. I’ll do a little digging, and then I’ll re-pitch it. If I need anything, I’ll send you a text.”
Without so much as a goodbye, he gathered his things and left. I stared after him. This wasn’t good. I hadn’t considered what I’d do if my plan didn’t work.
I threw away the rest of my coffee and left the shop. As I crossed the street to my car, my phone started vibrating in my pocket. I fished it out along with my keys and checked the caller ID: Unknown.
I answered. “Hello?”
My blood froze at Demeter’s voice on the other end of the line. “Oh, Doctor. What have you done?”
Chapter Fifteen
Kory
Aknock on my door jolted me out of the copy ofDante’s Infernospread open on my crossed legs. My body revolted stringing tight for a moment at the thought of Ash standing on the other side. But no, he was supposed to be gone. And Styx never bothered to knock.
I closed the book and stashed it on a nearby pile. “Come in.”
