Page 200 of True Blue

But people like Dr. Minkus will never understand.

My hands start shaking, and I fold them on the table in front of me, white-knuckle grip to hold them steady.

“Is this relevant?” Lorraine asks from beside me. “That seemed to a be rather gross observation than a question, Dr. Minkus.”

“Just getting the full picture,” Minkus says with a smile that makes my stomach turn. “Would you describe yourself as financially vulnerable during your residency?”

Dr. Vale’s eyes moved toward him, irritation passing over her face.

“I would say so,” I answer honestly. “I was living paycheck to paycheck.”

“You had educational debt?”

“Yes.”

“What happened to that?”

My throat goes dry.

Glancing toward Lorraine, she gives me a nod.

“I paid it off with the inheritance left for me by Eleanor Ambrose.”

Dr. Minkus hums. “And you recently returned from a month-long European vacation, correct?”

“Yes.”

He tuts again, the noise makes my back tense. “Expensive trip.”

“One I had been saving for over a decade,” I say. “My bank statements and receipts have already been provided.”

“Yes, Dr. Miller, we looked through your very helpful itinerary. But Theodore Williams was there too, wasn’t he?”

“Yes.”

“Eleanor Ambrose’s grandson.”

“Yes.”

“And he paid for portions of that trip.”

“Teddy paid for some meals and experiences without my prior knowledge or permission. I was grateful, nonetheless.”

He smirks.

“How convenient.”

My jaw tightens, my nails dig into my palm from how tight my fists are clenched.

My heart slowly picks up, beating harder and harder against my ribcage.

“You must understand how this looks to us, Dr. Miller⁠—”

My voice slices through it, patience long gone.

“Dr. Minkus, if the implication is that I became a physician only so that I could hunt for dying women with handsome grandsons I could ensnare with my womanly charms and assets, I would appreciate the committee stating that plainly.”

Dr. Vale lifts a hand to her mouth, but not before I catch the faintest twitch at the corner of it. Dr. Halloran makes a note in the file in front of her. The note taker’s eyebrows shoot up to his hairline, and he types frantically.