All She Ever Wanted - Barbara Freethy [71]
"But you just said—"
"I know what I said. I'll do it anyway." Laura hung up the phone and stared again at the bank statement. She'd already found fifteen thousand unexplained dollars in Drew's possession. She couldn't possibly count out one old purple journal with secrets that might have incriminated him. Because the one thing Natalie had said that was unarguably true was that Drew would do anything to protect himself.
Chapter 12
Natalie was right on time for the start of her eleven o'clock shift on Wednesday morning. After the emotional turmoil of yesterday's search for the truth, she was relieved to be able to escape to work for a while. She much preferred concentrating on other people's problems rather than her own.
As she approached the entrance to the emergency room, she saw a flurry of press activity and wondered if someone important had been brought in. Usually the press gathered at the main entrance or in one of the conference rooms used by the hospital spokesperson. She was almost at the double doors when she heard one of the reporters call her name.
"Natalie Bishop?" the man repeated.
She whirled around in surprise. "Yes?"
"Are you the Nancy Butler in the novel Fallen Angel?"
"What?" she asked, stunned by the question.
"Did you go to school with Emily Parish? Is the novel about the two of you?" another reporter asked.
"I—I—"
"What do you intend to do about the allegations that you killed your friend?"
"I—I have to go," she stammered, pushing past the reporters into the building. They followed her into the waiting room, but she dashed behind another pair of doors and ran straight into the attending physician.
"Natalie, I'm glad you're here," Rita Mills said, taking her arm. "Come with me." She led Natalie past several wide-eyed and curious nurses into an empty examining room. "The reporters arrived about an hour ago. The patients are asking questions about you and some seem concerned as to whether or not they're going to get you as their doctor. I don't understand why you're of so much interest to the press. Apparently it has to do with some novel that's out? I hope you can explain."
Natalie didn't know where to begin, but it was clear from the somber expression on Rita's face that she was not happy with the situation. Rita ran the ER like a tight ship. She didn't tolerate mistakes, sloppy work, or doctors who did stupid things in their time off. Until now Natalie had managed to escape her wrath.
"I'm waiting," Rita prodded, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"There's a story in a book that resembles an event that happened while I was in college," Natalie said. "It's fiction. It's not true."
"But it involves the local newspaper family, the Parishes?"
"Yes. I went to college with their daughter, Emily. She died while we were at school. It was an accident."
"One of the nurses told me that the book suggests you had something to do with her death."
"I didn't hurt Emily Parish. That's where the book veers from the truth."
"What about dispensing medication without a license?"
Natalie sucked in a gasp of air. The hospital gossips had done a good job. "I didn't do that, either."
"You worked at the university health center, did you not?"
"Yes, but I didn't steal or dispense any drugs improperly."
"Can you prove that?"
"I don't have to prove it. The accusations are in a novel, a book that's supposed to be fictional entertainment."
Rita stared at her for a long moment. "You're an excellent doctor, Natalie. I don't want to lose you, but I think you need a break, a few days off to sort through this. You can start that break now."
"You're right, I am an excellent doctor," Natalie said fiercely. "And this book is nothing but bullshit. The police investigated Emily's death when it happened. It was ruled accidental. The case was closed. There were never any charges or even a hint of suspicion about my job performance at the health center." A rush of anger filled her as Rita remained unmoved. "I can't believe you're allowing a novel to sway your opinion of me. We've worked