My Forbidden Doctor (Forbidden Medicine 7)

"Of course not, no. I just want to know what they talked about, if anything inappropriate was said, and to try to determine without a doubt whether or not anything unethical occurred." That seemed to be exactly what my sister wanted to hear, and she reached into her briefcase with a small CD and a stapled few sheets of paper. "What is this?"

"Security footage from The Golden Pearl showing that nothing unethical was done while inside the restaurant, as well as the outside camera showing them getting into different cars and her driving away. I also added the time of the call my brother had with our mother while sitting in the parking lot. These are statements from the waitress and bartender at the restaurant attesting that this woman, Melissa, actually had an asthma attack."

Eric looked surprised as he took the paper and CD in its generic, red case, and appreciation flickered in his eyes. He set them aside, the cogs working between his ears as he turned his gaze to me. I sat up a little straighter, the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end under his weighty stare.

"So, would you mind explaining what happened at The Golden Pearl, Carl? In your own words."

Nodding even as a cold sweat broke out under my jacket, I cleared my throat roughly. Eric appeared to be an open-minded guy, and I was hoping he wouldn't just brush me off.

"Yes. I had an altercation with Eva at my car in the parking lot. She was waiting for me when I exited the building and proceeded to scream at me and threatened to ruin my life because I refused to have sex with her."

Eric's eyebrows almost flew off his face in surprise, and I grimaced ugly at the memory of that day.

"I decided that I didn't want to cook, so I ordered to-go from The Golden Pearl and headed over rather than risk her coming back to my car to yell at me again. When I entered the restaurant to wait for my food, Melissa was being escorted back in from the patio and was obviously on the tail end of a severe asthma attack. I approached her, asked if she was okay and if it was alright if I sat with her. It's in her file that her allergies impact her asthma, and that day had particularly bad air quality. I observed her while we waited for our food, as she decided to get her order to-go also, and we parted ways in the parking lot once I determined she was okay to drive. Melissa has an emergency inhaler, so hospitalization wasn't necessary. I also added it to my notes in her chart."

"What did you talk about?"

For a moment, I hesitated, not wanting to breach Melissa's privacy about her turbulent home life. Taking another deep breath, I ground my teeth before opening my mouth, and sourness coated my tongue.

"Melissa complained a bit that her father had ignored the seriousness of her condition and gotten patio seats in spite of the bad air. She explained that she didn't take any medication for her allergies prior to leaving for the Pearl. I advised Melissa to basically stick to her guns about her health, but that was really all. I knew from our appointment that her allergies and asthma were affecting her sleeping. She requested a CPAP machine for it, and I did take that episode into account when prescribing it after she completed her sleep study."

Eric nodded, jotting down notes about what I'd revealed, and I exhaled a slow, much more steady breath.

"After she left, I sat in my car and ate. My mom called me briefly. Then, I went back to the office to add to her chart before going home."

"Alright. I'll need to check the video you've provided me to confirm, but really... I'm much more interested in the altercation with Eva Mendez at your car. Would you mind telling me about that? You know she's the one who filed against you, you mentioned. Why do you think she would make false allegations?"

I cast a questioning glance at Laurie, and she nodded firmly and grabbed my hand to squeeze hard. Gulping down the dense lump in my throat, I licked my lips heavily. Shame tightened my chest, and my heart rate jacked up before I even spoke up.Chapter 11MelissaJogging down the path after Kimi, I wheezed painfully, and she just got farther and farther away.

"Stop that cat!" I winced as my rasp burned my throat. Kimi's shimmering, grey fur stood out in this wooded area, at least, and I paused my chasing to struggle to breathe. "Nothing is going my way today."

Aside from sleeping for over twenty-four hours straight, of course. I woke up to Kimi scratching me because her food bowl was empty. I almost broke my machine because I didn't realize it was still attached to me. I knocked my leg in the shower, and I got shampoo in my eyes. And now, my cat was running away.