* * *
Eleanor opened the front door slowly, mustering up a look of surprise for her visitor’s benefit. “Hello, Dr. Sparling.”
“Good afternoon, Eleanor. May I come in?”
“Of course,” Eleanor smiled coolly and opened the door wider to admit the doctor. She wasn’t sure why Dr. Sparling was at her house, and hoped that she would be able to get rid of her relatively quickly.
Dr. Sparling came into the room and glanced around casually. “I think this is the first time I’ve seen you outside the hospital,” she said with a smile. “You have a nice home.”
Eleanor suppressed the urge to roll her eyes, impatient with the inane niceties. “Please, have a seat.” She didn’t offer the doctor anything to drink, not wishing to prolong the visit.
Dr. Sparling sat down gingerly on the sofa, smiling wryly. “I’m sure you’re wondering why I’m here.”
“Yes,” Eleanor agreed bluntly, remaining standing.
A phone began ringing in the bedroom, and Eleanor prayed that Amelia and Rob knew better than to answer it.
"Do you need to get that?" Dr. Sparling asked politely.
"No, it's fine." They waited in awkward silence for the phone to stop ringing, and then Eleanor shifted her weight impatiently. "What can I do for you?"
“I know that you were part of the team that took care of a patient the other day. Meredith Carpenter?”
“Yes, I was in the E.R. that night.” Eleanor felt the muscles between her shoulders tighten nervously. What did Dr. Sparling know?
“The hospital has asked me to investigate her case, since she decided to leave against medical advice. We’re trying to see if there is anything we could have done differently to improve her care. We want patients to trust us and have confidence in our hospital, after all.”
“Oh.” Eleanor relaxed. “What do you want to know?”
Dr. Sparling shifted in her seat, crossing her left ankle over her right knee. “Well, first off, I know you’ve been an impeccable employee for a long time. I don’t want you to feel like you’re on trial here. We all know that you are a gifted nurse.”
“Thank you. I do it all for your approval, after all.” Eleanor knew she was taking a chance being rude, but she hoped it would make Dr. Sparling uncomfortable enough to cut the interview short.
Dr. Sparling frowned and her blue eyes trained in on Eleanor’s face. “Meredith Carpenter’s records were deleted from our system, and a threatening note was found on her food tray. Now is most certainly not the time to give me an attitude. Why don’t you have a seat?”
Damn. Eleanor grudgingly did as she was asked. “I gave her pain meds in the E.R. and then came up to her room once to check on her. Otherwise I didn’t have any interaction with her.”
Dr. Sparling looked at Eleanor’s face carefully. After a long moment, she asked, “Are you sure?”
“Of course I am,” Eleanor snapped.
“Are you aware that there was another patient at Phoenix Mercy with Meredith’s same condition? Meredith went to the other hospital and convinced him not to have surgery either, and he has since died. The hospital has a huge liability here, and we need to find out what the hell happened.” Dr. Sparling uncrossed her legs and leaned forward earnestly. “I am worried sick about Meredith Carpenter. She needs to come back and have the surgery, but since her records were deleted, it could be days before we can find her. By then it could be too late… if it isn’t already.”
Eleanor shook her head sadly. “I wish I could help you, Dr. Sparling. I really do. But I’ve told you all I know.”
Dr. Sparling leaned back and relaxed into the couch cushions. “I don’t think that’s entirely true, Eleanor. You see, I was at Phoenix Mercy to help with the other patient--the one who died. While I was there, I saw Meredith’s friend, Vi. I almost didn’t put two and two together, but as she was leaving, I noticed that she had your coat.”
“My coat?”
“Yes. That ugly green monstrosity that you wear every single day between October and February. There can’t be two like it in the world. Or at least, let’s hope not.”
Eleanor swallowed hard. The damned coat. She had noticed that Meredith and Vi had taken it, but she didn’t realize that the small theft would come to bite them in the ass so soundly. She wracked her brain to come up with an excuse as the seconds ticked by. Dr. Sparling’s eyes never left her face, and Eleanor knew she was in trouble.