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.She looked around hoping to spot a magazine, but there weren’t any.Sitting there, she contemplated the best way of pitching her case to Wolfe.Before she could get very far, she saw him approaching.His hair looked longer and more disheveled than she remembered.He was carrying a single manila file folder in one hand and a foam cup in the other.He needed a shave.“It’s nice to see you again, Doctor.”She stood up.“I appreciate your taking the time to see me.”Morgan followed him to his office.He took a seat behind his desk and invited her to take the chair across from him.The window edges were grimy and his desktop looked as if he hadn’t opened his mail or read a memo in months.A half-eaten Danish sat atop a scuffed-up leather briefcase.The few certificates that hung on the wall appeared as if they had been placed by somebody with no sense of symmetry.“Can I get you something to drink?” he asked.“I’m fine, thank you.”“How can I help you?”“We haven’t spoken in a while.I understand the details of your investigation are confidential, but I was still hoping you could give me a general idea of how things are going.”Wolfe flicked some crumbs from his shirtsleeve.“We’re working on the leads we have and trying to develop new ones.I’d say we’re making progress, but it’s slow.”“Have you found any of my father’s old patients who might have wanted to harm him?”“As you told me, he was much adored by his patients.”“So your answer is no.”“I’m afraid it’s going to be a long process, Dr.Connolly.We’ve interviewed everybody who was in the waiting room that day.We’re also reviewing the video of the parking lot hoping to see this guy getting in or out of his car.”“I assume that hasn’t led anywhere either?” Morgan asked, wondering how long it could possibly take to review an hour’s worth of surveillance tape.“Not so far.”Taking every precaution to sound reasonably concerned but not inappropriately meddlesome, Morgan said, “I’m not sure it means anything, but there’s something I’d like to make you aware of.”Wolfe pressed his palms together and gestured for her to continue.“I’m the chairperson of Dade Presbyterian’s Patient Safety Committee.One of our roles is to review all cases that involve a medical error.Recently, we had a young woman in our Cardiac Care Center die for no apparent reason.I can’t go into the details, but suffice it to say they were extremely bizarre.Just prior to her death, she had a visitor.The man was very athletic in appearance, had a gap between his two front teeth, and claimed to be a professor at Broward College.” Morgan paused for a moment to gather her thoughts and try to translate the expression on Wolfe’s face.It was neither condescending nor indifferent, but she felt a sudden sense of urgency to get to the point.“The reason I mention this is that I spoke to my father’s physician assistant a few days ago.She told me that the man who attacked my father also claimed to be a college professor.As I’m sure you recall he—”“He was well built and had a gap between his two front teeth.”Morgan nodded.A perplexed look came to Wolfe’s face.“But this patient you referred to.this young woman.She died as the result of a medical mistake.Your father was murdered.I’m not sure I see the connection.”Morgan said nothing.Wolfe swiveled in his chair.A few more seconds passed.When the light went on, his voice filled with skepticism.“Dr.Connolly.I hope you’re not trying to tell me that this woman who died unexpectedly was actually murdered.and that you suspect the man who killed your father was responsible.”Holding back a sigh, Morgan counted to three before responding.“I’m simply making an observation.Both men were athletic-looking.They each had a gap between their teeth and they both claimed to be college professors.That seems pretty coincidental to me.”“I agree.That’s a bit of a coincidence but—”“Look, Detective.My committee has looked at this case dozens of times.We’ve spoken to everybody involved and gone over every aspect in detail.The bottom line is we have absolutely no clue why this woman died.”“Which hardly constitutes a case of murder.”“But don’t you think that—”“Dr.Connolly,” he began slowly with a raised hand.“Unfortunately, the fact that you can’t explain her death doesn’t mean somebody killed her.I’m not a doctor, but I would venture to say that it’s not unheard of for a patient to die for no apparent reason.Is it the hospital’s official position that this woman’s death may not have been the result of natural causes?”Morgan averted her eyes.“No.”“I assume you’ve already checked to see if she had ever been a patient in your father’s practice?”“There’s no record of her,” she confessed.Wolfe pushed some files aside and then reached for a blank piece of computer paper.“Does the hospital keep the names of the patients’ visitors?”“The cardiac ICU does.He signed in as I.Ogden.I went on Broward College’s website.There’s no such professor listed.”Wolfe picked up his pen again [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]