Kate White - Hush

“But it might,” Lake urged. “Please tell me.”

Rory took her arm from her belly and folded her hands on the table. Her hands were large and strong, fitting her body, but also perfectly manicured-with peach-colored nails.

“When I first got pregnant I felt really awful,” Rory said. “I have no clue why they call it morning sickness because I was sick all day long. One afternoon I felt so bad I didn’t know how I was going to be able to get on the train to go home. So after I’d finished with the last patient, I decided to lie down in Dr. Kline’s office for a while-he’s got a little love seat in there. It was about five-thirty and I only planned to rest for a few minutes, but when I opened my eyes it was almost seven. I couldn’t believe it. I was afraid that everybody had left and I was locked in with the alarm on. I walked down to the reception area and all of a sudden I saw Dr. Hoss standing there with a man I’d never seen before. She seemed really uncomfortable when she noticed me-like I’d caught her at something.”

“Maybe it was someone she was dating-and she felt awkward?”

Rory glanced quickly behind her again.

“Well, he had a silver container with him,” she said, her voice hushed. “The kind that’s used to carry eggs.”

“ Eggs? ” Lake said.

“Yes. And embryos.”

“Was he delivering eggs?” Lake asked. “From a donor bank?”

Rory shook her head.

“I don’t think so. I think he was taking some away.”

“How can you be sure?”

“Because I followed him.”

“ Followed him?” Lake asked, surprised. “How did you manage that?”

“I left the clinic first. I could tell they didn’t want me there. But I waited down the street until the man came out. Like I said, the whole thing just seemed kind of funny to me, and I thought if I saw what kind of car or van he got into, it would help me figure it out. But he didn’t get into a car. He just started walking. I still felt a little sick, but I decided to follow behind. I knew he couldn’t be going very far because he had the cooler with him. And then just three blocks away he went into a townhouse. After about five minutes I went in and checked the name on the plaque. It said New Century Research.”

“So the eggs may have been donated for research? Isn’t that something the clinic does occasionally?”

“Some couples okay it but not very many. I certainly never would if I were in their situation. Besides, that’s not the name of a company the clinic deals with regularly. And, like I told you, there was something really funny about the way Dr. Hoss acted.”

Lake studied the table for a moment. It wasn’t the information she’d been hoping for, but it all might fit in. If the clinic had enough reckless disregard for someone’s embryos to implant them in another woman, they wouldn’t think twice about selling them for research.

But she needed evidence. She had to convince Rory to look through the patient charts. When she glanced back up, Rory was staring at her.

“Rory, I really appreciate your sharing this with me,” she said. “But now I need your help. Would you be willing to pull a few patient charts? I honestly think that the clinic is doing things that aren’t ethical, and the proof has got to be in the files.”

Rory shook her head quickly back and forth.

“Look, I told you what I know,” she said. “If there’s something weird going on, I want the doctors to be told they have to stop. But I don’t want to make trouble.”

“Please, hear me out, Rory,” Lake said. “First of all, innocent couples are being affected by this. Secondly, I think there are dangerous people at the clinic. A man tried to kill me last night-and I’m almost positive he was hired by a person at the clinic.”

“ Kill you?” Rory said. She drew her body back, startled. “How?”

“He pulled a knife on me in a park. Fortunately I was able to get away.”

“But maybe it was just someone trying to mug you.”

“I don’t think so. He followed me from where I’d gone to meet a former patient-who never showed, by the way. This guy seemed to know where I’d be. Plus, think about what happened to Dr. Keaton.”

She hated even saying Keaton’s name, but she needed to use whatever she could to elicit Rory’s help.

“Dr. Keaton?” Rory said, clearly shocked by the reference. “What do you mean?”

“I think-I’m wondering if he may have stumbled onto some of this information himself. It may be why he was killed.”

Rory wrinkled her nose. “But Dr. Levin said he had a gambling problem and some Soprano -type probably broke into his apartment and killed him because he owed lots and lots of money.”

“There was no forced entry apparently. And his keys had been left in Maggie’s drawer for days.”

“But Maggie said he had a terrace. The killer probably got in from there.”

“That’s not possible,” Lake said. “There’s-” And then she caught herself. She couldn’t believe how stupid she’d just been. She watched Rory’s mouth drop open and close.

“What do you mean?” Rory asked flatly.

In her mind Lake fumbled for a way to cover her slip.

“Maggie,” she said after excruciating seconds. “She told me he lived on a high-up floor. How-how could anyone have gotten access to a terrace so high? Unless they were like Spider-Man.”

Rory stared at Lake, her face as frozen as a mask. Lake couldn’t tell if she had guessed the truth-that Lake was personally familiar with the apartment-or was simply weighing whether someone from the clinic could have killed Keaton. Lake held her breath, waiting.

After a moment, Rory shrugged. “Maybe you’re right. We live in an old gate house, and I don’t know anything about city apartments.”

Lake relaxed. Rory may have felt a flutter of suspicion, but she’d clearly dismissed it.

“If Dr. Keaton was killed because of this situation at the clinic, you can see how important it is that we stop them,” Lake said.

“But what exactly would you want me to do?” Rory asked worriedly.

Lake told her about the series of letters she might find in Alexis’s file, and possibly others.

“Except for the Hunt file, it’s not necessary to comb through drawers in the storage room,” Lake said. “You could just look at each patient’s chart as she comes in for her appointment. No one should find that suspicious.”

“What do the letters stand for?” Rory asked.

“I’m still trying to figure that out,” Lake said, not wanting to divulge her theory.

Rory scrunched her mouth, clearly mulling over everything she was hearing.

“Rory, I know it’s a lot to ask,” Lake said, frightened now that Rory would say no. “But just think if someone had done this with your embryos.”

“Okay,” Rory said finally. “I guess I could try to do it Monday.”

Lake smiled gratefully. “That’s wonderful. And if you do find those letters on the information sheets-especially the Hunts’-it would help so much if you could make photocopies. But only if you can do it discreetly. I don’t want anyone to see you.”

“All right.” Rory looked off, thinking. “I really should go now. It’s not good to be under a lot of stress when you’re pregnant.”

“I understand completely,” Lake said. She reached into her purse for a business card. “My cell is on here, as well as my home phone. If you run into any difficulty at all, please call me right away.”

Rory pulled a small note pad from her purse and wrote down her home and cell numbers.

“My husband-Colin-had to go away again today and I’ll be on my own this weekend. I’m not telling him any of this, by the way. He wouldn’t want me to get involved.”