Deciding that monkeys and pollution were more than enough reason to consider the jog that morning a bust, Cal abruptly switched directions, causing the monkeys to flee in panic. Like a horse intent on returning to the barn, Cal rapidly retraced his route back to the mansion. After being outside for less than a half-hour, he was happy to be inside and particularly happy to step into his shower. While he lathered and shaved, and despite the disappointing jogging experience, he thought of the morning in a positive light. The short conversation with Santana had significantly relieved a concern about Veena. The suicide gesture had scared him, and until Santana’s reassurance to the contrary, he’d been worried she might try it again. Now he was confident that wouldn’t happen, and by involving the concept of karma, Veena apparently now thought of what she’d done to Mrs. Hernandez as part of her fate, which boded well for the cooperation of the other nurses.

After enjoying a breakfast of ham and eggs prepared by the bungalow’s chef, Cal headed toward the glass-enclosed conservatory at the back of the house. When they had moved into the house, the room had only chairs, but they had added a round table and used the space as their morning conference room.

When Cal walked in, the other three were already seated and their lively conversation trailed off. Cal took his usual chair, facing directly out into the garden with his back to the mansion’s interior. The others had taken their usual chairs as well, suggesting all four to be creatures of habit. Santana was to Cal’s right, Petra to his left, and Durell directly across. Each of their postures reflected to a degree their personality. With quiet confidence, Durell was slouching, cradling his chin in his hand with his elbow on the arm of the chair. He was a powerful-appearing, heavily muscled man with mahogany-colored skin and a dark pencil-line goatee and mustache. Petra was sitting bolt upright on the edge of her chair as if in grammar school with the need to impress the teacher with the degree of her attention. She was a remarkably tall, handsome woman, high-colored and high-spirited. Santana was sitting back comfortably in her chair with her hands folded in her lap like the professional psychologist she was, waiting for the patient to begin speaking. She always appeared calm, with her emotions under strict control.

Cal opened the meeting with Veena’s suicide attempt to be certain everyone was well informed. He had Santana relate what she had learned that morning when talking with Veena, particularly about Veena insisting she would not try it again and why. Cal admitted the episode had frightened him to the point he believed they needed a rapid exit strategy in place in case it was needed. “If she had succeeded in killing herself,” Cal continued, “there would have been an investigation and an inquest, and any sort of investigation would have spelled big trouble for Nurses International.”