“Yes… yes of course, but he asked me to follow up on a few things. Would that be all right?” Val knew she stretched the truth a bit here, but it was a risk she was willing to take.

The doctor nodded.

“Can I ask what were you treating Gabrielle for?” Val asked.

“I was her primary physician for her overall health, so everything.” He crossed his arms and reclined casually in his chair.

Val nodded politely. Gabrielle did have another primary care doctor, the one she saw over a year ago. For some reason she chose another. Someone with Munchausen’s will seek out other doctors. “You prescribed allopurinol, so she had gout.”

“Yes, I also gave her colchicine for flare-ups but it seemed the allopurinol had it under control.”

“Wasn’t she kind of young to get this?”

He shook his head. “No. It’s not so uncommon in someone her age. Diet is a big cause. We have the usual offenders of meat and alcohol, but sugar and fatty food cause it too. We’ve seen a rise in gout in young millennials because of alcohol and sugar consumption.”

Val took her time, trying to phrase the next question correctly. The doctor shifted in his chair, beginning to grow impatient and Val quickly spoke. “If she had a chronic kidney infection would this have increased her likelihood of developing gout too?” Val thought of Dr. Maddox’s suspicions on what caused the gout.

Dr. Quinlan narrowed his eyes. “Of course, and although she complained of multiple ailments and presumed infections, a kidney infection wasn’t one of them.”

Val caught a bit of self-defense and irritation in the doctor’s voice. She smiled a little, hoping he didn’t think she was accusing him of missing a diagnosis. “Dr. Maddox told me that you suspected that she might have had Munchausen’s syndrome.” Maybe he didn’t miss Gabrielle’s symptoms, but ignored them.

Dr. Quinlan tented his fingers and pursed his lips. “Gabrielle reported multiple symptoms and ailments that I could find no cause for. She had specific knowledge of what she wanted me to test for and became angry when the tests were all negative and I refused to run more. This is all a red flag for Munchausen’s.”

“Like what kind of ailments?” Val pressed.