Chapters (65)
- Cover
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- Part One
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Part Two
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Part Three
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- About the Publisher
I wondered what she’d heard about me, about our situation. “Because I know you make us wear pink stickers that say the word ‘visitor,’ and obviously, we can write whatever name we want on there, but really, does anyone know who is here and who they really are?”
“Mrs. Olson, you’re upset.” Rebecca looked me in the eye.
“Do you have security on this floor? Or stationed outside the building? Where are they? Because I don’t see any.”
“You’d have to ask our security department, but I do know that we have security and safety procedures for all staff.” Rebecca walked toward the door, as if doing so would lead me to follow her.
“Uh-huh, and how do you know when an intruder is in a patient’s room?” I looked out the window.
“An intruder?” Rebecca turned to face me again.
“Do you realize over the last two days I walked into this room several times without anyone asking me who I was, and I sat here in this room holding a newborn baby for hours before anyone came into the room and saw me? I could have been anyone. Anyone could have waltzed in here and taken that baby out of that bassinet.” I pointed to the empty place on the floor beside the bed where the bassinet had been.
“No one is accusing you of taking anyone’s baby.” Rebecca walked closer to me with one arm outstretched.
“How often are you supposed to check on the patients?” I stepped back.
“I don’t think this is a productive conversation.” She waved toward me as if gathering a group of tourists to come along with her.
“How many times have you had a patient kidnapped?”
“Come on, now.” She nodded, still waving me toward her.
“How many times has a patient left without your knowledge?”
“Let’s go now, so they can finish cleaning the room.” She moved closer, trying to shepherd me from the window side of the room to the door and out into the hallway.
“Why won’t you answer my questions?” I held up my notepad, showing that I was ready for her answer.
She shuffled behind me and placed one hand on my back.
“Don’t touch me!” I jerked away, and Rebecca lifted both hands up as if to surrender. We stood frozen like that for one or two long seconds until we sensed another person enter.
“Mrs. Olson, I’m going to have to ask you to leave this room now.”
I recognized the director’s voice. Someone must have called her. “Hello, Betsy,” I said. “I was just on my way out.”
Twenty-Seven
Cally
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2002
Early Morning