“I didn’t accost her. How ridiculous. I ran into her at St. Terry’s as she was leaving for the day. I knew she worked on the CCU because she’d called me months ago when Dace was admitted. I asked if she knew you and she said she did. That’s all it was. I’d talked to you earlier and it just seemed like a happy coincidence.”

I watched his face cloud over.

He shook his head, frowning. “Something’s off. Let’s go back. You came to my office unannounced hoping to catch me off guard. You presented yourself in a false light, gathering information for reasons known only to yourself.”

“I probably should have been more forthcoming,” I said. “Here’s what happened. I’m sure you know Terrence Dace was suspicious and confused. His behavior was erratic and he harbored paranoid fantasies. I thought I should look into it. It had nothing to do with you personally. I got involved because he’d drawn up a will in which he disinherited his children and left everything to me. I was concerned about a legal challenge, so I was doing my due diligence . . .”

Wincing, he pressed the flat of his hand to the side of his face, like a child with a painful ear infection. “You keep talking and talking. You use talk as a cover for something else, but I don’t know what it is.”

“Really, I don’t. I think you’ve misunderstood.”

“No, I have not. You’re devious. I don’t know how else to describe your behavior.”

“I haven’t meant to be devious.”

“But it’s your nature, isn’t it?”

“I don’t think so. I wouldn’t say that about myself.”

“Do you have any idea how perilous your position is?”

“Perilous?”

“I have you to thank for what’s happening. It’s as simple as that. When we spoke in my office, I didn’t grasp your agenda. I was at fault there for not being quicker off the mark. My apologies.”

In a situation like this, it’s of little comfort knowing you’re right. I was right about Linton Reed. I’d been right all along, but who was I going to tell?

“I don’t have an agenda,” I said.

“Yes, you do. You talk to people about me. You write things down. You think about things that are none of your concern.”

“I haven’t done anything to you. I asked a few questions, but only to determine Dace’s state of mind when he changed the will.”

Dr. Reed was exasperated. “You’re lying again. You’ve undercut whatever credibility you had. I was offering you a chance to explain yourself and you’re throwing off all this smoke.”