She shook her head. “As you suggested, the government might be involved somehow. Going to Thorn would be far better. He would know how we should proceed. I’m sure that Thorn will be as furious as I am if some group is subverting iDoc.”
George remained hesitant. He admitted he didn’t know Thorn like Paula did, but something was telling him not to go to Thorn and for the reasons he’d given. “I can’t help but worry that Thorn will be influenced by what iDoc can do for Amalgamated’s bottom line more than anything else.”
“Look,” Paula said, a little put out, “we all know what iDoc will do for Amalgamated’s bottom line, but that is not the issue. Thorn above all else is a very ethical person.” A thought hit her. “I wonder if the AMA could be the guilty party. Organized medicine is going to see iDoc as competition, no question. Maybe this is all an elaborate way of discrediting it from the get-go.”
George was astonished at that suggestion. The idea hadn’t occurred to him, but he knew it wasn’t completely improbable. After all, in the late forties, it was organized medicine that thwarted Truman’s attempt to create a national health care system in the United States. Still, the idea seemed like a total shot in the dark.
“Or it could be any one of a number of other stakeholders feeding from the medical trough,” Paula continued. “Like big pharma or the American Hospital Association, both of which will stand to lose money when iDoc becomes fully operational and takes medicine from sick care to preventative care.”
George nodded. Having become relaxed and feeling safe made staying awake progressively more difficult; he was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion.
“You need to sleep,” Paula said, noticing George was struggling to keep his eyes open. She reached out a hand. “Come on. Time to take a nap! We can talk more later over dinner. If you are okay with it, I’ll make us a meal so we can just stay in.”
“A nap might be good,” George admitted. He took her hand and stood, feeling momentarily dizzy. “Just for an hour or so. But I would like to reach a decision about how to proceed with this iDoc situation. If it is intentional killing, it has to stop. And I have a trial I have to prepare for.”
“When is your trial scheduled?”
“Soon. July sometime. I forget the exact date, but it is not that far away.”
“I think we should approach Thorn. The more I think about it, the more I’m certain that he is the right person.” She was firmly set on the idea. “I’m sure he will at least offer you legal help.”
George’s eyes fluttered, but he was too tired to reply. He swayed, and Paula reached out to steady him.
“Come on!” she said. “You’re about to fall over.”
Paula led him back into the house via the French doors into the great room. George didn’t protest. After the heat outside, the air-conditioning felt heaven sent.
Once inside the guest bedroom, Paula closed the Bermuda shutters and pulled back the covers on the canopied king-size bed. From behind the bathroom door, she brought in a white Turkish towel robe and draped it over the foot of the bed.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a person need sleep quite as much as you do,” she said. “You’ve pushed yourself to your limit.”
George opened his mouth, but she put her fingers on his lips.
“Shhh. Sleep. We’ll talk in a bit.” She backed toward the door.
George sank down onto the bed. He made one last effort at conversation. “If we confirm my fears about iDoc, we’ll have to go to the media, no matter what Thorn says.”
“Enough!” Paula called from the door with exaggerated authority. “We’ll talk more after you have slept!” She flashed him a smile, then shut the door quickly to keep George from responding.
In the room’s cool, dim silence George removed his clothes. It was with extreme pleasure that he slipped in between the clean, ironed sheets. The experience was such an extraordinary difference from what he had experienced the night before that it was as if he had been magically transported to a different planet.
Just before he fell into a deep sleep, he thought how utterly stupid he had been in medical school when he failed to follow up with Paula. What was he thinking? He was finding himself more and more impressed by Paula, and for the first time since Kasey’s death he felt a kind of closeness with her that he was unsure he would ever feel again. He didn’t know if he was ready just yet for romance, nor did he know if Paula would be receptive, considering their history and his current status. As a potential felon and an unemployed resident, his career prospects were far from rosy, but he didn’t dwell on the thought. Sleep washed over him like a virtual tsunami.
48
George woke with a start. At first he didn’t know where he was, as he had slept so soundly. Then he remembered, and the whole nightmare flooded back. My God! he thought. He was facing a trial that might send him to prison for years! After the experience of one night in the holding cell, he questioned if he could live through being incarcerated for an extended period. Then there was the issue of essentially having been fired from his residency. Could it be that his radiology career and maybe even his medical career were over? His only solace was that at least for the moment he was safely hidden away in Paula Stonebrenner’s house.
Looking at the golden hue of the light coming through the Bermuda shutters, George sensed it was nearing sunset. Surprised, he grabbed his phone to see the time. He was amazed! It was almost eight o’clock in the evening. He imagined he’d been asleep for only an hour, which had been his plan. Certainly not over five hours!
George got up, wondering where Paula was and why she hadn’t awakened him for the dinner she had talked about. He was eager to find her, but instead took advantage of the beautiful and convenient shower. He had rinsed off in his own apartment, but this experience was far better.
A few minutes later he was refreshingly clean, reasonably rested, and enveloped in the oversize Turkish towel robe Paula had put out for him. He left the guest suite and found Paula in the great room overlooking the pool, using her iPad. Delicious, savory smells were coming from the kitchen area.
When Paula spotted him she broke into a wide smile. “Back from the dead, I see. I hope you’re hungry!”
“Very hungry. I’m sorry I slept so long. Why didn’t you wake me?”
“You obviously needed to sleep.”
“I hope I haven’t kept you from your dinner.”
“I’ve been happy to wait for you. I’m about to throw some steaks on the barbie by the pool! Sound good?”
“Sounds heavenly.” He noticed that she had opened a bottle of wine. He picked it up and looked at the label. He didn’t recognize it, but it looked expensive. “May I?”
“Please do. For both of us. I was letting it breathe a little.”
George poured them both a glass, thinking how strange it was to savor the anticipation of what promised to be a pleasant dinner in the midst of all the tumult of the previous day and a half. There was a remarkable unreality to it all.
George watched as Paula continued her preparations for dinner, putting dressing on a salad she’d already made. Once that was done, Paula grabbed the platter with the steaks and motioned George to follow her out to the grill. He carried both glasses of wine. While she was checking the temperature of the grill she said, “You do know that Amalgamated has been in direct negotiation with CMS to use iDoc for Medicare and Medicaid?”