So, plan B … perhaps I’d move down to San Diego. I could be the clichéd kid that moved back in with his parents. I laughed derisively. How many of those kids had medical degrees?
I looked out over the view of the lake, and the way the moon shone over it. It would have been romantic if I was there with a woman. As teenagers, I’d sometimes bring a girl up here to neck. I’d lost my virginity here at the age of sixteen to a twenty-year-old CNA. I’d never brought Mia here, but I’d wanted to.
Fuck! I scrubbed my hands over my face, wishing I’d never touched her. It was bad enough that my employer was prepared to toss me under the bus, but to have her helping them was killing me. That wasn’t a good sign. It meant my feelings for her were deeper than I’d admitted to. That somehow in the short time she’d been back, I’d let myself start to fall for her again.
Hell, who was I kidding? I don’t think I ever fully got over her. But what did it matter? I cared for her and she didn’t give a shit about me. Well, maybe she cared a little bit, but not enough to choose me over her job. Just like four years ago.
I didn’t see you choosing me back then.
That wasn’t completely true. I remembered the night she ended things. Feeling panicked about losing her, I’d mentioned I could look for work in southern California, but she was shaking her head before I could finish getting the words out.
“I think it’s better if we just focus on our careers right now,” she’d said. So, I did. And now she held it against me.
I left my place of solitude not feeling very settled, but at least I had the start of a plan. That night, I called another doctor to ask him to cover my shift the next day. I agreed to take on two of his in return. I didn’t mention that it was possible I’d be fired and wouldn’t be able to hold up my end of the deal.
The next day, I drove the hour to Reno to the law office of Victoria Manning for the appointment I’d made that morning. She was licensed in both Nevada and California. There was an attorney in Goldrush Lake who could do medical malpractice, but the chances were good he or someone he knew had Ms. Mason as a teacher, and I didn’t want to have that clouding the judgement of the person I hired to look out for me.
“Dr. Foster, come in,” Victoria Manning greeted me with a firm handshake.
She was tall and thin, with dark hair and light blue eyes. She was the type of woman, smart looking and sexy, that I’d ask out for a drink, in the hopes that it would lead to bed. That was, before Mia.
“Can I get you a drink? Coffee?”
“I’m good, thank you.” I sat in the chair she’d indicated.
“How can I help you?” She sat at her desk.
I went over the case about Ms. Mason. She nodded, took notes, and asked questions. “So, the hospital isn’t considering the EMR?”
I shrugged. “I was told there was going to be a consult with an IT person, but my sense is that they want it to be human error.”
She studied me. “Does that mean if the EMR was to blame, the hospital would hold all liability?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
She shook her head. “It should have negotiated for shared liability.”
“Too late now. The thing is, the possibility that there was nothing that could have been done is there too. She died within an hour of arriving at the hospital, and I’m not sure we’d have been able to stop that even if we did figure it out sooner.”
“Is the hospital considering that?”
“I don’t know. I’m not privy to that information.” I thought of Mia and how much I’d shared with her that she could use against me, and yet she’d told me nothing except that I should get a lawyer. “The hospital lawyer did tell me I should get a lawyer of my own, which I’ve interpreted to mean the hospital is focusing on me being the error. Can you help me, Ms. Manning?”
“Please call me Vic, and yes. I’d be interested in taking your case.” She went over her fees, which made my gut clench. More money down the drain. But it had to be done. “Does that sound acceptable to you, Dr. Foster?”
“Call me Nick, and yes.” I stood and we shook hands. Despite the cost, I felt some relief at having someone on my side.
“I’ll be out to Goldrush Lake tomorrow to start investigating and gathering information. Anything you can pull together for me in advance would be helpful.”
I nodded. “I work a twelve-hour shift tomorrow so I’ll be there.”
I headed back to Goldrush Lake. I rolled down my windows when I finally left the desert of Nevada and entered the wooded mountains of the Sierras. I sucked in a deep breath, wondering how much longer I’d be able to call this area my home. Even if I won my case, I wasn’t sure I wanted to work for a place that would so easily abandon me. That would toss me to the wolves to protect their own asses. Maybe I could move to Colorado or Montana.
Because it was just after lunch when I got back, I picked up some sandwiches in the deli, ignoring the looks of the locals wondering if I killed Ms. Mason. Then I drove to visit Jim. He was a good friend. One I wished I could share my troubles with, but since they involved Mia, I didn’t feel I could. Instead, I put on a happy face, as I held up the bag with our lunch.
“Nick. Reuben sandwich?”
I nodded. “With extra mustard.”
He grinned, and I wondered how a man who suffered the loss of his wife, and
