Part 28 (1/2)
”Yes, and we'll need her medical records.”
”Sam can give you the names of the physicians who treated her after her attack.”
Dr. Douglas frowned slightly. ”Something else you should know. Samantha refused to list her parents on her release-of-information form. Evidently she doesn't want her father involved in her care.” He paused, waiting for Anne to explain. When she didn't, he continued: ”You're the only one she named.”
Anne looked down. Lawrence Moore wasn't going to like that. Hopefully, the doctors would be the ones explaining it to him, and not her.
”May I see her now?”
Dr. Douglas nodded. ”She should be in her room.” He pointed down the hall. ”They can tell you her room number at the nurses' station.”
After stopping by the nurses' station, Anne rode the elevator up to Sam's floor and found her room. The door was partially closed, and she peeked in.
Sam was reclining in the bed with her face toward the window. She turned as Anne swung the door open. When she saw her, her face flushed with anger. ”You promised you wouldn't let them keep me,” she spit out.
”No,” Anne said firmly as she entered the room and crossed to Sam's bed. ”I said we'd follow the doctor's orders.”
Sam snorted and faced away from her.
”You're only in for observation and a few tests. Dr. Douglas is planning on releasing you tomorrow.” Placing a hand on Sam's shoulder, she drew Sam's attention to her. ”Did he go over the CAT scan with you?”
”Yes.” Her lips curled. ”They said my brain is *normal,' whatever that is.”
”Did he tell you that he wants you to talk to someone?”
”Someone?” she barked. ”Another shrink, you mean.”
”Sam, Dr. Douglas just wants to help you.”
”That's what they all say.”
”But,” Anne argued, ”Dr. Douglas is good. I'd trust him if I-”
”Samantha,” a voice cried from the doorway. Anne's head jerked toward the sound. With her heart sinking, she saw Lawrence Moore silhouetted in the doorway, with Jackson Van Horn hovering right behind him. She rolled her eyes as Jackson pushed past Mr. Moore and rushed to stand next to Anne at Sam's bedside.
Sam's reaction was to scoot to the far side. ”What are you doing here?”
Before he answered, Lawrence Moore broke in, addressing Anne. ”Step outside with me. I want to speak with you,” he commanded.
Anne didn't budge.
”Now,” he said.
She looked down at Sam and saw a silent plea in her eyes. ”I'm not leaving Sam.”
”I'm warning you, Ms. Weaver. Don't make me call security.”
”It's okay, Anne, go,” Sam said, her eyes s.h.i.+fting from Anne to Dr. Van Horn.
Once they were out in the hallway, Anne pulled the door shut and spun on Lawrence Moore. ”You're not my employer and I don't take orders from you,” she hissed, firing the first salvo.
His response was to arch an eyebrow. ”I'm not going to engage in a scene with you, Ms. Weaver.” He pulled out a leather-covered checkbook. ”How much do we owe you for services rendered?” He named a figure that made Anne's eyes bulge.
”You're trying to pay me off,” she spit out.
”No,” he said, tapping the checkbook. ”I'm simply paying you your wages plus a bonus.” He frowned. ”I doubt that you deserve the latter-my daughter was injured twice while in your keeping-but Samantha seems rather attached to you.”
”Sam doesn't need a keeper.”
His lips curled in a sneer. ”You've been acquainted with my daughter for barely a month. I've known her for thirty-five years. I believe I'm in a better position to-”
Anne cut him off. ”I don't think you know your daughter at all. If you did, you'd know how strong she is.”
”Really? Then what is she doing in the hospital, and why does her doctor suspect an underlying mental illness?” Noticing the surprise on Anne's face, he smirked. ”We spoke with Dr. Douglas.”
Confused, Anne shook her head. ”But he told me Sam wouldn't include you on her release of information.”
”She didn't include me, but we had proof that Jackson is one of her treating physicians.”
Anne glared at him and crossed her arms over her chest. ”Yeah, about that-what's a plastic surgeon doing prescribing anti-anxiety medications for his fiancee? How ethical is that?”
He smacked the checkbook in his open palm. ”It's none of your concern. If my offer isn't enough, how much do you want?”
Anne stood tall and locked her gaze on him. ”Nothing, Mr. Moore. I want nothing from you.”
Spinning on her heel, she marched off down the hall.
Chapter Twenty-seven.
Take a deep breath, I tell myself. Her anger is still niggling at me. How dare she treat me that way? She is nothing-less than nothing. Hadn't I been kind and sweet to her? Hadn't it been enough? No, with women, it is never enough. I've tried to please my entire life, but it has never been enough for them. Pa.s.sed over and ignored-that has been my fate.
The injustice stuns me.
If only I could punish them all. The desire to hurt something, anything, threatens to overwhelm me, but I regain control. That's what it's all about isn't? Control. Maintain my control. Maintain the facade. I smile to myself. If they only knew who they were dealing with. If I allowed the mask to slip, they'd be trembling with fear. I'm delighted at the thought. To stand tall, to stand like a man, to be recognized for who I truly am. I brace my shoulders in response only to sag as the next thought courses through my brain.
They always stop me. Knock me down and step on me. My anger surges at their unfairness and I'm forced to battle my rage again. I know what might happen if I loosen the leash that holds it at bay. I'm still paying for the only time it slipped from my control.
I carry on a dialogue with myself while the world goes on around me; no one suspects what's really going on inside my head. On the outside, I appear as I always have. Concerned, only wanting what's best for those I care about. Care? Ha, when has anyone ever cared about me?
You must quiet your emotions. Think. You were rejected, true, but there are ways to turn the situation to your advantage. Isn't the true measure of a man the ability to take a disadvantage and turn it into an advantage?
And who is she to stand against me? Pour on the charm, I tell myself; you know her weakness, use it. Manipulate her and her father. Make yourself indispensable. Do whatever it takes to achieve your goals.