And they should, because I can sue their hats off for defamation, and I will sue Eva for all the emotional distress that bitch caused me. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat, and Laurie was leaving today. She'd only planned on staying three days, but she could see how this was eating away at me. At least her professor thought this was a great experience and counted it as long as she brought back materials to prove she'd done it.
I was going to send that man a bottle of whiskey in thanks.
"Carl? This way, please. Who do you have with you? This is just an information gathering session to determine whether you stay suspended and the investigation begins."
My head whipped to the side, and I inhaled a shallow breath as my heart threatened to burst through my ribs. Thank God for my sister when she walked over to confidently hold out her hand. The man assigned to my 'case' automatically took it, and my sister smiled politely.
"Eric Dane. I'll be taking Carl's statements to determine what to do next."
"It's a pleasure, Mr. Dane. I'm Laurie Northrop. I'm a law student at Harvard, but my brother has agreed to allow me to advise him."
Following my sister and Eric through to his office, I held my breath when I crossed the threshold. Behind me, Eva made a strangled choking sound, and my confusion threatened to drown me. It was just a friggin office, no smaller than mine, but it felt so tight and claustrophobic when I sat down.
"So, why haven't you already began to investigate when you suspended Carl?"
"Well, as you know, he's only been working here for two months, and considering the extremely favorable deal that we pulled to get you, I was hesitant to just believe the report. The suspension is just procedure until we gather enough facts to determine whether or not the allegations have any merit." Facing me once he sat down, Eric frowned under his sharply shaved, thin goatee, and I clenched my jaw hard. "I know it's entirely possible that you may have had a one-off encounter before realizing your patient was, in fact, your patient, given how slow your office is. I also know it's just as possible that what was reported may not have been what it seemed."
"What did the report say?" Somehow managing not to growl out my question, I arched a brow quizzically. Eric's eyes narrowed on me, and I had to forcibly unstuff my shoulder caps from my ears. "I already know who reported me, I just don't know why. I have never and will never compromise my job for anyone."
"There were two instances detailed in your report. One for a red-haired woman by the name of Melissa Jackson, who you were seen having lunch with and supposedly getting intimate with in your car." I almost choked, and my sister reached to pinch my knee sharply as anger surged through my veins. "The second is with a blue-haired woman who, obviously, was misidentified. From what information I received, it seemed like the woman may have dyed her hair to be less recognizable, but that's obviously not the case."
Gesturing to my sister, Eric didn't take his eyes off me, and I inhaled deeply through my nose. The air only fanned the flames lapping at my chest, but I couldn't blow up here. I couldn't risk my job over Eva's lies.
"As I said, I was hesitant to believe the report as not only were the physical descriptions for the women somewhat different, but that you'd attempt explicitly forbidden relationships so soon after coming here. Also, you have no patient with blue hair. I checked. So, really, my questions are regarding this Melissa Jackson." Clasping his hands together, Eric turned his gaze to my sister to nod in acknowledgment. "I apologize for the mix up, Miss Northrop."
"Apology accepted. I understand that the circumstances could've been construed different than they were. Carl and I haven't seen each other in a long time, and he didn't know I'd dyed my hair. To a stalker, at a distance, it could've seemed like flirting." Laurie emphasized the word with an arch of her brow, and I was suddenly so, so glad that I'd spilled the beans. Not about what happened with Mel in the exam room, but in the public places, yeah. "I find it extremely suspicious that whoever reported Carl had seen him multiple times even though she and he do not live in the same town, and she has seemingly no reason to be in those places. With our meeting at the Italian restaurant, I could call that a coincidence, maybe, but the second... much less so."
"You're aware that fraternizing outside the office with patients on a personal level is against his contract of Ethics?"
"Firstly, there was no fraternization. Carl was getting dinner to-go where his patient just so happened to be having a severe asthma attack. He sat with her, yes, until their food arrived, and then they parted ways." Shooting back smoothly, Laurie crossed her knees and held her head high. "Are you insinuating he should've called 9-1-1 and waited for them to get there while she was having a life-threatening attack?"