Blacklisted (Loveless, Texas #3) - Jay Crownover Page 0,46

Samantha Baskin died, Ashby was at the hospital. She told me she needed a couple of minutes to talk to her about the promotion. She said she wanted to ask Sam to help her convince Presley to walk away from the job offer. She asked me to make sure no one came into the room while she visited because she didn’t want anyone else to know Presley was screwing up at work. Ashby often came to visit Sam, so I didn’t think anything of it. None of the alarms or monitors alerted to a problem. None of the nurses were called. But when I went to check on Sam after Ashby left, she was no longer with us.”

Top growled at the confession and I sighed. “So you knew she did something while she was in the room with a helpless patient, and you went out of your way to cover it up. Why is there no evidence she was there that day? No video? No witnesses?”

The doctor shook his head violently from side to side. “She was dressed in scrubs like she was going into autopsy. I thought it was odd, but she said she was heading to work and just had time for a quick visit. She had her hair covered and a surgical mask in her hand. She honestly looked like any other doctor making rounds, and it wasn’t the first time she’d stopped by before her shift. No one would’ve paid her special notice. As for the video footage…” He trailed off and gave Top a worried look. “After I found Sam, I knew something bad had happened. I was already in deep since I was having an affair with Ashby, but I didn’t want to lose my medical license. Do you have any idea how much my wife is asking for monthly in the divorce?” He shook his head rapidly. “I didn’t know how involved and twisted Ashby’s whole plan was. I didn’t know she was after Presley or the lengths she was willing to go to. I knew the police would show up eventually, so I made sure the recordings from that day were switched out with another day when Ashby wasn’t in the nephron unit. I admit I was trying to cover my own ass. I figured Presley would be too caught up in trying to save her job to really dig into what happened to her mother. I should’ve known better. That young woman is relentless when she sets her mind to something.”

I swore under my breath. “You helped your lover murder her only parent. I don’t think you’re in any position to complain about Dr. Baskin’s personality.”

The doctor sighed dejectedly. “Presley’s mother was sick for a long, long time. The woman suffered endlessly but hung on because she didn’t want Presley to be alone. She was going to die sooner or later. Everyone accepted that but Presley.”

I was disgusted by his cavalier attitude. Here was someone who really had no respect for life and death. To him, when your time was limited, you ran out of usefulness. He didn’t even comprehend that he’d stolen the most precious thing Presley’s mother had to give her: her final moments. The last chance to make memories that would last a lifetime. He took their goodbye away, and it made me want to break all his teeth.

“She knew her mother was going to die. She braced for it and prepared herself for it. What she didn’t know was that the people closest to her, the ones she trusted most, were going to rob her of her last few minutes with her mother while she was still here. You took something from her she’s never going to get back, and I’m going to do the same to you.”

I knew Rave could recover the lost footage now that I knew it existed. So this corrupt physician was undoubtedly going to lose his license for his irresponsible behavior. However, that wasn’t good enough. Presley’s mother was the most important person in her life; she meant everything to her. This guy only cared about himself. His arrogance was toxic and he didn’t need to be around any other helpless patient.

I nudged Top with my elbow. “Make sure he can’t use his hands on anyone ever again.”

The doctor screamed and got to his feet to try and run away. He was screaming about calling the police and making sure we rotted in jail, but when Top dragged him to a stop