Iâve seen in five years. Heâs perfect Arolen executive material, right down to his philosophies about current medical practice.â
âSounds good,â agreed Bill. âIf he works out, youâll get a bonus.â
âIâm afraid I canât take credit for finding him,â said Clarence. âThe kid called me.â
âYouâll get the bonus just the same,â said Bill. âGive him some lunch and then bring him up to my office. Iâd like to talk with him myself.â
Clarence hung up the phone and returned to the waiting area outside his office. âI just spoke with the vice-president in charge of marketing who is my boss and heâd like to talk with you after lunch. What do you say?â
âIâm flattered,â said Adam.
⢠⢠â¢
Jennifer turned away from the window in Cherylâs room and looked at her friend. She seemed almost angelic with her white skin and freshly washedblond hair. The tranquilizer that sheâd been given had obviously taken effect. Cheryl was asleep, her head comfortably elevated on a pillow.
Jennifer didnât know what to do. Cheryl had been brought back from the treatment room and told about Dr. Foleyâs death. Marlene Polaski had tried to convince Cheryl that Dr. Stephenson was as good a doctor as Dr. Foley and that Cheryl should go ahead and have the procedure done. She reminded Cheryl that every day that passed made the abortion more risky.
Jennifer eventually had agreed with Marlene and had tried to change Cherylâs mind, but the girl continued to insist that no one was going to touch her except Dr. Foley. It was as if she refused to believe the man had committed suicide.
Staring at the still form on the bed, Jennifer noticed that her friendâs eyes were slowly opening.
âHow do you feel?â
âFine,â said Cheryl sleepily.
âI think I should be going,â said Jennifer. âIâve got to get dinner ready before Adam gets home. Iâll give you a call later. I can come back tomorrow if youâd like. Are you sure you donât want Dr. Stephenson to do the procedure?â
Cherylâs head lolled to the side. When she spoke, her words were slurred. âWhat did you say? I didnât hear you exactly.â
âI said I think Iâll be going,â said Jennifer, smiling in spite of herself. âDid they give you some champagne before they brought you back here? You sound drunk.â
âNo champagne,â murmured Cheryl as she fumbled with the bed covers. âIâll walk you to the elevator.â Cheryl threw back the blanket,inadvertently jerking the IV line that was still attached to her left arm.
âI think youâd better stay where you are,â said Jennifer. Her smile disappeared, and she felt the initial stirring of fear. She reached out to restrain Cheryl.
But Cheryl already had her legs over the side of the bed and was pushing herself up into a shaky sitting position. At that point she noticed that she had pulled out her IV and was bleeding from the spot where the tube had entered her arm.
âLook what I did,â Cheryl said. She pointed to the IV and in doing so, lost her balance.
Jennifer tried to grab her shoulders, but in a limp, fluid movement, Cheryl slipped off the bed onto the floor. All Jennifer could do was to ease her down. She ended up bent double, her face resting on her knees.
Jennifer didnât know what to do: call for help or lift Cheryl. Since Cheryl was in such an unnatural position, she decided to help her back to bed and then get the nurses, but when she raised Cherylâs arms, all she saw was blood.
âOh God!â she cried. Blood was pouring from Cherylâs nose and mouth. Jennifer turned her on her back and noted that the skin around her eyes was black and blue, as if sheâd been beaten. There was more blood on her legs, coming from beneath the hospital gown.
For a
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