Page 23 of The Perfect Revenge
He put his coffee down.
“This couldn’t wait until Monday at my office?”
“I’m afraid not,” Jessie pretended to sound apologetic.“It’s a time-sensitive matter.”
“Well, if it involves information about any of my patients, you know that I’m prohibited from sharing anything.”
“Doctor patient confidentiality might have to take a back seat on this one,” Susannah told him.“This is a murder investigation.”
Brennan’s eyes opened wide.“Who was killed?”
“Veronica Sterling and Margaret Caldwell.”
His jaw went slack.From his expression, he apparently had not been expecting to hear two names.Jessie tried to gauge whether his shock was sincere or manufactured, but couldn't be sure.Carly Brennan spoke up.
“You’re saying that two of Andy’s patients were murdered?Are you sure?”
“We are,” Jessie said, not taking offense.She was used to stunned people asking these kinds of questions.“That’s why we’re here.We’re trying to determine if their deaths are in any way connected to being patients at your clinic, Dr.Brennan.”
At hearing his name, the man seemed to recover slightly.
“I can confirm that both of them were patients who came to me to address fertility issues.But beyond that, even with this awful news, I can’t just share details of any potential treatment they may have undergone.I’m afraid you’ll need to get a warrant.”
Jessie was a little surprised at his obstinance.By her reaction, clearly so was Susannah.
“You understand that this is a pressing matter,” she said sharply, “and that whoever committed these crimes is still out there, potentially planning other killings.”
“I get that Detective.And I’m sorry that I’m not able to just open up all my records to you.But these laws exist for a reason.”
He most definitely didnotsound sorry to Jessie.He sounded arrogant and self-satisfied.She tried to look beyond that to determine why exactly he was being so difficult.HIPAA privacy regulations were important.But this was an ongoing murder investigation.He had to know that their request fell under the law enforcement exception and that they would eventually get the records.
Was he standing on moral principle, or was there a darker reason that he wasn't cooperating?She got the strong sense that he was hiding something.Whether that was involvement in murder or some more mundane impropriety was unclear.But it was enough to raise her suspicions.
Normally, she would have consulted with Susannah before making her next move, but she was pretty confident that her partner would be on board with what she had in mind next.
"We're happy to get a warrant for your records, Dr.Brennan," she said, staring at him intently."Of course, in the interim, we'll need to send officers to your office.And we'll have to ask you to join us down at the station."
“Whatever for?”Carly demanded, getting visibly agitated for the first time.
“Well, we can’t risk your husband or a member of his staff altering or removing any relevant records.So we’ll leave someone there to keep an eye on things.And we’ll have him accompany us back to the station while we get everything sorted out.”
“Are you arresting me?”he pressed.
“Only if necessary,” Susannah chimed in.“We’d much rather you join us of your own accord.We’d hate for word to get out that you were arrested.That kind of thing leaves a stain, even when no wrongdoing was committed.But if that’s the only way to ensure that you remain in our sight until we get the warrant, then so be it.”
“Just go with them, Andy,” Mrs.Brennan pleaded.“I don’t want to have to explain an arrest to the kids or the neighbors.”
Her husband scowled, and for a minute it looked like he might actually fight them on this.Then he seemed to relent.
“Fine, I’ll come.But I’m not answering any questions.And I want to call my lawyer.”
“Of course,” Susannah said, her tone coldly professional, though Jessie could sense that she wasn’t quite done.“I didn’t realize that fertility doctors had criminal lawyers in their contact lists.Interesting.”
In that moment, Jessie wanted to kiss Susannah.Instead, she turned and coughed, doing her best to hide the smile she couldn’t keep off her lips
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Brennan still wasn’t talking, at least not to them.
