“Carol and I are getting a divorce,” Jeffrey blurted.
Kelly’s expression softened. “Because of the malpractice suit?”
Jeffrey shook his head. “We’d planned it before all this started. Carol was just nice enough to put it off for the time being.,,
“You poor man,” Kelly said. “I can’t imagine trying to deal with being sued for malpractice and a breakup of a marriage at the same time.”
“My marital problems are the least of my worries,” Jeffrey said.
“I’m serious about your promising me you’ll call before you do anything foolish,” Kelly said.
“I’m not thinking…”
“Promise!” Kelly insisted.
“All right, I promise,” Jeffrey said.
Satisfied, Kelly got up and cleaned up the mess that she’d made when she’d dropped her teacup. As she picked up the pieces of broken china, she said:
“I wish more than anything that I’d had the slightest indication of what
Chris had been plan-
ning. One minute it seemed that he’d been full of fight, talking about the anesthetic complication being secondary to a contaminant in the local, the next minute he was dead.”
Jeffrey watched Kelly as she threw the shards of china away. It took a few moments for her last words to sink in. When she returned and took her seat again, Jeffrey asked, “What made Chris think of a contaminant in the local anesthetic?”
Kelly shrugged. “I haven’t the faintest idea. But he seemed to be genuinely excited about the possibility. I encouraged him. Just before that he’d been depressed. Very depressed. The idea of a contaminant gave him a real boost.
He spent several days poring over pharmacology and physiology textbooks. He made lots of notes. He was working on it the night he… I’d gone to bed.
I found him the next morning with an IV in place, the bottle empty.”
“How awful,” Jeffrey said.
“It was the worst experience of my life,” Kelly admitted.
For an instant, Jeffrey envied Chris, not because he’d succeeded where
Jeffrey had failed, but because he’d left behind someone who obviously loved him so deeply. If Jeffrey had followed through, would anyone be that sorry about it? Jeffrey tried to shake the thought. Instead, he considered the notion of a contaminant in the local anesthetic. It was a curious thought.
“What kind of contaminant was Chris thinking about?” Jeffrey asked.
“I really don’t know,” Kelly answered. “It was two years ago, and Chris never did go into much detail about if. At least not with me.”
“Did you mention his theory to anybody at the time?”
“I told the lawyers. Why?”
“It’s an intriguing idea,” Jeffrey said.
“I still have Chris’s notes,” Kelly said. “You’re welcome to see them if you’d like.”
“I would,” Jeffrey said.
Kelly stood up and led Jeffrey back through the kitchen and dining room, across the foyer and through the living room. She stopped at a closed door.
“I think I’d better explain,” she said. “This was Chris’s study. I know it probably wasn’t all that healthy, but after Chris’s death I just closed the door to this room and left everything the way it was. Don’t ask me why. At the time it made me feel better, as if some part of him was still here. So be prepared. It might
be a little on the dusty side.” She opened the door and stepped aside.
Jeffrey walked into the study. In contrast to the rest of the house, it was disheveled and musty. A thick layer of dust coated everything. There were even a few cobwebs hanging from the ceiling. The blinds were closed tight.
On one wall was a floorto-ceiling bookcase filled with volumes that Jeffrey recognized immediately. Most of them were standard texts for anesthesia.
The others dealt with more general medical topics.
In the center of the room stood an old partners’ desk, heaped with papers and books. In the comer of the room was an Eames chair upholstered in black leather that had dried and cracked. Next to the chair was a tall stack of books.
Kelly was leaning against the doodamb with her arms folded as if she was reluctant to enter. “Quite a mess,” she said.
“You don’t mind if I look around?” Jeffrey asked. He felt a certain kinship with his dead colleague but did not want to trespass on Kelly’s feelings.