“I need to go to the facility,” I tell Marnie.
She’s wrapped in a blanket on the couch, her mom’s wedding ring still on her thumb.
“It’ll take an hour, maybe less. You okay?”
“Fine.” The same flat tone she’s used for days.
She’s not fine. We both know it.
But I kiss her forehead and leave anyway because of course Winters is doing this while she’s out.
Barrett’s standingby his window when I walk in, hands in his pockets.
“Close the door.”
I do, sinking into the chair across from his desk.
“Winters filed formal complaints with HR yesterday,” Barrett says without preamble. “Against Dr. Walker. Fraternization affecting medical judgment, inappropriate relationship with a player, professional misconduct.” He turns to face me. “He’s going for her job.”
The rage hits clean and cold. “While she’s on bereavement leave.”
“Yeah. He waited until she couldn’t defend herself. Knew exactly what he was doing.” Barrett’s expression is grim. “HR called me in this morning. Asked about your recovery timeline, the Rodriguez situation, whether I’d observed any inappropriate behavior.”
“And?”
“And I told them her medical decisions have been sound. That your recovery followed standard protocol. That the Rodriguez call was correct and Winters was out of line pushing back.” He pauses. “Then I told them about the evidence you gave me last week.”
My hands tighten on the chair arms. “What did they say?”
“They’re investigating both complaints. Hers and his.” Barrett sits on the edge of his desk. “As of an hour ago, Winters was placed on administrative leave pending the investigation. He was escorted from the building.”
The relief is sharp enough to hurt.
“And Marnie?”
“HR will want to interview her when she’s back. Review all the medical documentation. But Roman—” He meets my eyes. “The preliminary assessment is that Winters’ complaints don’t hold water. Your session counts were medically appropriate. Rodriguez’s timeline followed standard protocol. The relationship isn’t a policy violation.”
“So she’s clear.”
“Pending the formal investigation, yes. But you can’t give her details yet. HR has to handle this by the book.” He crosses his arms. “You can tell her Winters is on leave. You can tell her there’s an investigation. But the specifics of what evidence was presented and why—that stays confidential until HR talks to her directly.”
I nod slowly, already thinking about how I’m going to explain this without revealing everything I’ve been doing.
“The evidence you gave me,” Barrett continues. “The players, the medical records, the pattern of negligence—that’s what sealed it. HR saw that and understood exactly what kind of liability Winters represents.”
“How long until they make a final decision?”
“Couple weeks, maybe. They’ll interview everyone, review all the documentation, make sure it’s airtight.” He studies me. “But between you and me? Winters is done. What you compiled was damning. He’s not coming back.”
I should feel triumphant. Instead I just feel tired.
“Does she know?” Barrett asks. “About what you’ve been building?”
“No.”
“She’s going to find out. When HR interviews her, when they explain what evidence they reviewed—she’ll figure it out.”
“I know.”
