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“We could ask for all the staff members to take a mandatory urine sample to test for drugs,” Margaret, the risk manager spoke up. “Our policy allows for random drug testing.”
Rose frowned. “I would hate to put the entire group of staff through something like that based off what is likely one person's actions. It's not random if the entire group of staff members are forced to succumb to the test.”
“It's possible our suspect isn't taking the medication for themselves but for someone else.” Jillian’s gaze locked on his for a moment. “The drug tests would therefore be inconclusive.”
Alec jotted a few notes agreeing with Jillian’s assessment. The fact that he'd found individually wrapped percocets in Ricky's pocket meant the drugs were probably being sold on the street. “Rafe and I need to interview all the staff on this list.”
“Good idea.” Dr. Chris Donnell, who had been very quiet during this discussion, finally spoke up. “I expect you to let us know if you find anything.”
Alec nodded. “Would you rather have me talk to the staff here at the hospital or down at the station?”
There was a long pause, before Rose said, “Down at the station might be better. That way, the rest of the staff won't know whose names are on the list. It's going to be tense enough around here until we find this person.”
“Okay. I'll take care of calling them and setting up the interviews.” He took the list of staff suspects and folded it into his pocket. “Anything else you need from us?”
“No. We've instructed all staff members to change their passwords. We'll also continue to look for suspicious trends in accessing narcotics.” Rose paused, then offered a wan smile. “We appreciate your help.” Rose stood and he followed suit, rising to his feet as well.
He could feel Jillian's gaze on his back as he headed for the door. The leadership at Trinity must respect her position as the medical director to have included her in the meeting. Obviously, they didn't consider her a serious suspect. He glanced back over his shoulder, wishing there was a way to reassure her that he believed in her innocence as well.
He tried to tell himself he believed she was innocent because of her integrity and the way she cared so much about her patients and not because he was attracted to her.
* * *
Jillian drove home,her stomach in knots as she tried not to think about how her name had ended up on the list of suspects.
Maybe she should go and volunteer to be interviewed. Surely she'd feel better once she'd gotten that part over with. Would Alec interview her himself? Or pass her along to his partner? And really, what difference did it make?
None. After sharing dinner with Alec and Shannon, she'd allowed herself the brief fantasy of thinking there could be something more between them. But that was before things had changed. Before she learned she still needed another test to rule out the possibility of having multiple sclerosis. And before there was another narcotic theft during her shift.
Alec had no choice but to view her as a suspect. She was grateful Rose and Chris had allowed her to be a part of the meeting. She took her role as interim medical director seriously, would have loved to keep the position permanently.
She was innocent, but it still didn't look good to be linked as a suspect in the investigation. At least the hospital was working with the police. She trusted Alec’s cool, logical brain would get to the bottom of these missing narcotics.
The more she thought about it, the more she realized it would be better if she volunteered to have her interview with the police first, setting an example for the rest.
Cranking the steering wheel, she maneuvered the car through a one hundred and eighty degree turn and headed back to the freeway. Thanks to the rush hour traffic, the trip to the fourth district police station took twice as long as it normally should.
When she pulled up in part in front of the police station, a flicker of doubt crept in. Was she making a mistake?
No. Squaring her shoulders, she gathered her courage and marched into the police station. When she asked to speak to officer Alec Monroe, she was politely told he was out on a call.
Of course he was. She should have known cops didn't sustain jagged knife wounds from sitting behind a desk. She should have waited for him to contact her.
She turned away, ridiculously disappointed because she'd really wanted to get this interview over with. Not just because of how she felt personally towards Alec, but because her career was at stake.
“Excuse me? Ma'am?”
She paused, glanced over her shoulder and raised a brow. “Yes?”
“Would you wait for a few minutes? Officer Monroe just called in. He's on his way back to the precinct.”
“Sure.”
She dropped into a plastic, uncomfortable chair, gazing about with interest. Having never been inside a police station before, she was curious. The place didn't exactly look the way it was portrayed on TV. When Alec walked in, her heart gave a betraying thump of awareness. When he flashed a smile that brightened his eyes, she sucked in a breath.
Oh, boy. Who was she kidding? This was definitely personal.
“Jillian,” he greeted her warmly. “What brings you here?”
