Chapter 7 - The Doctor Who Lied
Dr. Adrian Bell looked ten years older than he had at Evelyn's last medical appointment.
His expensive gray suit was wrinkled.
His hands trembled.
A dark bruise marked the side of his face.
He sat in the library with a police officer stationed on either side of the door.
Maria stood across from him.
Bell would not meet her eyes.
“Where's my brother's evidence?” she asked.
He swallowed.
“First, I need protection.”
Mercer folded her arms.
“You can request legal counsel.”
Bell shook his head.
“You don't understand.”
“Then explain.”
“They're going to kill me.”
Jonathan stepped forward.
“Who?”
Bell looked up.
“Richard Vale.”
“Richard is in the hospital.”
“Then someone else will do it.”
Mercer studied him.
“Are you saying Vale was directing this operation?”
Bell nodded.
“For years.”
Jonathan felt his jaw tighten.
“What did he promise you?”
Bell looked away.
“Money.”
“How much?”
Bell didn't answer.
Mercer leaned toward him.
“Dr. Bell, you are facing serious criminal exposure.”
“You may want to begin telling the truth.”
Bell rubbed his face.
“Project Meridian was supposed to develop an early diagnostic system.”
“It began legitimately.”
“Then investors demanded faster results.”
“Who?”
Bell looked toward Jonathan.
“Your family foundation was the public sponsor.”
“We were told the program was charitable research.”
“It was.”
“At first.”
Bell swallowed.
“Then Richard brought in private capital.”
“He wanted outcomes that would justify a commercial partnership.”
“Meridian began enrolling vulnerable patients through affiliated clinics.”
“Some weren't given accurate information.”
“Some were exposed to treatments outside the approved research protocols.”
Jonathan stared at him.
“And when people got hurt?”
Bell lowered his head.
“Records were changed.”
Maria moved closer.
“My brother found those records.”
Bell nodded.
“He found discrepancies in the patient database.”
“And he was going to report them.”
“That's right.”
“Who killed him?”
Bell stared at the floor.
“Maria—”
“WHO KILLED MY BROTHER?”
Her scream shook the room.
Bell flinched.
Mercer raised a hand.
“Maria.”
She stepped backward.
Tears streamed down her face.
Bell swallowed hard.
“Daniel came to me.”
“When?”
“Five days before he died.”
“He had copied records showing that several deaths had been misclassified.”
“What did you do?”
“I told Richard.”
Maria closed her eyes.
There it was.
The betrayal that had destroyed her family.
Bell continued.
“Richard told me he would handle it.”
“Two days later, Daniel was dead.”
Maria stared at him.
“Did you know they were going to kill him?”
“No.”
“Did you suspect?”
Bell said nothing.
Maria stepped forward.
“Answer me.”
Bell's voice broke.
“Yes.”
The silence that followed was unbearable.
Jonathan looked at the doctor he had trusted for fifteen years.
“You let me bring my mother to you.”
Bell's eyes filled.
“I know.”
“You examined her.”
“Yes.”
“You told me she was getting worse because she was old.”
Bell couldn't answer.
“You poisoned her.”
Bell shook his head.
“I followed Celeste's instructions.”
Jonathan surged toward him.
Mercer stepped between them.
“Jonathan!”
He stopped.
His breathing was ragged.
“Don't say another word about following instructions.”
Bell covered his face.
Maria stood completely still.
Then she asked, “What did Daniel leave behind?”
Bell slowly reached into his coat.
Both officers moved.
“Hands where we can see them!”
Bell froze.
“It's just a key.”
Mercer instructed him to place it on the table.
He complied.
The key was small.
Silver.
Its plastic tag carried a number.
217\.
Maria stared at it.
“What is that?”
Bell swallowed.
“Daniel gave it to me before he died.”
“Why?”
“He said if anything happened to him, I should give it to someone who would tell the truth.”
“And you kept it for three years?”
Bell lowered his eyes.
“I was afraid.”
Maria laughed bitterly.
“My mother died believing her son killed himself.”
Bell said nothing.
“You had this the entire time.”
“Yes.”
“Where does it go?”
“A storage locker.”
“Where?”
“Penn Station.”
Mercer took the key.
“What is inside?”
Bell shook his head.
“I don't know.”
Maria stared at him.
“Did you ever open it?”
“No.”
Mercer signaled to an officer.
“Send a team.”
Bell looked suddenly panicked.
“No.”
Everyone turned toward him.
“The locker won't be there anymore.”
Mercer frowned.
“Why?”
Bell swallowed.
“Because Richard knows about it.”
Maria went rigid.
“Then why give us the key?”
Bell looked at her.
“Because Daniel knew Richard might find it.”
“What does that mean?”
Bell's voice dropped.
“Your brother was smarter than we realized.”
He glanced at Jonathan.
“He built a second way to expose what happened.”
Jonathan narrowed his eyes.
“How?”
Bell looked toward the red folder.
“Rebecca started it.”
The room became still.
“Daniel finished it.”
Mercer stepped closer.
“Finished what?”
Bell swallowed.
“A system that would release the files if certain people were killed.”
Maria felt a strange chill.
“Where are those files?”
Bell looked toward Evelyn.
“Ask her about the anniversary.”
Evelyn frowned.
“What anniversary?”
“Your husband's death.”
Evelyn turned pale.
“My husband died twelve years ago.”
Bell nodded.
“And the files were supposed to be released on the anniversary of his death.”
Jonathan stared at him.
“That's tomorrow.”
Bell nodded.
“At midnight.”
Mercer checked her watch.
Less than six hours.
Bell began breathing faster.
“But Richard found out about the release.”
“Is that why Celeste tried to kill Evelyn?” Maria asked.
Bell shook his head.
“No.”
Jonathan clenched his fists.
“Then why?”
Bell looked directly at Evelyn.
“Because your husband left something in his will.”
Evelyn stared at him.
“What?”
“A provision that nobody else knew about.”
Bell's voice became a whisper.
“Richard thought killing you would stop it.”
Maria stepped closer.
“Stop what?”
Bell looked toward the hallway.
“Project Meridian.”
May you like
Then he added something that made Jonathan's blood run cold.
“Your father knew the truth before he died.”
