The blond pushed into the room. “Stephanie’s here, Greg,” Joanna heard Vielle say. “I told you she’d get here.”
“Greg, it’s me, Stephanie,” the blond said tearfully. “I’m here.”
Silence.
“Seventy over fifty,” Vielle said.
“I just left my cell phone in the car for a minute while I ran into the grocery store. I’m so sorry. I came as soon as I could.”
“Sixty over forty and dropping.”
“No,” Greg said weakly. “Too far away for her to come.” And then the steady flatline whine of the heart monitor.
2
“Over Forked River. Course Lakehurst.”
“Are you sure you told her I was looking for her?” Richard asked the charge nurse.
“I’m positive, Dr. Wright,” she said. “I gave her your number when she was here this morning.”
“And when was that?”
“About an hour ago,” she said. “She was interviewing a patient.”
“And you don’t know where she went from here?”
“No. I can give you her pager number.”
“I have her pager number,” Richard said. He had been trying her pager all morning and getting no response. “I don’t think she’s wearing it.”
“Hospital regulations require all personnel to wear their pagers at all times,” she said disapprovingly and reached for a prescription pad as if to record the infraction.
Well, yes, he thought, and if she had it on, it would make his life a lot easier, but it was a ridiculous rule — he turned his own pager off half the time. You were constantly being interrupted otherwise. And if he got Dr. Lander in trouble, she’d hardly be inclined to work with him.
“I’ll try her pager again,” he said hastily. “You said she was interviewing a patient. Which patient?”