Bad Medicine by Geoffrey M. Cooper

Author:Geoffrey M. Cooper [Cooper, Geoffrey M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Maine Authors Publishing
Published: 2021-02-16T16:00:00+00:00

22

The call surprised him. Between the patient’s death and the photo he’d sent the boss yesterday, he figured things would be done. But apparently not. Good. It would mean another hefty deposit into his offshore bank account.

“Another patient needs to die,” the boss said. “And quickly.”

“Whatever you say. The photo wasn’t enough for you to finish things?”

The boss’s voice rose a notch. “Obviously not. Are you questioning my orders? Just do as you’re told!”

The boss must be pushed to the edge to lose control like that, he thought. Fine. I can up my price.

“My apologies. Of course, I’m not questioning you. Just surprised.”

The boss made a snorting sound, but his voice softened. “Good. Parker’s apparently trying to whitewash Gelman, and he’s been given until the end of next week to bring the case to a conclusion. We need another patient death before then.”

“That much speed will be difficult.”

“What’s the problem? At the dose you’re using, it only takes a day or two for the poison to work.”

“The patients get a thirty-day supply of their drugs, so if I substitute one tablet in their bottles, it can easily be a few weeks before they take it. We were lucky with Weston; she only had three pills left when I visited her.”

“So substitute all of their tablets with poison, not just one!” the boss shouted. “What the hell’s the matter with you? Think!”

He held the phone away from his ear for the tirade. The boss was really losing it. Time to up the ante.

“That would be very risky. All the other pills would be left in the dead patient’s bottle. They could be discovered easily.”

“That’s ridiculous. Nobody’s going to run analysis on a dead patient’s remaining pills. Just do it. Grow some balls.”

He bristled at the insult. People didn’t talk to him like that. It was lucky for the boss that he wasn’t here. He was probably right that the risk was minimal, but the bastard would pay for his insolence.

“Have you forgotten our agreement? I decide how to do the job, and whether or not it’s safe for me to proceed. I haven’t succeeded in this business by taking unnecessary risks. If you don’t like that, I’m sure you can find someone else who you think has bigger balls.”

It was a bluff—the boss wouldn’t have time to find anyone else. Not if he wanted this done immediately.

There was a brief pause on the line. “All right, I apologize. Would twice the normal fee persuade you to take on the additional risk?”

“Accepted. I’ll get on it as soon as I confirm the usual fifty percent down payment has been transferred to my account.”

The money was there when he checked five minutes later. The boss might be a bastard, but at least he was an efficient one.

He put on the brown UPS uniform and retrieved the bottle of white powder from his dresser drawer. Fixing a whole bottle full of pills would be a hassle, but worth it for the double pay.

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