1 A Small Case of Murder

1 A Small Case of Murder by Lauren Carr Read Free Book Online Page B

Book: 1 A Small Case of Murder by Lauren Carr Read Free Book Online
Authors: Lauren Carr
picked up on his distress. “You have a whole church full of witnesses who saw that girl pull a gun and try to shoot you.” His next statement was delivered with the force of a declaration of war. “My children were in that sanctuary.”
    “And by the time Rawlings’ lawyer is through, they’ll all have new cars and amnesia.”
    “Maybe Wally won’t do anything about his daughter, but I will.” Joshua demanded to know, “Have you filed complaints with the sheriff?”
    Tad’s attention was drawn to an ambulance that had pulled up outside the emergency room doors. The attendants were unloading a gurney. “I’ve documented everything. I’ve even saved the e-mails she’s been sending.”
    “The state attorney general will be very interested in why the prosecuting attorney won’t do anything—” Joshua stopped speaking when he saw that Tad’s focus was elsewhere.
    The doctor caught up with the gurney. “Excuse me, but this is one of my patients. What seems to be the trouble?”
    “Looks like an allergic reaction to medication,” Joshua heard the paramedic tell him.

Joshua Thornton wasn’t having a good Sunday.
    After leaving Tad at the hospital, he had taken the twins to his office to continue wading through the junk left by the previous owner. He felt as if he hadn’t made any progress when it was time to return home.
    He was looking forward to a cold beer and dinner. Since her mother’s death, Tracy had done her best to continue with the tradition of cooking a special dinner for her family on Sunday.
    However, as soon as he came through the door, Sarah informed him that Tad needed his help right away. Still dressed in his work clothes, Joshua left behind a home-cooked dinner of baked chicken and potato salad to jog down the street to his cousin’s apartment.
    On the first knock, Tad answered the door and yanked him inside.
    The woman at the kitchen table vaguely resembled the girl he had almost married the night of their senior prom. Beth’s unkempt hair hung in her eyes. What make-up that hadn’t dripped off in her nervous sweat was smeared. Her fingernails that had always been manicured were now bitten down to the quick.
    While explaining their dilemma at a hundred miles an hour, Tad peered into the alley like he was harboring a fugitive before slamming the door behind his guest. “We need some good advice. This afternoon one of my patients was brought into the ER—”
    “Was that the woman I saw them bringing in when we were talking?”
    Tad nodded his head. “Gloria Frost. Nice lady. She has a chronic sinus infection. I prescribed erythromycin because she’s allergic to penicillin. She was given amoxicillin, which is penicillin-based, and she had an allergic reaction. She’s in serious condition, but I think she’ll make it.”
    “Did she know that amoxicillin is penicillin-based?”
    “Doesn’t matter,” Tad said. “The bottle was marked erythromycin by the pharmacist who gave her the wrong pills.”
    Joshua followed his gaze to Beth, who wrung her hands while staring wide-eyed at him from across the room. “How could you make a mistake like that?”
    “I don’t know.” While recounting what had happened, she spoke with more conviction. “Mrs. Frost came in with her prescription. Then, Bridgette Poole came in and—You were there. She was yelling at me, and I got confused, and I grabbed the wrong pills. It wasn’t my fault.”
    Tad spoke softly, “Of course, the emergency room doctor had to call the authorities. The police are going to want to talk to Beth. Mr. Frost has already said he intends to sue.”
    “Why did you call me?” Joshua wanted to know. “If you wrote the right prescription—”
    “Knowing Wally, I have no doubt but that he’ll charge Beth with criminal negligence.”
    “Wally has been out to get me for years.” She picked up her purse from the floor and dug through it.
    Joshua recognized it as the same macramé handbag he had seen on Tad’s kitchen

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