The Heiress They Left To Die Chapter 04
“Say that again?” Ethan’s face changed in an instant, his brows drawing tight. “Are you serious?”
“I said, Josie isn’t sick.”
The room went quiet for two or three seconds. Then Josie let out two frail little coughs.
“Ethan… it’s fine. Dr. Blackwood probably hasn’t seen a case like mine before. Don’t push her.”
Ethan closed his hand over hers and glared at me.
“Dr. Blackwood. Do you not see how much pain my sister is in?”
“Reports from all these hospitals. Diagnoses from all these specialists. And out of your mouth, suddenly she’s not sick?”
“If you can’t treat her, admit it. Don’t smear my sister by claiming she’s faking it!”
I glanced at my phone. The chat was on fire.
Are you kidding me? Josie is literally lying there with an IV in her arm, and she says she isn’t sick?
She’s evil. She’s trying to pin this on the patient!
Who called this woman the top cardiologist in the country? She’s a fraud doctor. Pull her license and sue her into bankruptcy!
Richard’s displeasure was open now.
“Dr. Blackwood. If you’re not equipped to handle this case, we can accept that. But telling us our daughter isn’t sick? That’s a reckless conclusion.”
Margaret was softer, but every word carried an accusation.
“Dr. Blackwood. Josie has been seen by so many doctors over the years. I’ve paid a great deal of money for the best private specialists. Are you saying every single one of them was wrong?”
I smiled.
“Mr. Hawthorne. Mrs. Hawthorne. Has it occurred to either of you that there’s another possibility?”
“That she’s been producing these symptoms herself.”
Under the blanket, Josie’s hand snapped shut around a fistful of sheet.
A small movement.
But I caught it.
Richard’s face darkened completely. “Dr. Blackwood. Watch what you say. Josie is a child we raised. What possible reason would she have to make a joke of her own health?”
I kept my eyes on Richard, my voice unchanged.
“If you don’t believe me, bring in every doctor who has ever diagnosed Josie. We can settle it face to face.”
Richard stared at me for a few seconds, then turned to the assistant at the door.
“Get Dr. Carter in here. He knows Josie’s case best.”
Ten minutes later, Dr. Lewis Carter walked in.
He was Josie’s private cardiologist — and the man who had been signing off on her reports for years.
Ethan pointed at me. “Dr. Carter. She’s saying Josie isn’t sick at all. She’s saying Josie has been producing these symptoms herself.”
“Tell her exactly what Josie’s condition is.”
Dr. Carter’s expression tightened immediately.
“Dr. Blackwood. As Josie’s private physician, I know her case intimately.”
“Her ECGs, her echocardiograms, her bloodwork — all have shown clear abnormalities. Saying she isn’t sick, or that she’s faking, is medically indefensible.”
He paused, then added:
“I’ve been practicing cardiology for over twenty years. I don’t make mistakes at that basic diagnostic level.”
I looked at his very serious face and gave a small laugh.
“Is there any chance, Dr. Carter, that you took a bribe and are lying for her?”
“That Josie paid you. That you cherry-picked her reports, hid her full medication history, and dressed up drug-induced symptoms as severe heart disease.”
“That every outside specialist you brought in wasn’t seeing the whole file — only the parts you let them see.”
Dr. Carter’s expression faltered.
“Dr. Blackwood, that’s slander. I have every right to take legal action against you!”
Josie sat up, paler than before, her voice full of hurt and anger.
“Dr. Blackwood. Fine — attack me if you want, but why are you dragging Dr. Carter into this too?”
“You say I’m faking. You say he’s lying for me. Where’s your proof?”
“Proof?”
I pulled out my phone and tapped a video open.
The next second, Josie’s own voice filled the room.
“Dr. Blackwood, I know you’re the top cardiac specialist in the country, but my condition isn’t as severe as they think.”
“When you examine me tomorrow, I want you to do me a favor. Tell my parents and Ethan that my condition has gotten worse — that I need complete rest and can’t be under any stress.”
“If you play along, on top of what Ethan promised in donations, I’ll personally give you five million dollars.”
“You’re a smart woman. You know what the right choice is.”