Ansley and Oliver stood to leave when Dr. Yates said, “Dr. Owens, would you mind speaking with me a moment more?”
“Of course,” Oliver replied, ignoring the flare of Ansley’s nostrils before he turned to follow Jenkins out of the room.
What else could he say? It would only look suspicious if he bolted after Ansley, even if his heart hammered in his ears as he sat back in his chair. As Dr. Yates looked Oliver over, his expression was less interrogatory and more curious than it had been with Ansley in the room. Oliver sat straighter but reminded himself this man wasn’t a professor or his boss; they were on an equal playing field. Oliver was a doctor just like Dr. Yates was, and while he didn’t deal with patients like he did, he knew the human body inside and out.
“I wanted to ask you a few more questions about your sister without Mr. Morgan’s interference. Has Mr. Morgan ever hit her or abused her?”
Oliver recoiled at the mere thought of Ansley laying a hand on anyone. The doctor was watching him closely, but Oliver hoped he didn’t notice him reflexively swallow. He wasn’t a good liar, but sometimes the best lies were closest to the truth. “No, he’s inconsiderate and can be cutting when he’s in a foul mood, but he’s never hurt her or the children.”
“And you have visited her and tried to treat her condition yourself?”
“As best I can with Mr. Morgan’s interference. He would prefer I not be there, and he gets cross with me when I overstay my welcome. I agree that Lucy would benefit from time away from him. I think he makes the situation worse more than he makes it better.” Most women with husbands like that could do with a holiday alone with the promise of returning to a husband who cared enough to change, though that was unlikely. “I have prescribed her sedatives when she was particularly agitated, but if you don’t treat the root cause, that does little good. And I have told him as much.”
“That’s why you came today, because you care deeply about your sister.”
“Yes. If he was going to send her somewhere, I wanted to make certain it was a place that would take care of her and help her get better.” Oliver’s throat tightened at the outcome of the case that bothered him so many years ago. “Not some asylum where she would disappear.”
“And has the institute met with your approval?” Dr. Yates asked mildly.
The question felt like a trap no matter his answer. “It’s certainly far more up to date than what I was anticipating, and the treatments and expectations you mentioned seem reasonable given the situation, which I appreciate. I would obviously like to better understand what Lucy would undergo in the sanitorium before giving my blessing. Then again, I’m not her husband.”
“But you are blood, and that is often more important. Husbands come and go, but a brother who loves you and has your best interests at heart won’t desert you.”
“Yes,” Oliver said, not that he would know, having no siblings or family to speak of.
“That’s admirable. I appreciate a man who will take ownership of their blood and try to do right by them. Do you have magic yourself?”
If Dr. Yates had the sight, Oliver hadn’t caught him staring at his ribs where the tether emerged, and he certainly wasn’t going to tell him he was a necromancer. Oliver thought of Gwen’s sister, the one who swore she didn’t have telekinesis like the rest of them but somehow managed to always catch fragile things before they hit the floor or won games of chance more often than she ought. “Not that I know of. If I do, it’s so minor that I don’t notice I’m doing it.”
Dr. Yates regarded Oliver more intently. “What is your specialty, Dr. Owens?”
Neurology would be too easy to parrot back, so Oliver strayed as close to the truth as he dared. “A surgeon, but I’ve grown tired of it. I’ve been a bit adrift since I left. I’ve mostly been tending to Lucy and figuring out what to do next.”
Dr. Yates folded his hands over his stomach and leaned back in his chair. “Are you going to open a private practice?”
“I’m not certain I have the temperament for it.”
“No, it certainly isn’t for everyone, being at everyone’s beck and call gets tiresome quickly, and there’s little money in it, even if your clients can pay. What interest do you have in neurology?”
“I think the brain is fascinating, though still an enigma. I try to get my hands on Cajal’s work as often as I can.”
Oliver remembered seeing Cajal’s drawings of neurons for the first time and being in awe of how something that looked like a cross between a spider and a lightning bolt could do so many marvelous things. Scientists like that made him yearn for the time and energy to dive so deeply into the minutiae of anatomy that it became all-consuming, but as a medical examiner, that wasn’t possible. The passion must have shown on his features because when he looked at the doctor, a knowing smile had crossed his lips.
“Where did you study?”
“The College of Physicians of Philadelphia.”
“That’s my alma mater as well. When did you graduate?”
Oliver nearly lied, but Dr. Yates was older than him and obviously didn’t recognize him. There was little chance their time at the college overlapped. “In ‘84. Dr. Leidy was my mentor for much of it.”
“He left not long after you graduated to hunt for dinosaurs and saber-tooth cats, you know. Never got on much with Leidy, a little too peculiar and exacting for my taste, but if you can get on with him, you can probably get on with anyone. Dr. Owens, at the moment, we are short a physician. One of our senior doctors recently departed after adisagreementregarding our holistic approach. With him gone, we are short staffed, and I haven’t had the time to begin searching for a replacement. To be clear, I’m not making any offers yet as we would need to discuss the particulars of your duties, conduct interviews, and check your license and records if you make it that far, but would you potentially be interested in working for me at the institute?”
Oliver sat stunned. “But you just met me.”
“Hence, why I’m not extending any official offers, but it is fortuitous, is it not, that you would come here to tour the facilities and discuss treatment on your sister’s behalf when I’m looking for a doctor with the right attitude and approach to patient care to add to my staff?AndI have been hoping to bring someone with a surgical background on board to expand the treatments offered.”
“May I think on it?” Oliver asked slowly. He needed to get out of the institute, not deeper into it. “If my brother-in-law decides this is the best place for Lucy’s care, I don’t want my potential refusal to affect her care.”
