Her head spun. Hope flared sharp and painful.
“But if we move forward,” he added,“the game won’t be entirely clean. And it won’t be cheap. We’ll need outside people.”
She closed her eyes. Inhaled.
And without hesitation said:
“I’m in.”
CHAPTER 22
Nolan watched her as if testing whether she truly understood what she was asking for. And why wouldn’t she? In just a few minutes he had offered more real action than she’d seen in the last agonizing month.
“First,” he said after a long silence,“you’ll need to go through an independent psychiatric evaluation.”
Nina’s fingers tightened around each other.
“Another one?”
“Yes. A second opinion from an unaffiliated specialist. We’ll need an official report declaring you fully competent. That won’t be a problem, will it?”
She nodded—though something cold twisted inside her. God… what if she failed? Why was she suddenly doubting herself?
Nolan leaned forward, lacing his fingers.
“If the diagnosis doesn’t hold, my people will prove the original report was fabricated. That makes every legal decision based on it void.”
Nina froze. Was that really possible? Could she actually have a chance?
“That can work?” Her voice was softer than she wanted it to be.
“It can,” Nolan said, his gaze steady.“But that’s only the first step.”
She drew a breath.
“And the next one?”
Nolan settled back into his chair and rolled a pen between his fingers.
“Next…” He paused, as if gauging how far she was truly willing to go.“I’ll tap a few contacts in the system.”
Heat flushed through her. They really were going to play big.
“The psychiatrist who signed your commitment report,”Nolan continued,“will get a visit from a plant.”
She blinked.
“A what?”
“A decoy patient,” he clarified.“Someone who’ll pretend they need the same kind of paperwork you got. Let them catch him on the bribe. It’s good PR for them, bumps their clearance rate.”
A slow, unsettling smile curled on his lips. Apparently Nolan was capable of far more than she’d imagined.
Nina went still.
“When that happens, there’ll be an internal investigation,” he went on.“And once they look at his files,your case will surface.”
Her chest tightened.
