Page 10 of Reasonable Doubt

“Yes.”

“How personally?”

“Fairly well.”

“Were you having an affair?”

“An affair? How quaint. If you’re asking if we were intimately involved, yes we were.”

“Did you investigate the circumstances of his surgery after he left?”

“I did.”

“Did you call for the inquiry?”

“I did not. The family of the deceased pressed the hospital for one. It was out of my hands.”

“Objection. That’s to be established.”

“Why didn’t you call for one yourself?”

“Because I believed Pax made a mistake. Not that he was negligent.”

“Did your personal feelings enter into it?”

“No. That was my professional opinion. He was a brilliant doctor.”

“And still is, right?”

“Yes.”

“You have a job at his clinic now, don’t you?”

“No, I volunteer there. He needed another doctor parttime.”

“Are you still in love with him?”

“Did I say I ever was?”

“Objection. Again. You’re badgering the witness.”

“I’ll answer. I got a job there because it’s a worthwhile endeavor for Westwood.” And she’d found out her feelings for Paxton weren’t the same anymore. “I wanted to treat that element of society.”

“And he was involved with someone else.”

“Yes. There were no hard feelings. I went to his wedding. I’d hardly do that if I was in love with him.”

He said, “I’m through with my questioning.”

Nick leaned over the table. “Dr. Shannon did you ever believe Pax was guilty of negligence?

“No. Only that he made a mistake.” She asked Nick, “May I elaborate?”

“Yes.”

“The Mortality Review Conference doctors at the hospital agreed with me.”

“What’s The Mortality Review Conference for?”