Chapter 7: The Girl Who Entered His Hospital Room
Marcus read the hospital visitor authorization form for the fifth time.
The name at the top was unmistakable.
*Jasmine Carter.*
The date was three days after the accident.
The signature appeared beneath a declaration confirming that the visitor had been authorized to access certain portions of Marcus's medical information.
But Jasmine had been recovering from a broken collarbone.
She had been discharged only two days earlier.
And according to the hospital's records, she hadn't visited Marcus at all.
Marcus immediately called Michael.
"Tell me this document is wrong.""
Michael sounded exhausted.
"I wish I could.""
"Jasmine was seventeen. She couldn't have authorized access to my medical records without the proper permissions.""
"That's why we're investigating.""
"Someone used her name.""
"Possibly.""
Marcus looked at the document again.
"Who actually entered the hospital?""
"We're checking the security footage archives and visitor logs.""
"Michael, I need to know whether my daughter was involved.""
There was a pause.
"Marcus, don't assume she was. Someone could have used her identity without her knowledge.""
Marcus looked toward the staircase.
"I hope you're right.""
The next morning, Marcus asked Jasmine to come into the study.
She entered slowly, holding a glass of orange juice.
"What's wrong?""
He turned his laptop toward her.
Jasmine stared at the visitor authorization form.
Her expression changed.
"Where did you get that?""
"From the hospital records.""
She placed the glass on the desk.
"I've never seen it before.""
"Did you visit me in the hospital on November seventeenth?""
Jasmine frowned.
"No. Mom said I couldn't because I needed to recover.""
"Did anyone ask you to sign something?""
She shook her head.
"Marcus, what's happening?""
He explained the suspicious visitor record and showed her the signature.
Jasmine leaned closer.
Then she pointed at the bottom.
"That's not my handwriting.""
"You're sure?""
"Look at the J. I always make the first line longer.""
Marcus examined it.
She was right.
The signature was similar, but not identical.
Jasmine looked frightened.
"Does this mean someone pretended to be me?""
"That's what we're trying to establish.""
She sat down.
Then she remembered something.
"Wait.""
Marcus looked at her.
"What?""
"Mom took my school identification card after the accident.""
"Why?""
"She said she needed it for the insurance paperwork. She kept my wallet for almost a week.""
Marcus felt a chill.
"Did she give it back?""
"Yes. But the photo was missing.""
"Missing?""
Jasmine nodded.
"She said it probably fell out.""
Marcus slowly closed the laptop.
Someone had apparently used Jasmine's identity to access his medical records.
And Linda had possessed the identification card needed to make that possible.
Michael arrived shortly afterward with an investigator named Sarah Collins.
Sarah specialized in financial and identity-related investigations.
She listened carefully as Jasmine described what had happened to her identification card.
"Jasmine, did your mother ever ask you to create an online hospital account?""
"No.""
"Did you give anyone your hospital password?""
"I didn't have one.""
Sarah wrote something down.
"Would you recognize the nurse who cared for you after the accident?""
Jasmine nodded.
"Yes.""
Sarah placed a photograph on the table.
It showed Evelyn Shaw.
Jasmine stared at it.
Then she pointed.
"That's her.""
Marcus looked at his stepdaughter.
"You know her?""
"She was at the hospital when I woke up.""
Sarah leaned forward.
"Are you certain?""
Jasmine nodded.
"She came into my room twice. Mom introduced her as someone who worked with the hospital.""
"Did she speak to you?""
"Yes. She asked how I was feeling.""
Jasmine paused.
"She also asked whether I remembered anything about the accident.""
Marcus felt his stomach tighten.
"What did you tell her?""
"That I remembered the truck.""
Sarah exchanged a glance with Michael.
"Did she ask anything else?""
Jasmine swallowed.
"She asked whether I remembered seeing anyone near our car before the accident.""
Marcus leaned forward.
"Did you?""
Jasmine looked down.
"I said no.""
"Was that true?""
She hesitated.
Then she whispered, "Not exactly.""
Marcus felt his heart pounding.
"What do you mean?""
Jasmine's eyes filled.
"I remembered someone standing near the car at the gas station before we got on the highway.""
Sarah stopped writing.
"Who?""
"I couldn't see his face. He was wearing a baseball cap. But I remember something on his jacket.""
"What?""
"A blue bridge.""
Marcus and Michael exchanged looks.
The Westbridge logo.
Jasmine continued.
"I didn't tell anyone because I thought I imagined it. But after the accident, Evelyn asked me the same question again.""
"Did you tell your mother?""
Jasmine shook her head.
"No. But I think she knew I remembered something.""
Sarah closed her notebook.
"That may be important.""
Two days later, the hospital produced an additional set of records.
Sarah called Marcus and Michael to review them.
The visitor authorization had been submitted using Jasmine's identification number.
However, the hospital's internal system showed that the visitor had entered using a temporary staff access card.
The card belonged to Evelyn Shaw.
"How did she get permission to use Jasmine's identity?"" Marcus asked.
Sarah pointed to another record.
"The request was submitted by someone with administrative access.""
"Who?""
Sarah turned the page.
A name appeared.
*Linda Carter.*
Marcus stared at it.
His wife had requested access to his medical records using her daughter's identity.
But the next discovery was worse.
The medication administration logs showed that Evelyn had entered Marcus's room shortly after midnight on three separate occasions.
On each occasion, a medication was recorded as administered.
Yet the corresponding prescriptions had never been approved by Dr. Miller.
Michael looked at Sarah.
"Can we establish what was given?""
"Not conclusively from these records alone. But the dosage entries don't match the treatment plan.""
Marcus felt his stomach turn.
"Could that medication have caused serious harm?""
Sarah answered carefully.
"Depending on the substance and dosage, yes. We need a medical review before drawing conclusions.""
Marcus stared at the paperwork.
Three nights.
Three unauthorized medication entries.
And a nurse who had disappeared after his discharge.
Then Sarah opened another document.
It was a hospital incident report.
The report had been filed by a junior nurse who claimed Evelyn had instructed her not to enter a particular medication into the official chart.
The complaint had been dismissed internally.
The junior nurse's name was *Claire Bennett*.
Marcus looked up.
"Can we find her?""
Sarah nodded.
"We already have.""
Claire agreed to meet them at a small café outside the hospital.
She was now working at a private clinic and looked nervous when Marcus introduced himself.
"Mr. Carter, I'm sorry," she said immediately.
Marcus leaned forward.
"You don't have to apologize. Just tell me what happened.""
Claire wrapped both hands around her coffee cup.
"Evelyn told me you were receiving a special medication under a private physician's instructions.""
"Whose instructions?""
"She said Dr. Miller's.""
"Did you verify them?""
"I tried. But she told me the paperwork was confidential.""
Claire looked toward Michael.
"One night, I saw her prepare a dose that wasn't listed in the electronic chart. I questioned her, and she became angry.""
"What did she say?""
"She told me I was too inexperienced to understand the patient's condition.""
Marcus's hands tightened.
"Did she administer it?""
Claire nodded.
"She went into your room alone.""
"Did I wake up?""
"No. You were unconscious.""
Michael asked, "Did you report this?""
"I did. But the hospital told me there was insufficient evidence.""
Claire lowered her eyes.
"I was afraid I'd lose my job. Evelyn had been working there for years, and she knew people in administration.""
Sarah leaned forward.
"Did she ever mention Linda Carter?""
Claire nodded slowly.
"Yes. Mrs. Carter visited her frequently.""
"Did you hear their conversations?""
"Once.""
Claire took a shaky breath.
"I heard Mrs. Carter say, 'He needs to stay asleep until the papers are finished.''"
Marcus closed his eyes.
He could barely breathe.
Claire continued.
"Then Evelyn said something about the medication being stronger than expected.""
"What did Linda say?""
Claire looked directly at Marcus.
"She said, 'As long as he doesn't wake up before the transfer, it doesn't matter.''"
That evening, Marcus sat alone in his study.
He had spent three years believing that his recovery had been slowed by the severity of his injuries.
Now he had to consider another possibility.
Someone might have deliberately interfered with his treatment.
His phone rang.
Michael.
"We have an update on Evelyn Shaw.""
Marcus sat upright.
"Have you found her?""
"Yes.""
"Where?""
"She's living in Wisconsin under her married name.""
Marcus rubbed his forehead.
"Will she talk?""
"She initially refused. But after Sarah explained the investigation, she agreed to meet.""
"When?""
"Tomorrow.""
Marcus looked toward the family photographs on his desk.
"Michael, there's something else.""
"What?""
"I want to know why she used Jasmine's identity.""
Michael paused.
"That's exactly what we're going to ask her.""
The call ended.
Marcus was about to close his laptop when an email arrived from an unfamiliar address.
There was no subject line.
Only one attachment.
He opened it.
A photograph appeared.
It showed Linda and Evelyn standing outside the hospital three years earlier.
Between them stood another woman.
Marcus recognized her immediately.
She was the hospital administrator who had signed off on his discharge.
But what caught his attention was the handwritten note beneath the photograph.
*"Your wife didn't choose Evelyn because she was a nurse. She chose her because Evelyn had already done this before.""*
Marcus stared at the words.
May you like
Then another message appeared.
*"Ask her about the patient who died six months before your accident.""*
