Husband Faked His Death and Left Me, Now He Regrets It, Sorry, You Can Only Repent at My Grave novel · Chapter 5 of 24

Chapter 5: The Diner

Dr. Kemp discharged me at eight in the morning, with a bag of pills and a rule.

"I need to say this out loud once," he said, standing in the doorway of the exam room. "I'm your doctor now. That means my hands stay to myself and my questions stay about your body. Anything else is a conflict I won't have."

"Nobody asked you to touch me."

"No." He almost smiled. "But you looked at my hands when I took your pulse, and I noticed. So it's said."

My face went hot, and I hated that it did.

"What about Riverview?" I asked. "The visitor log."

"I filed the records request an hour ago." He lowered his voice. "Geneva, your sister is patient services manager here. She reads every request that comes through this building."

"Then she'll know."

"She'll know by lunch. I wanted you to hear it from me."

I walked out into a cold bright morning with the pills in my pocket and no plan.

The only place open on Main Street was Dot's Diner, so I went in.

I took the stool at the end of the counter.

The waitress filled my cup without a word and looked at me a beat too long.

Everyone in the room looked a beat too long.

By now the whole town had heard.

I took one sip.

The bell over the door rang.

Beth came in with two women from the church, in a pale blue coat and her hair freshly pinned.

She stopped just inside and put a hand over her heart.

"Geneva," she said softly. "Oh, honey, there you are."

The diner went quiet.

She crossed to my stool and laid her hand on my shoulder.

I didn't move.

"Everyone," Beth said to the room, gently, "this is my sister Geneva. Most of you have heard. She's been away a very long time, and she's been very, very ill."

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