Author Anon

“How is he doing, Dr. Shimmer?” asks Amanda.

“I’m afraid it’s very serious,” says Dr. Shimmer. “We can only wait and see.”

“Dr. Steele, the police would like to see you,” says a nurse.

Amanda leaves the room and sees Cody waiting for her.

“Dr. Steele, I’m afraid you’ll have to come with us to the station again. We have further questions. You should probably have a lawyer present.”

“I don’t understand. Why do I need a lawyer?” asks Amanda.

“We’ve got new information and it doesn’t look good for you. I’m afraid that because of our previous work relationship, they will not be putting me on this case,” says Cody.

“But I don’t have a lawyer,” says Amanda.

“I will find you one,” says Dr. Shimmer.

William Golde rushes onto the hospital floor and approaches Dr. Shimmer. “What the hell happened?” He looks at Cody, who has a hand on Amanda’s arm, ready to lead her away. “Is she responsible for this?”

“Mr. Golde, we are trying to sort that out,” says Dr. Shimmer.

“Does she know something?” demands William.

“Yes, she was the one who found David,” says Dr. Shimmer.

“If she had anything to do with this, I demand that she be removed from the hospital staff immediately,” cries William.

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“You know David Golde was shot,” says Mr. Glaser.

“Yes, I heard about it,” says Michael. “Does anyone know what happened?”

“No, but they’re holding Dr. Steele.”

“Dr. Steele? Why?” asks Michael.

“I’m not sure, but we need you to be there for her. William Golde is already making threats to have her removed. You’ll not only be representing her, but the hospital as well. We don’t want something like this to taint the reputation of this hospital.”

“And if she is guilty?”

“We will have to make a statement and have her discharged from her duties.”

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Michael walks into police headquarters and sees Nicholas Cole talking to a desk sergeant.

“Looking for a story?” asks Michael.

Nicholas turns around. “Can you believe this? They think Dr. Steele has something to do with Golde’s attempted murder.”

“And are you so sure she isn’t?” asks Michael.

“How can you even question it?” asks Nicholas. “You, of all people. She could never do anything like this.”

“I sincerely hope your esteemed character judgment is correct this time.”

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“We need a detailed account of your movements on Friday,” says Detective Eddie Ute.

“But I’ve already told you everything,” says Amanda, feeling frustrated.

“I’m afraid we need to know exactly what you were doing immediately after leaving the hospital.”

The door of the interrogating room opens and Michael enters. On seeing him, Amanda’s heart leaps and her face lights up with relief and joy. However, the pained expression on his face dampens her spirits and she lowers her eyes.

“Gentlemen, I believe I’m entitled to a few minutes alone with my client,” says Michael, stepping aside to let the police officers leave. After a couple minutes of silent waiting at the door, he walks over to the table and takes a chair next to Amanda.

“All right,” he says. “Tell me what happened.”

Amanda relates to him what happened Friday evening. He listens without interruption. After she is done, he asks, “Have the police given you any idea why they suspect you?”

“No, they keep asking me where I was and what I was doing.”

“Have you told me everything about what you did?”

“Of course.”

“OK. Why did you go out to David’s?”

“He asked me to.”

“But why?”

“I don’t know. He called me that morning and asked me to come over.”

“Are you in the habit of going over to his house?”

“No! That was the first time I was there.”

“Are you in the habit of doing as David requests?”

Amanda gets angry. “No!”

“So why did you go over there?”

“He said he needed to discuss something with me. It sounded urgent.”

“Can you be sure he was not making a play at you?”

“Look, I realize this burden of representing me is probably repulsive to you, so if you don’t -”

“Let’s just call a truce,” Michael interrupts. “Right now, we have a lawyer-client relationship and it would help if we can both trust each other. I’m trying to get at the truth and I’m sorry if I sound ruthless to you. The police are going to be much worse. Now, I happen to know something was going on between the two of you. Whether the police know that, I couldn’t tell you. But if I know a little more about this, I can be prepared for any attack they present.”

“I’m sorry,” Amanda says quietly, sniffing and wiping away a tear.

“Amanda,” says Michael, starting to reach for her, but stops himself. He clears his throat. “Dr. Steele, tell me about your relationship with David Golde.”

“We did not have a relationship. Yes, he admits he was chasing after me, but he promised that was not why he asked me over.”

“Did you trust him?”

“Not with my life. But something in his voice convinced me he was sincere.”

“Do you have any idea why he wanted to talk to you?”

Amanda hesitates. “I have an idea that it must have had something to do with what he learned from Lucy Albright.”

“Who is Lucy Albright? And what has she to do with this?”

“She’s Lisa Copperfield’s mother. I know he was curious to know about her past, especially about Lisa’s father. She snuck out to see him the night before and he wanted me to keep Blanche busy so she would not interfere.”

“You’ve lost me,” says Michael. “As I understand, Lisa is Rick Copperfield’s wife. I believe I may have met them once. Who is Blanche?”

“Blanche is Lucy’s mother.” Michael recalls the elderly lady talking to Amanda.

“Tell me about these people,” says Michael. “What have you and David to do with them?”

“Rick is an old friend of mine,” says Amanda, smiling. Michael experiences a pang of jealousy as he watches her face. “When Rick went to London, I promised to keep Lisa company. One night when I went over, I found that Blanche had invited David as well. The evening was interrupted by Lucy arriving on the doorsteps, having walked out of a mental institution. She took to David and monopolized him. For some reason, Blanche is very protective of her and refuses to let her leave her sight. One time, Blanche interrupted a secret meeting they had. David was suspicious of her motives. She had been trying to set us up on numerous occasions, yet she seemed to hate us both.”

“And David was trying to pry some secret out of Lucy? Why?”

“Ask him. It sounds like the kind of thing he would do. He’s an overgrown kid who likes to stir up trouble, delve into secrets, etc.”

“And you conspired with him?”

“I didn’t conspire with him,” says Amanda, defensively. “All right, I may have went along with his plan. But I had already planned to see Lisa. I just didn’t interfere with Lucy and David’s meeting.”

“And on Friday, you say you went shopping after work,” says Michael. “Did you meet anyone you know? Or could anyone give you an alibi? Did anything happen that stands out and can be verified?”

Amanda shakes her head. “I don’t know. I wasn’t really paying that much attention. You know how it is with last minute shopping and how mad the crowds in the stores are.”

“What about at David’s?” asks Michael. “Did anyone in the neighborhood see you?”

“It was pretty quiet. A lot of the houses were dark. I saw a man entering a car a few houses away but I don’t think he saw me. That’s it.”

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Filed under: All That Glitters