"Nobody knows better than I do how badly this town needs a
doctor," Police Chief Ethan Forrest told the crowd crammed
into the Downhome, Tennessee, city council chambers. "But
please, not Dr. Jenni Vine."
He hadn't meant to state his objection so bluntly, he
mused as he registered the startled reaction of his
audience. Six months ago, he'd been so alarmed by the
abrupt departure of the town's two resident doctors, a
married couple, that he'd probably have said yes to anyone
with an M.D. after his or her name.
Worried about his five-year-old son, Nick, who was
diabetic, Ethan had suggested that the town advertise for
physicians to fill the vacated positions. He also
recommended that they hire a long-needed obstetrician. In
the meantime, patients who couldn't be helped by the nurse
practitioner or staff nurse had to drive twelve miles to
Mill Valley.
Applications hadn't exactly poured in. Only two had
arrived from qualified family doctors, both of whom had
toured Downhome recently by invitation. One was clearly
superior, and as a member of the three-person search
committee, Ethan felt it his duty to say so.
"Dr. Gregory is more experienced and, in my opinion, more
stable," he said. "He's married with three kids, and I
believe he's motivated to stick around for the long term."
Although less than ideal in one respect, the Louisville
physician took his duties seriously and, Ethan had no
doubt, would fit into the community.
"Of course he's motivated!" snapped Olivia Rockwell, who
stood beside Ethan just below the city council's dais. The
tall African-American woman, who was the school principal,
chaired the committee. "You told us yourself he's a
recovering alcoholic."
"He volunteered the information, along with the fact that
he's been sober for a couple of years," Ethan
replied. "His references are excellent and he expressed
interest in expanding our public health efforts. I think
he'd be perfect to oversee the outreach program I've been
advocating."
"So would Jenni β I mean, Dr. Vine," said the third
committee member, Karen Lowell, director of the Tulip Tree
Nursing Home. "She's energetic and enthusiastic. Everybody
took to her."
"She certainly has an outgoing personality," he responded.
On her visit, the California blonde had dazzled people
with her expensive clothes and her good humor after being
drenched in a thunderstorm, which she seemed to regard as
a freak of nature. It probably didn't rain on her parade
very often out in the land of perpetual sunshine, Ethan
supposed.
"But once the novelty wears off, she'll head for greener
pastures and we'll need another doctor."
"So you aren't convinced she'll stay. None of us is in the
mind-reading business," Olivia opined. "Is that the extent
of your objections? This isn't typical of you, Chief. I'll
bet you've got something else up that tailored sleeve of
yours."
Ethan was about to pass off her comment as a joke, when he
noticed some of the townsfolk leaning forward in their
seats with anticipation. Despite being a quiet town best
known for dairy farmers and a factory that made imitation
antiques, Downhome had an appetite for gossip.
Although Ethan had hoped to avoid going into detail, the
audience awaited his explanation. Was he being unfair to
the applicant? he asked himself. True, he'd taken a mild
dislike to Dr. Vine's surfer-girl demeanor, but he could
get over that. What troubled him was the reason she wanted
to leave L.A. in the first place.
"You all know I conducted background checks on the
candidates," he began. "Credit records, convictions, that
sort of thing."
"And found no criminal activities, right?" Karen tucked a
curly strand of reddish brown hair behind one ear.
"That's correct. I also double-checked with the medical
directors at their hospitals."
"You didn't mention that," Olivia murmured.
"I hoped I wouldn't have to bring it up."
"I wasn't criticizing," the principal said. "I admire your
thoroughness."
Around the room, heads bobbed. Ethan felt glad the towns-
people respected his approach. Four years ago, when he
left the Nashville Metropolitan Police Department and
returned home after his wife's death, he had believed his
professionalism was the reason they'd chosen him as chief
over several other candidates.
Well, he had a bombshell to drop, so he'd better get it
over with. "A few months ago, Dr. Vine became enmeshed in
a controversy." He tried to ignore the impatient way Karen
twirled a pencil between her fingers. "Dr. Vine was
counseling one of her patients about marital problems. She
met with the woman and her husband outside of work."
"What's wrong with that?" demanded the nursing home
director.
"Nothing, on the face of it," Ethan replied. "However, a
short time later, the patient filed a complaint. She told
the medical director that her husband had confessed to
becoming involved in an affair with Dr. Vine."
Karen's pencil went flying. In the audience, a couple of
exclamations broke the stillness and some faces registered
disapproval.
Olivia raised one eyebrow. "From this you conclude that
she's a husband-stealing tart who would sully the moral
fiber of our community?"
"If we hire her, we're placing her in a position of
trust," Ethan responded. "If she's the type of person to
exploit a situation, it makes me uncomfortable."
"Jenni has a right to defend herself," Karen said. "Did
you speak to her about this?"
"Not directly, but I did look further." Ethan checked his
notes. "In response to the hospital board's inquiry, Dr.
Vine denied the allegation. She claimed the husband had
been antagonistic and lied to get her out of the picture."
It struck him as a weak excuse, but he was here to present
the facts.
"What action did the board take?" Olivia asked.
He folded the notes into his pocket. "They concluded there
wasn't enough evidence to take action. However, word got
out, and the medical director says Dr. Vine's presence on
the staff has become awkward. Even assuming she's
innocent, that reinforces my concern as to whether she
intends to stay here or is simply grasping at the first
chance to escape an unpleasant situation."
Council member Mae Anne McRay, a retired principal whose
wheelchair barely permitted her to see above the council's
raised counter, piped up. "We advertised that we were
offering doctors a second chance, didn't we?"
"A second chance to live in a friendly, affordable town
and escape from practicing corporate medicine," said the
mayor, Olivia's husband, Archie Rockwell, who owned the
feed store. "Not a second chance to seduce someone's
husband."
"How about a second chance to prove she cares about
patients and isn't afraid to stick her neck out?" Mae Anne
retorted.
"A recovering alcoholic needs a second chance, too," Ethan
observed. "And he's been clean for a couple of years."
Archie frowned. "I'm with Ethan on this one. Seducing a
patient's husband β that's a serious allegation."
"Maybe she was conducting sex therapy," cracked Gwen
Martin. The peppery cafΓ© owner lived by the dictum that
nobody over fifty should hesitate to speak her mind. "For
Pete's sake, the hospital board cleared her."
"We didn't advertise for no sex therapist," grumbled 79-
year-old Beau Johnson, who maintained a colloquial way of
speaking despite his stature as grocery store owner and a
descendant of the town's founder.
"It's not a matter of yea or nay on Dr. Vine. We have an
excellent choice in Dr. Gregory," observed Mayor Rockwell,
keeping a wary eye on his wife. Olivia ruled her family as
firmly as she ruled the town's elementary and high school
in her consolidated role as the town's principal.
"We have to be careful. A controversy like this could tear
our town apart!" cried the council's fifth member, Rosie
O'Bannon, owner of the Snip 'N' Curl salon. Since she was
given to making dire pronouncements that hardly ever came
true, no one bothered to answer.
"Let's put it to a vote," the mayor said. "I know some
folks in the audience have to get up early in the morning
to tend to their farms, so do I hear a motion?"
"I move we hire Dr. Jenni Vine," Gwen said.
"Second," said Mae Anne.
"Discussion?" the mayor asked, following the
formalities. "We already had one," Beau snipped.
The vote split three-to-two, women against men. That
surprised Ethan, who'd expected Downhome's ladies to
reject a potential predator in their midst.
In any case, the decision had been made. Dr. Vine would be
offered the position.
As the meeting broke up, he tried not to show his
disappointment. Although the physician might have been
falsely accused, Ethan had always had a knack for sizing
people up, and his instincts told him that their new
doctor was materialistic, spoiled and accustomed to
charming her way out of difficulties.
"Well, Ethan?" Olivia asked as she collected her purse.
"Think you can get used to a liberated lady in a white
coat?"
"I'd hoped whoever we hired would work on the outreach
program, but she didn't show much interest when I
mentioned it." He shrugged. "As for my son...Nick's
medical team is in Nashville. We only contact the local
doctor if there's an emergency."
"That's your answer? That you're going to avoid her?" the
principal challenged.
"Quite the opposite. I keep my eye on everything that
happens in Downhome. But I expect she'll soon get tired of
playing Marcus Welby and find a job closer to a shopping
mall."
Nearby, Karen straightened after retrieving her pencil.
She bestowed a brief glare on Ethan before heading off.
He wished he hadn't made such a tactless remark in Karen's
hearing. She apparently identified with Dr. Vine, perhaps
because both were single women in their early
thirties...or because her family was no stranger to
questionable accusations.
Well, the time had come to switch from cop to daddy and
collect Nick from his grandma's house. At this hour, Ethan
could expect only a sleepy hug as he tucked Nick into bed,
but maybe he'd get lucky and hear a five-year-old's recap
of the day's events.
He decided not to worry about Karen's reaction. By the
time Dr. Vine arrived, his comments would be old news.
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