The Imposter (Alexandra Destephano Book 2) Read online

  Alex sat quietly and said nothing. She knew it was a losing conversation.

  Commander Françoise placed his big, callused hand over the psychiatrist's small, manicured one. He said to her, "Monique, you've got to calm down some. Things are terrible, but for us to help Angie and her family, we've got to get ourselves together. You're an important player in this. Right, Alex?"

  "Right, Jack." Alex looked at Monique. "I agree with everything you say, Monique. You're singing to the choir. Don't forget, I'm a nurse! I've been on your side the entire time about everything -- about relocating the Pavilion, putting up lights, increasing staff. This will give us an opportunity to really address these things and make some changes. Let's take the lead on this for now. First things first"

  Dr. Desmond retorted angrily, “Alex, don't give me any of that psychobabble. That's my job!” Monique hesitated for a moment, thinking. Then, she said to Jack and Alex, her voice uncharacteristically sarcastic, "So what did the esteemed leaders of the hospital do for the psychiatric service? They contracted it out and gave us to strangers to manage. People who have no knowledge of New Orleans, our culture, heritage, or diversity. Give me a break! We now have contract management in psychiatry, which is inadequate to say the very least, and the patient care conditions, safety, and units are less safe now than they were last year. This is totally pathetic and self-serving of hospital administration. The contract administrator has actually cut staffing."

  Monique paused briefly and continued angrily, her voice becoming higher and higher, "I'm sure the bottom line has come up. The place is probably making money now, but what a dump. That contract administrator, Lester Whitset, looks like a patient. He even gives me the creeps. I’d like to give him a frontal lobotomy.” Monique tossed her head angrily, her dark hair bobbing, her tone of voice acrimonious.

  Alex and Jack sat quietly and watched the conflicting emotions trail across Monique's usually well-controlled face.

  After several very long moments, Monique finally reached for Alex's hand and squeezed it. "I'm sorry and you're right, Alex. I'm overwhelmed and incredibly tired and I am being a total bitch. Angie shouldn't be fighting for her life and her husband shouldn’t be wondering if their young daughter will ever have the mother that she once knew. The whole thing just stinks and I hate that it's happened. And even though I've got concerns about Lester and the contract management group that is handling CCMC’s psychiatric services, they came well recommended and are leaders in Behavioral Health Services. Perhaps I am over-exaggerating, but it seems to me our administration and the contract management service is much more concerned with money than with patient and staff safety. I'm afraid that with our growing, acutely ill, psych population we could be in for more trouble, particularly with health reform coming on board. The delivery system they've implemented is simply not safe for our patient population. We are the only inpatient facility in the state that houses such dangerous psychotics and the criminally insane. It is truly a dangerous place."

  Alex nodded and said, "I couldn't agree more and I couldn't be more concerned. Let's meet soon and talk about it. I've been concerned about the Pavilion for several months. Plan on my office at 10 o'clock tomorrow, okay?"

  "You've got it, Alex. If things settle down, I'll be there. Do you want to invite Favre? For what it's worth, I'm sure it will be a waste of our time, but a lot of the safety issues obviously concern the nursing staff."

  Alex shook her head negatively and shrugged her shoulders. "When has she ever helped the nursing staff? Why would we even want to include her? Let's get Dr. Ashby." Alex stared at Monique strangely. "I am surprised you asked, Monique. Do you really want her at the meeting?"

  "Hell, no! I don't want her," Monique retorted. "She's been a pain in my butt for years. I have loathed her from the first day I met her, but we should have her there. If we can get her on our side ...."

  Jack grinned at Monique and said sheepishly, "Come on, Monique. Don't hold back. Tell us how you really feel!" Jack and Monique started to laugh and Alex joined them in their laughter.

  "You're right, everything you say is correct, Monique. I guess we should invite her because it's politically correct and her role should concern the safety of all staff." Alex hesitated for a moment and continued, "We’ll have to include her, it's the best thing to do. She'll be mad as a hornet if we don't and we will hear about it." Alex’s tone of voice was almost apologetic as she looked at Monique, who was once again seething with anger at the very thought of Betty Favre.

  "Invite the obstructionist bitch, I don't give a damn. I'm going over to the Pavilion. Call me if there's any change in Angie’s condition." Monique grabbed her lunch tray and slammed it on the tray rack as she headed towards the door.

  Alex and Jack looked at each other in amazement as Monique exited the cafeteria.

  Jack spoke first, "Man, I've never seen Monique so blown away. This just isn't like her at all. I sure hope she gets it together."

  "She will," Alex assured him. "This is Monique's worst nightmare. She has been waiting for something like this to happen for months and now it has and she feels responsible. Trust me, that's exactly what's going on here because that's the way she is. Jack, by any chance, did you check out that guy, Lester, who is managing the psych services? I've never seen him or met him but I hear he's pretty weird. If you haven't, maybe you should question him."

  "Not to worry, Alex. I'm questioning everyone and he is for sure on my list."

  "Good," Alex said looking thoughtful and continued, "Let's see what the psych team puts together. There may be inpatients who have a history of rape or assault. We should know more about them later and we also need to do a historical chart review of former psychiatric patients who have been on the unit. What do you think?"

  Françoise was slow to respond. He stared at his coffee and looked longingly at the plate that held his jelly donut.

  Alex could tell by the look in his eye that he really, really wanted it.

  "Well, I don't quite know what to make of this crime yet … this guy is a pervert who crosses the categories of defined rapist. If you’ve got a few minutes later on today, a representative from our sexual crimes division will be coming over to the Pavilion, sometime around lunch time. We're going to meet in the executive conference room. Why don't you join us if you can."

  Alex glanced down at her watch. "It's almost noon now. Would you be willing to meet in my office, since I don't have a secretary or administrative assistant today? I really need to get back to see what's going on."

  Jack looked hesitant for several moments.

  Knowing Jack as she did, Alex added, "I'll have lunch sent into my conference room. Does that help you make up your mind,” Alex asked, smiling.

  "It absolutely does. You win. You know I'll never turn down a free CCMC lunch, particularly if Don Montgomery is footing the bill and won't be attending. I’m gonna make tracks over to the Pavilion and pick up Nadine. She's our sexpert -- you know, our expert on sex crimes," Jack added hastily, noting the frown on Alex's face.

  Alex's voice was frosty as she said, "Jack please don't use that word. Let's just refer to her as an expert on sexual crimes. In some way it sounds demeaning, the word "sexpert". To me, it sounds demeaning to both Nadine and Angie."

  Jack looked forlorn. He hated it when Alex corrected him or seemed disappointed. "Okay, okay, okay, you got it. I didn't mean to sound disrespectful," Jack said quietly as he rose to leave.

  Alex smiled at him and teased, "It's okay, Jack. I'll forgive you this one time, but only this one time. Now get your butt moving over to the Pavilion and then get it back over here for lunch."

  Jack stood and said, "Will do. See you shortly." He saluted her on the way out.

  Chapter 8

  After placing her tray on the rack, Alex headed towards her office but decided to stop in hospital administration on the way.

  Latetia, Don Montgomery's secretary, was working quietly at her desk. She looked up at Alex sadly and said, "M
s. Alex, how are Bridgett and Angie? I just heard a little while ago and it's just awful. Do you think Angie will be okay? I just know Bridgett must be terribly upset. Is there anything that I can do?" Latetia's liquid brown eyes were kind and reflected deep concern for her friends.

  "Latetia, Angie's in surgery and you're right, Bridgett is beyond herself with grief. I wish there was something that we could do to help her and her family, but right now I think it's just a game of waiting and watching and praying." Alex watched Latetia's eyes overflow with tears as she moved from behind her desk to give her a hug.

  "Sure, sure. I know you're right. We are planning to send food to Bridgett's mom's house for the next week or so. Check the Meals to Go in your email so you can participate. I'm sure that Bridgett and Angie's mom will be keeping the baby. I would imagine that Bridgett, her husband, and Angie's husband will want to be at the hospital."

  "The food is a great idea and I'm happy to participate. Love the idea of the Meals to Go. By the way, do you think you can find me a temp while Bridgett is out? I would anticipate she will be out for several weeks."

  "Sure. Want me to try for Mona again?"

  Alex nodded in approval and said, "Yeah. That would be great. She was pretty good during those several weeks last month when Bridgett and her family were vacationing on the Gulf Coast. And she knows me. That's half the battle right there."

  "I'll do my best, Ms. Alex," Latetia said, reaching for her temporary staff file.

  "Thanks. By the way, what's Don doing? Does he have anyone in his office?” Alex added, as she inclined her head towards the executive's office.

  Latetia glanced at her phone. "He was on the phone, but now he seems to have hung up. By the way, you may want to think twice about going in there. He's in a pretty foul mood, so you might want to be careful. The July revenue projections came in and they were low, much lower than we expected." Checking out the look on Alex's face, Latetia added, "Are you sure you want to go in? I wouldn't if I didn't have to. I'm actually thinking about taking the afternoon off to get away from him," she smiled, rolling her eyes. "I know you. You're always up for making him mad,” she teased.

  "Yeah, I'm going in. He doesn't scare me anymore. It'll only take a minute and will make his day much worse," Alex added as she moved towards the door and knocked.

  "Oh, that's just great. Thanks a bunch, Alex." Latetia groaned, as Alex knocked on the CEOs door.

  "Enter." Don Montgomery was seated behind his massive, walnut desk, his head buried in computer printouts. He looked surprised and irritated at Alex's interruption.

  "Alex, do we have a meeting?" He quickly scanned his Outlook calendar on his computer. "Nope, we don't. I didn't think so." He looked smugly at his legal counsel, always happy to be right and one up on the lovely attorney. "What do you want? I'm pretty busy." Don glanced at Alex briefly and returned to his papers, a blatant act of dismissal. When Alex didn't comply by his watch then looked at her again and said angrily, "Really, Ms. Destephano! I am very busy, and I don't have time for you to stand there and gawk at me."

  Alex felt anger creep up her spine and said, "No, Don. We don't have a formal meeting scheduled, but we do have a situation we must discuss. "

  "Let it wait. I'm preparing for the next trustees’ meeting."

  Alex's impatience could be heard in her voice. "That meeting is two weeks away. There's lots of time to work on that. I want to talk to you about Angela Richelieu, now.

  Don looked up, irritated. "What? Who?"

  "Angela Richelieu, the nurse who was attacked, beaten, and raped last night between the Psychiatric Pavilion and the parking deck."

  Don was clearly annoyed. "Oh yeah, her. What a pain. Bette Favre told me about it. Too bad. Tawdry affair. Deal with it, you're the hospital’s lawyer." Don shook his head, dismissed the incident quickly and returned to his printouts.

  Alex was furious at the nonchalance in Don's voice. She glared at him, her anger reflected in her face. Montgomery was a pompous man, a real horse’s ass, a weak, self-serving leader and completely useless in times of stress. Alex had hoped he would leave Crescent City Medical Center after a conspiracy against the hospital earlier in the year had nearly put the medical center out of business. Unfortunately, Don had siphoned bits and pieces of the catastrophe and used it to his advantage. He'd given several interviews to the press and had emerged in the news as a media hero -- a man intent on saving his hospital, preserving quality, and keeping it private and solvent in the changing health care environment. Don was a proverbial cat, always landing on his feet.

  Alex 's voice was calm, but forceful, as she addressed him. "Don, this situation is precarious. Angela Richelieu has been an employee at CCMC for years and is an excellent nurse. She's in the O.R. right now, fighting for her life. The hospital could be at fault here for not providing her safe access to her car …."

  The CEO interrupted her rudely, "That's bullshit, Alex. Favre told me that all the nurses had been instructed to call for a security escort after hours. She did not. It's her fault if she was raped. It certainly is not the fault of the hospital."

  Alex wanted to jump over his desk and rip out his carotid arteries. "You're wrong, Don. Totally wrong. How appalling you are." Alex's voice was clipped. "Her fault? How could it possibly be her fault? That's ludicrous."

  Montgomery dismissed her, "Really, Alex, I am pretty busy. Can you make an appointment with Latetia." H picked up his phone to make a call.

  Alex's fury mounted. "Really, Don. Are you this dumb? How do you think a jury would view this? We've got a nurse who stayed overtime for three hours and didn't get paid for it because the hospital no longer pays nurses, or anyone, for overtime. She stayed late because of patient violence on the unit. Then she's raped and beaten on the way to her car ... really, Don. For God's sake, what is wrong with you? Think about it. It's not a pretty picture."

  Don was quiet for a moment, obviously thinking.

  Alex continued, "We've had numerous meetings about the safety of staff, patients, and visitors traveling between the Psych Pavilion and the main hospital. We've had tons of complaints from physicians, nurses and visitors that are on record. We've got to make some changes. I'd like a meeting this afternoon with Dr. Desmonde and the administrator that manages behavioral health under the contract agreement. Elizabeth needs to be there as well, as does Dr. Ashley. We have to handle this appropriately with the media."

  Don interrupted her, "No way, Alex. Not going to happen today. I'm too busy. What is it that you don't understand? I am busy! I am running this hospital and I don't have time to stop for a stupid, 'called' meeting. Forget it."

  "No, I'm not. It's a huge image concern and we all know how you worry about ...." Alex said, her voice trailing off momentarily, “…. The hospital's image.” With these words, Alex hit her boss where it hurt him the most. Don lived and breathed, breathed and lived, CCMC’s image. It was his lifeblood because, after all, it was his hospital and no one else had anything to do with the place.

  Don straightened up and looked alert. "Huh, an image thing. How's that?" Don was thinking. Nothing got his attention more quickly than an incident that could affect the world-class image of CCMC.

  Alex seized the opportunity. "Heavens yes, yes, definitely an image concern. And, mull this over, Don, there is a distinct possibility that the attacker could be either a patient or, even worse, a hospital employee.”

  "What, what kind of bullshit is that, Alex? All of our staff have criminal checks done on them. It couldn't be an employee," Don retorted angrily, a self-righteous smirk on his face. "Sometimes I cannot understand why we pay you the big bucks. You'll get your meeting at 3:00. Here in my office. Now get out of here," Don said disparagingly, pointing towards the door.

  Alex knew she had been dismissed, but continued to stare at the CEO, noting his impeccably coiffed hair and custom-tailored suit. She reminded herself again that the man didn't give a flip about anything except how much money the place made. He'd told her earlier tha
t he considered patients and staff "widgets" and his job was to make the widgets work as cheaply as possible and, at all costs, make the widgets productive. Alex closed the door tightly as she left.

  Latetia shook her head as Alex reemerged from the Lion's Den. "That went well, right? From what I could hear, it was pretty loud in there."

  "Yep. I ruined his day," she proudly told Latetia.

  Latetia smiled, gave her a thumbs up and told her that Mona would be in after lunch.

  Alex thanked her and walked slowly to her office, deep in thought about the difficulties surrounding the hospital and medical center.

  Chapter 9

  Alex relaxed in the inner sanctum of her office. She laid her head on her desk for a few moments to fight off the headache she always seemed to notice after meeting with Montgomery. She had just called the O.R. to check on Angie and ordered lunch from dietary when Jack Françoise entered her office, accompanied by a trim, dark-haired woman. Alex judged the woman to be about 35 years old. She stood behind her desk, smiled, and extended her hand in greeting to the woman as she said, “Hi, I'm Alex. Please sit down."

  Françoise made the introductions. "Alex, this is Nadine Wells. She is an investigator and the NOPD expert on rape and sexual crimes. She is a forensic nurse analyst. Nadine, this is Alex. She is the legal counsel for CCMC. She's O.K. ... for a lawyer, I guess." Françoise grinned and winked at Alex.

  Alex waved her hand to quiet Jack. "Hi, Nadine. I am a lawyer, but most of all, I'm a nurse. I don't know why Jack never says that when he introduces me," Alex said, giving Jack a reproving look.

  "Whoops, sorry, Alex." Jack apologized for the second time that day.

  "It's nice to meet you, Ms. Destephano. The Commander has spoken highly of you." Nadine Wells accepted Alex's hand.

  Alex was a bit confused and wondered who the "Commander" was. Oh, yes, Jack's new job. But Jack wasn't doing anything differently as the Commander than he had done as a Captain. "Please, Nadine, call me Alex. It took me a moment to remember who the Commander was." She gave Jack a teasing glance. "I'm not much on formality. Do you have any information on the possible rapist?" She looked hopefully at Nadine, admiring her petite looks, her fresh appearance, and the fact that she was a nurse and a forensic expert.