Shadows on the Ivy Read Online Free Page A

the wall in back of the reception area.
    “Are you a relative?”
    “We’re all Sarah has,” said Dorothy, who had just joined Maggie at the desk. “We need to see her. Or her doctor.”
    “Mrs. Whitcomb, you’re always welcome here.” The blonde smiled, showing teeth perfected by orthodontia. “The doctors are with Ms. Anderson now. I’ll let them know you’re here.”
    “Thank you. We wouldn’t want to interfere in any way, of course,” added Dorothy.
    Maggie and Dorothy sat next to each other on the hard chairs that lined the waiting room under a mural of ivy climbing a wall.
    “You know the woman at the desk?” Maggie asked.
    “I’m on the hospital board,” explained Dorothy, straightening the pale mink coat she held across her lap. “I try to meet the staff whenever I can.”
    “Of course,” said Maggie. So Whitcomb House was not Dorothy’s only pet project.
    They sat silently, watching muted CNN on the television hung above the waiting area. A car had been bombed in the Middle East. A software company announced it was going into Chapter 11. The local forecast was for temperatures in the forties, with snow flurries later in the week. Words appeared along the bottom of the screen.
    Maggie looked at her watch. Almost eight.
    It was another forty minutes before a doctor appeared.
    “Mrs. Whitcomb? I’m Dr. Stevens.” A tall, middle-aged man with a receding hairline looked down at them. Dorothy and Maggie both stood.
    Dorothy shook his hand. “And this is Maggie Summer. Professor Summer. She’s Sarah Anderson’s campus adviser.”
    Dr. Stevens acknowledged Maggie’s presence with a slight nod. “I’m afraid Ms. Anderson is very ill. She’s in a coma.”
    “Oh, my heavens! What happened to her? What can be done?” Dorothy’s voice rose to an almost hysterical note. “She’s a single parent, Doctor. She has a little girl. Please don’t spare any expense.”
    “I assure you we’re doing everything that we can, Mrs. Whitcomb. She appears to have swallowed something she’s had a strong reaction to. We’ve pumped her stomach, and we’ve given her atropine. We’re admitting her to our intensive care unit and will monitor her condition constantly. Without knowing what she might have ingested, it’s hard to predict the future. Right now she’s a seriously ill young woman. She has no family?”
    Maggie shook her head. “Just a four-year-old daughter. Do you have any idea of what she might have eaten that would make her that sick?”
    “We can rule out some things, like alcohol, but it’s too early to tell. We’ve sent the contents of her stomach to our lab for analysis. Could either of you tell me where Ms. Anderson has been or what she has eaten? Does she have any food allergies? Does she takes any medications or drugs of any kind?”
    “No!” Dorothy’s voice was strong, but her natural high color had disappeared from her face. “She doesn’t take drugs! She doesn’t drink, she doesn’t smoke. She’s a fine young woman.”
    The doctor looked at Maggie.
    “I don’t know if she has any allergies. But as far as I know, Dorothy is right. I’ve never seen Sarah taking any medications or drugs. And I think she’s been in good health. We were all at a party at Dorothy’s house when Sarah collapsed. Everyone else was fine when we left. But I’ll talk to the students she lives with. They might know more.”
    “Anything you could find out would be helpful. You can reach me here at the hospital. Have me paged.”
    “Can we see her?” Dorothy asked.
    “Not right now. We’re in the middle of transferring her upstairs to the ICU.”
    Dorothy looked ready to say something else.
    “Mrs. Whitcomb, she wouldn’t know you were there. It’s best to let her be quiet for now, until we have a better sense of her condition. We’re doing the best we can.”
    “You’ll call me if her condition changes?”
    “I think it would be better if the doctor called me,” said Maggie, digging