Chapter 57 The Doctor and the Gangster
EMILY
"When my car pulled up to the Etland Building earlier, I saw Silas Hunt groveling on the pavement in front of you. Why was a violent street thug begging for your time?"
Dr. Aris blinks at me and for a second, I think he’s not going to answer my question. I see the tick in his jaw and the diversion of his eyes. I know I should have tried to mind my business about the whole scene. I know that it’s probably a personal matter. But I know both Dr. Aris and Silas Hunt.
Before the incident, I would never have even pictured the two men in the same building, let alone speaking to each other. I need to know what’s going on.
Seeing a ruthless street predator reduced to a groveling mess changes your entire perspective on power.
Dr. Aris finally sighs and settles into his chair. I set my empty water glass on the crisp white tablecloth and clean my clammy palms against my cloth.
The crystal makes a sharp clink in the quiet, exclusive atmosphere of Bordeaux 101.
He lets out another slow, heavy sigh. He picks up his linen napkin, folding it into a neat square.
"I really wish you hadn’t seen that," he says first. Being seen with a man like that is a stain on my reputation."
"So what really happened?"
"Silas Hunt is a local tyrant," Dr. Aris says. He keeps his voice low, leaning closer over the table. "He runs protection rackets and illegal gambling dens in the eastern district. He does all sorts of evil deeds. But surprisingly, he’s a fiercely filial son."
Because of how frequently I find myself in hostile situations, my brain has formed the habit of connecting dots as fast as possible. Even before someone says what they actually want to say, I try to find the answer on my own.
"Silas Hunt was begging you for some kind of medical treatment, wasn’t he?"
I ask almost immediately.
My mind jumps to my own goals. I want to cure heart conditions. I want to build a safe life for myself and my unborn baby. No matter how terrible a person is, they must have goals. Something or someone they care about, a height they are trying to attain, or at least even someone they want to surpass.
Silas must have someone that he cares about too. Someone that he wants to save. It is a strange, unsettling parallel between me and a man I completely despise. There’s a feeling in my chest that I’m not ready to acknowledge just yet.
"His mother has a severe, late-stage heart condition," Dr. Aris explains. "And don’t get me wrong, I’ll be more than happy to see her. I don’t discriminate against my patients, regardless of who their children are. I hold regular public clinic hours every Monday morning at the university hospital. I see absolutely everyone who walks through my door, regardless of their background or wealth. The only requirement is a standard appointment."
"Oh," I say, once again connecting the dots. "Silas Hunt doesn’t strike me as a man who makes appointments," I reply.
Dr. Aris lets out a dry, humorless chuckle and shakes his head. "He certainly doesn’t. Last month, he barged right into my examination room while I was attending to a patient. He dragged his mother past the waiting patients and demanded I drop everything to examine her. Of course, I refused. I called the hospital security team and had them physically removed from the premises."
I picture the scene. Silas Hunt is used to intimidating pizza shop owners like Aunt Cherry. He expected an older doctor to cower.
"He didn’t take that rejection well," Dr. Aris continues. His silver hair catches the bright sunlight pouring through the glass. "Two days later, Silas and his thugs ambushed me in the hospital parking garage. They threw me into the back of a van and kidnapped me."
My jaw drops and every single shred of sympathy I was feeling for Silas Hunt flows right out of the window and into the busy streets to be crushed by a moving car.
I look over at Leo. The massive bodyguard shifts his weight slightly, his dark eyes narrowing at the mention of the kidnapping. He stands perfectly still, but the muscles in his neck tighten.
"Silas Hunt had you kidnapped?"
Dr. Aris nods and the next breath he takes is shaky. An incident like that can traumatize anyone. Even a renowned and well respect doctor.
"So they took you to his residence?" I ask. My voice drops to a bare whisper.
"To his private compound," Dr. Aris confirms and his voice is no longer shaking. He takes a sip of his sparkling water and now, he looks completely unbothered by the terrifying memory. One of the things I admire most about the doctor in this short period of knowing him is how perfectly he keeps his composure.
"He did all sorts of things to me, slowly graduating from violent, to desperate to pathetic. He locked me in a bedroom with his sick mother. He pulled a gun on me. He threatened to kill me, and he threatened to go after my entire family if I didn’t cure her right then and there. He told me I’d never see the light of day and that he’d cut my hands off so I could never work as a doctor again."
I grip the edge of the heavy wooden table. My raw thumbs throb slightly from my morning pistol training and I wish I were holding a pistol in my hands right now so I can threaten Silas just the way he did to Dr. Aris.
"So...what did you do?"
"Even though I was a little scared, I tried not to let it show. I was already enough at a disadvantage. I looked him dead in the eye," Dr. Aris says. His voice turns as hard as steel. "I told him he was making the biggest mistake of his miserable life. I informed him that if he harmed a single hair on my head, my colleagues would ensure he spent the rest of his natural life rotting in a federal prison. I refused to touch his mother under threat."
I stare at the older man. The level of absolute courage required to stand down a syndicate leader is staggering. Dr. Aris didn’t flinch. He held his ground even though that ground must have felt like sinking sand.
"Silas panicked," Dr. Aris adds. A small, triumphant smile touches his lips. "He finally realized he crossed a line he couldn’t walk back from. He understood that killing a prominent medical dean would bring the entire police force down on his syndicate. His anger completely evaporated. He practically begged for my forgiveness."
"So he let you go?"
"He had no other choice. He actually drove me back to my house himself. He opened the car door for me like a hired chauffeur. Ever since that night, he constantly pesters me. He waits outside my office. He tries to offer me bribes and curries favor, hoping I’ll forget the kidnapping and admit his mother to my surgical ward."
I sit back in my chair. The soft leather squeaks against my denim jacket. The puzzle pieces snap together. The man who threatened to ruin Aunt Cherry and the Vance family is currently spending his days groveling at the feet of a medical dean. The great Silas Hunt is powerless.
A sudden, ironic thought crosses my mind. I let out a soft laugh. "You know, Dr. Aris, you could just treat her. It would certainly get him off your doorstep."
Dr. Aris frowns. His thick eyebrows pull together, casting dark shadows over his eyes. "Absolutely not."
"I’m only joking," I say quickly. I hold my hands up in surrender. "I know you have principles. You can’t reward that kind of behavior."
"Saving lives is my fundamental duty as a physician," Dr. Aris says firmly. He taps his index finger against the white tablecloth for emphasis. "If Silas had walked into my clinic and spoken politely, I would’ve treated his mother without a second thought. I don’t care about his criminal record when a patient is suffering. But his behavior was entirely too arrogant."
I nod, understanding perfectly. Silas relies on fear. He tried to bully a man who holds the power of life and death.
"If I compromise now," Dr. Aris continues, "what message does that send to the outside world? It tells every single gangster and corrupt politician that they can kidnap an Etland University staff member to jump the transplant list. It tells them violence yields medical priority. That is a bad habit I simply can’t tolerate. I won’t set that precedent."
His logic is flawless. It mirrors my own desire to stand up to Thomas and Lydia Vance. If I give them an inch, they’ll take my entire cardiology formula and leave me with nothing. Boundaries must be absolute. I have to protect my independence and my unborn child. I can’t let anyone force my hand.
"There is a proper way to do things," Dr. Aris adds. He adjusts his suit jacket, preparing to stand. "If Silas had simply followed the normal registration process like every other citizen in this city, I never would’ve refused his mother. The rules apply to everyone."
I tilt my head. A strange detail sticks out to me. The Etland hospital registration process is straightforward. Anyone can fill out the forms online or at the front desk. For a man with deep syndicate pockets, getting a clinic slot should be incredibly easy. He could hire someone to wait in line for him.
"Wait," I say. I lean forward again, resting my elbows on the table. "I don’t understand. If all he needs is a simple appointment, why doesn’t he just register? He has plenty of money. Why is he spending his time groveling in the street instead of filling out the paperwork?"