Heartless: a Derek Cole Mystery Suspense Thriller (Derek Cole Suspense Thriller Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

experiments they were planning on the soon-to-be-arriving new patient.
         
    While “the hub” was an excellent place for doctors to closely monitor each and every movement of the patients who once resided in Ward C, Straus realized that it was also an excellent place to monitor Michelle as she was making her final check of the medical supply cabinet.  
       
    “Looking forward to getting to know you a little bit better,” he said to himself as he moved closer to the two-way mirror. “I know all about what your husband did, and I know exactly what he left behind for you to deal with. A pile of dog crap. But don’t worry, Michelle,” he said as he headed out of the hub before his position was realized, “good old Doctor Straus will take care of you.”
         
    Doctor William Straus was made superintendent of Hilburn Psychiatric at the age of only twenty-seven. In his four years as “the boss,” he was focused on finding something, anything that would get his name in lights.
         
    He knew that sacrifices had to be made in order to achieve the greatness that he deserved and felt that if he was going to make sacrifices, others should as well.  
       
    “For the betterment of all mankind,” he would say when designing a new treatment plan or adapting one that didn’t produce the expected results.  
         
    Today, however, if what Peter Adams had told him was true, was the day when his hard work and countless sacrifices would pay off. If the baby he was expecting would reveal its secrets, William Straus would be a certain Nobel Prize winner, and his fame and fortune would be guaranteed.
       
    “This little freak better be what I am expecting,” he thought as he turned into the stairway and headed back down to the main floor.   Before his feet landed on the final step, his pager vibrated. The caller ID displayed by the tiny screen was from Jacob Curtis’s office phone.
         
    Straus walked into the nearest office he could find to dial Curtis’s extension.
       
    “Jacob, it’s William. I got your message,” he said.
       
    “They’re here.”
       
    “At the docks, I trust?”
       
    “At the docks.”
       
    “Five minutes.”

         
    The budget cuts had hit many NY State institutions hard over the years, and Hilburn Psychiatric was one of those hit. In an effort to cut spending, Straus had fired three of the five employees who manned the loading docks and moved the remaining two to part-time positions.
       
    “Our deliveries, or more precisely, or ability to order things to be delivered is a casualty of budget cuts, I’m afraid,” Straus announced to an all employee meeting less than eighteen months earlier. “We need to respond to these cuts while not jeopardizing the care we provide to our patients. With these cuts and our responsibility to our patients in mind, I have made the difficult decision to reduce our logistics team head count. We will only be receiving deliveries twice per week, and the loading docks will now be staffed only on those two days. Please plan accordingly when ordering approved supplies.
         
    “Thank you for your understanding and dedication to our patients.”
         
    Knowing that the docks would be vacant, Straus instructed Peter Adams to “drive all the way around the institution and follow the signs to the loading dock. I’ll have one of my trusted team members waiting for you there. His name is Jacob Curtis. He will page me when you arrive.”
       
    “You’ve thought of everything, haven’t you, William? Peter complimented.
       
    “Mostly everything.”

CHAPTER FIVE

    “What the hell took you so long? Henry asked, his gut full of beer.
       
    “It’s a long drive, Henry. And we would have been here an hour earlier if Stanley here hadn’t insisted on seeing where the baby was going to be kept.”
       
    “It didn’t feel right, just dropping the baby off and scurrying off like damn kidnappers. That place gave