Room 414 smelled of iodine and old flowers. Dana, the night nurse, set down the morning chart and stopped cold. Mara was already there, her administrator badge catching the light, her lanyard crooked like she'd dressed in a hurry. In the bed lay Eli Voss, oxygen tube under his nose, eyes half open. "You shouldn't be in here," Dana said. Mara didn't move. "We need to talk before he wakes up."

Dana decided she wanted no part of this. "I'm calling security," she said, reaching for the wall phone. Mara crossed the room in two steps and pressed her hand flat over it. "Please. Five minutes. Then I'll go, and you can pretend you never saw me here."

Before Mara could speak again, the door opened. A second administrator, Reyes, stepped in holding a tablet. "Mara. There you are. We need you upstairs." His eyes moved to the bed, then to the paper poking out of Mara's blazer. Mara froze.

Reyes held out his hand. "What's that paper, Mara?" The room went silent except for the hiss of Eli's oxygen. Mara's whole story hung on her next word. She could lie to one administrator, Dana thought, but Reyes already knew about the buried reports, because he didn't look surprised at all.

Mara handed over the paper. Her hand shook. Reyes read one line, then looked at her with tired disgust. "I told you to fix this quietly. Not steal from a dying man." He turned to Dana. "Make him comfortable. And you, write down exactly what you saw tonight." Mara was led out, and Dana finally exhaled.