Even if he hadn’t had the Golden Ticket in his hand, he would have turned her down. There was only one woman he wanted, and being with anyone else felt like a betrayal. “You go ahead and grab a sandwich. I think I’ll catch up on some work. I’ll see you back here in an hour.”

Just in case she didn’t get the message, he flipped open his laptop and started to type.

With a disappointed sigh, Karen left the room, leaving him finally and blissfully alone.

It took only a few minutes to log in and find Ranjeet’s file. And then he was lost in a sea of complaints related to Ranjeet’s alcohol problem, including sexual and verbal abuse of staff, inappropriate behavior, and the performance of his duties—including surgeries—while intoxicated. For the most part, hospital administrators appeared to have swept the complaints under the carpet. There was nothing about Nisha or the accident in the file.

“Is that the kind of guy you and Royce are worried might pose a risk to the company?” Karen asked from behind him.

Sam froze, his hands on the keyboard. He’d been so engrossed in the file he hadn’t even heard Karen come in. Now that she’d read the screen, lying wasn’t an option.

“Yes.”

“That’s pretty standard,” she said, taking a seat beside him. “Surgeons have a lot of power in the hospital, especially the ones who bring in a lot of money. The hospital will bend over backward to protect them so they don’t lose them to the competition. I’ll bet there isn’t even a disciplinary note on the file.”

“What if it were something more serious?” He scrolled down the page. “What if a physician committed a crime and the hospital covered it up? Would there be any records?”

Karen twisted her lips to the side. “If there is a serious liability issue for the hospital, the legal team gets involved. They’ll often have the file scrubbed and the details restricted to people at the highest level.” She looked over at him, considering. “Legal files can only be accessed by the legal team.”

“What about old security footage?” He was beyond caring if Karen knew what he was after. He’d already crossed a line by accessing the file.

“It’s stored off-site and not easily accessible.” She frowned. “Your computer access will likely have been limited to HR and employment files, finance, and corporate administration.”

“So that’s it. He wins.” Hope withered and died. Sam had dreamed of this moment for so long, he almost couldn’t believe that all his efforts and sacrifice had come to nothing. There were no answers, no justice, and there would be no redemption.

“What did he do?” Karen asked softly.

“He pushed my sister down a flight of stairs at this hospital and broke her back. She’s partially paralyzed and uses a wheelchair now.”

“Oh God, Sam.” Her hand flew to her mouth. “And the hospital covered it up?”

“My sister thinks so, and I believe her. I wanted to find the truth so she could have justice.”

Karen tapped the screen. “And it’s somewhere in there.”

“Or on a security tape or a witness statement . . . Someone knows what happened and may have been afraid to come forward, like you said. Or maybe there was no one else in that stairwell and only the two of them know what really happened.”

“This is outrageous.” Her lips pursed together. “We need to talk to someone.”

“No.” Sam shook his head. “I can’t do this anymore. I spent four years and lost everything trying to find the truth. I blamed myself for the longest time. I thought I should have seen what kind of man he was. I thought my family should have looked deeper into his background. But it’s clear he was very good at hiding his addiction, and what he couldn’t hide, the hospital covered up.”

And it would always be the same unless someone stepped up. He couldn’t turn back time for Nisha, and he couldn’t give her the justice or even the answers he had hoped for, but he could help to improve the system by returning to medicine and becoming a voice for change.

“If you feel you need to go to your manager and tell her I have a conflict of interest, or that I was looking at this file—”

“I don’t,” Karen said firmly. “Do you know why I got the kids in my divorce? It’s because my ex was just like this guy. He was a mean drunk, and I knew if I didn’t get out of there, he would turn his anger on the kids. You were only trying to help your sister, and I’m just sorry you didn’t find what you were looking for.”

“I did find something,” he said. “A way to forgive myself and move on with my life.”

Karen pulled out her keys. “We still have a bit of time before the next employee arrives . . .”

“Another time I would have said yes.” Sam gave her a warm smile. “But one of the things I lost was the woman I loved, and now I need to make things right.”

* * *

• • •

“SUNIL Singh. Hedge fund manager. Age thirty-five. Founder of Sunkey Capital. They employ eighty professionals in four countries and manage capital for foundations and high-net-worth individuals.”

Layla could hear Max barking at Daisy on the other end of the phone. Patel Personnel was now working out of a dog-friendly shared office space in Bernal Heights while they looked for a new place to set up shop.

“What’s wrong with Max?”

“He’s hungry for your mom’s pakoras. I don’t know what I’ll do when your parents move the restaurant to Sunnyvale. He’s developed Michelin-starred tastes.”

“The elevator just reached reception,” Layla told her. “I’m going in.”

“Maybe he’s the one.”

“I doubt it.” Layla took in the white backless leather sofas, glass-tiled floor, and the mural of a snow-covered mountain made of cotton balls. “His office looks like Elsa’s ice palace in Frozen.”

Layla announced herself at reception and poked at the cotton balls until Sunil’s personal assistant, dressed in an ice-blue suit, her long blond hair braided down her back, arrived to escort her to Sunil’s office.

Layla threw up a hand to shield her eyes from the sun shining through two floor-to-ceiling windows when the assistant opened the door. By squinting, she could make out the vague shape of a man behind a desk.

“Sunil Singh. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Could you lower the blinds?” Layla felt around for the chair and guided herself into the seat as the door closed behind her. “I need a visual of the man I’m considering for marriage.”