Secret of the Wolf (32 page)

surprised to learn that the girl Mr. Ingram searched for was a patient of yours.”

At the moment, Johanna had scant interest in sorting out his motives. "Perhaps you had

better start from the beginning.”

"Of course." He sat down and regarded her earnestly. "I had only recently come to San

Francisco, with the intention of remaining a few months, when I met Mr. Ingram at a

social occasion. You must have heard of him: He is a prominent banker in the city.”

Yes, she knew that much. Mr. Chester Ingram was a powerful man of great influence,

no doubt. "Go on," she said
.

"While we were talking, I told Mr. Ingram of my theories involving hypnosis. Mr. Ingram

expressed regret that I had not been on hand to look after his wife two years ago, when

she ran off with their daughter and disappeared. It seemed that Mrs. Ingram, having

become mentally unstable, had labored under the delusion that her life was in danger,

though she'd had everything a woman could desire.”

Everything of material goods, he meant. "Was her condition diagnosed as insanity?”

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"You must know as well as anyone," Bolkonsky said gravely. "Did you not meet her

yourself?”

"Yes." There was no point in denying it now. "I did not find her to be insane, merely

frightened.”

"Ah." Bolkonsky was a little less cool than before, which hardly rectified his less-than-

honorable behavior. Johanna did not trust his cordiality. "Mr. Ingram deeply missed his

wife and daughter, and since May was subject to hysterical fits, he was most worried

that she would not be suitably cared for. During most of the past two years he had

believed both of them unrecoverable. He but recently discovered that May might still be

in the area, and was having the possibility investigated
.

"A few days later, he informed me that his daughter was a patient at a small private

clinic in the Napa Valley, one administrated by the daughter of Dr. Wilhelm Schell.

Naturally, I told him what I knew of your family's spotless reputation. He asked me if I

might approach you about releasing his daughter into his care, so as to minimize the

girl's discomfort. It is his desire that I should continue any treatment that may be

necessary in light of what she has suffered.”

At least Bolkonsky was aware that some trauma might have been involved. He surely

underestimated it
.

"I see," she said. "I believe I understand." Coldness seeped into her stomach. "It is true

that Mrs. Ingram came to me two years ago, in an extreme state of distress, and

begged me to look after her daughter, who was indeed suffering from hysteria. She said

she was running from great danger, and could not care for May under the circum-

stances. I took the girl in. Mrs. Ingram asked me to promise not to reveal May's location,

or her true name, until such time as she returned.”

"But she did not come back.”

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"No." Johanna wasn't giving Bolkonsky a whit more information than she had to, and

that included news of Mrs. Ingram's recent letter hinting at an expeditious return from

Europe
.

Bolkonsky shook his head. "It is a measure of your good heart and devotion to our

profession that you have maintained the child at your own expense. Now that is no

longer necessary. I know that you must have accepted Mrs. Ingram's mad tales, or you

would have contacted May's father long ago.”

Mad tales. Her intuition had long since told her otherwise
.

"She was May's mother. I had no reason to disbelieve her, and I fully expected her to

come back within a few months.”

"Of course." Bolkonsky smiled. "You could only offer help to those in need, and maintain

your doctor's confidentiality. But now you can hear the truth. I have spoken at great

length with May's father. His wife was profoundly disturbed, from a family with a history

of madness. Mr. Ingram had her under a doctor's care, but he was unsuccessful in

curing her madness. Due to the lapses of an inattentive servant, she escaped with May

before dawn one morning.”

And made her way, evidently, to the Napa Valley. "I have seen many patients with such

delusions," Johanna said
.

"And sometimes it is difficult to tell where delusion ends and reality begins. But May has

been without a parent for two years. There is a certain fear that she might inherit her

mother's madness, due to her tendency toward hysteria—”

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"May is not mad." Johanna gathered her feet under her and thought better of it. Be

calm. Do not let him see your anger. He must believe you his ally, not his enemy. "She

has not suffered an hysterical episode for a year.”

"If she is cured of hysteria, Mr. Ingram and I have you to thank.”

"Perhaps. But she still suffers from extreme shyness and a fear of the outside world,

particularly men. You propose to take her from the Haven at a very critical time.”

Bolkonsky nodded with obvious sympathy. "I would prefer to leave her in your care and

make the transition very slowly, but Mr. Ingram is eager to be reunited with the daughter

he'd thought lost. I anticipated the awkwardness of this, and asked that we continue in

consultation with you, and with all due caution, so as not to upset May unduly. Mr.

Ingram has agreed.”

Johanna bit the inside of her lip. In spite of Bolkonsky's mild words, she had no doubt

that he meant what he said. A parent had legal rights to his child that she, as a doctor,

did not
.

Johanna had never known how Mrs. Ingram had heard of the Haven, then so newly

founded in the Valley, or why she'd given a strange doctor so much trust. But Johanna

had been determined not to betray that trust
.

If even half of what Johanna suspected were true, she dared not allow May to go back

to her father
.

There was the chance, however slight, that she was wrong, and Mrs. Ingram was truly

unstable. Johanna hadn't had time to assess the woman's condition properly. She'd

taken action based upon her own experience of similar cases over the years—upon

that, and May's hysterical state
.

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She had no facts, only supposition. Bolkonsky believed Mr. Ingram—or so he said. Only

yesterday she'd judged the foreign doctor of sound mind and good heart, but her

opinion of him had sunk considerably in twenty-four hours. Her previous trust was out of

the question
.

That was grounds enough to proceed with extreme caution
.

"I am glad to hear that Mr. Ingram recognizes the necessity of moving slowly, for May's

sake," she said. "She has come to regard the Haven as her home. She will not do well if

she is forced to leave abruptly.”

"Quite understandable." Feodor had returned to his former elegant poise, leaving

Johanna no doubt as to his confidence. "Between the two of us, I'm certain that we can

achieve this in the best way possible." He reached for Johanna's hands. "Together,

Johanna. You and I will work together to help May and reunite her with her loving father.

I shall consider it a privilege.”

Johanna withdrew her hand before he could make contact. "I think that it might be best

if you come to the Haven to visit May before we proceed further. I feel certain that when

you see her, you will—”

"That will not be advisable. As you said, the Haven has been her home for two years.

Neutral ground would be better. I suggest that you bring May to me here at the hotel. I

have large and comfortable rooms that can serve for any examination or necessary

treatment.”

Johanna gazed at him through narrowed eyes. He was prevaricating. May would be

better off being evaluated at the Haven, but Johanna sensed that Bolkonsky did not

wish to visit her home for reasons of his own. Still, this was not the time to raise

objections. She must save her ammunition, and buy time
.

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"I will need to prepare her for coming into town. In a week—”

"I'm afraid her father will not be content to wait so long. He is exerting a certain pressure

upon me to act promptly. It must be tomorrow.”

Such coercion explained Bolkonsky's earlier signs of anger. No doubt he disliked being

pressured by a client; he was a man who expected to get his own way. How foolish

she'd been to be dazzled by him
.

And this was the end of her hopes about finding Quentin a good, fully impartial doctor to

continue his treatment. Transferring him to Bolkonsky was now out of the question
.

"Tomorrow is too soon," she said. "I must insist—”

"I'm sorry, Johanna. You'll see the wisdom of this, I feel sure. I fear that if we do not do

as he asks, Mr. Ingram may involve the law

and neither one of us wishes that.”

Johanna recognized a threat when she heard one. "There is one thing I will not allow,

and that is May being hurt. If at any time I feel that she is harmed by this, I will stop it.”

Bolkonsky withdrew a step. "You do realize that her father has complete authority over

his own child.”

"I meant what I said.”

"You could not do otherwise." He tossed back his golden hair in an arrogant gesture. "I

continue to admire your professional devotion.”

This Feodor Bolkonsky was fully capable of mockery. "May and I will meet with you, as

you requested," she said, "but I shall expect to see Mr. Ingram privately for an

examination of my own. Then I shall determine if and when she is fit to meet her father.”

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"Agreed. Shall I expect you and Miss Ingram here tomorrow at one o'clock?”

May's voluntary appearance was a preferable alternative to her seizure from the Haven

by force. "We'll be here.”

"Then I shall bid you adieu, so that you will have the time you need with Miss Ingram. I

am sorry that our other business has been delayed, but I hope we shall have future

opportunities to discuss your other patients." He tipped his hat, clicked his heels, and

strode from the room
.

He was annoyed, the polished Dr. Bolkonksy, that she had dared to argue with him. But

he expected to prevail. Why should he not, in dealing with a woman?

He did not know her. And she was well aware that her most dangerous opponent was

May's father, not this foppish physician who so excelled in manipulation and deception
.

Daisy seemed to sense Johanna's worry as they drove back to the Haven. Half-formed

plans were already hatching in Johanna's mind, ranging from the deliberate to the

desperate. Finding solid proof of Ingram's alleged improprieties with his daughter and

facing the influential businessman in a court of law was certainly one of the more

desperate, if it came to that
.

But deliberation won. The best scheme was to delay Bolkonsky and Ingram until firm

arrangements could be made—arrangements for May's safety. Let Bolkonsky and

Ingram believe she was cooperating. Resistance too soon would arouse their

suspicions
.

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If there was even a grain of truth in Bolkonsky's claims of Mrs. Ingram's madness,

Johanna much preferred to err on the side of caution. May could always be returned—if,

against all Johanna's instincts, Ingram proved to be worthy of his daughter
.

May was almost old enough to live on her own, but her mind was still that of a

frightened girl. She was not ready for the world. She would do best residing with

someone she could learn to trust, if she had to leave the Haven. Someone who could

hide her as long as necessary
.

May's precarious situation would consume all Johanna's time and effort from now until

this matter of Mr. Ingram was satisfactorily resolved. The other patients would have to

wait. And Quentin

She had no choice but to put his treatment aside until she found another suitable doctor.

That might take weeks, or months—every day a test of her will. She could only hope

that his condition didn't worsen
.

She unharnessed Daisy, gave her a measure of grain, and started toward the house.

May was not in the garden or, as far as she could see, in the orchard or vineyard. In the

full heat of the day, the patients were apt to be resting in their rooms
.