"My concern right now," Ellen said, "is the people who work under us. I don't think pulling an ostrich number is going to protect anybody. We've got to get out of denial and face up to how serious this might get. And I'll tell you our number one priority right now. If Katherine Starr walks out of here before the Kristen problem is cleared up and gets the ear of someone in the media, then everybody who works here . . . Let's just say we mustn't allow that to happen. That's why we're having this meeting."
"Are you suggesting we should keep her . . . sedated?" Mary asked. "All her medications have to be approved by—"
"No sedative should be listed on her chart and I'm not telling you what to do, but use your imagination."
There was a moment of silence as the implications of the unspoken order settled in.
"And starting immediately, we need to hold a meeting of the staff on each floor and impress on them that the story of Katherine Starr must never leave this building. Ever. Remind everybody that that would be a serious violation of a staffer's original security agreement and would subject them to legal action the likes of which they can't even begin to imagine. And if somebody comes around asking questions about Kristen Starr, nobody here knows anything. We can say she was here because that's part of the record and she is no longer here. End of statement. Beyond that, nobody knows zip."
This problem is far from over, Ellen told herself. God only knows how it's going to end.
Wednesday, April 8
3:22 p.m.