"Alice, how can you compete with your own father? He has a point—if you join his hospital, even if you earned it yourself, people will gossip that he played favorites! You need to know how to avoid that. Don't ever go to his hospital again, you hear me?!"
"Don't worry, Aunt. I'll never go again. I've already cut him off!"
"Then I hope you'll practice what you preach! Next time your daughter's daughter-in-law's friend has a second baby, don't come crawling to him for hospital favors!"
I hung up on her mid-rant. Thinking about it now, Dad's so-called "avoiding suspicion" had only ever meant avoiding me.
I was about to prepare my documents for starting work when Mercy General called. The voice on the other end stuttered.
"Sorry, Ms. Gilbert. The offer was... sent to the wrong person. You don't need to come in after all..."
My legs buckled. I nearly collapsed.
"Wrong person? I have the recording of your director's call right here. That clear of an invitation, and you're saying it was a mistake?!"
After a long silence, a steady but helpless voice came through.
"Alice, some of our weaker departments still rely on your father. He spoke to us..."