She turned sharply on her heel and pushed her way into the corridor, her heavy shoes striking the hard floor in a rapid, retreating rhythm.

The quiet click of the exam room door latch echoed through the small space as Sylvia left the building.

Dr.

Orla Owens pushed open the heavy wooden door of Exam Room 4, carrying a thick plastic clipboard with June’s lab readouts clipped to the front.

She didn’t acknowledge the quiet vacancy where Sylvia had been standing moments before, though her sharp eyes swept over the empty chair and the discarded paper cup on the side table.

“The lab just called down with June’s blood panel and urine culture,” Dr.