"You three are guilty of murdering Linda and now are trying to escape from taking the blame." The policeman accused without holding back.
This time, neither of the three people could stop themselves from laughing. As soon as the policeman threw accusations at them, they burst out laughing, startling him for a moment. The policeman had no idea what was happening and why the three people were laughing. He just stared at them blankly in confusion.
"Now I really doubt your intelligence, Inspector," Ian stated once he stopped laughing. "You have crossed all levels of stupidity for blaming us without thinking. Why would we even kill a woman we do not even know? We met the patient only today, and you think we will kill her for no reason whatsoever."
Ian's face turned cold at once, and the sudden shift in him made the policeman tremble lightly. His heart skipped a beat and he could not help but cower in his place. He took a step back to keep his distance from Ian. But Ian did not him that privilege. He closed in on him, towering over him domineeringly.
"Do not test our patience, Inspector. We will not accept everything you throw at us blindly." He gritted his teeth before he walked back to stand in between Aria and Stuart.
It took a few seconds for the policeman to return to his calm state after being utterly intimidated by Ian. His face had gone completely pale, and nobody could ignore his obvious scared expression.
"Are we done, or do we still have to answer any absurd questions?" Ian queried, still not giving up his domineering aura.
It was only when he heard Ian's voice did the policeman snap out of his fear. He blinked a few times to catch hold of his sanity and his sense. "You cannot leave, doctors."
"May we ask why?" Ian continued.
"You are not allowed to leave until we get the post mortem reports. What if you are guilty of murdering Linda and are trying to run away?" Though he did not smirk like before, his words did not change and he kept accusing them.
"Are you going to make us wait until the report comes out?" Aria asked in disbelief. She could not hide her irritation and raised her hands in helplessness. The policeman had lost it completely.
"Yes, you will have to stay in this room until the report comes out. And I just hope the report is not falsified for I will get another post mortem report after this. If I find anything untrue in the report, I will make sure this hospital shuts down forever." The policeman threatened without thinking. His fear had vanished as quickly as he had felt it, and now he had returned to threatening them foolishly.
Ian just shook his head at the man's obnoxious threats. 'I would like to see how you will shut this hospital down. I will make sure that you will not be holding your post before you can even start your plan to get my hospital closed.' He vowed in his mind before he took his seat again.
Ian realized that it would be impossible for them to leave the room without kicking up a fuss. He had seen the three constables move towards them as soon as he and his friends had stood up. And creating a ruckus was the last thing he had in mind. He did not wish to destroy his hospital's name just because of some idiot.
"You want us to wait for the reports, right? We will wait until then. Dr. West, Dr. Lee, let us wait until then." Ian gestured for his colleagues to sit down, and they followed his request without complaints. They too had realized what the policeman was getting at, and the only way to shut him up was with the reports.
"And let me tell you, Inspector." Ian gave a mysterious nod to Aria and Stuart. "If anything happens to any of our patients while we are here, you will be held accountable for it is you who had held us here. I hope you are ready to bear the consequences that might fall on you if such a situation arises."
Aria's lips curved upon realizing what Ian was doing and she too joined in immediately. "Yes, Inspector. Moreover, everyone in the hospital knows that we are here. So, we do not mind staying here. But do not blame us if they blame you and if the hospital management complains against you to your superiors for stopping us from working without any reasons."
"Also, I have a surgery consultation in a few minutes." Stuart looked at his watch and added. "I just hope the patient is not in an emergency."
That was all it took for the policeman to give up. He glowered at the three people in anger. He let out a deep breath, giving up for the time being. "You can all go now. I will speak to you once I get the reports. I hope you will cooperate then. And don't even think about leaving the hospitals. The police will be watching the hospital entrance and the premises."
He warned but none among the three were in the mood to listen to him any longer. Aria just pulled open the door and walked out, not even caring about giving the policeman any face while Ian and Stuart followed.
Nobody spoke a word until they entered Ian's office where Ivy was waiting for them. It was only after Stuart closed the door did Aria broke the silence.
"Can you believe that man?" Aria's eyes widened in disbelief. "I am still stunned to think that he blamed us for what happened to Linda without any evidence."
"I agree. Although I do not blame him for suspecting us for even I would have done the same if I was in his place, he was wrong in accusing us outright." Ian's brows narrowed as he recalled all that had happened a few minutes ago.
"Guys, what happened?" Ivy had no idea why the three people looked so vexed. She stared at them in worry, wondering what had happened for them to lose their cool.
"The police are now blaming us for the patient's death," Stuart answered.
"He is not just blaming us, Stuart. He is blatantly accusing us, making us the culprit. In his eyes, we are already the criminals who killed Linda. I am having a bad feeling about him."
"What do you mean, Aria?" Ian walked towards her with his eyes narrowed.
"Don't you think that it is all coincidental that Linda called to meet me exclusively, and she dies immediately after we leave her ward? And the police now hold us responsible for her death without even seeking evidence. It is as though they are damn sure that we killed her. If I am not wrong, I feel that this is a plan to trap me."
"Do you intend to say that someone wants to get to you using Linda, and they killed her to frame you?" Ian's frown deepened at her words. Even Stuart and Ivy narrowed their gazes as they thought about it.
"Although I am not certain, I think this has to be it. Also, didn't you notice the way the police addressed Linda?"
"I did." Stuart intervened. "This was an interrogation, and he called her by her first name. I too felt something to be off when he just took her first name. Isn't that strange?"
"Something fishy is happening here. If what you said is the truth Aria, I think we might soon be in serious trouble."