The Girl in His Shadow

Nora feels like a fool for trying to help Daniel. When he publishes the data on Prescott’s surgery, his reputation will be restored and there will be no need for the information she has collected. She begins to tear up her notes just as Daniel enters the room. Daniel says that she will end up in jail if others find out about her role, and everything they have discovered will be dismissed instead of being used to save more lives. When she wonders what good she really does, Daniel tells her to ask the clinic patients or him. He says she’s helped with his bedside manner, research, technique, and his heart. He runs his hands into her hair, and she kisses him.

Harry walks in on them and abruptly leaves. They follow him, and Daniel tries to explain, but Harry just tells them to be more careful. Daniel looks at Nora’s torn and twisted notes and realizes how much she has done to help him. Over the next two days, Prescott’s condition worsens and improves by turns. Croft comes home, and Nora explains the surgery, including her reluctance to cut Prescott’s spermatic cord; she did not want him to lose sexual function.