A Daughter's Perfect Secret by Kimberly Van Meter

loyalty.
    Smile firmly in place, he walked into Dr. Virgil Cruthers’s roomy office and closed the door behind him when Virgil gestured for him to do so, before he took a seat across from him.
    “So good of you to see me on such short notice,” Rafe started, shaking the older man’s hand.
    Virgil Cruthers was a white-haired man with a face and body that would look quite natural in a red Santa suit, but Rafe saw past the soft wrinkles and grandfatherly demeanor to the sharp, cunning man behind the mask. He didn’t doubt Cruthers was a Devotee, otherwise Samuel wouldn’t have trusted Cruthers in such an important position. If anyone knew about a secret infirmary, Cruthers did—and likely oversaw the operation.
    This was the man whose trust Rafe needed to earn and the one who was likely as dangerous as Samuel.
    “I’m happy to meet with a colleague such as you, Rafe. You’ve earned yourself a bit of a reputation, son.”
    He arched his brow. “Oh?”
    “All good, I assure you,” Virgil said, smiling, actually pulling a file folder from his desk. That there was a file on Rafe didn’t surprise him at all, but it did shock Rafe that Virgil was being so open about it. Rafe took that as a promising sign. “I see here you’ve been very helpful in referring patients to Heidi for help with their nutrition needs. Your success rate is hovering at eighty-five percent. Not bad.”
    “Success rate?”
    Virgil closed the file and leaned back in his chair, regarding Rafe with keen eyes. “Each time a referral comes in, we determine where it came from, and then if the patient completes the program successfully, that reflects well on the person or agency that referred them.”
    “Eighty-five percent, huh? Glad to hear so many patients are being successful,” he said, smothering the questions that begged to be asked: What happened if his patient success rate started to fall? What happened to the patients who failed? Rafe needed to know, but he wisely bided his time. “I’m happy to help.”
    “And Cold Plains needs people like you, Rafe,” Virgil said sternly. “Smart, capable and with the program. I took a look at your numbers and you’re in excellent physical shape, just the kind of example we like to set in Cold Plains. You’re a perfect ambassador.”
    Rafe resisted the urge to shift in discomfort. He didn’t want to be Cold Plains’s poster boy for anything, but he recognized Virgil meant it as a compliment, so he reacted accordingly. “I appreciate that. I try to keep in shape, and the meal plan is very helpful in maintaining a healthy balance.” God, help him, he was lying through his teeth but he’d long since ditched any reluctance to stretch the truth since moving here.
    “So what can I do for you?” Virgil asked.
    “I want to do more for the Cold Plains community,” he said. “I heard that the clinic might need an extra pair of hands.”
    Virgil sighed and laced his fingers together. “True. Unfortunately, the budget doesn’t support hiring another doctor, otherwise you’d be first on our list of desirables.”
    “I understand and that’s why I want to volunteer.”
    “Volunteer?”
    “I was raised to believe a life of service was the key to true happiness. I’m ready to be put to use here in my new community.”
    Virgil’s expression split into an approving smile, which actually reached his eyes, and Rafe knew he’d said the right thing. “You were raised right, son,” Virgil said with a short nod. “Too many in this world have no regard for their fellow man. That’s what makes Cold Plains special, wouldn’t you agree?”
    “Completely. And I need to feel I’m doing my share.”
    “Ah, I like the way you think. It’s a generous offer, for sure, but can you handle a practice and a volunteer schedule? That’s a heavy load.”
    Rafe laughed. “Virgil, if I may be blunt, before I came to Cold Plains I was gunning for the chief of medicine position at my old hospital. I don’t have