Hannah's List (Blossom Street #7)(34)

"That's all you want?"

"I'll have it in a bread bowl."

That sounded good to me, too. The thick chowder was ladled into large sourdough buns, which then served as part of the meal. I doubted I'd eat much, considering how unsettled I was. I felt the same way I had the first time I'd asked a girl out on a date. I'd been fifteen.

I paid for our order, then carried the tray to the adjacent area where picnic tables were set up. We sat for a moment and neither of us seemed inclined to eat or speak. We did a fairly good job of not looking at each other.

Leanne reached for her spoon and I reached for mine. She took her first bite and I did, too. Then she set the plastic spoon down on her paper napkin.

She finally looked at me. "I suppose you want to know about Mark."

I met her gaze head-on, unsure why she'd introduced the subject of her husband so soon. At some point in the evening I'd expected her to mention him, but leading off with Mark as the main topic was disconcerting.

"Everyone wants to know," she elaborated. "It's probably best to get it out of the way."

"Okay," I said and gestured toward her. "If that's what you want."

"It isn't, but it's only fair to tell you that he's done his time in prison and...and moved on with his life."

I nodded, encouraging her to continue.

Leanne lowered her eyes. "As I said, he's gotten on with his life. I...I guess I should, too."

Chapter Thirteen

"Mark's stealing from the hospital was the worst shock of my life," Leanne said. She'd stopped eating. "I knew something wasn't right just from the way he behaved after the charity event, but he wouldn't talk about it. I assumed it had to do with his job, but I wish I'd...asked more questions."

I understood that better than she realized. "I'm a physician. Although I couldn't have

known Hannah had cancer, I feel I should've at least suspected she wasn't well." I saw the sympathy in Leanne's eyes. "You can't blame yourself any more than I can take responsibility for what Mark did."

I knew that; nevertheless I did blame myself. I'd been so wrapped up in my own career, in my own needs and wants, in our shared comforts and routines, it never occurred to me that anything might be wrong with my wife. As a husband and a doctor, I couldn't help feeling that I'd failed Hannah.

Consequently I'd failed myself, too. I wasn't sure I could ever get over the guilt of that, irrational though it undoubtedly was. Hannah would be the first to reassure me. Again and again she'd reminded me that ovarian cancer is difficult to detect and there are few, if any, symptoms. There was no reason--no unusual fatigue, no pain or nausea, no family history, nothing--to suggest she might have this disease.

"You must've been surprised when Mark was arrested," I said, preferring not to discuss Hannah, even though I'd assumed we would.

"I was speechless." Leanne shook her head. "His parents, too. I think what confused me the most was the fact that Mark's one of the most honorable people I know. He has...had more integrity than any other man I'd met."

"You're still in love with him?" I asked, although the answer was obvious.

Reluctantly, Leanne nodded. "Although I don't really want to be... As you can imagine, I was outraged and embarrassed. Mark refused to explain himself, so I felt I had no option other than to file for divorce. I...I wish I'd waited--knowing what I do now." She paused, closing her eyes. "Still, after recent...revelations, perhaps I made the right decision, after all."

"Was Mark involved with someone else?" It was a painful question and I could see from the way she flinched that I'd touched the emotional equivalent of a bruise.

"I'm positive he wasn't. Mark might've been able to deceive me when it came to embezzlement, but not...our marriage." She sent me an agonized look.

I leaned over to lightly clasp her hand, releasing it after a few seconds.

"In my heart of hearts I have to believe he was faithful during our marriage...but I don't know about now. He might be seeing someone else, although I don't really think so. If he was dating again, I'm sure his mother would've told me. We're still in touch."

"Did Mark want the divorce?" To me, it didn't make sense that he'd throw away his marriage, along with his freedom and his career.

"Apparently. He certainly didn't resist when I told him that was what I wanted. He signed the final papers without a second's hesitation."

That must've been devastating to Leanne. "He probably didn't want you involved in his legal troubles," I offered as a possible explanation.

"Maybe, but how could I not be?" she asked. "He was my husband, so I was already up to my neck in it, and then to have him walk away from our marriage without a backward glance..."

I remembered reading about the case and of course Patrick had mentioned it, but my recollection of the facts was vague. "Was there a trial?"

"No. He accepted a plea bargain."

She took a deep breath. "Mark served a year in prison and has to make restitution. He also received a substantial fine. His mother told me he owes forty thousand dollars."

While I didn't want to dwell on Mark's legal problems or his financial mess, I had to ask one last question. "How did this ever happen?" From what Leanne had said, Mark Lancaster was--or had been--a good, honorable man. Why had he become an embezzler? Surely there was some underlying problem--drugs, gambling, who knows what.