GUARDED PROGNOSIS - Richard L Mabry, MD - One Free Book

Dear Readers, if you’ve been visiting my blog for a while, you know that Doc Mabry my favorite author of medical suspense. I’m actually reading Guarded Prognosis right now. As always he’s layered dilemma upon dilemma in this book. It’s progressing and getting worse and worse as I go, which I like. I like knowing he is an expert in the medical field. And his characters step straight from the pages into my heart. You won’t want to miss this book.

Welcome back, Richard. Do you have a favorite genre to write? If so, what is it?

After false starts and ineffective efforts in other genres, I’ve settled on medical suspense. I’m a physician who has practiced for several decades, so I “know the language,” and I’ve read suspense stories and thrillers for many years, so I know what makes an interesting story of that type. Thus far, the combination has worked out for me.

And for your loyal readers. If you didn’t live in the part of the country where you do, where would you live?

That’s a toughie. For several years, we had a timeshare in North Carolina that we loved to visit, so I’d probably choose that one. But Texas is still my preferred spot.

Even during a string of record breaking high temperatures in July? What foreign country would you like to visit and why?

I’ve been fortunate enough to teach in several foreign countries, and I suppose that, of them all, I enjoyed Germany most. However, I’ll hasten to say that visit was almost a decade ago, and the geopolitical climate has changed there, as well as many other places we enjoyed.

Describe what you think would be the most romantic vacation you could take.

I’d like to recreate a trip we made to Arkansas one fall, staying in a cabin with no Internet or cell phones, enjoying the changing colors of the leaves and each other’s company.

I grew up in the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas. They’re really beautiful in fall foliage. Where would you like to set a story that you haven’t done yet?

That’s another toughie, since my stories are set either in Dallas (which I know well) or a fictitious city based on some I know in North Texas. I have an as-yet-unpublished novel on my laptop that features New Orleans as a locale, and I may yet try to revive it.

What is the main theme of this novel?

In good times and bad, God is there for us, if we’ll reach out to Him.

There are some seriously terrible times in this novel. Tell us about the story.

When Dr. Caden Taggart saw the two men sitting in his waiting room, he didn’t think they were patients. He was right, and when they introduced themselves as agents of the Drug Enforcement Agency, things started to get bad.

Then Caden felt as though someone had gut-punched him when his father, Dr. Henry Taggart, told him he probably had carcinoma of the pancreas. When he talked about his son assisting with his suicide, Caden wondered how he could talk him out of that.

When he shared his news with his wife, Beth, she tried to assure Caden that God was in control. But as things progressed, he was unsure that was true. At first, he feared for his freedom. Then for his ability to cope. Eventually, he feared for his life.

Please give us the first page of the book.

The men sitting in adjacent chairs looked out of place in the corner of the surgeon’s waiting room. It wasn’t just that they didn’t have visible bandages, or that neither of them winced or evidenced pain. While many of the men and women waiting to see Dr. Caden Taggart bore expressions that said they either needed the surgeon’s attention or had already experienced it, these two men presented themselves the way drug salesmen do—sitting patiently, idly thumbing through magazines, almost bored.

When he came to the front desk to hand off the chart of the patient he’d just seen, Caden glanced at the men in the corner. He noted that they wore dark suits and white shirts, their conservative ties were snugged against their cleanly-shaved necks, and their lace-up shoes had probably been shined this morning. He didn’t know who they were—perhaps police, maybe FBI—but their presence in his office worried him.

Caden leaned closer to his secretary. “Donna, who are those two men?”

“I didn’t get their names. They flashed some sort of ID and badges but stowed them before I got a good look. They said they had to see you. When I asked them why, they said they’d discuss it with you.”

“They didn’t give you any clue?”

She lowered her voice even further, although no one seemed to be paying attention to the conversation. “They wouldn’t say anything beyond what I’ve told you. They took a seat, and that’s where they’ve been since then. I didn’t know what to do.”

“When’s my next patient?”

“In ten minutes. She’s post-op appendectomy and arrived a bit early. Ruth just took her back to do vital signs.”

“I’ll have to admit I’m curious about the men,” Caden said. “Why don’t I see them while I’m waiting? Give me a moment to get settled in my office, then send the two of them back.”

As he entered his office, Caden glanced at the Cherrywood desk his father had given him when he opened his surgical practice two years ago. He wondered if Dr. Henry Taggart ever considered that there were more important gifts he could share with his son than those bought with money.

Caden’s thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of the two strangers from his waiting room. He inclined his head toward the two chairs that sat across the desk from him. “Gentlemen, have a seat.”

As Caden took the leather-covered swivel chair behind the desk, another gift from his father, he took the measure of his visitors. The man on his left was probably in his late 50s. His dark hair was cut short, and it showed a hint of gray at the temples. The other man, about a decade younger than the first, was blond. Other than that, they were very much alike—average build, no facial hair, clothes neat but not flashy.

The older man pulled out a small leather wallet and held it out to Caden. “I’m agent Darren Neilson, Drug Enforcement Agency.” He nodded toward the man on his left. “This is agent Jerry Harwell.”

How can readers find you on the Internet?

They may wish to check out my blog and web page. I’m also on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks for allowing me to connect once more with readers of your blog. I hope they read and enjoy Guarded Prognosis.

It’s always a pleasure to host you on my blog, Richard.

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