Operatory of Death: Jaswinder Mystery Series, #1

By Cynthia Washburn

Jaswinder Pandher has just started a new job as a dental receptionist in Surrey, Canada. She copes with nervous patients, howling dogs, parading protesters and grumpy co-workers. When murder strikes at the clinic, Jaswinder investigates with the help of her boyfriend, Jovan, and her best friend, Manisha to uncover the perpetrator.

A clean cozy mystery.

First book in the Jaswinder Mystery Series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cynthia Washburn
• Release date: Dec 27, 2011
• ISBN: 9781497748286

Book preview

To  Megan

Chapter  1

Jaswinder pulled her car into her usual parking space in front of Summerland Dental Clinic and groaned.   A great start to Thursday.

That man was at the front of the building again; Jim Buckle, that was his name.     Why didn't he give up?    How many times had Dr. Parker explained to him that Dr. Atkinson had left the country in December?  Dr. Parker had taken over the hastily abandoned dental office.    He’d paid for the equipment and some of the files left behind but other than that he hardly knew Dr. Atkinson.    Parading back and forth with a sign on a stick with some scrawled printing BOYCOTT DR. AKINSON in big red letters.  What did he hope to accomplish?   And he couldn’t even spell.  

Marnie, the dental assistant, had told her something about what had happened when Mr. Buckle had first showed up on Jaswinder’s first week on the job in January.  Dr. Atkinson had missed diagnosing an abscess in Mr. Buckle's molar and sent him home over the Christmas holidays with an appointment in January.   The man had suffered over the holidays, probably a lot.  Why hadn’t he called the office?   Even though the office had been closed over the holidays, every dental office subscribed to a service that provided a locum, a substitute dentist for emergencies.

When he ended up in the local emergency ward, delirious with pain on New Years Eve, whoever was on duty there had pulled out the offending tooth and the one beside it that had been perfectly good until the infection spread.  Then the man spent the next week in hospital with threatened septicemia.   Dr. Atkinson had meanwhile met someone while on vacation in Tahiti and had hastily decided to sell his practice through an agency.   Must have been true love.

Marnie had cynically concluded that it was probably also because the College of Dental Surgeons was investigating him for another matter.  In that case, a few months prior, one of his patients had come in for a crown.   Marnie had been assisting and told Jaswinder that the man had definitely needed braces but he was over forty now and had gone this far in life with crooked teeth.  He might be content with the situation.   Dr. Atkinson hadn’t looked at it that way.   Or maybe it was that he had recently completed an orthodontic course and was looking for practice.    

Marnie told her that Dr. Atkinson woke the man up from the sedation.   Sedation was used with nervous patients who preferred not be awake for procedures.    While the patient was very groggy and barely conscious, Dr. Atkinson suggested to the man that he have braces applied.   Was that okay?    Dr. Atkinson gave no details as to treatment plan, cost, benefits, risks—all standard procedure.   Marnie did say that the man seemed to acknowledge Dr. Atkinson and said something like ‘What?’ ‘Huh?’ and ‘Okay.’  

That was enough apparently for Dr. Atkinson.   The sedation machine was cranked up and the braces applied.    Marnie told Jas that she suggested to Dr. Atkinson that the patient could come back another time for the braces but was told that this had been a slow week and there was time to do it now.  The patient went home groggy, not even realizing he had a mouth full of braces.

The previous dental receptionist, Ann, whom Jaswinder had replaced in early January, had heard an earful from the patient on the telephone first thing the next morning.    Marnie thought that was one of the main reasons Ann quit.   Who needed the abuse, was how Ann had put it.    When the patient stormed in later that morning, Dr. Atkinson refused to remove the braces and wouldn’t refund the charge that had already been made to the patient’s credit card.    Dr. Atkinson told the patient that he needed it for his overhead.

That went on for a week until the College of Dental Surgeons was called in. Finally, Dr. Atkinson grudgingly agreed to remove the braces and refund the patient.  When Jaswinder heard the story she was surprised there wasn’t more than one protester out front.   But it was now past mid-March and Dr. Atkinson hadn’t been around for three months.   Mr. Buckle still showed up from time to time.   Her boss, Dr. Al Parker, had offered to reimburse the man’s bill, out his own pocket, in February.   Buckle had taken the money but only stayed away for a few weeks.

More than one new patient had asked if there was a Dr. Akinson in the practice.   The patients that remained from Dr. Atkinson’s day never looked surprised and more than one had commented to Jas how much more they liked Dr. Parker.  About the same time as the refund, a sign went up in the window stating that Dr. Atkinson was not affiliated with Dr. Parker's practice and for further information contact the College of Dental Surgeons.   Their regular patients mostly shrugged their shoulders or laughed but Jaswinder knew that Al was still worried.    The management company that looked after the plaza had met with him last week to discuss the situation.

She unlocked the front door, keeping a careful watch that the protester didn't make a lunge at it.  Maybe he would want to smash the computers or run down the hall shouting warnings into the operatories. Jaswinder was always the first to arrive before any patients or the rest of the staff.   Today, she felt his eyes drilling into the back of her head.   Just to be sure, she locked the door behind her.  No patients were expected for forty minutes at least.  Jaswinder headed to the kitchen to start the coffee before checking the list of patients in the appointment book and ensuring they were all confirmed.  She also checked the answering machine for messages and possible cancellations.  

No shows were a problem and a loss of income as Dr. Parker had reminded her.   He always had one eye on his bottom line but Marnie had told her that all dentists were like that.  Any appointment not confirmed already would need follow-up, for sure.  She turned the appointment book to March 15th,  2012.

Over the next half hour the rest of the staff trickled in, skirting around Mr. Protester.  Cheryl MacKenzie, the hygienist, made a face as she greeted Jaswinder.

That idiot’s back, I see.   Doesn’t he get it?   Dr. ‘Akinson’ isn’t here and has nothing to do with us.  Coffee ready?

I guess he’s a little slow.  Yes, it’s ready.

Yeah, maybe the abscess affected his brain.   Cheryl shook her head.   I shouldn’t say that.   I mean, it was terrible what happened to him, but what can we do about it?   Does he expect Al to leap on a plane to wherever the incompetent Dr. Atkinson can be found, and drag him back to face the music?

You’d think giving him a full refund on behalf of Dr. Atkinson would be enough, not to mention offering a free future exam and x-ray, she continued.  He hadn’t followed up on that but he had taken the money.  

Carl, the lab technician, came in time to hear the last part.   I’ve heard a rumour that he lost his job when he was in the hospital and wants some kind of compensation for that.

You’re kidding?    I guess he’ll never be satisfied.   All I know is, the whole day starts crummy and goes downhill whenever he shows up.

There's Al’s car pulling in.   Better look like we’re busy. Carl's tone was sarcastic as he turned to go towards his small lab that adjoined the back of the dental office.   He spent his days taking impressions and pouring up models, getting crowns, and other assorted tasks like making sports guards.

Within twenty seconds they were all at their stations, busying themselves with their tasks.  It wasn’t that Dr. Parker was an ogre or anything, Jaswinder told herself, but he was the boss and the guy who signed their paycheques, after all.  He’d be annoyed enough outside without them giving him something to find fault with inside.

Sure enough, Dr. Parker's usual friendly face looked grim as he came into the practice.    He was polite in his general ‘Good Morning’ but he walked quickly back to his office and Jaswinder could see that the telephone’s line five lit up.   He was probably calling his lawyer or maybe even the police. He’d threatened to do that last time.  

Carl had suggested involving the mall security guard after the first two vigils but the elderly man, even with his upright military bearing, did not seem capable of effecting any change.  Oh, he’d talked to the guy but had received an earful of detailed history for his trouble.     Cheryl had commented that he seemed to make himself scarce whenever the protester showed up, no doubt afraid of being asked to take matters to the next level.

The practice’s dental assistant, or CDA as she referred to herself, rushed in, running late as usual.

Marnie, you’re lucky Dr. P. went straight to his office.  You know you’re supposed to be here ahead of him.   Jaswinder didn’t like to chide her friend but Marnie had been chastised about being late before.   Dr. Parker was good about letting the staff have time off for medical appointments or even important family events but tardiness was a pet peeve of his.   Marnie was a single mother of a four year old whom she described fondly as the pokiest child in the country.  That was her usual reason when she was running late.    Jeremy had been dawdling.

Marnie rolled her eyes.  I could always say that I was stopped by the guy outside.  He had a point to make that he hadn’t already made.

Jaswinder pressed her lips together to stop from giggling.    Marnie could always make her laugh.

Dr. Parker's low voice could be heard in his office, rising in annoyance.   I don’t know how long I should be expected to put up with this.  They stopped to listen.   Silence, then,   All right, I’ll wait to hear from you.

The first patient arrived a little early but Jaswinder went to the door and unlocked it for the day.   Come on in, Teddy, Mrs. Marshall.  We're almost ready for you. 

Oh, I know we're a little early.  I dropped Tammy off at school and came right over.   Wasn't enough time, really, to go back home.

No, of course not.    Jaswinder glanced down the hall as Marnie, ever efficient, came smilingly out in her periwinkle scrubs.    All ready for you, big boy.   And wait until you see the treat I set aside for you after we’re finished.   The boy's eyes lit up and he willingly headed down to the second operatory for his six month check up.    Marnie followed a little behind and turned to whisper loudly to Jaswinder,  Can you grab that blue yo-yo that's in the drawer?  I think it's the last one. 

Jaswinder nodded.   Children could pick a small toy from the bottom drawer of her filing cabinet at the end of their appointment.  Most dentists did this.   Dr. Parker liked to say only patients who were cooperative to a certain level of behavior   were deserving of a toy but Marnie gave them out indiscriminately.  Some dentists even gave sugar-free lollipops but Dr. Parker figured that children would get the wrong message and not understand that his supply had no sugar in the pops.   The yo-yo’s had been a big hit, mostly with young boys and there weren’t many, if any, left.   Marnie must have noticed a blue one in there recently.   Yes, there it was.

Jaswinder sat down behind her computer and smiled at Mrs. Marshall who looked up briefly from paging through one of the many magazines on the shelf in the waiting area.   Dr. Parker made a point of having current magazines, not like some medical offices where you were lucky to find any in the same year, never mind the same month.   She didn’t seem to be worried about seven year old Teddy’s check-up appointment. He was good kid and didn’t make a fuss.    

Jaswinder continued her interrupted task of confirming that all of the day’s scheduled appointments had been called and had confirmed they were coming.    A regular patient, Hortense Harrington, was coming at 11:30.  Something about her partial dentures not fitting quite right.   Again.   She always wore red, often with purple accents and could be seen coming from across the parking lot.   She went to remind Carl that Mrs. Harrington was coming; he might need to make an adjustment to her partial.   When Jas had commented once on this patient’s clothes, Carl apparently had known something about the mode of dress.   She was one of the Red Hat Ladies, he had told her.