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Insurance Fraud, Part 3

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Story Guide -- Story List
Length (rounded up): 1900 words, 7 min. 30 sec.
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Insurance Fraud, Part 3

The man in the dark suit, who entered the room, was short and lacked hair on his head. Through the lenses of his black-rimmed glasses, he peered at the woman in the bed with four casts, then at Frank, who sat close to her.

‘Excuse me! Are you Mr and Mrs Hudson?’ he asked. Immediately afterwards, he introduced himself as if he were a name so big in his profession that should be familiar to all. ‘I’m Dr Mark Hamilton.’

For a moment, Beth was worried that the new doctor meant she'd needed new casts, because the surgeons had found her health to be worse than originally thought. Perhaps, instead of a hard neck brace, she was going to get a full head cast that would strictly surround her sore neck. Completely enveloping her whole head but her face, Queen Beth would carry a crown carved out of plaster for an entire year. She would look horrific..., however, if she were compensated with a generous six-figure sum or a little more... why not try to live with it?

‘Good morning, Dr Hamilton,’ Beth said. ‘We’ve just spoken with Dr Sabo, and he’s told me everything about my injuries and my recovery.’

Dr Hamilton gestured. ‘No, Ma’am, I'm afraid there must be some misunderstanding. I’m not a medical professional working here in this hospital, but a senior actuarial PhD economist at the Longevity Life Insurance Company.’

‘We weren’t expecting you to arrive so soon.’ Frank shuddered, sfeeling uneasy about the insurance expert's early visit. Maybe, did the company have a bad feeling about her accident?

‘Too early? It’s almost eleven o’clock in the morning.’ Dr Hamilton looked at his watch. But right then he figured out that Frank wasn’t referring to hours and minutes. ‘You surely mean that I came to meet you already on the day of the accident. Oh, there is no magic or trickery here. We’ve got excellent relations with every hospital, Mr Hudson. That’s exactly why the Longevity Life Insurance Company is the premier provider of insurance from coast to coast.’

He glanced at Beth. ‘Mrs Hudson, I was sent here to compile a report on your accident, and to calculate how much money we need to pay you. First of all, may I ask you how you are feeling?’

‘I hope my answer won’t be an important factor in your official report, Dr Hamilton.’ Beth heaved heavily. With all of her limbs immobilised in sturdy casts, with all the ropes holding firmly her arms and legs in well-cushioned but uncomfortable slings, she was a sight to be pitied by everyone. ‘I’d like to spare you from hearing bad language. Anyway, what answer do you expect me to give you?’

‘You’re right, Ma’am, it was just a polite question that had nothing to do with the survey. Okay, let's start the real work now! There are tasks that I have to do on my end.’ Dr Hamilton picked up a photo camera, and he took dozens of pictures of Beth’s cast-encased body parts from all possible angles. ‘I’ve already copied the medical case report that Dr Sabo wrote on you. So, I knew what kind of accident you suffered, and I’ve got the list of your injuries, Mrs Hudson.’

Dr Hamilton circled the bed to capture some extra snapshots of Beth’s less severely injured left side. Diligently working, he bent closer to focus on the short arm cast and the short leg cast, as well. Eventually, he inspected Beth's swollen toes, which were peeping out of the bandages and set snugly within the cast on her leg.

He scratched the vast leg cast somewhere between her knee and ankle. ‘That’s pretty damn real.’

‘Of course, it is,’ Beth murmured. ‘Do you think that I asked Dr Sabo to fabricate some fake casts for an insurance fraud?’

Usually, Beth could pretend to be offended quite well, but now she realised that she had gone a bit too far this time. Frank and Beth exchanged glances. Nevertheless, Dr Hamilton didn’t take the Freudian slip to heart.

‘I apologise for that. I just have to double-check and document everything.’ Dr Hamilton put the camera back into his bag. ‘Could I take a seat here?’

Without waiting for a response, he helped himself and brought a chair. He sat down and placed his notebook on his lap. After switching on the computer, he turned to Beth.

‘Now, I’ll prepare the calculation by entering the types of casts you are wearing. As far as I can see, there’s a long arm cast on the right arm, a long leg cast on the right leg, besides, there’s a short arm cast on the left arm, and finally, a short leg cast on the left leg.’

‘You have an excellent knowledge of the types of casts, Dr Hamilton,’ Beth said, as he effortlessly identified the names of the shells without consulting Dr Sabo’s file.

‘I've been doing this work for decades, Ma'am. I’ve met thousands of patients since I joined the Longevity Life Insurance Company.’ His glance wandered from Beth’s casts back to the computer, and he began typing on the keyboard at a rapid pace.

Frank checked out Beth’s arms and legs that were all encapsulated in compact, blue fibreglass casts. Although it wasn’t the first time he heard the cast list, he couldn’t decide which was worse: the names of the casts or the sight of the casts themselves. Restrained in fibreglass, Beth seemed incredibly vulnerable and reliant on her husband.

‘Dr Hamilton, I wouldn’t like you to misunderstand me,’ Frank said. ‘And I don't want to give the impression that we are greedy... However, could you tell me how much money we would receive?’

‘This is absolutely not a problem, Mr Hudson,’ he said. ‘This is the sole purpose of my visit here. Our company is not only the greatest but also the fastest in this market. The software has been fed with all the data and information we need, and now, as soon as I press the “Calculate” button, the computer will tell us the exact amount of money you are entitled to.’

Dr Hamilton’s index finger touched the mentioned key ceremonially. Five seconds later, he reclined in the chair, and announced:

‘Fifteen thousand.’

Beth's body, wrapped in a cast, squirmed at the negligible sum. She became a blanket-covered volcano on the verge of eruption. If her eyes could have emitted death rays, both of the men would have been evaporated by now.

To prevent Beth from making a scene, Frank began to speak up.

‘Fifteen thousand? I don’t want to question... the correctness of this trivial amount... I mean, relatively trivial amount...’ He stopped speaking when he realised that he already walked on thin ice. ‘I mean, considering my wife’s serious injuries... Just look at her four casts! She’s got several painful fractures in the major bones, as well... and... there are huge and heavy casts on both of her legs and arms... and... she’s going to be disabled for such a long time... and...’

‘Mr and Mrs Hudson, please, listen to me carefully,’ Dr Hamilton said. ‘The accident your wife experienced was a common household incident, nothing more or less. Although she’s got four casts, she’ll make a complete recovery within a relatively short time. There is no indication of any permanent damage or disability. This is clearly stated in Dr Sabo’s report.’

The colours of Frank’s and Beth’s faces suddenly altered. He became flushed, while she turned pale. Fifteen thousand was nothing to them - a panicked voice screamed in his head. They had expected a payout that was ten times larger at least. The insurance agent could be lying for some reason - he worked it out.

‘But she’s got four casts and...,’ Frank said again.

‘Do you know who received the largest compensation after a domestic accident?’ Dr Hamilton asked. ‘Two years ago, I met a client, who had fallen off a roof and became completely paralysed. When I saw her in the hospital, she had casts, braces, and fixators all over her head, neck, and body. She was given the best possible treatment, yet she couldn’t recover, and she became quadriplegic. Nowadays, she uses a wheelchair, which she steers with a device that is put into her mouth.’

‘I understand it, Mr Hamilton. But I’ve seen a much higher amount in Annex 2 of the insurance policy...’

‘I was the insurance agent of a lady who had three kids,’ Dr Hamilton told them his second parable. ‘One day, this unfortunate woman had a tragic accident with a bowl of boiling water in her kitchen. I believe this woman would willingly give back all the money she received if she could regain her original appearance and the old skin of her face, arms, and upper body.’

‘But...’

Mr Hamilton sounded irritated. ‘Mr Hudson, in short, I think you may have read the wrong part of the document. You should be referring to Annex 4. You’d have received a significantly higher payout if your wife’s fractures had been a result of a violent crime.’

As if struck by lightning, Frank realised what a nice trap he had blindly walked into. If he would tell the insurance agent that he had pushed his wife down, she would get a lot of money, but Frank would end up in prison. He hoped that Beth wouldn’t like to get rid of him that easily.

‘A violent crime...,’ Beth echoed quietly.

Frank glanced at her, silently pleading for her mercy. She was furious, but fortunately, she kept her mouth shut.

‘Yes, a violent crime,’ Dr Hamilton said. ‘But her injuries weren’t caused by an act of violance, were they? Your wife suffered a simple but serious household accident. My final conclusion is that the calculation is correct.’

Dr Hamilton shut down his computer, stood up, and left the couple in the hospital room. Having said goodbye to him and to all their dreams, Frank and Beth remained alone in the room again.

‘Please come here, honey,’ Beth lured him. She was a lovely lady with a charming manner. ‘I have something sweet to tell you.’

Succumbing the temptation, Frank rose from his chair and went closer to her bed.

‘Can you forgive me?’ He bent closer, anticipating a kiss.

‘I’m not angry with you,’ she said, but beneath the surface, the sweetheart turned into a scratching kitten. ‘I’m not angry with you, honey... because I hate you. You put me into these f*****g casts just to get us a few worthless pennies. I hope that you don’t want to scald me with boiling oil or water just to get the hundreds of thousands of dollars you promised.’

Once Beth fell silent, she swiftly removed her left arm from its sling prison. The short-casted arm swung through the air to smack him in the face.

The accumulated but suppressed rage multiplied her strength. Hit that hard, Frank experienced how heavy and hard even a small piece of fibreglass could be. He tasted the tang of blood in his mouth. Beth's blow caused one of his teeth to break.

to be continued

Previous (Part 2) -- Next (Part 4) -- Contents -- Gallery Folder

Story Guide -- Story List
Story summary: this story is about the incredible link, which connects an ambitious housewife to a NASA scientist, and it tells how a giant house mortgage can pave the way to the discovery of the Solar System. Gallery folder of this story

Table of contents: Part 1: story, Part 2: LAC, LLC, SAC, SLC, neck brace (female), Part 3: LAC, LLC, SAC, SLC, neck brace (female), Part 4: LAC, LLC, SAC, SLC (female), Part 5: story, Part 6: DHSC, LAC, RC, SSC (female), Part 7: story, Part 8: FBC (female), Part 9: FBC (female), Part 10: FBC (female), Part 11: FBC (female), Part 12: FBC (female), Part 13: FBC (female), Part 14: FBC (female), Part 15: FBC (female), Part 16: FBC (female), Part 17: FBC (female), Part 18: FBC, bandages, paralysis (female), Part 19: FBC, bandages, paralysis (female), Part 20: FBC, bandages (female), Part 21: braces, disability, Part 22: disability, myopia, SAC (female)

Features: female: DHSC (double hip spica cast), FBC (full body cast), LAC (long arm cast), LLC (long leg cast), RC (Risser cast), SAC (short arm cast), SLC (short leg cast), SSC (shoulder spica cast), bandages, braces, disability, myopia, neck brace, paralysis / male: -

Genre: crime fiction, romance drama.

Personal note: story No. 9. The story opens with an insignificant insurance fraud: Beth and Frank decide to make some money by intentionally breaking her bones. However, as I was writing the story, it developed rather quickly, and "suddenly", I had to browse the net to find out how long it took for astronauts to get to the Mars, or to learn about the seven deadly sins. Romance, religion, and science inside!

Know more about all my stories: A Guide To My Stories
P.S.1.: I'm not a native English writer, so if you find any mistakes in the text of the stories, please feel free to mention here or to send me a private Note. Thanks.
P.S.2.: I would be very grateful, if you would find inspirations in my stories to create a picture or to draw illustrations for me.

P.S.3.: Please let me know what you think about the story. Write a comment or leave your review here. I need your feedback. This is my fuel.

Stats: length: 1857 words, estimated reading time: 7 min 25 sec.
Last modified: 03 September 2023
Preview image: ... with the kind permission of ..... Disclaimer: my story and the image are not related to each other, therefore the cast(s) depicted in the image can be different from the cast(s) mentioned in the text (colour, size, left or right limb, etc.). It just gives you a general foretaste of the chapter.
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QUIXOTE008's avatar
pour boiling water on her!