Dead Med

Matt earned his doctorate in anatomy despite severe memory impairment, compensating through disability accommodations and intense studying.

A week before the school year began, Dr. Michael Hirsch called to warn Matt about an incoming student, Rachel Bingham. Matt initially dismissed Hirsch’s claim that Rachel had destroyed his marriage after seeing her plain photograph on the class roster. However, when he met Rachel in person, he realized she possessed “a seductively dangerous quality” (428).

Matt intended to resist Rachel, but instead fell in love with her. His time with her was the first period of genuine happiness he had experienced since Kurt shot him.

Years ago, when Dr. Patrice Winters first started at DeWitt, Matt found her attractive and asked her out for drinks. Just as he was about to make a move, she ended the evening by claiming she needed to make dinner for her boyfriend. Matt later learned the boyfriend was fabricated, and they settled into a platonic friendship.

When Dr. Winters walked in on Matt and Rachel at his house, she confronted him, warning that he could lose his job. Matt insisted they were in a real relationship and he had not tampered with Rachel’s grades. Hurt by Dr. Winters’s skepticism, Matt was then stunned when she made a romantic advance. She claimed she now wanted someone kind and intelligent rather than her usual bad-boy types. Dr. Winters then pulled a baggie of white pills from her purse, saying they would make him forget Rachel. Realizing that Dr. Winters was the campus drug dealer, Matt threatened to report her to the dean. Dr. Winters countered by threatening to expose his affair with Rachel, which would ruin Rachel’s career. For Rachel’s sake, Matt agreed not to tell anyone as long as Dr. Winters stopped dealing drugs. Afterward, Matt intended to end his relationship with Rachel, but could not bear to be without her.

On the night Matt discovered Rachel had stolen the exam, he contemplated suicide by overdose, but could not go through with it. Instead, he went to his office and began rewriting the exam questions. He also called Dr. Winters, announcing he would report her drug dealing to the dean after the exam. When Dr. Winters again threatened to expose his affair with Rachel, Matt replied that he was willing to accept the consequences. Matt expected Dr. Winters to confront him in person, but Rachel knocked on his door instead. She explained she had been extorted into stealing the exam, which changed everything.

Back in the present, Mason’s gun is still aimed at Matt’s face Mason he demands answers about Frank. Matt knows the cadaver was a 73-year-old former police officer who died of a pulmonary embolism, but he cannot share this information due to privacy rules.

Matt believes he is about to die, as surviving two gunshot wounds to the head seems impossible. His sole focus becomes protecting Rachel, who is hidden under his desk. He apologizes aloud to Rachel for taking advantage of her as his student and for getting himself killed.

Matt feels Rachel tugging on his pant leg, realizing she wants to emerge from hiding. He desperately tries to signal her to stay down without alerting Mason. His final thought is his determination to save Rachel, even if it costs him his life.

The narrative shifts to Abe Kaufman’s perspective as he enters the hospital with Dr. Kovak’s gun hidden in his coat pocket. He receives a frantic call from Heather, who tells him she went to their dorm room and found a bullet on Mason’s desk alongside articles about dead police officers. Abe then sees a missed text from Mason saying that if he does not return tonight, the police should be told that Dr. Conlon killed Frank.

A gunshot echoes through the hallway, followed by a second, closer shot. Abe tells Heather to call 911, then hangs up and runs toward Dr. Conlon’s office. He finds Dr. Winters dead on the floor. Sickened, Abe wonders if he would have shot her himself and regrets bringing his gun.

Seeing light under Dr. Conlon’s door but hearing no sound, Abe worries Dr. Conlon might be injured inside. As he reaches for the doorknob, he hears a door slam in the direction of the anatomy lab and a scream.

Abe runs toward the anatomy lab, hearing Mason threatening someone. Deciding he cannot wait for the police, Abe slips inside the lab as quietly as possible.

Abe sees Mason holding their classmate, Danielle Stern, at gunpoint. He tries to sneak closer but stumbles, alerting Mason to his presence. Mason says he needs to eliminate Danielle because she witnessed the gunshots. Abe decides against using his own gun, fearing it will escalate the situation. Instead, he speaks calmly to Mason, who begins to relax.

When a noise in the hallway distracts Mason, Abe tackles him, knocking the gun from Mason’s hand. Abe pins Mason to the floor until the police arrive. As Mason is led away in handcuffs, he asks Abe if he is “in on it too” (452).

Seven years later, third-year medical student Kiera is on her emergency medicine rotation, where she dislikes her senior resident, Dr. Sasha Zaleski. Sasha berates Kiera for being slow and sends her to fetch coffee.

Kiera reflects on the school’s old nickname, Dead Med, and the associated campus legend. According to rumors, an anatomy professor was dealing drugs and also having an affair with a student. Another student tried to blackmail the professor and murdered him along with another staff member. The killer received a life sentence, and his drug use was traced to a clinic selling drugs to students. The doctor who ran the clinic lost his license and went to jail. Kiera wonders what happened to the student who had an affair with the murdered professor.

Kiera is pleased to learn that the nicest surgery resident, Dr. Abe Kaufman, is on call. When Abe arrives, he mentions that his wife, Dr. Heather McKinley, is the patient’s primary care doctor. He jokes with Kiera about Sasha’s unpleasant demeanor.

In the hospital kitchen, Kiera struggles with a broken coffee machine. A psychiatry resident, Dr. Rachel Bingham, appears and helps fix it. Rachel mentions that her last rotation was at the local prison and describes the experience as “informative.” When Kiera asks how Rachel knows how Sasha takes her coffee, Rachel replies that an old friend told her.

As Rachel hands over the cup, Kiera briefly glimpses white particles dissolving into the black coffee. Rachel quickly places a lid on the cup before Kiera can get a better look. Kiera dismisses what she thinks she saw, but feels a chill as her eyes meet Rachel’s.