Dr. Cook’s Garden

James Tennyson returns to Greenfield, Vermont to work with his mentor, Dr. Leonard Cook. Cook is warmly welcoming and seen as a pillar of the community. Tennyson is reunited with his childhood sweetheart Jane Rausch, heightening personal stakes.

Dora, Cook's housekeeper, explains that Cook has heart trouble and needs a capable assistant. The revelation foreshadows the power imbalance Tennyson will contend with.

Tennyson notices several patients dying suddenly and with a troubling pattern. The string of deaths plants a seed of suspicion about Cook's practices.

In Cook's medicine cabinet, Tennyson finds a large supply of poisons. The discovery provides concrete evidence that something sinister is happening under Cook's care.

The town constable explains that the Lord blesses the town because the nice people live to old age, while the mean ones die off. The remark offers a chilling rationalization for the deaths Tennyson has observed.

Tennyson uncovers a mysterious code R in Cook's files and notices the same mark carved in the doctor's garden. He interprets it as removal of those the doctor deems unworthy.

Tennyson confronts Cook with his suspicions. Cook freely admits to euthanizing those he considers unworthy and defends it as a form of community service, using the garden as a metaphor. He also recounts killing his abusive father, arguing it was justified.

Tennyson proposes that Cook retire from medical practice to avoid a scandal. Cook pretends to agree, signaling a fragile peace and a mutual understanding to keep things quiet.

Despite the apparent truce, Cook attempts to poison Tennyson, reigniting a deadly confrontation between physician and protege. The tension shifts from secrecy to direct danger.

They battle to the death. Tennyson refuses to fetch Cook his medicine, a withholding act that contributes to Cook's demise. Cook suffers a heart attack and dies, ending his vigilante mercy in a grim twist.

With Cook dead, Tennyson grapples with the moral consequences of euthanasia and the limits of medical mercy. The community begins to question the legitimacy of the doctor’s actions and the true cost of his care.

The garden remains a stark symbol of Cook's philosophy, blending beauty with killing and forcing a reckoning about mercy and justice. Tennyson's choices mark the end of Cook's era and a personal transformation for him.