errands. Nothing special. I have a great many responsibilities, and I have a tendency to run around quite a bit. Sometimes I forget to charge my cell phone, sometimes I forget to check my answering machine. And Jake was in town, so I certainly wasn’t going to answer the phone. My husband is out of town quite a bit and I try to make time for him when he’s here. So we had a nice dinner, and went to bed early. This morning I went out for a walk and didn’t bring my phone with me. By the time I got back and noticed that all the calls I’d received were from Whitney, it was too late. She’d already been in the accident.”
Quinn’s voice caught and she turned to the French doors. Taylor gave her a moment to compose herself, then asked a question.
“Mrs. Buckley, were you and your sister close? Did you talk every day, once a week?”
Quinn had recovered her composure. “No, Lieutenant, we weren’t terribly close. Strange for identical twins, but we just grew apart as we got older.” There was a gleam in her eye, either tears or a memory, and Taylor made a mental note to find out why they’d grown apart. “I’m sorry, Lieutenant, I’m being horribly rude. Can I get you a drink? Coffee? Tea? I think I’ll have a Diet Coke, if that’s okay with you.”
“Soda would be wonderful, thank you.”
Quinn turned to the desk and picked up a small crystal bell. Taylor almost laughed aloud, it just seemed so incredibly pretentious. Quinn rang the bell and a moment later a young woman with flowing black hair and liquid brown eyes came into the room.
“ Si, Signora Quinn?”
Quinn gave her a warm smile that belied the master/servant nature of their relationship. “Gabrielle, possiamo avere due Coca Lights, per favore? Grazie. ”
Gabrielle disappeared and Quinn turned back to Taylor. “She’s wonderful. Italian girl, family’s from Florence. She wanted to come and work in the States to improve her English and take a few classes, we needed someone to look after the twins and handle a few things around the house. She’s acting as their au pair officially. They just love her. They can speak Italian better than I can now. Not that I’m fluent.”
This explanation came out fast and furious. Taylor got the feeling that Quinn was hiding something. Interesting.
And twins? Taylor knew Quinn had children, but she hadn’t thought to ask how many, boys or girls. Sometimes such pleasantries borne of politeness slipped her by. Quinn gracefully answered the unspoken question.
“The twins, Jillian and Jake Junior, are at school right now. They’re nearly four and are so wonderfully bright. I’ve been blessed.”
“School? That young?”
“Well, it’s never too early to get them started. They attend a prekindergarten three days a week. Do you have any children, Lieutenant?”
The sudden shift threw Taylor for a loop. How was she supposed to answer that? Let’s see, two days ago I was told I was pregnant, yesterday I found out I wasn’t. I didn’t tell my lover, so I have to have a long conversation with him after he finishes chasing a serial killer through the Southeast. She nearly laughed aloud before recovering and answering as truthfully as she could. “I don’t yet, but my best friend is having twins. They just found out. Do you remember Sam Owens? It’s Sam Loughley now, she was in my class.” Good job, Taylor, she congratulated herself. Deflection is the name of the game.
“I do remember Samantha. She’s the medical examiner now. That must be interesting. Well, that’s wonderful. Children are such a joy. Jake and I were so thrilled when we found out…Oh, Lieutenant, I shouldn’t be taking up your time with this. It won’t help get my sister back.”
Gabrielle interrupted, bearing their drinks on a silver tray with tall crystal glasses filled with ice. “Grazie con tanto, Gabrielle. Lascili prego sulla tabella.” The girl set the drinks on a marble-topped table and left the room.
Quinn went to the tray, grabbed the soda can and ignored the glasses. Taylor raised an eyebrow and followed suit. The move seemed a bit informal from a very formal woman. Maybe Quinn Buckley wasn’t quite as high-strung as she first appeared.
They went to the chairs in front of the fireplace, a conversation grouping that put them in face-to-face contact. Taylor sat and pulled out her notebook.
“Okay, Mrs. Buckley, can you tell me what Whitney was so upset about?”
“It would be easier to let you hear it for yourself.” She reached behind her and hit a button. Taylor realized the answering machine sat on the desk behind them.
Aha. That’s why we’re meeting in Quinn’s sanctuary.
“You said my answering machine earlier, Mrs. Buckley. You have more than one?”
“Oh, we’ve got a voice mail system for the family. This is for my private line.” There was no other explanation.
The machine whirred for a moment, then clicked into play mode. A voice filled the room.
“Quinn? Quinn, are you there? Dammit, pick up the phone. I have to talk to you. I’m coming over, this just can’t wait. If you get this message, wait for me at the house. And Quinn? For God’s sake, be careful.”
The voice was filled with hysteria, and Taylor felt a shudder go down her spine.
“Were all the messages like this, Mrs. Buckley?” she asked.
“Yes, for the most part. She never said what was so damn important that she’d wreck her car in her rush to get here. It would have been easier if she’d let me know what the problem was. And what I’m supposed to be careful about. Lord, that woman doesn’t usually overreact like this.”
She fiddled with the gold braid attached to an upholstered throw pillow.
“I was hoping you could look into things for me, Lieutenant. Perhaps examine some of the stories she was working on, see if something came up in one of them that could affect my family or me in some manner.” She cleared her throat. “Perhaps Whitney came across something that may be…embarrassing? Other than that, I just don’t know what to tell you.”
Taylor was silent for a moment. “Mrs. Buckley…”
“Call me Quinn. We’re of an age, after all. Mrs. Buckley always makes me think of Jake’s mother.”
Taylor nodded. “Quinn, you mentioned your husband travels quite a bit. May I ask what he does?”
“My, you really are out of the loop, aren’t you, Lieutenant?”
“Taylor, please. Out of the loop?”
“Well, your father, Win? He’s friends with Jake.”
Ah, Win Jackson. That was something she didn’t feel like dealing with right now. “My father and I aren’t close. So tell me, what does Jake do?”
“He’s the senior vice president of Health Partners. Your father is on the board of directors for the company.”
“Oh,” Taylor said in a small voice. Like that was supposed to mean something to her. Quinn must have caught her confused look, because she continued to explain.
“Health Partners is the leading small community-based hospital company in the country. Jake has to travel to all of their sites constantly to make sure everything is going well. They have holdings all over the Southeast and a few in the Northeast as well. They’re growing bigger and Jake’s job is to make sure they grow in the appropriate places.” Quinn sounded bored, like she was reading a description off the back of an annual report. Even her eyes had taken on a bit of a glaze. Taylor surmised that Quinn wasn’t very interested in her husband’s job, despite the obvious trappings and advantages the job gave. They certainly weren’t lacking for money.
“Okay, that’s good. I tell you what. I’m sure you want to go through your sister’s things. I’ll accompany you over there and have a look around. Does that sound good?”
“That would be fine. When would be convenient for you?”
Taylor noticed that the moment Quinn had started speaking of her husband all the warmth and sparkle had gone out of her voice. And now talking about her sister was bringing it all home.
“Anytime is fine with me. Would you like to go now?”
“I’d prefer tomorrow morning. I have some arrangements to see to, and I haven’t been able to reach our younger brother, Reese. He is in Guatemala doing a mission trip with several other doctors from Vanderbilt. He’s the youngest resident to ever go on one of their trips. They spend two weeks doing surgeries on cleft palates, joints, all the procedures these poor people have absolutely no access to. Reese will be doing some pre-op and post-op counseling. Anyway, that’s neither here nor there. He’s not due back for another week. I’ll try to get word
