“Oh, that,” Jennifer said with a wave. “I’ve got a lot to tell you. That’s just the most dramatic.”
“I think it’s very serious and has serious implications,” Laurie said soberly.
“Wonderful,” Jennifer said, waving over her head. “I was hoping you’d feel that way. Sorry, but here come the Benfattis, who I told you about.”
“Good evening, folks,” Jennifer said, as Lucinda directed her two sons over to Jennifer and her group.
All of them introduced themselves, and hands were shaken all around.
Jennifer eyed the two boys. Louis was the older and the oceanographer. Tony was the herpetologist and the younger, and he looked more like his mother.
“Jennifer told me about you,” Lucinda said to Laurie and Jack. “She suggested that you might be willing to have a look at my husband, Herbert, before we tell them to go ahead and cremate him.”
“My understanding, at this point, is that your husband’s and Jennifer’s grandmother’s cases are strikingly similar,” Laurie said. “If that’s the case, we would like very much to check it out. Whether an autopsy might be in the offing, I cannot say. Hold off on giving them the green light with the cremation until you hear from us. We’ll be at the hospital tomorrow morning.”
“We’ll be happy to do that,” Lucinda said. “Thank you very much.”
“There’s not going to be an autopsy,” Jennifer said. “Mrs. Varini reminded me of that again today under no uncertain terms. Not unless something very unusual happens. Here in India the doctors cannot make that decision. It’s up to either the police or the magistrates. Did you hear from her today, Lucinda?”
“I did. She made the offer to take Herbert to Varanasi if I’d give the green light. Between you and me, I don’t give a hoot about Varanasi. Anyway, I reminded her my boys were coming tonight, and I told her she would hear from them tomorrow.”
“Did she threaten you at all about tomorrow?” Jennifer asked.
“Yes, something about getting a court order but not until the afternoon. I merely repeated about my boys calling her before noon and hung up. She’s very tiresome.”
Jennifer laughed. “That’s an understatement.”
After agreeing to chat in the morning, the two groups walked over to the Amal Palace Hotel area and found their respective greeters. The greeters in turn called the respective drivers, and the group went outside to wait for their respective rides.
Inside their SUV, Jennifer had taken the front seat, Laurie and Jack the middle, and Neil had climbed into the back row. Although she responsibly had her seat belt on, Jennifer had twisted herself around, facing the rear, essentially sitting on her right leg.
“Okay, you guys,” Jack said, once they got under way. “You’ve kept me in suspense long enough about whatever happened today that was scary and is going to change our visit.”
Jennifer rolled her eyes in the direction of the driver, suggesting it might be best if they held off on discussing sensitive issues until they were back at the hotel. Laurie caught on immediately and whispered as much to Jack. Instead, what they ended up carrying on was an animated discussion about India, and New Delhi in particular. They also talked about Jennifer’s imminent graduation from medical school and how she’d been considering surgery, possibly eyeing New York-Presbyterian for a residency. Jack found the view of the traffic outside the window fascinating for the entire fifty minutes.
When they pulled up to the front of the hotel, Neil called out, “Let’s all group around Jennifer as a safety precaution.”
“What for?” Jack questioned.
“It’s part of what we have to tell you,” Laurie said. “It’s not a bad idea. One can never be too careful.”
Laurie, Jack, and Neil got out of the car before Jennifer, who was cooperating under protest. When she self- consciously followed, the others were grouped around her door as she emerged. In a tight group, they made their way inside.
“Why don’t you guys check in, and then we’ll all have a cold beer?” Jennifer said, recovering her dignity. “Neil and I will wait for you.”
As it was well past midnight, the bar crowd had thinned. There was some kind of live music, but the group was on a break. Jennifer and Neil found a table as far from the music as possible, around a bend and away from the main seating area. A waitress appeared as soon as they sat down. They ordered a round of King-fishers for everyone and settled back into overstuffed chairs.
“This is the first time I’ve felt relaxed all day,” Jennifer said. “I even may be a little hungry.”
“I like your friends,” Neil said. He thought briefly about confessing how he had mistakenly shared Jennifer’s secret with Laurie, but then chickened out. After the stress of the day, he was afraid of what it might do to her mental state. The problem was, he didn’t want it coming from anyone other than him if she were to be told, but he felt he could trust Laurie. Neil was confident he’d never do anything to make Laurie feel she had to tell.
“I don’t know Jack very well, but since Laurie thinks he’s terrific, he must be.”
The waitress brought the beers.
“Do you have any prepared finger food?” Jennifer asked.
“We do, and I can bring you a nice selection.”
Fifteen minutes later, Jennifer had a large platter of exotic appetizers, and a few minutes after that Laurie and Jack joined them. Jack took a few sips and sat back. “Okay,” he said. “You’ve all teased me enough about the scary episode. Let’s hear it.”
“Let me tell it,” Laurie said. “Then, if I have something wrong or a misconception, you can correct me. I want to be sure I understand exactly what happened.”
Jennifer and Neil both motioned for her to go ahead.
Laurie then told the Old Delhi bazaar episode, requiring only a few explanations and corrections from Jennifer and Neil. When Laurie finished, she looked at the young couple for any final additions.
“That’s it,” Jennifer said, nodding. “Well done.”
“And you didn’t go to the police?” Jack asked.
Jennifer nodded. “Neil, who’s been here before, to a medical meeting, pretty much talked me out of it.”
“The local police are often corrupt,” Neil explained. “And besides, something I did not mention to you today, Jennifer, and another reason I didn’t want you going back to talk to the police, is that I think they are somehow actively involved.”
“How so?” Jennifer asked. She was taken aback by the idea.
“I can’t imagine it was by chance the plainclothes policeman was behind you. It’s too much of a coincidence. My sense is that he was either following you or following the victim. If I had to guess, I’d put my money on you.”
“Really?” Jennifer intoned. “If that were the case, then I’d be willing to bet the policeman was following us when we were leaving.”
“Who knows. The point is that the police might not be innocent bystanders in all this, which isn’t reassuring, since, as I said, corruption is not unknown.”
“Well,” Jack said. “A threat to Jennifer’s life certainly does change the complexion of her granny’s case and what we are going to have to do.”
“You think the threat is related?” Laurie asked.
“You have to assume so,” Jack said, “and, as Neil says, a threat that involves possibly corrupt police is very disturbing.”
“Let me tell you the main thing that has made me suspicious about this whole situation,” Jennifer said. “This threat, or whatever it was today, is just the icing on the cake. What really caught my attention, not only with Granny but with the other two deaths as well, is the disconnect between the time of the victims’ deaths as reported on their death certificates and the time that the death was a centerpiece of a CNN segment about medical tourism. Take Granny! I saw the piece on television at approximately seven-forty-five in the morning in L.A., which is about eight-fifteen the same night here in India. When I got to see the death certificate, I found out it said she died at ten-thirty-five, two hours and twenty minutes later.”
“The death certificate is just the time a doctor declares the person dead,” Laurie said. “It doesn’t aspire to be the actual time the person died.”
“I understand that,” Jennifer said. “But think about it. It’s a two-hour, twenty-minute separation, but you have to add to that the time for someone to put the story together, call CNN, and report it. Also, you have to add
