Murders at Hollings General

Hole in the morning and sets up my afternoon schedule. We usually have lunch here and then she comes with me on the calls. Handles the paper work plus all the other details. And here I am-been at it for a year, now. So far, so good, and I have more time for snooping … ah, sleuthing … and those other things Kathy blasted.'

'I didn't blast them.'

'I mean, referred to.' This time, David reached for Kathy's hand and said, 'So she's doing what she likes, I'm doing what I like, we're racing each other to forty and we're getting hitched in six months.'

'Married. And you're the one who said `blasted.' 'Married and hitched.'

'You're so into control.'

Nick ran his hand over his scalp. 'Now, just to firm up this investigation,' he said. 'Of the three of us, I'm needed the least for day-to-day operations, so you two take over. But keep me posted. You know, the press, city hall. They're all watching.'

Kathy glanced at David and said, 'And between the two of us, I need your help more than you need mine, so you sort of take over. Keep me posted, too, and just remember, I love you, honey, but let's not blow it.'

David, surprised but reassured, pressed on a rare twitch in his toe and said casually, 'Don't I always keep you informed?' He believed the comment didn't fit and added, 'It's bigger than what I've been doing.'

'Well, you wanted more experience,' Kathy responded. 'You certainly know your way around the hospital. And it's not that you won't have forensic support from our department.'

David felt obliged to indicate he'd check with them on a regular basis.

'That's important,' Nick said. 'We're really accountable to city government. And you're private. Besides, I've learned fast that we have a cut-every-year budget and we're short-handed. The entire police detective division is running on a shoestring. Crime scene search units are way understaffed, as you saw. Our homicide squad's been cut in half so Kathy here has twice as much to do.' He counted on his fingers. 'Electronic Unit, Polygraph Section, Forgery Squad-forget it. Sparky does it all. Precinct squads? We're lucky to have any at all; some have been moved to Narcotics and some to Sex Crimes. So you see, Dr. Brooks, we're simply enlisting your assistance at a time when things are piling up. You can be the point man, but it has to appear as though Kathy and I are. It shouldn't be a problem.'

'I understand.' David did, but he also judged it to be a half-baked endorsement. Homicides? Never sifted through them before. Nick knows it. Certainly Kathy knows it. So even if our investigations run parallel, they've given me some slack. They've talked this over plenty. Obvious. But, as Nick said, they've got other things, plus they're hurting. Me? Give it full attention, maybe take some afternoons off, beat them to the punch. Yeah, that's it. Problem is though, beating the killer to the punch.

'Publicly, it will seem like a natural,' Nick continued. 'An M.D. sleuth whose stomping grounds are where the crimes were committed. And, if this is what you want, have a go at it, and you're lucky, you know, because we've, like, come to you. Back in San Diego, we had guys knocking down our doors to get a little business.'

Yeah, they talked it over all right. That's how Kathy would put it: 'Tell him he's lucky, Nick.'

Kathy said, 'I'm confident you're ready to handle it. Just remember it's not just another 10–65.'

'Why does everybody in law enforcement always bring up Missing Persons with me?'

'Because that's what you always complain about. And, really, that's about all you've handled till now.'

'Not so. I never told you I had a 10-91H when you were at that convention a couple months back.'

Kathy stifled a laugh poorly. 'A stray horse?'

'Sure, rode him back to the farm, too.'

'You would.'

'Why wouldn't I?'

'Because you never rode a horse.'

'I have now.' They got up to leave.

'And incidentally, Kath, speaking of horses, if you were one, you'd probably be a Shetland.' David held his arm at a right-angle over her head. 'Have you cleared five feet yet?'

'I'm way past that.'

'What? Half an inch?'

'No, a full inch,' she replied with an exaggerated nod. She stomped her foot in the process.

David reminded them he would walk over to see the Surgical Chief and his associate. He shook Nick's hand and kissed Kathy lightly on the lips. 'Thank you both.'

'So long, cowboy,' she replied.

David joined the two surgeons halfway across the room. They stood when he arrived, and he felt the air crackle with tension. The Associate's face was scarlet. David continued his handshake with the Chief as he spoke: 'Ned, Steve, thanks for waiting. Sorry-must have been agony witnessing that butchering.'

'I feel awful about it,' the Chief said. 'Two murders like that, and what's it do to our new program?'

'I know. Look, I won't keep you long. Okay for just two questions?'

'Take all the time you need, David.'

'Well, first and foremost, how'd that creep end up taking Cortez's place?'

'We blew it,' the Chief said. 'I thought Steve here would be meeting with him before the procedure and he guessed I would.'

'Not `guessed,' the Associate snapped. 'You told me you would. I can still hear your words.'

The Chief scowled. 'We'll talk about that later. Anyway … '

David broke in as if to minimize their bones of contention. 'Did either of you recognize who the imposter was?'

'We never saw his face,' the Chief answered. 'He came in wearing a surgical mask. Later, I took it upon myself to ask the same thing of the nurses and technicians. They saw him only masked. Even beforehand, while he scrubbed. I checked at the desk; nobody saw him come in. And, I'm kicking myself for not arriving sooner, but, as I said, I assumed Steve would be here. The guy never said a word during the surgery … if that's what you call it … never asked for an instrument, just reached out. You know how it works, the scrub tech automatically snaps them into your hand.'

The Chief exhaled as if blowing out a match. He continued: 'Earlier, when I said, `Good afternoon, Dr. Cortez,' he just nodded. But, I figured, hell, he's the dignitary. He's the one getting our organ transplant program off the ground. Don't interfere with his concentration. And, David, as I look back, his eyes were so eerie. They never stopped moving around. They were everywhere. How anything had a chance to register with him, I don't know.'

'Tell me, did he seem to know what he was doing?'

'To the point when all hell broke loose, I suppose he did. But, you know the usual procedure, David. After his initial incision, I entered the peritoneum for him, just like a resident would. He never got to the pancreas, but he sure knew where the renals were.'

'And the liver and spleen,' the Associate said.

'And the liver and spleen. Everything happened so damn fast. It was like his punctuation mark,' the Chief said. 'You saw what he did?'

'Yes.'

David rose. 'I said I'd bother you with only a couple questions, and that's all the information I need for now.' He looked at his watch. 'It's after seven and you two must be bushed. Thanks for waiting-I'll be in touch. And, oh, by the way, how did the transplant brouhaha settle out with Bowie County across town?'

'Some friendly sister hospital. It never did settle out. They made it quite clear that if they didn't get a piece of the action, they'd refer their cases out-of-state.'

Chapter 3

When David got back to 10 Oak Lane, his favorite tree had offered silent support to his rhetorical question, 'Not a bad spot for a single guy, right?' Inside, he tossed his case, Friday, on the sofa, ignored a blinking answering machine and circled around the four rooms which were laid out in an unimaginative square. He and Kathy had combined to dub the front living room: 'Lush and Plush'; the den: 'The Nest'; the rear kitchen: 'Lean and Mean';