Page 75

“I’ve been assigned to the bomb scene investigation from yesterday’s incident. As you can imagine, it made quite an impact here.” Was that a thread of humor in the woman’s voice? “If you’re feeling up to it, I’d like to update you on what we have so far. I can send a car for you, if you like.”
“I’m sure we can be there. Let me confer with Hayes about the time and method of transportation.”
“Dr. Moreland is with you?”
“He’s in the other room, yes.”
“Excellent. Two birds, one stone. I’ll text you a number and you can message me. I’m anxious to speak with both of you.”
“I’ll let you know. Thanks.”
When Reese rejoined Hayes, she noted with amusement that he had his head in the refrigerator. “Hungry already?”
He straightened and closed the door, raising a bottle of water to show her. “Slim pickings. You want one?”
“No, thanks. What did Mendes have to say?”
“He’s sending someone to Rivers’s office as we speak. Did I hear your phone ring in there?”
It dinged in her hand. She glanced at the screen. The number Loffler had promised. Reese quickly recounted the conversation she’d had with the detective.
“She has more questions, or she’s found something already?”
“Loffler said update, so maybe both. When do you want to do it?”
He lifted a shoulder. “We don’t have anything going on. Have her send the car. Mendes offered us an escort for anywhere we go, but this will save me from reaching out to him again.”
“The earlier phone call was from Kervin.” Deliberately, he unscrewed the cap from the bottle and lifted it to his lips. Drank. “He wants me to meet him tonight.”
“Of course he does.”
“I told him I was interested in what he had to say, but wouldn’t meet his asking price. And that I may not be able to come tonight. He claims he snuck into the annex area last night where Ben’s room is.”
Hayes frowned. “This subterfuge could end up hurting you in your quest for conservatorship. Eckworth has a problem with Langrath. If she finds out that he’s breaking rules to get you information, that isn’t exactly going to impress the judge in your favor.”
“I kinda think what Eckworth’s been up to might outweigh my transgression, but point taken. I can’t unring that bell, although when I see Kervin next, I can tell him I don’t require anything else from him.” Reese texted Loffler that they could be ready anytime and to send a car, asking the officer to message her when it arrived. Her cell alerted midmessage.
“You’re popular today,” Hayes observed as he sat down in front of his laptop.
“It’s Kervin again.” The CNA was on his way to becoming a pest. Impatiently, Reese clicked on the message and saw an image of an unfamiliar man unfurl on her screen. He appeared to be asleep, his face half turned from the camera. Another picture showed a nameplate on a door. Ben Decody.
Her stomach did a quick flip and churn. Suddenly boneless, she sank to the edge of the couch. Reese tried to swallow, but her mouth was desert dry. She read the accompanying text.
If you wont pay maybe your paper will. This is big!
“Reese!” Her head jerked toward Hayes.
“What’s wrong?”
Wordlessly, she held out her phone. She didn’t trust her legs at the moment. He crossed to her and took the cell. Scrolled through the message and photos before coming over to sink beside her.
“Do you recognize him?”
She shook her head. The man could have been a stranger. But that’s really all Ben had been to her when they’d lived together. It took a moment before she found her voice. “I haven’t seen him in twenty-two years. He didn’t attend my parents’ funeral. He was a gangly, blond, blue-eyed fourteen-year-old the last time I saw him.” Ben was rarely mentioned in her presence. Certainly, nopictures had been shared. It was as if her parents had placed her in Bubble Wrap, providing a belated layer of protection. A silent gesture of remorse for the times they’d failed to safeguard her as a child. Julia had done likewise.
“He was…” Her voice trailed off before she could form the words.
“He hurt you.” She didn’t look at Hayes. She couldn’t. “When I was looking over the medical documents in the pile you had at the apartment, I read a much earlier one to compare his diagnoses. It had a summary of the injuries you suffered at his hands.”