Page 22 of Her Final Hours (High Peaks Murder, Mystery and Crime Thrillers #3)

I t was the break in the case they needed, the tragedy they never wanted. Losing a deputy was never a good day, and from what he heard, Parker’s wife had a baby on the way. That only fueled his determination.

Noah was up early the following day to get the kids to school. After hearing the news of what happened at the hospital, he’d been eager to head over there, but the weather had taken a turn for the worst, and the long drive back from Clayton had taken a toll on him.

Still, it wasn’t bad news for everyone.

That morning, the school called for a snow day, which meant the kids got to stay home, and he would have to arrange for Gretchen to watch them.

Noah felt a wave of guilt come over him.

She’d been so good with the kids. Helping out when needed, but he could tell it was starting to take its toll.

Asking her to help in the morning would have been a bit of a stretch.

Gretchen wasn’t getting any younger, and from the tiredness in her face the night before, he decided instead to call Luke’s wife.

“I appreciate it, Kerri.”

“Well, that’s what family is for,” she said. “Besides, my two aren’t going anywhere, and at least if we have your two here, they will stay busy, and I might get a free moment in the day,” she said with a chuckle.

“I’ll drop them on my way out.”

In Elizabethtown Community Hospital, Noah entered a brightly lit security room full of a bank of monitors. He was clutching two steaming cups of coffee. Fatigue weighed heavy on his eyes, evidence of the long night he’d endured with questions spiraling in his mind.

“Ah, here he is. Is this what you call fashionably late?” McKenzie said, nudging Callie. “We were just about to send out a search party for you.”

“Sorry. The roads are hellish.”

“Sure are. Is that mine?” he asked, pointing to the tray.

“No, it’s mine,” Callie said.

“Oh great. I’ve been up all night, and you two roll in like you’re on a Sunday picnic, and you can’t even bring me a coffee?”

“Figured you had enough already.”

McKenzie glanced at a young security guard who nervously adjusted his glasses. His presence in the security room was a testament to his eagerness to assist in the investigation. “You see, Roger, what I have to put up with?”

“Ignore him.” Callie rose, taking her cup and thanking him.

“Aye. You always do.”

McKenzie was leaning against a desk, his piercing gaze turned toward the monitors. His disheveled appearance suggested he’d been up tirelessly working on the case most of the night. His determination was palpable.

The security room was compact, with screens displaying footage from different hospital areas. The room was filled with a low hum of machinery and the soft glow of monitors, creating an atmosphere that was tense and full of anticipation.

“Looks like our guy screwed up big time. However, we are going to have a hard time identifying him. Wearing that damn face mask. Do you know, they lifted the mandate in February but some people are still wearing them?” McKenzie said as the security guard fiddled with a controller and replayed a segment from the previous night.

“Some health systems still require it,” Callie said.

McKenzie grumbled and continued. “Anyways, we must send this off to the state crime lab and see if the crew can enhance it. And by enhance it, I mean blow it up into something that is even more blurry than this and release it to the public, expecting them to identify this guy. Geesh, we’d have more chance of finding Waldo than this laddie,” he joked.

Noah took a deep breath, mustering the last remnants of his energy, and glanced at the footage on the screens as they replayed the previous night. It showed the stranger entering the hospital, interacting briefly with McKenzie.

“What did you say to him?” Noah asked.

“He and a couple of other morons were traipsing mud and snow through the hospital. I called them out.”

“So it was a guy?”

“If it isn’t, we are dealing with Red Sonja from 1985.” McKenzie laughed nudging the security guard. “Seriously. Is it a guy?” He chuckled again. “Oh, Sutherland, you do crack me up. Of course, it was a guy. ”

“Just asking. You’d be surprised at what passes for a man nowadays.”

“Isn’t that the truth,” he replied while skirting around the hot topic that filled the news waves as of late. “No, he just pointed to his badge and walked on,” McKenzie added.

As the video continued to play, the seemingly ordinary scene was disrupted as they watched the man disappear into a room and come out wearing a nurse’s uniform.

They observed him rolling a tray toward the doorway, his hands gloved, making sure not to leave any prints behind.

There was a moment of communication, a flash of the ID card at the officer before he entered the girl’s room.

That’s when everything went sideways. He reappeared, and before Parker could react, the stranger sliced his throat.

In an instant, he disappeared, then came back out, pushing out the bed and rolling it down the hallway.

Less than a minute after, McKenzie came into view, coffee in hand.

“I thought he was distracted with his phone.”

The video played out, McKenzie darting through the corridors in pursuit.

That’s when they saw another interaction with the stranger as a doctor stopped him in the hall.

The stranger assaulted her, stabbing her in the stomach.

Others noticed and hurried toward him, causing him to ditch the girl and make a break for it.

He could only guess what it was about without sound until McKenzie said, “She survived. The doctor. She’s in critical care but stable.

It seems she knew the real Joseph Collins and was aware of the girl.

She stopped to ask our guy where he was taking the girl, and that’s when she saw the ID card.

We figure this assailant took it from our deceased guy, hoping to blow past security if questioned.

Most wouldn’t have questioned him because there is no photo on the ID.

Anyway, he took off when he caused a commotion. ”

“And the girl? How’s she doing? ”

“Fortunately, she was sedated. She had no idea.”

Noah nodded.

“So he goes to all that trouble to enter and then abandons her. Odd,” Callie remarked.

“And what’s even stranger is he didn’t harm the girl,” McKenzie said.

“What?” she asked.

Noah shifted his weight from one foot to the next.

“Let’s say this is our abductor. And somehow, this girl got away from him.

If you’re coming back, it’s probably to silence her.

Now I’m assuming he saw the media post about a girl not knowing who she was or where she was from.

He figured she hadn’t told anyone and returned to ensure she couldn’t if her memory returned.

Except he didn’t touch her when he had the opportunity.

He tried to wheel her straight out of the damn hospital.

The question is, why? Why bother? If you’ve taken other girls in the past, you take another; you don’t return for this one.

It was a risky move to attempt this.” Noah shook his head, took a sip of his coffee, and asked the security guard to play it again.

He noted the suspect was wearing gloves on his way in. “You said that you found the card?”

“Yep. Bagged and tagged and entered into evidence.”

“We should run it for prints. While it seems he wore winter gloves on the way in and latex while here — it’s possible our guy didn’t when he stole it from Joseph.”

“I’m already ahead of you, cowboy,” McKenzie said, still analyzing the footage. The air crackled with a mix of anxiety and hope.

As Noah’s eyes narrowed, his mind focused on every detail captured by the cameras.

Callie chimed in, eager to prove her worth. “You think they targeted Joseph for his badge to get at her, or could he have been involved? ”

The two of them glanced at her.

She quickly clarified before McKenzie tossed out one of his insulting jokes. “I mean. The girl’s body was flooded with drugs. Drugs that potentially could have been available here at the hospital. They had to have gotten them from somewhere. Could he have played a part?”

McKenzie tapped the air with his finger. “Nice point, Jessica Fletcher; however, why would they bump off one of their own?”

“Perhaps he dropped the ball,” Noah said, his eyes on the girl. “She did escape after all. Twenty-five women and only one reappears.”

“Well, we don’t know yet whether she was one of the abducted.

So far, we haven’t got shit on this girl.

We don’t know who she is, where she came from, or what happened.

No leads. For all we know, she could have killed Collins, and this guy was family looking for payback.

Addie got back to us with the results of the blood match. It was a positive match.”

Callie nodded. “So, they are connected.”

“Yeah, and she decided to play finger painting in his blood,” McKenzie said.

“Thanks for the visual,” Callie remarked. “Any results back from the genealogy test?”

“We’ve put a rush on it, but it still takes time,” Noah said.

“Yeah, time we don’t have.” McKenzie had Roger pause the video. “Listen. All we see is him entering from the right. That’s because the van isn’t parked in the lot.” He had Roger fast-forward to when the guy raced out of the hospital’s rear, and they saw him cross a field to the tree line.

“So, he knew enough not to park in the lot,” Noah commented.

They saw a blur and red taillights as the van darted toward the main road.

“So, what now?” Callie asked .

“Now I go home and get some well-deserved shut-eye, and you two take over and earn your paycheck,” McKenzie said, getting up and shuffling toward the exit.

“McKenzie,” Noah said. “Sorry about the kid.”

“Ah… I warned him to pay attention. I just…” He waved it off and walked off. Even though McKenzie liked to come across as a hard-nosed veteran officer, it was clear from the look on his face as the video replayed that moment, Parker’s death had gotten to him.

Once he was gone, they replayed the video multiple times, hoping to see something of significance, but all they saw was horror, a man willing to go to great lengths to get the girl. The question was, why?

As they awaited the door camera footage, Noah stepped out and wandered down the corridor to a large window where he looked out, watching the snow come down. He made a call to Savannah. “I gather they updated you on the situation.”

“I heard. You over there now?” she asked.

“Yeah. Look, we can’t leave her here. He knows she’s here. Chances are, if he was willing to go to these lengths to get at her, he’ll probably try again.”

“He’d be insane to.”

“You ever seen anyone go to these lengths?” There was no answer. “Exactly. We aren’t dealing with someone logical.”

“So, what are you suggesting?”

“I don’t know. Maybe she can stay with one of us.”

“That won’t fly. You’re all needed out there; right now, she’s getting around-the-clock treatment.”

“And she can continue to. Maybe you can speak with Dr. Blake. See if she knows a more secure facility or have the girl go back to her place. We can post a deputy outside just until we get— ”

“I don’t know, Noah,” she said, cutting him off. “I think that’s above our call.”

“At least look into it.”

Savannah grumbled. “I will. Any luck following up with your father?”

“Yeah, I ended up connecting with the lead investigator from State. She’s retired but gave me a lot of paperwork and case files to wade through.”

“Better let you get back to it then,” Savannah said. “I’ll keep you in the loop on the girl once I know more.”

“Thanks.”

He hung up and stood alone in the hospital corridor, his gaze fixed on the flurry of snowflakes dancing outside the window.

His mind churned with thoughts, each adding to the storm of activity within him.

Every investigation was daunting. The community wanted answers fast. His superiors to save face.

And caught between it all were those like him hoping for a break that could propel the investigation forward.

Lost in contemplating, Noah was startled by Callie, who approached from behind. “Noah,” she called out, her voice eager. “We got a lead on the van!”

He turned around. His eyes met hers as she held up the phone, the screen displaying a company logo.

“The camera didn’t capture the license plate,” she continued, slightly breathless.

“But we managed to snag the color and logo. It appears to be a plumber’s van.

Look!” She pointed to the logo on the side of the vehicle displayed on her phone.

It had the words All Week – Plumbing, Heating.

Air Conditioning and Drain Cleaning. Twenty-four hours – 7 days a week .

“The company is located in Elizabethtown.”

A flicker of anticipation sparkled in Noah’s eyes as he studied the blurry logo that matched one found online.

It was a potential breakthrough, a tangible lead to pursue, but he couldn’t help but wonder why they would be that sloppy.

Then again, some of the most intelligent criminals he’d taken down didn’t think things out.

“You sure that’s the one from the surveillance video here at the hospital?”

“Look at the time stamp. It’s the only van that passes by that fits our timeline.”

“All right,” he said. They headed out, their steps purposeful and their minds focused on the task. Outside, the heavy snow seemed to match the intensity of their mission, creating an atmosphere of urgency.

“I figure they parked up on the hill off Evans Street so that if any patrol officer passed by, it wouldn’t look suspicious.

They would assume he was attending an emergency call.

And the tree line would hide the logo,” Callie said as he started the engine, the warmth of the Bronco enveloping them as the heater came on.

Tires crunched against the snow-covered road; his mind focused on the upcoming interrogation, the evidence that needed to be collected, and the delicate balance between determination and caution. The winter landscape blurred past them, but their resolve remained unyielding.

“Don’t get your hopes up yet; there’s still a chance it might not be it,” he said, having seen video canvassing gone sideways through misidentification and vehicles being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He just hoped that wasn’t the case this time.