Page 78 of Her Last Whisper

“What do you mean? I was down at the spa. I left my wallet down there the other day and I was retrieving it but—”

“Convenient timing.”

“You mean Emily fell? She’s…” Jamison couldn’t finish his sentence.

“You have an answer for everything,” said McGaven.

Two deputies entered the room and looked around. One of them said, “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, we’re fine,” said Katie. “Watch him, we’re going downstairs. Don’t touch anything and don’t let anyone in until forensics gets here.”

The deputies nodded, one taking watch at the door while the other one took a position next to Dr. Jamison.

Katie and McGaven hurried to an elevator.

She hesitated.

“What?” said McGaven.

“The elevator.”

“C’mon, let’s go,” he said. “It’s not the same one. No way getting stuck in an elevator would happen twice in one day.”

Katie made a sour face.

They rode allthe way to the main level without any trouble. Katie was relieved there wasn’t a glitch this time and quickly moved to the doors opening into the pool area. There were several guests and hotel employees huddled in small groups, recounting the horror of what they had seen.

Katie burst through the doors and wasn’t quite prepared to see the carnage of what happened to a body when it hit the ground from fifteen floors up. It was beyond gruesome. She grabbed a white towel from a beach chair and laid it over Emily’s broken body, covering what was left of her head. It stung Katie deep. This was the second woman she had spoken with who had met their death. She couldn’t think about it now, only the facts.

“It’s beginning to look even more like Dr. Jamison has some serious explaining to do,” said McGaven.

“Maybe there’s a reason he’s been avoiding me,” she said.

McGaven remained quiet.

Some people began inching toward the pool area. “Please stay back,” ordered Katie.

She heard sirens coming into the hotel parking lot.

“Something bothering you?” asked McGaven.

“One, I need to go find my shoes. And two, make sure that John and his crew dust for prints all around the balcony and entrance—and bag Emily’s hoodie for examination.”

“You okay?”

Katie nodded.

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed John.

Katie’s cell phone vibrated and alerted her to a text message from Denise:

Hi, don’t know where you are but found out that James Haines just got out of jail (drunk and disorderly) a few weeks ago. His two known associates are Craig Porter and Nadine McMillian. Mean anything?

Forty-Seven

Thursday 1525 hours

Dr. Kenneth Jamison had been brought back to the sheriff’s department for questioning. He hadn’t been officially charged yet—he was merely a person of interest until his charges were upgraded and forensics tests concluded. The police wanted to know what he had to say about Emily Day and her fall—and the homicide of Amanda Payton. There was a fine line for any investigator to walk when the interrogation teetered on a full confession or complete denial.