Page 80 of Her Last Whisper

“Did you and Ms. Day argue before her fall?”

He hesitated. “Yes. Earlier, but everything was fine.”

“Did you hit her?”

“No, I would never do that.”

“Did you push her over the railing?”

“No, God no.” He began to unravel, his hands moved strangely and he kept putting them up to his face and the sides of his head.

“Dr. Jamison, is there any reason to believe that Ms. Day took her own life?”

“I’ve been trying to think of a reason, but no, she would never do that—ever. This doesn’t make any sense.”

“What do you expect me to believe? Put yourself in my shoes.”

“I… I don’t know…”

“Someone pushed Ms. Day over the railing and someone hit me on the back of the head as they fled. Who? Tell me who would do that just at the same time that you went downstairs to see if your wallet was at the spa?”

Dr. Jamison’s frustration revealed itself as he pounded his fists once on the table. “I told you… I don’t know…”

“You were the only one there—so you’re trying to tell me that you didn’t do it? And that we won’t find your prints on the railings?” Katie leaned in, keeping his gaze. “Maybe it was an accident and you ran because you were afraid. Was it an accident?”

“I didn’t do it!” he yelled.

“Please calm down, Dr. Jamison. We’re trying to figure out what happened. A woman is dead. There was barely enough of her left to perform any type of autopsy,” Katie stated, still holding her alpha position as the interrogator.

The doctor looked away from her, obviously trying to get that terrible image out his mind.

“Let me ask another question. How well did you know Amanda Payton?”

He looked directly at Katie and said, “I worked with her.”

“So when did you begin an intimate relationship with her?”

“What?”

“You heard me, Doctor. Don’t play games with us. You’re in enough trouble right now. How long was your intimate relationship with Amanda Payton?” Katie watched him closely as he appeared to get his story straight in his mind before he answered her directly. She wanted to see a glimmer of recognition or even a look of dread.

“Answer the question,” said McGaven. His voice almost startled Katie because she was so focused on Dr. Jamison that nothing, or nobody else, was in the room with her.

He must have thought better and decided to answer the question. “We went out for drinks a few times. We flirted at work, but that was all. We didn’t have a relationship.” He emphasized the wordrelationship.

“Is that so?” she said. “So we’re not going to find any of your DNA at Amanda’s crime scene?”

The doctor remained quiet. It wasn’t clear if he was trying to remember where he might’ve left some DNA or if he just didn’t want to dignify that question with an answer.

“Dr. Jamison, we have a serious problem,” she said. “More specifically,youhave a serious problem. Attractive young women seem to die around you—two women in one week.”

He looked away, obviously trying to pretend he was somewhere else—anywhere.

Finally he said, “Are you going to arrest me?” He looked defeated.

Katie studied his face and mannerisms—especially his hands, which told quite a bit about people and how they held or released their stress levels.

McGaven looked at Katie with a calm demeanor, waiting for her answer.