Page 83 of Rookie Days

Though Ellie asked in a gentle voice, Janet recognized the effort it took for her to remain patient. Quinn did not bother to even try to, and she actually just growled. Janet eyed them both fondly.

“Sorry. I wish I could make it happen for you but it’s just not possible right away. We’ve had to place her in an induced coma.”

“How badly was she beaten?” Ellie asked.

“Very. He broke her jaw, her left cheekbone, and two of her ribs. Gave her a serious concussion as well. As I said, she was semi-conscious when she came in, but soon got worse. Bleeding on the brain. I had to operate quickly to stop her hemorrhaging. Now, to give her the best chance of recovery, we need to keep her sedated.”

“How long is that going to take?”

“Not sure, Quinn. As long as she needs, okay?”

She could tell from her expression that her friend registered the spike of irritation in her voice. Janet was stuck in the middle here. She felt protective of her colleague, as she would of any ofher patients. She also knew that more lives were at risk, and how desperate the police were for a break. Quinn flashed a reassuring smile as she answered.

“Of course, we won’t put her recovery at risk.”

Janet stepped forward to give her a quick hug.

“Sorry I snapped. I know you wouldn’t.”

“Did Susan say anything else to you, Janet?” Ellie wanted to know.

“No. And she told the paramedics, by the way, not me. By the time she got here, she was past talking. I had to rush her into the OR immediately.”

“He would have raped and murdered her today, like he did the others,” Quinn mused. “I wonder what happened to prevent it.”

“I guess he wasn’t ready for Susan!” Janet snorted, this time with a mix of irony and pride. “She holds a black belt in BJJ, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. He would have stunned her with the initial blow to the head but I’m sure he didn’t expect her to fight back so ferociously.”

“Janet.” Ellie spoke intently. “I know she’s in a coma right now, and cannot speak, but there’s another way she can help us. Would you allow one of our medical technicians to examine her for trace evidence? If she fought with him so hard, there’s a good chance she’ll have some of his blood on her, or bits of his skin under her nails.”

Quinn nodded in approval, and Janet did not think long about it before she did the same. She knew the headstrong Dr Elliott would be pushing for this if she were able.

“Permission granted, Detective. But I want to be present in the room when this is done.”

“Sure thing.” Ellie grabbed her phone and glanced briefly at Quinn. “I’ll get it sorted now.”

Janet watched her retreat to another corner of the room to make the call. She could feel her energy, her drive, her hunger to bring a killer to a stop.

“She’s good, uh?” she murmured.

“She’s got cop written all over her,” Quinn answered, and flicked her a glance. “You’ve got it bad for her, Dr Fox.”

Janet winked in reply as her blood sizzled.

“Hell yeah, Lieutenant.”

Ellie came back before she could add anything else.

“Okay, a CS tech is on her way.” Her eyes were bright and she looked charged. “Janet?”

“Mmmm?” Janet gave a dreamy smile when their eyes met again, which caused Ellie to pause too. Both women went silent, staring some more. Quinn cleared her throat.

“Yo, rookie,” she warned.

“Uh, yes.” Ellie straightened, though with a grin. “Janet, I have a few questions for you.”

“Shoot.”

“What is Dr Elliott’s specialty?”