Page 35 of Seven Deadly Sins

“Alrighty then.” Mr. Moore’s mouth twisted. “Let’s get this old brain to work.” He wrote, then tore out the sheet. “Five names during the time I was there. Hope the one you’re looking for is on there. Otherwise, I’m of no help.”

“You’ve been a huge help.” She noticed the orderly bringing a wheelchair. “Are you doing alright, sir?”

“Ah.” He waved a hand in dismissal as the orderly helped him into the chair. “Cancer’s returned and settled in my back. My time is almost finished on this earth. Hope you catch this guy while I’m still alive to watch the drama unfold.”

She cleared her throat. “I’ll personally make sure you’re kept up to date, Mr. Moore.” She stood and thrust out her hand. “Again, we thank you.”

As she left the building with Liam, she couldn’t help but wish the old man would beat the cancer again. She glanced back toward the building before getting in the jeep.

Her eyes narrowed at the sight of a woman in nursing scrubs standing next to a dark sedan. The woman turned. It was the same woman who had stared at Harper at the chicken place.

“Liam.” She darted after the woman who whirled and disappeared around the building.

~

“Harper, wait. Ugh.” Liam slammed the jeep door and pulled his weapon as he took off after the women. Didn’t she know better than to take off after someone alone? Obviously not.

He lost sight of them and stopped around the corner. A startled nurse stared at him through a locked glass door, then pointed across the garden.

He gave chase in that direction. Crashing through the brush, then the blaring of a car horn, alerted him he ran in the right direction. He burst through some foliage and skidded to a halt on the edge of the highway. Across the traffic, Harper still chased the woman in scrubs. They disappeared into the trees.

If he got hit by a semi, he’d throttle Harper. Liam dashed across, dodging cars and waving apologies as drivers laid on their horns.

He found Harper standing on the edge of a ditch. “Are you crazy?”

“It’s obvious that woman is following us. I lost her. She jumped where I wasn’t willing to go. I’m surprised she didn’t break an ankle.”

Liam glanced at the rocky bottom of the ditch. A good six-foot jump. “Don’t run off like that again. You could’ve been killed.”

She shot him a look he couldn’t decipher and made her way back across the highway, him on her heels. On the other side, she faced him. “Why do you think she’s following us? Crazed fan of this game we’re involved in or the assassin?”

“She doesn’t look like the other assassin, but let’s not rule her out. Either way, we’ll see her again.” He hoped it wasn’t by staring down the barrel of her gun or up in the woman’s face after being shot.

“Sorry, I lost her. She could’ve led us to the killer.” Harper continued to the jeep.

“Or swallowed a poison pill like the last one.” He slid into the driver’s seat. “Where to next?”

“I doubt we’ll get as much information as we received from Mr. Moore, but let’s take the one that’s an hour away and work our way back.” She punched the address into his GPS.

With a glance in his rearview mirror, Liam drove away from the assisted living facility and toward their next destination. A few miles down the road, he spotted a dark sedan he thought followed them until it got off at the next exit. A few miles further on, he spotted it again, staying two cars back.

“I think our friend is back.”

Harper turned in her seat. “What’s she up to?”

“I’m sure we’ll find out when she’s ready. What I don’t like is if she is the assassin and is following us, she’ll always be two steps ahead.” He increased their speed, then whipped down an exit ramp. The sedan continued past.

He got back on the Interstate at the next exit. Soon after, the dark sedan pulled in behind them. “She isn’t even trying to hide now.” He wasn’t sure he wanted to lead her to the man they were going to speak to. When he expressed his concern, Harper agreed.

“Head back to the station. She’s put an effective halt to our day.”

When they returned to the station, the woman drove past giving a couple of toots on her horn.

Annie met them at the door. “Here are the names of those who died under the care of Doctor Scranton.”

Liam glanced at the list. “Only ten? That’s impressive.”

“My grandfather was good at what he did.” Harper took the sheet. “Get a copy of the CTV camera of this facility. You’ll see a woman in dark blue scrubs. Run her through facial recognition, please.”