Cecelia shook her head. “I’m not even going to ask.”
“Yeah, that’s prob’ly a good idea. B’sides, couldn’t tell ya’ anyway.”
“You’re incorrigible,” she mumbled.
Ben nodded. “Yeah, I’ve heard that.”
Cecelia directed herself to the woman at the reception desk. “Go ahead and buzz Doctor Sanders, Caroline. He really is supposed to be here.” She paused for a heartbeat then added with emphasis, “After lunch.”
CHAPTER 20:
“I think it’s warmer outside than it is in here,” Ben mused aloud as he shuffled in place. I was fairly certain his dance was more out of impatience than an attempt to keep warm, even though his observation was certainly dead on the mark.
Shortly after the receptionist had buzzed Doctor Sanders, we were signed in then escorted to the cold storage area and autopsy suites at the back of the medical examiner’s building. Unfortunately, we had already been standing here for several minutes, and it was beginning to look like the M.E. was going to make us wait indefinitely.
“Yeah,” I agreed with my friend then looked over at my wife. “You okay, honey?”
She merely nodded in response. She tended to be a bit more sensitive to the cold than me, so she had already zipped up her leather jacket and was now pulling on her gloves. I was almost regretting having left my own coat back at the Jeep even though I knew there was more to the gelid atmosphere than simply the physical temperature.
I gave Felicity’s shoulder a quick squeeze then glanced around at the tiled room. It had been awhile since I’d ventured this far into the bowels of the building, but little had changed since then. Stainless steel rectangles still formed an evenly spaced checkerboard on the far wall, each one a doorway into a cubicle where earthly remains awaited their turn under the knife. At the back end of the room were doors leading into the garage where an overt but acceptable form of segregation occurred on an almost daily basis. Living people entered and exited in the front, corpses there in the back. The only thing missing was a sign reading “Dead Persons Only.”
“I guess Doctor Sanders decided to finish her lunch first,” I finally said after completing my visual inspection for a third time.
“Yeah,” Ben grunted. “Sure seems like it. You’d think they’d at least have us wait someplace warm.”
“Aye, if you hadn’t been so pushy, maybe they would have,” Felicity offered.
“Just doin’ my job,” he returned.
He was still shuffling about, allowing his gaze to wander just as mine had, but with one overt difference-he was avoiding eye contact with me, and Felicity as well. Impatience, I could understand, but this was more than that. I’d seen him play the stone-faced cop more than once, so I knew for a fact something was bothering him that he simply couldn’t mask.
“What are you so nervous about, Ben?” I asked.
“I ain’t nervous.” He shook his head.
“I don’t believe you.”
“Well then maybe you got trust issues.”
“These days, you’re probably right, but I’m pretty sure that’s not it. Why don’t you tell me what this is all about. What’s really going on?”
“Whaddaya mean?” He shrugged and waved his hand toward the far wall as he added, “What’s it always about when we come here, white man? You, a pissed off stiff, and la-la land.”
He finally stopped avoiding eye contact and looked at me expectantly as his words dissipated on the cloud of steam that was his breath. I stared back and frowned.
Pissed off stiff. My friend’s less than eloquent way of referring to the body of a murder victim was just another hallmark that told me something was amiss. Granted, any corpse I came here to see during an investigation had some form of brutality responsible for its date with one of the stainless steel tables. And, yes, the spirits once housed by the now lifeless bodies were less than happy about it. But Ben customarily showed at least some amount of reverence.
Still, I knew exactly what he was trying to say. I was here, for all intents and purposes, to translate. To tell the living what the dead had to say, all in hopes that it would shed light on why they were here in the first place.
But that was obvious. Moreover, it wasn’t what I was asking, and he knew it.
“No kidding, Ben. I pretty much figured that out when you herded us up here,” I said. “But you know it doesn’t work that way.”
“Yeah? So when have ya’ ever not gone Twilight Zone when you were here?”
“That’s not my point, and you know it.”
“Maybe not, but it’s mine.”
“Okay, so what if I do? You know how convoluted this can get. There’s never a straight answer from the dead. I’m not going to be able to just hand you a name or anything.”
“Yeah, I know that,” he nodded. “Just do what ya’ do, and we’ll go from there. That’s all I’m askin’.”
“Dammit,” I grumbled. “I let you sidetrack me again.”
“Me? Whaddid I do?”
“You avoided my question. You know that’s not what I was asking.”
He splayed out his hands in mock surrender. “Sounded like it ta’ me. You asked what…”
“Stop it,” I said, cutting him off and holding my own hands up, palms toward him as a sign that I’d had enough. “No double talk. Just answer the question.”
He shot me a concerned look. “You feelin’ okay, Kemosabe? You’re actin’ a little freaked.”
“Don’t turn this back on me,” I demanded. “Something’s up or you wouldn’t have been in such a rush to get us in here.”
“What rush?” he asked with a shrug.
“Give me a break. You met us at the Jeep, hurried us up here, and then bullied your way in.”
“I was just savin’ ya’ some time. ‘Scuse me.”
“Bullshit.”
“Look, Row, I don’t know what’s eatin’ ya’, but you need to calm down. Okay?”
“What’s eating me is that you’re lying about something, Ben. I can tell by the way you’re acting.”
“Jeezus, didn’t we already go through this shit last night?” he replied.
“Yes,” I snapped. “Which is why I’m not overly pleased about going through it again.”
“Then don’t.”
“I wouldn’t have to if you weren’t acting all squirrelly again.”
“You’re imaginin’ things. Listen, it’s simple… Just like I told ya’ on the phone, we got a missin’ woman who fits the victim profile of the two stiffs that just checked in here. But based on the pattern, she’s prob’ly still alive.” He pointed over to the storage drawers to punctuate his next statement. “Brass wants your input so maybe she doesn’t end up movin’ in over there next to the first two.”
“Okay, I can understand that.”
“Wunnerful. See? There ya’ have it. So if it seems like I’m in a rush, maybe I am… And for a damn good reason, don’tcha think?”
“I wish I could believe it’s that simple, Ben. But I can’t. Something else is going on here.”
“Well I said it once and I’ll say it again, you’re imaginin’ shit. Just chill out, okay? It’s all good.”
I shook my head. “No it isn’t. I still don’t get why your brass suddenly wants my advice on this.”
“I already told ya’. Prob’ly because of your track record,” he replied. “You’ve been instrumental in solving every case you ever consulted on. They know that. Some of ‘em definitely don’t like it, but they know it. Enough said.”
“Even if I buy that, there’s got to be more to the story…”
“Why?”
“Remember asking me if I had a hinky feeling earlier? Well, guess what? I’ve definitely got one now.”
“Maybe you’re wrong.”
“You know I’m not.”
He let out a heavy sigh and threw his hands up. “Look, just drop it. It ain’t important.”
“So there is something,” I replied, my tone sharp.
“Yeah, okay. There is, but I’m tellin’ ya’ it ain’t important,” he replied, waving his hand in a dismissive gesture. “And right now you’re just blowin’ shit outta proportion.”
“You aren’t helping with the double talk.”
“Maybe not, but I’m kinda stuck in the middle here.”
“Unstick yourself. Just tell me what’s going on.”
“Listen, a wise man once said, what ya’ don’t know won’t hurt ya’. I highly suggest you listen to the wise man.”
“Uh-huh, well it just so happens another one said, when in doubt, do nothing,” I shot back. “And I’m having more than my share of doubts right now.”
“Well do us all a favor and get over ‘em is all I got ta’ say.”
“I will when you tell me what’s really going on.”
“Trust me, you wouldn’t believe me if I told ya’.”
“Very funny.” I wasn’t laughing when I made the comment. “This isn’t the time to beat me over the head with irony. I’m not in the mood.”
“Irony? What… Oh, yeah, I did kinda sound just like you right then, didn’t I?” he harrumphed and then gave me a sidelong glance. “Frustratin’ as fuck, ain’t it?”
“Yes it is, but you also know exactly why I say that.”
“Yeah, and I know ‘zactly why I’m sayin’ it too,” he countered. “Just leave it alone, Row. Seriously. It ain’t important.”
“Is the FBI involved in this?”
“Well hell, sure they are. I already told ya’ that.”
“No, Ben, I mean me being here now.” I wasn’t yelling, but my voice had definitely risen in concert with my darkening mood.
“Calm down. The Feebs got nothin’ to do with you bein’ here.”
“Who then?”
“Me, who else,” he spat. “Now like I said, just calm down.”
“And your brass?”
“Yeah, some of them too. Jeezus, you oughta be happy you got a few friends in high places for a change.”
Felicity, who had remained conspicuously silent as the discussion turned to an argument, now spoke up. “Aye, Ben, I have to agree with Rowan. Something doesn’t feel right about this. We’ve had our fill of hidden agenda’s today. What aren’t you telling us?”
“Dammit, where the hell’s the doc?” he muttered as a response.
“Okay, if you aren’t going to tell me what’s going on, then I’m done,” I announced. “Come on, Felicity, I think we can probably still catch that movie.”
“Jeezus, Row, give it a rest. Nobody’s out ta’ get ya’.”
I took my wife’s arm, and we headed toward the exit. We made it to the door before my friend gave in.
“Okay, stop! Just stop right there,” he barked, struggling to keep his voice at a reasonable volume. “Sonofabitch… I told ‘em somethin’ like this would happen.”
“Are you going to quit jerking us around?” I asked as I glanced back toward him.
He huffed out a heavy sigh then reached up and smoothed back his hair. He closed his eyes and hung his head for a moment as his hand slid down to his neck and came to a rest.
“Goddammit…” he muttered before bringing his gaze to meet mine. “Fine… Okay… You win… Ya’ happy?”
“I will be when I know what’s really going on here,” I appealed.
“Maybe… Maybe not,” he said. “But it doesn’t matter. Truth is I know it won’t make any difference as far as you helpin’ goes.”
“So someone thought it would?” I asked, confusion wrinkling my face.
“Yeah.” He nodded. “Which is exactly why I’m under orders not to tell ya’.”
“What the hell is it?” Now I was thoroughly perplexed.
Finally, he simply blurted out, “The missin’ woman’s name is, Judith Albright.”
“Albright,” I repeated the name back to him. “As in…”
“Yeah,” he said, cutting me off. “Albright as in she’s Bible Barb’s niece.”
The revelation definitely gave me pause.
I stared back at my friend and he at me, neither of us uttering a word. Even Felicity remained silent, which was a shock because I was fairly certain she despised the woman even more than me. Still, Ben was correct. I wasn’t about to withhold my help on this case because of a grudge against a victim’s relative, although I was fairly certain the same would not be true if the tables were turned.
To say Captain Barbara Albright and I had a turbulent history was the understatement of the century. I was a Witch and she was a fundamentalist Christian with a badge-obviously not a good mix. Still, it shouldn’t have been an issue, and to be honest it wasn’t, at least not for me. However, she decided otherwise before we’d even met, and the rest was downhill from there.
Live and let live simply wasn’t a part of her credo. If you didn’t share her beliefs you were damned to hell. To that end, she was more than happy to use her position within the department to cram Christianity down your throat and then find a way to legally harass you if you dared to gag and spit it back out.
Behind her back the majority of the police force simply called her Bible Barb, or BeeBee for short. She definitely had her share of lackeys and supporters interspersed throughout the ranks, but among the cops on the street they were few and far between. Still, you had to watch what you said if you weren’t sure where someone else’s loyalties might lay because it would definitely make its way back to her ears.
If ever I’d had a nemesis who just happened to be on the correct side of the law, she was it. Our first run in had come when she was a lieutenant and had unceremoniously taken charge of an investigation with which I was involved. From that point forward she’d been on a mission to sever my ties with local law enforcement as a consultant. While she had eventually been promoted out of any direct contact where I was concerned, I never felt as though I was fully out of her sights. Even as recently as the debacle with Felicity’s false arrest, Albright’s fingerprints were all over some of the harassment and bureaucratic stumbling blocks we had faced.
And now, here she was again.
“So that’s what you were all nervous about?” I finally asked.
“I told ya’ I wasn’t nervous. What I was, was pissed off about havin’ ta’ lie to you.”
“That seems to have become a theme lately,” I agreed. “The lying thing I mean.”
“Tell me about it,” he huffed. “It’s been givin’ me a friggin’ ulcer. But, like I said, you’re the one who blew this all out of proportion.”
“You’re right,” I said with a nod. “Sorry… It’s been a bad couple of days. And then the whole thing with the FBI… I know that’s not much of an excuse, but it’s all I’ve got.”
“Yeah, well I probably shoulda just blown off the orders and told ya’ anyway.”
I pondered the situation for a moment then let out a bemused snort. “So your brass actually thought I was so shallow that I’d refuse to help because of Albright?”
“Actually, no. She’s the one who thought you would say no.”
“She knows I’m helping?” I could hear the incredulity woven through my own voice.
“Yeah, she knows all right,” Ben told me as if he was having trouble believing his own words. “Believe it or not, as soon as her niece went missin’ she started demandin’ you be brought in to consult, even if Major Case had to arrest you ta’ make it happen.”
“Not exactly subtle, is she?”
“Listen, Row,” Ben continued. “You won’t have to deal with ‘er. After she threw that fit, the chief put ‘er on administrative leave.”
“Like that’s going to stop her?” I replied.
“Yeah, I know, but I’m tellin’ ya’ you won’t have to deal with ‘er. I’ll make sure of it.”
I waved him off. “It doesn’t matter. You can tell your higher ups I’m not a complete ass. I’m not going to walk away from this just because of my history with Albright.”
“Yeah, I told ‘em that already, but they wanted to play it safe.”
“Well be sure to let them know that playing it safe almost did cause me to walk out.”
“Oh yeah. Believe me, that’s right at the top of the list.”
“And, do me another favor, okay?”
“What’s that?”
“Can we try remembering that we’re friends and stop with the tiptoeing around the truth? I think we’ve established that it’s not helping either of us.”
He nodded. “Yeah, definitely. I don’t need the stomach problems.”
“Good. Now that we have that settled why don’t we see if we can find out what’s keeping Doctor Sanders. I’m ready to get this over with…”