both knew that at this time of day, it was ridiculous to make more condiments. We’d be closing in less than an hour, so all of that hard work would be gone. He would throw it in the trash, which we’d take to the dumpster on the corner.
“Not yet, but it’s early still.” His words sounded chipper, but I knew better. Most victims were identified easily either from ID in their wallets or from photos that ran on the news. I knew there was no wallet. If nothing had turned up yet, it was unlikely to turn up in the near future. The photos were a washout as well. The sniper had taken off part of her head. Since they didn’t know who she was, the police were reduced to sending out artists’ sketches of her face. The results left a lot up to speculation at times. The police would have a lot of man-hours ahead of them, looking into who she was.
So the police had no ideas for the motivation for this woman to approach me. It could have been regarding a previous murder, or it could have been the recipe for the condiments in the truck. I had a strong feeling that the identity of the murder victim would turn out to be crucial to the solution of the murder case.
Danvers was watching me again, which made me feel self-conscious. I was planning my next moves to learn more about what was going on in this case. I’d already decided that I would not sit back and wait for the police to catch up to me. I had known that the health inspector had been killed by someone else. Now I learned that her family had left town and her sister was attacked.
However, I was inclined not to let the matter rest with the police. I was personally invested in the matter since the latest victim had apparently been coming to talk to me. Plus I had made an appointment to see Mariel Mills before she was attacked. Like it or not, I was at the center of this mystery, and I felt it my duty to be the one to get myself out of this situation.
I gave Danvers a smile. He had no way of knowing that I’d just decided to visit Mariel at the hospital today after work. Unless he put a tail on me, he’d have no way of learning about it until after I’d talked to her. My Aunt Alice, who had bequeathed me this truck, had always said that it’s better to apologize than ask permission. I understood the meaning of that saying more today than I had in the past.
After I finished up the truck business and driven it to the secure lot, I drove my own car to the hospital. While Capital City has a number of hospitals, the closest one to Mariel’s home and downtown was University Hospital, which was on the CCU campus. It was one of the best hospitals in the region, and I had a strong suspicion that Danvers had wanted the best for a potential witness.
I parked in the garage and went inside the hospital. I recalled that Danvers had indicated that there was a guard on duty outside of her room. I had decided on the drive over just to chat him up and to drop the name Detective Jax Danvers. I thought that should get me in the door. Danvers had actually encouraged me to do so, but I knew that strings had to be attached to the offer. Most likely, the guard had orders to report the visit to him immediately. I could even see him bugging the hospital room to learn what we said. I wasn’t sure what Danvers hoped to get from that information. Would he drop everything and appear at the hospital, or was he just interested in knowing that I hadn’t given up on the murder? In either case, I knew I could live with the consequences.
Information had told me that the room was on the 7 th floor. I rode up in the elevator and quickly found the room. My heart skipped a few beats as the bed was empty. She was gone. Had Mariel’s injuries been worse than expected? I walked back to the nurses’ station and asked.
“She’s getting a MRI,” the nurse with the dark hair told me. “She should be back in about 20 minutes or so.”
I nodded. I went in search of caffeine. I hadn’t slept all that
“Not yet, but it’s early still.” His words sounded chipper, but I knew better. Most victims were identified easily either from ID in their wallets or from photos that ran on the news. I knew there was no wallet. If nothing had turned up yet, it was unlikely to turn up in the near future. The photos were a washout as well. The sniper had taken off part of her head. Since they didn’t know who she was, the police were reduced to sending out artists’ sketches of her face. The results left a lot up to speculation at times. The police would have a lot of man-hours ahead of them, looking into who she was.
So the police had no ideas for the motivation for this woman to approach me. It could have been regarding a previous murder, or it could have been the recipe for the condiments in the truck. I had a strong feeling that the identity of the murder victim would turn out to be crucial to the solution of the murder case.
Danvers was watching me again, which made me feel self-conscious. I was planning my next moves to learn more about what was going on in this case. I’d already decided that I would not sit back and wait for the police to catch up to me. I had known that the health inspector had been killed by someone else. Now I learned that her family had left town and her sister was attacked.
However, I was inclined not to let the matter rest with the police. I was personally invested in the matter since the latest victim had apparently been coming to talk to me. Plus I had made an appointment to see Mariel Mills before she was attacked. Like it or not, I was at the center of this mystery, and I felt it my duty to be the one to get myself out of this situation.
I gave Danvers a smile. He had no way of knowing that I’d just decided to visit Mariel at the hospital today after work. Unless he put a tail on me, he’d have no way of learning about it until after I’d talked to her. My Aunt Alice, who had bequeathed me this truck, had always said that it’s better to apologize than ask permission. I understood the meaning of that saying more today than I had in the past.
After I finished up the truck business and driven it to the secure lot, I drove my own car to the hospital. While Capital City has a number of hospitals, the closest one to Mariel’s home and downtown was University Hospital, which was on the CCU campus. It was one of the best hospitals in the region, and I had a strong suspicion that Danvers had wanted the best for a potential witness.
I parked in the garage and went inside the hospital. I recalled that Danvers had indicated that there was a guard on duty outside of her room. I had decided on the drive over just to chat him up and to drop the name Detective Jax Danvers. I thought that should get me in the door. Danvers had actually encouraged me to do so, but I knew that strings had to be attached to the offer. Most likely, the guard had orders to report the visit to him immediately. I could even see him bugging the hospital room to learn what we said. I wasn’t sure what Danvers hoped to get from that information. Would he drop everything and appear at the hospital, or was he just interested in knowing that I hadn’t given up on the murder? In either case, I knew I could live with the consequences.
Information had told me that the room was on the 7 th floor. I rode up in the elevator and quickly found the room. My heart skipped a few beats as the bed was empty. She was gone. Had Mariel’s injuries been worse than expected? I walked back to the nurses’ station and asked.
“She’s getting a MRI,” the nurse with the dark hair told me. “She should be back in about 20 minutes or so.”
I nodded. I went in search of caffeine. I hadn’t slept all that
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