Deadly deception, p.30
Deadly Deception, page 30
Then he thought of Gemma. “Another thing. Gemma left with him yesterday and she never came back. I needed something for a formula, and she didn’t answer this morning when I called. It’s not like Gemma not to come to work, let alone not answer my call.”
Mac stayed where he was staring off into the distance long after he disconnected. Something was going to happen soon, he felt it in his bones.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Marcie sat with her mom. The two of them talked quietly so they wouldn’t disturb her papi. He was finally sleeping. He hadn’t done much during the night. He’d been too anxious about the treatment. Since Dr. Graham had promised he could have it the next day, even though he felt Thursday would be better. But relented and said if Leo had no more seizures or any of the other symptoms he’d experienced, he’d finally relaxed and allowed himself to go to sleep.
“Momma why don’t you put your feet up and try to get some rest. You must be exhausted.”
“Cara, I don’t think I could sleep. Why don’t you rest, you’ve been working all morning and keeping me company.”
“I need to call KaDee and see if the mayor needs anything. He needed my opinion on a new policy the trustees are considering.”
“Oh, honey you don’t need to stay here with me if you’re needed at the office.”
“Momma, KaDee is the most competent assistant I could have. I’m fine staying here in case I’m needed. I don’t want to leave any more than you do.”
“I know your father appreciates it. Why don’t you go make your call and I’ll put my head back and do my best to relax.”
Marcie glanced to the bed, her father looked peaceful and at rest. She may as well go while everything was calm. She turned back to her mother.
“I won’t be gone more than five minutes.”
She needed coffee, she was about to drop. She’d hardly had any sleep in the last few days. She needed a shower. That would need to wait. Coffee she could do something about.
KaDee told her that nothing was going on at the office. The mayor had been quiet. She hadn’t heard from the detectives. She was trying to get a few more things done before lunch with Chris.
When Marcie got back to the room everything was calm as it had been. Her mother had finally dozed off. She tiptoed in and sat as quietly as she could. It hit her like a tidal wave, the fatigue. She had things she wanted to do during the quiet, but she also needed a clear head. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes. She would rest a few minutes.
Beeps, bells, and other equipment startled her from her sleep. She leaped or rather clambered out of the easy chair she’d fallen asleep in, to rush to her father’s side. She reached the bed only a moment after her mother. Another few second’s hospital personnel were rushing in.
“You two out of the room. Now.”
Marcie recognized the woman from that morning when she introduced herself as the day nurse. Marcie grabbed her mother’s arm and practically had to wrestle her out of the room.
“Let go of me, Marcella. This minute. I’m staying with your father.”
“Mamma, we’re in the way. Papi needs their help.” Her mother still resisted her pull. “Come on, please.”
Her mother finally let her lead her from the room. In the hall her mother leaned against the wall, head down tears dripping freely. Marcie pulled her into a hug, her mother’s body trembled with her emotion. Her mother’s fear frightened her almost as much as what was going on with her father.
“Shh, Mamma, we need to be strong for Papi. He’s going to need us.”
She kept her hands on her mother’s shoulders and stepped away just far enough to look her in the eyes.
“He’s going to be fine. Dr. Graham will know what to do. And we’re both going to need our strength for the upcoming fight.” She paused until her mamma’s frown passed. “You know he’s going to be spitting Italian mad when he realizes this little episode just pushed his treatment out. And we’re off the hook, we won’t have to campaign against it because it’s not approved.”
Her mother gave a watery chuckle. “You’re right about that.”
“You both can come in.”
They followed the nurse in. Her father lay pale and still in the bed.
“He’s resting. Please let him. His body has been through an ordeal. I’ll go find your doctor and he’ll go over what just happened.”
They all left as quickly as they had arrived. Probably off to another patient crisis. They were on the oncology floor, after all. Marcie couldn’t help but notice the anxious visitors and the quick-moving nurses and doctors alike.
“Come,” she whispered to her mother and led her to their chairs.
“He looks so small as if he’s shrunk since he’s been here.”
Marcie looked over to her papi, her mamma was correct. For the first time in her life, her father looked old. He’d always been full of life and vitality. He’d aged ten years in the last three days.
That scared Marcie more than anything.
“Momma, I’m going to find Dr. Graham.” She stood grabbed her bag and stopped at the door. “I can’t stand the waiting.”
Her mother looked up. Marcie’s heart broke at the clear emotion racing and mingling with the tears on her cheeks. Her parents had loved each other since they were kids back in the Bronx. She didn’t know what her mamma would do if something happened to Papi.
“Thank you. I can’t either.”
First stop, the nurse’s station. “Have you seen Dr. Graham?”
The tired woman glanced up from the computer. “Sorry, not since he was visiting his patients this morning. Try his office, he most likely has appointments this morning.”
The office portion of the medical center was on the opposite side of the building. A long trek. She had to go down to the lobby cross over to the bank of other elevators. She’d visited there enough with her father she’d memorized the route.
She paused in the atrium to pull out her phone. She scrolled to find KaDee and then hit connect. Then continued toward the elevators.
After a couple of rings, her assistant picked up.
“Did you and Chris have a good lunch?”
“Yes. How is Leo?”
“I’m not sure. All his monitors went off and we were ushered out of the room. They wouldn’t tell us anything, said the doctor would be in shortly.” Marcie paused to reign in her emotion. Now was not the time to break down. “I’m on my way over to Dr. Graham’s office right now. We need to know what is going on. Three weeks ago, Papi was still playing golf. Now he’s almost comatose in a bed. They’re saying it’s the tumor, but I don’t know.”
“You think the treatment accelerated its progress?”
“I can’t help but think that.”
“Because you know it’s not ready? That doesn’t mean it is harmful. From everything I’ve researched, it’s going to be a wonderful treatment.”
“The fact that ninety percent of the information is on the cloned site doesn’t make me feel better. The keywords are, going to be. But not yet and I don’t like that my papi is the guinea pig. That’s why I called. Sort of. If I can’t find Dr. Graham, I’m going to visit Doc Rob at Zinnal.”
“Do you think that is wise?”
“Why wouldn’t it be? My father is a patient in his trial. He doesn’t know that we know it hasn’t really been approved. I’m searching for answers. Reasonable, don’t you think?”
“Put that way, yes. What do you need from me?”
“Would you find this Doc Rob’s address? In case, he is not at Zinnal.”
“Okay. Call me if you can’t find Dr. Graham and I’ll do my best to have it for you.” A pause. “Call me no matter what. I can’t stand this waiting.”
“Exactly why I’m tracking him down. Talk to you in a bit.”
She disconnected and stepped into the elevator. It seemed to take twice as long as usual, to arrive at the eleventh floor. By the time Marcie stepped into the waiting room sweat had commandeered her blouse to her back. When she reached the reception desk no one was there. Trying to reign in her temper she gently tapped on the buzzer to indicate someone needed help.
After a few minutes of waiting the receptionist wandered through the entrance to the reception desk. Her eyes widened when she saw Marcie.
“Oh, I’m sorry I didn’t hear the buzzer. I hope you haven’t been waiting long Ms. Faraday.” The girl smiled. “How is your father doing?”
Marcie dug deep in her memory, she could not remember the girl’s name. Something that happened rarely. But given her emotional state, probably understandable.
“He’s had another episode. I’m not sure what happened. Dr. Graham was supposed to come by to discuss things. I can’t find him anywhere.”
“I’m so sorry. Let me look at his schedule.”
How long could it take to look at a calendar? She wanted to reach over and twist the computer around so she could look for herself.
“Let me message him. He is doing a consult with a doctor at the free clinic on Fourth Street.” There was a short pause while she placed her words to action. “I’ve asked him to call you or visit your dad’s room as soon as he returns.”
“Thank you, I appreciate your help.”
No way was Marcie going to sit and twiddle her thumbs. She hurried out of the medical office. Once in the lobby, she took the exit to the parking lot. Fourth Street was not far. If she still needed to visit the mysterious Doc Rob KaDee should have tracked down his address.
Frustration rolled over her in waves. She had probably passed him. She had been informed that she had missed Dr. Graham by ten minutes or so. She stood out in the cool autumn air to gain some sense of sanity. It would do no good to go running all over the place and accomplish nothing. Basically, what she had done for the past hour.
Abba blasted and she pulled her phone from her jeans pocket.
“Momma, have there been any changes? Did Dr. Graham come by?”
Her heart sank as she listened. “He’s sleeping though?”
She could hear the worry laced with tears as her mother explained he’d hardly moved since she left. None of the nurses could tell her where the doctor was.
“Sleep is the best thing for him now, Mamma. Dr. Graham was doing a consult at the clinic. I took a chance and drove over here. I’m sorry I missed him. I’m sure he’ll go to Papi’s room as soon as he returns. How are you doing?”
After her mother reassured her, she was tired but doing okay, Marcie promised she’d be back to the hospital soon. She just had an errand to run. She was not about to tell her mother she was going to visit the person who may be responsible for the cloned link. Or explain he also was the oncologist who’d created the HIMEP.
Her phone signaled another call as soon as she disconnected. KaDee’s smiling face filled her screen.
“Hi, KaDee. I still haven’t found Dr. Graham. Did you find Doc Rob’s address?”
Disappointment mingled with her growing frustration. How on earth could someone only have a first name? It was like the man was a phantom or something.
“Thank you for trying. I am going to call Zinnal and if they won’t give me the address, I guess I’ll go back to the hospital. Dr. Graham should be there by now. Now that I’ve thought about Doc Rob and his treatments, I want to have my questions answered.”
KaDee had a few words of caution for her before she disconnected. She promised she would tread carefully when asking the questions.
Marcie scrolled through her contacts until she found Zinnal. She had programmed it to her contacts when she had been reading over Jonas’s file. She had done so in case she needed to call them. And now she did. After a few rings, a pleasant woman’s voice answered. She asked to speak with Cal Zinnal. From the way Booker spoke, he was the person they’d talked to the most. After a few moments, his voice filled the interior of the car.
“This is Cal.”
“This is Marcie Faraday. I know you have spoken to the detectives about my husband’s case. How are you?”
A pause and then, “I’m very sorry about your loss. I know it’s been two years, but I feel terrible that Zinnal may have had anything, even indirectly, to do with his accident.”
After all this time she shouldn’t have to wrestle in the emotion those words of sympathy inevitably brought. Swallowing to ease the tightness in her chest, she was finally able to continue.
“Thank you. I’ve looked through the file he had on your company. Jonas truly wanted to work with you. He thought you and your father to be innovative and full of integrity. Leading your facility on the cutting edge of medical technology. I remember being impressed when I read his notes.”
“I enjoyed meeting your husband, I believe he would have been a welcome and valuable addition to our team.” A pause as if the man wanted to choose his next words carefully. “I have heard about your father. How is he doing?”
“I’m not sure. Since he has had the treatment, I know Detective Dixson told you, he has had several issues. The oncologists at Browning are concerned but believe the tumor is causing them and not the treatment.”
“I...”
“That is why I’m calling.”
“It is? What do you need to know? I wanted to call Browning and explain and pull the trial. It’s not approved so they shouldn’t be continuing, but the detective wanted me to wait.”
“Yes. We want to catch whoever proposed it to Browning.”
“I think they believe we did.”
“No. I don’t believe you did. The Detectives will need to find out. Meanwhile, my father needs help and I believe that Doc Rob is who I need to talk to.”
Silence stretched. “Mr. Zinnal, are you there?”
“Yes, I’m here. I don’t think that’s a good idea. He cleared his things out of his desk this morning.”
“You fired him?”
“No. As of yet, there is no evidence he is behind the cloned information nor the promotion of the HIMEP before it is ready. Though I admit his behavior these last two weeks leads me to believe it’s true.”
“Did he quit then? I don’t understand why he would leave.”
“According to MacGovan, our lead researcher on the project, Rob said he was clearing out what he doesn’t need at the lab. That he’d bring what he needed when he returned in a day or two. He wanted to be able to work around the clock.”
Marcie thought a moment.
“Does he do this usually?”
“Maybe, we hired him for his idea and model appearance of the HIMEP. Maybe when he’s onto a new project we’ll find out. Some researchers will stay in our lab around the clock when they’re finalizing everything. We have sleep areas for them to nap when they pull an all-nighter.”
“It sounds like he would rather pull his round-the-clock work at home. Maybe he’s more comfortable?”
“Maybe. The thought crossed my mind that he doesn’t plan to come back. I have heard through Mac that he has a state-of-the-art lab in his home.”
“Do you have his home address? I know you don’t think it’s a good idea, but it is my father’s life. It may depend on it. I’m worried.”
“If he is the person who patented the HIMEP device then you may be in danger.”
The possibility had more than crossed Marcie’s mind. But she didn’t care. KaDee knew where she was going. She had promised to text her the address, so someone knew where she was.
The guy was trying to save lives with his treatment. He may be unethical. And what he was doing was most likely illegal. But that didn’t mean he’d harm her. Are you sure?
Chapter Thirty-Five
“What do you mean she’s going to visit him?” Booker kept one hand on the steering wheel as he navigated through traffic.
“We have probable cause for a warrant. We’ll see if we can get one today. I’ll keep you posted. Text Lashelle his address.”
“Who was that?” Lashelle pulled her phone out and waited.
“Cal Zinnal. Marcie called him for Rob’s address.”
“What? He’s our person of interest now. Oh, that’s not good.” She was tapping in a number as she spoke. “I’ll call the in charge as the captain has gone on vacation.”
A familiar voice answered. “Captain, I thought you were on your cruise.”
Booker threw a glance at his partner. He saw her frown deepen, that couldn’t be good.
“I’m sorry. I hope she’s going to be all right.” After a moment Lashelle said, “It’s about the Faraday case, sir.”
Booker half-listened to her as she presented everything they’d found out from Gordon. Along with the new information about Rob packing up from Zinnal and Marcie’s father’s condition. He was tempted to skip visiting Martin, but his gut kept telling him the assistant knew more about the accident. When she finally disconnected, she turned to him.
“Poor cap, they were set to sail, and his wife came down with the flu. They were off the ship before it set sail. He didn’t want to waste his vacation time so he’s working. He said they’re going in a month. As per the case, the warrant should be ready soon, he said to call and alert Chief Garcia of the local PD in Perryville.”
“KaDee would know. And ask her to see if she can reach Marcie and talk her out of her visit.”
“Will do. Booker, I don’t have a good feeling.”
Booker sucked in his breath. Lashelle had a spot-on feeling. He pressed a little on the gas and then immediately had to ease up. The more anxious he became the slower the traffic, and as an added bonus he hit every red light. His knuckles on the wheel were almost porcelain white contrasting with his dark skin.
“Alejandro Garcia,” Lashelle said into the quiet.
“Who?”
“Perryville’s Police Chief.” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his partner raise her brow at him. “KaDee hasn’t been able to reach Marcie. Her mother called KaDee to see if she had gone into the office.”
“Okay fill in Chief Garcia.”
“KaDee says she’s sorry.”
Booker risked a glance at Lashelle.
“The chief already knows. Her boo is friends with Alejandro, and she felt he needed to be told in case something escalated. She was worried about Marcie.”
