A Witness in Disguise (Sarah Woods Mystery Book 10) (8 page)

Neal stood up
abruptly.  “I think we’re done here.  I have patients waiting.”

“
What patients are you referring to?” Carter asked.  “We were the only ones in the waiting room.  Your business is hanging on by a thread because you’ve botched several procedures.  Oddly enough, they’ve all happened in the past three months.  I find it interesting that before last November, you didn’t have one complaint in the eight years you’ve been a doctor.  How do you explain that?”

Neal re
fused to look Carter in the eye.  “I want you both out of my office right now or I’m calling security.”

“C’mon,
doctor” Carter said, flatly.  “We both know you don’t have security.”

“Well, I’ll call the cops, then
.  Either way, I’ll have you thrown out of here.”

“That’s not necessary,” Carter said
.  “Sarah and I will be leaving, just as soon as you answer one last question.”

Neal lifted his hands in exasperation
.  “What?”

“Did you ever give drugs to Graham Taylor in return for sexual favors?”

Neal’s eyes practically popped out of his head.  “Okay, that’s quite enough.  Get out of my office right now.”

Carter reached into a wallet and found a
fifty-dollar bill.  He placed it on the table.  “That should cover the ten minutes.”

It was almost 5:00 as Carter drove us back to my apartment.  He hadn’t said much about our meeting with Dr. Neal Walker and I figured he was mulling things over, possibly regretting the way he embarrassed the man.

“What are you thinking?” I asked him, eager to find out what was going through his head.

Carter hesitated
.  “All I know is that I’m beginning to think that maybe Graham and Meagan’s disappearances are related after all.  I need to look through Dr. Neal’s files and find out if he ever wrote prescriptions for Graham.  I’ll have to go back to his office tonight after hours.”

“You’re gonna break in?
”

“Yep
.  While you keep a lookout.  We’ll go back around nine o’clock.”

“Do you really think he’s involved, or have you just run out of suspects?”

Carter looked at me with an odd expression.  “You know me better than that, Sarah.  I don’t hassle people unless I’m convinced they’re up to something.”

“Okay, just making sure.”

Chapter 12

When Carter dropped me at my apartment around 5:15, it was still hot and muggy.  Since I didn’t have air conditioning, I decided to take a cold-water bath.  As I sunk into the water and closed my eyes, I pretended to be in a luxurious pool at a spa.  The lavender scented bubbles contributed to the effect.  I could get used to a life of luxury if I had the means but about five minutes into my tranquility, I could hear my cell phone chirping from the bedroom.

I had every intention of letting the call go to voicemail but then I wonder
ed if it might be Carter, needing my assistance.  So I hauled myself out of the tub, grabbed a towel, and padded to the bedroom dripping wet.

The caller I.D
. told me it was Max.

I almost didn’t answer the call, but I was curious
. 

“Hey, Max,” I said
.  “Is everything okay?”

“
Am I interrupting something?”

“No
t really,” I said with a chuckle.  “I was in the bathtub.”

A slight hesitation
, “Oh, I’m sorry.  Well, I was wondering if we could talk.”

“What do you want to talk about?”

“It’s just that, well, I guess I’m not really sure where things stand with us.  I know you can’t move to California with me but does this mean we’re really done?”

I closed my eyes and sat on the bed, knowing full well the blankets would get soaked
.  “Long distance relationships never work out,” I said to him.  “I thought we talked about that.”

“Yeah, we did
.  But you never came out and said we were through.  I just want to be clear that that’s what you want.”

“It’s not really what I want,” I said
, “But remember, you were the one who decided to move away.  You never consulted me about it until after you made that choice.  Obviously, your career takes priority over our relationship.  I get it.  You’ve been working toward this opportunity your whole life.  You’ve only known me for a year.  I don’t blame you at all and I’m not upset.”

There was silence on the other end and I wondered if he had taken offence to my candid remark
.  Finally, he cleared his throat and said, “You’re right.  I guess I never really thought about it that way.  I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry,” I said
.  “I don’t regret the time we had together.  Not one single minute and I hope we’ll stay in touch, because I regard you as a very close friend.  I hope you feel the same.”

“It’ll take some time,” he said
.  “Because right now, all I can think about is your wet naked body wrapped up in that towel.”

I laughed
.  “By the way, what happened the other night after dinner? I don’t remember much after those margaritas.”

“We made passionate love on your bedroom floor, don’t you remember?”

I gasped.  “Are you serious?”

“No,” he said
.  “But I wish it were true.”

I smiled to myself
.  I could picture Max’s devilish smile, with the dimples I adored so much.  I would miss those dimples.  “Good-night, Max,” I whispered. 

“Hey, by the way, do you mind if I stop by tomorrow afternoon
.  I left a few things at your apartment and I should probably give you back your key.”

“Oh, sure
.  Come by any time you want.”

Later that evening, Carter and I went back to Dr. Neal’s office.   We hoped to break into his files to find a connection to Graham Taylor but, as we drove around to the front of the complex, I pointed to the man standing near the entrance.  The overweight, middle-aged rent-a-cop was carrying a flashlight, pacing back and forth like a tired soldier who just wanted to be home watching TV.

Carter chuckled, but there was no humor behind it
.  “Well, I’ll be damned.”

“I guess Dr
. Neal decided to beef up security after all,” I said.  “Must mean he’s got something to hide and protect.”

“Looks that way,” Carter said, glumly
.  “Should I try and take him?”

“
Who? The rent-a-cop? Are you serious?”

He shrugged
.  “You don’t think I could take him?”

I laughed when I realized he wasn’t seriously considering it
.  “As much as I’d like to see you try, I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Well, since we’re already out, wanna go get a drink? My treat.”

“You always treat,” I said.  “I’ll only go if you let me pick up the tab this time.”

Carter
said, “You bought us coffee frappes, remember? So it’s my turn and that’s final.”

“Fine,” I said, in mock dejection
.  “Have it your way.”

He chose to take me to O’Malley’s, the best Irish pub in town.  We found two empty seats at the bar and ordered the special draft beer along with some stuffed pepper appetizers. 

“
So,” Carter said, leaning close to me.  “I have something to tell you.”

My heart skipped a beat
.  “Okay, what is it?”

He seemed hesitant as he slowly sipped his beer
.  “I got a call yesterday from someone in my past.”

“And who might that be?”

“My ex-wife.”

I swallowed hard
.  “Why would she call you?”

“She wants to hire me to look into something
.  It’s not an exciting job, just something to do with her new husband.”

“Jeesh
.  She wants you to find out if her husband is cheating?”

“No, nothing like that
.  It has to do with finances.  Anyway, she practically begged for my help and I guess I couldn’t say no.”

I felt a chill run over me
.  “When was the last time you spoke to her, before this?”

“Three years
.  I didn’t even know she got remarried.”

I looked at him and made a face
.  “I find that hard to believe.  You mean to tell me you haven’t looked her up to see what she’s been doing?”

He chuckled
.  “Honest, I haven’t.”

“Okay,” I said
.  “Why did you feel the need to tell me this?  You want my help?”

“No, like I said, it’s an easy enough job, pretty cut and dried
.  I just wanted you to know.”

“Well, I appreciate that.
” I paused. “Will you be seeing her face to face?”

“I don’t think so
.  She lives in Michigan.”

I hoped Carter would fill me in on the details but I knew he wouldn’t
.  He still hadn’t told me why they got divorced, although I knew it had something to do with their daughter’s death.

When the food came, we spent the rest of the night talking about work and what we should do about Elizabeth Walker and her husband, Dr
. Neal.

“First, we have to prove that he and Meagan were having an affair before we assume he did anything to her
.  I searched her whole bedroom and there wasn’t one thing to suggest that.”

“Maybe they weren’t having an affair,” Carter said
.  “Maybe Lizzy just thought they were.”

“Wait,” I said
.  “Are you saying that maybe Lizzy killed her best friend?”

He shrugged
.  “It’s a thought.  I mean, you said it yourself; she acted as if she could not care less about Meagan when you talked to her today.  She’s hiding something.  We know that much.”

I sipped on my beer and thought it over
.  “Okay, if you’re right, what would she have done with Meagan’s body?”

“Good question
.  We can’t even prove that Lizzy was at her house that night.”

“What color car does she drive?” I asked
. 

“A BMW, navy blue.”

“That passes for a dark-colored vehicle,” I said, “but that’s not good enough to convince the detective to get a search warrant.  We need something more.”

“Well, then, we’ll just have to find it.”

              Chapter 14

The next morning I awoke around 8:00 and made a pot of coffee while I looked through my stack of bills
.  Fortunately, I knew I’d be able to cover all my debts this month.  Work had been good and I had been frugal.  In fact, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d splurged on anything for myself.  Maybe it was time for a new pair of shoes.

Just as I was slurping down a
second cup of coffee, Carter called.

“There’s been a develo
pment,” he said with a tinge of excitement.  “Are you home?”

“Yeah
.  What’s up?”

“Mark Gillespie just called
.  He needs to see us; says it’s important.”

“I’ll be ready by the time you get here
.  Where are we going?”

“M
ark wants to meet us at the mall, in the food court.  I’ll swing by and pick you up in ten.”

With no time to choose an outfit,
I slipped on a pair of jeans, a cotton blouse and my Converse sneakers.  My hair was a mess, probably because I’d gone to bed with it wet.  It looked like a frizz catastrophe. A baseball would cure that.

When Carter
arrived, I was waiting for him on the sidewalk in front of my apartment.  I got into his Buick and we took off toward the mall.

“Did Mark tell
you what happened?” I asked.

“No, but something spooked him for sure
.  He’s acting all paranoid.  He told me to be careful and make sure nobody followed us.”

Instinctively, I peered into the rearview mirror and kept an eye on the cars behind us
.  There didn’t appear to be anyone tailing us but I stayed focused on the traffic, just in case.

We parked
in front of the food court and made our way inside.  We spotted Mark sitting at a table in front of the Dunkin Donuts.  His hair was a mess and his shirt was buttoned all wrong.

When Mark looked up and saw us, he frowned and said, “Are you sure no one followed you here?”

Carter and I took a seat at his table.  “What’s going on, Mark?” Carter whispered.  “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Mar
k leaned in close to us, his dark eyebrows furrowed.  “I got an e-mail from Meagan last night.”

C
arter and I exchanged glances.  I asked.  “What did it say?”

Mark unfolded a sheet of paper and gave it to us
.  “I printed it out.”

Dear Mark,

I’m sorry I can’t explain, but
please do not contact the police or tell anyone about this email.  If you continue to search for me, my life and yours might be in danger.  If you truly care about me, you will respect my wishes.  Please trust me on this. 

When I gazed across the table at Mark, his face was pale.  His eyes were sunken and red.  Despair seemed to be oozing out of his pores.

“
Are you sure this is from Meagan?” Carter whispered.  “It doesn’t say who it’s from.”

“
I tried to respond but the email got bounced back to me, said something about an invalid e-mail address.”

Carter pointed to the top group of numbers and said,
“I can look up the IP address and maybe that will at least give us an address from where the email was sent.  I have to say, there are lots of ways people can hide their identity online.  Do you think someone is trying to mess with your head, or do you really think this is Meagan?”

Mark shook his head
.  “I don’t know.”

“Do you want us to trace the email or not?” Carter persisted.

Mark’s hands were shaking as he sipped his iced-tea
.  He didn’t respond for a full minute as he thought it through.  “Can you do it discreetly? If this is Meagan then she’s obviously in a lot of trouble.”

“Okay,” Carter said, calmly
.  “Even though the account is closed, I should be able to find out where it was sent from, unless they used anonymous proxy servers.”

Mark
glanced at his watch.  “Look, I need to get to work.  I can’t afford to lose this job, too.  Although I’m not sure how I’m going to focus.  Will you call me as soon as you find out anything?”

Carter reached out
and squeezed Mark’s arm.  “Try not to think the worst.  We should have some answers for you soon.”

Mark
nodded.  Without another word, he got to his feet and disappeared into the crowd of shoppers.