“I’ll do what I can,” I promised.
“Great. Thank you, Makayla. I knew I could count on you.”
I made a noncommittal noise of agreement.
“In a few hours, I’m going to send you a list.”
“A list of what?”
“Patients, every one of Dr. Bloomberg’s patients.”
“Can there be that many?”
“Over three thousand, unfortunately.”
“Over three thousand?” I emphasized. “Are you exaggerating, Lissa?”
“No. Doctor’s offices handle a lot of patients for years. With general practitioners, they may see patients from birth to death and across generations. Then there are the many that come for a few years and then move on. There are patients who move into Briney Creek, and those that leave and never return. We get a lot of turnover, but actually three thousand isn’t that many, considering Dr. Bloomberg has been practicing for more than forty years.”
I supposed I had to agree. “The police won’t let anyone in the office just yet while they search it, and I imagine your computer access won’t work.”
“Oh, I don’t have access from home. Dr. Bloomberg wasn’t that modern. I compiled a list a few days before I sent you the letter.”
I laughed. “Lissa Russell, you should be the detective!”
“You’ve noticed I don’t use my married name at work.”
“That’s your business, Lissa. I know there are plenty of people who don’t take their spouse’s name.”
“I wish I hadn’t married at all.” The bitterness came through loud and clear. “Hardy Joe is a good man, but I’m ashamed to say I can’t feel proud of him. I didn’t marry him for love but to help me and my sister have the chance at a better life.”
I scarcely had a chance to qualify Hardy Joe providing a better life, and if that was the case, what circumstances had she come from?
“I’m thirteen years older than Reeza, and all I saw was hunger and bills not being paid because my father drank. I promised I would get out as fast as I could to help Reeza. I dreamed of her going to college and making something of herself.” Lissa sighed wistfully. “Turned out she didn’t want to go to college. She loves working for the Brinlees, and I don’t blame her. I only want her happy. I was the one who got a nursing assistant degree, and Hardy Joe made that possible.”
“I’m glad you were able to turn around such a terrible situation, Lissa.”
“Thanks. I know I’m not perfect. Like I said, I hide his name at work, and I admit I’m a little ashamed of him, but he loves me, and I will always be faithful to him.”
“I understand you’re grateful for what he’s done, but it’s not wrong to want happiness in your love life too. You’re still young.”
She grunted. “I’m pushing forty, not exactly one of the young ones, but not ready for my rocking chair. I’m okay. I’m just happy that Reeza is happy. It’s all I want. You might not know this, but I was the one who encouraged those two to run off. Mama was driving us crazy. She knew she didn’t have any money to plan some big elaborate wedding, and when Pete’s mother wanted to fund it, she kept interfering. The best solution to shut both of them up was for the kids to run off.”
“You enjoy looking out for others, don’t you, Lissa?”
“I do, and that’s why I’m doing this. Can you give me your email address, so I can send you the list?”
“Isn’t this against some kind of law?”
“Yes, the HIPAA Privacy Rule. You’re right. But hardly anybody’s private lives in this town is really all that private.”
Dr. Bloomberg’s secret made her claim untrue, but I decided not to bring it to her attention.
“I’m not sharing specific information. Trust me, some of them won’t like anyone digging around in their files, including the police. This case stands to cause a big stir when the general population finds out.”
I didn’t catch on right away to what she was referring to. “What do you mean?”
Lissa cleared her throat. “I won’t give details because I do want to be able to get another job after this, but some ladies won’t want any eyes on their doctor files. Do you see my meaning?”
“Oh!”
Peony’s case came to mind, but everyone already knew the sordid details regarding her. Dr. Bloomberg’s files might be a who’s who in abortion, questions of parenthood, and I shiver to write it, infection, a strong indication of who was not being faithful. In fact, as I thought of it, there might be any number of reasons to kill Dr. Bloomberg if one thought his habits were about to be revealed to the public. My mind swirled with the endless implications.
“Can I send you the list, Makayla?”
“Yes, let me give you my email address.” I relayed the information to her.
“Thank you so much. I will send it in a couple hours after I verify everyone is on there and get it in some sort of order you can follow easily enough.”
“Okay, I’ll do my best. Talk to you soon, Lissa.”
“Good bye.”
Chapter Seven
Edna’s house stood on the end of a quiet street where many of the residents were families with small children. When I first visited her little two-story home with light green siding and dark gray shutters, I had asked her if the noise of the kids playing outside bothered her. She had assured me that their energy was what kept her going. Edna loved family, but she had none of her own, and that made me sad. So, I made a point of visiting with her whenever I could.
When I strode up to the door, Edna’s kitty, Spector, sat in the front window watching me with wide, pale eyes. Edna and I had enjoyed a laugh previously comparing the color of Spector’s eyes to Spencer’s and the similarity in their names. Thank goodness our town sheriff didn’t sport such a freaky expression in his eyes that his feline twin did. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have accepted his first invitation to dinner or indulged a second of confidence in his police skills.
The door opened before I had the chance to knock, and Edna drew me into a hug while Spector tangled between my legs. “Come in, come in,” Edna urged me. “You took longer than expected, and I worried you weren’t coming. I was all prepared to do a special delivery of my Caramel Pumpkin Italian Cream Cake.”
I sagged with a hand to my chest and one pressed to the wall with dramatic flare. Edna, I loved her so much! “Edna, tell me you didn’t. Of course you did. I smell the pumpkin, the coconut, the caramel, the cinnamon and nutmeg…” I could have gone on all day, but you and Edna I’m sure got the picture. I had a problem, and therapy probably wouldn’t help. “This is another reason why I’ve adopted you as my grandma, Edna. I love you.”
She beamed and practically floated as she tugged me toward the kitchen. “I knew you would like it, which is why I chose this recipe. It’s that time of year. Just wait until I start making my homemade eggnog.”
“Oh, Edna, I feel myself getting plumper.”
“Don’t worry, dear. The sheriff will still love you.”
I sat down in her kitchen amid an explosion of sunflowers. They covered every surface from the dainty curtains in the window to the dishtowels and potholders to the tablecloth. Even the clock on the wall was a sunflower. I’m guessing Edna liked sunflowers, but I could be off the mark.
“Spencer and I aren’t dating, per se,” I corrected her. “We’re just friendly.”
Edna blushed. “I’ve been out of that arena for a very long time, so I guess ‘friendly’ is what young people call it now?”
I smirked as she set a glass of sweet tea before me, and I took a sip. Refreshing. When you go to “tea” at Edna’s house, you are served ice-cold sweet tea. If you want hot tea, you have to specify. I’m telling you, it captured me by surprise how serious North Carolinians took their sweet tea. Since I loved the flavor, I didn’t mind a bit.
“No, that’s what I call Spencer’s and my…um…relationship, for lack of a better definition.” I had a better descriptive, and it was simply lovers, but if Edna bl
ushed with just a hint at his and my connection, I thought she might faint if I said anything more specific.
Edna began setting out plates of sandwiches cut in small triangles with their crusts removed. She had gone all out as usual, and I already knew not to complain that she was doing too much. From my last visit, I had learned Edna thrived off of playing hostess to me. I had decided to let her enjoy herself. After all, she didn’t have a husband or kids, so there were no grandkids either to dote on. All she had was me, and since I didn’t have any family left either, it was a perfect arrangement.
“I wasn’t sure what you had for lunch, dear or how long it had been, so I made these snacks. I hope you like them. Please, help yourself.”
“Edna, you have a sixth sense,” I assured her. “I’m starving. I skipped lunch, and my appetite is back with a vengeance. Yum! These are delicious as usual.”
The older woman’s eyes sparkled as she watched me eat. “Save room for dessert.”
“I will, but even if I don’t, can I take some home?”
She grinned. “Of course. This is your cake, Makayla. Nothing gives me pleasure like cooking for others. That’s why I keep trying to help Talia. She’s awful though. She’ll never learn.”
I burst out laughing. “Is it really that bad?”
Edna waved her hand. “Worse. She has no patience and no finesse. Just slings around the ingredients everywhere and fusses at me when it doesn’t turn out right.”
“Aw, that sounds terrible. I’m sorry.”
“I’m not.” Edna raised her glass of tea and drained a good third. Then she began heaping more tiny sandwiches onto my plate. I was starting to think I needed to go through with joining John and Allie Kate’s gym. If only to control the calories I took on from Edna’s cooking. You didn’t think I was going to give it up, did you? Let’s be serious here.
I wanted to talk to Edna about the Dr. Bloomberg case, but the ugliness of the situation disturbed my stomach. So, I put it off. Instead, I brought up her hint that she had a secret to share.
“My secret! I almost forgot.” Somehow I doubted that the way she covered her mouth with both hands, scrunching her shoulders like a little kid, and eyes rivaling Spector’s in their size. Without the generous sprinkling of wrinkles in various places on her face, neck, and hands, and the headful of gray curls, I might have thought she was a child.
I came to the conclusion she wanted me to beg to be told, so I laid down my napkin and leaned toward her. “Tell me, tell me, Edna. Did you win the lottery?”
She giggled and dragged her hands down from her mouth. “No, I don’t care about money.”
I tapped a finger to my lips. “Hm, what do you care about?”
Glancing around the kitchen, I spied the neat collection of cookbooks all lined up on the counter with climbing kitten bookends on either side. One of the books lay open, I assumed to the recipe for the cake she had made today. What was interesting was this particular book wasn’t bound like the commercial ones. This book looked as if it had been handwritten in, maybe the recipes Edna had created herself. If so, I was more impressed with her skills.
“Food?” I suggested. “Desserts?”
Edna clapped. “Yes! I’m going to be the new baker for The Donut Hole!”
“You’re kidding? That’s wonderful, Edna.” I gave her a hug, and her rosy cheeks grew pinker. “I’d heard Peony planned to expand into specially made cakes and things, even taking orders.”
Edna’s head bobbled in the affirmative. “That’s for me. I’ll be the one making the cakes and decorating them for the customers, like for birthdays and anniversaries. I’m so excited, Makayla. You can’t imagine how useful I feel, an old lady like me.”
I hugged her again. “Well, Peony couldn’t have chosen a more perfect and skilled pâtissier. I’m very glad for you. Have you told your friends yet?”
Edna sat back in her seat, a self-satisfied grin on her face. “No, not yet. You’re the first to know. What do you think Talia will say?” She giggled again, and I shook my head.
“I’m sure she’ll be happy for you.”
“She’ll be jealous.”
“Then I’m sure she will get over it.”
“Or not.” Edna was enjoying herself too much. “Do you know how many times she’s reminded me about all she has to do to prepare for her wedding? And then she pats my hand and says ‘I’m sorry, Edna. I shouldn’t talk to you about it. I don’t want you to feel bad because you don’t have a husband.’ Oh, she makes me so mad!”
“Well, that’s just mean.” Sometimes I thought Talia wasn’t so bad, that she just didn’t know how to speak to people. After all, whenever I complained about the music, she turned it down. She never played the DVDs late into the night. Maybe I made excuses for her, but still, I couldn’t believe she was all bad. Self-centered, probably. “Now you have a project to be proud of, Edna. Will you be able to keep up with the demand?”
“Peony and I are working out the details, but I’m sure I’ll be fine, dear. I can’t wait to get started. I can even work out of my home if I want, and if it gets too busy, I might hire an assistant. Won’t that be fun?”
“Sounds like it,” I agreed.
“And you can take pictures of all of my creations, Makayla. Peony wants to do some advertising and build a website eventually. She wants to reach as far as the surrounding counties.”
“Wow, that sounds like quite the undertaking.”
From the sound of it, our Peony was going all out as if she had been set free from a cage. In a way, I suppose she had. At least one idea, the one for having outside tables, had been vetoed by her husband. Now that he was gone, Peony could do whatever she chose. Despite the circumstances that initiated her freedom, I was happy for her.
Edna and I continued to discuss The Donut Hole and Peony’s plans for it as well as all of Edna’s ideas for sweet creations. While she outlined the plans, I savored every bite of her yummy cake, trying my darndest not to moan out loud each time a bite touched my tongue. When I was done, I set my fork down with reluctance but firmness and wiped my hands.
“That was delicious, Edna. Thank you so much for an incredible treat.”
She grinned and ducked her head graciously.
“I’ve been avoiding talking about where I was today and why I was so late.”
Her thin eyebrows rose. “What’s that?”
“A death.”
She gasped. “Who? I haven’t looked at my phone, expecting you would call if you had another delay. Maybe I’ve received some texts on it.”
“You’re certainly up on the latest technology,” I said when she brought out an iPhone.
“We all are.” She meant her group of friends no doubt. “One of the girls loves to keep us informed, and she wouldn’t hear of our fear of getting cell phones. I was the last to give in, as you can imagine, but when Ollie asked me to, I couldn’t say no.”
My heart went out to her. Poor Edna had loved Ollie in school, but he had always had eyes for Talia, who had married another man. After Talia’s husband passed, Ollie moved in to claim the woman he had always cared for, even after half a century had passed. Maybe they were just meant to be, which left Edna alone. Yet, she apparently maintained a soft spot for the man.
“Zachariah Bloomberg,” Edna exclaimed. “Oh, dear.”
“Did you know him, Edna?”
“Well yes, of course. He was in my same year at school, and when we were in our twenties, I think it was, I went out with him a few times.”
“Really?”
“Yes, but it didn’t last.” Edna wrinkled her nose with an expression of distaste. “Zachariah liked…certain things.”
I blinked, wondering what “things” referred to, but I could guess given Edna’s interesting color. “Things?” I encouraged her.
“Funny stuff. I won’t repeat it.” She touched her throat. “In that day and age, the idea that he would think I would… Never mind. Just know it didn’t work out between us. And now,
I mean, before he passed, he liked the younger women. I would be much too ancient for him. As if anybody would want that old fuddy duddy.”
I smiled, and her eyes widened.
“Oh, I shouldn’t speak ill of the dead. What happened? Do you know?”
“Not yet, but I imagine the details will shake the town soon enough.”
“Why?”
I hesitated to admit the truth, but Edna was my friend, and like I told her, everyone would know soon enough. I explained finding the camera pen, and the more I spoke, the more she paled. I started to worry she had been one of his patients and asked.
“Never! I told you he was into funny business even fifty years ago. No, thank you. I assumed he was on the up and up but never dreamed he would use his practice in such a heinous way.” Edna shivered, and sorrow touched her gaze. “There’ll be many that are hurt by this, Makayla.”
“I know, and I wish it never happened, but I’m glad we found out. Please, if you can, don’t say anything about the pen just yet. I want Spencer to confirm the circumstances of his death first.”
Edna offered me an expression of disappointment and then agreed. Apparently, the texts from her friends hadn’t revealed this tidbit, and she would have enjoyed being the first to share.
“How about I update you as soon as I hear something?”
She jumped at the offer, and we spent a little while longer enjoying each other’s company. We chatted about the citizens of Briney Creek and the ones she knew from the past, and then I took my leave. I had loved visiting with Edna, but just like her, I wanted to get information about Dr. Bloomberg, and that included receiving the list from Lissa. Whose names would be on it? I would surely find out soon.
Chapter Eight
I sat at my desk scrolling through the list Lissa had sent me. There were indeed over three thousand names. The letters swam before my eyes as I wondered how in the world we would narrow this list down. After running a finger down the screen twice across two sheets, I came across only two names that I thought I recognized. The ladies were from Edna’s group, or at least I think they were. Lissa had been kind enough to include ages of the patients, making me feel again that she should be a detective.
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