A quick tug on the top drawer confirmed it was locked. It wouldn’t be uncommon, however, for a single key to open all the filing cabinets. That was the case for his files at home. Impulsively, he stuck the key from Shirley’s cabinet into Arthur’s cabinet. It turned easily. Luck was with him today.
Opening the second drawer, he looked for Mindy’s file and found it near the back. Despite the brief duration of her stay, the file was thick with paperwork. Thumbing through sheets of stapled reports and handwritten notes, Earl was surprised to see medical records from her birth at Cedars-Sinai twenty-five years ago. A typed cover letter explained there were no other records for Mindy at that hospital, and offered to check other area hospitals for further information. A copy of her birth certificate had been included. Records on Mindy’s mother, Claudia, who died at the hospital eight years ago, had been filed behind the birth certificate.
Earl froze, his hands shaking as he held the file. No way should Belanger have medical records on Mindy’s birth, let alone on her mother’s death. He thumbed through the remaining papers. A copy of Anthony’s Court Order and notes from Mindy’s physical when she arrived. Next were lab results from blood work done upon her arrival. Her blood alcohol level was .07. Traces of marijuana and ketamine hydrochloride had been found as well. No wonder she couldn’t remember anything. The urge to pound Vince Allan’s face into the ground coursed through him once more.
Ruffling past more handwritten notes, horror stayed his hand. Romantic sentiments filled the pages. Over and over again, Belanger had written, Mindy is beautiful. My fair and lovely Mindy. Mindy with the long blonde hair. And at the very back were pictures. Taken in Mindy’s room. She appeared to be sleeping. Or more likely unconscious. She was naked.
Rage burned through him. So hot it took every bit of his self-control not to charge out, find Belanger and strangle him with his bare hands. It was all the proof he needed to get Mindy the hell out of here.
He tucked the photos in the back pocket of his jeans and was ready to leave when he remembered Regina. How many other women had Belanger assaulted? He went back to the filing cabinet.
Regina’s file was in the third drawer. Like Mindy’s it contained pictures. Regina naked and unconscious. Proof she and Belanger weren’t having an affair. Regina was just another victim. Earl stuffed her photos in his back pocket, too.
He was about to close the drawer and leave when the writing on a file at the back of the drawer caught his attention. It read simply, Medical License. Pulling the folder from the hanging file, he opened it, surprised to find an official-looking certificate inside. It was a medical license. Identical in every way to the one hanging on Belanger’s wall, with one notable exception. The name on this piece of gilded and embossed paper read Andrew Cantwise.
His confusion lasted only a moment. There was no Arthur Belanger. The man running this clinic was related to Shirley Cantwise. A brother? Cousin, perhaps? But why lie about it? Hands shaking, he folded the paper and slipped it inside the front pocket of his jeans. He had to get out of here. Instinct told him he’d already stayed too long. Slipping the clinic keys inside the top drawer of Belanger’s desk, he rushed out.
He’d made it almost to the door when it swung open, nearly slamming him in the face. Shirley marched inside, her face moving from shocked to suspicious by the time she stepped inside.
“Earl,” she said. “What on earth are you doing in here?”
His mind raced. She’d crossed her arms in front of her, desire and anger crisscrossing her face, as if she couldn’t figure out which emotion to feel. He flashed a smile. The Storm Jackson one. She seemed to really like that. “I wanted to talk to Dr. Belanger,” he said. “You know, see how far gone he thought Mindy was.”
She stared unblinking. A smile played at the corners of her mouth before flattening back into a scowl. “How did you get in here?”
“The door was open, so I came in.”
“The door was open?” Her jaw dropped in alarm. “You’re sure?”
“I’m in here, aren’t I?” He delivered the line like he was on a movie set, conviction lacing every word. And now that he’d taken on the stance, he took it on completely, nearly convinced of its truth himself.
Shirley whipped her walkie-talkie from its holster on her hip. “Ryan!” She hollered. “Get down to Dr. Belanger’s office. Right now!” She looked back to Earl, her gaze narrow and suspicious. “You’re sure the door was open?”
He held his hands out in front of him, as if to show there was nothing up his sleeve. “I wouldn’t be standing here if it wasn’t.”
She sighed, suspicion finally fading from her face. “Well, I guess that’s true.”
He stood there for a moment, trying not to panic, wondering what to do next. And while he stood there, the look in her eyes went fully to desire, and all he wanted to do was run. “I should be going.” He took a step forward, starting to move past her when she caught his arm.
“Earl.”
He saw her coming and still couldn’t stop her. She grabbed hold of him, standing on tip-toe, flinging herself into his unwilling embrace.
“Oh, Earl.”
Flabby arms, smelling of flowers, caught hold of him. Before he could push her away, her mouth found his. She tasted like coffee, and something revolting that turned his stomach, though possibly it was his own revulsion rising up his throat. He gagged; an involuntary response that nearly choked him, but he held the action back, knowing as surely as he stood there he couldn’t let her know his true feelings. Gently, he stepped away from her, maintaining his composure, doing everything in his power to keep her from feeling offended and defensive. A single wrong move could prove disastrous.
“Earl, are you okay?” She stood wide-eyed, breathless, smiling like she’d won the lottery. “I didn’t upset you, did I?”
“Of course not.” He was acting now. Really acting. Like kissing some woman he didn’t give a damn about in a movie. It had to be done. And he had to sell it. “You just caught me by surprise.” And before he knew it, she’d flung herself back into his arms. “Wait,” he said, holding her just at bay. “Isn’t Ryan on his way down here? We need to think of your reputation.”
“Damn it!” She hissed. “He is. Oh. Oh. Oh.” Her fists clenched. “Running this place is my life’s work, but right now, it’s really pissing me off.”
The loss of control was telling, though he wasn’t sure what to do with it. The roiling volcano hidden below her normally calm surface appeared ready to erupt. He laid a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry. You take care of your business. We can finish this later.”
He turned to leave, but Ryan burst in aiming his gun. “Where do you think you’re going?”
Earl faltered. Panic pulled him from the act. “I’m getting the hell out of here.”
“Don’t be in such a rush, my love.” Shirley beamed. “You’ve just checked yourself into CRC’s treatment facility. You’re not going anywhere.”
Chapter 63
Worry creased Ryan’s brow. “Mr. Grayson said he didn’t check himself in. He made a lot of threats about the police and stuff.”
“He’s just having last-minute jitters,” Shirley explained. The jubilance of victory made her want to jump up and down, but she remained calm, soothing Ryan’s doubts.
“I told him we’d kill Ms. LePage if he didn’t shut up.” He threw her a questioning glance. “I hope that’s okay.”
“That’s perfect. Don’t worry. Mr. Grayson will return to his senses soon enough.” Arthur would have drugs to help with that. “He so clearly needs our help. He was so desperate for drugs he was on the verge of smashing into Dr. Belanger’s cabinets. It’s lucky I walked by and found him when I did.”
Ryan nodded, and she watched, satisfied, as his face relaxed and certainty returned to his eyes. Calling him here had ruined her first kiss with Earl. She’d been in his arms. Felt his lips on hers. For one, brief second she’d tasted fantasy. But her surprise at seeing him inside t
he clinic and calling for Ryan had cost her the moment. Now she stood breathing hard, heart racing, caught between euphoria and fury. “But never mind Mr. Grayson. I need to know how he got in here.”
Ryan’s gaze darted to the open clinic door behind her. “It wasn’t locked?”
“No.” Enormous effort kept her voice steady. “And I need to know how it got that way.”
He looked again at the door. “I can’t believe it was unlocked.”
“Didn’t I just say it was?”
“Maybe Dr. Belanger left it unlocked?”
She hated to admit it, but she hadn’t thought of that. “It would be very uncharacteristic of Dr. Belanger to do that.”
Ryan stroked thick fingers across his chin. “I agree, but I can’t think of any other way for it to be unlocked. You and Dr. Belanger are the only ones who have keys.”
He was right, of course, and yet she hated him for it. She was the one with the vision. It didn’t seem right that Ryan, a former patient, would question her, or think of things she hadn’t.
“Stay here until I come back with the keys,” she said, allowing the slightest note of disapproval in her voice.
His head dipped toward the floor as he mumbled his agreement. And satisfied, she left. She’d been right to remind Ryan of his place. If people got to thinking they could question her, order would go out the window. But that was enough dwelling on that. Her thoughts returned to Earl. He had feelings for her. He’d all but said so. And that kiss. She’d actually kissed him. Felt his warm lips, his facial hair scratching against her face. He’d grabbed hold of her and the grip of his fingers tingled around her arms. She imagined him grabbing other parts of her, caressing her in ways she’d never experienced.
The rush of excitement pulsed through her, a feeling not felt since she was nineteen and had locked eyes with Professor Young across a small classroom of forty. He’d smiled at her that day. Stared straight into her eyes and smiled, like he was seeing something inside her other people were oblivious to.
He’d had a girlfriend, but she’d discounted that. She’d followed him to a restaurant one night so she could observe them together. Nothing in the way he’d looked at the woman had said love, and she’d taken that as a sign fate meant for her to have him. The stupid girlfriend had put lies in his head though. Made him deny his feelings.
That crush ended badly. Really badly. And Professor Young had taken his true feelings for her to the grave. She felt a twinge of regret thinking about him now. Maybe she shouldn’t have done what she’d done. He wasn’t the one fate meant for her after all. But she wasn’t going to think about that now. Professor Young was the past. Earl was her future. The one she’d been waiting for. And if that scrubby little LePage tramp thought she was getting him back, she had another thing coming.
Inside her office, Shirley found Arthur gaping at the TV. His widened eyes brought her to a halt, and she followed his gaze to the weather report and hurricane warnings flashing across the screen. “Arthur,” She said cautiously. “What is it?”
“Phoebe’s made a last-minute turn and headed our way. They’re evacuating,” he said. He never looked up.
“It’s a hurricane.” She spoke calmly. “It’s not like when the Mississippi flooded.”
“Katrina caused a worse flood than the one we had.” His voice faltered. “And Phoebe’s bad. A Category 5. Just like Katrina.”
“New Orleans sits below sea level,” she reminded him. “It won’t be like that here.”
“It doesn’t matter. We won’t be here. They’re evacuating.”
Evacuating? No. No! She couldn’t possibly leave now. Earl was finally hers. Panic and despair chased away her calm. “We’re not leaving,” she said, her voice raised a notch.
“What do you mean we’re not leaving?” Arthur nearly shouted. “We have to leave. They’re evacuating.”
“Not everyone evacuates during a hurricane,” she said. A lie was needed. Something to soothe his worried mind. “I’ve spoken with the authorities about this already, and they’ve assured me the evacuation is voluntary and only a precaution. They said shutting ourselves inside our facility would work just as well. We’re not going anywhere.”
“Why not?”
She thought of Earl. Remembered his kiss. “We have work to do.”
“There’s a hurricane coming. What if it floods? Don’t you remember what happened the last time we were in a flood?”
As if she could ever forget. “I saw daddy dangling from the end of that rope, too.”
“I watched him do it, Shirley. I watched daddy hang himself.”
“I know you did.” She spoke quietly now, afraid for her brother. He’d always been so fragile. His face transformed to boyhood and she remembered him the way he’d been so many years ago. So little and frightened.
“I wish he hadn’t done it,” Arthur said.
“Daddy was weak, Andrew. I’ve told you that before.”
“Don’t call me that. I told you never to call me that!”
“Sorry, Arthur. It was just talking about Daddy that made me slip up.”
“Do you think I’m weak, Shirley?”
“Of course not. Not like daddy.”
“And you’re sure we’ll be okay if we don’t evacuate.”
“We’ll be fine.” She kissed her brother on the forehead.
“Okay then.” He sighed and color seeped back into his cheeks. “I guess we should talk about Mindy’s medical records then.”
“Her medical records?” Excitement slammed back into her gut.
“I got a call from my friend at Hollywood General this morning.” Arthur smiled. “And guess what?”
“What?”
“The pop tart had a baby when she was fourteen.”
Her heart skipped a beat. What more proof did she need that Mindy didn’t deserve Earl? “A baby? Are you sure?”
“I’m sure. She put him up for adoption. Landed her mother’s boyfriend in jail for it, too.”
Shirley clicked her tongue in disgust. “You mean she had sex with her mother’s boyfriend? What an absolute tramp. I’m surprised she’s managed to keep it from the press.”
Arthur shrugged. “I’m not. The adoption records were sealed and she was a minor.”
“That does explain quite a lot about Miss LePage, doesn’t it?”
“I imagine we could get a generous yearly donation from her in exchange for keeping our mouths shut, don’t you?”
“If it were anyone other than Mindy LePage, I might agree with you. But she is, shall we say, unpredictable.”
Understanding claimed his face. “What do you want to do?”
“I think you know what needs to be done.”
He smiled. “Can I have fun with her first?”
“Have whatever fun you want, but get rid of her.”
“I will.”
Arthur left and she slumped into her arm chair, only realizing then she’d left one important detail unattended. She’d failed to ask Arthur if he’d left his office unlocked.
Chapter 64
Sarge stewed on hold for six and a half minutes before Frisco Gomez, deputy sheriff with the Monroe County PD, answered her call. “Frisco,” she said. Irritation clipped her voice. “It’s Sarge Freeman. I need a favor.”
“Es importante? Got a hurricane coming, you know.”
“Yeah. And if I’m right, you got a bunch of folks in possible danger who’re about to be stuck in the middle of it.”
He sighed wearily. “What’s the problema?”
“You’re aware of the Coral Reef Center? That fancy rehab place you got down there?”
“Si.” All pretense of friendliness left his voice. “What business you got with those pendejos?”
“Nicholas Beck went down there to investigate the death of Regina Mance.”
“Carajo! I told him we got no evidence that was anything but a suicide.”
“He wasn’t buying it,” Sarge explained. “He checked himself into t
he place, hoping he could snoop around a little. See if there was anything more to the story.”
Frisco exhaled. “I don’t like where this is going.”
Sarge ignored the complaint. “He hasn’t been heard from in days. We think there’s a problem.”
“There is a problem! Phoebe will be here tomorrow. And she’s category 5. You hear that? Cinco!”
“It isn’t like Mr. Beck to stop communicating with his office.” She understood his frustrations, but her gut told her Nick and the others might not have time to wait out the storm. “No one’s heard from Nick since Tuesday. It’s not like him.”
“Maybe it’s his therapy.” Gomez sounded annoyed. “They don’t like their patients having contact with the outside world. They’re all loco.”
“Exactly,” Sarge said. “They’re loco. And this isn’t just a case of their bullshit therapy. Something’s wrong.”
“Tell them about the phones being out,” Danny said in the background.
“I will.” She turned her attention back to the phone. “No one’s been able to reach anyone at all over there,” she said. “Their staff hasn’t answered their phones for days.”
“We’re evacuating. Maybe they’ve left already.”
She felt her temper rise like a boiling pot of water. “If that were true, Mr. Beck would have called. Not to mention some of the other folks we know are down there. Not just patients, but their family members, too. No one’s heard from any of them or been able to reach them. You should also know we’ve uncovered evidence that Arthur Belanger is not who he claims to be.”
“What do you mean?” Suspicion crept into his voice.
“I mean the real Arthur Belanger died at birth. He was, however, born the same day as Shirley Cantwise’s brother Andrew, who was accused of sexually abusing patients in Palm Beach.”
“Carajo!” Frisco swore under his breath. “You sure about that?”
“Positive.”
“Bien. I’ll check it out. What’s a number I can reach you at?”
Redemption (Desire Never Dies) Page 27