Mills came around the table and sat in front of Jack. Their gaze connected. “Look, this guy came back to settle the score with you. For revenge. Jack, you’re a good guy. You helped put him out of business years ago. We all appreciate your help then and now. Hell, we should be giving you a medal. But we must go through this rigmarole to get the paperwork in order. That’s all.”
“I didn’t do it, Detective Mills. I did think I saw Lagrange in the parking lot that day. I followed that man to his home only to find out it wasn’t him. I apologized profusely and drove home.”
“Did anybody see you? Can anybody corroborate your testimony?”
“Yes. The guy I scared shitless that day but didn’t kill.”
“Where does he live? I’ll go find him and clear this whole mess.”
“I don’t remember. I just followed him. I didn’t pay any attention where we were going. I don’t go to that part of town usually. I’m not that familiar with the streets and…” Jack wrinkled his forehead, his eyes wide. “Hey, check my GPS. Check the GPS in my Lexus. You might be able to find out where that took place. The man’s home. I remember I used my GPS to navigate to my home afterward.”
“You’d better be telling me the truth,” said Mills. “I hate when people waste my time.”
“Look, if I killed him, why would I keep the evidence?”
“You’d be surprised what some people do. Keeping souvenirs is actually quite common, especially in your type of situation. This guy really tormented you and your family, Jack. I think keeping a memento of the struggle he put you through would be understandable. Hell, maybe I’d do it, too.”
“I didn’t do it. I’m innocent. I’m being framed.”
Mills stood up and exited the small room, leaving Jack once again alone.
Several minutes later, Susan and Claire entered.
“Are you OK? Did they hurt you?” said Claire, running to his side and hugging him.
“No, I’m fine. I can’t believe this is happening to me. To us.”
Susan hugged Jack, and she and Claire sat down.
“Well, at least I have my wife back home,” said Jack. “When did you arrive?”
“A bit ago,” said Claire. “But that’s not important right now.”
“Since Lagrange is dead, we felt it was safe to bring your family back home,” said Susan.
“Nick and I took the first flight out, and Susan picked me up at the airport,” said Claire.
Jack looked intently at both women. “You know I’m innocent, right?”
“We both know that beyond the shadow of any doubt,” said Susan. Claire nodded.
“We need to prove it. How do we do that? Where do we begin?” said Jack.
“Just tell the truth. Now and always,” said Susan. “The worst thing you can do is not be forthright. When cops realize that, it throws the whole balance off.”
“I have nothing to lie about.”
“We’ll find a way to prove you didn’t kill Lagrange,” said Claire.
“I know I can count on both of you,” said Jack.
Susan nodded and forced a smile. “Do you need anything?”
“No, I’m fine. I know I’ll be out of here in no time,” said Jack.
“Have you called a lawyer? There’s an attorney I would strongly recommend, by the name of Lee Chappell. I’ve seen him in action, and he’s pretty impressive,” said Susan.
“Will you call him? I don’t know if I’ll be allowed any more phone calls. They took my cell phone away when they searched me at the hospital.”
“I’ll take care of it,” said Susan.
“I’ll be back tomorrow,” said Claire. “We only have ten minutes with you, and I think our time is up.”
The group stood and hugged.
Alone again, Jack felt his temples throbbing. Why is this happening to me?
CHAPTER 41
Jack was provided breakfast in his undersized jail room. After he ate, he was escorted to a small room where he was told a visitor would be arriving soon.
“Dr. Norris, I’m Lee Chappell,” said the attorney as he entered. He handed Jack a business card. He was dressed in a dark-blue suit, a white shirt, and a red tie. He was in his midforties with carrot-colored hair and pale features. “How was your night?” The lawyer sat in front of Jack and removed a large legal pad and pen from his briefcase.
“I couldn’t sleep at all. I couldn’t rest my mind.”
Chappell nodded and then spoke. All business. “I read through your file. I have some questions to go over with you. Your arraignment is at two o’clock this afternoon. I’m hoping to have the judge release you, but that’s not a slam dunk.”
“I’m innocent, you know. I’m being framed.”
“I believe you, but we’ll have to see if we can convince the judge and a jury of that.”
“As you reviewed my situation, is there any good news?”
“One good thing is that they don’t have a body, although a heart is a good start.” He wrote something on his pad. “Who would want to kill Lagrange and blame you for the murder?” Chappell’s gaze floated from the legal pad to look at Jack.
“You got me there.”
“We need to create reasonable doubt, and if we could point the finger at somebody else, that would help our case. Any thoughts?”
“None whatsoever. I can’t think of anyone. Other than Lagrange himself.”
“Well, he’s not in a position to be blamed any longer.” Chappell shrugged his shoulders. “Take your time and think this through carefully.”
“No one comes to mind.” Jack bowed his head.
“I need to go file some documents with the court. Why don’t I come back in a few hours, and we’ll continue our conversation. I need to prep you for the arraignment, OK?” The attorney stood up. They shook hands, and Jack found himself alone in the small room.
I guess I’d better get used to being alone, he thought. Jack walked around the table inside the small room for several minutes. Thinking. Pondering. Two guards entered the room. It was time to return to his prison cell. While Jack was being escorted, his mind continued to churn. Who would want to frame me? He felt his stomach turn in knots. I have no enemies other than Lagrange. He shook his head. What would it take to hate someone so much that you’d kill a man, cut out his heart, only to frame that person?
They arrived at the cell. He entered, and the door behind him clicked shut loudly. Jack sat on the hard bench. His eyes found his feet. His thoughts returned to the intricate plan somebody had conceptualized to frame him of Lagrange’s murder. Jack couldn’t even begin to compute in that realm. This domain was incomprehensible to him. The only person he could think of who would want to frame him would be the man whose heart now lay motionless somewhere in the pathology laboratory. Could Lagrange possibly commit suicide and ask someone else to cut out his own heart? Could anyone? Jack looked up at the ceiling and began to walk around the small space. Lagrange had done some pretty awful things, but that would be inconceivable. Flabbergasted, Jack sat down again. What if he was dying? Maybe he had cancer and knew he only had a few days to live. As a final act of defiance, he could have paid somebody to cut out his heart after he died and deliver it to my car. Just to ruin my life. Jack shook his head side to side. Is this even conceivable?
Jack’s thoughts returned to the barbecue party. We were all playing volleyball and basketball and soccer. Having fun. Lagrange mostly sat and watched. After the bit of physical effort he did, he became a little short of breath. Jack had noted the man’s air hunger had worsened over the last several months whenever Lagrange would visit the clinic or arrive with the security team when patients had to be transferred to the hospital for inpatient care.
Invigorated by his own reflections, Jack knocked on the cell door. “Guard, I need to make a phone call?”
After o
ver an hour, Jack received notice that he would be permitted one phone call. A cordless phone was provided. He dialed Claire’s number.
“I need to speak with Kate Fanning,” he told his wife. “I have an idea, and I need her help.”
• • •
Finding Kate proved to be an exceedingly difficult task. Claire checked at work, but the nurse hadn’t been there since the explosion. Exasperated, she called Susan. The detective on maternity leave performed her investigative magic and soon was on the phone with Cesar, who put the two in touch. Kate agreed to visit Jack in prison.
The most difficult part for Kate was convincing her parents that she should leave their secluded hideout to return to the devil’s den. Kate discussed Dr. Norris’s willingness to help her at a time when she really needed help.
“If it wasn’t for him, Amelia would still be a prisoner. Or worse, dead,” she offered. “Mom, Dad, I must go. I feel I need to do this.” Silently, the parents acquiesced.
Kate got in her car and departed en route to Evansville.
CHAPTER 42
By the time Kate arrived, Jack had been in the small visiting room for about twenty minutes.
“Thanks for coming, Kate.” Jack went on to explain his theories.
“I did notice he was getting more short of breath with less effort,” said Kate.
“That goes along with my theory. I need to prove it.”
“How do we do it?”
• • •
Having received marching orders and armed with enchantment and charm, Kate ambled into the laboratory at Newton Memorial. She searched for Lance Lantz.
“Lance, I need your help,” she said. “Is there a private place where we can go talk for a minute?”
“Sure. Yes. Sure,” said the young technician, fumbling for words. “Anything. What can I do?” He led her to an empty supply room. In it were several shelves of needles of different sizes, vials, and specimen-collection tubes.
“I want you to measure a natriuretic peptide level on an old blood sample.”
“Why? On who?”
“Remember how all the hospital employees had to have blood work to measure hepatitis B titers? You still have those samples, don’t you?”
“Yes. I think so. Do you want me to measure your levels of natriuretic peptide?”
“No, not mine. Somebody else’s,” Kate said, batting her eyes.
“You know I can’t say no to you, Kate. I’ll do it. I’ll do it, even if I get fired.”
“Nobody’s getting fired. But nobody needs to know, right?”
“Who is it on?”
“Lagrange.”
“The guy Dr. Norris just killed?”
“He’s innocent. But yes. Will you? Please?”
“I’ll have the result in about half an hour.”
“Thank you, Lance.” Kate kissed him lightly on his right cheek and departed the room.
The door closed behind her. He stood for a long moment, mesmerized and enchanted by her kiss. By her words. By her essence. All these things played vividly in his mind. He smiled big. Then went to work.
• • •
Within an hour, Kate was at Jack’s side again. When she arrived, Claire and Susan were already there. Jack had been given visiting privileges much more freely than customarily due to Susan’s influence on the police force assigned to the local prison.
“Nine thousand, seven hundred and ten,” said Kate with a mission-accomplished tone and demeanor as she entered the interrogation room, joining the others.
“That’s very high,” said Jack. “That goes along with my theory.”
“What’s high? What theory?” asked Claire. Susan looked on.
“Natriuretic peptide should be less than one hundred. Lagrange’s was over nine thousand,” Jack explained.
“What does that mean?” said Susan.
“He was fluid overloaded. He was in congestive heart failure. Lagrange had a cardiomyopathy,” said Jack, smiling.
“So you think he died and had somebody cut out his heart to incriminate you?” said Claire.
“I guess you can get someone to do anything for enough cash,” said Susan. “But that’s pretty bizarre.”
“Dr. Norris thinks Lagrange is still alive,” said Kate, beaming. “And I do, too.”
“Come again?” said Susan. “I’m no doctor, but I know you can’t live without a heart. And his heart is on a slab in the lab. I’ve seen it myself.”
“Cardiac transplantation,” said Jack, a smile growing on his face.
“What?” said Claire, mouth agape. “How did you come up with that?”
“How can you be sure, Jack?” said Susan.
“I can’t be sure. But knowing this guy, I’ll bet you I’m right. I think he had a heart transplant and stole his own heart just to incriminate me. When his previous plan didn’t work, he thought he’d get me with this scheme. And he still might.” Jack stood up. “We have to prove this is correct. We need to find Lagrange. This is where you all come in. I doubt he’ll waltz right in here to visit me.”
They heard a knock at the door, leading them to perk up.
“Come in,” said Susan.
The door opened, and in came the attorney. All shoulders fell, expelling air from breaths previously held. Introductions were made. Chappell retrieved his note pad.
“We think we have it all figured out,” said Kate.
“Really? That’s great news,” said Chappell.
“I have good reason to believe that Lagrange is not dead,” said Jack. “That he had a heart transplant and stole his own heart.”
Chappell began to chortle but cut it short when he realized he was the only one laughing. “Wait. Are you serious?”
“I really believe that,” said Jack. “It’s the only theory that makes any sense.” He sighed. “Now, we need to prove it. We need to find Lagrange. He’s probably still pretty sick. Heart transplant surgery has a way of stealing your breath away for a while. Can you get me out of here so I can help with my own investigation?”
“We’ll know in a little while. The arraignment is coming up soon. We need to prepare for it.”
Jack nodded. His gaze found Claire and Kate. “There are no centers in Evansville doing cardiac transplantation. If I’m right about all this, Lagrange would have to have gone to Indianapolis. He may have had a cardiologist here in town. Since he’s not our patient, will you check with the other cardiology group in town? The Evansville Heart Associates? If and when he’s back, he’ll need antirejection medications. There are very few patients requiring these prescriptions, so it should be relatively easy to check with the pharmacies here in town. We have to find him.”
CHAPTER 43
“He’s a private pilot and owns an airplane. Your Honor, Dr. Norris is a flight risk. He stands accused of murder and cutting out his victim’s heart. We believe there is mental defect, given the heinous nature of the crime,” proclaimed Assistant District Attorney Dale Goldstein, an elegant man in his late thirties, wearing a dapper dark blue suit.
“Your Honor, may I remind the court that we have not yet found a body to go with this supposed crime and—” said Chappell.
“Wait a minute, Counselor. Are you disputing that there has been a crime? For Pete’s sake, the heart is in the morgue,” said the judge, his traditional black robe and his high perch commanding respect.
“It’s our theory that Simon Lagrange had a cardiac transplant and—”
“And stole his own heart to implicate your client?” said the lawyer with a chortle across the aisle.
“We believe that my client is being framed. Dr. Norris is a respected cardiologist who is the director of the cardiology department at Newton Memorial Hospital. His services are of paramount importance to the community, Your Honor. Until the people produce a dead body to go with the hea
rt in the morgue, there is no way to be sure that a crime has indeed been committed.”
“Though your theory is intriguing, it is but a farfetched concept at this time. What I have in front of me is the strong possibility that Dr. Norris did in fact break down in the face of tremendous adversity and murdered his tormenter. It is my ruling that Dr. Norris be remanded to the custody of the State of Indiana and that he be examined by a court psychiatrist regarding his state of mind during the incident as well as to assess him for his ability to help with his own defense.” The gavel struck the pad, announcing the pronouncement.
“I’m sorry, Jack. You have to stay in prison. I’ll appeal the decision and continue to do all I can to get you out of jail,” said Chappell.
Jack looked back. Claire was sitting next to Susan, crying. Susan had her arm around her, comforting her. They all locked eyes for a few seconds as two guards escorted Jack beyond the doors of the courtroom. Jack mouthed the words, I love you.
The courtroom emptied out little by little. Several feet outside the main door, Claire, Susan, and Kate met at a bench. They all sat down, feeling wiped out. Dismayed. Defeated. Claire dabbed her eyes with a tissue.
“I’ll be right back,” said Susan, standing up and waddling over by the elevator where she spied Detective Mills. “Brad,” she yelled, holding her pregnant belly as she continued to wobble. The two conversed for several long moments.
Susan returned to the bench where the other two women lingered. “He doesn’t buy the possibility that Lagrange had a heart transplant. He says there isn’t enough evidence to accept that theory.”
“Is he willing to help us look for evidence to prove it?” said Claire.
“No. For now he’s convinced that Jack killed Lagrange.”
“What do we do now?” asked Kate, eager to get on with the investigation. “The cops won’t help us. We have to do it ourselves.”
“Can we count on Cesar Madera?” said Claire.
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