“She’s already killed one man. Shouldn’t that tell you something?”
“But we’ve heard no gunshots since then, so we’ve gotten past the critical first thirty minutes, which is the most dangerous period. The time when the shooter’s still scared and most likely to kill a captive. It’s been almost an hour now, and she’s made no other moves. Hurt no one else, as far as we know.”
“Then what is she doing in there?”
“We have no idea. We’re still scrambling for background information. The homicide unit is checking into how she ended up at the morgue, and we’ve lifted what we think are her fingerprints from the hospital room. As long as no one’s getting hurt, time is our friend. The longer this goes on, the more information we’ll have on her. And the more likely we’ll settle it without bloodshed, without heroics.” He glanced toward the hospital. “See those cops over there? They’re probably champing at the bit to rush the building. If it comes to that, then I’ve failed. My rule of thumb for hostage incidents is simple: Slow things down. We’ve got her contained in a wing with no windows, no exits, so she can’t escape. She can’t go mobile. So we let her sit and think about her situation. And she’ll realize that she’s got no other choice but to surrender.”
“If she’s rational enough to understand that.”
He regarded her for a moment. A look that gently probed the significance of what she just said. “Do you think she’s rational?”
“I think she’s terrified,” Maura said. “When we were alone in that elevator, I saw the look in her eyes. The panic.”
“Is that why she fired the gun?”
“She must have felt threatened. There were three of us crowding around her bed, trying to restrain her.”
“Three of you? The nurse I spoke to said that when she stepped into the room, she saw only you and the guard.”
“There was a doctor as well. A young man, blond.”
“The nurse didn’t see him.”
“Oh, he ran. After that gun went off, he was out of there like a rabbit.” She paused, still bitter about the abandonment. “I was the one trapped in the room.”
“Why do you think the patient shot only the guard? If there were three of you standing around the bed?”
“He was bending toward her. He was closest.”
“Or was it his uniform?”
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Think about it. A uniform is a symbol of authority. She could have thought he was a policeman. It makes me wonder if she has a criminal record.”
“A lot of people are afraid of the police. You don’t have to be a criminal.”
“Why didn’t she shoot the doctor?”
“I told you, he ran. He was out of there.”
“She didn’t shoot you, either.”
“Because she needed a hostage. I was the closest warm body.”
“Do you think she would have killed you? Given the chance?”
Maura met his gaze. “I think that woman will do anything to stay alive.”
The trailer door suddenly swung open. Captain Hayder stuck his head out and said to Stillman: “You’d better come in and listen to this, Leroy.”
“What is it?”
“It just aired on the radio.”
Maura followed Stillman back into the trailer, which had grown even more stifling in just the short time they had been standing outside.
“Replay the broadcast,” Hayder said to Emerton.
Over the speaker came a man’s excited voice. “… you’re listening to KBUR, and this is Rob Roy, your host on this very weird afternoon. We’ve got a bee-zarre situation here, folks. There’s a lady caller on the line right now who claims she’s the one holding our local SWAT team at bay over at the medical center. Now, I didn’t believe her at first, but our producer’s been talking to her. We think she’s the real deal …”
“What the hell is this?” said Stillman. “It’s got to be a hoax. We have those phone lines isolated.”
“Just listen,” said Hayder.
“… so hello, miss?” said the DJ. “Talk to us. Tell us your name.”
A woman’s throaty voice answered: “My name is not important.”
“Okay. Well, why the heck are you doing this?”
“The die is cast. This is all I wish to say.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Tell them. Say it. The die is cast.”
“Okay, okay. Whatever it means, the whole city of Boston’s just heard it. Folks, if you’re listening, the die is cast. This is Rob Roy at KBUR, and we’re on the phone with the lady who’s causing all that ruckus over at the—”
“You tell the police to stay away,” the woman said. “I have six people here in this room. I have enough bullets for everyone.”
“Whoa, ma’am! You want to calm down there. There’s no reason to hurt anybody.”
Stillman’s face had flushed an angry red. He turned to Hayder. “How did this happen? I thought we isolated those phone lines.”
“We did. She used a cell phone to call out.”
“Whose cell phone?”
“The number’s listed to a Stephanie Tam.”
“Do we know who that is?”
“… oops! Folks, I’m in trouble,” said Rob Roy. “My producer just told me that I have been ordered by Boston’s finest to cease and desist talking to this caller. The police are going to shut us down, friends, and I’m going to have to cut this conversation short. Are you still there, ma’am? Hello?” A pause. “It looks like we lost our caller. Well, I hope she calms down. Lady, if you’re still listening to me, please don’t hurt anyone. We can get you help, okay? And to all my listeners out there, you heard it on KBUR. ‘The die is cast …’ ”
Emerton stopped the recording. “That’s it,” he said. “That’s what we caught on tape. We shut down that call right there, as soon as we heard who the DJ was talking to. But that much of the conversation got on the air.”
Stillman looked stunned. He stared at the now-silent audio equipment.
“What the hell is she doing, Leroy?” asked Hayder. “Was that just a cry for attention? Is she trying to get public sympathy?”
“I don’t know. It was weird.”
“Why isn’t she talking to us? Why call a radio station? We’re the ones trying to call her, and she keeps hanging up on us!”
“She has an accent.” Stillman looked at Hayder. “She’s definitely not American.”
“And what was that thing she said? The die is cast. What’s that supposed to mean? The game’s in play?”
“It’s a quote from Julius Caesar,” said Maura.
They all looked at her. “What?”
“It’s what Caesar said as he stood on the edge of the Rubicon. If he crossed the river, it meant he was declaring civil war on Rome. He knew, if he made that move, there’d be no turning back.”
“What does Julius Caesar have to do with any of this?” said Hayder.
“I’m just telling you where the phrase comes from. When Caesar ordered his troops to cross the river, he knew he’d passed the point of no return. It was a gamble, but he was a gambler, and he liked to play dice. When he made his choice, he said, ‘The die is cast.’ ” She paused. “And he marched into history.”
“So that’s what it means to cross the Rubicon,” said Stillman.
Maura nodded. “Our hostage taker has made a choice. She’s just told us there’s no turning back.”
Emerton called out: “We’ve got the info on that cell phone. Stephanie Tam is one of the doctors at the medical center. Department of OB-Gyn. She’s not answering her beeper, and the last time anyone saw her, she was headed down to Diagnostic Imaging to see her patient. The hospital’s going through their personnel roster, trying to identify everyone on staff who’s still unaccounted for.”
“It seems we now have the name of at least one of the hostages,” said Stillman.
“What about that cell phone? We tried calling it, bu
t she hangs up on us. Do we let it stay operative?”
“If we cut off service, we could make her angry. For the moment, allow her to keep the link. We’ll just monitor her calls.” Stillman paused and took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his forehead. “At least she’s now communicating—just not with us.”
It’s already stifling in here, thought Maura, looking at Stillman’s flushed face. And the day’s about to get much hotter. She felt herself swaying and realized she could not bear to stay in this trailer a moment longer. “I need to get some fresh air,” she said. “Can I leave?”
Stillman gave her a distracted glance. “Yes. Yes, go ahead. Wait—do we have your contact information?”
“Captain Hayder has my home and cell phone number. You can reach me twenty-four hours a day.”
She stepped outside and paused, blinking in the midday sunshine. Taking in, through dazed eyes, the chaos on Albany Street. This was the same street she traveled to work every day, the same view she saw every morning as she approached the driveway of the medical examiner’s building. It had been transformed into a snarl of vehicles and a regiment of Special Operations Division cops in black uniforms. Everyone was waiting for the next move of the woman who had lit the fuse on this crisis. A woman whose identity was still a mystery to them all.
She started toward her building, weaving past parked cruisers, and ducked beneath a strand of police tape. Only as she straightened again did she spot the familiar figure walking toward her. In the two years she’d known Gabriel Dean, she had never seen him agitated, had seldom seen him display any strong emotions. But the man she now saw was wearing an expression of unalloyed panic.
“Have you heard any names yet?” he asked.
She shook her head, bewildered. “Names?”
“The hostages. Who’s in the building?”
“I’ve only heard them mention one name so far. A doctor.”
“Who?”
She paused, startled by his sharp query. “A Dr. Tam. Her cell phone was used to call a radio station.”
He turned and stared at the hospital. “Oh, Jesus.”
“What’s the matter?”
“I can’t find Jane. She wasn’t evacuated with the other patients on her floor.”
“When did she go into the hospital?”
“This morning, after her water broke.” He looked at Maura. “Dr. Tam was the one who admitted her.”
Maura stared at him, suddenly remembering what she’d just heard in the command trailer. That Dr. Tam had been headed down to Diagnostic Imaging to see her patient.
Jane. The doctor was going down to see Jane.
“I think you’d better come with me,” said Maura.
EIGHT
I come to the hospital to have a baby. Instead I’m about to get my head blown off.
Jane sat on the couch, wedged between Dr. Tam on her right and the black orderly on her left. She could feel him trembling beside her, his skin cold and clammy in the air-conditioned room. Dr. Tam sat perfectly still, her face a stone mask. On the other couch, the receptionist sat hugging herself, and beside her, the woman technician was quietly crying. No one dared say a word; the only sound came from the waiting-room television, which had been playing continuously. Jane looked around at the name tags on the uniforms. Mac. Domenica. Glenna. Dr. Tam. She glanced down at the patient wristband she was wearing. RIZZOLI, JANE. All of us are neatly labeled for the morgue. No ID problems here, folks. She thought of Bostonions opening their Tribune tomorrow morning and seeing these same names printed in stark black and white on the front page. VICTIMS KILLED IN HOSPITAL SIEGE. She thought of those readers skimming right past the name “Rizzoli, Jane,” and then turning their attention straight to the sports page.
Is this how it ends? Something as stupid as being in the wrong place at the wrong time? Hey wait, she wanted to shout. I’m pregnant! In the movies, nobody shoots the pregnant hostage!
But this wasn’t the movies, and she couldn’t predict what the crazy lady with the gun would do. That’s what Jane had dubbed her. The Crazy Lady. What else could you call a woman who stalks back and forth, waving a gun? Only occasionally did the woman stop to look at the TV, which was tuned to channel six. Live coverage of the medical center hostage situation. Look Ma, I’m on television, thought Jane. I’m one of the lucky hostages trapped in that building. It’s kind of like the reality show Survivor but with bullets.
And real blood.
She noticed that the Crazy Lady was wearing a patient wristband like Jane’s. Escapee from the psych unit? Just try to make her sit obediently in a wheelchair. The woman was barefoot, her shapely ass peeking out from the backless hospital gown. She had long legs, muscular thighs, and a luxuriant mane of jet black hair. Dress her up in a sexy leather outfit, and she’d look like Xena the Warrior Princess.
“I gotta pee,” Mr. Bodine said.
The Crazy Lady didn’t even glance at him.
“Hey! Is anyone listening to me? I said I gotta pee!”
Oh jeez, just do it, old man, thought Rizzoli. Pee in your wheelchair. Don’t tick off someone who’s holding a gun.
On the TV, a blond reporter appeared. Zoe Fossey, reporting from Albany Street. “We have no word yet on how many hostages are trapped inside the hospital wing. Police have cordoned off the building. So far there is one known fatality, a security guard who was shot to death while trying to restrain the patient …”
The Crazy Lady halted, her gaze riveted on the screen. One of her bare feet landed on the manila folder that was lying on the floor. Only then did Jane notice the name on that chart, written in black felt ink.
Rizzoli, Jane.
The news report ended, and Crazy Lady resumed her pacing, her bare feet slapping across the folder. It was Jane’s outpatient chart, which Dr. Tam had probably been carrying when she’d walked into Diagnostic Imaging. Now it was right at the Crazy Lady’s feet. All she had to do was bend down and flip open the cover and read the first page, where the patient information was listed. Name, birth date, marital status, Social Security number.
And occupation. Detective, Homicide. Boston Police Department.
This woman is now under siege by the Boston PD SWAT team, thought Jane. When she finds out that I’m a cop, too …
She didn’t want to complete the thought; she knew where it would lead. She looked down once again at her arm, at the hospital ID band printed with the name: RIZZOLI, JANE. If she could just get this thing off, she could jam it between the cushions, and the Crazy Lady wouldn’t be able to match her to the chart. That was the thing to do, get rid of this dangerous ID band. Then she’d be just another pregnant lady in the hospital. Not a cop, not a threat.
She slipped a finger under the wristband and tugged, but it didn’t give way. She pulled harder, but could not break it. What the hell was it made of, anyway? Titanium? But of course it had to be sturdy. You didn’t want confused old guys like Mr. Bodine yanking off their IDs and wandering the halls, anonymous. She strained harder against the plastic, her teeth gritting together, the muscles quietly straining. I’ll have to chew it off, she thought. When the Crazy Lady isn’t looking, I could—
She froze. Realized the woman was standing right in front of her, a bare foot planted once again on Jane’s medical chart. Slowly Jane’s gaze lifted to the woman’s face. Up till then she had avoided looking directly at her captor, afraid to draw any attention to herself. Now, to her horror, she saw that the woman was focused on her—only on her—and she felt like the herd’s lone gazelle singled out for slaughter. The woman even looked like a feline, long-limbed and graceful, her black hair glossy as a panther’s. Her blue eyes were as intense as searchlights, and Jane was now caught in the beam.
“This is what they do,” the woman said, eyeing Jane’s wristband. “They put labels on you. Like in concentration camp.” She showed her own wristband, printed with DOE, JANE. There was an original name for you, thought Jane, and she almost wanted to laugh. I’m being held hostag
e by Jane Doe. It’s down to Jane vs. Jane. The real one versus the fake one. Didn’t the hospital know who this woman was when they admitted her? Judging by the few words she’d spoken, it was clear she was not American. Eastern European. Russian, maybe.
The woman ripped off her own wristband and tossed it aside. Then she grabbed Jane’s wrist and gave her ID band a sharp yank as well. It snapped apart.
“There. No more labels,” the woman said. She glanced at Jane’s wristband. “Rizzoli. This is Italian.”
“Yes.” Jane kept her gaze on the woman’s face, afraid to even glance downward, to draw her attention to the manila folder lying beneath her bare foot. The woman took her steady eye contact as a sign of connection between them. Up till now, Crazy Lady had scarcely said a word to any of them. Now she was talking. This is good, thought Jane. An attempt at conversation. Try to connect with her, establish a relationship. Be her friend. She wouldn’t kill a friend, would she?
The woman was looking at Jane’s pregnant belly.
“I’m having my first baby,” said Jane.
The woman looked up at the clock on the wall. She was waiting for something. Counting the minutes as they ticked by.
Jane decided to dip her toe further into conversational waters. “What—what is your name?” she ventured.
“Why?”
“I just wanted to know.” So I can stop calling you the Crazy Lady.
“It makes no difference. I am dead already.” The woman looked at her. “So are you.”
Jane stared into those burning eyes, and for one frightening moment she thought: What if it’s true? What if we are already dead, and this is just a version of hell?
“Please,” the receptionist murmured. “Please let us go. You don’t need us. Just let us open the door and walk out.”
The woman began to pace again, her bare feet intermittently treading across the fallen chart. “You think they will let you live? After you have been with me? Everyone who is with me dies.”
“What’s she talking about?” Dr. Tam whispered.
She’s paranoid, thought Jane. Having delusions of persecution.
The woman suddenly came to a stop and stared down at the manila folder near her feet.
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