by M. J. Labeff
“Take your time,” Tony said.
The couch creaked, and Derrick forced himself up and went to her, standing behind her with his hands caressing her shoulders. She patted the tops of his hands and then motioned him away. She needed to steel herself for this. His sister was dead because of her father. She couldn’t take from Derrick anymore.
“Tony, if you read Dana’s final journal entry, you’ll see that he believed the only way to stop Dr. Von Langley was through his death,” Derrick said, picking up the journal from the coffee table and handing it to Tony. “I’d recommend you read the first and last entries.”
Tony took the journal from Derrick and skimmed through the pages. “This first entry establishes the fact he was a sex addict.” He turned to the last page and began to read the cry for help he’d addressed to Sparrow. His eyes rolled up from the page to Derrick. “Well, if this doesn’t scream for a conviction, I don’t know what does.”
“He murdered my sister, Katie. Kathlyn ‘Kat’ Sloan died at his hands and your brother witnessed her murder,” Derrick said.
Sparrow returned in time to hear Tony announce his intent to convict her father, and Derrick accusing him of murder. Her heart beat pounded faster and faster in her chest. She coughed, forcing them to acknowledge her presence.
“I’ll need your statement regarding her death, Sparrow.”
She nodded. “Follow me.”
They walked the short distance to her yoga studio. She forced her salivary glands to moisten her flat, immovable tongue then explained the visions she’d had of Derrick’s sister to Tony.
“My father killed her. It’s in Dana’s journal.”
“Where?”
Tony handed the journal to Sparrow and waited for her to find the entry. She handed it back to him, and he read the awful description of the brain surgery gone wrong and how the girl on the operating table took her last breath and told Dana, “I’m Kat.” Tony closed the journal.
“Derrick, I’m sorry. I’ll do everything in my power to get a murder charge, but without a body to link him to the crime, it’s going to be tough.”
Sparrow planted her hands on her hips, pressing her fingers into her sides. She stared down at the Barbie display for the Alternative Doll Convention.
“Tony, I didn’t hurt Katie or Dana.”
“I know. Violet Crosby is a respected hypnotherapist. My department has worked with her in the past,” Tony said, squinting at the display. “I’m trying to wrap my brains around this creepy Barbie carnage. What is this?”
Sparrow turned her head and looked up from the display to Derrick, who was standing by her side. She ignored Tony’s question. What she had to tell Derrick was way more important.
“Her body is in the rose garden.”
“What are you talking about?” Tony asked, and bent down to get a closer look at the display. “What the hell is this?”
She didn’t take her eyes off Derrick, who stood looking at her like she wasn’t making any sense.
“It’s a project I’m working on for the Alternative Doll Convention. That’s not the important part. I just realized that I’m recreating the burial grounds.”
Tony stood up from his crouched position and looked at Derrick with questioning eyes. Derrick dragged his hands through his hair and paced the room.
“She’s telling you the truth. But Sparrow, what about what you told me at Our Lady of Sorrow? You said the body is buried near the potting shed.”
She furiously shook her head. “I had another vision of your sister. She was in the rose garden with my father and Angel. She became agitated and whacked my father in back of the knees with a board. Her body must be there. But I swear I remember seeing him one night near the potting shed digging and then dragging a body from the shed to the grave.” An uncontrollable tremble zipped through her body, making her limbs shake. Her eyes fogged and she said, “There’s more.”
Derrick rushed to her side, and she fainted into his arms.
* * *
Tony helped Derrick lift her limp body. They settled her onto the floor. Derrick immediately worked on checking her vital signs.
“Is she okay?” Tony asked.
“She will be,” Derrick said, and reached for a jelly-rolled yoga mat in the corner to place under the back of her heels. “Sparrow?” He lightly tapped her face with his hands, trying to revive her. When that didn’t work, he got up from his bended knees and went across the hall to soak a washcloth in cold water.
“Are you sure she’s gonna be all right?” Tony asked at his back.
“Yes. In layman’s terms, she’s been through hell today. Can you imagine how terrified she is about her role in my sister’s and your brother’s deaths?”
Derrick crouched next to her and patted her face with the cool washcloth. “Hey, hey, Sparrow, come on, baby. Let’s sit you up.” Derrick put his arm around her back to steady her.
“I feel sick.”
“Tony, please run out to the kitchen and pour her a small glass of orange juice? Cups are in the cupboard near the fridge,” Derrick said.
“Sure, sure,” Tony said, and left the room.
“What happened?” he asked. “You were talking to us and then out of the blue you faded on me.”
“I remember the others.”
Tony came back with a glass filled with juice and handed it to Derrick. “Here, baby, take a few sips and then tell us what you remember.”
* * *
She swallowed down the sweet and pulpy juice and let the sugar work on her body and brain before she tried to scoot closer to the Barbie display. “It’s all here.”
Sparrow looked down at the flowerbed she had created out of the dolls’ eyes and understood why she had always felt like she was being watched when she was near them. The beach Barbie doll whose chest she’d pierced with the scalpel was Katie. She came to life when Sparrow had stuck the tiny rose in her chest, and then her ghost hunted her father in the rose garden the day he was with Angel. Sparrow had witnessed all of it in her vision. She picked up a doll with a shaved head. “I can tell you their names.”
She watched Tony look from Derrick to her.
“What?”
“He would take me out with him and tell me we were going to help the homeless kids on the beach. That’s why I was so upset the night we went to look for Angel. I kept thinking the last time I helped rescue a girl from the beach she ended up dead. I remember the night we brought Katie home.” She gasped. “My mother remembers her, too. That’s why she said ‘she wasn’t ever supposed to come back.’ She helped me and Katie get out of the house that day. She told me to take her back to the beach and leave her. Angel reminded her of Katie.”
Sparrow’s hands flew to her face, and she cupped them over her mouth. “Oh my God, she knows about the bodies he buried, and he suppressed her memory, too.”
“How do you know that?” Tony asked.
“She begged me to come back so we could plant flowers. She kept saying she missed the rose garden, and the tea parties we hosted. She made me promise to come back. Derrick, do you remember the day you came to check on Angel?”
“Yeah.”
“I had my dad put planting supplies in the potting shed. My mom was trying to get me out there so we could dig up their remains. I know it. Katie is buried in the rose garden and the others are in the flower gardens near the potting shed.”
“Back up and explain to me why he killed his patients and buried them on his property?” Tony asked.
“After reading your brother’s journal, we discovered Dr. Von Langley was performing brain surgery on his patients,” Derrick said. “That’s why we went to Our Lady of Sorrow. We figured out that he kept the CT scans there because he had taken Sparrow there, and he would tell her this is what happens to kids who don’t listen to him. When he operated on my sister, she started to bleed, and before she died she told Dana, ‘I’m Kat.’ It’s all documented in his journal. He made Dana his accomplice so he wouldn’t ever go
to the authorities.”
Derrick held a firm hand against Sparrow’s back to keep her upright. She expanded her tummy with a deep breath and loudly blew it from between her slightly open lips. She set the glass of orange juice next to her and took off the poison ring, extending her hand to Tony. “Her blood is in the ring. We exchanged the rings to become blood sisters.”
He picked up the ring from the palm of her hand, examining it closely. “If we can find her body, we can tie the blood DNA to her.”
Sparrow nodded. Derrick ran his hand up and down her back and kissed the side of her cheek. “I know how difficult this must be for you,” he whispered into her ear. “Thank you.”
Tony jammed the pad and pen in his shirt pocket and grabbed his cell phone. He put the phone on speaker.
“Henriquez, we’ve got more than child pornography going on here, and a therapist turning kids into sex addicts,” he said, and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. “He’s buried his patients on his estate.”
He continued to fill in ADA Henriquez on the sordid details, but she said the evidence was too circumstantial to get a warrant to dig up the property. Tony growled back that he would send Sparrow and her mother out to dig up the grounds. Hearing that nearly made Sparrow faint again, but she knew what she had to do to make sure justice was served.
Tony talked over the ADA to Derrick and Sparrow: “Tomorrow morning, we’re going in. Derrick, you’ll get Angel out, and Sparrow, you and your mom are going to dig up the flowerbeds near that potting shed. Your father won’t suspect a thing. My team and I will be nearby—as soon as you uncover a bone, text me. Then we’re going in.” He paused.
“Tony, I’m as upset as you are. We can’t keep Angel at risk, but I can’t have you putting your career and the department on the line,” Henriquez said.
Tony cut her off. “And I’m not risking this guy hiring a fancy attorney who finds a loophole and we have to release him.”
“We need more evidence, and you know it.”
“I’ve got a poison ring with a drop of Kathlyn Sloan’s blood in the top of it. She and Sparrow decided to become blood sisters after Kathlyn, a runaway from Colorado, was taken in by Dr. Von Langley. Dana documented that Dr. Von Langley performed brain surgery on Kathlyn. She died on the operating table. Her last words to him were ‘I’m Kat.’ Do you think a bone fragment is enough evidence for a search warrant to dig up the damn ground? We need to get this guy on a charge that’ll stick.”
“Let me go back and talk to Judge Thaylor.”
“How’d he take the news that Jessica was going to testify in private chambers?”
“He’s appalled. I don’t know if he’s more upset with himself for trusting his daughter’s emotional care to Dr. Von Langley, or that she didn’t come to him and her mother and tell them what he’d done. His concern is with his daughter. Although he did make an odd comment about how he couldn’t get over the fact an upstanding citizen like Dr. Von Langley could have ruined Crystal Cove’s spotless image.”
“Yeah, well, you tell him we’ve taken on a new status, like what happened in La Jolla when those kids beat that surfer kid to death. If he issues a search warrant, there will be less of a media circus. You know what? With all this reality TV, I bet one of the news networks would love nothing more than to hear from Dr. Von Langley’s daughter, who will guarantee them a live feed of her uncovering dead bodies on the esteemed doctor’s property. If they want live, local, and late-breaking, I’ll damn well give it to them on the spot.”
“Tony, you’re not thinking like a detective.”
“Really? He drove my brother Dana to kill himself. He murdered an innocent girl and God knows how many others.”
“Two wrongs don’t make a right. What about your career?”
“This is about my brother. I don’t give a fig about my badge. I’m taking this guy down tonight, with or without a search warrant.”
“Tony—”
“My father was chief of police for Crystal Cove from its inception. Do you think if he and my mom had survived that car accident that he wouldn’t be on Von Langley’s front step right now? Don’t try to tell me how to conduct myself, counselor. Considering the pile of evidence I have against Dr. Von Langley, you’re lucky I’m even still on the phone. Do you want this guy to make bail and escape prosecution for murder?”
“No. I’ll get you your search warrant, and a crew to excavate the area, where Sparrow thinks the bodies have been buried. I’m putting my own ass on the line for you. The evidence better be there, or we’re both out of jobs.”
“Sparrow says she remembers the names of the runaways. All we need to do is check missing persons and we can match bone fragments, dental records, whatever DNA we uncover to the missing girls, and once we have their names we can get the brain scans he’s kept stored at Our Lady of Sorrow.”
Tony smiled at Derrick and Sparrow. “You two did good. Ready to go arrest Dr. Von Langley?”
Chapter 32
Derrick’s adrenaline-fueled heart pounded. This was it. Derrick was ready to serve Dr. Von Langley a heaping dose of justice. Tony had insisted they take Dr. Von Langley by surprise to avoid a hostage situation or worse. Even knowing a force of police officers hid in the shadows ready to enter the Von Langley home after Derrick secured Angel, an uneasy feeling stirred in the pit of his stomach on the long drive to the palatial estate. He glanced at Sparrow and put his hand on her thigh. She continued to stare out the windshield.
“I’ve betrayed my father,” she said. “I know I’m doing the right thing. I don’t want him to hurt anyone else.”
Every ounce of her turmoil flowed through Derrick. His heart ached from seeing tears trickle down her cheek. What could he say? Words wouldn’t offer her comfort. When this was over, he would be there for her, however and whenever she needed him. There would be time before Dr. Von Langley’s trial. Derrick would help her get away, perhaps to an isolated cabin in the Italian Alps, where they could enjoy the views of snow-covered mountains, lounge by a crackling fire, and escape the sights and sounds of LA. He vowed to wrap up appointments with his patients and ask one of the other doctors who volunteered at his Mobile Health Clinic RV to take over some of his rounds. Derrick was committed to taking her away from here, if only for a little while.
“Baby, after tonight, I know this won’t really be over—your dad will have to stand trial, but that won’t be for a while, so in the meantime, I want us to get away.”
“Derrick, I can’t leave my mother.”
“Don’t say no just yet. If your mother is up to it, we’ll take her with us. Think about it.”
Derrick slowed the car. He cautiously drove the long journey to the Von Langleys’. He opened the glove box and retrieved the gun.
“I’ll tell you how to load it.”
She didn’t argue when he handed it to her. He instructed her to rack the slide and take the safety off. She handled the gun with ease. Her hands barely shook.
“Put it back in the glove box. I just want to be prepared should I need it on the way out.”
He pulled around the circular drive, making sure they had a quick exit, and stopped the car.
“Go upstairs and get your mother. I’ll stall him for as long as I can. Get her in the car and wait.”
She nodded in agreement. Her green eyes glistened with fierceness. She was ready for battle. Side by side they climbed the stone steps to the front door. The police wire strapped to Derrick made him a little nervous. Although it was well concealed, he worried Dr. Von Langley might grow suspicious when Derrick demanded Angel leave with him. Sparrow reached for the brass doorknob and pushed the door open. They entered the immense foyer. She pressed the intercom to summon her father. Derrick heard the sound of the elevator and cringed thinking about Dr. Von Langley’s mad-scientist chambers.
“Sweetheart, I wasn’t sure if you and Derrick were still coming over.”
His deep voice resonated across Derrick’s being like static electri
city, providing enough voltage to zap his heart with a surge of hate strong enough to kill the man who’d murdered his sister with his bare hands. He clasped his hands behind his back. Dr. Von Langley’s sinister eyes sparkled with suspicion.
“We’re a little late. Derrick wants to see Angel, and I want to check in on Mother.”
Dr. Von Langley didn’t back down from Derrick’s glaring eyes to acknowledge Sparrow. He replied, “Angel was complaining about her ankle, so I gave her a little something for the pain.”
Derrick didn’t like the sound of that. “Where is she?”
“She’s resting.”
Derrick’s eyes slid from Dr. Von Langley’s to Sparrow. “Why don’t you go up and see your mom? Your dad and I can check on Angel.”
“O-okay.”
Pretending to check his cell phone for a text message, Derrick waited until Sparrow was out of sight and then started to time her escape. She needed to convince her mother she had to leave with her, and get her out of the house and into his car. He stalled a bit longer. “You’ll have to excuse me—another doctor is trying to reach me. You mentioned Angel was in some pain. Is she okay?”
“She’s fine, just fine,” Dr. Von Langley said, with a big smile on his face and evil in his eyes. He took a step toward Derrick and clapped him on the shoulder. “Come on, I’ll show you where she is.”
Derrick never imagined he could exhibit so much restraint in the face of his sister’s killer, because right now he wanted nothing more than to rip Dr. Von Langley’s arm from around him and break it into a million pieces. Dr. Von Langley dropped his arm from around Derrick and motioned for him to follow. His self-control remained intact. He glared at the back of the doctor’s salt-and-pepper hair. He recognized the route he’d walked the last time with Dr. Von Langley on the way to the library. Angel was propped up in a leather chair with her ankle elevated on a small ottoman.