“Can we talk?” In the bright light, her eyes took on an emerald brilliance.
“I’m on duty.”
She gave him an exasperated look. “Not about us. About the adoption attorney.”
Way to go, Leo. “Oh. Right.” He signaled to Patty, who kicked open her door and came ambling over. “Dr. Kendall has some information for me. Mind taking a swing around the premises?”
Knowing grin. “Sure thing.” She strolled to the car, informed the dispatcher of their location and walked away.
Nora watched Patty go. “She thinks this is personal.”
“She did see you at my house. You left an impression.”
“Somehow I never figured cops would gossip,” Nora admitted.
“We’re the worst.” Leo leaned against the patrol car. Around them, he took in the usual comings and goings at the community center. A senior citizen in a colorful hat pushed her walker toward a car in a handicapped spot. Two women in jogging suits headed for the main building, perhaps to take an exercise class.
“I found out Ted Chong, our computer whiz, has no job and an internet gambling problem,” Nora said in a rush. “His mom told me.”
That got Leo’s full attention. So did the information that Nora’s patients had both received unexpected calls from Fergus Bridger’s office.
“The thing is, neither Una nor Lucy comes here, so I don’t see how he could access their information,” she said. “He might be leaving the attorney’s cards, but that’s no big deal. And maybe he’s given Bridger’s name to some of the pregnant girls but… No, wait. Suzy received a call from the attorney’s office. Another so-called referral.”
“For a sizeable kickback if she used his services, no doubt.” Leo folded his arms and considered how much, and how little, they’d uncovered. Stealing patient information was illegal, but as Nora had pointed out, her patients weren’t in the counseling center computers, so there was no demonstrable link to Ted Chong. As for the attorney, Leo could imagine what a stink the guy would raise if they sullied his name without cold, hard proof. After the incident with the Hightowers, he meant to be very, very careful. “Couldn’t Mrs. Chong obtain the information at the hospital?”
Nora’s hand flew to her mouth. “Yes, but I can’t imagine she’s involved.”
“All the same, the hospital should hire an outside computer forensic specialist to check their system for breaches,” he told her. “Does either of your patients wish to file a complaint against Fergus Bridger?”
To his surprise, Nora chuckled. “Quite the opposite. They’re very pleased with his services. And to be honest, this takes me off the hook with the incoming head of our fertility program. He’s been pressuring me to push them into aggressive treatment that they don’t want. Now that they’re adopting, it’s a moot point.”
While there may have been no harm done, the possibility of stolen information bothered Leo. Identity theft was a major problem, and he couldn’t assume that someone with a gambling addiction would limit his misconduct. “I’ll have to at least let my superiors know there’s a possible issue here.”
“Is that necessary? I thought this was confidential.”
As they talked, he’d been keeping tabs on the dispatcher’s chatter crackling from the cruiser radio. Now he caught a call for service. “Excuse me.”
When Leo checked in, he learned there was a disturbance at an address he recognized. Rose’s Posies.
The ramifications of this case were spreading already.
BIG CITIES HAD BIG CRIMES and horrific gut-wrenching scenes. Small towns occasionally suffered major crimes, too, and a fair sprinkling of minor ones. They also had annoying run-ins that big-city cops would dismiss without a backward glance.
Unfortunately, Leo couldn’t afford to do that, especially when the people in a dispute included City Councilman Roy Hightower.
The tiny flower shop was crammed with angry people as Leo and Patty approached. Through the glass front, he recognized Rose Nguyen, her face suffused with outrage; Violet, her large belly shaking as she reamed out a young man whose cheeks bore traces of acne, and a scowling Councilman Hightower. The man’s heavy jowls got even heavier and jowlier when he spotted Leo.
“I don’t think he likes me,” Leo told Patty.
“Got it,” she said, and moved forward to enter first. The tinkling of door chimes sounded absurdly pretty. “Someone call for assistance?”
“I did,” Hightower and Rose Nguyen said simultaneously.
They’d both phoned. No wonder dispatch had put out a call for what appeared to be nothing more than a squabble.
The councilman addressed Patty. “Officer, your partner has a conflict of interest. He’s taken it on himself to investigate my family, when we’ve done nothing wrong.”
Patty cocked an eyebrow at Leo. He dredged up some hard-won patience. “Mr. Hightower, I assure you, I’ve done nothing of the sort. However, if you’d like us to summon another officer…”
“He isn’t investigating you,” Violet put in. “I just said that so Gary would stop hassling my mom.”
“Officer Franco isn’t targeting us?” the councilman said.
The girl shook her head. Leo felt like thanking her, except for the fact that she’d created this confusion in the first place. “I presumed the chief had cleared that up for you,” he said.
“I wasn’t sure whether to believe him,” Hightower responded.
Leo addressed the others. “What can we do for you folks?”
Rose glowered at Gary Hightower. “He came in here and disrupted my store. Saturday’s our busiest day.” As if to underscore her point, a phone rang. “Mr. Tran!” she yelled.
The wizened man Leo had seen on their previous visit poked his head out of the back room. “Yes, yes.” He disappeared, and the ringing stopped.
“I’m not the one causing trouble,” Gary whined. “I’m here to clear things up. I’m sorry Violet got herself pregnant, but whoever’s messing with her email, it’s not me.”
Rose Nguyen buzzed like an angry hornet. “Got herself pregnant? Like some magic trick?”
“I gave you my password!” the girl flared at her ex-boyfriend. “You’re the only one who could have gotten into my email!”
“You’re just trying to pressure me into paying you off!” To Patty, Gary said, “She called and screamed at me on the phone, so Dad and I drove over here. Well, look at her. She’s still screaming.”
“Am not!” the girl squealed.
Patty raised her hands, calling for calm. “What exactly do you believe this man has done, miss? And I’ll need your names, please.” She took out her pad and began jotting data.
Everyone calmed down at this indication that they were being taken seriously, and the story emerged with only occasional barbs flung between Violet and Gary. Under other circumstances, Leo and Patty would have separated the pair for questioning, but that seemed unnecessary.
Someone, both parties conceded, had used Violet’s email account to send nasty messages to everyone in her address book, calling her ugly names and implying she was only interested in keeping her baby so she could extort money from the Hightowers.
Violet showed them an example on her smart phone that a friend had forwarded: “Tell her to quit being a b—and give the baby to parents who can take good care of it.”
“I agree with the message, but I didn’t send it,” Gary concluded.
“Liar!” Violet flung at him.
“Let me see that.” The elder Hightower took the phone and read through the message. “She sent this herself to get my son in trouble.”
Violet glared at him. “That’s a stupid idea.”
“Or maybe your mother sent it.”
“Don’t be ridiculous!” Rose snapped.
Patty tapped her pen against the pad. “What makes you suggest that, Mr. Hightower?”
“From what Gary’s told me, she doesn’t want her daughter to keep the baby any more than we do,” the councilman said. “Look
at the end of the email, below the signature. There’s an ad for an adoption attorney. I’ll bet she cooked the whole thing up to add pressure.”
An adoption attorney. Why was Leo not surprised?
Before he could speak, however, Violet faced her mother with a stricken expression. “Mom? The other emails, the ones with the threats—you said you deleted them. I never even saw them. Did you cook this up?”
The florist recoiled in shock. “No! Of course not!”
“But you don’t want your grandchild. So you could have done it.” Pain choked Violet’s voice.
“I just hate to see you throw your life away.” Her mother reached out gently. “I’m not sneaky. This sort of thing, I would never do.”
Roy Hightower folded his arms, as if to say, Case closed.
But it wasn’t. “I need to see that,” Leo said, and took the phone.
There it was, below the email. An ad for Fergus Bridger.
Everything connected—Nora’s patients, the business cards left at the center, the girls being referred to Bridger. Now all he and Patty had to do was figure out who was behind it.
Chapter Seventeen
Not until after Leo drove away from the community center did Nora realize the mistake she’d made. She’d mentioned her patients by name, or at least by their first names. Although she considered the conversation private, she shouldn’t have violated their privacy.
Surely Leo wouldn’t repeat that information to anyone or try to find out their full names, she reflected as she sat in her car, trying to figure out what to do next. Adding to her agitation was the address she’d heard over the police radio. She’d recognized it as Rose’s flower shop. Leo had mentioned a disturbance, but what did that mean? A disgruntled customer, a shoplifter, a squabble between Violet and her mother?
Nora didn’t want to intrude into police business, but she was Violet’s counselor. Besides, the girl was eight months’ pregnant. If she got upset, her blood pressure could skyrocket. Someone ought to keep an eye on things.
Someone like me.
Okay, it was a weak excuse for poking her nose where it didn’t belong. All the same, Nora put the car into gear and drove the short distance, trying to figure out what she’d say when she got there.
And how she was going to impress upon Leo that he couldn’t, under any circumstances, try to contact her patients.
In front of the shop, she spotted the police cruiser. Through the window, she glimpsed the imposing figure of Councilman Hightower, whom she’d met several times when she was married to Reese. If the Hightowers were involved, this must be serious.
In the tiny rear lot, she squeezed the car into a space and got out. Immediately, her stomach churned a reminder that she’d missed her usual afternoon snack of crackers. Nora stopped, debating whether to retreat.
“You okay, lady?” A small Asian man appeared in the open back door of Rose’s Posies. She’d seen him loading flowers in a truck on her last visit, she recalled.
“I’m—yes.” She waved a hand apologetically.
“I saw you before, with Violet,” he said. “You come in this way.”
“Thank you.” The prospect of cool air drew Nora forward. To her relief, the clean, natural scent of flowers banished the nausea as soon as she stepped inside.
From the front, she could hear raised voices. Back here, everything seemed peaceful. On a large table, a bouquet of lilies and other spring flowers, clearly a work in progress, was taking shape in a glass vase. She noticed what appeared to be a work order displayed on a computer screen. “Please don’t let me stop you,” she told the man.
“No problem.” With a smile, he retrieved more blooms from a refrigerated case and resumed work.
The voices from the front rose and fell. Nora hovered out of sight, wondering if she should simply leave and call Leo later. The edge in Violet’s voice stopped her, though, and soon Nora got caught up listening to angry cross-accusations.
Then she caught the name Fergus Bridger, spoken in Leo’s deep tones. Her knees suddenly weak, Nora gripped the edge of a counter. So the attorney was involved. Everything was connected somehow.
There’d been threats against Mrs. Nguyen, she recalled. Leo could hardly avoid filing an official report now. Did that have to include her patients’ names?
“Violet, have you contacted this attorney?” Leo asked. “Did you give him any information about you?”
“Absolutely not!” came the girl’s reply.
“You’re sure you never called or emailed his office?”
“No.”
They went on talking about whether anyone had borrowed her phone, or whether she’d sent emails from anyone else’s computer. The answers were all negative.
Nora thought of Ted Chong. If he was relying on the referrals to help pay his gambling debts, Suzy’s miscarriage must have cost him a hoped-for fee. Was it possible he’d stepped up the pressure out of desperation?
She’d introduced Ted to Violet. If he’d misused that acquaintance, she felt responsible.
Taking another deep breath, she stepped forward to make her presence known.
LEO HADN’T EXPECTED NORA to pop out of the back room. She was looking a bit pale, but determined. “Sorry to intrude, but I couldn’t help overhearing,” she said. “Mrs. Nguyen, has anyone worked on your computer recently?”
“Here at the store?” Rose frowned. “We were having some trouble. Violet called a repairman.”
“Ted Chong, that guy from the counseling center,” the girl said.
If Nora got any greener, somebody might mistake her for one of the plants, Leo thought, and guided her quickly to a chair. “Are you okay?”
Patty regarded them both curiously. Well, Leo would talk to her later.
“I’m fine,” Nora said tightly. “Violet, did you give Ted your password?”
A pause. “Not exactly, but I keep all my passwords in a file. It’s kind of hidden.”
“You shouldn’t keep anything like passwords or financial data on your hard drive,” Leo told her.
“You think a computer repairman sent those emails?” Gary asked. “Man, that’s weird.”
“He volunteers at the counseling center,” Violet said. “He seemed so friendly. Why would he do something like this?”
“We don’t know that he did anything,” Leo told her. “For now, Patty and I need to get everyone’s contact information, and we’ll look into this further.”
Rose was outraged. “He was in my computer! You think he stole financial data?”
“You should change all your passwords and check with your bank to be sure there’s no suspicious activity,” Leo told her. “Also, place a fraud alert on your credit files. That way, creditors will contact you before they open any new accounts in your name.”
She rushed into the rear of the store, no doubt to do exactly that. Violet followed.
“I hope the chief didn’t come down on you too hard,” Roy Hightower told Leo. “Looks like you were an innocent bystander. This girl told me lies. You can see why I wish my son had never met her.”
Fire sparked in Nora’s eyes. “She may get carried away, but she’s planning to love and nurture your grandchild. You should admire her for that.”
“I don’t know what concern this is of yours, Mrs. Kendall,” the councilman said tightly.
“It’s Doctor Kendall,” she answered tersely, standing to face him. “And it’s my concern because I’m her friend.”
“If you’re her friend, talk her into putting the baby up for adoption. Then we can all get on with our lives.” He turned to his son. “Come on, Gary. We’re done here.”
His son hesitated, and for the first time, Leo got the impression the boy might not be completely in agreement with his father. But he acquiesced without argument.
As soon as the pair disappeared out the door, Patty said, “Someone care to fill me in?”
Leo sketched the situation for her: the business cards at the counseling center, the threat
s to Rose’s reputation, Ted’s gambling problem, his mother’s position at the hospital and the phone calls to Nora’s patients. “No one filed any complaints and, until today, we didn’t put the pieces together.”
“Looks like we’ve got ourselves a case,” she told him with a grin.
“Actually, you’ve got yourself a case.” Much as he hated to yield control, he had to use good judgment. “You’d better write the report. If I were called as a witness in court, I’d have a conflict of interest.” Partly because of his relationship with Nora, and also as a counselor at the center, he reflected.
Leo felt Nora’s hand on his arm. “May I talk to you privately?” she asked.
“Of course.”
“I’ll go see if I can scare up an address for this Ted Chong.” Patty sauntered out to the cruiser.
He and Nora were alone, surrounded by flowers and plants, wedding-themed decorations and lacy cards. Silly stuff, to Leo. What mattered was Nora’s health. “You seem shaky. Maybe you should see that doctor again.”
“I’m fine.” She held on to him all the same.
He felt a powerful urge to take care of her. “You were turning green.”
“It’s only morning sickness,” she told him firmly. “Leo, I had no right to mention my patients’ names. You can’t use them in your report. It’s a violation of their confidentiality.”
He hadn’t given any thought to how he would handle that. “I don’t even have their last names.”
“And you can’t try to find them out, either. I only mentioned them because I felt safe with you, Leo.”
“And because you wanted to know if someone like Fergus Bridger had invaded their privacy.”
“Of course! I have a responsibility to my patients.”
He had a responsibility to protect other patients from identity thieves, but Leo refrained from mentioning that. Now that this was turning into a real case, he needed to stop discussing it with Nora.
As he’d pointed out earlier, either or both of them could end up getting grilled on a witness stand. Matters that seemed insignificant or merely personal looked very different when placed under a legal microscope.
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