by Mayer, Dale
“I’ll call her doctor today to do a follow-up on her medications. According to Macklin, she was on and off medications all the time he knew her.”
“I bet she was. The problem is, when they don’t voluntarily take them, all kinds of hell breaks loose.”
“Theories? Strings to pull? Anybody have any suggestions as to where to go from here?”
“We were hoping something would show up on the lab tests, but the tox screen was negative,” Lance said slowly. “She doesn’t appear to have had any friends. And yet, I think we need to dig further into the relationship between Marsha and these other women.”
“They didn’t know her,” Sandra said from the back.
“I came to the same conclusion, but people lie all the time. Let’s dig deeper into that, and see if we can pull any threads. It’s possible they met, but it wasn’t important enough to remember.”
The meeting concluded soon afterward. Alex grabbed her bag and keys, and headed for the hospital to talk to the doctor. She had tried to make an appointment, but that was almost impossible. So she planned to walk in and spend five minutes of his time, whether he liked it or not.
As she walked into his office, she found a full waiting room. The receptionist looked up at Alex, and her smile dropped. “He’s really busy.”
Alex nodded. “I understand that,” she said gently. “But we have a murder investigation.”
The receptionist looked nervously at the full waiting room. “Just a minute.” She walked into the doctor’s office. When she came back out, she said, “He’ll fit you in between a couple appointments. If you could come through here please.”
She led Alex down a hall in the opposite direction and into a small room that was more like a boardroom. Assuming it was for staff lunches, possibly for meetings, Alex sat down and waited. She pulled out her notepad and jotted down some questions she wanted to ask. A few minutes later, the doctor raced in, looking harried and in a hurry. “What’s this about?” he demanded.
She lifted her head. “Marsha McEwan.”
Confusion crossed the doctor’s face, and then it lit with understanding. “What’s wrong with her?”
“She’s dead.” She watched shock, then horror, and finally understanding change his expression.
He sat down, clicked on his phone, and asked the receptionist for the file. “I can’t say I’m surprised. Was it suicide?”
“No, she was murdered.”
His gaze widened, and he swallowed hard. “I’m sorry to hear that. She was extremely unstable. She was committed for a period of six months for testing. But, on the right medication, she did really well and was released.” He stopped talking when he heard a knock at the door. “Come in.”
The receptionist entered, handed over a file, and left quickly.
“When were those months she was committed?” She quickly wrote down the dates, realizing it matched one of the periods when nobody had very much information on her. “That explains what she was doing during that time. Was she released into someone’s care?”
“Yes. She had a cousin who signed for her. Marsha got a job and moved out within a few months. The cousin was off the hook, and everything returned to normal.” He looked up from his file, frowning. “I really thought she had turned the corner because we had the right medication for her.”
“How much do you know about her life?”
“As much as anybody,” he said. “I suppose.”
“Were you aware of her fixation and stalker tendencies toward a certain man?”
He groaned. “Marsha did speak of it a couple times. He was one of the problems we had tried to get her to deal with. To get her to understand this person was not her partner, not the love of her life. According to her, they were not only married but he cheated on her. She was pretty angry about it.”
That settled into Alex’s brain. “Do you remember the name of the person?”
He nodded. “It was an unusual name, but she’d showed me a picture of him. He’s a big guy. His name is Mack. Like the big Mack trucks.”
“He filed two restraining orders against her several years ago,” Alex said. “She became violent and extremely disruptive.”
The doctor sighed. “She was certainly focused. I have all kinds of clinical terms for that type of thing. But she wasn’t my patient other than for her medical needs. I checked in to make sure she was doing okay physically, but, other than that, you’ll have to see Dr. Sherman. He was her psychologist. He’s the one who helped get her committed, ran her through the testing, and then released her.”
“Do you have Dr. Sherman’s contact information?” She asked a few more questions, but nothing seemed to pop. “Any idea if she was ever pregnant?”
He flipped through the file and said, “Doesn’t look like it.” He lifted his head and looked at her. “Does it matter?”
She shook her head. “No. I’m just checking if she had other relationships and how involved they were.”
“The last time I saw her, she was alone, I believe, but I don’t know for sure,” the doctor admitted. He stood. “I really do have to get back to my patients.”
Alex nodded. She rose and said, “Thank you very much.” She packed up her notebook and walked out, thanking the receptionist with a smile as she walked outside. When she was on the street, she phoned Dr. Sherman’s office. He was in San Diego, and she could see him in the afternoon.
She checked her watch and realized she had just enough time to meet Macklin. If she was a little early, that was fine. She’d rather be a little early than a little late in this case. If she was honest, she’d rather he was a little early as well, so they could spend a little more time together. She really liked him; she just knew it was a hell of a bad deal to get involved now.
She knew better …
Macklin pulled in beside her as she parked and got out of her vehicle. She waited, uncharacteristically happy to see him. Even when she tried to stomp down the joy surging through her at his big smiling face, telling herself she was being silly, she knew it wouldn’t be that easy. He was right; there was an attraction between them. It was just shitty he was on her suspect list. But she had found no serious motive for him, so she couldn’t charge him.
As far as she was concerned, he was wiped off her list. However, he was the only one who had any real connection to Marsha. It just made no sense he would have waited all this time to do something about her.
She knew her mother would be horrified, telling her to get away from a killer. But Alex felt absolutely nothing but calm, control, and comfort when she was around Macklin. He slung an arm around her shoulders and gave her a quick hug.
She stepped back and frowned at him. “We don’t have that kind of a relationship,” she scolded.
He chuckled. “Yes, we do. You’re just hiding behind your files.”
“I am not,” she retorted. She let him nudge her ahead into the restaurant. They took a table at the far back corner. “How was your morning, Macklin?”
“Busy. Any news?”
“Nothing that makes a big difference,” she confessed. “Filling in the background on the various players in this game. But nothing major. It’s hard in Marsha’s case to find anyone who knew her.”
“The only things I knew about was that Marsha was a big yoga fan. She belonged to a yoga club for a long time.” He frowned. “And I know she went afterwards with a few of the women but that was years ago and I don’t think she went often.”
She stared at him. “Interesting.”
He shook his head. “It’s pretty common. I often go for a beer or coffee with the guys. It could have been the same idea.” He shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. And don’t forget that was a few years ago. I have no idea what she might have done in the last couple years.”
“I haven’t tracked down anything she was involved in yet.”
“Have you checked her credit cards? The way everybody is switching to subscription services these days, it’s possible her yoga classes
involved a fee, and, if she belonged to a social club, possibly fees were charged there too.”
Alex stared down at her notepad, pissed at herself for not having checked it. “I checked her credit card for purchases in the last month, but found nothing. Her purchases appear to be normal.”
“That’s the problem with subscription services. They can be monthly, but it can also be bimonthly or quarterly. Some of them might even be annually.”
She added credit cards on her notepad and beneath that she wrote subscriptions. “That’s a good suggestion.” She dropped her pen and looked up at him. “Any talk of upcoming missions?”
“Lots of talk about the situation in the Middle East. I could be heading out soon on a training mission.” He leaned forward, stared her straight in the eye, and said, “Unless I’m not allowed to go.”
“As far as I’m concerned, you can go,” she said candidly. “I’ll know where to find you, if it’s a military mission.”
“That you can.” He stared around the restaurant. “It’s hard. Everybody knows. Everybody talks. Nobody has any answers.”
“You appear to be good friends with Corey.”
He glanced at her. “I’m good friends with men from several units. … We’re like brothers.”
“That’s the way to have it. My job usually pits me against everybody. It’s hard to have the same sort of camaraderie.”
“What about the guys you work with?”
“In my old office, yes. But, since I moved here, hell no.” She gave him a chilly smile. “That’s the problem with being the boss. Nobody wants to get too friendly with you.”
“Must be lonely.”
“Same for you. It’s not like you’ve had much in the way of relationships for the last few years.”
His grin flashed. “I was saving myself for you.”
Inside, her tummy fluttered, and her heart smiled. “But who said I was saving myself for you?” She laughed at the look on his face.
“You’re a cruel woman.”
But he said it in such a joking tone that she knew he didn’t mean it. She really enjoyed the banter between them.
Just then the waitress arrived, and they ordered lunch. Knowing her afternoon could be busy, she ordered a healthy salad with chicken, then watched as Macklin ordered a double burger and fries.
“You know all that cholesterol will kill you one day.”
“You know a bullet could kill me a whole lot earlier too.”
She thought about that. “I guess that’s something you have to think about when you head off to these dangerous missions.”
“Hell no. That will get you all twisted up in knots. The last thing I want to do is think of how short my life could be, and I might not come back from any of these missions. There’s enough to worry about besides the ifs. I enjoy life, and I try to live it on a day-to-day basis, not worrying about the things I can’t change. Enough is going on in the world right now.”
“So your health isn’t an issue?”
“It is, indeed. And normally I watch the food I eat. But occasionally it’s nice to have food you want, even if it isn’t good for you.”
After that was a lull in the conversation. Yet it wasn’t awkward. It was peaceful and calm. She really liked that. “If you do go overseas, when do you come back?”
He shrugged. “It could be anywhere from four to forty days. It depends on what’s happening.”
“We both have jobs like that. Lots of times I can’t talk about cases too.”
He rolled his head toward her and grinned. “Now that we’ve got some of those boundaries established, I think you should let me take you out for dinner.”
“We haven’t even finished lunch yet,” she protested.
“Well, we could jump into bed instead.” The grin that flashed on his face was knowing and full of mischief.
She didn’t know if she should take him seriously but figured he was ready to go whichever way she responded. “Not a good idea.”
He said, “Actually it’s a hell of a good idea. But I can understand needing to take a little more time. Can’t say I’m all that smooth at this anymore.”
“Good. Enough smooth males are around. I’d rather have natural and real.”
At that, he chuckled.
The waitress arrived, and they dropped their conversation. Alex settled back as her food was placed in front of her. The interruption was well-timed because she was confused at her feelings inside. And, if she went with her heart, she’d have said, “Bed now.”
But, if she went with her mind, it told her to back off and to stay backed off. Because of the investigation. If nothing else, it would make her look bad to the rest of the company if she had a relationship with one of the murder suspects.
That thought alone made her uncomfortable as she realized they were already in a public place, and this time it wasn’t to ask questions. To counter that, she brought out her notepad and placed it beside her, then pulled out a pen. She considered the notes from the doctor this morning. “This afternoon I’m meeting Marsha’s psychologist.” She glanced up to see he was studying her carefully as he ate. “I remember you saying she disappeared for a while?”
He nodded.
She said, “She spent six months in a mental facility, going through a series of tests. When they finally stabilized her medication, she was released.”
He froze for a long moment and then nodded. “That fits. Like I said, she had troubles with her medication all the time.”
“Troubles in what way?”
“Troubles in that sometimes she forgot to take it. Sometimes she did not know how many to take—they confused her. Or maybe she just didn’t care enough to get it straight in her head.”
“Or maybe she couldn’t. I feel like I must give her the benefit of doubt that her mental problems made more than just one area of her life difficult.”
“That’s because you’re a softie,” he said quietly. “But you wear it well.”
Flushing, she turned her attention to her salad and then attacked it with a little more force than necessary. It was kind of easy for him to say so, and, at the same time, it was a little awkward. She couldn’t remember the last time she had anybody quite as interested in her. It was funny he had never asked about that.
As if reading her mind, he said, “How long since your last relationship?”
Startled, she glanced up. “I was just thinking about that.”
“And what were you thinking about?”
“It ended several years ago,” she hedged.
He read her expression for a long moment and then shook his head. “Nope, there’s something behind that.”
She glared at him. “What if I don’t want to talk about it?”
He shrugged. “That’s your choice. Chances are the guy slept with somebody.”
She nodded. “Yeah. He wasn’t faithful, and I decided I didn’t need that or him.”
“Good. He wasn’t ready to settle down, and you needed something different. That’s what relationships are all about, finding what works and what doesn’t.”
She stared at him for a long moment. “Most people don’t have that attitude.”
“I’m not most people,” he said quietly. He again studied her. “And neither are you.”
She could feel the blush warming her cheeks. She lowered her gaze and continued to eat.
“So, about that dinner …”
She shot him a look. “You’re very persistent.”
“I am. Because I really want to get to know you.”
“I don’t have a problem with getting to know you. I do have a problem having a relationship with someone who’s a suspect in an active case. No, I don’t think you killed Marsha.”
“Thank you,” he said quietly. “I know the paperwork still hasn’t cleared me because you haven’t found the guy who did it, but I appreciate you saying that.”
She gave him a small smile. “But I’m new in my job, and the rest of the office will not lo
ok on this favorably.”
He thought about that for a long moment. “Now that I can see. And, because it makes sense to me, I’ll accept that as a reason. So we’ll take it a little slower than I would like. But we can work toward getting to know each other better.” He stared at her for a long moment. “Deal?”
She laughed. “Deal.”
Just as she lay down her fork, her phone buzzed. She glanced at it and frowned. “I have to return to the office. Somebody’s there to see me.”
“So why the frown? That could be a good thing.”
She nodded. “It just means work intrudes once again.”
Hearing that, he gave her a bright beam of a smile.
She stared at him in confusion. “What, that work intrudes?”
“No, that you consider this lunch not work. That means I’ve gone from being part of the job to something personal.”
She rolled her eyes and laughed. “Don’t let it go to your head.”
He leaned forward and whispered, “Never. It has already gone to my heart.” He chuckled when he saw she was flustered.
She shook her head, stood, pulled out her wallet.
He grabbed her hand. “Lunch is on me.”
She hesitated, but she was already late. “Fine, but I’m paying for the next lunch.” When she saw the cool satisfaction in his eyes, she said, “You did that deliberately.”
He chuckled. “Sure did. Where do you want to go for dinner?”
She groaned. “No idea. But I’ve got to run.” She snatched her keys off the table and walked out.
Alex couldn’t stop chuckling inside. Macklin might have manipulated her into another date, but it was hard to get angry. She really liked him; she loved their banter, the lighthearted attitude. Physically there was a hell of a lot more to love, but that was just because he was a huge man.
His sense of humor caught her the most. She hadn’t realized how dry and boring her life had become. He added some sparkle.
The traffic was much heavier on her way back to the station. She only had a few blocks to go, but it seemed like forever. She parked, strode into the station, and headed to her office. She barely had time to check her emails to make sure nothing else drastic was coming down on top of her before Lance poked his head in the door and said, “Are you ready for her?”