by Tracy Weber
I held up my palms and lowered my foot to the floor.
She moved the knife back a few inches and tossed two envelopes on the hood of my car. “The top letter outlines the health care provisions for my mom. Make sure the lawyer on the envelope gets it. Give the other one to the police. It’s my confession. I killed Richard, but you already knew that.”
“Why?”
“I didn’t plan it. I was feeling blue last Saturday, so I gave myself an extra bump. I got the dosage too high, and I passed out for a second. Richard must have heard me collapse. He came in the bathroom and caught me picking up the syringe.” She shook her head. “What was he doing in the break room? He didn’t have any births at the hospital on Saturday.”
I didn’t tell her, but given what I’d learned, Dr. Dick had most likely ducked inside the employees-only area to hide from Liam.
“I panicked. He would have turned me in. I’d have lost my job, probably gone to prison. All I could think about was my mother. What would happen to her without me?” She laughed, but with no humor. “The same thing that’s going to happen to her now.”
She forcefully blinked her eyes again, clearly fighting to stay awake. “I need you to know, Kate, that Richard’s death was an accident.”
“An accident?” Shoving a knife into someone’s heart seemed pretty deliberate to me.
“It all happened so fast. I ran past him, but he came after me and cornered me at the sink. I grabbed the knife and told him to back off, but he didn’t stop. He lunged toward me, and … ” She didn’t finish the sentence.
“Your story doesn’t make sense. If it was truly an accident, why didn’t you call for help? They might have been able to save him. Instead, you dragged him into the bathroom and left him to die.”
Justine shook her head. “I have no idea how he ended up in the bathroom, but I didn’t put him there. When I left, he was on the floor, right where I stabbed him.” Her words slurred. “You’re right, though. I should have called for help. I just needed to get away. To have time to think.”
“Rachel’s your friend. How could you let her go to prison for a crime you committed?”
“I couldn’t. I won’t. That’s why I wrote the confession.” Justine’s body swayed, but she kept talking. “Rachel’s no innocent, though. You saw her that night at the yoga studio. Richard threatened to send Nicole away, and Rachel just stood there. She never protected Nicole. It’s a mother’s job to protect her child … ”
Justine’s knees buckled. She grabbed my arm, trying to stay upright.
That was my chance, and I took it.
I shoved her and she fell, hitting her head solidly against the floor. The knife slipped from her fingers and clanked against the cement. I kicked it away and dove for it, praying Justine wouldn’t reach it first. My wrist slammed into the ground. The blade sliced my palm when I scooped up the knife, but I had it! I whirled around, ignoring the searing pain in my hand and the blood oozing between my fingers. I was prepared to defend myself if I needed to. I hoped against hope that I wouldn’t.
Justine was still where I left her, lying in a crumpled ball on the cement.
No, no, no, no, no. Not again. Not another death.
I should have run away, but I couldn’t. I had to make sure Justine was alive. I ran back and kneeled next to her, knife at the ready if needed.
It wasn’t.
Justine was barely conscious. I shook her—hard. “Wake up! You have to wake up!”
Her eyes fluttered open. She smiled. “It won’t be long now. Please don’t leave me. I don’t want to die alone.”
Any impulse to save myself vanished. The only person Justine planned to kill today was herself. I wrestled my gym bag out from under her and desperately rummaged through it, searching for my cell phone.
Please let it work in the garage.
Zero bars.
I tossed it to the side.
“Justine, hang on. I’m getting help.”
I tore across the parking garage to the elevators and pounded my fist against the call button, barely noticing the bloody marks I left behind. What was taking so long? I glanced back to check on Justine.
She was gone.
I found her fifteen feet from where I’d left her, crawling toward the edge of the ten-story parking garage.
“You can’t save me, Kate. No one can. Please, let me go.”
If I left her to get help, she’d try to climb over the guardrails and jump. She might very well succeed. I pinned her to the floor and screamed.
“Help! Somebody help!”
I screamed for help over and over and over again, watching helplessly as Justine’s breaths became shallower and further apart.
My pleas echoed through the empty space for what felt like eternity. They haunted my nightmares significantly longer. As Justine slipped into unconsciousness, I prayed that she would finally find peace.
Twenty-Seven
As it turns out, a hospital is a terrible place to attempt suicide. But I think deep down inside, Justine already knew that. The emergency room staff arrived seconds after the first Good Samaritan heard my calls for help. They were able to save Justine, though the ending to her story was far from happy.
I did what I could to help her, which didn’t feel like nearly enough. I delivered the first letter to the police—who released Rachel a few hours later—and the second to Justine’s attorney. I visited her mother at the new nursing home and explained what had happened, but if the elderly woman’s empty, unaware eyes were any indication, she didn’t understand me. In this case, Alzheimer’s might be a blessing.
Two days later, I did one final good deed: I reunited a family. Michael watched Bella while I drove Rachel, Nicole, the pups, and myself to Fido’s Last Chance for a visit.
Nicole sat in the back with the puppies curled up asleep in her lap. Her mother rode up front with me.
“Nicole, I still don’t understand why you were so secretive about the dogs,” I said.
“I didn’t know what else to do. If I’d taken them home, Richard would have made me return them. I didn’t want them stuck in those awful cages. I figured that if I left them at the pet store, someone would help them. I hid until I saw your boyfriend open the box, so I knew they’d be safe. That’s why I was so late to class.”
“I get that part, but why did you leave me the cryptic note about their mother? Why not just tell me about her?”
“The puppies are valuable. I was afraid that if you knew I’d stolen them, you’d tell Justine. She might have turned me in to the police. When we were at your house the day Mom got arrested, you told me you wanted to find the person who’d dumped the puppies so you could kill him.”
Those weren’t my exact words, but I didn’t correct her.
She continued. “As soon as you said that, I knew you’d never take the puppies back to that shed. I thought you might save their mother. I figured the note would point you to the dog without implicating me.”
“Justine would never have reported you to the police,” I said.
Rachel’s voice sounded bitter. “She had her own crimes to conceal.”
“That’s not what I meant,” I replied. “What Justine did to Richard—what she did to you, Rachel—was inexcusable. But she would have protected Nicole. She told me someone needed to.”
Rachel’s cheeks reddened, but she remained silent. I glanced in my rearview mirror at Nicole, who was happily cradling a puppy in each arm.
“How did you know about the dog in the shed?” I asked.
Nicole hesitated.
Rachel prodded her. “Go ahead, Nicole.”
“Richard and Mom made me go to a dinner party with them at Dr. Steinman’s house. I was so bored I thought I would die, so Dr. Steinman told me I could go swimming. I shouldn’t have snooped in the shed, but I heard the puppies whining.” H
er voice caught. “He had them trapped in that awful cage like prisoners. They looked sick and sad. What kind of man does that to innocent dogs?”
One who should be locked in a cage himself.
“I couldn’t let them rot in there like that,” Nicole continued. “I had to help them. So I stole fifty dollars from Richard’s wallet the next day and took Mom’s car back to get them.”
Rachel turned to face the back seat. “Honey, why didn’t you tell me any of this?”
“I didn’t think you would do anything. You always took Richard’s side.”
Rachel reached back and grasped the teen’s hand. “I was wrong. I’m so sorry, honey. Never again.”
“I was stupid, though,” Nicole continued. “I didn’t think to bring leashes. I grabbed the puppies first. I was planning to go back for the mother, but Dr. Steinman came home. I hid and waited, hoping that I could go back and grab her, but he must have heard me. He went into the shed and noticed the puppies were gone. He stomped back into the house, came out with a padlock, and locked the cage. I couldn’t get to her then.”
We turned onto the long gravel driveway that led to Betty’s run-down house, which was also the main shelter for Fido’s Last Chance.
Betty greeted us in the yard. The petite yellow lab stood on leash next to her. She was still thin, but otherwise cleaner, healthier, and happier-looking than I would have imagined possible.
I’d barely come to a stop when Nicole jumped out of the car. The lab broke her stay next to Betty and pulled toward the teen, wearing a huge doggy smile.
I carried Ricky and Lucy into the yard, closed the gate behind us, and set the two wiggling monsters onto the grass. They scampered to their mother, who sniffed them cautiously, at first, then lay down and began patiently grooming them while they chewed at her legs. Nicole and Betty hovered nearby.
Rachel and I watched from a distance. “Thanks for bringing Nicole here,” she said. “The closure is important for her. I know she caused you some trouble. I don’t condone what she did, but I can’t bring myself to punish her.”
“Punish her? I think she should get a medal.” I hesitated before speaking again. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know the answer, but I needed closure, too. “If I ask you something, will you answer me honestly?”
Rachel held her breath. When she replied, her voice sounded cautious. “Yes.”
“Was Richard dead when you moved his body?”
Rachel’s mouth opened, then closed again. For a moment I thought she would walk away without answering. Finally, she spoke. “Yes. There was no pulse. How did you know I moved him?”
“Justine said his body was in the break room when she left, and she had no reason to lie to me. She’d already confessed to the murder. Besides, it explains the blood the police found on your shoes. Are you going to face charges for tampering with evidence?”
“My lawyer doesn’t think so. Not if I fully cooperate with the investigation.”
I lowered my voice to make sure we wouldn’t be overheard. “You thought Nicole killed your husband, didn’t you?”
Rachel bit her lower lip, then nodded. “It was the only thing that made sense. Nicole and Richard had a huge fight that morning, after he told her he’d arranged to send her to a boarding school on Monday. I never would have let it happen, but Nicole didn’t know that.” Rachel’s eyes watered. “She’s right. I always took Richard’s side. I couldn’t let her throw her future away because I didn’t protect her. I had to help her … I needed to buy some time before anyone found him, so I could figure out a plan.”
“And your red purse?”
“Wow, you don’t miss much, do you?”
I smiled. “I have a source in the police department.”
“Most of Richard’s bleeding was internal, but not all of it. I used paper towels to clean up what I could and shoved them inside my purse. I tossed it into a dumpster about thirty miles outside of Seattle.”
“But you didn’t dispose of the knife?”
“Stupid, right? I couldn’t bring myself to pull it out. I wanted to go back and get it later, but you’d already found him.” Rachel glanced over her shoulder at Nicole. “Please, Kate. Nicole can never know I suspected her. It would crush her.”
“She’ll never hear it from me.”
“Thank you.”
We stood together for a few idyllic moments and watched the animals play. The lab ran in circles, barking and play-bowing. The pups bounded clumsily behind her. Nicole ran with them, clapping her hands and laughing.
“She’s going to be all right, you know,” I said.
“The lab?”
“No, Nicole. I know she’s had troubles, but she’s a good kid. I think she’ll surprise you.”
Rachel smiled. “She already has.”
Rachel left to join her daughter. Betty meandered over to me and nodded at my bandage. “How’s your hand?”
“It still hurts, but it should start feeling better once the stitches come out. Luckily there wasn’t any nerve damage.”
Betty’s eyes sparkled mischievously. “So let me get this straight. You got into a standoff with a knife-wielding murderer, and the only injury you got was the one you gave yourself?”
I smirked. “Pretty much.”
“Since you insist on hanging out with killers, I was going to recommend that you get a gun. But on second thought, maybe that’s not such a great idea.”
I nudged her with my elbow. “Maybe I should be like you and hire my own bodyguard.”
“Don’t get any ideas about Jamie. He’s mine. You’ll have to find your own veterinarian gangster.” She nodded in the direction of the dogs. “That lab looks pretty good now, doesn’t she?”
“Wonderful. Do you think bringing the puppies here was a mistake?”
Betty wrinkled her eyebrows. “Why would it be a mistake?”
“She’s so happy. It might be hard on her when I take them home again.”
“Nonsense. Those pups are weaning age now. Mom will be more than happy to say goodbye to them in an hour or so. Now that she’s seen them, she’ll be more content. I told her they were in good hands, but she needed to see it for herself.”
“You talk to her? And you think she understands?”
“Of course. Don’t kid yourself. Bella understands you, too. Dogs are a lot smarter than people think. We humans are the dumb ones.”
I couldn’t disagree.
Betty eyed the pups closely, but I had a feeling she was actually watching Nicole.
“So, what’s next for the lab?” I asked. “Have you found someone to adopt her?”
“Nope.”
I felt unaccountably sad. “She’ll go to foster care, then.”
“Nope. All of my fosters are full.”
My chest tightened. That meant the lab was destined for an animal shelter. After rescuing her from a cage in a shed, I couldn’t imagine her story ending in a cage at the pound. It was too cruel.
“Maybe Michael and I can take her for a few weeks. She can’t stay at the house with Bella, but Michael might be able to keep her at Pete’s Pets. Maybe one of his customers will adopt her.”
“Not this one, Kate. She’s had enough trauma and change in her life. Her next home needs to be her forever home.”
“I thought you didn’t have anyone to adopt her?”
Betty didn’t reply. I had a feeling that meant we were standing in the yard of the dog’s new home.
“Thirteen, Betty? Are you sure?” The last time I’d visited Betty, she’d had twelve dogs living on site.
Betty shook her head adamantly. “Nope. Not with me, either.” She looked pointedly at Nicole and the lab, then back at me. “Those two are good together, don’t you think?” She met my eyes, silently asking for my opinion.
At first I was surprised. Betty didn’t know Ni
cole or her mother, and she didn’t place dogs unless she knew they’d never come back.
Then I watched them for a few moments. Two mothers and a daughter bonding in a way that seemed important—for all of them. When Nicole collapsed on the grass and the yellow lab flopped down beside her, I realized Betty was right.
I looked back at Betty, smiled, and nodded my head yes.
“Let’s go make it happen,” she said.
Betty and I walked across the grass to join what we hoped would be a new family. She kneeled on the ground next to Nicole. “You saved this dog’s life. I’m going to give her another few days to get stronger, and then I’ll have my veterinarian friend Jamie spay her. After that, she’ll be ready for a new home.”
“I’m glad,” Nicole replied.
Betty touched Nicole’s shoulder. “I think that home should be with you.”
Nicole stared down at the lab’s fur, refusing to look at either Betty or her mother. When she spoke, her voice was so soft, it was barely audible. “I can’t have pets.”
Betty gave Rachel a stern look. “Is that true?”
Rachel shook her head. “Not anymore. That was Richard’s rule. I like animals. But what makes you think we’re the right home for her?”
“I have an instinct for these things. I won’t lie to you, though. This dog has been through hell. She’ll need a lot of love and even more training.”
The teen looked up at her mother, eyes begging. “Mom, can we? I’ll train her, I promise.”
Rachel crouched on the ground and rubbed the lab’s ears. “I don’t see why not.”
“Well, great. It’s a deal then,” Betty placed her hands on her thighs and stood. “You’ll need to fill out some paperwork, and I’ll want to come to your house for a site visit. But something tells me this is all going to work out just fine.”
The teen scrunched her fingers into the dog’s fur and buried her face in its neck. The lab leaned against her and slowly thumped her tail on the ground. I’d never seen either of them look happier.