Mistaken Identity (A Lucinda Pierce Mystery)

by Fanning, Diane

  Prager couldn’t bear to remain quiet. “Ms. Godfrey, I must warn you …”

  “Shut up,” Pamela said again. “I believe I’m right about that, Lieutenant. And I believe your reaction to my revelation was surprise because you were unaware of our relationship.”

  Pamela paused, waiting for an acknowledgement from Lucinda. When she got none, she continued. “To me, that meant you all hadn’t confiscated the photographs or videotapes.”

  “Photographs? Videotapes?”

  “Of me and Jeanine making love. Parker shot them. You didn’t find them, did you?”

  “Perhaps not,” Lucinda said. “Or perhaps we hadn’t processed that evidence yet.”

  “Whatever. Anyway, I assumed you hadn’t taken them and I went in to get them. I was just trying to protect myself from a scandal. The snapshots and video have nothing to do with the murder. Nothing.”

  “Maybe they don’t. Maybe they do. That will be the prosecutor’s decision.”

  “No! You can’t turn those over to the state,” Pamela shouted as she jumped to her feet.

  “Please instruct your client to return to her seat, Mr. Prager,” Lucinda asked.

  Pamela sat back down and said, “If you turn that evidence over to those guys, when you arrest someone, the prosecutor will have to release it as discovery to the defense attorney. Then that lawyer will introduce it at trial to raise reasonable doubt about his client’s guilt. Don’t you see? It’s not in your best interests to do that.”

  Lucinda stood. “Someone will be arriving shortly to escort your client to the jail, Mr. Prager.” She turned and headed for the door.

  “Wait,” Pamela shouted. “Are you familiar with Rodney Conners?”

  Lucinda closed her eyes and cocked her head. “The CEO of It Is?”

  “Former CEO. Parker Sterling’s Dodgebird swallowed up all the It Is clients and Rodney’s business went belly up.”

  Lucinda nodded. “I was aware of that.”

  “But did you know that he’s still talking about revenge? I’ve overheard him, more than once in the last month, say that he would bring Parker Sterling down and pluck the feathers off Dodgebird’s back.”

  An honest tip? Or a diversionary tactic? “Thank you, Ms. Godfrey. The officers will be with you soon.”

  “What, do you mean I’m going to jail? I explained myself. I gave up a viable suspect. And you’re still sending me to jail? You can’t do this.”

  “Ms. Godfrey, we will have to make some changes to your charging document. If it’s true you had a key, then you can’t be charged with breaking into the Sterling home. But, in order to enter, you had to break the police department’s seal. It was a closed crime scene, Ms. Godfrey. When you ignored the yellow tape, you broke the law.”

  “You can’t hold me overnight for that.”

  “Oh, yes I can,” Lucinda said. The sound of Pamela’s rants trailed Lucinda down the hall, making a smile dance on her lips.

  Twenty-Nine

  A glass of wine, a book and bed were all Lucinda had on her mind as she pulled in to her apartment complex. She reminded herself that she couldn’t forget to make a detour between the doorway and the bedroom to feed the cat. That brought another smile to her face – as if Chester would ever let me forget.

  She stepped out of the elevator and looked down the hall toward her apartment. A rounded bundle lay on the floor right by her door. She tensed and reached for her gun. Holding it straight by her side with the muzzle aimed at the floor, Lucinda took cautious steps, ready to raise her weapon at the slightest provocation.

  The unknown object moved. Lucinda’s gun swung up as she shifted her body to shooting stance. It was a person. A small person. Lucinda lowered her gun and took two more steps forward. “Charley? What the heck are you doing here?”

  Charley sat up, looking startled and confused. Then she smiled and stretched. “Hi, Lucy. I didn’t think you were ever gonna get home.”

  “Does your dad know you’re here?”

  “Nah. Daddy’s in Iraq – you know, that Doctors Without Borders thing he does.”

  “Yes, okay. So who’s watching after you and Ruby?”

  “Kara.”

  “Does Kara know you’re here?”

  “No. She was asleep when I left.”

  “Did you leave her a note?”

  “She wouldn’t read it, Lucy, she’s asleep.”

  “Is she staying with you and Ruby at your condo?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Let’s go in and give her a call,” Lucinda said as she unlocked the door.

  “I want to come in, Lucy, but I don’t think you should call Kara. She’s asleep.”

  “If we don’t call her, how are you going to get in your place?”

  “Well, I have a key but I don’t want to go home. I need to talk to you – oh, there’s your kitty cat. Here, Chester,” Charley coaxed.

  Chester was not interested. He stuck his tail straight up in the air and scampered back down the hall.

  “Aww, Lucy, I wanted to pet him.”

  “He’ll be back. When he does, I’ll let you feed him – then you won’t be able to get rid of him.”

  “Good.” Charley smiled and walked into the living room. “See, I could sleep right here on your couch. And – oh, look, you can see the river, too.”

  “Not as grand as the view from your balcony.”

  “But it’s still so pretty. Look at the moon shining on the river. The water sparkles like the moonbeams tickle.”

  Lucinda stood in front of the window beside Charley. “I never thought of it that way but you’re right. Now, what’s going on, girlfriend? Is there something wrong at home?”

  “Nope. I just need to talk to you about something important.”

  “So, what is it?”

  “First, can I spend the night?”

  “Charley …”

  “Please, Lucy. If I have to worry about going back home tonight, I’m going to feel rushed and I’ll booger it all up. And I’ve been practicing and I want to say it right. Please.”

  “Okay. But I’ll need to call Kara …”

  “She’s asleep, Lucy.”

  “I think it’d be a lot better to wake her up now than for her to get up in the morning and discover your empty bed. That would really scare her.”

  “Okay.” Charley sighed.

  Lucinda punched in the numbers. A groggy Kara picked up the phone. “Kara, this is Lieutenant Pierce. Everything’s okay. I’m not sure how Charley managed to get here but I found her on my doorstep. I’ll bring her back tomorrow morning before I go to work.”

  After disconnecting the call, Lucinda said, “Okay, Charley, what’s so important?”

  “You.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, Lucy, you didn’t go in to see Rambo like you promised. And you didn’t return any of his calls today.”

  A flash of ire jolted Lucinda’s body. “I am sorry, Charley. Dr. Burns should not have dragged you into this.”

  “He didn’t, Lucy. I kept calling him and calling him, every day. I’ve been asking him lots of questions about the surgery and stuff. You didn’t show up for the appointment I made for you. This morning, he promised me he’d talk to you but I called him this afternoon and he said he called you but you wouldn’t return his calls. Is that true, Lucy?”

  Lucinda squirmed. “Yeah, Charley, but you don’t need to worry about it. Why don’t we go feed Chester?”

  “Lucy, I’m not a baby. You can’t trick me like that. I do need to worry about you. You are my best friend. And you need to go to see Rambo so’s he can explain everything. He can make you better.”

  “It’s really a lot more complicated than that.”

  “No, it’s not. It’s simple. You”re scared.”

  “I am not scared, Charley.”

  The young girl put her small hands on her hips, thrust out her chin and waggled her head as she said, “Are, too.”

  Lucinda’s childish side was poised on th
e edge of the conversation, ready to inject “Am not”. Instead, she accepted the fact that what Charley said was true. “How’d you get so smart?”

  “Well, my daddy’s smart. And my momma was smart.”

  Lucinda looked at the little girl closely – no signs of tears. It was the first time she could remember Charley mentioning her murdered mother without crying. She hoped that meant the worst of the pain had passed.

  Charley continued, “We’re still not sure about Ruby, yet. Daddy says she shows a lot of promise. But I said I wasn’t sure. I told him I worried I might have to take care of her all my life. Daddy just laughed at me. But Ruby is four years old and still sucks her thumb – mostly at night in her bed. It gives me bad dreams sometimes ’cause it makes me remember her sitting on the basement floor, next to my momma’s body.” The tears swelled in Charley’s eyes and spilled down her cheeks.

  Lucinda dropped to her knees and enfolded the little girl in her arms. She kissed her on the forehead and said, “I love you, Charley.”

  “I love you, too, Lucy,” she sniffled.

  Lucinda pulled back and placed her hands on Charley’s arms. “So, tell me. What do you want me to do?”

  “I want you to go see Rambo – right away.”

  “Charley, I’m in the middle of a difficult investigation.”

  “What if Rambo could come in early in the morning and see you before you went to work? Would you go then?”

  “Yes, Charley, but it’s a doctor’s office. They don’t open that early.”

  “We’ll see,” Charley said as she punched numbers into the phone.

  “The office is closed now, Charley.”

  “I know. I’m calling Rambo’s house.”

  “It’s a little too late for that, Charley.”

  “Hi, Rambo. It’s Charley,” she said into the phone and then paused. Lucinda could hear the rumblings of a voice on the other end but couldn’t understand the words.

  “I’m sorry I woke you up. But it’s important.” Charley nodded her head and then continued. “Yes, it is Lucy. She’ll come in and see you tomorrow if you can get to the office early.” She stopped to listen again, then said, “It’s gotta be earlier than that.” She turned and flashed a smile at Lucinda. “Thank you, Rambo, we’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

  Charley returned the receiver to its cradle and said, “There. It’s all settled. Seven o’clock tomorrow morning.”

  Lucinda sighed. “Okay, but we’ll have to leave early so I have time to drop you off at home.”

  “No. I’m going with you.”

  “There’s no need for that. I can take you home first.”

  Charley hung down her head and turned her eyes upward. “I’m sorry, Lucy, but I have to tell you the truth. I don’t want to make you feel bad. I trust you about almost everything in the whole wide world. But, Lucy, I don’t trust you about this – I can’t believe you’ll tell me the truth.”

  Lucinda knew Charley was right but that didn’t make it any easier to hear.

  Thirty

  Dr. Burns stood inside the glass door waiting for their arrival, sleep still whispering at him to return to bed, puffing up the bags under his eyes and putting a slump in his shoulders. He unlocked the door with a smile, let them in and locked it behind them. “We need to go into the examination room first. I need to take a fresh look at your face and make sure I’m on the right track. Do you want Charley to wait in my office?”

  Lucinda looked down at Charley’s face – the message in her expression was clear: Don’t you dare. “That’s okay, Doctor Burns. She can come in with us.”

  Lucinda sat down at the end of an examination table and the doctor asked her to close her eyes. He pulled the arm of a light fixture away from the wall and pointed the bright spot on to her face. She felt his breath on her skin as his fingers traced her cheeks and her lips. He placed his index finger beside her nose and pushed it to the left. Then he moved his digit to the other side, giving her nose a small shove in the opposite direction. He didn’t say a word throughout the examination, just grunted from time to time.

  Lucinda contemplated the odd noises he made, wondering if it were a doctor thing but then deciding no woman doctor would grunt like that – it had to be a man thing. Burns flipped off the light and swung it back to the wall. He folded his arms and looked at her for a moment. “Lieutenant, I look at you and imagine a set of full, plump, kissable lips – not that I’d ever attempt to try them out.” He grinned. “Ethical concerns would stand in my way, unfortunately. But I’d love for you to use a beautiful pair of lips to paste a kiss of gratitude on my cheek.”

  “I haven’t agreed to another procedure, Doctor.”

  “No, you haven’t,” the doctor said with a sigh. “Come on, let’s go down to my office, I’ve pulled together something to help explain it all to you.”

  Burns pulled out a laptop and placed it on the desk facing the chairs occupied by Lucinda and Charley. He stood beside the computer and brought up a slide show. Lucinda cringed at the first image – the screen filled with the damaged side of her face while she still had an empty eye socket. “Here is a photograph of you the first time you visited me. For starters, you have to understand the extreme difficulty of dealing with facial wounds. The skin on your face covers a complex muscle network. Scarring restricts the function of those muscles. Now, I know you are unhappy with the scars that resulted from the last lip reconstruction procedure – I am disappointed in them, too. But, if you recall, I never said that one operation would get your mouth back to its original shape.”

  He pressed the enter key and brought up the next slide, a split-screen image of Lucinda before and after the first set of procedures. “Now, it’s easy to see the improvement from here to here,” he said, clicking again.

  “The differences between these two pictures are more difficult to discern. There is a shot of you before the last procedure and here is a picture taken of you after that procedure. Look closely. The improvement is not so obvious, but it’s there.”

  Charley nodded and said, “Yes, I see it.”

  Lucinda grimaced – she saw nothing but the half-gargoyle face she loved to hate.

  “Here’s the problem,” the doctor explained. “Working on your face is a lot like reconstruction after burns. Burned skin contracts, causing scars that affect not just the immediate area but other parts of the face. Similarly, the shotgun pellets scorched and shredded your skin as well as the underlying muscles.”

  Burns brought up an illustration of the muscles across a skull. “The damage to your face ran deep. It is not unusual that the initial procedure, in any particular area of the face, does not produce satisfactory results. What I plan to do next is use z-plasty sutures to redirect the scars from the earlier surgery – both mine and the quickie repair job they did immediately after your accident – and that will help your face look more natural. Then we’ll plump up your lips. After that, I want to focus on the damaged side of your nose and make it conform to the shape and size of that on the undamaged side. Next, we’ll move on to the skin on your cheek, removing scars, smoothing it out. When I finish with you, Lieutenant, the application of a little make-up will be all you need to look flawless once again.”

  “Doctor Burns, please, one step at a time,” Lucinda said, holding up her hands as if pushing him away. “I really don’t care about flawless. I am just tired of scaring kids and capturing stares wherever I go.”

  The doctor smiled. “Of course, Lieutenant. We’ll go one step at a time. Let’s just schedule the next procedure.”

  “I can’t,” Lucinda said and earned herself a baleful look from both Burns and Charley.

  “I mean, I can’t set a date right now. I’m in the middle of an intense investigation. I can’t just drop it.”

  Burns and Charley ganged up on her, countering every argument she made. In the end, she bowed to the pressure from both fronts, lifted her right hand and swore to schedule a surgical procedure as soon as the Sterling ho
micide case was solved or turned cold.

  The thought of the latter possibility sent a dagger of ice into Lucinda’s mid-section. Two people demanded justice – the idea that she might not be able to deliver made her feel ill.

  Thirty-One

  Leaving Charley at her family’s condo, Lucinda entered the office shortly before eight that morning. Despite the hour, Ted was already elbow deep in work at his desk. “In early today?” she asked, hoping he hadn’t labored through the night in the office.

  “Yeah, I had some stuff I wanted to take care of before I go visit Ellen,” Ted said.

  The news of a visit to his wife pleased Lucinda but she wasn’t sure what to say. If she reacted the wrong way, it could botch things up. Before she could think of the right words, Ted said, “I’m trying, Lucinda.”

  “I know, Ted. I am very happy that you’re making the effort.”

  “How much is enough?” he asked.

  “You don’t have to ask me that, Ted. You know the answer – help her find her way home. After you take care of her, you can look to your own future,” she said.

  “Our future?”

  “Ted, I told you, we are not going there. Not now.”

  “When, Lucinda? I called my feelings ‘fantasies’ in the courtroom for Ellen’s sake. But you know it’s more than that. When can we try to rebuild our relationship?”

  “Maybe never, Ted,” she snapped and regretted it immediately. “I’m sorry. You’re trying, I owe you more patience. I just don’t want to go there until Ellen’s mental health problems are resolved.”

  “What if they never are?”

  “Ted, one day at a time. Okay? Now, have you got anything new for me in the Sterling case?’

  ‘Yeah, I contacted the Texas Rangers and the state criminal authorities in all the states between here and there. They’re all willing to help. I sent photos and a description of our suspect, Jason King and all his known aliases. They’ll alert all law enforcement in their jurisdictions to be on the lookout, pick him up if they find him and call us right away. Are you sure he’s our doer? And do you think he acted alone?”