“What do I need to do?”
“Please let me meet with you and ask some questions. Then I’ll start building a story that we can publish.”
“Sure, when?”
“This afternoon suits me.”
“Ok.”
“May I have your address please?” Elizabeth asked, and noted down the address on her pad.
“Thanks Emma, I’ll be there around three o’clock.”
“Thank you. I will see you then,” Emma said and hung up. Elizabeth sat back and thought over the conversation. Emma had written to the newspaper two months ago, but the story had just gone in the slush pile. If she had not picked it up, it would still be there. Unread and gathering dust. And yet if Elizabeth had not gotten the tip about the hospital and tracked down Nathan, she would not have seen the significance either.
“That’s the system I guess. But I can do something about this,” Elizabeth thought. But that was for later in the day. First she had to initiate her other story, before George started asking for updates.
She called the Museum of Ancient History to enquire about the theft, and got told that the Director of Egyptian Antiquities was not available and that she should come in tomorrow morning to meet him. Elizabeth accepted the appointment and noted down the details. That suited her fine, she could focus on Dean and Nathan in the afternoon.
Elizabeth arrived at the hospital after lunch and walked directly to Dean’s room. She found him by himself, reading the newspaper.
“Hey Dean.”
“Hello there Elizabeth. How are you today?”
“Oh I’m fine, the real question is how are you?”
“The usual.”
“Is the usual good?”
“It’s normal.”
“Alright then, I guess as long as it’s not worse than normal right?”
“That’s one way of looking at it.”
“I’m looking into Dr Malberg. Waiting to get confirmation that he’s our guy.”
“That’s good,” Dean said, but his voice lacked conviction.
“I talked to Nathan’s mum. I’m going to see her this afternoon. I’m going to write an article about his disappearance.”
“Oh yeah, did you tell her you met him?”
“No. My gut said not yet.”
“That’s wise. You gotta listen to your gut.”
“What does your gut tell you?”
“That my time is up. There’s no escaping it.”
“That may be, we don’t know.”
“I know.”
“Jury is still out Dean. You gotta give me a chance.”
“Yeah, yeah I know. Sorry, I’m in a bit of a funk today. How about you go interview that woman, even if you can’t tell her about her son yet, at least she’ll feel better that you’re talking to her. Then you can update me tomorrow.”
“Yeah sure. Take care.”
“You too,” Dean said and then Elizabeth left. It was horrible seeing Dean like that. She hadn’t known him long, but it felt like she knew him well. And that was not like him at all. She felt a chill run down her spine. She had confronted death herself, but in a different way.
For her it had been the raging fire that swept through the Orphello theatre. She risked her life to ensure that the documents she had obtained would survive the fire. And in another way she had confronted death again, in her dreams after the fire. But they had been a confrontation between two warriors. Toe to toe, face to face.
Dean’s struggle was a different one. He was being stalked by death, its stench lingering whenever he turned around, but it was never quite there. It was only slowly creeping closer, and then suddenly it would strike. Not knowing the time he had left, was like a burden slowly chipping away at him. That was a terrible thing to have to deal with.
“I have to do something,” Elizabeth told herself. The things she could do seemed hopeless, but she had to try. Nothing ever came from giving up.
She tried cheering herself up on the drive to Mrs Stenson’s home. She certainly couldn’t look like she had come from a funeral, the poor woman would assume the worst. No, she had to provide some hope to Emma Stenson without revealing everything. And she had to get as much information as possible about Nathan. Both for her article, and also to puzzle out why he was being held.
Elizabeth arrived at the address and looked over the house. It was grey and narrow, with a small paved courtyard out the front and a red door. There was a path leading from the front door to a rusty metal gate. Elizabeth parked the car and walked over to the house. She opened the gate, a loud squeak announcing her presence despite her best effort. As she walked towards the door she could see small tufts of grass breaking through between some of the pavers. Elizabeth knocked on the door and waited.
“Who is it?” a voice called out.
“Elizabeth Edmonds, from the newspaper. We spoke on the phone Mrs Stenson.”
“Coming,” the voice said. Elizabeth heard the bolt being drawn back and the door opening.
“Please come in,” Emma said with a smile. Elizabeth was surprised at how old Emma looked. It wasn’t the silvery white hair, but the lines on her face and the bags beneath her eyes.
“Thank you,” Elizabeth said, hoping to not betray her initial reaction.
“I aged ten years these past three months,” Emma said. Elizabeth realised she had not been successful at masking her face.
“It’s a pretty traumatic time I can imagine,” Elizabeth said, following Emma into the house. It was quite dark, with lots of old furniture.
“You can’t imagine. It’s the not knowing that’s the worst.”
“Maybe I should introduce her to Dean, they sound the same. Actually for that reason maybe not then,” Elizabeth thought.
“I’m sure we can bring some clarity. The newspaper is great at bringing things to light.”
“I sure hope so,” Emma said. She stopped at the end of the house, and sat down at a wooden dining table next to the kitchen. Elizabeth sat down opposite.
“Before I start, do you mind if I record this? Or should I just take notes?”
“Recording is fine,” Emma said. Elizabeth retrieved her recorder from her bag, set it on the table and started recording.
“Can you start from the beginning?”
“Nathan is your average son. Calls his mother once a week when he doesn’t forget, visits a couple of times a month. I got angry at first when I didn’t hear from him. I decided not to call, so that when he finally remembered I could be even angrier at him,” Emma said. She paused and shook her head.
“I think I waited three weeks before I called him. I feel terrible about it. Maybe I could have done something if I had known sooner.”
“From what you said in your letter, I doubt the police would have helped more if you contacted them sooner.”
“Probably. But it doesn’t make you feel better. No reasoning can. When it’s your child you feel responsible and there’s nothing anyone else can say to change that.”
“Does Nathan live nearby?”
“Yes, in the next suburb over. In a small apartment by himself. I’ve had to pay his rent to keep the place for him.”
“That’s good. Have you been inside?”
“I went in once, I was desperate for answers. But everything seemed normal, like he just left one day and never came back. It didn’t feel right digging through his things, so I didn’t. Besides, I wouldn’t know what to look for.”
“Do you have a key?” Elizabeth asked.
“Yes, I do. Do you want to take a look around?”
“Please, if you don’t mind. I’m sure there’s a clue there as to where Nathan was headed the day he disappeared.”
“If it will help, of course. I’ll go find it,” Emma said and disappeared into another room. She returned soon after with a small gold key.
“Here it is, I’ll write the address down too,” Emma said.
“Thanks. What date did Nathan disappear?”
“I’m
not sure exactly. I’ve been racking my brain over and over, thinking about when he usually called and when he missed his first call. I think somewhere in the last week of December.”
“So after Christmas, but before New Year?”
“Yes.”
“Ok good I’ll focus on that period. Where did Nathan work?”
“He was an insolvency accountant at a big accounting firm. What was the name? Oh yes, Addensum. When I started to worry I called them to find out if he had gone into work.”
“What did they say?”
“They said his manager had left, and that all they knew was that Nathan was on extended leave.”
“Ok that’s interesting. Do you know his manager’s name?”
“I think it was Charles. I don’t remember his surname.”
“That’s fine, I’ll look into that too.”
“Thank you. It’s not just me, it’s all very peculiar isn’t it?”
“Yes, Emma. It’s definitely not you. Something does not add up here, and I promise you that I’ll get to the bottom of it.”
“Thank you again. I had started to lose hope.”
“You’re welcome. There’s always room for hope. I’ll bring you some more next time,” Elizabeth said and smiled. She turned off the recorder and went to leave. Emma escorted her out and waited until Elizabeth had left the front gate before closing the front door.
Elizabeth wasn’t sure where to go next. She had uncovered two good leads. Nathan’s work, and his apartment. She looked at her watch, and saw that it was only four o’clock.
“I don’t want to visit his place too late in the day, but I bet the HR department are still around at his work,” Elizabeth thought to herself. She looked up the number for Addensum and dialled it on her phone.
“Hello reception, this is Anna,” a female voice said.
“Hi Anna, can you please put me through to the HR department please.”
“Anyone in particular?”
“No.”
“Sure, I’ll put you through to Peter then.”
“Thanks,” Elizabeth said and waited while the phone was on hold. She then heard a click and another voice answered.
“Hello this is Peter.”
“Hi Peter, my name is Amy. I’m calling concerning an employee of yours, Nathan Stenson.”
“Sure, how can I help?”
“Nothing too crazy, just doing a reference check.”
“Has he applied for a new job?” Peter said, his voice tinged with concern.
“Oh no, he has applied for a new rental property. I’m just verifying his reference here. He wrote down a Charles as his manager, but I can’t read the surname.”
“Oh Charles Manfried? I’m afraid he has left the company. But I can confirm that Nathan is still an employee here.”
“Oh ok. I had hoped to talk to Charles.”
“I’m sorry we are not allowed to provide any personal contact details.”
“Oh no that’s fine. I’m sure speaking to you is enough for my boss. Thanks for your assistance Peter.”
“No problem. Have a nice day.”
“You too. Goodbye,” Elizabeth said, hanging up. That wasn’t a bad fishing expedition. She had a name for Nathan’s manager. Feeling satisfied she drove home. It had been a big day already. She had found Nathan and dug up some important leads. Now she needed to rest and prepare for what was to come.
15
Chasing Leads
Elizabeth woke in the morning and reviewed the checklist she had written for herself the previous night before going to bed. She had gone from no leads, to an explosion of them, so she needed to make sure she missed nothing.
- Dr Malberg (confirm?)
- Museum Burglary (unrelated)
- Charles Manfried (track down)
- Nathan’s Apartment (have key)
- Access to Nathan’s Hospital room (need key)
She had to meet the Director of Egyptian Antiquities first thing to continue that story. The rest of her day however was fair game. She looked through the list to see what made the most sense. She had access to Nathan’s apartment, but decided that it was better to go there after she had talked to him again. He might be able to direct her on what to look for. He might also be able to get her in touch with his old manager. She needed that angle to start building a story explaining Nathan’s disappearance. Regarding Dr Malberg, she didn’t want to investigate him further until she got confirmation from Lucy. Or at least give Lucy a day to respond. So that left her one lead to start with: getting a key to access Nathan’s hospital room. It made sense, if she could secure good access to him, then he could assist with the rest of her investigation.
With that decision made, Elizabeth planned out her day. Then she left the apartment and drove to the Museum of Ancient History. It was a bit out of the city, about half an hour’s drive from her place. Elizabeth had never been before, but as she approached she understood why they had chosen the location.
The Museum was surrounded by lush grounds, perfectly manicured grass complete with a hedge maze. The building itself looked like a modern replica of an ancient temple. It consisted of a large, domed circular main building, with many wings coming off it. She drove past the property to access the visitor parking, and noticed a few tour buses already parked there.
“Wow I had no idea this place was such an attraction,” Elizabeth thought to herself. She had heard of it, but never really paid much attention. If the interior was anything like the exterior, it was worth visiting for the building alone.
As Elizabeth walked through the main doors she let go a small gasp. Polished marble floors reflected an amazing chandelier hanging from the dome above her. The foyer was littered with what looked like precious statues and throngs of people buzzing around. She made her way through the crowd and walked up to the Enquiries Desk.
“Good morning, I have an appointment with the Director of Egyptian Antiquities,” Elizabeth said.
“Good morning. Your name please?” a young woman replied, looking up from the computer screen.
“Elizabeth Edmonds.”
“Ah yes here we are. I don’t think Albert is in yet, but I’ll take you to his office,” the young woman said. Elizabeth followed closely, as they wound their way through the crowds and out of the foyer. Elizabeth watched with interest as the woman swiped an access card, and took them through a locked door into a completely different environment.
The walls were stark white, and there seemed to be many different rooms along the corridor.
“This place looks state of the art,” Elizabeth said.
“It really is. It’s a weird blend of the latest technology with some of the oldest things we have.”
“Both ends of the spectrum. I guess that these things would have been the latest technology once upon a time.”
“Ha-ha you’re right,” the woman said. She stopped outside one of the doors, and opened it.
“Please take a seat, Albert will be here any minute.”
“Thanks,” Elizabeth said, and entered the room. It was like she had stepped back in time. The office was unlike the stark, modern corridor. There was an aged, wooden desk with antique sitting chairs on either side. Bookcases ran along the walls of the room, crammed with dusty tomes.
“Excuse my lateness,” a male voice said behind her. Elizabeth rose and turned to face the speaker. He was an old man, balding at the front with white wispy tufts circling his ears. He wore a plain grey suit, with a white shirt underneath and a gold pin on his lapel which looked like a pyramid.
“Not a problem, I only just settled in. I’m Elizabeth.”
“Albert, nice to meet you. I enjoy the contrast here, stepping into the past from the necessary modern technology.”
“Yeah I can see that,” Elizabeth replied. Albert motioned to the chair, so she sat back down. He walked around to the other side of the desk and sat down himself.
“I must admit Elizabeth, I’m a little surprised by this visit. We d
id not publicise the theft.”
“We received an anonymous tip, looks like it was on the mark.”
“I appreciate that. You were certainly right to act on it. Did you happen to bring the tip with you?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Well, this may be presumptuous of me, but I highly doubt that one of my staff tipped you off. Not many people know of the theft. “
“So you think that maybe the thief did so?”
“It is a theory I’ve been thinking through. It’s the reason why I decided to meet with you.”
“You don’t want the theft to be public knowledge do you? I take it this is a very expensive security system. Wouldn’t be good to have people know that you were compromised.”
“I do not appreciate you jumping to conclusions. Actually we do not wish to give the thief the publicity they no doubt crave.”
“What was stolen? Surely publicising the theft will make it harder to sell the item?”
“You cannot sell this item to anyone. We gain nothing by releasing this information.”
“Look Albert, I think there’s an opportunity for us to work together on this.”
“There is. Give me the tip, and let me find out what I can from it,” Albert said. Elizabeth thought over his offer. She had not noticed anything interesting about it, but once she handed the tip over she could probably kiss it goodbye. But without Albert’s cooperation any chance of a story would die, and she really wanted this to work.
“Well how about a compromise. You make me a copy of the tip, you can borrow the original to do whatever you need to do. That way I’ll still have a reference in the meantime. You have to share anything you discover, and I’ll delay the story until there’s more to report on,” Elizabeth said. She could see Albert considering the proposal. She reckoned that the delay on the story had tempted him. For some reason he wanted control over the nature of the publicity, and a little delay didn’t make a difference for her. It would give her time to dig up something more interesting.
“Ok I think we can work together on those terms. If you give me what you have, I’ll go and make you a copy right now.”
The Secret Patient Page 11