by Robin Mahle
“I’ll take it from here, thanks.” The doctor ripped the patient’s long-sleeved shirt and began to examine him.
Bishop started outside the makeshift building and approached another volunteer. “Any idea where they want us to go next?” His face was sooty and sweat poured off of him.
“You should take a breather while you can. I’m sure it won’t be long.” He studied Bishop. “Where you from?”
“Back east.”
“Long way to come to volunteer. I admire you for that. I’m from the area myself. Been an EMT for about 5 years. This is some crazy shit. It’s getting harder to breathe. They might have to push farther out.”
“Could be,” Bishop added.
“What’s your story? You a tech too?”
“Doctor, actually. It’s a long story. I’m just here to help.”
“You two.” A firefighter approached them. “We need some help over here now!”
“Break’s over,” Bishop started toward the firefighter. “I’m a doctor. What do you need?” He peered back and noticed the man he had been speaking with was diverted to help another.
“Get him bandaged up. I’ll leave it up to you but looks to me like it’s not that severe. You got this?” the firefighter asked.
“I got it.” Bishop smiled while the firefighter left. “He’s right, sir. I think you’ll be just fine. Looks like some second-degree burns.” He continued to examine him. “Maybe some first-degree too. Nothing that you can’t go to your local hospital and have checked out. I’ll get you in good enough shape that you can leave here. Does that sound like a plan?”
The man nodded. “I just wanted to protect my house. But the heat…”
“I know, sir. You did what you could.” Bishop cleaned and disinfected the man’s burns before applying a topical treatment. “You know what, I’m going to give you direct-injection antibiotics. They’re the strongest we have and will fight off any infection you might get as a result of these burns.” He opened his medical kit and retrieved a needle. “You’ll feel a slight pinch here.”
“I doubt it, Doc. I don’t feel nothing but the burn.” He held out his arm.
Bishop inserted the needle and pushed the contents into his arm before placing a cotton ball on the site. “Put some pressure on this for just a moment and I’ll get the bandages.”
The man began to writhe on the gurney. He gasped for breath while foam erupted from his mouth. With his hand, he clutched onto Bishop’s arm.
Bishop swung around and noticed the man in distress. He surveyed the area. Doctors, EMTs, and others were busy treating patients. He looked down at the man again who still had a death grip on his arm. “You’ll be okay. It’ll pass in a minute.” With his free hand, he pushed down on the man’s shoulders so he wouldn’t draw attention. “Shhhh. It’s almost over.”
4
As much as Kate wanted things to return to normal, both personally and professionally, it seemed like the more she wished for that to happen, the longer it was taking.
Kate needed something to sink her teeth into to take her mind off all the upheaval that had happened lately. It had been a mistake to meet with Quinn yesterday. She should’ve known better but had truly wanted to keep the relationship from burning to the ground. Quinn would have to reconcile his behavior as she would hers. Maybe when they both did that, they could move on and work together in some small capacity someday.
For now, however, she would settle for an opportunity to work on something on her own before Fisher had a chance to bring in another supervisor. And it looked like her wish was about to be granted.
“Reid, you have a minute?” Fisher walked into her office.
“Of course,” she replied with anticipation on her breath.
“I got a call a few minutes ago from the Denver field office. They could use some guidance on a case that dropped into their laps last week.”
“Okay. Is this something for the team?”
“No. We don’t need to commit our full resources to this. Not at this time, anyway. But I thought it would present an opportunity for you to showcase your talents without being under the thumb of Noah Quinn, or anyone for that matter.”
“When should I leave?”
“Based on what I know from the agent in charge, my best guess is that this should take a couple of days for you to get up to speed and be able to draft a profile for them. It’s a fairly straight-forward case. You’ve handled worse. So, I can count on you?”
“Absolutely. I’m ready at your say.”
“Good. I’ll send over the details and the contact for the field office. You should get yourself booked on the next flight to Denver.” Fisher started to leave. “I know what you’re capable of, Reid. I’ve seen you in action and frankly, I’ve been in awe on occasion. I want to see what you can do all on your own.”
“I won’t let you down.”
Fisher smiled. “I know you won’t.” He continued into the corridor.
This wasn’t the first opportunity to act on her own. Nick had given her something similar when they worked at the Washington field office and she’d been allowed to spread her wings and work on the case in Los Angeles. But here, this was a different story. Fisher had been reluctant to accept her at their first meeting. He’d also been reluctant to accept Nick as his boss, but that was an entirely different situation. Now, he was giving her a chance to see what she could do without being under Quinn’s watchful eye, or Nick’s.
She picked up the phone and booked the next flight from D.C. which was due to leave in four hours. “Plenty of time.”
The next call was to the agent in charge. “Agent Surrey? I’m Kate Reid with BAU Quantico. I understand you all have an interesting case on your hands?”
The agent filled Kate in on the details of the multiple murders and where they currently stood.
“I’m booked on the next flight and should arrive this evening. We can meet up tonight if you’d like?” She smiled and nodded. “Great. I’ll call you when I arrive. I look forward to meeting you.” Kate ended the call.
The medical examiner’s office in Oakview, Texas was nothing more than an old house in the center of town. It was only a satellite office to the main location in Galveston, and the population of Oakview scarcely required anything larger. In fact, most of the cases involved drownings or on a rare occasion, murder. But something drew the attention of the doctor as he read the newly released toxicology reports on two victims of the hurricane earlier this month.
He picked up the phone. “Dr. Ruiz, this is Dr. Levitan in Oakview, do you have a moment to discuss a case with me?” He nodded. “Great, thank you. I just received the tox screen back on two victims who died during the hurricane rescue efforts.” He paused. “Yes, it has taken some time to get the office opened again after the damage, but we are recovering, thank you. Anyway, this one I’m looking at now, a 63-year-old male with Stage 4 renal disease. He apparently died while being rescued, but what I’m seeing here on this report, well, it concerns me, to say the least.” He flipped through the pages. “The report indicates severe hyperkalemia. Yes, that is associated with his kidney disease, however, his medication list, as submitted by his wife, shows his disease was being well managed. I think the hyperkalemia was brought on by an injection of potassium chloride. The level of potassium was well outside the normal range.” He listened again. “I guess what I’m saying, Dr. Ruiz, is that it looks like this man was given a lethal dose of potassium chloride, which induced the hyperkalemia and caused his death.”
The young doctor listened to the more experienced one and nodded his agreement. “The other patient I was concerned about died from a lack of oxygen. It raised concern only in the sense that this victim did not drown and was on no medication, according to her family. The woman was 35 and in good health. I’d like to send both of these reports to you for review. And if there are any signs of asphyxiation I might have overlooked in the female victim.” He waited again. “Thank you, Dr. Ruiz. I’ll await your
call.”
Being the younger, less experienced examiner, Dr. Levitan wondered if Dr. Ruiz would give his full attention to the concerns of the two victims. All told, 35 people had died as a result of Hurricane Edward. It devastated the small community of Oakview. What Levitan refused to let happen was to overlook a potential murderer in their midst.
He stood from his desk and retrieved his cell phone, pressing one of his contact buttons.
The line answered. “Oakview Police. How may I direct your call?”
“Can I speak with Detective Castillo, please? This is Dr. Levitan from the M.E.’s office.”
“One moment please.”
Levitan listened while he was put on hold before his call was again answered.
“Dr. Levitan. How are you?”
“Detective Castillo. Doing all right, all things considered. And you?” Levitan asked.
“Still cleaning up the mess Edward left behind. What can I help you with Doc?”
He flipped through the reports again. “Do you have time to meet for lunch today?”
“Sure. Is that all I get to know right now?”
“I’d prefer to speak in person. Say noon at Rosita’s?”
“Sounds good. See you then, Doc.”
“See you then.”
The plane landed and Kate retrieved her laptop bag along with an overnight bag. As she made her way to the curb-side pick-up, a man who looked like he was FBI stood in front of a black SUV. Definitely FBI. He held a sign with her name on it and she approached him. “I’m Agent Kate Reid.”
“Ah, good. You’re right on time.” He offered his hand. “Brighton. Neil Brighton. Nice to meet you. I know you spoke with SSA Surrey, but he asked that I make the trip to bring you in. We should get going. It’s already late and I’d really like to get you up to speed just as quickly as possible. Jump in.”
Kate stepped inside and closed the passenger door while Brighton sat behind the wheel.
He pressed the ignition. “We sure are glad one of you Quantico folks made time in your busy schedules to pay us a visit.”
“That’s our job,” she replied.
“I suppose so.” He tossed a brief look her way. “You hungry? Did you manage to get any dinner? We could stop somewhere and take it to the office if you’d like. I wouldn’t mind a bite. It’s been a long day.”
Kate noticed that Brighton was a talker. Nothing wrong with that, it just wasn’t who she was. He looked to be around her age, give or take. Average looking but fit. Short dark hair and a slightly rounded face with big blue eyes. And when he smiled, his teeth filled every inch inside that mouth. “I could eat. Thanks. How long have you been with the Denver office?”
“Six years now, I suppose. Something like that. You? How long have you been at Quantico? That’s the big-time, right? Must be something to work with the brainiacs over there. I bet you’re never bored. You must see some crazy stuff.”
Kate was beginning to get the sense that she wasn’t likely to get a word in edgewise with this guy. But she was nothing if not cordial.
Pete Fryer had been an Emergency Medical Technician going on ten years. He’d started right after high school, received his certification and off he went. The only place he’d ever worked was right here in Baltimore. When he opted to bring up a matter of concern to his supervisor, he didn’t hesitate because everyone who worked here with him was considered family. Everyone except for the new guy, Theo Bishop, his partner and the guy who ran off to volunteer every chance he got.
“Evening, Chief.” Pete walked into his supervisor’s office with his hands in his jacket pockets.
“Hey, Pete. What’s going on? It’s a little late for you to still be here, isn’t it?”
Everyone called him “Chief,” but Ray Zimmerman was the lead paramedic. In the hierarchy of EMTs, Pete was at the intermediate level. Zimmerman was at the highest level; he was a paramedic and in charge of the team.
“Yeah, I should be getting home, but I was trying to catch up on my reports. Listen, um, you got a minute?”
“Sure. Take a seat. What’s on your mind?” Zimmerman leaned back in his chair. He was a tall, ball-headed man who looked intimidating, but to those who knew him, he was a softy.
“Theo is still volunteering at the wildfire over in California, right?” He pulled out the metal chair and dropped into it.
“Yep. I actually just heard from him today. Says he’ll be back the day after tomorrow. Why? You miss him or something?” He chuckled.
“Not really. He’s not the type of guy to buddy-up to people, I don’t think.”
“All right. What’s got you concerned then? That woman you lost? Pete, you know it’s part of the job. It happens. You and Theo did everything you could.”
“See, that’s where I’m not so sure, Chief.”
Zimmerman’s brow creased and he folded his arms over his chest. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know.” Pete stared at the floor for a moment. “I just. I just don’t know what happened. I mean, the woman was stable, then she wasn’t. Just like that.” He snapped his fingers.
“Are you saying Theo screwed up something?”
“Maybe. I’m probably way off base here, but he just doesn’t seem right to me, you know?”
“Not seeming right and making a mistake on the job are two very different things, Pete. Stop dancing around what it is you want to say and just say it. It won’t leave this room. I can promise you that.”
Pete captured Zimmerman’s gaze once again. “I guess what I’m trying to say is, what if Theo did something on purpose?”
The chief’s expression fell blank. “Pete, now I think you should be really careful what you say here because I want to be sure I’m understanding you as clearly as I can.”
“I think you know what I’m saying, Chief. Theo’s been here, what, less than a year?”
“Something like that.”
“I wonder how many patients we’ve lost since that time. He’s only been my partner since this summer. What about before that?”
“He was partnered with Hopkins.”
“And she’s gone. She quit,” Pete added. “I’m just saying, I’m starting to get a bad feeling about Theo. I mean, how does a guy who used to be a doctor end up working as an EMT?”
“I asked him that very question. He said he couldn’t afford the malpractice insurance anymore. I didn’t think anything of it after that.”
Pete grunted. “Okay. Say that’s true. How the hell does he afford to keep taking time off and flying around the country to play hero every time some natural disaster strikes?”
“Come on now. You can’t fault a man for wanting to help others in need. With his medical training, I’m sure he’s an invaluable resource to those people.” Zimmerman pulled up in his chair. “Look, I get where you’re coming from. You just lost a patient. It hurts like hell and you start looking for any explanation for how it could’ve happened. You do bring up some valid points, so here’s what I’m going to do. I’ll review Theo’s report on the DOA and I’ll look for any inconsistencies. Then, I’ll reach out to the ME and see what she thinks. If you want to know the cause of death, she’ll have it by now or very shortly. Will that settle your concerns for the time being?”
He nodded. “Yeah. Thanks, Chief. I appreciate you listening to me.” Pete stood. “I’m going to head out now.”
“Good idea. I’ll let you know what I find out.” Zimmerman waited for Pete to leave before peering through his office window. He rubbed his smooth chin and shook his head. “Malpractice insurance, huh?” He turned back to his computer and typed in a command. “Probably something I should’ve done sooner, but better late than never.”
The screen populated with the file of Dr. Theodore Bishop. The 33-year-old graduated Fieldbrook Medical School in Rhode Island five years prior. He received his EMT certification last year and worked for EMS in Pittsburg for a brief time before moving to Baltimore where he was hired on.
Zimmerma
n studied the information on the screen and considered the timing of it all. “Where did you do your residency?” He’d known that it took something like three years in residency before one could become a doctor. There had been a time when he considered med school before opting to become a paramedic instead. The amount of schooling and the cost alone was enough to dissuade him. But he recalled something about the programs.
He pulled up the medical licensing board in Rhode Island to find out where Bishop served his residency. “Our Lady of Mercy. Providence.” He jotted down the details. Everything seemed legitimate and it was too early in the morning to make any calls.
Zimmerman shut down his computer and pulled on his coat from the back of his chair. “I’ll have to take a fresh look later.” He walked outside and reached his car, then slipped into the driver’s seat when an idea struck. With his phone in hand, there was one person who he wondered if she had the same concerns as Pete.
“Hopkins. Hey, it’s Zimmerman.”
“Chief?”
“Yeah. How you doing? How you liking your new post in Manhattan?” He pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road.
“It’s great. Wow. I’m surprised to hear from you. What’s up?”
“I hope I didn’t catch you at a bad time, but I wanted to ask you something.”
“Not a bad time at all. I’m off today, so I’m catching up on my Netflix shows. Ask away.”
“You were partnered up with Theo Bishop, you remember?”
“Oh yeah. I remember.”
He noted the shift in her tone. “What can you tell me, if anything, about your thoughts on the good doctor?”
She scoffed. “You really want to know?”
“I do indeed.”
“Well, he and I never really bonded, you know? He was kind of standoffish. Not a friendly guy.”
“Okay. What else?” He pulled onto the turnpike.