by Kelly Holm
The next day, he went back to the library, and searched the internet for more information on Dr. Blackmore, but came up
empty. There really wasn’t anything that sounded out of the norm, Leo was confused. Why was Krystal so worried about Mila working with him, it seemed logical to him. Mila was a clinical psychologist, and Dr. Blackmore was a psychiatrist. It made perfect sense for them to work together. What was he missing?
After trying a few more search words, Leo decided to quit looking for information on Dr. Blackmore. He thought it might be better to just go to the clinic and see what he could find out there. Leo quickly found the building, but when he tried the door, it was still locked. It looked like a medical office, but it didn’t appear to be open regular hours. He looked at his watch and noticed it was almost 5:30 p.m., so he decided to try and catch Mila after work again tonight.
When he arrived at Mila’s office, he noticed that there were still patients going in and out. He saw a woman going in that reminded him so much of his sister Daisy. Leo wondered what she was like now, what her life was like. He felt bad he didn’t try and find her all those years ago, but he had so many other things going on and had no idea where she might have gone.
About forty-five minutes later, the lady came out and got into her car. A few minutes later, Mila came out. This time she was alone. When Mila walked out of the building towards her car, she didn’t notice Leo until he said something.
“Mila.”
She looked around to see where the voice was coming from. It was then she saw Leo sitting on the front end of his 1974 black Dodge Charger. Mila wondered what the heck he was doing not only in Los Angeles but here at her office.
“Leo? What are you doing here?”
“You said if I ever find myself in L.A. to drop in, so I’m dropping in. I hope I didn’t come at a bad time,” Leo said, as he flashed a huge smile.
“Um, no, I guess I’m just shocked to see you. So, you just decided to come to L.A.?”
“Well, I came down to get some supplies for the tattoo shop, but I thought as long as I was here, I would swing in and say hello.” Leo could tell Mila was nervous, he wondered if he had come at a bad time and she was just too polite to say something.
“You came down here to get supplies? Interesting...”
Leo could tell she was questioning his being here, it was a flimsy story, but sometimes implausible stories work because they could be believable. He quickly changed the subject.
“I’m only here for a couple days. Thought I would take a chance, and see if you’d like to get some dinner, my treat.”
“I would love to, but unfortunately, I’m on my way to a meeting on the other side of town. How about we meet for dinner tomorrow night?”
“Tomorrow is fine, but could we do lunch? I’ll be heading back to Rockville tomorrow afternoon.”
“Sure, I can switch some things around and meet you, how about 11:00 a.m.? Do you want to meet here, or would you like me to pick you up at your hotel?”
“I can meet you here.”
“Great, then I will see you tomorrow. I’m sorry, but I really have to get going, I’m already late.”
“I understand. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
As Mila got into her car to meet Dr. Blackmore, she wondered why Leo was really in Los Angeles.
Leo watched as Mila pulled out of the parking lot. He thought about following her but decided against it. Instead, he went back over to the warehouse medical building to see if he could find any clues.
When he pulled up, he could see that there were lights on inside, so someone had to be working. Leo wondered if they were
taking late appointments, or if just the doctors were there. Hopefully, he could casually chat with the receptionist to find out what type of medical office it was. Leo walked in, and
immediately, the woman with the long curly black hair behind the desk said,
“Sir, are you lost?”
“I was just wondering what type of business this is,” Leo asked as he looked around the office; it was very nicely decorated with leather back chairs, pictures on the wall, and a large fish tank mounted on the back wall.
“It’s a medical office. We are closed right now; besides, you need to have an appointment.”
She was polite but very short with him, and he could tell she wanted him gone. Within minutes, a tall man with dark hair, and chiseled features, dressed in scrubs, came out to see what was going on.
“Everything ok, Sofia?”
“Yes, this gentleman was just leaving.”
“Maybe you can help me, I was just asking her what type of medical office this is,” Leo asked again.
“The type you need an appointment for. Now, let me show you to the door,” the large man replied, as he walked towards Leo until he was at the door.
“It’s cool, I’m leaving. Sorry to have bothered you,” Leo said, as he turned and walked out.
As he approached his car, he wondered why they ushered him out so quickly; he was polite, and although they claimed they were closed, the door was unlocked. There was no reason to want him gone unless they were doing something, they don’t want anyone to know about.
When Leo got back to his room at the Chester Inn, he checked his phone and noticed he had a message. It was from Maggie.
“Leo, call me when you get this.”
Leo immediately called Maggie back.
“Maggie, I got your message. What happened to you the other night?”
“I’m not exactly sure; it’s been a bizarre couple of days.”
“What do you mean?”
“I was finishing up my shift like I do every day, and suddenly, I felt this horrible pain in my back, and I passed out. When I came to, I was in post-op, and I found out they removed one of my kidneys. They told me I had some sort of attack, but something seems fishy to me. Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but something just doesn’t feel right.”
“Are you fucking kidding me? Did you have problems with your kidneys?”
“That’s the thing; I’ve never even had a kidney infection. When I asked about it, I was told I had to talk to the doctor, but the doctor never came in; and the only nurse that took care of me was Nurse Barron, and you’ve seen her bedside manner. It all seems very suspicious. They wouldn’t leave a chart in my room either, so I could never see what was going on.”
“Are you still in the hospital?”
“No, they released me, and I’m at home.”
“Do you think someone did this to you deliberately?”
“I’m not sure what I think. All I know is that they removed one of my kidneys, and there doesn’t appear to be a medical reason for it.”
“Do you think it was Dr. Blackmore?”
“I only have a fuzzy memory of the doctor, and he was in full scrubs, so I couldn’t really see much of his face. I do know it was a man, and I have a funny feeling it was Dr. Blackmore. But like I said, I don’t have any proof; it’s more of a hunch. Do you think you could stop over later? I have something I think you need
to see.”
“I’m in Los Angeles right now, and things here are weird. I found Mila’s office, but guess who I saw her talking with?”
“Who?”
“Dr. Blackmore.”
“That’s interesting; Krystal was really afraid that she might be working with him,” Maggie said, sounding concerned.
“Do you have any idea what they may be working on? I know that Dr. Blackmore is a psychiatrist, but I overheard him saying that he had a procedure he was going to perform the following day. What kind of procedure would a psychiatrist perform?”
“Krystal and I were trying to figure out what his extracurricular activities were too.”
“This is getting crazy. Krystal wrote me this letter that said I should get some file out of her desk drawer, but I didn’t find anything in the drawer; it was completely empty like someone went in and just took everything out all at once. Do you know what was supposed to be
in there?”
“She was compiling evidence against Dr. Blackmore; I’m not exactly sure what all was in the drawer though. I told her it was a bad idea to keep it there, but she wouldn’t listen. They must have somehow, found the evidence.”
“Dammit,” Leo said, as he ran his hand over his goatee.
“I do have something else I think you’ll be very interested in seeing.”
“What’s that?”
“I need to go over this with you in person. I’m not sure if the phones are safe. When will you be back in town?”
“I’m leaving tomorrow afternoon, after lunch with Mila. Do you want me to swing by and see you?”
“Yes, don’t worry about calling first, I can’t go anywhere
anyway. So, you mentioned that you saw Mila leaving with Dr. Blackmore, do you have any idea where they went?”
“I followed them to this make-shift medical office a few miles away from Mila’s office. I went inside the place and was immediately escorted out by a guy in scrubs. They wouldn’t answer any of my questions.”
“Leo be careful, you don’t know the type of people you are dealing with. They are very dangerous. I don’t know exactly what Dr. Blackmore is up to, but it’s not good; and from what I’ve heard, it could be multiple things.”
“I’ll be careful. I just wish I knew what I am supposed to be looking for. My main concern right now is Mila. I have to find out what her connection is, and if she’s in any danger.”
“Maybe you should just let this go, I mean, look what happened to Krystal and me.”
“What do you mean? Are you insinuating that this guy might have had something to do with Krystal’s death?” Leo could feel his blood start to boil.
“I didn’t say that, but the timing is weird, don’t ya think? Maybe it’s just more of a hunch.”
“The timing is weird...”
“Just be careful.”
“I will be, but I have to watch over Mila now that Krystal is gone.”
“It’s your decision, but I would proceed with extreme caution.”
“I will, I promise. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Chapter 10
As Mila drove to her meeting with Dr. Blackmore, she wondered what Leo was really doing in Los Angeles; he said he was picking up some supplies for the tattoo shop, but that seemed a bit flimsy. I do remember telling him that if he ever found himself in L.A. to look me up, so maybe he was just dropping in, Mila thought, she laughed at herself for being so paranoid.
When Mila arrived at the restaurant, she immediately went to the hostess station to secure a table, the restaurant was getting busy, and she wanted to make sure they wouldn’t have to wait.
“Hello, welcome to Middleton’s, how many in your party today?” The tall hostess with long black hair and a face full of freckles asked.
“There will be two, but would you mind checking if there might be a reservation for Blackmore?”
“We don’t take reservations; however, I do know that Dr. Blackmore has arrived, and has been seated. Please follow me,” the hostess said, as she led Mila through the restaurant and onto the back patio.
“Hello Mila, you’re looking ravishing as usual,” Dr. Blackmore said, as she approached the table. He quickly stood and pulled her chair out for her, and she sat down.
“Oh, thank you. It’s good to see you. How are you?”
Mila always felt a little uncomfortable around Dr. Blackmore, but she wasn’t exactly sure why. There was just something about him that rubbed her wrong; although it wasn’t enough to force her to stop working with him.
“I’m fucking fantastic, business couldn’t be any better, I can hardly keep up with the orders,” he boasted as he ran his fingers through his short brown and grey hair.
“That’s good to hear. I know I’m definitely enjoying the commissions. It’s so exciting to be a part of this whole study you’re doing.”
“Yes, and we are helping these people so much. I can’t imagine how they live with these mental ailments day in and day out.”
“How did Mr. Lanchard do, he would have met with you yesterday.” Mr. Lanchard was the most recent of Mila’s patients to try Dr. Blackmore’s new medication.
“He was amazing. Got any more like him? I’m sure you’ll be pleased with your commission from him,” he said with a wink.
“I seem to be running into a lot of good candidates lately,” Mila said, as she thought about how many patients she had sent over recently.
“It’s surprising how many fucked up people there are in the world, isn’t it,” he said quietly.
“I’m just glad we can do something to help.”
“Are you still using the herbal mixture I gave you to find their truth?”
“Yes, it works like a charm; I just wish it lasted longer. Sometimes I have to double dose the patients just to finish up my questions.”
“Interesting; I’ll think about that and see if I can tweak the recipe a little next time.”
“That would be great.”
“Enough shop talk, let’s have some dinner,” he said, as he handed Mila a menu.
“Have you been here before, they have amazing food, especially the mango swordfish,” Mila said, as she looked over the menu to decide what to order.
“That’s what I heard; I’m excited to try the swordfish,”
Dr. Blackmore said, as he motioned for a waiter to come and take their order.
After her dinner meeting with Dr. Blackmore, Mila went home. When she got there, her buddy Smokey was anxiously waiting for her at the door.
“Hey, buddy. Did you have a good day? I bet you’re hungry; let’s get you something to eat,” she said, as she picked Smokey up and carried him into the kitchen.
She pulled a can of his favorite food out of the cupboard; an all-natural cat food with slow-cooked flavors of chicken, turkey, and beef. As she was emptying the can into his bowl, Smokey quickly used his head to push her hand out of the way so he could start eating.
“Geez, Smokey, you could benefit from some manners.”
Smokey didn’t care, he was hungry, and the food was delicious. He ate until the bowl was empty and then he licked the sides to make sure he got every last bit.
After feeding Smokey, and playing a short round of his all-time favorite game, chase the string ball, she pulled out her briefcase to do a little work before bed. She looked over each of the patients’ files that she would see the following day. There was one patient, though, that she just couldn’t get out of her mind; that was Larisa Bergman.
There’s definitely something dark about this woman, I’m just not sure what it is. I know she’s hiding something… could be big… but how do I get her to spill? Why is she so secretive if her baby died of SIDS…? What the hell is her truth? Mila asked herself.
The next day came faster than Mila wanted. Her 8:00 a.m. appointment was with Mercedes Whithouse, who was seeking help with OCD. Mila glanced at the clock; it was 8:10 a.m. This patient had a bad habit of skipping appointments; Mila wondered
if she was going to show up today; she only had five minutes left before she would have to reschedule. Then, just as the clock struck 8:14 a.m., the buzzer for the waiting room went off.
Mila got up and went to greet her. Mercedes Whithouse was your typical Los Angeles trophy wife. She was quite beautiful, with silky long bleached blonde hair, and a perfect complexion. She was five-foot-nine and very thin, almost too skinny, but it worked for her. She was dressed to the nine’s and always wore stiletto heels.
Her husband, Rolland Whithouse, almost forty years her senior, is a business tycoon. In the early eighties, he invested heavily in tech stock and has been living the high life ever since.
“Hi, Mercedes, it’s nice to see you again. Would you like to come in and sit down?”
“Sure, sorry I’m late, L.A. traffic…. l-a-t-e-l-a-t-r-a-f-f-i-c.” Mercedes got up and walked towards the office door, as she casually starts silently spelling out what she just said.
“I see you are still spelling your sentences out. Is that getting better, worse, or is there no change?”
“I think it’s about the same. …a-b-o-u-t-t-h-e-s-a-m-e.” Mila waited patiently after each response.
“What about the dark thoughts, are you still having those?”
“Yes, y-e-s.”
“What type of dark thoughts are you having?”
“I think about what it would be like to slash my husband’s wrinkly throat whenever I pick up a steak knife, or really any sharp object that cuts.” Mercedes took a moment and silently spelled out her sentence while Mila waited patiently.
“Do you…” Mercedes quickly held up her index finger to signal Mila to wait a moment with her questions so she could finish spelling.
This is getting tedious; just spit it out, lady! Mila thought.
“Do you see yourself performing the act in your mind?”
“Yes, I can see the blood gush out, and the sparkle in his eyes fade to black. I like that part. …b-l-o-o-d-g-u-s-h-o-u-t…”
“How do you feel about your husband? Do you love him?”
“I love his money… h-i-s-m-o-n-e-y.”
“But how do you feel about him?”
“He’s not horrible, he’s just so old and boring, but he’s gone now. …g-o-n-e-n-o-w.”
“What do you mean he’s gone now?” What did you do girl…, Mila wondered.
“He doesn’t live with me anymore. …d-o-e-s-n-t-l-i-v-e-w-i-t-h-m-e-a-n-y-m-o-r-e.”
“Why doesn’t’ he live with you anymore, did the two of you separate or get a divorce?”
“No, n-o.”
“How long has he lived somewhere else?”
“A few months, I guess. …f-e-w-m-o-n-t-h-s…”
“Do you still talk to him?”
“Sometimes. S-o-m-e-t-i-m-e-s.”
“Do you have dark thoughts about anyone else?”
“No. n-o.”
“You don’t?” Mila thought this was a little strange, but kept it to herself.
“Well, sometimes I’ll see someone, and I’ll think about what it would be like to just walk up to them and slash their throat. …s-l-a-s-h-t-h-e-i-r-t-h-r-o-a-t,” Mercedes said, as she took her finger and pulled it along her throat.