by Beth Ziarnik
Jill clutched her stomach. “This whole thing makes me sick.”
He couldn’t blame her but pushed one of the opened white boxes toward her. “Come on. We have to eat something. It’ll be a long night.”
She looked into the box and bolted for the bathroom. As she heaved again and again, he knew from experience how stomach acid and what little was left from lunch burned her throat and reviled her mouth. He entered the bathroom just as her dry heaves took over. He ached to see her in such torment. Grabbing a couple of washcloths, he ran each under the faucet and wrung the excess water from them.
When she finished, he stood beside her with a cool, wet washcloth for her head and a warm one to wipe her mouth. When she had rinsed her mouth, he helped her back into her room and settled her on the bed.
“I thought I did a better job of choosing supper than that,” he quipped.
She lay back on the pillow and closed her eyes while he placed the cool washcloth on her forehead and let it do its soothing work. “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice quivering. “It wasn’t the food. I can’t stand the thought of Dad’s life hanging in the balance with us as his only help. Can we really pull this off?”
“It’s not too late to contact the police.”
“No.” She closed her eyes. “I wish it were that simple, but they can’t do anything until a crime is committed. As far as anyone else knows, Alice has not committed a crime.”
“It’s settled then.” He turned the washcloth over on her forehead. “We’ll give it our best try. In the meantime, you should eat something when you feel a little better.”
She wrinkled her nose, and her stomach growled.
“You’ll need your strength.”
She nodded reluctantly. “And something to prevent my stomach from growling in the middle of our mission.”
“Now you’re getting the idea.”
“Maybe a little then.” She removed the damp cloth from her forehead and pulled herself into a sitting position on the bed, dragging the pillows between her and the headboard attached to the wall.
He arranged a scant amount of her favorite cashew chicken and rice dish on a paper plate and brought it to her. “Maybe more than a little, but a little at a time,” he suggested, hoping she would keep the food down.
She stared at it and then took a tiny bite, chewing carefully.
He watched her, not sure how well this would go any more than he was sure how well their middle of the night operation would fare.
At least she would go armed with the voice recorder and, hopefully, catch anything incriminating Alice might say. But first, Jill had to enter her father’s room unseen and hide. If only he could take her place, but Alice wanted Jill’s destruction, and Jill alone stood a chance of bringing this horrible situation to a good end.
At midnight, Jill shivered in her hospital garb as she hurried up the stairs to position herself in the stairwell near her father’s room. If she happened on any hospital personnel, her pastel cotton pants and print shirt wouldn’t look out of place at a glance, and they would not have time to realize her I.D. was suspicious.
Still, maybe she and Clay should have gotten Brian in on this. At least if they were caught, he could be the voice of reason in the fracas that was sure to follow.
But it was too late to rethink their plan. Clay was already in a nearby stairwell, awaiting her buzzer signal on his phone, should she need him as a distraction. In the meantime, if anyone entered his stairwell, he would climb the stairs as if going to the next floor, then return to his waiting position when the coast was clear.
Her heart thumped a staccato beat as she cracked open the stairwell door and looked down the hallway toward the open door to her father’s room. The shadowed hall was quiet, his room several doors away from the lighted nurses’ station.
Was Alice in the room? Most likely. She had called for Jill to come.
Surely, the Lord hadn’t brought her this far only to let Alice snatch her father away. God, all your plans are good. If my helping Dad is part of your plan, please make it possible.
Her phone vibrated. She carefully closed the door so she could answer it.
“How are you doing?” Clay whispered.
“I’m fine, but I’m not sure Alice is with Dad. If she is, I need for her to leave the room so I can get in unseen.”
“Give me a few minutes to go down a floor to the restroom where I won’t be overheard. I’ll call you from there. Then I’ll call the nurses’ station and ask for Alice.”
“Won’t they transfer the call to my father’s room?”
“I guess we’ll find out.”
Jill shrugged. They had to do something. “Okay, give it a try.”
She slipped her phone back into her pocket, cracked the door open again, and waited. A trickle of sweat snaked down her hairline. This whole venture was crazy. But it had to work.
Lord, if anyone has to be caught, please let it be me.
An orderly came around the nurse’s desk and walked down the hall toward her. Quickly sliding the door back into place, she hid near the hinges in case he decided to take the stairs.
The soft footsteps approached and then turned to recede down another hallway. She pulled a shaky, shallow breath and leaned against the wall.
Hurry, Clay.
Clay raced down the steps, his feet barely touching them. Adrenaline pumped through his veins. When he reached the next floor, he listened for any passersby. Nothing. He opened the door. Still nothing. So far so good. Entering the hall, he made for the restroom. Unlike the stairwell, no one should be using it at this hour of the night. He sprinted the last few steps to duck safely inside.
Whew. His heart pumped like truck pistons.
A toilet flushed, drowning the room in the rushing sound. Clay slipped into a stall, carefully closing its door. He waited and watched, listening intently.
Water running in a sink. The whooshing of a hand dryer. A shuffling of feet. The door to the restroom opening and closing. Clay waited a few more minutes before he checked the other stalls to make sure he was alone, then pulled out his phone. He couldn’t let Jill walk into danger without adequate backup.
“Jill?”
“I’m here.”
“Let’s try to contact Caldwell one last time. I can’t shake this feeling that we’ll need more backup than I can provide.” He waited, but she didn’t answer. “Jill?”
“I’m thinking … and praying.”
“Well?”
“Okay. I’ll text you his number.”
Relief washed over him. He quickly entered Caldwell’s number and attempted to connect. The man answered immediately.
“Caldwell? We need your help.” He briefly explained what was going down.
“Are you two nuts?”
“I’d have to say, affirmative.”
“You’ve got that right.” The man was not happy, and Clay couldn’t blame him. “It’ll take me ten minutes to get there.”
“How will you get in?”
“Don’t worry. I’m nearby, having coffee with Steve Kalbus, a policeman friend and his partner. I’ll ask them to help us. We’ll meet you outside John’s room. In the meantime, stop Jill before this goes any further.”
“I’ve already tried, but she’s determined.”
“Then delay her. Wait as long as you can before you call her. If all else fails, make sure she turns on that voice recorder.” He disconnected.
Clay waited, pacing and praying for the timing to be just right in order to save both Jill and her father. Too early and they might never trap Alice. Too late and Jill’s father could pay with his life. He checked the time. Did he dare wait much longer?
God, help us.
Jill checked her phone for the third time. Clay should be in place by now. Why was he taking so long? Had someone stopped him? Delayed him? Had he connected with Brian?
Please, Lord, help us.
Her phone vibrated. She pressed it to her ear and whispered, “Yes?”
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“I’m calling the nurses’ station now. Remember, don’t be foolish. Your only job is to entice Alice to confess. Brian and his friend Steve Kalbus and partner are on the way to help us. If you can, wait until the three of us are outside your father’s door before you confront her. About ten minutes.” He clicked off.
Kalbus? Wasn’t he Brian’s policeman friend? Lord, so much could go wrong, but I’m counting on You to make it all come out right. Thank You for promising to be our helper in times of need. And if ever we needed You, it’s now.
Jill slipped the phone into her pocket and opened the stairwell door enough to hear the phone at the nurses’ station ring. Someone picked it up. Within moments, the nurse walked briskly down the hall and entered her father’s room.
A few seconds later, Alice left with the other nurse. Jill opened the door wider to follow Alice’s movements. When she reached the desk, Alice glanced back toward the room and then turned a corner into the station.
Jill’s pulse pounded in her neck. With only moments to make her move, she slipped from her hiding place and sprinted soundlessly into her father’s room.
He lay so quiet in the slightly elevated bed. Was he alive? Or had Alice already disposed of him? Venturing closer, she watched the blanket covering him barely move and breathed a grateful sigh. He appeared uncomfortable. Though his eyes were closed, the small muscles of his face jerked as if he were in pain.
Footsteps approached in the hall. Her heart lurched. Alice?
She glanced about the room for a place to hide. The closet? Too small. Dashing into the bathroom, she spied the shower curtain and pulled it out enough to hide behind but not so much that Alice might notice. She pressed against the wall behind the curtain, activated the voice recorder, and held her breath.
Someone entered her father’s room.
“Wake up, John.” The malicious joy in Alice’s voice sickened Jill. “We’ll have company soon … just as I promised.”
Jill bit her lip so hard she almost drew blood as she imagined the horror in her father’s eyes. The same fright that had filled him when he tried to fight off the poisonous shot Alice had given him on his last night at home. And with my help, Lord. How could I have been so naïve? She stiffened her shoulders. But no more. Show me what to do, and I’ll do it, no matter the cost.
“That’s right, John. Jill should arrive any minute now. You will see each other one last time, and then she’ll go to prison for your murder. Just as you let my mother go to prison to be murdered.” Alice’s voice turned to ice.
Though Jill couldn’t see her adversary, she heard her move about the room.
“You think it was easy for me,” Alice hissed, “knowing you were responsible for my mother’s death? Living with you as my benefactor? You fake!”
Jill thought she detected a slight groan coming from her father. Was it her imagination? She wanted to weep, but she dared not.
“Funny,” Alice continued, “how, with a little thought, wrongs can be so easily put right. An eye for an eye. Murder for murder. Prison for prison. Don’t struggle, John. You haven’t the strength, and you mustn’t fail before Jill gets here. That’s better. Just lie still. I’ll be right back.”
As Alice entered the bathroom, Jill’s heart hammered. Oh, Lord, please don’t let her find me. Jill held her breath as the woman ran water into the sink and then turned it off. After a slight pause, she left.
Jill frowned. Was that a pillow being fluffed?
“Oh, yes, John, I understand. No doubt, you would prefer going to prison in her place. After all, she is innocent of your crime, but don’t you see? You must suffer as I have suffered. You deprived me of my mother. Now, I will deprive you of your daughter. It’s only fair, you know.”
There was more movement as Alice bustled around the room. “I could have let you die at the house, but I deserve to see your reaction when you realize what I’ve done, not just to you, but to your precious daughter.” There was a long pause. “And now it’s time to make you comfortable. Just enough of this should keep you alive and conscious long enough to know what’s happening without any chance that you might interfere.”
Jill burst into the room. “Alice, don’t!”
Chapter Twenty-Five
“Ah, Jill, I wondered when you would come out and join us.” Alice smiled maliciously.
“You knew I was here?”
“Of course.” The nurse picked up a syringe and discharged a bit of solution. “And you’re just in time, as I knew you would be.”
Jill edged closer, the end of the bed a barrier between them. How would she ever reach Alice in time to stop her from using that needle? She took another step.
“Stop where you are.” Alice’s voice was low and menacing as she held up the syringe. “Or I’ll give this to John right now. And it’s not insulin to control when he feels better and when he doesn’t. With this, he’ll die instantly.”
She poised the syringe to plunge it into the IV drip.
“No!” Jill pitched her phone at Alice’s hand, nearly knocking the syringe from her grip.
Alice screamed as she fumbled to regain control of it while Jill raced around the bed with such force that, as she grabbed the nurse, the two of them fell against the IV stand, nearly knocking it over.
The hospital speaker system came alive with “Code Green” and her father’s room number as the syringe skittered across the floor. Alice reached for it, and Jill grabbed her arm. Their scuffling sent a wheeled cart crashing against the wall. The water pitcher on it overturned in a tinkling of ice cubes and a cold, sobering splash.
Jill grappled with Alice who again screamed for help, but Jill refused to release her hold.
A security guard rushed in with Clay right behind him. “Brian brought the police,” Clay said, pulling Jill to safety. “They’re right behind us.”
“Police?” Alice scrambled to her feet and straightened her scrubs. “And a good thing.” She glared at him before turning to the security guard. “Restrain this woman. She tried to kill Mr. Taylor.” Alice stooped to retrieve the syringe and held it up. “Here’s the proof.” She reached over to adjust the IV and its drip.
“Stop her!” Jill screamed. “That injection is poison!”
Two policemen burst through the door, while Brian and another nurse hovered just outside.
“Sergeant Kalbus, Milwaukee P.D.” The officer trained his gun on Alice. “Stop right where you are, Miss Donovan. Put that syringe down carefully.”
Alice gritted her teeth but did as instructed. “I am not the culprit here. This crazed woman nearly killed her own father. I was merely trying to stop her.”
As the security officer took charge of Alice, Jill heard the welcome words that meant her father was safe, “You’re under arrest for attempted murder. You have the right to remain—”
Alice struggled to free herself. “Wait! What are you doing? Jill’s the guilty one.”
In answer, he clicked the handcuffs in place and finished reciting her Miranda rights.
Jill could finally breathe again. Clay drew alongside her.
“Release me!” Alice tried to twist away from the security guard. “Or I’ll sue you for false arrest.”
Sergeant Kalbus holstered his gun as his partner joined the security guard taking Alice into the hall. The would-be killer clenched her teeth, looked straight ahead, and was soon out of sight.
The second policemen turned to the desk nurse. “Please check on the patient. But we’ll need this IV drip as evidence. Use gloves.”
When the nurse had finished checking her father and removed the IV Alice had handled, Jill moved to her father’s bedside. She smoothed his hair back from his forehead and kissed his damp brow. His anxious eyes followed her every move. “Everything’s fine now, Dad. It’s over. You’re safe, and you can get well again.”
Clay stood near to Jill and whispered. “Did you get anything on the voice recorder?”
“Oh, did I ever.”
Jill tu
rned back to her father and looked into eyes so like her own. He would live. She could never thank God and these good people enough. She and Clay stepped aside to make room for one of the nurses who arrived with a fresh IV.
Sergeant Kalbus tipped his head in Jill’s direction. “Smart of you to use that voice recorder, Miss Shepherd. Along with testimony, it should give us everything we need.”
She handed the recorder to him.
The sergeant looked it over. “Clever. I’ll need a statement from each of you, so I’d appreciate it if you came to the station now to take care of that.”
“Yes, sir,” Clay said, then turned to Brian, reaching out to shake hands. “Thanks, man. We owe you.”
Brian tipped his head to indicate Jill. “Anything to help a friend.”
It took some time to leave statements at the police station where Alice had been taken. Jill had never done that before and couldn’t help but be a bit nervous. Most important, however, was that her father was safe and, she hoped, had a chance of full recovery.
With the formality of statements concluded, the sergeant expressed his approval. “However, no matter how well your rescue effort ended, I can’t condone the stunt you two pulled. You have no idea how bad this could have played out.”
Jill had enough of an idea to make her weak in the knees. “The main thing is that Dad has a chance to live.”
“And Jill won’t wind up in prison for his murder,” Clay added.
Sergeant Kalbus nodded. “Another thing. You two broke the law by impersonating hospital personnel and ignoring both the family’s wishes and the hospital’s directive. It’s possible that either the prosecutor for this case or the police might press charges. However, under the circumstances, I doubt that will happen. Still, be prepared. Just in case.”
Jill reached for Clay’s hand. So, the consequences of their daring attempt to save her father might not be over. It didn’t matter. “If it comes to that, it will have been worth it,” she said. “Is there anything else?”
“Yes,” the sergeant said. “Don’t pull another fool stunt like this. Next time, get the police involved. Even better, don’t let there be a next time.”
