Severed Trust: The Men of the Texas Rangers | Book 4

by Margaret Daley

  “A nurse in each wing, and she has to reconcile what is left with the nurse on the next shift. If medication is missing, it should be caught. It’s accounted for three times a day with the personnel change each shift. It goes to the intended patient, or it’s in the cabinet.”

  “But it can be circumvented by someone giving a patient something different or possibly nothing at all, especially for a patient who wouldn’t know either way.” Ethan had been involved in a case in San Antonio where that had occurred. “So first, we look at all the nurses who are responsible for giving out medication.”

  “I can go back to the nursing home and run some tests on different patients to see what their level of medication is in their system. If it isn’t what it’s supposed to be, then we may be able to pinpoint who is responsible. Or at least narrow down the suspect list. Some may not show up. If the nurse is smart, she would cut the amount down but not take it totally away so it may be harder to find the person.”

  Ethan frowned. “Or persons. Do it today. Make sure no one knows what’s going on.” Turning to Cord, he continued. “We’ll finish the search here, then begin running background and financial checks on all the nurses, especially the ones who handle the medication. We may have to expand to the rest of the staff later.”

  “Do you think the nurse or whoever is doing it is alone? For herself, like Mary Lou?” Cord held Beth’s hand as he faced Ethan.

  Seeing his sister with his friend made him think of Sadie. What would being a couple with Sadie be like? Coming home has caused him to want more than he settled for in the past. He did a mental shake when he realized they were staring at him, waiting for an answer.

  “There could be a network or the person could be working alone. This could connect to what’s happening at the school or be completely separate. We have to look at all possibilities. I’ll be upstairs in Mary Lou’s room.” He strode toward the staircase, deciding he’d leave Beth and Cord alone for a few minutes. His sister should at least be happy, even if he didn’t know what he was going to do.

  In Mary Lou’s room, he began his search of the perimeter to the right of the door and moved inward. Cord came through the entrance when Ethan lifted the left corner of the mattress at the end of the bed. Nothing. He started to put it down when something caught his attention. He walked toward the headboard, raised that end, and withdrew a bottle of pain medication.

  “Help me take this completely off the bed,” Ethan said and waited until Cord was on the other side, then they both removed the mattress from the box springs.

  Still nothing except the one bottle.

  Cord’s mouth twisted into a frown. “There were a lot more than two taken from the nursing home, so if she did it where are the others?”

  “I think somewhere in this house. Like an alcoholic who plants liquor all over the place, she may have done the same thing.”

  “I’m calling in some more officers to help us.”

  “Choose carefully. Sadly, I’ve seen police officers have a problem with prescription drugs.” Ethan didn’t know whom to trust, and he hated that feeling.

  Trust Me. Those words flitted through his mind as he continued his search. At least with the Lord, he wasn’t totally alone. For the first time he also realized he wanted more from his life.

  Sadie drove into her garage, exhausted from a long day consoling students at school. Three students dying in less than two weeks. The kids at school were numb emotionally today. They didn’t know what to do or how to deal with something like that. Frankly, being an adult didn’t make it any easier.

  “Are you sure you don’t mind me staying at your place until Mom gets through at Mrs. Winston’s house?” Lexie’s question broke into her thought, reminding Sadie that Kelly had been Lexie’s best friend. This had to be harder on her.

  “I’m positive.” Sadie switched off the engine, then turned toward Lexie. “How are you holding up?”

  Her stoic expression collapsed. “I haven’t been able to talk much with Mom about what happened to Kelly. With the robbery, she’s had to be at Greenbrier, but . . .” Her voice faded into silence.

  Sadie waited a moment before asking, “But what?”

  “Kelly didn’t deserve what happened to her. The last thing I knew, she was going to tell Carrie and Missy how she felt about what happened to me.”

  “Did she know who spiked your drink?”

  “She said no, and I looked her in the eye and believed her. I’ve known Kelly a long time, and I know when she’s lying. She wasn’t.”

  Sadie pictured Carrie and Missy at the funeral, flanking Kelly as though they were her bodyguards, which was probably what they were doing, not for Kelly’s protection but their own.

  “While you’re here tonight, I’ll help you with any of your schoolwork. Well, maybe not the math class but the others I can.”

  “I’m going to need someone to help me with Algebra II. Math isn’t my favorite subject. That’s the only subject I’m having a hard time with.”

  “My student aide in your hour is super smart, especially in math and science. Maybe I can get him to help you. Tutor you until you come back to school.”

  “Oliver would be great. I may need him to tutor me even after I come back to school. I’ve lost some ground, and I’ve only been gone from school a few days. I can imagine what a few weeks are going to do to me and my grades.”

  “Your suspension is not fair. I’m going to speak to Mr. Howard again on your behalf.”

  Lexie scooted toward the door. “Mom won’t let me come back until Uncle Ethan solves what has happened to Jared, Luke, and Kelly. I’m not sure I want to come back either.”

  “I don’t think much teaching is really going on right now at school. With three teens dying in such a short time, the student body is really feeling it. There are counselors all over the place, and I’m thankful to see a lot of the kids using them. Maybe you should think about talking to someone qualified, although you can always talk to me or your mom.”

  Lexie opened the car door and climbed out. “I talked with our pastor today. He gave me some good things to think about. I’m going to focus on the positive in Kelly’s life. The friendship we shared, and maybe her death will help Uncle Ethan find the people responsible for what’s been going on in Summerton.”

  “I hope so.” Sadie shivered when she thought about catching Kalvin passing something to a student in the auditorium. The way Kalvin had hurriedly shoved the packet into his pocket and Sam snatched the money and ran, at least to her, she felt sure something was going down. She hadn’t had a chance to talk with Maxwell yet to see what he’d done concerning Kalvin and Sam. She would first thing tomorrow morning, barring anything else happening. Was Kalvin involved in selling prescription drugs? That was what it appeared like to her. He was at the pill party. Who suggested having a pill party in the first place? Who suggested moving Jared’s body from the warehouse? What happened to the pills the kids hadn’t taken but had brought to the party?

  Questions plagued Sadie as she entered her house. She would say something to Ethan later. The phone ringing jolted her and prodded her to move faster into the kitchen to answer it.

  When she picked it up and said, “Hello,” silence greeted her for a long, few seconds, then a raspy voice murmured, “Keep your mouth shut or . . .”

  Ethan parked in Sadie’s driveway with Cord right behind him in a patrol car. Ethan strode toward the front porch even before Cord had turned off his engine. Why didn’t Sadie call him about the phone call? Why did he find out about it from Lexie? He didn’t even ring the bell but instead pounded on the door, releasing some of his anger and frustration at the cases plaguing him the past couple of weeks.

  Sadie swung the door open.

  “Did you check to see who I was?” Ethan asked as Cord joined him.

  Sadie looked from him to her brother, then back to him. “I didn’t have to. I saw your car and Cord’s in the driveway.”

  “Why did my niece have to tell me
about the call you received a while ago?” After seeing Kelly that morning, a girl who was best friends with his niece, he couldn’t risk losing anyone important in his life, and Sadie was important to him. “I’m staying here tonight. You need protection.”

  “Let’s discuss this inside.” Sadie stepped out of Ethan’s way.

  As Cord passed her, he frowned and said, “I should have gotten a call at the very least. I’m your brother and the police chief.”

  “I’m aware of who you are. It only happened half an hour ago. I wanted to make sure Ashley and Steven were all right and get Lexie settled before I decided what to do. Your niece was more upset about the call than I was.”

  “And why is that with all that has gone on lately?” Ethan wanted to shout at her at the same time he wanted to hold her—keep her by his side until this was all over with.

  “Because at the moment I can’t do anything about it. If whoever called thinks I’m going to sit by and let drugs take over our schools, he doesn’t know me.”

  Cord moved between Sadie and Ethan and got in her face. “Yes, you are. Let me do my job. You’re a teacher, not a police officer.” He pulled back, folding his arms over his chest. “Just what are you doing to receive a threatening call?”

  She shrugged. “I’m not sure. Maybe it’s because I caught someone selling drugs today at school. At least, I think I did.”

  Ethan stepped around Cord. “And you’re just telling us this now, with the cases we’re working on. May I remind you they’re all tied to prescription drugs in some way? We got Kelly’s autopsy back. She had tranquilizers in her system before she died.”

  “Then it was suicide?”

  Ethan peered toward the top of the staircase and saw Ashley and Lexie watching them from the second floor landing. “Let’s go into the kitchen.”

  A moment later, Ethan sat across from Cord and next to Sadie at the kitchen table in the alcove and lowered his voice to say, “No, I believe she was drugged before she was killed. Whoever did it didn’t want her struggling. There were bruises on her upper arm most likely from her being held from behind. Recent ones. The knot used in the rope was most likely not something Kelly knew how to tie. It was a knot used by climbers. We’re canvassing all the housing units facing the parking lot, and we found a latent print on the rafter not far from where the rope hung. Not your usual place to find a print. As I told you earlier, we’re treating it as a murder.”

  “How about Luke’s death?” Sadie pressed her fingertips into her temples.

  “Murder. It was almost an identical scenario down to the drugs given to Lexie—tranquilizers put in his water bottle. The only difference is he went home early Tuesday rather than staying for football practice.”

  “So the same person went after Lexie and Luke. Is that what you’re saying?”

  “It’s a strong possibility.”

  “Why would someone go after them?”

  The anguish in Sadie’s voice tore at Ethan. “I don’t know. Maybe they’re a threat to whoever is behind this somehow. So do you see now why Cord and I were so upset you didn’t call us immediately?”

  “This wasn’t the only prank call I got this week. I received one on Monday. Someone asked if I knew where Steven was. Thankfully, he was upstairs.”

  With his fist on the table, Ethan surged to his feet. “And you’re just now telling us this?”

  “When I got the call, I thought it might be Harris or one of the kids’ friends playing a prank.”

  “And you don’t think so now?”

  “I don’t know what to think anymore. So far Harris has been aboveboard about everything, but what if it’s an act? He fooled me once.”

  Ethan began prowling the kitchen. “Maybe you should stay home like Lexie until this is over with.”

  “That’s nonsense. It was a kid trying to disguise his voice, getting his jollies at my expense.”

  Ethan narrowed his eyes on her. “You’re taking unnecessary risks.”

  “Enough about me.” Weaving her fingers together, Sadie clasped her hands, her knuckles white. “Who could be doing this? Three teens are dead. Murdered.”

  “We don’t know, but it looks like he’s taking care of liabilities. Greed motivates a lot of people, and there is big money in prescription drugs.” Cord pushed his chair back and rose. “I’m making some coffee. Do you two want any?”

  “I’ll take a cup.” Ethan returned to his seat. “It’s not just teens. It’s happening to adults, too.” He thought of his sister at the nursing home, getting blood samples to test patients’ drug levels and stood again. “Skip the coffee for me. I’d better go to Greenbrier. Beth might be in danger.”

  “Danger? Why?” Her forehead creased, Sadie came to her feet. “What’s happening?”

  Cord set the glass pot down on the counter. “No, let me go to Greenbrier.” His gaze bore into Ethan.

  Beth was his sister, but the look Cord sent Ethan spoke of deep feelings toward Beth. He knew how important it was for him to come to Sadie’s house to make sure she was protected, when it could have just been Cord checking on his sister. “Get the blood samples and have one of your officers drive them to the lab and stay with them. Whoever is behind this has no problem with killing. No doubt he’ll shut down his business, cover his tracks. That’s what I’d do if I were in his shoes. We need to know if the nursing home is a source for him, then check the others in the area. I’ll stay here and look after Sadie and the kids.”

  After Cord gave Sadie a hug, he left the kitchen. She stared at Ethan for a long moment then went into his embrace.

  “I need you to tell me what happened at school. Who did you catch selling drugs?” he whispered close to her ear.

  She leaned back. “Kalvin Majors.” Then she told Ethan what occurred in the auditorium.

  As he listened to her, his gut solidified into a rock. His arms tightened about her. When she finished, all he wanted to do was hold her and never let her go. “But you didn’t see what was in the packet?”

  “No, but the exchange of money makes it highly suspicious. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen him do something similar. I did last week but it was way down the hall, and I couldn’t get to either boy with the crowd separating us. With all that’s been going on I’ve been extra vocal and vigilant.”

  “And you may be making someone nervous.”

  “It could have been Kalvin or Sam who called me.”

  “I didn’t have time to talk to Brendan, Kalvin, and Zoe today with the robbery and Mary Lou, but I will first thing tomorrow morning, especially Kalvin. He’s eighteen, as well as Missy. I need to talk with her without Carrie around, and they seemed to be fused at the hip.”

  “Yes, usually where one goes the other isn’t far away. But I have Missy in class. Carrie isn’t. Come to the school and talk with Missy during my class time. I know some of their classes are together but not English since Missy is a senior and Carrie is a junior.”

  “Good. In the meantime, I’m going to dig deeper into these kids’ lives. Find a way to break through this wall around the group. I think Missy is the weak link. Tell me about her.”

  “You’re correct. She’s a perfect follower. She does everything Carrie does. I’m not sure what hold if any Carrie has over her, but occasionally I’ve seen this with other kids. It isn’t healthy in my opinion. Missy doesn’t think for herself. I have both of them on the softball team last year. Missy parroted everything Carrie did. Does that help you?”

  “Yes. It confirms what I thought.” And it gave him a strategy to use on Missy. He was going to make her think Carrie turned on her.

  The next morning, Sadie unlocked her room at the high school and faced Ethan. “You didn’t have to bring me to school and escort me to my room. It probably was Kalvin because he’s upset I turned him into the assistant principal.”

  “Yes, I needed to. I’m stopping by the school security office and talking to the officers about keeping an eye on you. I’ll pick you up at the end of
the day, and we’ll go get Ashley and Steven.”

  “I feel like I’m in the Witness Protection Program.”

  “No. It would be a lot worse and restrictive than what this is. I’ll be back to interview Missy. I’ll check in with the office, but I don’t want anyone to know until I show up.”

  Her gaze linked with his, and the sensations of being safe inundated her as it had last night with Ethan and Cord combining forces and protecting Beth and Lexie at Sadie’s house. Her home had been crowded with people yesterday evening, but she’d gotten the best night’s sleep in days. “I won’t say anything to anyone. Nobody wants this over with more than me.”

  He took her hand and squeezed it before rotating away and striding down the hall toward the outside door. He had to be tired. Ethan and Cord had taken turns staying up all night, watching over them.

  When Ethan disappeared in the crowd of students filling the corridor, Sadie crossed to her desk and sat, then locked her purse in a drawer and sorted through the mail she’d picked up in her box in the office. She found the envelope from Maxwell and opened it quickly to see what he’d done with Kalvin.

  She read the discipline referral, crushed it into a tight ball, and bolted to her feet. Anger surged through her. She stormed from the room, heading toward the assistant principal’s office. She passed the secretary in the larger office and made her way back to Maxwell’s. The door was ajar. She pushed it open, but the room was empty. He was probably on duty before school. She didn’t intend to leave until she talked with him.

  When she sat in the chair before his desk, her nerves jiggled. Agitated, she bounced her legs up and down. After five minutes, she rose and began pacing, unable to sit any longer. She glanced at her watch about every two minutes. Finally, she paused at the large window behind his desk and stared outside into the oval where the buses let off the students. She spied Maxwell and Jack Hughes, a teacher down the hall from her room, stopped to speak with the assistant principal. Deep lines of anger slashed Jack’s face, and when the man left to come into the building, his scowling expression shouted his displeasure. Sadie wondered what had Jack so angry. Jack was one of the assistant football coaches. Did it have something to do with the deaths of Luke and Jared, both a loss to the team?