“Alard Associates,” Brixton said.
“Evidently so,” Mac said. “Speaking of Alard Associates, the Justice Department, working in conjunction with the local police, has brought criminal charges against Alard Associates and its namesake, George Alard. He was taken into custody yesterday. They’re charging him in the Morrison murder. The hit man who knocked out Robert and used his gun to kill Morrison has been apprehended and confessed, and has implicated Alard as the person who ordered the hit.”
The conversation shifted subjects as Annabel and Mac laid out the brunch spread—salmon with capers and onion, bagels, cold cuts, with cups of lobster bisque as a starter. It was over dessert that Eugene Waksit was again mentioned.
“You said earlier that you’d spoken with Eugene’s attorney here in D.C.,” Jayla said to Mac.
“That’s right. He’s been charged with attempted murder, physical assault, and a variety of other things connected with having held you and Flo at knifepoint.”
“He’s sick,” Jalya said.
“That gives him a pass,” Brixton said. “We’re too quick to label bad people as sick. Dr. Fowler says that—”
“Who?” Annabel asked.
“Just a friend of mine,” Brixton quickly said. “He agrees with me. Besides, the people back in Papua New Guinea don’t know for sure that this Underwood character killed your father. “It still might have been Waksit.”
“He admitted that he stole my father’s research,” Jayla said, “but he swears he didn’t commit murder.”
“That’s right,” Mac said. “According to his attorney Waksit claims that he came into your father’s lab minutes after he’d been stabbed to death, and that his arrival scared off the killer before he could steal anything. Waksit also says that he tried to help your father but that he died almost immediately.”
“A nice story,” Brixton said.
“One that I tend to believe,” said Jayla. “I don’t carry any brief for Eugene, but I don’t think he’s a murderer.”
“What about what he almost did to you and Flo?” Brixton asked.
“I think he panicked,” Jayla said, “that’s all. I don’t think he intended to do us any harm. All he wanted was that ridiculous letter he had me type. My father never willed him the research. That was his fantasy, part of his mental illness.”
“If you say so,” Brixton said.
“What about your father’s research?” Annabel asked. “Now that you’re leaving your present job will you be taking it with you to wherever you land a new one?”
Jayla looked to Cousins to respond.
“I’ve just signed up a new pharmaceutical client that’s interested in what Jayla’s father managed to come up with in his lab. I’ve discussed with them carrying that research to its next level, and I think they’ll agree to that, along with hiring Jayla to spearhead the research.”
“I’ve already spoken with Mac about drafting an employment agreement giving me a fair share of the profits from whatever commercially viable painkiller comes out of it,” Jayla said. “It may not amount to anything but it will be exciting to be furthering what my dad had accomplished before he died.”
Because it was Washington, D.C., talk eventually turned to politics.
“What do you think of the news about Senator Gillespie?” Flo asked.
“No surprise,” Brixton said. “His run for reelection was dead in the water before it ever started.”
“I mean about him joining that K Street lobbying group,” Flo added.
“At least it wasn’t Morrison’s,” Mac said.
“Business as usual in our nation’s capital,” Brixton grumbled.
“Robert should go to work for the Chamber of Commerce,” Flo said, and they all laughed.
An hour later, after everyone had left, Mac and Annabel enjoyed an hour of solitude on their balcony.
“Robert’s been seeing a psychologist,” Mac said casually.
“Really? It doesn’t seem to have changed him. He’s still as cynical as ever.”
“No, I see some subtle changes in him. I hope he continues seeing whoever it is. He’s been through a lot the past couple of years. I think seeing a shrink is a good decision.”
Annabel agreed, then said, “I’m pleased for Jayla and Nate. They make a nice couple.” She laughed. “Do you think that if Robert continues to see this psychologist he’ll pop the question to Flo?”
“They make a nice couple, too,” was Mac’s answer. “So do we.”
* * *
“Are you and Flo still talking about getting married?” Dr. John Bradford Fowler asked Brixton weeks later when Brixton sat in his office.
“Yeah, now and then,” Brixton said. “Do you think we should?”
Fowler laughed. “That’s not for me to say, Robert. It’s just that you’ve been saying especially nice things about her lately.”
“Like I said, I’ve been thinking about it.”
“Life is short, Robert,” Fowler said.
They spent the rest of the session discussing Brixton’s feelings about marrying Flo and about marriage in general. When time was up, Brixton made another appointment before leaving, stopped at a florist and bought bouquets for Flo and Mrs. Warden, delivered Flo’s flowers to Flo’s Fashions, and went to his office, where he handed the other bouquet to Mrs. Warden.
“That is so sweet,” she said, getting up from her desk chair and kissing his cheek.
“Yeah, well, life is short, Mrs. Warden. We have to remember that.”
BY MARGARET TRUMAN
Souvenir
White House Pets
Harry S. Truman
Women of Courage
Letters from Father: The Truman Family’s Personal Correspondence
Bess W. Truman
Where the Buck Stops: The Personal and Private Writings of Harry S. Truman
First Ladies
The President’s House: A First Daughter Shares the History and Secrets of the World’s Most Famous Home
THE CAPITAL CRIMES SERIES
Murder in the White House
Murder at the Watergate
Murder on Capitol Hill
Murder at the Library of Congress
Murder in the Supreme Court
Murder in Foggy Bottom
Murder in the Smithsonian
Murder in Havana
Murder on Embassy Row
Murder at Ford’s Theatre
Murder at the FBI
Murder at Union Station
Murder in Georgetown
Murder at The Washington Tribune
Murder in the CIA
Murder at the Opera
Murder at the Kennedy Center
Murder on K Street
Murder at the National Cathedral
Murder Inside the Beltway
Murder at the Pentagon
Monument to Murder
Murder on the Potomac
Experiment in Murder
Murder at the National Gallery
Undiplomatic Murder
Murder in the House
Internship in Murder
Deadly Medicine
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
MARGARET TRUMAN won faithful readers with her works of biography and fiction, particularly her Capital Crimes mysteries. Her novels let readers into the corridors of power and privilege, and poverty and pageantry, in the nation’s capital. You can sign up for email updates here.
DONALD BAIN, the author of more than 115 books, including 40 of the bestselling Murder, She Wrote novels, was a longtime friend of Margaret Truman. He worked closely with her on her novels, and more than anyone understood the spirit and substance of her books. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
By Margaret Truman
About the Authors
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
MARGARET TRUMAN’S DEADLY MEDICINE: A CAPITAL CRIMES NOVEL
Copyright © 2016 by Estate of Margaret Truman
All rights reserved.
Cover photographs by Getty Images
A Forge Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
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Forge® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-0-7653-7988-7 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-4668-7063-5 (e-book)
e-ISBN 9781466870635
Our e-books may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by e-mail at [email protected].
First Edition: June 2016
Margaret Truman's Deadly Medicine Page 33
