Ties That Bind

by Anne Patrick

  "How long have you been back in the church?"

  "After your father passed away, the outpouring of love I received from the church made me realize how much I'd been missing out on."

  "Do you feel as close to God now as you did years ago?"

  "More so. He never turns His back on us, Jo. It's us that turn away from Him. He's a forgiving God, though. All you have to do is reach out and He'll take your hand."

  Jo wondered if it were really that simple. She missed the security, that inner peace that she had growing up that assured her that no matter what happened in the scheme of life God always worked things out for those who loved Him. She thought of the story of the prodigal son. It'd been on her mind a lot lately.

  As if reading her thoughts, Liz leaned over and took her in her arms. "Welcome home, Jo."

  Taken back by her words, Jo barely managed a smile as the tears she'd struggled to hold in began to work their way out.

  "I'm so happy for you. Austin will make you a fine husband."

  "He hasn't even proposed yet." Jo brushed away a stray tear.

  "He will."

  "I hope you're right. I've never met anyone who understands me the way he does."

  "Your father understood you a great deal more than you realize. I think that's why he was so protective over you."

  "I loved him, Mom. Joining the bureau was the hardest decision I've ever had to make, but I know in my heart that I did the right thing…that I'm doing what I was meant to do."

  "I know. I only wish he were here today to share in your happiness."

  "Yeah, me too. I think he and Austin would have gotten along great. Austin is just as pigheaded as he was."

  They were still hugging when Mariah entered the lounge. "I wish Billy could see this," she said. "I know seeing the two of you together would make him the happiest that he's been in years."

  Jo sat back in the sofa but continued to hold her mother's hand. "How is he?"

  "They're still keeping him sedated, but they said if he continues to improve, he could be released as early as next week. As long as he agrees to therapy."

  "Knowing how proud my big brother is, I doubt he'll be easily persuaded."

  "Maybe you could talk to him, Jo?" her mother suggested.

  "I'll try," Jo promised, "But after awhile. Right now, I'm taking you two to lunch and I don't want to hear any arguments about it." She looked over at Deputy Pendergrass who sat quietly with a magazine near the entrance. "I even have my own chauffeur to drive us."

  "You'll get no argument from me, I'm starved," Mariah said.

  "A nice quiet lunch away from here does sound nice." Liz looked at the deputy, then at Jo. "Is it safe for you to be out like that…in the public I mean?"

  "Just as safe as I am here. Don't worry, Mom, Doug won't let anything happen to any of us."

  "She's right, Ma'am, you're in good hands."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  Their reprieve from the hospital seemed to do them all some good, their moods were much lighter than they had been for days. Usually confined to the company of men, Jo found their outing refreshing and found herself looking forward to a future that included both women and more shared memories of afternoons spent eating lunch and window shopping.

  Upon their return to the hospital, Liz borrowed Mariah's car and headed home for some much-needed rest. Mariah and Jo continued to reminisce about when they were younger, and Jo filled her in on some of the escapades she and her big brother had executed.

  "Billy said you were a handful, always getting him into trouble."

  "Yeah right, most of them were his ideas. I just couldn't run as fast as him."

  Later, when Deputy Pendergrass excused himself to go to the men's room, Jo stepped in to visit Billy. Memories of her youth brought a better understanding to just how deeply she had hurt her brother, reminding her how close they were at one time. This spurred a determination in her to rekindle the broken friendship.

  Billy was sitting up in bed, eating what appeared to be lime Jell-O when she entered his room. The moment he saw her, his face brightened with a smile. "I hope you smuggled in some decent food for me. This stuff tastes terrible."

  Jo gave him a hug before taking a seat next to his bed. "I'll go down to the cafeteria after awhile and get you a sandwich and some chips," she promised, knowing from experience that the food out of the vending machines usually tasted better than the food served in the cafeteria.

  "That'd be great. Did Mom go home?"

  "Yeah, she took Mariah's car. Your wife refuses to leave."

  "I've messed up big time, Jo."

  "No you haven't. You made a mistake, something we've all been known to do from time to time."

  "Do you think she'll ever be able to forgive me?"

  "In time, yes. She loves you, Billy." He gave no reply and she leaned her head back against the soft material of the recliner. "Mariah tells me they're thinking of turning you loose next week if you'll agree to therapy?"

  "I don't know if I can do that, Jo. I just can't see myself talking to a perfect stranger about my personal life."

  She tossed him a supportive smile. That had been the toughest part of her recovery as well. "Pretend like you're never going to see them again and it'll get easier in time."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Didn't you ever go to the city to party or hang out when you were younger?"

  He shot her a shy grin. "Yeah, a few times."

  "Remember how uninhibited you felt because you knew you'd never see those people again? Well if you were to use that concept with your doctor, I imagine it would be much easier to confide in him."

  "Hey, that's not a bad idea." Then, with his eyes steady on her, he commented, "You look like you belong in this bed more than I do."

  "I'm all right, just a little tired." Recalling the main reason of her visit, she said, "I brought some photos of the victims I'd like you to take a look at." When he nodded, she withdrew them from her shoulder bag and placed the photos of Margaret Miller and Elena Bradshaw on the table in front of him. "We know for sure they'd visited the lounge because they used their credit cards there."

  A few seconds past and he pointed to Elena Bradshaw's picture. "She looks familiar."

  "Think, Billy, whereabouts in the airport did you see her, and was she with anyone?" Several minutes passed and he still hadn't confirmed whether he'd seen her before or not. "Come on, Billy, this is important."

  "I realize that Jo, but they've got me on so much medication, I can barely remember my name."

  Jo gave a heavy sigh, giving up in her efforts. She could sympathize with him. The waking up and not knowing who or where you were had been the scariest for her. She'd hated that sense of lost control. She never, ever wanted to feel that way again.

  "Why don't you leave the photo's here with me and I'll keep trying."

  "Thanks, Billy." She recalled her earlier promise. "What kind of sandwich and chips do you want?"

  "A big one with lots of meat on it, and barbecue potato chips…oh and an orange soda and a candy bar. Anything with nuts in it."

  She laughed. "I'll be back in a little while."

  *****

  Jo stepped out into the hallway and saw no sign of Deputy Pendergrass. Guessing he'd probably gone on another coffee run, she headed to the lobby to tell Mariah she was going to the cafeteria. Jo was almost at the waiting area when she spotted Brad Cartwright coming down the hall towards her. She smiled. "What are you doing here?"

  "I was picking up a body earlier and saw Mariah downstairs; I did some checking around and found out about Billy. How's he doing?"

  "Much better. I'm on my way to the cafeteria now to fetch him a sandwich and chips."

  "Mind if I join you? I'll buy you a soda."

  "Thanks, I could use one."

  After informing Mariah she and Brad would be in the cafeteria, they headed towards the elevator.

  "I read in the papers that there haven't been any new developments on
the case," he said on the ride down.

  "Nothing newsworthy. We are making progress, though."

  The cafeteria was nearly empty when they entered, mostly family members taking a break from their vigils with the ill or injured. After choosing a table near the entrance, Jo sat down while Brad went after the sodas. She glanced around the room at the other occupants and recognized a few from having visited briefly with them over the past two days. She'd always been intrigued by the bonds people made in hospital waiting rooms, strangers with usually nothing in common brought together in an alliance of support.

  "Here we go. You like root beer right?"

  She nodded, surprised he had remembered after ten years.

  "You said you were making progress on the case, anything other than the sketch mentioned in the paper?"

  She took a sip of the fountain drink before she answered. "For the last couple of days we've been going over the passenger lists of the flights the victims were on. I think we may have come up with a suspect. His name appeared on all but one of the lists."

  "That sounds promising."

  "The only thing is the name and social security number is that of a dead man. We're searching DMV records hoping to match the name with the physical description we have, then we'll have a photo to go with the fingerprints we have of the killer."

  "You have his fingerprints?"

  She nodded as she took another drink.

  "How'd you manage that?"

  "Going on a hunch, I revisited the motel room of one of our victims, and found an ice bucket underneath the bed."

  "How can you be sure they're his?"

  "Call it a gut feeling."

  "I don't know why I'm so surprised. I should have known from reading about you through the years that you're the best at what you do."

  She smiled at his compliment. "You make it sound as if I'm doing all the work here, and I'm not. Austin and his men have done most of the footwork."

  "Maybe so, but it's your brain that is fitting the pieces together, just like you used to do at the medical examiner's office. Remember how we use to challenge one another when we'd get a person that died under suspicious circumstances?"

  "Yeah, and how I was usually right about the cause of death," Jo teased. She removed the lid and straw from her soda, drank what was left of it, then shook out a mouth full of ice to chew on.

  "I never could figure out how you did that."

  She shrugged. A man of science through and through, she knew he would never understand or accept how she was able to solve the most puzzling of cases. That was the reason she had never told him of her special ability when they were dating. "Billy is probably wondering where his sandwich and chips are. I should go."

  She got to her feet and suddenly felt light-headed. "Whoa."

  "Are you okay?" Brad took hold of her arms to try and steady her. "Maybe you better sit back down a minute, you look kind of pale."

  She gave no argument as the room started to spin and she felt her legs growing weak. Assuming her condition was brought on from stress and the lack of sleep, she smiled. "I've been overdoing it lately," she said, somewhat embarrassed by her lack of stamina.

  "That's understandable. Look I don't live far from here, why don't you come over for a while, maybe try and get some rest?"

  As inviting as his offer sounded, she didn't want to be a burden. "Thanks, Brad, but I'm sure it'll pass. I'll be fine in a few minutes."

  "It's no bother, really. I have to go back to work so you'll have the place to yourself."

  As the room continued to swirl around her, she reconsidered his offer, knowing she wouldn't be any good to anyone till she lay down for a while. "I need to take Billy his sandwich and chips and tell Deputy Pendergrass where I'm going. He'll probably want to tag along." Jo was surprised he hadn't come looking for her.

  "Wait here and I'll get Billy's snack and have one of the nurses take it to him. She can relay the message to the deputy along with my address."

  "Okay. He wants an orange soda and candy bar with nuts too." She reached for her billfold, but he waved her off.

  Barely able to keep her eyes open, Jo folded her arms on the table and rested her head on them. It seemed she'd just closed her eyes when Brad returned.

  "You ready to go?"

  Jo raised her head and the room began to swirl again.

  "Come on, I'll help you."

  As he lifted her from the chair she fell against him, her legs not wanting to cooperate with what her mind was telling them to do. "Geez, Brad, I'm not sure I can make it," she said, alarmed by her condition. Never in her life had she felt so tired or disorientated.

  "Don't worry, Jo, I'll take good care of you."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

  Austin sat at Slim's desk and continued down the list he'd been working on the day before, checking the age and physical description of each man with the name, James Edwin Ramsey. It seemed like a simple enough task, but to him it was absolute torture. He wanted to be with Jo. Though she pretended not to need him, that she was handling her brother's nervous breakdown just fine, he suspected otherwise. He could only imagine how hard this was for her, not only to see her brother in such a state but because of the memories of her own breakdown. She hadn't offered much about her experience, but he suspected it continued to haunt her.

  "This is ridiculous," he muttered aloud, frustrated by his lack of concentration.

  "What's that boss?"

  Austin glanced up as Slim approached his desk. "This list Jo's got me working on."

  "She seems to think he's on there."

  "Yeah I know."

  "But you don't think he is?"

  "I don't know if he is or not. All I know is that I should be with her, not sitting here staring at this computer screen."

  "So go be with her. I can finish up there for you, and if I come up with something, I'll call you."

  Austin considered his offer. "She's liable to get mad at me again."

  "Probably. She doesn't like being fussed over."

  He considered his warning, but only briefly. "Well, she'll just have to get over it 'cause I'm not letting her go through this alone."

  "Have you given any thought as to how we're going to keep her here in Claremont?"

  He grinned. "I'm working on it."

  "I've got a feeling it isn't going to take much persuasion."

  "I hope you're right, Slim."

  *****

  Only Mariah was in the lounge area when Austin arrived at the hospital. He glanced down both hallways and saw no sign of either Pendergrass or Jo. "Where's everyone?"

  "Oh hi, Sheriff. Jo and Brad Cartwright went down to the cafeteria, and I'm not sure where Doug is. The last I saw of him, he was headed to the restroom."

  "Pendergrass isn't with Jo?" he asked, slightly alarmed at the fact she was roaming the hospital unprotected. She was with Brad, though, and he knew Brad wouldn't let any harm come to her. "How long has Pendergrass been gone?"

  Mariah shrugged. "Quite a while, it seems."

  Austin walked down the long corridor to the men's room. He called out to his deputy but didn't receive an answer. Checking underneath the stalls, he saw a pair of dress shoes underneath the last stall. "Doug, you okay in there?" He knocked on the stall and after a few seconds forced the door open. His eyes widened at the sight of Deputy Pendergrass leaning against the side of the stall, his head sloped forward. He looked as if he had merely passed out, but seventeen years experience told Austin otherwise. He lifted his deputy's head and when he saw the ligature mark around his neck, it confirmed his suspicion. His deputy was dead. To make sure, he felt for a pulse in his neck and found none. He reached for his cell phone, punched in 911, and identified himself.

  "How can I help you, Sheriff?" the woman asked.

  "I've just discovered one of my deputies in the bathroom of Portland Regional Hospital. He's been strangled. You're gonna need to send out a forensic team and enough men to secure the crime scene."

 
; "Please stay with the body until they arrive, they'll need to take your statement."

  Austin stood staring at his dead deputy. The killer must have been hanging around Billy's room, probably dressed as a doctor or male nurse, just waiting for an opportunity to get Jo alone. If he was capable of overpowering his deputy, he doubted he'd have little trouble with Brad Cartwright.

  Austin stepped into the hallway and spotted a man in a lab coat coming out of one of the rooms. "Hey you, come here."

  Austin looked at the older man's ID badge to make sure the picture matched his face. It did. He then presented his badge. "I need you to call security and have 'um make sure no one enters this bathroom until the police get here."

  "What's going on?"

  "A man's been killed."

  "Are you sure he's dead?"

  "I'm sure. Don't let anyone in there except for the police. They're on their way."

  "Okay sure, but shouldn't you stick around?"

  "I'll be back."

  Instead of waiting for the elevator, Austin took the stairs down eight flights to the cafeteria. He searched frantically for any sign of Jo or Brad, but saw neither. Guessing he must have missed them, he ran to the elevators. The ascent was like an eternity and when the elevator doors finally did open he was off before the doors had opened all the way.

  The lounge was now empty. 'Where are they?' A sickening feeling started to come over him. What was Brad doing here at the hospital?

  Austin went into Billy's room, his anxiety grew when he saw only Mariah and Billy. "Jo's not back yet?"

  They both shook their heads.

  "When you see her, tell her I remember seeing the woman," Billy said.

  "What woman?"

  "She was one of the victims. I'm not sure which one. Anyway, Jo should probably ask her friend about her, because he was the one I saw her with at the airport."

  "What friend, what are you talking about Billy?"

  "The guy she dated a long time ago. You know, he works for the medical examiner's office."