‘Have a seat, Mr. Silva,’ said McQ. ‘Can I call you Emanuel?’
‘Call me Manny. That’s what everyone calls me,’ said the man.
‘So, Manny, tell me what you do here.’
‘I’m the on-staff handyman. I do everything from changing lightbulbs to fixing TV’s to unstopping toilets,’ said the young man.
‘You spend any time over on 3 West?’ asked McQ.
‘No more than anywhere else in the building. Lightbulbs go out pretty much all over the hospital. This is an old building. Something’s always breaking.’
‘You ever go into Eliza Stern’s room?’
‘I’ve been in every room in this place,’ said Manny. ‘I don’t know who that person is. I don’t pay attention to the names of people. I just fix what’s broken.’
‘According to the notes in this file, one of the nurses said she remembered seeing you up in room 312, Eliza Stern’s room. She said it was about ten months ago and she asked you what you were doing in there. Do you recall that, Manny?’
A row of sweat formed on the man’s upper lip.
‘Manny, I hope you don’t mind me saying this but you seem a little nervous. Are you nervous?’ asked McQ. ‘We’re just having a friendly chat. Is there something you want to tell us? Something you want to get off your chest?’
The young man looked at each of the detectives, visibly anxious.
‘I don’t know anything,’ said Manny, looking down at his feet. ‘Sometimes, I eat my lunch in the rooms with some of the patients and just talk to them. I tell them my problems and my secrets because I know they won’t tell anyone. I find it relaxing.’
‘Now, what kind of secrets might you be keeping, Manny?’ asked Blade.
The agitated young man looked like he was about to explode.
‘Look, I don’t want no trouble. I do my job. I got a wife and a two-year-old daughter to take care of.’
‘We don’t want any trouble either but it feels like you’re hiding something from us,’ said McQ. The two detectives stopped talking and waited. After almost a minute of silence, Manny cracked.
‘Okay, okay. Three years ago, I overstayed my visa. I was supposed to go back to Brazil but I didn’t. I do a good job here. I’ve got a family. I don’t want any trouble with immigration.’
McQ let out the breath he had been holding and looked at his partner with a tinge of disappointment.
‘Manny, we have no interest or inclination to contact immigration,’ said Blade. ‘We’ve got a crime to solve and that’s all we care about. Do we understand each other?’
The young man nodded and from then on was more forthcoming. After another fifteen minutes of questions, Manny Silva was dismissed.
Blade picked up another red dotted folder and went out into the hallway.
‘Jason Branko.’
A man with light brown hair in his thirties, sitting at the far end of the hall stood up, grabbed a backpack on the floor next to his chair and followed Blade into the conference room.
‘Mr. Branko, may I call you Jason?’ said McQ.
‘Yeah, sure.’
‘Jason, tell me what you do here.’
‘I work in food service. I help prepare the food and then I also deliver meals to the patients.’
‘Right. There’s something that’s confusing me a little,’ said McQ. ‘According to the notes in your file, several people said that you were seen coming from 3 West with your food tray trolley.’
‘Yeah, so?’
‘I think what he’s getting at, Mr. Branko, is that all the patients in 3 West are incapacitated,’ said Blade. ‘None of them are conscious. They wouldn’t get food trays, would they? They have feeding tubes, do they not?’
‘I guess so. I don’t know if they have feeding tubes or not,’ said Branko. ‘I just deliver food where I’m told.’
‘What’s confusing me is why you would be anywhere near 3 West?’
Until that moment, Jason Branko had been non-committal and aloof. Once the detectives pointed out that no meals would have been delivered to that floor, he knew the jig was up and came clean.
‘I’m not supposed to do it but…there’s a few girls who work as aides on that wing that I kind of like. I bring ’em free lunch when I’m working. I grease their wheels a bit. Cheaper than taking them out for dinner, you know what I mean? It’s like I’m treating them to a meal but the hospital is paying for it. They order whatever they want, I deliver it and later on they’re very grateful to me.’
‘I’ve always said nothing turns a girl on more than Jell-O and little cups of orange juice,’ said Blade to her partner.
After several more minutes with Branko, McQ let him go.
‘Quite the Romeo,’ said McQ to his partner once they were alone. The rest of the afternoon produced more of the same. After they interviewed every single man waiting in the hallway, they were no closer to a conclusion than before they started.
18
In the three days since she had delivered Eliza Stern’s baby, Angela’s life had been turned upside down. The board was breathing down her neck. The entire staff of Oceanside Manor was in different stages of interrogation by the police. Through it all, Angela was still trying to run the place while taking care of her patients. While balancing all the internal chaos, she was also trying to keep the press at bay for as long as possible. Once they got their claws into this story, she knew they would be relentless. Despite her best efforts, inquiring phone calls from the newspapers and TV stations had increased exponentially each day.
‘What’s going on down there?’ barked board president, Bob Beckmann, over the phone on that third day. ‘My office just got a call from the Miami Herald.’
‘I don’t know how much longer we can keep the press out of it,’ Angela replied. ‘They smell something rotten and they’re not letting go—like sharks circling around chum. At best, I think we’ve got until tomorrow. Stuff is already leaking out.’
‘What are the police doing?’ said Beckmann.
‘They have a lot of people to interview.’
‘Why is it taking them so goddam long?’ demanded Beckmann. ‘I’m thinking the press release should go out tomorrow.’
A few minutes later, Angela’s call with the board president ended the way it always did—him yelling, complaining and issuing an edict of some kind before he hung up on her. This call was no different. Angela looked out the window and realized it was already dark outside. With no more energy left, she packed her bag to go home. Before she left the building, she went up to 3 West to check on Eliza and the baby. As she had mandated, a registered nurse was on duty in Eliza’s room and was holding the baby and singing to him when Angela walked in.
‘Dr. Crawford,’ said the nurse, surprised and a little embarrassed that Angela had caught her singing. ‘I-I didn’t know you were still here. I’m on the night shift.’
‘And, quite the singer, I see,’ Angela said, smiling.
The night nurse blushed red and giggled. ‘My kids always loved it when I’d sing to them. I figured since this little guy doesn’t have a mom who can sing, I would,’ said the night nurse.
Angela looked at the infant cradled in the woman’s arms.
‘Can I hold him for a minute?’ Angela asked, smiling for the first time all day.
‘Of course, Dr. Crawford.’
The nurse stood up with the baby in her arms so Angela could take a seat in the rocking chair that had been installed in the room the day before. The nurse carefully handed over the baby.
‘He’s a cutie,’ said the night nurse, stepping back to give her boss some space.
‘He sure is,’ said Angela, not taking her eyes off the little boy. ‘He’s truly a miracle.’
‘Dr. Crawford, are you going to be here for a while?’ asked the night nurse. ‘I was wondering, would it be okay if I left you for a few minutes to use the ladies’ room?’
‘Of course, take as much time as you need. I’m not in any rush.’
The nurse trott
ed off as Angela rocked the child in her arms.
‘Are they taking good care of you here, my little man?’ asked Angela softly, using a baby voice. Slowly, she touched the baby’s nose and examined each of his tiny pink fingers and his even tinier fingernails. ‘You’re really perfect, aren’t you? And, you’re such a good baby, too. All the nurses say you hardly ever cry and that you’re a good eater.’
She continued to rock in the chair and began to sing to the baby. ‘Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder where you are. Up above the sky so high, like a diamond in the sky…’
Angela looked up and saw the night nurse standing in the doorway smiling at her.
‘You look like you know your way around babies,’ said the nurse. ‘Do you have kids?’
Angela smiled ruefully. ‘We wanted them but I couldn’t so instead I went for the big career. But I love kids, especially babies.’
‘From the way you look right now, I’ll bet you would have been a great mother,’ said the nurse. Catching herself, she added, ‘…if you had been a mother. I mean…being a mother isn’t the only path…I mean…’
‘It’s okay,’ said Angela, her eyes never leaving the baby. ‘I know what you meant.’
She continued to rock the baby for a while longer and then glanced at her watch. She had been there for almost forty minutes and it was nearly nine. ‘I guess it’s time I went home. I’ll be back here in ten hours, anyway.’ She gave the baby a kiss on his forehead and handed the little boy to the nurse.
When she walked into her house that night, her husband was in the kitchen waiting for her. He had saved a dinner plate wrapped in foil and had it waiting on the counter for her as he often did. When she saw the dish, she realized how hungry she was. David didn’t do much to help pay the bills, but at least he knew his way around the kitchen, and she was grateful one of them knew how to cook. He may not contribute much to our finances, she told herself, but at least there is always something good to eat when I get home from work. She took whatever solace she could in that.
19
Day 4
When Blade and McQ arrived at the hospital that morning, a new stack of names and folders were waiting for them. The chief of police had added an overnight team to the investigation because of the time sensitivity of the case. The night crew had vetted and sorted through a ton of information. Now, it was up to Detectives McQuillan and Blalock to weed through what had been compiled the night before. They had the first batch of names that included non-employees—outside contractors, visitors, clergy and others.
That morning, the detectives interviewed eleven men from a variety of companies—grounds maintenance, fire alarm, hospital supply and an office cleaning crew. Not a single one of them set off McQ’s inner bullshit meter which he considered infallible.
‘You think any of the guys we interviewed today are good for it?’ said a disappointed McQ to his partner.
‘Nope. It was pretty clear none of them had any idea why they were here. Who’s next on deck?’ said Blade, looking through another folder.
‘A priest, a rabbi and minister walk into a critical care facility…’
‘The hospital chaplain?’ said Blade, doing a fist pump.
‘Bingo. Should be interesting. I don’t know if you’ve heard,’ said McQ, ‘but the clergy hasn’t got a very good reputation when it comes to this kind of thing.’
‘You don’t say?’ said Blade with a grin.
Five minutes later, Father Harold Heathwood sat across the table from the detectives.
‘Father, you also work out of St. Mary’s Church up north of Palm Beach, right?’ asked McQ.
‘That’s right, detective. I minister at a number of hospitals and senior facilities. Oceanside Manor is just one of many.’
‘Not to be indelicate father, but what kind of ministering do you do with unconscious people?’ asked McQ.
‘Even if they’re sleeping, they’re still God’s children,’ said the priest. ‘I talk to them. I give them hope.’
‘You know you give them hope because…?’ said Blade with one raised eyebrow.
‘I believe I do. It’s about having faith, detective.’
‘I believe that I’m going to win the lottery when I’m buying my ticket,’ said Blade. ‘I have complete faith in that as I hand over my five dollars, but that doesn’t make it so.’
‘Eliza Stern was born and raised a Catholic. I try to give whatever comfort I can to that poor young woman,’ said the priest.
‘How exactly do you comfort her?’ asked Blade.
‘I pray with her. I hold her hand and read from the bible. I tell her that God is watching over her and loves her and that one day she’ll be rejoined with her family in heaven.’
‘Do you ever touch her in any way other than holding her hand, father?’ asked McQ.
‘Of course not, detective. I understand why you have to ask but I assure you, nothing inappropriate ever happened. I am after all, a priest.’
‘That’s why I’m asking,’ said McQ with a bit of rancor. ‘I went all through the Catholic school system which makes me a bit of an expert.’
After a few more questions and answers, the detectives released Father Heathwood.
‘What’s your bullshit meter telling you now?’ asked Blade.
‘He’s not our guy,’ said McQ. ‘He’s a pompous creep but my ears didn’t itch and you know my ears always itch when I’m getting close to something. Who’s up at bat next?’
‘Peter Parris, he’s the brother of Martin Parris, another patient on 3 West. Martin is in the room right next to Eliza,’ said Blade, flipping through the file. ‘According to the visitor logs, Peter Parris visited his brother frequently, almost every week and he spends long hours reading to him. From a logistics perspective, he could have easily slipped out of his brother’s room and into Eliza’s without anyone noticing.’
‘Don’t keep me in suspense. Let’s bring him in,’ said McQ as his stomach grumbled. ‘Before you do, you got anything to eat in your pack?’
‘An apple.’
McQ made a sour face as Blade went to get Peter Parris.
Three minutes later, the two detectives were staring across the table at a tall, very thin young man with reddish blond hair.
‘What’s going on,’ asked Peter. ‘There’s all sorts of crazy rumors going around.’
‘What have you heard?’ asked McQ.
‘Someone said a body was missing from the hospital morgue next door,’ said Peter. ‘But if that’s what it is, why would you want to talk to me? I’ve never been over there. I just come here to Oceanside Manor to visit my brother, Marty.’
‘I understand you come here quite often,’ said McQ, looking him dead in the eye.
‘Every week.’
‘That’s a real commitment,’ said McQ, tilting his head to one side.
‘Marty isn’t just my brother, he’s my identical twin.’
‘Now there’s a coincidence,’ said McQ. ‘Your twin brother is in a coma and right next door to him is a woman in a coma who was also an identical twin. What are the odds of that?’
‘Slim to none, I’d guess,’ said Peter. ‘I had heard that Eliza was an identical twin, too. One of the nurses told me about her. I felt sorry for her.’
‘Why is that?’ asked Blade.
‘I visit my brother every week. I read to him and tell him stories about what’s going on in our family. But she has no one. Nobody visits her or spends time with her. Sometimes, I’d go into her room and talk to her, just to let her know that someone cared. That I cared.’
‘How often did you visit with Eliza and how long would you stay?’ asked Blade, suddenly more interested.
‘It varied. Sometimes, I’d stop in to see her for a few minutes. Other times, when I didn’t have to be anywhere else, I’d stay with her for half an hour and just talk. Sometimes I’d hold her hand. I think she knew I was there. It must be awful with no one to love you.’
‘Did you ever lay dow
n on the bed with Ms. Stern?’ asked Blade. ‘You know, maybe just to hold her and let her know you were there for her?’
Peter’s eyes widened and he looked genuinely surprised. ‘Did something happen to her? Do I need a lawyer?’
‘That’s up to you, Mr. Parris,’ said McQ. ‘Eliza is fine. You’re not being charged with anything. We’re just asking some general questions.’
‘I would never hurt Eliza. In a weird way, I always felt very connected to her because of my brother. I thought maybe they communicated with each other in that cosmic coma realm that they’re both inhabiting. You think that’s possible?’
‘Yeah, sure,’ said McQ, giving his partner the eye.
20
After McQ and Blade finished with Peter Parris and several other relatives of patients, they waited for Steve Horowitz, the attending physician, to arrive from the hospital next door.
‘Is this going to take long?’ said Dr. Horowitz, walking in twenty minutes late, eyes on his phone. ‘I’ve got a lot of patients to see today and I’m supposed to leave for a medical conference in New Orleans tonight.’
‘Doctor, I’m going to ask you to please put your phone away while we conduct this interview,’ said McQ. ‘We need your full attention.’
‘I can multitask,’ protested the doctor clutching his phone. ‘You have to be able to do that when you practice medicine.’
‘Bless your heart. Can you operate on two people at the same time, too?’ said Blade, wearing her big South Carolina smile. ‘Still, despite your extraordinary brain capacity, we need you to put your phone away while we ask you some questions.’
Horowitz made an irritated face as he put his phone into his breast pocket. ‘I’m keeping it on vibrate,’ he announced, ‘in case anyone needs me.’
‘That’s fine,’ said McQ with a weary look. He was tired. Since this case started, he and his partner had worked eighteen-hour days. ‘Dr. Horowitz, you want to tell me what your role is here at Oceanside Manor and if and when you ever treated Eliza Stern?’
Without Her Consent Page 8
