The Cin Fin-Lathen Mysteries 1-3 (58 page)

"It's
warm from the sun," he explained as he dropped the water bottle into my
hands.

"Doesn't
matter, it’s water."  I lifted Michael's head and poured a small amount of
water over his lips.  "Come on, drink it. Wake up, Michael."  I
didn't dare move him as the heap of metal and wood wasn't too stable.  His legs
were pinned.  "Harry, how long?"

"They
have a chopper and cars on the way.  How is he?"

"He's
still alive but barely.  He’s covered with ant bites, and I don't think he has
had water in some time.  There is a big bump on the side of his head.  Oh,
Harry, I don't like this at all."  I started to cry.

"Hang
in there.  I think I heard something out front.  I better direct them in."
Harry's footfalls pounded off.

"What're
you crying for, big baby," a soft voice hissed at me.

I
looked down and one of Michael's eyes was trying to open. 

"Here,
try to drink some of this.”  I drizzled a little more water over his lips.  He
tried to drink, but most of it just trailed out of his mouth.

"Bad
aim," he said.

"How
did you get here?"  I asked, trying again with the water.  He drank some
and coughed.

"Not
an accident," was the last thing he said before fading.

I
opened his shirt, trying to cool him as I bathed his head and face with the
water while willing help to get there faster.  I heard a loud, metallic ripping
sound, and a breeze blew in as the emergency team tore away part of the west
wall.  They dropped down.  I got out of their way while they hooked Michael up
to an IV before assessing how to get him out from under the pile of debris.

"Cin,"
Dave Buslowski's voice called from above.  I saw him ease himself down while
giving directions to another deputy to check on the progress of the emergency
chopper.  He came over to me and put a hand on my shoulder.  "Let them do
their work.  Let's see if we can find an easier way out of here.”

We
walked around the back of the pile of debris and found a locked door.  Dave
trotted over and picked up a crowbar, and with our combined weight we were able
to break the frame and open the door.  This was no exit, at least no exit to
the outside world.  This room was enclosed and thick with the fetid, sweet
smell of death.  There lying just the other side of the door was what remained
of a man.  Dave did a quick survey of the room, and not seeing another exit to
this room, he backed out.  As we walked away, still looking for another exit,
Dave murmured, "I wonder who that was?"

"I’ve
a feeling it was Manuel Perez, a bus driver for the center across the
street." 

Dave
started to ask another question but was stopped by our finding another door. 
This one was easier to open, and when we did, we found and followed a hallway
which moved upwards to a large open area where we found large sliding doors
that were chained shut.  After Dave had weakened the chain with the crowbar, he
fired a couple of carefully placed shots from his pistol.  The broken chain
fell free from the door. 

The
doors screamed as we opened them to the sunlight and to Harry who guided the
Medevac team down to Michael.  I walked outside and let the men do their work.  I
prayed for Michael to be alright.  I also prayed for the faceless man who lay
rotting in the small dark room. Harry came back up and hugged me.

"You
didn't go in there and see that,” I asked him.

"No,
I didn't, but we all smelled it."

"Good.
It wasn't pretty.  I guess I better call Michael's aunt and Betty."  I put
my hand out for the phone.

"I
already called them.  They're going to meet us at the hospital."

"Thanks,
Harry, you're a peach," I said and walked over and looked in the door,
anxiously waiting for Michael to be brought out. 

"They
aren't quite sure how to shift the materials off him without doing more
damage," Harry informed me.  "Relax, his vitals look good.  They say
he is severely dehydrated, has a major concussion and one or two breaks in his
left leg."

"Ouch. 
Did you see all the ant bites?  I wonder how long he has been lying
there."

Dave
came trotting out of the building.  "Harry, we could use another hand down
there."  He looked at me and said simply, "Stay."

They
left me wringing my hands.  I don't do well when I’m on hold, so to speak.  I’m
a woman of action, but I’ve learned that when I’m told to stay by Dave, I’d
better stay.  Fortunately, it wasn't too long before I heard footsteps.  The
emergency team had Michael on a stretcher and was taking him to the street
where the helicopter had landed.  I followed them, hoping to be able to catch a
glimpse and assess how Michael was doing.  His eyes were shut and he was
still.  I didn't know if it was because every limb had either been bandaged or
braced or that he was unconscious.  Either way, I willed him my strength.

After
the Medevac copter took off, I went in search of Harry so we could get on the
road.  Two other police vehicles pulled in, and I directed them down to Dave
who was in the midst of coordinating the crime scene.  Harry stood back and was
so engrossed with the procedure that when I tapped him on the arm he jumped.

"Wha..."

"Relax,
I’m going to the hospital.  Are you coming or staying?" I asked quietly. 
Dave's voice was now barking commands at a crime scene team in the back room.

"Going,
otherwise I would have to walk back.  Let me ask Dave if we can leave."

Harry
walked over and waited for a break in Dave's instructions.  I saw him nod his
head but said something else to Harry that I couldn't hear as several other
police officers arrived.  Harry came back over and led me out of the building.

"He
said we would have to give a report, but he could catch up to us at the
hospital or at home." 

We
found my car, and even though it appeared to be blocked in by vehicles, it was
small enough to maneuver around them, and soon we were on our way.  Neither of
us talked for a while.  In my case, I was sorting things out in my mind.  In
Harry's case, he was busy rifling through my CDs looking for some music he
could stand.  He settled on a compilation CD of Chris Cornell music that Noelle
had made for me.  I let the music wash over me and soon felt the tension ease
out of my body.  I left the screaming to Chris. I looked over, and Harry had
his eyes closed and seat back as far as it could go in this two-seater.

The
hospital loomed up on the outskirts of my village.  The helicopter had already
landed.  We parked the car and headed into Emergency.  It didn't take long to
find Betty and Diane.  They were making plenty of noise about getting in to see
Michael.  I walked over to them and presented myself as a distraction, much to
the relief of the triage nurse.

"He's
in good hands.  This is a good hospital.  All of us Lathens have survived this
emergency room.  In fact we have been here so often that we should have our own
parking space."  I led them back over to the waiting area.  "I can
tell you what I know if it would help."

"Yes,
anything, this is so maddening," Diane confessed.

"He
was conscious when I found him.  He's dehydrated and has quite a few red ant
bites.  I saw a swelling on the left side of his head, and they tell me he has
a fractured left femur."

"Did
he tell you why he was there?"

"He
didn't talk very much.  He did say that it wasn't an accident.  I took her
hands in mine.  "I think he's going to be alright.  I can't explain it, but
it’s just a feeling I have."

Diane
eased back in her seat, and Betty put a meaty arm around her.  Harry got up and
asked if anyone wanted anything to drink as he was heading to the snack area. 
I begged for coffee, but the others declined.

Harry
came back and handed me the coffee.  He had a soda, cookies and chips.  It
always amazes me how much he can eat and still stay fit.

"Cin?"
said a voice over my shoulder.

I
turned around and saw our family doctor.  "Doctor Meyer," I said,
getting to my feet.

"Who
is it this time and why wasn't I called?"

"Actually,
it’s a friend of mine.  Father Michael Williams.  He was brought in via the
Medevac copter.  This is his aunt Diane Williams and his friend Betty."

"And
I see Harry over there.  You know all that junk is going to catch up with you,
young man."

Harry
smiled, showing Dr. Meyer his mouth full of cookies.

"Doctor,
I know it isn't your business but…"

"Could
I find out what's going on?" he finished for me and patted my back. 
"Sure thing, be right back."  He walked away, and I sat back down.

"Where
did you find him?" Diane asked evenly.

I
related as much as I could to her, editing out finding another body and our
suspicions about terrorists.  Betty looked like she wanted to ask more in-depth
questions, but I cautioned her with a look, and she nodded and mouthed
"later."

Doctor
Meyer returned and sat down next to Harry.  He accepted a chip from Harry's bag
and ate it before speaking to us.

"Good
news and bad news.  Good news first.  He’s conscious and his vitals are
steadily improving.  Bad news is that he's in considerable pain.  He has been
X-rayed, and they’re waiting for the film to be read.  What I could tell from
the chart is that he’s being treated for dehydration, and they’re trying to
find a way to reduce the discomfort of the ant poison.  They don't want to
overmedicate him because it looks like he is headed into surgery for his leg
soon.  I also asked for someone to come out and talk to you, Mrs.
Williams."

"Miss,
Diane's fine.  Thank you, doctor," Diane said.

Doctor
Meyer got up and snatched the bag of chips from Harry, and as he walked off
said over his shoulder, "Someday you'll thank me for this, Harry."

"Don't,"
I cautioned Harry as he started to lift a finger.

 "Ms.
Williams," A male nurse called as he scanned the waiting area.

Diane
stood up to identify herself. 

"Ms.
Williams, you can come back now."

Betty
got up, and I watched as the two of them disappeared behind the closing doors.

"You
didn't tell them about the corpse."

"Nope."

"Or
that he will be under police guard till they sort this out."

"Nope. 
I figured that he wouldn't be walking out of here soon, and besides it’s
Buslowski's job.  Let's let him do it."  I sat back and closed my eyes.

"So,
where do we go from here?" Harry asked.

"Home,
we're done."

"What?"

"She
asked us to find him and we did," I said quietly.

"But..."

"No,
Harry, no," I said firmly.  "There’s a dead body, and I thank God it
wasn't Michael.  But you and I aren't equipped.  Hell, it’s a murder
investigation now."  I opened my eyes and patted the seat next to me. 
Harry came over and sat down.  I leaned over to him and whispered, "This
is big, and frankly it scares me.  Sure, I have,” I corrected, “we have, dealt
with worse before, but to invite it in?"

"I
hear what you’re saying.  It's just I don't want to leave the movie before it
ends."  Harry sat back and put his hand through his hair.  "Maybe
you’re right.  We should sit out the next dance."

"At
least until we learn the steps," I said, looking at my feet.

I
walked outside to use my cell phone.  I gave Noelle a heads-up call and called
Bernice just to hear a friendly voice. I had to settle for the answering
machine as she wasn't there, probably outside tending her yard.  I had just
hung up when something unusual caught my eye.  There, walking through the
wavering heat waves of the parking lot, were four priests.  I could have sworn
I heard the music from
The Good the Bad and the Ugly
as they came into
focus. Father David was one of the priests, so I imagined the other three were
Peter, Paul and Father Thomas. They all seemed to be around the same age,
forties maybe fifties.  Two had dark hair, graying at the temples, giving them
a priestly air.  The other priest’s hair was fair and balding.  No comb-over
for this man, his remaining hair short and neat.  

I
let them walk past me into the building.  I waited and counted to three and the
doors slid open, and Father David walked back out.

"You're
not here for my dance lesson are you?" I asked a very puzzled priest.

"No,
we’re here to get Michael out and underground where he'll be safe."

"You
might have a problem."

"Yes?"

"There
are two tigers protecting him and a bevy of county cops wanting to know why he
was under a pile of rubble twelve feet from the rotting corpse of a Spanish bus
driver named Manuel Perez."

"How
do you know it’s Perez?" an accented voice came from behind Father David.

I
tapped my forehead and faced who I assumed was the mission priest. 
"Because I'm smart.  Father Peter, tell me how long is the sanctity of a
confessional?  Is it to death?  Because if it is, then you’ve a lot of talking
to do."  I held up my hand.  "And not to me, to them."  I
pointed to the flashing lights that were turning in from the highway.

Father
David gripped my wrist.  "We can't do this now."

I
stared at both men and took a leap of faith.  "Listen, Harry is inside. 
Ask him to take all of you to my house.  Drop the collars before you hit my
neighborhood.  I don't want to have to explain things to my Jewish neighbors.  Cool
your jets there and send Harry back in his car with a change of clothes for me.
 Go.  I’ll stall the cops."

They
both walked inside, and I walked over to the approaching vehicles.  Buslowski
pulled his right up to the door.

"Maternity
is on the other side of the hospital." I smiled.

He
hauled himself out of the car and patted his stomach and then looked at my
expanding waistline.

"Okay,
okay, I can't talk."

"How's
our boy doing?"

"He
was conscious, but I hear he is heading for surgery."

"You’ve
seen him?"

"Nope,
I'm not family."

"I
better get in there.  Where's Harry?"  Dave looked through the windows at
the waiting room.

"He's
home getting me a change of clothes," I said as I watched Harry drive by
in a strange car behind Buslowski.  "Do you mind if I tag along?"

"I
think it would be better if you sat down in the waiting room and..."

"Wait?"
I finished.

"Smart
girl."  He pushed by me, and I followed him into the hospital.

I
decided to appear to be playing by his rules.  I sat back down and tried to
drink my stone cold cup of coffee.  "This is rancid," I said to no
one in particular.  I got up, walked over and poured it down the drinking
fountain and dumped the cup.  I looked out the window and saw Harry and the
priests drive out of the visitor's lot.  I shook my head, and as I turned back
around, I saw Buslowski burst back through the Emergency doors.  He walked
right up to me and got in my face.

"Where
the hell is he?"

"I
told you where Harry is."

"Not
Harry.  Michael what's-his-name."

"Michael
Williams.  I don't know.  Surgery?" I suggested lamely.

"He
never made it to surgery."

I
wavered a bit.  I played back in my head the car Harry was driving and how many
other heads were there.  "I don't know.  Of course, I never saw him in the
hospital.  Did he even arrive?"  I backed up so I could focus on Dave.

"Listen,
Lathen, I know you're up to something."

"It's
Fin-Lathen, and all I’m up to is standing here trying to digest what the hell
you're saying to me.  Was there a classy rich lady and a mountain of a woman in
Emergency or did I imagine them?"

"Yes,
they’re sitting down in an empty cubical."

"Ask
them.  They saw him last.  Trust me, Buslowski.  After all, I trusted you with
my freaking diamonds."

"Your
diamonds?" he challenged.

"Well,
I got used to them.  Did you lose them like you lost Michael?" I spat
back.

"We'll
talk later about the diamonds.  Right now, I have a dead man whom you seem to
know.  I’ve a missing witness-slash-suspect whom you found dying under a pile
of crap.  The only thing we have in common here is you."  He took out a
pair of thumb cuffs and cuffed me.

"Buslowski,
you frigging bastard, these hurt."  I glared at him and walked over and
sat down and continued to glare.  "I’m not telling you how to do your job,
but I would get back in there and ask those women a question or two before you
lose them too."

He
turned heel and nodded to one of his men and told him to watch me.  He went
back into the emergency room.

I
was so angry.  I couldn't remember being this angry when I was strung up and sliced
into by a transgendered thug.  I found Father Michael.  I should be patted on
the back, not cuffed.  I ignored that I was holding back information, otherwise
I couldn’t build up a big enough head of steam.  I was angry.  I wanted to be
angry, even if it was unjust.  With a little difficulty, I managed to get my
cell phone out of my pocket.  I explained to my minder that I forgot to turn it
off, maybe I could just turn it on vibrate? He grunted and dismissed me.  So I
opened the phone and texted Harry, “No +s @ hm cops on way com bck cops
pissed.”

After
I sent the message, I cleared the phone, put it on vibrate and slid it back
into my pocket.  I amused myself thinking of ways to torture Buslowski.  I
looked at the other people in the room who were whispering and casting furtive
looks my way.  I knew they were talking about me.  I wasn't even being
paranoid.  Hell, I would talk about me.  I noticed that they had moved as far
away from the cuffed convict as possible.  Must have thought I was a crazed felon.
 I slouched down and tried to look the part and made sure my scarred left arm
was to the crowd of whisperers.  “Yeah, get a good look.  Knife fight.”  In the
middle of my daydream, the doors of the emergency room opened.  I watched as
Dave came back out with Diane and Betty.  He was very kind and respectful to
Diane and treated her with dignity.  He was a bit wary of Betty, as anyone who
was out-muscled by fifty pounds would be.  He sat them down and walked over to
me.

"They
think he’s in surgery."

"Maybe
he is," I spat.

"No,
he isn't."

"Did
you tell them that?"

"No."

"Chicken
shit," I said and crossed my legs and put my cuffed thumbs on my knee as
if it were the most natural thing in the world to do.  "Here comes,
Harry," I said as Harry came in the door.

He
walked over carrying a bag of clothes.  Glancing in the bag I saw to my horror
that they were my daughter’s.  I hoped I wouldn't have to put them on.

"Hey
Dave, what's up?  Cin, have you heard how Father Michael's doing?"  Harry
said innocently.

Dave
bought it.  "Where were you?"

"Home,
getting Cin a change of clothes as instructed."  He looked at me. 
"What's wrong with your hands?"

I
was about to reply when Betty loomed up behind Dave.

"Miss
Williams wants to know what's going on."

Dave
turned around and faced the Betty wall.  I was hoping that she would beat the
crap out of him, but my hopes were never realized because he never got the
chance to tell her anything before a nurse trotted over to him and breathlessly
explained that they found Father Michael.

"Where
was he?"

"Surgery.
 They took him up and must have put him in the wrong room."

I
wrinkled up my face.  "How'd…  Ah, never mind."

Dave
started to follow the nurse. 

"Excuse
me," I called after him.  I held up my hands.  "Do you mind?"

As
he bent over to undo my cuffs, I whispered into his ear, "Listen, doughnut
guzzler.  I'm going home.  I'm not leaving the country as you have my
diamonds.  Once I cool down, I will be back to check on my friend."  With
my thumbs released, I grabbed the sack of clothes from Harry and stormed out of
the building.  I left, squealing my tires and making sure I broke several
traffic laws on my way home.