Perfectly Matched (14 page)

“Whoa!” I said. “Slow down.”

“I promised creepy Dr. Paul that I would stay only until you showed up. You’re here. Let’s go.”

“Wait, wait. I need to sit down for a minute.” Sean helped me to a chair. I wished that I’d been faking my relief at sitting down, but it had been one hundred percent real. My foot was killing me.

Preston
tapped her heel. “Okay? Can we go now?”

I leaned back in the chair. “Aren’t you even going to ask me what happened?”

“You can tell me in the car. Let’s go.”

“Actually,” Sean said, “We’re probably not leaving for a while. I need to call Em to come and take a look at Lucy’s foot.”

Preston
paled. “You’re kidding.”

I unwrapped the bandage and winced at the sight. “Does that look like I’m kidding?”

For a brief second, sympathy flashed in her eyes. Then she held out her hand, palm up to Sean. “Give me your keys. I’ll come back for you.”

“
Preston
,” I said, “sit down. Tell me what happened.”

“What happened?” she echoed, gaping. “What happened? I’ll tell you what happened.
Creepy Dr.
Paul is trying to kill me. That’s what happened.”

Sean sat on the edge of the bed. He still cradled Thoreau, and if the smirk on his face was any indication, he was enjoying
Preston
’s theatrics a great deal.

“He said you passed out. Is that true?” I asked. I studied her closely and noticed she looked a little pale. No, not a little. A lot.

“Lucy, I swear he’s the angel of death or something. The Grim Reaper. Did you know he collects tiny skulls?”

“Real ones?” Sean asked.

“Porcelain, but still. That’s weird,”
Preston
said, her voice high. “You can’t tell me it’s not.”

It was a bit...odd. But Dr. Paul was a bit odd, so it didn’t seem so strange to me. Wisely, I kept my mouth shut about it though. Sometimes it was best just to let
Preston
get it all out of her system.

“He’s weird,” she rattled on. Pulling a small notebook from her pocket, she consulted her notes and added, “He has to wash his hands a certain way, he does this skip-walk thing that makes me nuts, he always takes the stairs. He won’t let his food touch; his favorite TV show is
Dexter
. And, even though he’s almost forty-five, he still lives with his mother.” Her bright eyes flashed between me and Sean. “The man is clearly a serial killer.”

“And you’ve clearly lost your mind,” I said.

Jabbing a finger on her notebook, she gaped at me. “Didn’t you hear a word I said?”

I needed to redirect her thoughts. “It makes for good fodder for your article, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, especially after the police dig up his basement and find dozens of bodies.”

“
Preston
...” I said.

“I have good instincts,” she insisted.

It was true, but I still wasn’t buying that Dr. Paul was the angel of death.

Sean said, “Which of the Whiners are you following tomorrow?”

Ah, I loved that man. He knew exactly how to divert
Preston
. Work.

“Graham,” she said. “And all week I’d been dreading it, because he’s kind of sleazy, but after today, Graham is looking pretty good. He doesn’t give me the serial killer vibe at all.”

“Good to know,” I said, adjusting my tote bag on my lap.

Preston
glowered at me. “I don’t appreciate your sarcasm.”

Biting back another “Good to know,” I said, “Dr. Paul says you passed out? What happened?”

She paced. “He must have slipped me something. I don’t know when, because I haven’t had anything to eat or drink...”

“That could be the problem,” Sean said.

She spun on him. “Whose side are you on?”

His dimple popped. “How about I get you a snack?”

“How about no?” she countered.

Unfortunately for him, his dimples had no effect on her.

I took my cell phone out of my tote and started dialing.

“Who are you calling?” she asked.

“Cutter.”

She grabbed for my cell, but I pulled it out of her reach.

“Are you out of your mind?” she asked.

“Are you?” I said. “You passed out,
Preston
. And Dr. Paul is
not
trying to kill you. So that means something is wrong. Maybe it’s dehydration. Maybe it’s something else. We don’t know because you’re being irrational.”

She gasped. “Irrational? You did not just call me
irrational
.”

“And since you won’t listen to us, maybe you’ll listen to Cutter.”

“Do not call him about this,” she warned.

“Then sit your skinny little self on that bed and let Sean get you something to eat and drink.” I’d push for some blood work in a little bit.

Brows furrowed, she folded her arms. Stubbornly, she stood firm.

I continued to dial.

“Fine!” She stomped to the bed and sat next to Sean. Thoreau licked her arm.

I casually put my phone away.

As Sean headed out to find sustenance for
Preston
, she said, “That was low, Lucy Valentine. Low.”

“He’d want to know that you’re not feeling well.”

“Whatever,” she huffed.

I eyed her carefully. “Is something going on with you two?”

She shook her head.

“
Preston
? Is there?”

When she glanced at me, I was surprised to see a shimmer of tears in her eyes. “I—”

Just then a nurse rolled a wheelchair into the room. “Lucy Valentine?”

“Yes?”

“Hop in.”

“I don’t understand,” I said.

The nurse wheeled the chair closer to me. “Dr. McDermott ordered x-rays for your foot.” She handed me a clipboard. “I also need some information from you.”

“There’s been a mistake. This can wait,” I said. “I’m fine.”

She stared at my foot. “I don’t think so.”

“Really, it can.”

“Doctor’s orders,” the nurse said firmly.

“Maybe I could have a word with Dr. Paul?”

“He said he’d meet you in radiology.”

“I don’t thi—”

“Now Lucy,”
Preston
interrupted, “don’t be
irrational
.”

I threw daggers at her.

She grinned at me.

“Fine,” I said through clenched teeth. “But just to prove a point to you.” I slid into the wheelchair and was suddenly feeling a little anxious.
Preston
usually had good instincts about people. Maybe it would be a good idea to have someone with me. “
Preston
, why don’t you come along?”

“Uh-uhn. No way. You’re on your own.”

I clutched my tote for dear life. “Well, you’d better be here when I get back.”

She continued to smile. “
If Dr.
Paul wants to order your favorite food and call your family, make a run for it. Oh, wait. You probably can’t run with that injury... I’ll give you a good eulogy, I promise.”

I groaned as her laughter followed me down the hallway.

Chapter Fourteen

The dimly-lit radiology room was freezing.

My teeth were starting to chatter as I sat atop a table and waited for someone. Anyone. When I couldn’t provide proof of insurance, the technician had disappeared. And Dr. Paul had yet to show up.

So I was alone.

Surrounded by humming machinery.

I wanted to jump up and turn on all the lights, but I didn’t see any light switches. The room was darkened, and the arms of the machines threw shadows on the walls.

It was eerie, and I was trying not to get creeped out.

Glancing around, I tried to occupy my mind with something else. Anything else.

I tried concentrating on
Preston
, and what was going on with her and Cutter, but as I sat here in all this eerie wonder, all I could picture was my driver’s license with a big red bullseye on it.

I shuddered and thought about making a run—well, a limp—for it when my phone rang.

Glancing around, I looked for any signage that said I couldn’t use it, and didn’t see any. Pulling my phone from my tote, I had to smile when I saw the Caller ID.

Suz.

“Let me guess,” I said after I answered. “Annie Hendrix is flooding our office voicemail.”

“What on earth happened, Lucy? She’s in hysterics. She’s left dozens of messages ranging from teary apologies to cussing you out. All usually end with her begging you to call her back.”

“You might want to shut off the voicemail system,” I said.

“Are you kidding? Her calls are pure entertainment. I’m thinking about putting them on YouTube. Can I?”

“No.”

“You’re no fun.”

“I know.”

“So, what happened with her?”

“Just teaching her a little lesson,” I said.

“And how long are you planning to let her suffer?”

“I haven’t decided yet.”

I could hear the smile in her voice. “Every once in a while, I get a little glimpse of your father in you.”

“I’m not sure that’s a compliment.”

“I’m not sure, either.”

“So much for your raise,” I teased.

She laughed, promised to keep me up-to-date on the Annie situation, and hung up. As I tucked my phone away, my gaze lingered on the pink bear.

I pulled it from my tote bag and removed it from its plastic casing. Holding it in my hands, I tried again to get a reading.

The bear’s fur, though matted from love and time, was still soft under my fingertips. Closing my eyes, I pictured
Bethany
holding the bear, serving it tea, reading to it, talking to it. The bear was her clearly her friend, and I wondered if she missed her buddy.

If she was still alive to miss it.

I hugged the bear to my chest and rested my chin atop its head.

My palms tingled, a light flashed and once again I was looking at a scene through someone else’s eyes.

Bethany
’s eyes.

I saw clearly the man who’d taken her, and the truck he drove. I forced myself to focus on trying to read the license plate. I could tell only that it was a
Maine
plate—the numbers were obscured with a thick layer of mud. The truck itself was a black Ford. No dents, no dings, no rust spots. A truck that millions of people probably owned.

The man was tall. Dark hair stuck out from beneath a black knit cap. Plain blue eyes. Unruly backwoods beard. Dirty coveralls. Short, clean fingernails. His coat was one I recognized as being from a high-priced designer.

This was no backwoodsman. The clothes, the beard, were part of his disguise.

I jumped as the door to the radiology room opened and nearly dropped the bear.

The visions vanished. Woozy, I rubbed my eyes.

Dr. Paul tipped his head as he came toward me. He glanced at the bear, then up at me again. I was surprised to see the amount of kindness in his eyes. He did not strike me as a kind man.

“Did you see anything?”

“The man who took her,” I said, carefully tucking the bear into its bag. “And the truck.”

“
Maine
plates?” he said.

My head snapped to look at him. “You knew that?”

“I saw it this morning,” he said, sitting on the edge of the x-ray table.

“You didn’t say anything.”

He lifted his shoulder in a half shrug. “I don’t always believe it’s best to reveal your hand all at once. After class, I did call Orlinda to let her know and left a message on her voicemail.”

And he’d told me... Realization dawned. “You didn’t want Annie and Dr. Paul to know.”

“They’re the jealous sort, and there’s only room enough for one teacher’s pet in our class, don’t you think?”

My jaw dropped. “You don’t want them picking on you like they do me.”

“Can you blame me?”

“Yes, yes I can.”

He laughed, then sobered. “Do you think you could pick the man who kidnapped the little girl out of a lineup?”

I nodded.

“You should call Orlinda, then, and let her know. It might be time to take our investigating to the next level.”

I agreed. “Do you think she’s alive?”

“The girl?”

“B—” I cut myself off from saying “
Bethany
.” For some reason, I didn’t want to tell him her name. I supposed I wasn’t keen on revealing all my cards, either. I nodded.