I SHOULD NEVER have left.”
Bogart stared across the table at Decker.
The men were sitting inside an office of a small building the FBI had turned into a makeshift command center.
Bogart and Milligan had flown in with a half dozen other agents. They were in the other part of the building working away on trying to locate Lisa Davenport.
“You had no choice,” said Decker.
“Everybody has a choice,” retorted Bogart, who was looking distraught. His tie was unknotted, his shirt wrinkled, and his hair mussed.
“Realistic choice, then,” countered Decker. “And even if you had been here, the same thing probably would have happened.”
“We can’t find anyone here that she would have known well enough to let into her room at that hour. Any ideas on that?”
“It’s possible that she knew someone that we didn’t know she knew.”
“If they are using her as leverage we can expect a communication.”
Decker nodded. “The problem will be the exchange. That’s always the problem with scenarios like this.”
Bogart said, “You don’t think we’ll get her back alive?”
“She saw who took her. She knew the person.”
Bogart sighed and slumped back in his chair. “And she can’t be allowed to tell us who that is.”
“The odds are certainly against it.”
“Who do you think is behind this?”
“There’s more than one.”
“Meaning what exactly?”
“Motivations and actions tell us a lot. We have irreconcilable motivations and actions. That means there’s more than one player out there.”
“Something changed,” said Bogart. “Mars was in prison for twenty years and nothing happened.”
“What changed was he was going to be executed. He had never gotten that close to the death chamber before. That was the catalyst for them to act.”
“To pay off Montgomery?”
“Yes.”
“So which ‘faction’ did that?”
“I don’t know. It could be one or the other at this point.”
“They want what they think he knows. The stuff in the safe deposit box that his father took.”
“That’s the golden ring. His father took it and put it somewhere. They may think the son knows.”
Bogart said, “What are the irreconcilable motives and actions?”
“The party that wants the information could have let Melvin be executed. The information hadn’t surfaced for twenty years. They could assume it was lost. By getting Melvin out of jail they gave him an opportunity to go get it, assuming he knows where it is. Then they hope to be there when he does and grab it?” Decker shook his head. “That’s a huge risk. So huge that they wouldn’t have done it. They would have let sleeping dogs lie.”
“But then who got Mars out of prison?”
“The other party.”
“But why?”
“That’s the irreconcilable issue, Ross. And I haven’t gotten it figured out yet.”
Bogart rubbed a hand through his hair. “We will figure it out, Amos. We have to. Failure is not an option.”
Decker looked him over. “I appreciate you covering for me with the court.”
“The court called. I told them what they needed to hear.”
“Are things square back in D.C.?”
“I’m back on the case, so I guess that means the higher-ups saw the error of their ways.”
“And the divorce?”
“Not much of a silver lining there. But I’m getting to the point where I don’t care. I’ve got my work. That’s enough.”
“You sure about that?”
“No, but it’s my story and I’m sticking to it.” He looked over some files on his desk. “We don’t have very many leads.”
“No, we don’t. I’m getting Jamison a gun and showing her how to use it.”
Bogart looked at him in surprise. “You think they might try another kidnapping?”
“No, but I’ve been wrong before.”
“Join the club.”
Decker rose.
“Where are you going?”
“To get Jamison her weapon, and then I’m going to the doctor’s.”
“Are you sick?”
“No. Keep an eye on Melvin.”
He walked out, leaving Bogart to stare after him.
* * *
Decker selected a compact nine-millimeter for Jamison. Texas had a concealed handgun permit requirement, but when Jamison showed the store owner her FBI credentials and Bogart emailed him an official letter from the Bureau detailing her membership in an FBI task force along with the authority to carry such a weapon, the owner skipped those steps and handed the gun over.
When Jamison used her personal card to pay for it the man said, “Damn federal government so hard up for cash you got to buy your own guns now?”
“No, just the bullets,” shot back Jamison.
The shop had a gun range in the back. Decker showed her how to properly load, handle, and aim the weapon. Then he had her fire about a hundred rounds until he was satisfied.
She holstered the weapon and they left together.
“It feels funny carrying a gun,” she said.
“It’s better than not carrying a gun when you need it.”
They got back into their rental and drove off.
“Where to?”
“The doctor’s.”
“Is this about the Marses?”
“Yes.”
“Decker, we should be back there helping the others to find Davenport.”
“What we can do is solve this thing. That might be the best way to find out who took her and where she is.”
They pulled into the parking lot of a small brick office building. The office directory inside the lobby showed that all of the tenants were medical practices. It took nearly an hour and many exploratory questions until they arrived at the right one.
The nurse, in her late sixties, and nearly as wide as she was tall, nodded. “Yes, the Marses were patients here.”
Decker said, “Can you tell us about them?”
“It was twenty years ago.”
“Anything?” said Decker.
The woman sat down behind her metal desk. “Well, they sort of stood out because they were the first mixed-race couple I’d ever seen. First one in town in all probability. Back then lot of folks didn’t care for that, I can tell you.”
“Did a doctor from this practice deliver Melvin Mars?”
“Yes. Doc Turner. He’s been dead, oh, about seven years now.”
“Was he delivered at the local hospital?” asked Jamison.
“That’s right. I actually assisted. We’re a small town. Doc Turner was a general practitioner, but here you do what needs doing. There aren’t enough people living here to justify a practice devoted only to ob-gyn.” She looked wistful. “I remember that Lucinda Mars was probably the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. Her face was flawless. Her body, well, let me tell you, I wish I’d had one like hers. Her legs were longer than my whole body.”
“Did they start coming here when she got pregnant?” asked Decker.
“Oh, she was about five months along when they moved to town. I remember because I’d just come here about a year before and she was asking me where I shopped and what kind of jobs were available.”
Decker glanced at Jamison and then back at the nurse. “So she was already pregnant when they came here?”
“She was already showing. She didn’t gain much weight. Me, I put on forty with the first, thirty with the second, another thirty with the third, and it’s been with me ever since. She delivered Melvin and within a week she looked like she’d never been pregnant. Some people are just lucky that way. And Melvin, let me tell you, that boy was big. Nearly ten pounds. You could tell he was going to be a big man. His daddy was really big. About your height and about two-fifty, and none of it was fat. Wouldn’t want to get that man on the wrong side of you.”
“Did he have a temper?” asked Jamison.
The woman pursed her lips. “He just never looked, well, happy. I mean, he had this gorgeous wife. And his son grew up to be the best damn football player this town and maybe Texas has ever seen. Now, I know what happened later, but he just always had a scowl on his face.”
“Did you think there were problems in the marriage?” asked Jamison.
“Honey, every marriage has problems, and some are better at hiding it than others. But I’d have to say that I have never seen a man who loved his wife more than Roy did Lucinda. He was so gentle with her. When she was pregnant he wouldn’t let her lift a finger. I’d see them from time to time around town. And he would open the car door for her. Hold her hand while they were walking. The only time he looked happy, in fact, was when he was looking at her.” She sighed. “If my hubby looked at me like that just once in my life, I’d keel over from a stroke at the shock.”
“When was her brain cancer diagnosed?” Decker asked.
The nurse sat up in her chair. “Excuse me?”
“Her brain cancer. When was it diagnosed?”
“She didn’t have brain cancer.”
“Her autopsy showed a malignant glioblastoma. Stage Four. Inoperable. She maybe had a few months left to live before she was killed.”
The woman stared at Decker like he was speaking another language. “Well, it wasn’t diagnosed here, I can tell you that,” she finally said. “Glioblastoma. Are you sure?”
“It’s what the coroner found. I assume he wouldn’t be mistaken about something like that.”
“No, I guess not,” she said absently. “I never would have thought. She looked so healthy. And the papers never said she had cancer.”
“Probably because the police knew that the cancer certainly didn’t end up causing her death. So they had no reason to divulge that personal medical information. And I don’t think a murder-suicide pact was ever contemplated. You can’t set yourself on fire after you’ve killed yourself.”
They left her sitting in her chair still pondering this news. They were walking down the hall when Decker saw the sign stenciled on one of the doors along the hallway. He veered toward it, forcing Jamison to do a quick about-face and follow him.
He opened the door and walked up to the reception desk. Jamison came to stand next to him.
Decker held up his FBI card and said, “We need to talk to someone about a patient of the practice twenty years ago.”
The woman stared openmouthed at Decker and picked up the phone. “Just give me a sec.”
A minute later a man in his early thirties appeared dressed in a white coat. He had a stainless steel dental tool clutched in one of his gloved hands.
“I’m just finishing up with a patient. You can wait in my office.”
The receptionist led them down the hall and showed them into an office. They sat facing the desk.
Jamison shivered.
Decker looked at her. “Problem?”
“I hate the dentist. I had more cavities than teeth growing up.”
“Relax, we’re here for information, not fillings.”
“Yeah? I bet he’ll take one look at my teeth and start singing, ‘Drill, baby, drill.’”
A couple of minutes later the dentist walked in. He had taken off his white coat and his hands were no longer gloved. He had on a white dress shirt and a striped tie. Jamison shifted uneasily in her chair as he passed by her and sat down.
“I’m Lewis Fisher. What can I do for the FBI?”
Decker explained the background of why they were here. He added, “I assume from your age that you were not the dentist to the Marses.”
“No. I was still a kid. This was my grandfather’s practice back then. I took it over when he retired.”
“Would you still have the records of the Marses here?”
“No. Not after twenty years. And of course, because of the fact that they’re dead. I heard Melvin was released from prison,” he added.
“He was. Did you know him?”
“No, but we went to the same high school, at different times, of course. Everybody knew who Melvin was. I was stunned when he was arrested for the murders.”
“And his parents’ identities were established through their dental records here?”
“I guess that’s right, yes. I remember there wasn’t enough left of their…Well, you know.”
“Right. Is your grandfather still alive?”
“He is. And he still lives in the area.”
“Any chance we can talk to him?”
“You can try.”
Decker cocked his head. “Meaning?”
“Meaning he has dementia and resides at an assisted living center.”
“Does he have lucid moments?”
“Occasionally. He used to have more. But I’m afraid he’s slipping away at an alarming rate. It’s very sad when your own grandfather can’t recognize you.”
“I’m sure it is,” said Jamison sympathetically.
Decker said, “Can we give it a shot?”
“With what goal in mind?” asked Fisher.
“Information,” said Decker. “You never know where a new piece might help the investigation.”
“And what exactly are you investigating?”
“That’s not something we can comment on publicly,” said Decker, his tone becoming very official.
“Oh, right, of course.” Fisher quickly wrote the address down on a slip of paper and slid it across. “I’ll call and tell them you’re going to come by.”
Decker looked at the name. “Lewis Fisher Sr.”
“I’m Lewis Fisher the third. My father is the junior.”
Decker and Jamison rose. He said, “Thanks, I appreciate it.”
Fisher turned to Jamison, who quickly closed her mouth so her teeth weren’t visible.
“You should smile more often,” said Fisher. “You have very nice teeth.”
Outside the office Jamison said, “Let’s hope Fisher Sr. can give us a lead. We could sure use one.”
“It’s why we do the drill, Alex.”
“Please don’t use that word so close to a dentist’s office.”