Authors: Angella Graff
“Go for Horvath,” was the sharp answer.
“Detective Horvath, it’s Ben Stanford.”
“Ah, I didn’t expect to hear from you so soon,” she said. “Is there something I can do for you?”
“I need a warrant, actually,” Ben said, cutting right to the chase. “I have reason to believe that someone involved with the John Doe kidnapping may have been an employee who worked for the hospital around the time of the disappearance. I need access to those records, and I need someone who works in this county to get them for me.”
There was a long pause before Stella answered again. “I have a favor I can call in. You’ll need to give me a few hours, but I can get the records for you by the end of the day. Unless,” she added, “you were heading back up north before then?”
That had been Ben’s original plan, and he hesitated. “I can postpone my trip back another day, however I have to get back to the office by tomorrow. I’m really behind on this case. I haven’t had a single moment to go through each victim’s file individually and right now I feel like I’m chasing a ghost.”
“No problem. Look, why don’t we meet for lunch and we can put together a game plan. I’m going to officially bring you on to this John Doe case, to give you free access to all of the information, so I have a few files to give you and I just need you to sign the paperwork agreeing to work out of your district.”
“Look I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Ben said slowly.
“I’m not going to call you in on anything; I’m perfectly capable of handling a missing persons case on my own. Frankly, it’s not top priority, and the only reason I’m suggesting it at all is because you were on to something when you suggested the cases may be related.”
Ben frowned, trying to remember if
he
had suggested it, or if
Stella
had. Either way, she was right and he could use all the information available to him. “I’m going to give you a tentative yes, and we can meet for lunch. Unfortunately I have Mark Roman and my sister along with me, so any sensitive information will have to be discussed at a later time.”
“Over dinner, then,” she said, and in the moment Ben thought he heard something a little unprofessional in her tone.
He cleared his throat and said, “Let’s meet at the little Italian place across from Asclepius’s hospital around noon.”
“I will be there,” she promised and with that, the line went dead.
Confused, Ben slipped his phone into his pocket and sighed. Stella was different, and from what Ben remembered about her, she was cold and intense, frosty even. The thread of warmth he thought he’d heard in her voice intrigued him.
Either way, it was his only chance at the records, since he had no conclusive evidence that the John Doe case was related to his homicide cases and no judge he knew would issue him the records warrant.
Fighting off the urge to pull out a cigarette, Ben plopped down on a bench under a tree and hung his head. It wasn’t until someone sat next to him that he looked up. It was Mark, glasses on, white cane in hand.
“What are you doing?” Ben asked, irritated to see the disguise again.
“Trying not to rouse suspicion,” Mark replied with a shrug. His heavy accent was back in full force. “I’ve been at this hospital many times, it would not look right if I suddenly could see, would it?”
“Right, whatever. So did you guys find anything?”
“Not without the warrant,” Mark replied with a shrug. “Any luck with your detective friend?”
“She’s meeting us for lunch,” Ben said and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his palms. “She said she can help me with the warrant, but we won’t be able to get the records until tomorrow. The best thing you can do is take my sister back to San Francisco. There’s no sense in sitting around here, and I can almost guarantee you that whoever took your friend didn’t stick around to get caught.”
Mark sighed and turned his face up to the sun. “You’re right, I’m certain he’s not here.”
“I’ll see what I can find, and hopefully our search will turn up something. You and Abby need to head home and wait for me to figure this out. I appreciate the PI stuff you’ve been doing,” Ben lied, “but if we’re going to have any shot at finding your friend, you need to let me do this the correct way.”
Mark laughed and shook his head. “It’s okay to hate me, and hate the way I’ve handled it. I appreciate that you’re being so cordial about it, but we both know you don’t appreciate me all-but kidnapping your sister, breaking into a hospital, and introducing you to a man who thinks he’s an ancient Greek god.”
That took Ben by surprise, and after a second, he laughed. “All true.”
Mark extended his hand and Ben took it. “Thank you for helping me, even if this ends up nowhere.”
Ben squeezed Mark’s hand, not painfully, but hard enough to make his point. “I know you think you’re immortal. Hell, maybe you are, and I’m never going to try and understand that. I’m only asking that you get my sister home and you let me do my job.”
Mark gave Ben a sad smile and pulled his hand away. “Fair enough, Ben. I promise to take her home and go back to my job long enough to give you time. Just remember that while Yehuda and I may be able to live forever, time isn’t on our side.”
With that, Ben watched Mark stand up and make his way back into the hospital, his white cane swishing back and forth, his head turned up slightly. Ben was frustrated, and more than that, he was tired. He was tired of this entire situation, and he was tired of sitting around waiting.
He decided that a cup of coffee would probably help, since they wouldn’t be able to get anywhere with the hospital, and Greg, for all his influence, was tied up with patients for the day. The little cafeteria was nearby on the first floor, and Ben walked in to order something.
“French roast,” he ordered, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw his sister. She was sitting in a booth near the cashier, a cup of coffee untouched on the table, and her face in her hands.
Ben paid for the coffee quickly, grabbed a couple of sugar packets and slid into the seat across from Abby. “What’s up, kiddo?” he asked.
Abby’s head snapped up and Ben noticed his sister’s eyes were surrounded by dark circles, and her skin was a bit sallow. “I just haven’t been feeling so hot,” she said and punctuated her sentence with a loud yawn. “I swear, I’m sleeping but I feel even more tired when I wake up.”
“This entire situation is stressful,” Ben said, but he was worried about her. Since his sister had found herself involved with all of this, she was looking more and more tired. “You need to get home and get some actual rest.”
“I know,” she said and took a sip of her coffee. She grimaced and set the cup down. “Home where there’s drinkable coffee.”
Ben chuckled and nodded his agreement. “I just want you to be careful, okay? Whatever the hell is going on right now, it’s not safe.”
“I know you don’t believe in any of it,” Abby said slowly, keeping her tone even, “but it’s really important that we find Yehuda.”
Ben grimaced at the name, but at the sight of his sister’s exhausted face, he couldn’t bring himself to correct her. “I’m doing everything I can, I swear. Detective Horvath is bringing me on to the missing person’s case officially, so I can have full access to the files and witness statements. We’re getting a warrant for the employment records, and the moment I have names, I’m going to be checking backgrounds and doing interviews.”
Abby let out a little sigh and smiled. “Thanks, Ben. This is asking a lot, I know.”
“This is also my job,” Ben replied with a shrug. “Whomever took this guy, probably also had something to do with my murder cases, and I’m not about to let that go.”
“Greg said…” Abby started.
“Look, I’m willing to listen to
some
of what Greg says, but until I have some sort of conclusive evidence that Greek gods are possessing and killing comatose bodies, I’m going to treat this as a homicide case,” Ben said in a rush. When Abby flinched, his face fell. “I’m sorry to be harsh, but you know that I can’t just drop my case and say, oh well, they were Greek gods, so case closed.”
“I know,” Abby said and yawned again. She rubbed one eye with her fist and shook her head. “I just need some sleep. I mean, some actual, honest to god rest. I won’t be feeling dizzy or nauseous or exhausted once this case is solved.”
Ben frowned. “Have you had sex lately, Abby?”
Abby’s cheeks pinked. “Excuse me?”
Ben threw up his hands and spoke quickly. “I’m not trying to pry, but dizzy, tired and nauseous?”
“I’m not pregnant,” Abby said, her voice low and angry. “I may not have followed all the commandments in the Bible all of the time, but I do try and control my libido. Besides, I haven’t had a boyfriend in about a year, and Mark isn’t exactly interested in dating right now.”
“Okay, I’m sorry. I just worry,” Ben said slowly. “Is there anything else weird? Any other odd symptoms or things going on? I just want to make sure you’re healthy, Abbs.”
Abby rolled her eyes, but her expression gave her away, and after a moment of Ben staring her in the eye, she sighed and rolled up her sleeve. “Just weird bruises.”
Sure enough, Ben spotted three round bruises on the inside of her forearm. They were dark, and clearly new, and he felt a little bit of panic flare to life in his stomach. “I need you to call your doctor and get checked, okay.”
Abby ripped her sleeve down and crossed her arms. “I already said I’m not pregnant.”
“I’m not implying that you are. Dizzy, nauseous, unexplained bruises, fatigue. Look, those symptoms are really similar to… something else.”
The siblings shared a look and Abby licked her lips nervously. “Okay. Okay I’ll call when I get home.”
“I just want you to be healthy and safe, and we can’t count on some random homeless Jesus to heal one of us every time something serious comes up,” Ben said. He stood up from the table, needing to get away from his sister before he really panicked. “I have to stay here another day or so, okay? Mark’s going to drive you home tonight, and I’ll probably just catch a flight back.”
Abby looked up at him with her sleepy eyes. “Fine.”
Ben grabbed his coffee and walked out of the hospital, unable to look back at that booth with his ailing sister. The last thing he needed in his life was another cancer scare, be it in himself or someone he loved. With everything else, Ben was pretty sure if something like that came up, he was going to crack.
With a heavy sigh, Ben found a sunny spot near the smoking area, and gave cancer a big thumbs up as he lit a cigarette and sat there until it was time to meet Stella.
Chapter
Twenty-Nine
Mark tried to convince Abby to join them for lunch, but she declined. Truth be told, she looked exhausted, and Mark was worried about her. They had shared hotel room the night before, and as was habit, Mark woke in the early morning hours to find the bed she slept in empty.
Careful not to wake anyone, Mark had wandered the halls of the hotel until he found Abby sitting outside on a small bench, wearing nothing but her pajama bottoms and a rather thin t-shirt. She was shivering, but when he offered her a jacket, she had declined.
“I just can’t sleep,” she muttered to him, her voice low, her head tilted downwards.
“Well I’m up, if you need anything,” he told her and went back inside. Abby didn’t come up until hours later, just before Ben woke, and though she did lay down, Mark knew her eyes never closed.