“I’m meeting with the detective now,” she replied.
“I’ll call with the results.”
Providence returned to the triage room and her heart broke. Her mom lay still and her dad’s eyes were red from crying. Before confiding her suspicions to him, she needed to talk to Beeker. After telling her dad she’d be back in ten, she hurried out. Beeker was waiting out front in his car.
She slid in beside him. “Thanks for meeting me.”
“You ready to talk?”
“I sure am,” she replied.
When Providence showed him her Elaine Jones FBI badge, he couldn’t hide his surprise. “What the hell is going on and why am I just now learning about this?”
“You’d zeroed in on us, but we didn’t do it. Until today, I had no suspects.” She gave him a rundown of everything from the blackmail letter, to her hacked bank account, to the suspected nicotine poisoning of her mom. Then, she showed him the vial from Randy’s bedroom, along with the photos.
“If you hadn’t shown me that badge, I would have accused you of planting evidence,” he said.
“Why would I kill my own mother?”
“Why would he?”
“Money. My parents are very comfortable. Their house is paid for. My brother and his wife just moved back to the area. He has no job and they’ve been mooching off them, plus, he has a history of borrowing money and never paying them back.”
Her phone rang. “It’s the hospital.” She answered. “Hello?”
“It’s Dr. Modling. Your mom has elevated levels of liquid nicotine in her blood. I’m moving forward with the charcoal.”
“Will she be okay?” Providence held her breath.
“I feel confident we caught her in time.”
Providence sighed out her relief. “That’s great.”
“We’re moving her to a private room.”
“I’ll let Detective Beeker know,” Providence said and hung up.
“Well?” Beeker asked.
“She tested positive for nicotine poisoning.” Overcome with emotion, tears clouded her vision. “Sorry, I need a minute.”
“Take your time,” Beeker said. “This is a lot to take in.”
After a brief respite, she composed herself. “I’ve got a plan I want to run by you.”
“All right, Providence. What did you have in mind?”
25
The Truth
Luther set the empty brandy snifter on the end table in Dakota’s home office, then relaxed against the sofa cushion. Here, the two men could speak freely. Sammy was sleeping downstairs at Miranda’s, and Providence was still at the hospital.
“I’m here to tell you the truth,” Luther said. “I’m here to fill in the missing pieces to a story that began decades ago.”
“About damn time.” Dakota picked up the photo Luther had brought with him. It was a close-up of the four men in tactical gear.
“The fourth person in that photo is Randy Maddox,” Luther said.
