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As I passed Holy Name, I glanced to the right. Then I did a double take. I mashed the brakes, barely avoiding a rear-end collision. I looked over my right shoulder to verify what I’d seen. There, standing on the corner opposite the church, were the bullies who’d been terrorizing my sons. I recognized them from the video surveillance footage. One of them was even wearing the same jacket he had on in the video.
I couldn’t believe it. What were the chances I’d just run across them on the street? Yet there they were, standing in front of our dry cleaner. I started to drift to the right and look for a spot to park.
Then I thought of Estella Abreu and Suzanne Morton. I recalled the anguish on their parents’ faces.
I muttered, “Shit,” aloud to no one. The goddamn bullies could wait. I took one last glance in my rearview mirror and hit the gas.
Chapter72
TERRI MET MEon the street in front of the emergency room. We paused just inside the door, where she grabbed hold of my arm and said, “How do we navigate this? We don’t want to screw up the case by giving the family a reason to say we were harassing them.”
“Since when do we need to give someone a reason to make a false accusation?”
“Still, let’s figure this out now instead of winging it when we run into the family.”
This was why I liked working with Terri Hernandez. Not only was she intelligent, she was also practical. Where I might just blunder into a situation, she thought things through.
I said, “We could go to the desk and find out what room Jaden is in.” I could tell by the hesitant look on Terry’s face she didn’t necessarily agree with my plan of action.
“Let me try something first,” Terri said. She pulled me down the hallway until we reached an intersection. From here we could see almost everyone coming or going from the emergency room. Terri looked at me. “ER nurses always know what’s going on.”
“Aren’t there all kinds of HIPAA restrictions? I can never get medical people to talk to me without a warrant or patient permission.”
Terri smiled. “It’s all in how you ask.”
We stood at the crossroads of the hallway for about three or four minutes. We nodded hello to a couple of doctors, a janitor, and a family who looked like they had just gotten good news. A rare sight in a hospital.
Finally, a friendly-looking nurse in scrubs patterned with colorful frolicking cats and dogs walked by.
Terri nodded at her and said, “How are you today?”
The nurse stopped and smiled, revealing braces. She might’ve been a few years younger than Terri. Her hair was cut short. Practical for any medical professional.
The nurse said, “So far, not too busy today. A car accident and an OD were our big adventures.”
Terri nodded again. She leaned in toward the nurse. “I know about the OD. We’re here for our friend’s son, Jaden.”
The nurse said, “Oh, you know Jaden? He always has a lot of support. His family stays right in the room with them.”
I blurted out, “Even his dad?”
The nurse gave us a sly smile. “You really do know them.” She looked up and down the hallway for a moment. “I like that his brother stays with him at night. It’s sweet. I know he works at some high-pressure finance firm all day. I admire the fact that he still sits with his little brother every evening.”
Little off-the-cuff comments like these always give me better insight. I knew Kyle Banning was a good-looking guy, but I was starting to see his charming side. Of course, some serial killers seem to have the same trait. I’m not sure if that’s what makes them effective serial killers or if they develop it to become better serial killers.
The nurse continued. “Last time they brought Jaden here was at the beginning of the month. I was impressed that the family was with him for three straight days and nights.”
Terri and I both perked up at that comment.
Terri ran with it. “We missed visiting for that one. Just last week? I think it was on the second of the month, right?”
The nurse shook her head. “No, it was the first day of my rotation. I remember it started exactly on the first of the month. Jaden was released on the afternoon of the fourth.”
Terri and I looked at each other. That was the night before Terri tried the undercover in the bar called Rain in the financial district. Kyle Banning must have gone out the next night after his brother got home. This kid hadn’t gone a full week without relapsing.
I realized the duration of the stay had something to do with some kind of psychiatric hold. My guess was that Jaden’s father had arranged to keep the incident quiet and out of a judge’s docket. He probably had to promise the doctor that he would leave Jaden secure in the hospital for three days. That was the standard court-ordered observation period.
The hospital can bill for extra days. It doesn’t get put on his permanent record. Jaden appears to be getting better. And the family can say they did the right thing. Everyone wins.
