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“It was closed before we got here, but records show it was covered by rotating physicians. Whoever drew the short straw from Finley Creek County and Barratt County, and a few hospitals in Dallas. Those hospitals would get extra funding for covering the rural areas near them. Give you a guess who were some of the last?”
“You tell me.” He suspected it was someone significant.
“Wallace Henedy and Dr. Daniels from FCGH. MacNamara busted Daniels a few years back—for prostitution. And Henedy is the guy who tried to kill MacNamara’s niece Izzie. And took my sister-in-law hostage. It’s owned by a private company out of Finley Creek now. I called and spoke with their attorney yesterday about serving the warrant, and if they wanted to be here. They didn’t seem to care much and told me to go ahead.”
“Those doctors probably won’t be too keen on talking to you about this place either.”
“Probably not. Considering. Well, Daniels might, but I doubt it. He never had any interaction with Rafe.”
Finley Creek General Hospital, where her brother Rafe was chief of medicine, had had a fewproblemsin recent years. He was fixing that. A good guy, was Zoey’s older brother. If a bit of the snarly sort. Like his baby sister in that regard.
“That place was getting a bit of a reputation. I’m glad your brother took over before my precious baby brother hired on there. He’s a bit naive and sheltered, you know.” His twin had started at Finley Creek Gen in the emergency department three months ago. Murdoch probably needed to go rattle Anthony’s cage a bit again. Make sure his brother wasn’t getting moldy. He hadn’t seen the nerdiest Lake in a few weeks.
“Sure he is. He’s a Lake. Somehow, I’m not buying the sheltered part here, pal.”
Murdoch reached for the door to the back office. It was locked. “That’s odd. It’s locked. Why would it be locked? And the lock is new.”
“So they’ll leave vital information in the front office, but keep a back office locked?”
It didn’t make sense to Murdoch either. “But we don’t have permission in that warrant of yours, do we?”
“It says I can search any open area that may contain records pertaining to human trafficking, Murdoch. Or finding the names on the list I specifically mentioned. Says nothing about locked.”
“I am not a lawyer. But…I know where I can find a couple. Tell you what, you let me call my good old brother-in-law Georgie, or his superhot little sister Giavonna. If this warrant will get us in a locked door, she’ll tell me, and it’ll probably just cost me a kiss on her cheek. I know you don’t like to share me, but…for the good of the cause?”
“I think I’ll make that sacrifice.”
Hell, not even a speck of jealousy in those Zoey eyes. Murdoch’s soul was crushed. Did she like him, even a little?
“Can you get a second warrant for a few days from now, covering the office? If so, we’ll rock this lock, babe. Let’s take the goods you found here and then I’ll get me one of those handy-dandy padlocks I keep in the back of me good old police steed out there—and we’ll lock this barn up tight. Then…you can buy me dinner and tell me all about how much you love me.”
“Not going to happen. It’s never going to happen, Lake. So…just forget about it.”
“Honey, once a man falls for you, there is no forgetting about it. Trust me: I know.” There was no way in hell he was telling her he meant that. A man had to have a sense of self-preservation, after all.
“I’m going to take what I’ve found, and go from there. Thanks, Lake. I knew you’d come in handy eventually.”
“Hell, yeah. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Even a broken clock comes in handy twice a day or something right?” He shot her a grin.
“Something like that.”
“See you around, babe. At least, I’m hoping to, anyway. Take care of yourself out there. You can give a man a heart attack, you know?”
“Somehow, I think you’ll survive me, Lake. But thanks for the help. I appreciate it.”
Less than an hour later, he watched her drive away. He didn’t have a clue when he’d see her again. It stung more than he’d ever let her know.
Damn, he loved that woman. And probably always would.
Now, though, it was time to go back to being the sheriff of Garrity. It was what he was good at, after all.
2
Zoey took a deep breath—andthen coughed from the dust. It was the second time in two days she’d found herself getting a glimpse into the past. The artifacts of her mother’s life surrounded her now. Dust, cobwebs, a life of fifty-something years reduced to nothing more than cardboard moving boxes that no one wanted.
This storage shed held all that was ever going to be left of the woman known as Denise Daviess.
“Zoey?”
