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Marina’s lovely drawl behind her made her grateful for her presence, almost as much as the cup of coffee she held in her hand.
“Just gimme the caffeine shot. Sleeping is for the weak.”
More laughter bubbled as Noelle all but snatched the hot cup. “Sleeping is for regenerating your brain cells. I guess yours are still functioning if you know how to use all those machines, except one that is.”
Noelle blinked and looked around, worried that she had screwed up. “What? Which machine?”
“Your phone, silly! Roseline has tried nonstop to reach you, so has Severine. They didn’t want to bother you while you were locked up in here. As you asked for her help with camera work,Rose updated us about what was going on. To be honest, I was surprised you’d join forces with the enemy so quickly.”
With a sigh, Noelle realized she hadn’t had time to update their little circle with the latest news, and she wasn’t sure she had time for it now. “We talked. I confronted him about Reeker, and I don’t think he’s in with him.”
And when Marina crossed her arms, her eyes sharp behind her smart glasses, Noelle pleaded for a truce. “Please, trust me on this. I saw how he was with his friends. They’re good people. And to top it off, Dominique likes him.”
If she hadn’t been so tired, Noelle would have laughed at her friend’s expression.
“You took him to meet Dominique? Just like that?”
“The tour was with his friends, and he joined them. It was a spur of the moment idea when the tour ended, and he was walking me home.”
“I got the overview from Rose. I saw the lieutenant in the bullpen wrangling people to canvass the streets to try and find the other woman.”
Noelle didn’t want to think about the state they’d possibly find Leanna in. “I need to make sense of everything we’ve gathered so far. There are so many tests going on and I don’t want to lose anything.”
Marina nodded and put the file she was holding on her worktable. “I’ve analyzed the fingerprint marks found on Jordyn Kaiser. Male, around 5’8 to 6’ in height. Strong but not overly, which makes me think he’s not that young or healthy. The tips of the fingers are thinner than average. I couldn’t get complete fingerprints from the skin to make any solid conclusions.”
“It’s not much to go on. An average man.”
“Yes. The only certain thing is it’s not her boyfriend’s finger marks, and they were made while she was gone. So at least they’ll drop their suspicions against Nico Maldonado.”
“On that front, do you know if Rosie has found who made the call?”
“Noelle, even she can’t duplicate herself. The camera thing was a huge task as the radius you asked her to look at is quite big.”
It was difficult not to push or wait when Leanna’s face came to her mind repeatedly.
Noelle slid her notebook closer and scribbled down a few of the details Marina gave her. “I’m still running the blood tests. As soon as I get the results, I’ll compare them to the DNA bank. With luck, it will give us a direct lead. However, it will take time. Way too much time. I need something tangible now.”
Marina sighed and leaned her hip on the counter, facing Noelle. “I hear you, but the data is the data. It’s a long road, but it is undeniable. It is a strange case though. How can a woman, a sane and healthy woman, forget several hours of her life and wake up walking down the street like a zombie? It’s like she’s had a total blackout.”
The word stayed in her head, nagging the edge of her mind until it clicked. “Just like the Noble case.”
“And the Huntington-Whelan case.” Noelle turned to see Brandon walking in. His eyes were almost burning her up, but he quickly switched his focus to Marina.
“Brandon Turner. The new guy.”
Noelle could see her friend close herself up a little, her introverted side taking over.
“Marina LeBlanc, criminalist and friend protector.”
Noelle winced at the tone, but Brandon took it in stride. “Noted. And I can tell you that your protector services won’t be required. However, your criminalist skills are more than welcome. I was so deep in my friends’ trouble and getting the ball rolling that I didn’t connect the dots. You made me realize why Jordyn’s case rings a bell.”
Noelle frowned. “The Noble case was the one you asked me to look into.”
“Yeah, and the Huntington-Whelan case dropped not long ago. Two women who murdered a man but can’t remember what happened. Ring any bells?”
The three of them remained silent for a minute under the heaviness of realizing that another person was probably dead.
Marina was the first to recover. “What could have pushed three ordinary women to kill at all? Have you started the blood analysis for Ms. Kaiser?”
