John Doe: A Rizzoli & Isles Short Story by Tess Gerritsen

Author:Tess Gerritsen [Gerritsen, Tess]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Thrillers, Medical, General, Mystery & Detective, Fiction
ISBN: 9780345538154
Google: fCwNc4KjE4IC
Amazon: B008IU9JJW
Barnesnoble: B008IU9JJW
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Published: 2012-07-23T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOUR

It was late in the afternoon when Maura walked into the medical examiner’s building, and she saw Dr. Costas freeze beside the coffeepot, a cup clutched in his hand. She saw her secretary Louise staring at her over her computer screen. Maura said nothing, but walked straight past Louise’s desk into her own office and closed the door. No doubt they’d all heard the news; in both medicine and law enforcement, there were few secrets. Maura had not been present at Christopher Scanlon’s autopsy, but she knew that Dr. Bristol had performed it, which meant he knew the circumstances of Scanlon’s death. He knew that her home address was found in the victim’s pocket, that Scanlon’s vehicle was parked at her house, and that her fingerprints and her shoe were in that vehicle.

But what tormented her most weren’t all the damning details that made her look like a suspect; no, it was the details that made her look like a victim. The gullible woman, charmed and drugged by a predator. Though she had not been raped, she felt as ashamed and exposed as any rape victim, and it had taken all her fortitude to walk into the building today. This is how you fight back, she thought. You start by just showing your face.

Louise knocked and came into the office, closing the door behind her. “How are you?” she asked. “I was so worried. We were all worried.”

“I’m fine, Louise.” Maura calmly booted up her computer, as if this day were like any other. A day to inspect the wounds of others, not her own.

“Are you, really?” Louise had worked for the ME’s office for so long that Maura could not imagine a time when the woman would not be here to greet her every morning, cheerfully fetching her coffee. In an office that dealt every day with tragedy, Louise was always ready with a kind word, a comforting smile. But Maura wanted no sympathy from her today.

“I need Christopher Scanlon’s autopsy report,” she said.

That request startled Louise. “That’s … the man …”

“I know who he is. Could you get it for me?”

“Yes, of course.” Louise opened the door to leave, then glanced back at Maura. “If you need to talk, if you need anything at all, you know I’m here.”

No doubt Louise thought Maura needed a hug, a shoulder to cry on. But what Maura needed most was information. Anything that would help her reconstruct what had happened during the hours she could not remember. For all I know, I killed a man that night.

She already knew a great deal about Christopher Scanlon. She knew he’d been arrested twice, accused both times by women who told eerily similar stories. Scanlon had met them in crowded settings and offered to refresh their drinks. Both Kitty O’Brien and Sarah Shapiro woke up hours later in their own homes, with no memory of what had happened. In both cases, the charges were dropped.

Kitty O’Brien never recovered from the emotional trauma. Months later, she committed suicide, a heartbreaking end to the case.

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