NYPD Red 6 - James Patterson Page 0,59

and the volunteer fire department were out in force, redirecting traffic and doing their best to clear the roadways. Chief Brown detoured off the main drag, navigated onto a side street, and dropped us off at the emergency room entrance in the rear of the building.

We met with Sarah Paris, the doctor heading up Erin’s medical team. Dr. Paris turned out to be a straight talker and a good listener whose only concern was her patient’s well-being, not her celebrity status.

Small-town docs can be put off by the in-your-face directness of big-city cops, so I eased into the interview. “Dr. Paris, we’re familiar with the HIPAA regulations about patient privacy, but this is a criminal investigation, and—”

The doc held up her hand. “I did my residency at Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx. It had the busiest ED in the entire city—shootings, stabbings, gang violence. There were some nights I talked to more cops than patients. Ask anything.”

“For starters, how is she?” I said.

“Physically she’s okay. A few cuts and bruises, nothing major. She’s also fourteen weeks along in her pregnancy, and the baby is fine. The real damage is psychological. Beyond the ordeal of being abducted, she was raped repeatedly.”

“You know that for a fact?”

“I know that because she told me several times, and I believed her. We have an ob-gyn on the way to the hospital, and of course we used a rape kit to gather the physical evidence. But even more traumatizing than her captivity was her escape. She said she managed to get away by luring her abductor into the shower, then slitting his throat. She’s in fear that all she did was wound him, and despite the fact that there are two policemen outside her door, she’s deathly afraid that he will come for her.”

“He won’t,” Kylie said. “He can’t. He’s dead.”

“That’s good news and bad news at the same time. I’m sure she’ll be relieved, but knowing she killed another human being will undoubtedly add to the PTSD. She’s going to need a lot of therapy.”

“Can we see her now?” I said.

“See her? Yes. Interrogate her? No. I’ll give you five minutes, ten max. I’m admitting her for a day or two. If you’re going to make her relive what she’s been through, at least let her get some rest first.”

She escorted us to a corner room on the top floor. Erin was lying in bed, tubes coming out of her arms, a bank of glowing screens monitoring her vital signs. Her face was pale and blotchy, her eyes vacant, her hair still damp from her life-changing shower with Bobby Dodd.

Kylie took the lead. “I’m Detective Kylie MacDonald. This is my partner, Detective Zach Jordan. We’ve been looking all over for you. Nice to finally meet you.”

Erin managed a half smile. “I know your names. He told me who you were. He talked to you on the phone.” She didn’t have to tell us who he was. “And I recognize you,” she said to Kylie. “You were at my wedding. Blue dress. Am I right?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Did you catch him? He’s insane. You have to catch him.”

“We didn’t have to catch him. He was found dead on the shower floor. He can never, ever hurt you again.”

I could see the relief spread across her face. “Is it true? About Veronica? When he came back this afternoon, he told me … ” She started sobbing. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m afraid that Veronica Gibbs was shot,” Kylie said. “She died instantly.”

“Oh, poor Jamie. Where is he? I can’t wait to be with him.”

“And he can’t wait to be with you. He’s on his way. Police escort, so he’ll be here soon. But first we’d like to ask you a few questions. We won’t take long. Are you up to it?”

She shrugged. “Sure.”

“Do you mind if we sit down?” I asked. It was a simple request, basically unnecessary, but when you’re dealing with people who have been stripped of all their power, you give them back as much control as you possibly can.

“Please,” she said. “Sit.”

We sat.

“Let me just start by saying that we are in awe of your strength,” Kylie said. “You’re a fighter, and you came out a winner.”

“I was trained. Ari was an Israeli commando. My father hired him just in case something like this ever happened. I told my dad it was stupid, but Ari was so cute and sexy I didn’t want him to leave.” She looked up at the