Part 26 (2/2)
”I'm a lawyer in Westwood. Whether I'm big-time depends on your definition.”
”So what do you want to know?” the sergeant asked.
”I need to talk to you about a Hispanic couple who used to live in a house on my father's farm. You might remember themHector and Consuela Martinez? They murdered a girl up in Fresno. Hector Martinez got the death penalty for it.”
Both men seemed to stand a little straighter. ”I remember that case,” Officer Collins said. ”Bad one. Most of us followed it pretty close, seein' as the two of 'em lived here in town a couple of years before it happened.”
”That's why I'm here. I'm trying to find out if it's possible they might have committed another murder here in San Pico before the one in Fresno. I was hoping you might be able to take a look at the missing persons files, see if there were any young girls who came up missing in this area between 1967 and 1971.”
”I can tell you right now there aren't any,” Sgt. Drury said. ”We checked our files real good when those two were arrested, checked this whole end of the San Joaquin Valley. Nothing turned up. No missing girls, no unsolved murders, nothing that might point to the Martinezes.”
”How about the sheriff's office? The house they lived in was on the farm, which is in the county.”
”The departments work together on stuff like this. We traded information, came up with a big fat zero.”
”I imagine it was harder to check the records back then.”
”A whole lot harder,” Collins agreed. ”No computers back then, but we did our best.”
”I don't think we missed anything,'' the sergeant said. ”At least not around here.”
”But they could have s.n.a.t.c.hed someone in L.A.”
”Like Officer Collins said, we didn't have the fancy computers we've got today. We mostly stuck with the San Joaquin Valley. So it's possible, I suppose. To tell you the truth, bad as those two were, I was surprised no other victims turned up.”
”Well, thanks,” Zach said, ”I appreciate your help.”
”No problem.” Drury mustered a smile but it didn't reach his eyes, and the curve of his lips looked insincere.
Zach walked away, taking a deep breath as he headed down the hall, d.a.m.ned glad to be finished and out of there. He had more than enough bad memories of the place. He would be happy to get outside, even if it was over a hundred degrees.
Making his way to the front of the building, he stepped out into the heat. It was just after noon. He was meeting Elizabeth at Willow Glen at one. He clung to that thought as he strode down the cement steps and crossed to where his Jeep sat waiting in the parking lot.
Elizabeth sat in the lobby of the Willow Glen Retirement Home. Expecting Zach to walk in, she stood up from the overstuffed sofa only to realize the man shoving through the front door was blond, not dark, his features handsome, but not the sort to make her heart thrum the way Zach's did.
”Elizabeth.” Carson Harcourt came to a stop in front of her. ”I guess I'm supposed to say it's good to see you. If circ.u.mstances were different, I'm sure it would be. I gather you're waiting for Zach.”
”I'm here because Zach asked me to come.”
Carson frowned, a little surprised it seemed. ”I'm sure he'll be here any minute. We're both eager to hear what Dr. Marvin has to say.”
”I hope the doctor's bringing good news.”
Carson smiled. ”We all do.”
Zach walked in few minutes later. His jaw tightened when he saw her talking to his brother. Elizabeth gave him a rea.s.suring smile and walked over to greet him. ”I got here a few minutes early. So did Carson. He's anxious to hear what the doctor has to say.”
Zach flashed him a look. ”Is Marvin here?”
Carson walked over to the receptionist station and the woman directed them into a conference room in the C wing, where the doctor would meet them as soon as he finished a brief visit with their father.
The room was empty, but as nicely decorated as the rest of Willow Glen, in shades of dark green and burgundy. They sat down at a long walnut conference table, Zach next to Elizabeth, Carson on the opposite side of the table.
Zach reached over and squeezed Elizabeth's hand. ”Thanks for coming.”
”I'm glad you asked me.”
He smiled and something melted a little inside her. Where was the wall she had vowed to resurrect? Instead of pus.h.i.+ng Zach away, she was letting him get even closer. She couldn't afford to let that happen but she couldn't seem to find a way to stop it.
She glanced his way, saw him stand up as the door swung open and the doctor walked in. Carson rose, as well. Two brothers. One dark, one fair. So completely different.
”Carson. Zachary. It's good to see you.” Dr. Marvin was perhaps mid-forties, a thin man with spa.r.s.e brown hair and wearing a suit instead of the white coat she had expected.
”This is Elizabeth Conners,” Zach said, making the brief introduction. ”She's a friend.”
Dr. Marvin's smile looked sincere. ”It's nice to meet you, Elizabeth.”
The doctor sat down in the chair at the head of the table and both of the brothers sat back down. ”I'm glad you all could come. The news I have to share is extremely exciting. It involves an incredible new surgical technique that has recently been brought to my attention.”
”Exactly what sort of surgery are you talking about?” Carson asked.
”It's an extremely delicate laser technique for surgery in the brain. At this point, it's been successfully performed enough times that I believe it may be viable as a means of helping your father. Currently it's being performed by a handful of doctors, two of which I can personally recommend.”
”Go on,” Carson said, leaning back in his chair.
”The procedure uses a new type of biomedical, microlaser technology. The technique utilizes optical energy called photonics. It's an extremely accurate, far less invasive method that allows precise alterations of patient tissue inside the brain. This new technology allows the surgeon to remove tiny bits of foreign matter that have been embedded in the brain through some kind of trauma.”
”Like a fall down the stairs,” Zach said.
”Exactly. In your father's case, the technique would be used to remove the bits of bone currently lodged in the cerebrum and cerebellum. These tiny skull fragments are pressing on vital areas, causing much of his memory loss, as well as hampering his motor functions. Once the bone is removed and the pressure is released, there is a very good chance that in time he'll return almost completely to normal.”
Zach's hand caught hers again. She saw that he was smiling. ”That sounds terrific, Dr. Marvin.”
”What's the down side?” Carson asked.
”The odds are about eighty percent that the surgery will be completely successful. There is a ten percent chance there will be no measurable improvement or perhaps it will be extremely minimal.”
”And the other ten percent?”
”Any surgery is dangerous. In this case, there is a ten percent chance the surgery could be fatal.”
Carson stood up from the table. ”Ten percent is too much. There's no way I'm taking that kind of risk with my father's life.”
Zach stood up, too. ”What are you talking about? There's an eighty percent chance Dad could have his life back and only a ten percent chance he might die. There's no question the operation should be performed.”
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