Robert B. Parker’s Damned If You Do

20

On his way back to the station, Jesse took a detour. He parked in front of Golden Horizons, entered the main building, rang for the elevator, and took it to the fourth floor.

When he walked into the special care unit, he was immediately spotted by the nurse on duty, the same nurse with whom he had the altercation regarding Donnie Jacobs’s medication. She stared at him and then reached for the phone on her desk.

Jesse looked into a few of the various rooms and found two patients sprawled out on their beds and another asleep in his wheelchair. It was just before noon.

He was getting ready to leave when the elevator doors opened and Binky Morrow stepped out, still wearing the full-length white lab coat with his name embroidered on it. He was followed by Chuck Dempsey. Morrow called to Jesse from across the room.

“Mr. Stone,” he said. “You wait right there.”

Jesse stopped and watched as Morrow made his way toward him.

“Binky,” he said. “How nice to see you.”

“What is it you think you’re doing?”

“Having myself a little look-see.”

“You’ve been warned about that.”

“Everyone seems so peaceful, Binky.”

“Didn’t the district attorney’s message have any meaning for you?”

Jesse didn’t say anything.

“Answer me, sir.”

Jesse looked at him.

“I have a good mind to throw you out of here,” Morrow said.

“I beg to differ,” Jesse said.

“Excuse me?”

“I don’t think you have a good mind.”

“Quit screwing around, Stone,” Morrow said. “Get out of here. You can be certain you’ll be hearing from our lawyers.”

“Why are these patients lying around in a stupor,” Jesse said.

“No one here is in a stupor.”

“You mean they just suddenly fell asleep like that? Or do you suppose a Hogwarts team descended and cast a spell on them?”

“I asked you to leave,” Morrow said, pointing to the elevator.

Jesse leaned over and whispered in Morrow’s ear.

“You won’t get away with this, Binky.”

He reached over and pinched Morrow’s cheek. Hard. Morrow slapped Jesse’s hand away and began to massage his cheek.

Jesse smiled at him.

Then he turned to Chuck Dempsey, who shied away from him.

Jesse looked at them both. Then he headed for the elevator.

He was back at Golden Horizons the following morning. His Explorer was parked across the street, and he sat in it, sipping coffee and watching.

He heard the approaching roar of oversized engines before the two red fire trucks actually appeared. They were swiftly followed by the captain’s sedan.

The convoy pulled up in front of the main building. A handful of firefighters jumped down from the trucks. Captain Mickey Kurtz emerged from the red sedan. The men gathered for a moment, chatted briefly, then went inside.

Prior to entering the building, Captain Kurtz stopped and looked around. When he spotted Jesse in the Explorer, he pointed to him and grinned. Then he, too, went inside.