Page 80 of Her Only Hero

There was a knock on the door. I hesitated, then looked at Aram before I answered it. The distraction saved me from responding to his invitation. I opened the door. It was Ursula, with freshly applied lip gloss.

“Oh, you’re here,” she said.

“Yes, here I am,” I said.

“There was a call for you. I left a note on your bench.”

“I appreciate that, Ursula. I was just leaving. Aram, thank you for the preliminary autopsy report.”

“You’re welcome, June. We’ll connect again when the bloodwork results have been completed.”

“The sooner the better,” I said. “Have a great evening.”

I stepped out of the office and heard Ursula laughing in the distance. It was obvious she had her sights on Aram.

Who was I to criticize?

Chapter Thirty-Five

At my desk in the lab, I unfolded the scribbled message Ursula had left for me.

June,

Dr. Crawford called. Call him back.

I sat and swiveled to-and-fro on my chair. What could Dr. Crawford want with me?

Lara waved, wearing her trench coat with the strap of her handbag over her shoulder. “Earth to June.”

“Sorry, Lara,” I said. “Are you on your way home?”

“Yes, finally,” she said. “You should get out of here, too. And get more rest. Promise?”

I smiled and crossed my heart.

Edward and Vinny were at the stainless-steel sink scrubbing their hands, getting ready to head out, too. “Night, June,” they all said.

“Have a great weekend, everyone,” I said. The door slammed shut, and all became quiet.

I sat holding the note, mulling over whether or not to call Dr. Crawford. I picked up the phone and dialed. A male voice answered.

“Hello, is Dr. Crawford there?”

“Speaking.”

“Hi, this is June Harber.”

“June, I appreciate you calling. I’ll cut to the chase. I am concerned about my partner, Stan Fulthorpe. Do you know if Officer Verbeek has located him?”

“I’m sure if you speak with the officer, he’ll give you an update.”

“I will. I have another question. David Moreno’s nurse told me you had seen his personal possessions. Is that true?”

“Yes, I did,” I said. “I saw them before they were submitted for evidence. Why do you ask?” He couldn’t be looking for David’s medication list again. Could he?

“Can you tell me what the items were?”

I found it very odd how Crawford was talking to me about this matter. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I’m the right person for you to be asking about this.”

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