Page 74 of Hidden Hero

“Dr. Wadsworth? This is Detective Elizabeth Perez.”

Cradling the phone between her shoulder and ear, Cora sat up straight. The movement almost caused the phone to slip, and she snatched it before the receiver fell to the desk. “Yes, Detective. What can I do for you?”

“I wanted to keep you abreast of the investigation into the death of Roy Parker.”

“Thank you. I was just telling… um… I was just wondering what was happening.” She winced, her nose wrinkling. She hadn’t meant to divulge that she had talked about the case, but then, since it was now out that she and Jeremy were dating, she hoped Elizabeth would infer she had spoken to him. Before she could pull herself out of her now-muddled thoughts, Elizabeth continued.

“We got a search warrant and went to the Parker house. Mrs. Parker wasn’t happy, and her son threatened us, so he had to be restrained.”

“Oh, shit…” Cora moaned.

“But what we found were foxglove plants. We took pictures, and our team found stems cut low to the ground and footprints in the dirt.”

“But that’s still very circumstantial.”

“Yes, it is. But now we’re in the process of bringing them in for questioning. The sister, the wife, and the son. Well, the son is sitting in jail right now for attempting to throw a punch at our deputy.”

“Okay, thank you for calling. Is there anything else I can assist with?”

“Actually, yes. That’s why I’m calling. Can we bring the samples of what we took from their garden? I know you can’t make exact matches, but if you could identify that the poison could have come from these plants, that would help.”

“Absolutely. Bring them by, and I’ll make them a priority.”

“Thank you so much, Dr. Wadsworth,” Elizabeth enthused.

The detective arrived at the morgue quickly. Welcoming her, Cora invited her back to the lab, where there was sufficient light and the PPEs she would require. Once the two were suited, Elizabeth set the bags on the counter. Cora opened each one and signed the date and time she unsealed it.

She pulled out the plants, easily identifying they were foxglove. She leaned over to examine Elizabeth’s photographs from the Parker’s home garden. “Those shots are good. I don’t think I’ll need more, but there’s no reason not to take them while we have the plants here.” She looked up and asked, “Janice, would you photograph these plants? Then just upload them to the Parker chart.”

After cutting samples from a few plants, including some soil the deputies gathered, she turned to Elizabeth. “I’ll send these to the state lab, and they can hopefully analyze them.” She closed her eyes for a few seconds and sighed. “But, of course, there’s no way to tell if these are the plants used or who used them. I’m sorry that we can’t detect more.”

“Hey,” Elizabeth said, placing her hand on Cora’s arm, sympathy and understanding in her eyes. “Believe me, I know. Just ask Jeremy… he’ll tell you of all the unsolved or unprosecutable cases.”

At the mention of Jeremy, she chuckled. “After the wedding, I guess our relationship isn’t a secret, is it?”

“No.” Elizabeth laughed. “But it’s good. He’s a really great guy. I don’t know him well, but when I’ve worked with him, he’s dedicated and always has a smile to cheer everyone up. And the look I’ve seen in his eyes lately makes me know that you’re good for him, too.”

“Thanks, that’s nice to hear.” She looked down at the plants on the lab table and then at the photographs inside the house. She bent forward and studied several taken in the bedroom and kitchen. “Was there a drinking glass in the bathroom or near the victim’s bed?”

“No, we looked, but there was nothing.”

Nodding, she looked at the kitchen photographs again. “There’s a drinking glass on the refrigerator with other things. Why would someone set a glass up there?” She lifted her head. “Do they have grandchildren?”

“Yes. The son is married, and they have two little children.”

“If you used a glass specifically for poisoning Mr. Parker, then you’d want to make sure the children didn’t get to it.” She sighed. “But then, they probably ran it through the dishwasher to remove all evidence.”

“You never know. Some people who do criminal acts are not smart or, at least, not smart when trying to plan and cover their crimes.”

“Can you get that glass? If so, we can see if there’s residue and fingerprints. We’ll send it to the state lab.”

Elizabeth’s eyes lit. “You got it. I’ll call John, and we’ll get to the Parker place this afternoon.”

As the detective left, Cora smiled. Maybe, just maybe, she could help get justice for Roy Parker.

33

“We need more evidence,” Jeremy grumbled.

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