Page 88 of Deadly Lineage
I sat up, staring at the screen. I rubbed my dry eyes and winced instantly. I either needed to blink more often or I needed to beg someone in the office for rewetting drops.
Tapping my pen, I glared at the name. McCallister wasn’tthatunusual. Chances were on the side of this particular line having absolutely nothing to do with the doctor darkening our morgue’s doorstep.
Clicking through names, I followed the lineages until…
“Well, I’ll be damned.” It was right there, staring me in the face:Morgan McCallister.
My heart raced and I jumped a mile when Becks dropped a vaguely familiar laptop on the edge of my desk, scooting it forward and pushing my papers aside.
“What are—”
“I need you to look at this. Now.” Becks swung the laptop around so the screen was open and visible.
“Now’s not the best time, Becks,” I said, still reeling from what I’d just figured out. It didn’t have to mean anything. Chances were still heavy that Dr. McCallister had no idea he was distantly related to the young warlock still lying in his morgue. My mind needed time to process. I needed to investigate further. It was probably too early to bring Captain Cicely in on what I’d discovered, but I wasn’t sure. My brain said one thing, but my gut screamed bloody fucking murder.
“Make time,” Becks demanded, pushing the laptop closer and pointing at the screen.
Blinking my eyes against another electronic screen, I asked, “What am I looking at?” It seemed like a shit tone of gibberish with symbols, letters, and strings of words mixed in.
“Text message chat,” Becks answered. “It probably looks weird to you because it’s not in the neat little pop-up bubbles you’re used to. I had to decode some things and get in through a back door. I’ve got the meat of the program, but not the fancied-up, user-friendly version. Ignore the symbols and read the words.”
Becks leaned back, foot tapping while her head swiveled from side to side, looking over her shoulder as if she expected someone nefarious to walk through any second.
“Becks? What’s wrong?” I started to rise. Becks was never this jumpy. She placed her hand on my shoulder and pushed me back in my seat.
“Shut up and read.” She pointed at the screen again.
I held up my hands and said, “Okay. I’m reading.” The screen was blurry. I’d spent way too much time in front of my computer today. Despite the struggle, I focused and with each passing word, my attention zeroed in. There it was, laid out in digital.
“It can’t be,” I whispered.
“That’s what I thought.” When I glanced up, Becks was frantically shaking her head. She leaned in closer, voice low and barely audible. “It’s not crystal clear. I mean, Linus Remington mentions the nameDocand laterMorgan. That doesn’t have to be our Dr. Morgan McCallister. I mean, what’s the likelihood? Morgan’s a common name and there are probably a lot of doctors out there with that name.” She swallowed, her the pace of her speech slowing. “Tell me this is just a coincidence, O’Hare.”
Becks’s eyes were large and pleading. I wanted to tell her that’s probably all it was. Most likely that’sexactlywhat I would have said, except…I had that exact same name written down on a piece of paper Becks had unceremoniously pushed to the side.
My mind tumbled, thoughts passing through too quickly to catch without using a wide net. I was used to thinking quickly, making snap decisions, and going with my gut. While this situation was more volatile than most, I needed to treat it just like any other lead, with one major exception.
“Becks, have you shown this to anyone else?”
She shook her head. “No. Just you.”
“Good.” I bent the laptop, hiding the screen but not turning it off. “I need to speak with Captain Cicely. I don’t want to start any rumors, especially when we don’t know what’s going on. There’s still a good chance that our doc has nothing to do with this.”Yeah, I didn’t believe that for a minute.
“Okay.” Becks looked slightly relieved. “I’m probably jumping to conclusions anyway.”
I reached out and squeezed her wrist. “Trust me, you’re not. You’re being a good police officer. You’ve done your job. Now it’s time for me to do mine. Why don’t you take off for the day?” When Becks started to protest, I held up a hand and said, “I’ll clear it with the captain. She’ll understand.” I didn’t ignore my gut and right now it told me to get Becks out of the line of fire. Currently, we were a knowing party of two, soon to be three. I wanted to keep the numbers small—if Dr. McCallister reallywasresponsible for what had happened to our victims, he was one dangerous asshole.
“I can keep working,” Becks argued. “I—”
“Go home, Becks.” I softened my harsh tone with a smile. “Trust me on this one. If I need anything, you’re just a phone call away.” I grabbed my phone and waggled it her direction for emphasis.
With a loud sigh and sagging shoulders, Becks said, “Okay. But if the captain gets pissed, I’m telling her it was your idea.”
“She won’t get mad and if I’m wrong, I’ll take full responsibility.” It was an easy promise to make and one that finally got Becks moving. She took the laptop with her to lock up in evidence. I didn’t think I’d need it and I didn’t want to take the chance of printing out a hard copy that might wind up in the wind.
When Becks was gone, I headed for Captain Cicely’s office and knocked on the door. I barely waited for her to tell me I could come in. Head down, the captain was skimming through a report.
“What is it, O’Hare? I’ve got a lot of… What’s wrong? You’re as pale as ghost.” Captain Cicely pushed up from her chair, standing and leaning over her desk, the report she’d been intently reading already forgotten.
