Page 25 of Chosen Path
He nodded, unconvinced. “All the same, if you start to feel poorly, promise me you’ll go see Doc Hart right away.”
“I promise, hon. Speaking of Doctor Hart, did Frank happen to know a name for the out-of-town doctor?”
“Not that Frank mentioned. Odd, isn’t it? Why would there be a doctor visiting from out of town, and why would he be at Corrine’s?”
She could answer the first question. “I believe he’s a friend of Doctor Hart’s visiting from Pittsburgh. His name is Doctor King. I met him briefly last night on my way home from the meeting.”
“Oh, that’s nice she’s got company. That young gal works too hard, if you ask me. So serious all the time. I suppose Doc Hart does have some pretty big shoes to fill, though.”
“Mmm-hmm.”
She let him ramble on while she considered the more important question: whatwasBodhi King doing at Corrine’s house?
CHAPTERTWELVE
Bodhi King was trying to stay out of the way of the two police officers roaming around Corrine’s house. The first thing they’d done was to clear the house, even though he’d told them when he opened the front door to let them in that he was the only person there.
Was it protocol to clear the house at the scene of a nonviolent death? He passed some time trying to remember if law enforcement had done so at any crime scene in his experience. He finally decided that if they had, it would have happened long before a forensic coroner was called to the scene.
The officers—Officer Booth, a tall woman who had her hair pulled back in a tight ponytail, and Officer Perth, a short, stocky man who offered Bodhi a stick of spearmint chewing gum before he was even all the way through the door—seemed to be searching for something. But Bodhi got the sense that it wasn’t anything specific. They were more like tourists than investigators, just sort of checking the place out to see what it had to offer. The one thing they were decidedlynotinterested in was the corpse on the couch.
Bodhi was by nature, training, and necessity a patient person. So he let them go on opening and closing drawers and closets, looking through the refrigerator and pantry, and peering under the bed for a good while. Finally, after Officer Perth knocked on the wall with his knuckles, Bodhi cleared his throat and stepped forward.
“Is there something I can help you find?”
Booth laughed sheepishly. “Oh, no. It’s just there aren’t too many homes on the market around here, in the whole county. Most homes sell privately, you know? So there’s this real estate agent over in Wilson’s Center who gives us a little finder’s fee if we give her leads.”
“I see.”
“And Mrs. Wolf here has a prime location and a big lot. This’ll be a good lead if it’s structurally sound and all,” Perth added, snapping his gum.
“About Mrs. Wolf—”
“Yeah?” Perth asked.
“Well, she’s dead.”
Booth blinked at him. “Uh-uh.”
“Do you want to call the medical examiner?”
“Isn’t that what you are?” Booth said.
“Well, yes, I’m a forensic pathologist, but I’m not the medical examiner for this county. I can’t decide whether to open an investigation into the circumstances of Mrs. Wolf’s death.”
Both officers swiveled their heads to consider the rigid dead body on the plaid sofa. After a moment, Booth turned back to him.
“You found her just like that?”
“Yes.”
Perth flipped through his notebook. “And you told the dispatcher you came over at Doctor Hart’s request because another patient mentioned being concerned about the deceased?”
“That’s right, Hope Gardener.”
“Ms. Gardener stopped by to give Mrs. Wolf some cough syrup, you said.” Perth continued to scan his notes.
“Yes.”
