Page 50 of The Girl from Devil's Lake
Dr. Guerrero shook his head. “That’s a definite risk factor, then,” he said. “It’s too bad you didn’t come see me sooner.”
The doctor pulled a pad of paper out of his desk drawer. Afterpausing long enough to look up something on his computer, he began to write, talking as he did so. “I’m going to refer you to Dr. Andrew Fillmore at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix. He’s an oncologist who specializes in breast cancer in males. He’s also up to speed on all the most recent treatment options.”
Stephen took the proffered paper, but he did so with the sinking sensation that someone had just handed him his own death warrant.
Chapter 26
Bisbee, Arizona
Wednesday, December 6, 2023
“Any word on Operation Garbage Can?” Butch askedas he handed Joanna her coffee cup on Wednesday morning.
“Not so far,” she said.
As a consequence, once at the Justice Center, Joanna made a beeline for the bullpen, the room dedicated to her investigation team. When she arrived, Detective Raymond was nowhere to be seen.
“How’d Operation Garbage Can go?” she asked Detective Howell.
“All right,” Deb replied, “but it turns out Stephen Roper is a night owl. He didn’t turn off his TV and go to bed until after one, so Garth wasn’t able to stage his raid until close to two. He came away with one bag of trash and one of recycling, but it took until seven this morning for him to drive to Tucson, make the drop-off, and then make it back to Elfrida. He sent me a text saying he was home, and I told him to take the rest of the day off.”
“Deservedly so,” Joanna said. “How long do you think it’ll take for the DPS crime lab to come up with a DNA profile?”
“Days if we’re lucky,” Deb replied. “Weeks if we’re not.”
“Then I guess we have to take an old, cold tater and wait,” Joanna said.
Her next stop was the chief deputy’s office. “Anything major happen overnight?” she asked.
“Not much,” Tom Hadlock said. “Two DUIs, one DV, and a couple of speeding citations. That’s about it.”
“No drop-offs from our friends at the Border Patrol?”
“Not today for a change,” he told her.
“How about the jail?”
“No problems there,” he said, “and as far as construction goes, I just checked in with Mr. Ruiz. The rough-ins for electrical and plumbing passed their inspections late yesterday afternoon. As we speak, Dave’s crew is in the process of unloading the concrete blocks for the walls. Those should start going up later today.”
“Sounds like everybody’s making good progress then. Good on you.”
But things didn’t seem so sunny once she arrived at her own office and found Marliss Shackleford waiting for her.
“Any progress on the Xavier Delgado case?” Marliss wanted to know.
“Nothing I can share,” Joanna told her. “When we’re ready to do updates, you’ll be the first to know.”
“I understand Jennifer is getting married at the end of this month,” Marliss said. “Is it possible that issues with planning a hurry-up wedding are interfering with your duties as sheriff? Considering your own history, maybe you’re having a hard time keeping your eye on the ball.”
Marliss had clearly gotten wind of Jenny’s impending wedding and assumed that, due to the short time frame, the bride was already expecting. Joanna had never made a secret of the fact that she’d been pregnant at the time she and Andy had tied the knot, but Marliss’s snide insinuation that Joanna’s history was about to repeat itself with Jenny was a step too far. Most of the time, Joanna was able to keep her temper in line, but this was not one of them.
“My daughter’s personal life is none of your damned business!” she fired off. “Now get the hell out of here before I have you thrown out.” Then she marched into her own office, slamming the door shut behind her.
An hour later, she was still fuming and regretting her angry outburst when Kristin tapped on her door and warily poked her head inside.
“Have you had a chance to cool off?” Kristin asked.
“A little,” Joanna said. “Why?”
