Read Justification for Murder Online
Authors: Elin Barnes
Tags: #Fiction, #Medical, #Retail, #Suspense, #Thrillers
Justification for Murder (32 page)
Sunday: Two weeks later
S
affron circled upwards in the parking lot across Best Buy until she found a spot on the fourth floor. That was the easiest place to find parking in Santana Row. As she walked, she could hear the band playing in the courtyard outside of Starbucks. She smiled and for the first time in a week, she realized her muscles weren’t clenched anymore. Saffron was the first one to arrive. She went inside in case any of the others were there, but the place was fairly empty. Most people were sitting outside, enjoying the warm sun and the music.
She felt a chill run through her back. She’d noticed that she still felt that certain sense of uneasiness every time she stood in line to order coffee. She looked over her shoulder and then she took half a step to the side so she could see the door and the large windows that were previously behind her. She wondered if she would ever be able to enjoy a cup of java in one of those large dark brown leather chairs without fearing somebody would shatter the glass with massive bullets, trying to get rid of her.
Maybe it’s time to quit caffeine
, she thought. But she knew she wouldn’t.
As soon as her order was ready, she grabbed it from the counter and walked outside, sitting at a large table with six chairs. She pulled her phone and checked work email. Her inbox had 2,288 unread messages. She selected them all and marked them read. She knew she would never be able to catch up, so why not start from scratch?
A woman’s shadow settled on the table, and she looked up.
“Hello Saffron,” Roona Moore said.
Her black hair was shorter than Saffron remembered but still cute and stylish. She stood and hugged her. They both sat. Saffron nursed her coffee. Roona sat across from her, staring down at the table.
Finally, she said, “I think I’m going to be okay.”
Saffron’s eyes lit up. “Yes?”
“Dr. Leavenworth met with all of us.” She looked at Saffron for a second, then looked away, resting her eyes on a woman playing with a small child by the band.
Saffron waited, hoping Roona would tell her more without her having to probe.
Finally, Roona locked eyes with Saffron and continued: “She said that the Sheriff’s Department let her talk to the researcher who started this whole thing, and they thought that we may be okay if we got mastectomies.” She crossed her arms around her chest. “I’m not sure if everybody opted for the option, but I did. It wasn’t a very hard decision, considering the alternative.” She looked to her right, as if she were back in the basement and she could see Keith bleeding out in the corner.
“I still can’t believe they did this to us,” Saffron said.
“Me neither.”
“Detective Lynch told me that when they arrested Julia and the researcher, they told him everything.” Saffron paused to ensure Roona wanted to hear it. When their eyes met again, Roona nodded almost imperceptibly. “They thought they had found the cure for breast cancer but they didn’t have enough data to prove it, so the investors started pulling out. The CEO, Tyler Warren, was convinced that if they could show positive results in humans, they would get the investors to jump back in. So he convinced his sister, Julia, to exchange the regular titanium markers with the ones with their medicine, and the rest is history, as they say.”
“Heeeeloooooo.” yelled a voice from across the courtyard.
They both looked. It was Tami Lynn, her face fully made up, her blond bob bouncing as she hopped toward them. She had a wide smile splashed on her face, and she was waving both hands as she ran in small little steps, keeping amazing balance on spike heels.
“You look great,” Saffron said, appreciating the flagrant contrast to the hysterical woman in the basement. She looked down at her cleavage, a little too pronounced for a woman her age.
“I think we all look better in the light of day, darling. That basement was a horrible, horrible place.”
She extended her hands, expecting the other two women to grab them. Once they did, she squeezed them, then smiled again, showing a hint of rosebud lipstick on her front teeth.
“Okay, what can I get you? I need some serious caffeine.”
After repeating Roona’s order, she walked in to get the drinks.
Saffron and Roona exchanged glances and laughed.
“I like her much better this way,” Saffron said.
Roona nodded. “It almost feels like it never happened.”
“I feel that way most of the time, except at night. I still have to leave some lights on at home.”
“Me too. Weird.”
Padmini Kapoor showed up last. She demurely sat down to the right of Saffron after saying good morning.
Tami came out of Starbucks carrying a tray with three cups and a few bags with pastries. “I figured you may want a chai tea, so I got you one, just in case,” she said to Padmini.
She took the steaming paper cup, probably too shy to refuse. She placed it in front of her and smelled it deeply. Her shoulders moved back, relaxing for the first time since she’d sat down.
“So, who’s taken Dr. Leavenworth’s offer?” Tami asked.
They all nodded except Saffron.
“Good. Me too,” she said, then, straightening her back, she added, “And then I opted for a bit of enhancement,” moving her shoulders as if she were in a salsa club.
“I should have thought about that.” Roona said, laughing.
“So what’s the story with you?” Tami asked Saffron.
“Well, I learned from Darcy.” She stopped and looked around, “Detective Lynch—”
“We know, dear. He saved our lives,” Tami said.
Saffron went on: “Apparently there were twelve people in the control group. They killed eight, and they tried to kill me a few times before they realized that the side effect only occurs when the patient actually has cancer.”
“How could they not know about this before?” Padmini asked with a strong accent.
They all looked at her.
“I don’t know. When they arrested the researcher—Qian Li’s her name, I think—she said that they only learned of the side effect when people started killing themselves in that horrible way.”
The four women shuddered at the same time.
“Then they just assumed that it was the medicine, so they figured it would happen to everybody in the trial. The researcher kept trying to find out what had gone wrong, but the only thing she was able to find was that the drug only interacted with the cancer cells, creating the side effect. But didn’t interact with noncancer cells, so that group was okay. She called Tyler to tell him, but he never picked up.”
Silence overtook the table.
“By the way, what happened to that man with the black and red checkered shirt?” Roona asked.
“Alton Lane.” Saffron said. “He was the neighbor of the guy who tried to kill me. He’s ok. Got a bad concussion, but was released from the hospital after a few days.”
“He had the knife Keith used—” Padmini said.
“Enough about this,” Tami cut in. “I’m glad we’re all okay.” Looking at Saffron she asked, “So, what’s the story with Detective Lynch?”
Saffron blushed but couldn’t hide a smile. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, pleeeaaazzz. Look how coy you are. We all know you two have a thing. And I have the perfect dress to show my new girls for the wedding.”
She shook her boobs again and they all laughed, a little embarrassed.
“T
hree yards,” Sergeant Stella yelled. “Three rounds, center mass.”
Darcy fired holding the gun with both hands and counted one-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-one-thousand.
Okay, three rounds in less than four seconds. I guess I’m still okay
, he thought. He holstered the Glock.
“Repeat with emergency reload and strong hand only,” Stella said, his voice steady and loud enough to be heard through the earmuffs.
Darcy dropped the magazine, grabbed a new one from his holster and slammed it in the gun, counting the fourth second as he fired the last round. He repeated both exercises under Stella’s directions. Then he was allowed a few seconds to shake up his tense body. Darcy rolled his shoulders, moved his head from side to side and stretched his hands. The shooting range was empty. All the lines were dark except his. The only two people in the entire place were him and Stella, though his large body could have counted for two.
“Seven yards,” he announced.
Darcy took a step closer to the shelf and reloaded each clip. The target moved further away.
“Three rounds, center mass, stay aimed in.”
Darcy counted the seconds.
“Three rounds, center mass, transfer weapon to support hand and fire three more rounds. Stay aimed in.”
Darcy fired, counted, changed hands, fired, counted.
Each time the instructions got longer, more complicated, more detailed. Some of the shots were aimed at the head, some at the chest, all timed. Darcy was wearing plain clothes under the bulletproof vest. He felt the sweat soaking his shirt, sliding down his temples. As soon as he was able to holster his gun, he wiped his face with his sleeve.
Stella didn’t provide any feedback. Darcy had no idea how he was doing. All he could do was follow each instruction, aim and count the seconds.
“Fifteen yards.”
Darcy saw the target move again. He blinked a few times, hoping his good eye would adjust and focus.
“Draw and fire three rounds, center mass, in six seconds. Scan, and assume a high ready position.”
Darcy aimed.
One-one-thousand
. He blinked, but he felt as if he had something in his eye.
Two-one-thousand
. He blinked again.
Three-one-thousand
. He focused and exhaled, then fired as he counted. The last round hit the target as he reached,
Six-one-thousand
.
Stella yelled more instructions. The ear protectors felt heavy on Darcy’s head. He was drenched in sweat.
“We’re almost done, Lynch.”
“Any feedback?”
“You know better than to ask,” he said, but his voice was affable.
Darcy wondered if he felt sorry for him because he was doing badly. He shook the thought and forced himself to concentrate.
“Twenty-five yards. This is an untimed exercise,” Stella instructed.
Darcy exhaled. This was the last one.
“Aim in prone position, fire six rounds, center mass. Move to kneeling, strong side prone position, and fire three.”
Darcy got set and fired. Before he had reached the sixth second, he knelt and with his right side in prone position, fired the last three rounds. He holstered the Glock as he reached the twenty-fifth second. It was nice to know he could do it under thirty, even though the exercise wasn’t timed.
He unhooked the bulletproof vest and started unbuttoning his shirt. Stella came behind him.
“I’ll send the results to Virago right away,” he said, extending his hand.
Darcy took it and returned a strong grip. “Thank you. I know you didn’t have to be here today. I appreciate it.”
“Buy me a beer sometime.”
“You got it,” Darcy said, heading toward the bathroom to change his clothes.
When he came out he was surprised to see Virago in the front room, chatting with Stella.
“Good morning, Captain,” he said. “I’m not sure if it’s good or bad that you’re here.”
She had the targets rolled in her hand. She placed them on the counter and walked toward him.
“Detective Lynch, I guess your worst nightmare is now official.”
Darcy’s color drained. He had hoped to pass. Maybe solving the murder cases, maybe working on putting Warren’s colleagues behind bars made him realize this was what he really wanted to do, what he was really good at doing. He didn’t want a desk job anymore. He sighed and met her eyes. She was a good seven inches shorter than he was.
“I told you,” he said.
Before he could continue with some self-deprecating commentary, she interrupted. “You have now passed and will no longer be on desk duty.”
She smiled and extended her hand.
Darcy stood there, not comprehending the words he’d just heard. “I passed?”
“Indeed.” She still had her hand extended.
“Holy shit!” he said fighting an urge to hug her. He took her hand in both of his and then turned to meet Stella.
“Thank you,” he said.
Stella punched him on the shoulder.
“Detective Lynch, I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow. I want you there when I give Sorensen the news that he no longer has to look for a partner.” Virago said.
“Oh no, are you kidding? Why did you have to ruin this moment so soon?” he asked, smiling.
“Funny, that’s exactly how he feels about you.”
“Still? Even after I saved his life?” Darcy complained.
“He’s like a goldfish. He has a very short memory,” she said and walked toward the door with the targets under her arm.
“Captain,” he called after her. “What’s my score?”
She looked at him over her shoulder and smiled, then walked out without saying a word.
THE END
- Becky
– Thank you for helping me spreading the word about my book in social media. Thank you for reading my book and for being so incredibly positive about it. You always made me feel good about what I wrote. - David Sierra
– Thank you for sharing with me so much information about biomedical startups, animal and human trials and the FDA processes. - Deborah Rome
– Thank you for reading my manuscript from cover to cover, for all your feedback and for keeping me sane all these years. - Don Lee
– Thank you for telling me that my first idea was stupid. It was! Thank you for reading my book, for brainstorming new ideas with me and for keeping me honest about all the medical stuff. Finally, thank you for brainstorming titles with me over margaritas (I still remember that title that made us laugh so hard). - Donald J. Pliner
– Andre, thank you so much for hosting my book release party at the beautiful store in Santana Row. I love all my Pliner shoes and can’t wait to see what’s new next season! - Eric
– Thank you for reviewing my book, calling me on some “cliché” stuff and for telling me that you were up until 2am finishing it! - Jasmine, Arturo, Kathrina and Atish
– Thank you for brainstorming title ideas with me. It was hard, but we had fun! - Jeremy Franzen
– Than you for all the brainstorming adventures and for the copious information about guns. Thank you for replying to my texts at all hours of day and night as I bugged you for information I knew you had. - Joe Torre
– Thank you for sharing so much of your firearm knowledge, for the tour of the gun range and for reviewing the hunting scene. It wouldn’t have been the same without your help. - John (Jack) Zowin
– Thank you for the many hours you’ve spent with me sharing your vast knowledge and your 30+ years of experience at the Mountain View Police Department. What started as research has turned into a friendship I’m forever grateful for and I will cherish forever. Frances is incredible too and I love the throw she made me! - Jonah Parsons
– Thank you for being so positive and awesome! I wouldn’t have had the guts to embark in the e-pub and POD worlds if you wouldn’t have been there with me through the whole process. I’m forever grateful and I’m looking forward to doing this many more times. - Kevin Metcalf
– Thank you for all the connections at the SJPD, for all the info on self-publishing and for keeping my book honest with police procedure and local terminology. I don’t know anybody who has less patience for BS than you, and my book is now a much better one because of your feedback. - Marcus Trower
– Thank you for fixing my manuscript. Your suggestions were always on point, and oh my God, I can’t believe how many POV violations I had! Lastly, even though I almost died when I saw all the red, after I accepted all the changes, my manuscript was much better. You are the best copy editor in the world! - Mark Nelson
– Thank you for all the time you spent editing my book and helping me with research. This book would have not been the same without your feedback. Thank you for letting me vent when I thought I would never be done. - Mary Bennion
– Thank you for your brainstorming ideas! Darcy would have never become who he is if it wouldn’t have been for your backyard, your copious amounts of wine and you being you! You are amazing and I’m forever grateful that we are friends. - Maurice Harmon
– Thank you so much for registering my book and for making sure that it was protected. - Melissa
– Thank you for the amazing website, the back panel copy (Oh My God, I’m so thankful you wrote that for me!) and thank you for being so wonderful and easy to work with! I’m also looking forward to doing many more books with you. - Miguel y Soraya
– Thank you for having so many great friends who were excited enough about my book to want to help me in different ways. I love you both and I’m so happy you are in my life. - Mischa Lluch and Virginia Sardon
– Thank you for the amazing cover. I know it took a lot of work and effort to come up with something that represented my book and also was a powerful way to grab people’s attention. All the options were incredible and it was really hard to pick one! But I LOVE our final choice! - Mormor and Sara
– Thank you for always being so positive and encouraging in everything I do. - Mos
– Than you for being the best mom in the world! Nothing would have ever been written without your daily help! I cannot thank you enough for all the encouragement and for all the support reading my first crappy drafts and still telling me that it was good and I needed to go on. Thank you for brainstorming with me, for walking through different ideas and scenarios and for pushing me to continue every time I was ready to give up. Thank you for introducing me to ThrillerFest, thank you for going with me every year and thank you for inspiring me to write. I can’t wait to read your books in English! - Nikki, Ashley, Walt
– Thank you so much for reading my book and for all your feedback. - Pos
– Thank you for being the best dad in the world, for always encouraging me to write, for making me laugh when I wanted to cry in desperation and for sharing your world of writing with me. - Santa Clara Sheriff’s office
– Thank you for letting me learn about the Sheriff’s Office by allowing me to go on a ride along. It was an incredibly useful experience and I learned a lot of valuable information that made my book more real. Thank you, Deputy J. Piazza and C. Markovic for sharing your shift with me. - Shut up and Write 3pm (San Jose)
– Thank you guys for showing up on Saturdays! This book wouldn’t be done today if it weren’t for this great meetup and all the people who come to it! - Sourabh Mishra
– Thank you for reading my book, for providing such valuable feedback and for all your support and encouragement. It meant the world to me. - ThrillerFest
– Thank you for the most fun and valuable conference I’ve ever been to! I would have never embarked in this endeavor if it wouldn’t have been for the inspiration of so many incredible authors - Varela
– Thank you for taking the time to meet with me and explain so many different aspects of police procedure. This book wouldn’t have been the same without your help.
