“I’m going to cut to the chase. We know Vivian Armstrong—née Vivian Sato—did inpatient treatment for a depressive disorder at University Hospital. She was in and out from 1993–1998. She attempted suicide several times, both before her treatment and while she was there. When they let her out, she went to a halfway house and found a job in a restaurant. Soon after, she met Zack Armstrong and the rest of her story we know.
“Here’s the new info: She roomed with another teenager named Liesel Thompson. Thompson came in after a suicide attempt. I got another subpoena and pulled her juvie records, which show she was charged with manslaughter and sentenced to no less than one year at Middle Tennessee Mental Health Institute.”
Parks taps Woody on the knee. “That’s our criminal psychiatric facility.”
“Copy,” Woody said. “Who did she kill?”
“A man named Bennett Thompson, thirty-six, worked at Nashville International as a baggage handler.”
“Her dad? She killed her dad?”
“Her stepdad. He married Liesel’s mother in 1990. Here’s the thing. The judge noted there were extenuating circumstances, which is why the charge was manslaughter, and she was sent to a hospital instead of jail. The case was never adjudicated. She was sixteen at the time.”
“What extenuating circumstances?”
“In November of 1993, while an inpatient at University Hospital, three months after she was admitted, Liesel Thompson suffered a miscarriage. She was five months pregnant. The baby was Bennett Thompson’s.”
“Her stepdad got her pregnant, so she killed him?” Woody asks.
“Yes, he got her pregnant. But that’s not why she killed him. She had a little sister.”
Parks is seeing the whole picture now. “He was abusing the sister, too?”
Starr nods. “It doesn’t say that explicitly in the records, but it’s a safe bet.”
“I take it Lauren Ryder Wright’s real name is Liesel Thompson?” Woody says.
“Yep. It was legally changed back in 1994, here in Colorado. Juliet was only six when they moved. Ryder is the mom’s maiden name, she dropped Thompson, too. Once Liesel—Lauren—got out of the hospital, the mom sold everything and moved them west. They all got a fresh start. Lauren went to a pricey boarding school for her senior year, Juliet was enrolled in the local elementary school, and everyone proceeded on with their lives as if nothing happened.”
“Is Juliet Ryder aware of all of this?” Parks asks.
Woody shakes his head. “I’ve never heard a whisper of this, not even during her background check. She hasn’t ever spoken of it to me. Juvenile records of a family member wouldn’t necessarily be opened, and the name change...well, we’ll have to take a look at our files, see if there’s anything in her jacket that talks about this. But as far as I know, there isn’t anything.” He rubs his chin. “God. Poor Juliet. Poor Lauren.”
“Juliet was very young, and we have no idea the extent of the abuse. But if her sister tried to kill her today, could be Lauren wants the past to stay hidden. Honestly, without reopening the Vivian Armstrong case, no one would ever have looked into this. As far as we know, the two women don’t intersect at all, outside of their months together in the hospital.”
“They intersect again between 1995 and 2000,” Parks says grimly. “We need to find out how.”
“Let’s step back for a moment,” Starr says. “This woman killed her stepfather. She’s allegedly tried to kill her sister. We think she killed Vivian Armstrong. Do you think...”
“She killed Gorman, too?” Parks says, nodding. “Possibly.”
“That makes four victims. Her ex-husband is dead, too, and so is the doctor she claims to have worked with. What the hell are we dealing with here?”
“A psychopathic killer, who nearly got away with it,” Starr says.
“Starr, let’s not jump to conclusions.”
“Yeah, Parks, tell that to Juliet,” Woody replies, looking out the chopper window.
79
VAIL HEALTH HOSPITAL
Zack is allowed in to see Juliet after they administer the expensive antidote to the poison. Buried under tubing and ventilators, she is practically unrecognizable. The doctor, a young ER resident, stands at the foot of the bed, inputting his notes into the computer. He glances up when Zack enters the room.
“Will she live?” he asks the doctor.
“Are you the bastard who broke her ribs?”
“I am.”
“Then yes, she will, and it’s because of you. She would have died on the mountain before the ambulance arrived without your quick work. You have medical training?”
“Long time ago. Army.”
“Gotcha.” The doctor holds out a hand. “Flynn. Nice job. Don’t know if she’s going to be too happy when she wakes up. Broken ribs are a bitch, especially cracked off the sternum. You saved her life, though from what I’m hearing, she may not thank you for that. EMTs said she was a suicide. It’s an awful way to go if you’re trying to off yourself, I’ll give you that.”
“She didn’t do this to herself. Someone fed her the antifreeze.”
“You’re sure?”
“I’m one hundred percent positive. There’s no way she tried to hurt herself. No way. She called me thirty minutes before I found her like this. This is a long story, and the CBI will be here any minute. They can fill you in on all the gory details. But I have to go check on my daughter, who is upstairs, and I’m afraid to leave Juliet alone without professional protection.”
“Your daughter is in the hospital, too?”
“Mindy Wright.”
“Oh, the skier. Let me call Dr. Oliver and get an update for you.”
“Protection. She needs protection. They both do. Please.” He points at Juliet, covered in leads, intubated, the machine breathing for her. She looks so weak and ethereal, so damaged. “This wasn’t an accident. It was attempted murder.”
“Okay, I hear you, Mr. Armstrong. Give me a few minutes to make arrangements, okay? Juliet has some rough hours ahead of her. She ingested a heck of a lot of ethylene glycol, plus a hefty dose of benzodiazepine. Her level was well above normal dosages, even for someone who was taking the drug consistently for weeks.”
“What, like antianxiety medication?”
“Exactly. You’re sure she wasn’t trying to end things? Because this particular combination would have been very effective if she hadn’t been attended to so quickly.”
“I’m sure,” Zack says, his voice firm.
“We have to reverse the damage the ethylene glycol did to her kidneys, watch for other organ failure, keep checking her levels, and the benzo overdose, well... She’s stabilized for the moment but in very serious condition, and this is all touch and go for the next twenty-four hours. We’re taking her to ICU for the duration of the treatment. I’m assuming she’ll be in there for a couple of days at least. It’s as secure an environment as this hospital has. Plus, we have decent security. We get celebrities in here sometimes. I’ll get the guards up here right away, both to Juliet’s room and to oncology. Okay?”
“Thank you.”
Flynn leaves the room, but not before asking a nurse to step in. Zack is heartened by this action. It means that he’s not stupid; if someone has already tried to murder his patient, he’s hardly going to leave her alone with a stranger.
The nurse fiddles with the IV, and Zack takes Juliet’s hand. “Juliet,” he whispers, and almost cries with joy when he feels a slight answering squeeze.
80
When Parks, Starr, and Woody arrive, they are greeted by a phalanx of police and hospital security. Dr. Flynn, true to his word, put out the call, and the hospital is now swarming with law enforcement. The reporters outside are in a dither—first Vail police show up, followed by the Eagle County Sheriff’s deputies, then the CBI comes in on their helicopter with unidentified cops from Nashville. Everyone knows something major is up, and everyone is trying to find out what, exactly, is happening, all while going live to report this new development, though they aren’t sure exactly what it is.
The downside to all of this attention: Zack has been deflecting questions from multiple people for the past ten minutes, and he is getting antsy. All he wants is to see Mindy, to tell her everything is going to be okay.
When Parks appears down the hallway, he waves him over gratefully.
“What the hell is going on?” Parks asks.