“You won’t be disappointed,” he promised. “You’ll want to taste, to savor. Every touch will be perfection.”
“Do tell,” she murmured, the tip of her tongue teasing along his flesh. “Something like this...?”
Time lost all meaning. Whether he felt challenged to prove a point or was simply so involved he couldn’t stop, Brett taught her a new definition of foreplay, and she hoped she returned the favor. She loved that he could laugh, that they could play and that lying with him seemed the most natural thing in the world. She was curled against him, half-asleep at last, when she heard him sigh as he eased away from her.
“Three hours goes quickly,” he said. “As the cliché goes, time flies when you’re having fun.”
“Wait for me. I’ll go with you.”
“I’m accustomed to this, you’re not. Get some sleep,” he told her.
She didn’t listen. She was already up and searching for her clothes. She intended to prove that she could be ready for anything in a matter of minutes, and she did it.
He smiled, shaking his head as he looked at her. “Are you sure? This is what I do for a living,” he reminded her.
“And Cocoa,” she said softly, “this place... They’re what I do for a living.”
He nodded, and they headed downstairs together.
Diego rose as they arrived. “Everything’s quiet in the lagoon,” he assured them. “Your dolphin has been eyeing me suspiciously, though,” he told Lara.
She smiled. “You can tell Cocoa from the others?”
“We’ve been out with her several times,” he reminded her. “I know the darker coloration right on her nose and the little scar pattern above her eyes.”
“I’m proud of you,” she said.
He nodded and looked at Brett, then walked away, waving to the two of them. “I’ll be in the comfiest chair I can find,” he called. “Because I’m sure the other two are already hogging the sofa!”
As it happened, the sunrise was on their shift. It wasn’t as glorious as the burst of color when the sun set in the west, but it was still beautiful. Pale yellow shards broke through the blue darkness, then began to grow, until finally the golden orb of the sun burst above the horizon.
Cocoa made a stunning leap into the sky, a beautiful silhouette against the gleaming circle of the sun. And then she dropped into the water and swam over to Lara, who stroked her and apologized for not having any fish.
Matt and Meg joined them on the platform a little while later.
Soon the day would begin.
And despite the “bloodied” and disarticulated doll on her desk, Lara thought that it was going to be a good one.
Because she was grateful for all life had to offer. And she wasn’t afraid.
14
Brett and Diego started the morning by arranging a visit to Dr. Robert Treme. His receptionist informed them that no one saw Dr. Treme without an appointment, and that the next opening was weeks away.
They flashed their badges and the woman reached for the phone. Brett smiled and said they would show themselves in. Then they walked past her down the hallway and into the doctor’s office.
Treme looked thoroughly displeased by the interruption. He stood and glared at them for a moment, then sat back down suddenly as if his legs had given way. He looked like a beaten man.
“You signed a death certificate for a living man,” Brett informed him. “Who was then stolen from a mortuary and went on to commit murder.”
Dr. Treme went white. He was suddenly angry as he leaned over his desk. “Do you know how many lives I’ve saved? I wasn’t the only one there! The nurses saw that he was dead, his family saw that he was dead. By all medical standards, the man was dead!”
“And you know nothing else about cause of death?” Brett demanded.
“What?”
“His heart didn’t kill him—poison did. Someone most likely gave him puffer fish toxin. The Haitian zombie toxin,” Diego said quietly.
Treme sank back into his chair. He lifted his hands helplessly. “With his heart, I didn’t know if Nicholson would make it or not. I told his family that. Don’t you understand? There was no reason to test for poison or anything else. The man was dying when he came in, and then he died. Anyone could have gone in there before that point. He was in a hospital, not a prison. Don’t you men see what this is going to do to me? I’m good at what I do, but my practice could be ruined if this gets out. As it is, I’ll have to face the board. All my life...all the good I’ve done...gone. It’s a disaster.”
Brett looked at Diego. Dr. Treme was guilty of accepting what seemed obvious without thorough testing. But neither of them thought he was responsible for what had happened or had even been aware of it. This visit had only confirmed that earlier impression.
“It was a disaster for another man, too, Doctor,” he said quietly. “And that man is dead.” He and Diego turned to leave, ignoring the receptionist and her threat to call security on their way out.