“How are you going to do that?”
“By going over old evidence in the Dayton case. There has to be something we overlooked that will lead us in the direction of the person responsible for Terry’s disappearance. Once I get an idea of who that might be, I’ll be one step closer to figuring out who is doing this to you.”
Jessica remained in her seat, her legs too weak to stand. She gazed up into Steven’s determined face. “I don’t know how to thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”
“I haven’t done anything yet, but I will.” With that, he turned and left.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Jessica returned to her hospital room, a sinking feeling in her gut as she heard the door lock behind her.
She moved to sit on the side of her bed, her stomach in knots and her head pounding with a tension headache.
Jess wasn’t sure how long she sat there before the door opened and Cindy appeared. “Come with me.”
“Where am I going?” Jess stood and followed Cindy into the hallway.
“To see Doctor Roberts.”
The walk to the room where the doctor waited was spent with Jessica battling her nerves. Cindy moved along quietly before stopping outside a closed door, knocking softly and then pushing it open.
Jessica stepped inside, her gaze zeroing in on a man sitting in a chair near the center of the room.
He waved toward the chair in front of him, without looking up. “Have a seat Mrs. Nobles.”
The door clicked softly shut with Cindy’s departure.
Jessica lowered herself into the chair and waited for him to finish reading the chart he held in his hand.
He eventually closed the chart and lifted his head. “You can relax, Mrs. Nobles. I’m not going to bite you.”
She noticed that he had kind eyes. “It’s hard for me to relax, Doctor. I’m not even supposed to be here.”
Leaning back and crossing his legs at the knee, the doctor murmured, “Fair enough. Then why don’t you begin by telling me how you came to be here?”
“My husband had me Baker Acted. I didn’t even know such a thing existed.”
The doctor pulled a pair of glasses from his shirt pocket, put them on and opened her chart once more. “Your husband stated that you’ve been hallucinating. He also believes you staged a break in at your residence.”
Anger surfaced, but Jess breathed her way through it. The last thing she needed was to lose her cool in front of the doctor. He alone held the power to prove her not insane. “Just because a person suspects you of something, doesn’t make it the truth.”
“I see. Did you stage the break in at your residence?”
Jessica shook her head. “Of course not. Why would I do such a thing?”
“You tell me.”
It quickly became obvious to Jess that the doctor doubted her innocence in staging the home invasion. “Look. I get it that you deal with mental illness on a daily basis. I also understand why you would be suspicious of my involvement in the break in. But I’m telling you, I did not do it.”
“Tell me about the hallucinations.”
Here it comes, Jess thought, wondering how to respond. “I haven’t been hallucinating. I simply thought I saw something in a window of the abandoned house next door to us. Apparently, it was the glare of the streetlight.”
The doctor flipped a page up on the chart he held. “You didn’t tell you husband that you saw a boy…wearing a striped T-shirt? A boy with long, dark hair that had come up missing in that very house thirteen years before?”
“No,” Jessica lied, holding the doctor’s gaze. “I mentioned to him that a boy disappeared while living in that house, but I never said I saw him. That child would be twenty years old now.”
Doctor Roberts closed the chart and pushed his glasses up on his nose. “If I’m expected to help you, Mrs. Nobles, I’m going to need complete honesty.”
“I am being honest!”
Leaning back once more, the doctor folded his hands on top of Jessica’s chart. “I read the police report. You told Detective Vickerson that you saw Terry Dayton’s ghost in that abandoned house. You also stated that you’d gone to visit the psychic to show her a painting of the boy in a shallow grave—a painting you don’t recall creating. Can you explain that to me?”
She couldn’t explain any of it, so instead of answering, she simply shrugged.
“From what I’ve observed along with your husband’s accounting and the police report, I’m not so sure you’re not experiencing Organic Psychosis. It’s a—”
“I know what it is,” Jess bit out, cutting off the rest of his words. “But you’re wrong. I’m thinking clearer than I have in years.”
“I’d like to keep you here for a couple more days.” He held up a hand when she would have interrupted. “Strictly for observation purposes. I would also like to run a few tests and try you on a different medication than you’ve had in the past.”
Jessica fought back new tears. “I don’t need to be medicated, Doctor Roberts. I’m telling you, I’m fine.”
The doctor set Jessica’s chart on the corner of his desk, uncrossed his legs, and leaned forward with his elbows resting on his knees. “I’d like to believe that, Mrs. Nobles, but it’s my job to ensure your safety.”
Gaining his feet, the doctor stared down at Jess before offering her his hand.
She stood without assistance and turned for the door. “You can’t keep me in here indefinitely.”
“You’re right about that,” he responded as she gripped the doorknob. “But a judge can. If you don’t help me to help you, you’re tying my hands if your case ends up in a court of law.”
Jessica paused before jerking the door open and nearly running into Cindy.
The nurse took hold of her elbow. “Let’s return to your room.”
Jessica’s bottom lip trembled, but she bit down on it to prevent herself from crying. She merely nodded, allowing the nurse to escort her back to her temporary prison.
Chapter Thirty-Three
“Here are the things you had when you arrived.” Alice slid a white hospital bag through the opening at the bottom of the glass she sat behind.
Jessica accepted the bag with a terse nod and turned to face Steven who waited by the door. “I’m ready.”
He relieved her of the bag she held, opened the door, and stepped back to allow her to pass.
She didn’t speak again until they reached the elevators. “Thank you for picking me up.”
“Not a problem.” He pressed the elevator button. “Besides, I couldn’t very well leave you to your own devices. God knows where you’d end up next.”
Jessica smiled for the first time in days. She seemed to do that a lot when in Steven’s presence. “Are you afraid I might show up at your job and parade naked through the halls, shouting your name?”
“More like afraid you won’t,” he quipped.
Stepping onto the elevator, Jessica sobered. “According to the doctor back there, your fears are warranted.”
“Yeah, well what does he know?” Steven stepped in behind her and pressed the button to the bottom floor.
Jessica grew quiet for a moment, studying Steven’s profile. “Why are you really helping me?”
“I’ve already told you…I believe you.”
“I wouldn’t believe me if I were in your shoes.”
He glanced down at her. “I guess it’s a good thing you’re not in my shoes, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.”
The elevator came to a sudden stop, and the door slid open to reveal a very disheveled, very surprised looking Owen.
He took a step back, his gaze zeroing in on the hospital bag Steven held before shifting back to Jessica. “What’s going on here?”
Jessica folded her arms across her chest and stepped up next to Steven. “I could ask you the same question. What are you doing here, Owen?”
“I was coming to give you a ride home.”
Taking hold of Steven’s arm, Jessica lifted her chin. “I have a ride. Now, if you’ll excuse us.”
Owen’s jaw visibly tightened. His eyes narrowed, and his gaze swung in Steven’s direction. “Who the hell are you?”