Bernstein Lethal Injection

A Hannah Kline Mystery
1. Auflage 2012
ISBN: 978-1-62488-553-2
Verlag: BookBaby
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 200 Seiten

A brutal murder in the operating suite of an exclusive Beverly Hills hospital is investigated by obstetrician Hannah Kline and her recent lover, Los Angeles police detective Daniel Ross.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Bernstein, Paula

Leseproben

Chapter 2

"I'm not sure I want to take you home tomorrow," Daniel said, nuzzling his nose into a corner of my neck. "I'm seriously considering kidnapping you and forcing you to vacation with me for the next year."

We were on the leeward side of the island, watching the sunset over the Carolina coast.

"Only a year?" I said. "Don't tempt me. At the moment I wouldn't mind picking up Zoe, retiring from medicine and escaping to the South Seas."

"What's stopping you?"

"Kindergarten tuition and the fact that Ruth would have a nervous breakdown if she had no one to share call with."

Daniel grinned and hugged me. "It's always something."

"It's a nice fantasy though. It's been a lovely week. You made it really special." I reached up and planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Even though we narrowly escaped spending our idyll with Wesley Templeton?"

"Revolting thought," I said. "I've never been so glad to see anyone leave."

"What was his ex-wife like?"

      What had she been like? I tried to visualize her in my mind, as she'd been when we were at school together and afterwards during her divorce. It was hard for me to think about her without feeling guilty. I hadn't been a very good friend to Sara. I'd tried to be supportive but she was so needy I just couldn't handle it. I was a recent widow with an infant to take care of, caught up in my own pain. I didn't have the energy to hold her hand or to listen ad infinitum to all the gory details.

"Sara was everyone's mother substitute," I said. "If you'd just broken up with your boyfriend, hated your dorm or were flunking organic chemistry you'd go cry on Sara's shoulder. There was a warmth and kindness about her that made people want to tell her their troubles. She couldn't have picked a profession which suited her better than clinical psychology."

There was actually a blue sky when we landed at LAX the following afternoon. I decided it was a good omen for the rest of my life. We located Daniel's car in parking lot C and headed north to Brentwood.

"You realize I'm going to have withdrawal symptoms, not seeing you every day," Daniel said.

"I suspect that when you get back to the office there'll be so much work on your desk you won't have time to think about me."

"I am on first call next week," he said.

That meant Daniel and his partner would be the team to be called for the next murder that occurred. When one happened they usually worked thirty-six to forty-eight hours straight gathering evidence, always best when it was fresh, and interviewing witnesses. I was glad that homicide detectives weren't out there on the front lines. By the time they were called in, the danger was usually over.

"Well if things are quiet you're always welcome for dinner," I said. "Just let me know so I can tell Emilia."

"Promise me she won't make anything southern fried." Daniel patted his midsection. We'd probably both put on five pounds.

"Grilled fish and steamed vegetables," I promised. I knew he was waiting for me to tell him he could sleep over now and I didn't know what to say. I still hadn't figured out how I'd explain it to Zoe.

"If it's a quiet weekend, how about I take you and Zoe out on Saturday. I've got some VIP passes to Universal Studios."

"Zoe would love that," I said. I wasn't so sure about me. I wasn't a great fan of standing in line at theme parks. I was the kind of mother who only took her kid to Disneyland on Super Bowl Sunday. Besides, Daniel wasn't the only one who was going to be on call this week.

Daniel pulled up in front of my townhouse and unloaded my suitcase. Zoe must have been watching from the window because the door opened before I got there.

"Mommy, did you have a good time?" Zoe ran out and held her arms up for a hug. I lifted her and snuggled her warm little body.

"I missed you," I said. "Did you and Emilia have fun?"

"We got Mittens a baby brother," she said.

"You what?" Mittens was our gray and white tabby cat. She'd originally belonged to Beth and was the only eyewitness to her violent end. I'd coaxed her out from under her building with fresh tuna fish and had reluctantly brought her home. Zoe had been campaigning for a pet and Beth would never have forgiven me if Mittens had been reduced to the ranks of the homeless.

"Look, Mommy." An orange ball of fluff came bounding out of the house and began to sharpen its tiny claws on my nylons. I was going to have to have a serious talk with Emilia. Daniel was grinning ear-to-ear, obviously enjoying every minute of my welcome home. He brought my suitcase into the front hall and headed back to his car.

"I'll leave you to unpack," he said. Then he kissed Zoe. "Bye Princess. See you soon."

"Mommy," Zoe said as he drove away, "why does Daniel always go back to his house? Why can't he stay here?"

...