Chapter 4
Gibbs and Fornell sat in the manager's office. She was looking flustered and tired.
"I'm sorry I can't do that. As you may, or may not be aware, the majority of our garbage is sent or has been sent by now, to be incinerated. All toxic waste is sent early morning. This includes incontinence pads and all gloves. We can't afford to have items that might cause an outbreak of something nasty. And even if I did agree I can't or won't ask or allow my staff to do such a thing, as you asked one pair of gloves in dozens. Now if you will excuse me I need to get on with my job. It is bad enough that I have a murder on my hands, you have no idea how this will affect the home, I have no idea how many of our residents may leave, either taken from us by their families or finding a different retirement home. So if you don't mind."
Gibbs asked if it would be alright if he and his team could talk to some of the residents and the staff.
"Evening and night staff won't be back until later this afternoon, but certainly the day staff might help. One thing Agent Gibbs," as the manager now rose looking at the two, "Just don't upset my residents, they live in their own worlds you have to be careful, but sometimes they are lucid," as she watched the two rise thank her and leave the room.
"That went better than I thought," Fornell replied.
-oOo-
The retirement home was a five level affair. The top two floors let out to "retirement needs" like Senior and LJ. Third floor was more the "care" needs, while the second was dementia patients and the first floor, the hospice and hospital wards, the ground floor being for the offices, and had a small chapel. The basement held the refuse, air conditioning equipment and the pipes as well as a small mortuary. Sandra had been found in the laundry on the second floor.
Gibbs and Fornell made their way to a small sitting room where his team was waiting.
"Manager says ok to question the residents, see if they saw or heard anything, but we need to just see the charge nurse."
"And get through the door," Fornell muttered looking at the keypad.
"Big button in red says press for assistance," Tony pointed.
"So how did Ella get out the door and make her way to the laundry?" Gibbs asked.
"Someone left a door open?" Fornell replied.
"All the doors are hinged to self-close shut, so either Ella knows something or…"
"Or maybe she knows who did it, a friend," Tony added.
Gibbs pressed the button. They waited for assistance. A harassed care assistant opened the door.
"The manager said you were going to pop down, please come in, everyone is in the day room, well that is unless they are sleeping in and will be up later, been up all night at the Night Owl Club."
Gibbs thanked her, and followed her to the dayroom which was large and bright. The team looked about, where to start.
"Some of the residents don't get many visitors so don't be afraid if they come over and pick you out. Oh and some can spot an ex-serviceman at 100 paces, as they saw a woman pushing a trolley, make a beeline for Gibbs.
"Tea?" she asked passing him a small plastic dolls cup and saucer, Gibbs took the saucer, as they watched her now pick up a plate and offer it to him.
"Cake?" as Gibbs declined the imaginary cake on the plate, Fornell stifled a laugh.
"Claudia…" the care assistant gently said taking Claudia's arm.
"That's my name who wants to know?" as Claudia now shook her arm away and wandered off to the kitchen area.
"Sorry about that."
Gibbs just smiled, "We were wondering if it was possible to speak to Ella and some of the other residents who were at the club last night?"
"Sure, that would be Ella, Lillabett, Sallie and of course Jessie, she wouldn't miss the club, loves L.J. and the poker games, oh and I think you might find Maggie was there last night," as she pointed out a very well coiffured woman sitting upright looking at Gibbs. "You have to remember that some of our residents don't get many visitors. Their families find it too distressing or they just don't find the time, so any visitors is good… good therapy."
Fornell and Gibbs thanked the assistant, but as Gibbs looked about he noticed that his agents seemed to have already been befriended.
"Ok, I'll take Lillabett," Tobias grumbled, noticing that Maggie was waving at Gibbs.
"See her over there," as Ellie looked at a woman with very black hair, "She's a mole," unsure why Sallie thought a mole.
"A mole?"
"Shhh…she'll hear you and tell," Sallie replied behind her hand.
"Tell who?" Ellie asked gently watching as Sallie pointed to the ceiling.
"Them downstairs," Sallie whispered.
Tony was, in the meantime, trying to interview, Jessie, who pointed across to Ellie. "She's a spy you know?"
"Who ? Ellie?"
"No silly…Sallie, you don't tell her anything, and as for her," now pointing to Myra who was dancing and singing with ear buds in, "She works for the Kremlin. I heard her talking to someone called…Rasputin."
"Never," was all Tony could say.
"Yes she was singing "Da da Rasputin, lover of the Russian Queen."
"Not mean Ra ra?" Tony ventured.
"I know what I heard."
Tim was having as much fun; Ella had informed him that by eating the sprinklies off a donut you could see in the dark.
"And this helps how?" as Tim looked to Gibbs for help, he saw Gibbs talking to Maggie who could only be described as twinset and pearls.
Meanwhile, Fornell was talking to Lillabett who was sitting hugging herself swaying back and forward, whimpering.
"What's wrong" Tobias ventured.
"Potatoes. They sent the wrong ones…too big…should have been small."
"So you sent them back," Tobias replied in all innocence.
Lillabett looked at Fornell and pulled a face, "Nah, cut them up stupid," as she rose and walked away.
"Ask a stupid question Tobias?" Gibbs now asked as he approached.
"Not sure, but I now know how to get small potatoes, but what about you and twinset there?"
"Lovely lady bit like Ducky's mother, but as forgetful as anything, but she did mention that last night there was a commotion and all the staff hurried away."
"Great so can we now go talk to someone sane?" Tobias requested.
"Sane, like who? I was thinking the staff, as the evening should be coming on soon."
"You call working here sane?" Tobias questioned, as he saw Gibbs walk away to speak to the ward nurse, who indicated that Gibbs and the team follow her to a small sitting room.
"You have to realise," as the nurse indicated they be seated, "We have 8 staff on during the early evening and then late evening we reduce to 6. Why?" seeing the look in Gibbs eyes, "Well they should be asleep or at the Night Owl Club, but last night we had a cardiac arrest on the lower floor."
"Could the staff there not attend?" Fornell asked.
"In a normal situation yes but they were short staffed there is a rather nasty norovirus going about, so they were 3 short."
"What time would you say this was?" Gibbs asked, "And where or what was Sandra doing?"
"Nurse Sommers, is one of our trained cardiac nurses and was first on the scene, about 11.30pm, unfortunately the patient died, there was nothing Sandra or the doctor could do."
"So what happened then?" Tony asked.
"Sandra asked for some down time, she knew the deceased, it was a Commanding Officer."
"One last question," Gibbs asked, "The staff on last night, how many of them on contract or are they agency?"
"We have a mixture, but it was the agency staff that didn't turn up."
Gibbs rose and thanked the nurse for her assistance.
Fornell turned and facing the nurse asked, "I know that the dementia floor is free access to families and they know the entrance code, has this been changed from last night?"
"I assure you it has," she replied.
As the team followed the nurse to the door, and she punched in a code, the door opened, and the team walked out the ward.
"What was all that about?" Gibbs asked Tobias as they all walked to the elevator.
"Families have a free policy to visit, they know the key-code…I know Gibbs, but I couldn't try the code. If it had been changed I would have looked a right idiot. As it was, it has been."