DISCLAIMER- I don't own any of the characters of course and this is done purely for my own (and hopefully other's) entertainment. No profit is being made etc.
Chapter 3: Some DetailDR CAVANAUGH, I DON'T WISH TO HURT YOU
BUT IF YOU DON'T COMPLY WITH MY DEMANDS
THEN THAT WILL BE UNAVOIDABLE.
MY WIFE DIED 2 NIGHTS AGO.
HER BODY WAS SENT TO YOUR MORGUE YESTERDAY
FOR AN AUTOPSY STATING THAT HER BODY WAS
FOUND UNDER SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES
AND IT WAS BEING CALLED A HOMICIDE.
A MURDER.
I DID NOT MURDER MY WIFE BUT THERE IS EVIDENCE
TO SUGGEST THAT I DID.
SHE KILLED HERSELF BUT SET IT UP TO FRAME ME.
WHAT I AM ASKING TELLING YOU TO DO
IS RELEASE MRS SARA BRANDONE'S BODY
TO ME WITH CAUSE OF DEATH BEING
ACCIDENTAL.
WHEN YOU ARE READY TO TALK
KNOCK TWICE ON THE DOOR.
Right Jordan thought to herself. Don't wish to hurt me? She looked at her ballooning ankle. She winced when she gave a small cough. Her mouth tasted of blood. She sighed before feeling something in her pocket. She reached in and pulled her cell phone out.
"Bingo!" She said. She dialed Woody's number but all she got was the 'no signal' beep. "Crap" she said.
"Still, worth a shot" She said to herself "I guess all I can do is confront this freak. Why am I talking to myself?" She shook her head as she used the door handle to pull herself up. Once semi-stable she banged twice, as instructed. No response. She banged louder "Oi!" She yelled.
Seconds later she heard footsteps and the sound of a key being put into a lock. The door opened and the first thing that entered the room was the handgun. A man dressed in black, this time without his ski mask on, then followed it. He looked to be about 35, hadn't shaved or slept for a few days judging by his disheveled appearance. His eyes didn't look as evil as Jordan had imagined- instead they were just hollow. Blank.
"Dr Cavanaugh" The man said.
"At your service" Jordan replied dryly, leaning against the wall to take the pressure off her ankle.
"You read my note?"
"I did" Jordan nodded. "Don't know if I believe it or not though. Don't want to hurt me huh?" She gestured to her foot.
"I really didn't want to. But you disobeyed me, I had no choice" The man replied.
"You had a choice. There's always a choice" Jordan said.
"Not this time. I couldn't risk you pulling any more tricks on me like the one you did at the turn-off."
Jordan remembered what she had done. What had set him off. He had ordered her to take the left turn immediately after leaving the highway but she tried to backtrack and return to the main road. He lost it- he had her pull over and shoved her into the backseat after beating her around the head a few times. She'd fallen into a state of semi-consciousness for the remainder of the trip but it was the last straw for her alertness when they finally pulled into an abandoned and lonely gas station and the man had pulled her roughly out of the car. She'd fallen awkwardly on her foot and bumped her head on the car door.
She'd remained unconscious until she awoke in the small room.
"There's still a choice. Even if you do have anger management issues" Jordan said. She flinched slightly when the man raised his hand. Thankfully he dropped it before hitting her again.
"Just stop talking, ok?" He said, frustrated.
"I will once you explain what's happening. What do you want me to do?"
"You said you read the note. Was it not clear enough for you?"
"Your wife killed herself, but she did it with the idea of framing you for murder?"
"Yes"
"Well I can't imagine why she would do that. You're so full of charm" Jordan rolled her eyes.
"Urrgh" The man growled and pointed his gun at Jordan's head.
"Whoa. You shoot me and you WILL be put away for murder" Jordan said. "I guarantee it"
The gun lowered.
"Thank you. Mr Brandone is it?"
"Sara kept her maiden name when we got married. I'm Kenneth Morea"
"Mr Morea. Got it" Jordan said. "Now how exactly do you want me to help you?"
"Exactly what the note said. Release Sara's body. Call her death accidental. Easy"
Jordan shook her head "Not so easy. As much as I'd like not to get killed by you it's just not that simple. The Boston PD has Sara's death as a homicide. To change their opinions to accidental I need to do a detailed autopsy. If, as you say, she did kill herself then an autopsy WILL show that it wasn't murder. But I'll have to do that autopsy. Or someone will. We can't just go around putting whatever we like as COD without evidence"
"Even if you make a call to your boss saying a crazy man has a gun held to your head, ready to blow your brains out unless the death is ruled accidental?"
"Actually" Jordan half-smiled "That vision might actually impress my boss"
Morea raised the gun again, totally missing the joke.
Jordan sighed; "They never have a sense of humour" She looked at him "Look, give me a phone that works and I'll give my boss a call."
"You'll tell him what I tell you to tell him" Morea said.
"Sure. Whatever you say. You've got the gun"
"Don't you forget it"
-------
"Dr Macy. Any word?" Woody ran into Garret's office.
"Sorry, Woody" Garret replied. "I've called her cell a couple more times but all I get is the out of range signal"
"Out of range? Where could she be that's out of range?"
Garret shook his head "I really don't know"
Both men jumped suddenly when Garret's phone rang. They glanced at each other before Garret picked it up.
"Dr Garret Macy"
"Garret. It's Jordan"
"Jordan! Where the hell have you been?" Garret said loudly.
Woody came closer to Garret so he could hear. "Are you ok?"
"Woody?" Jordan said, surprised.
"Stick to the script" A male voiced growled through the phone. Woody immediately went into protective mode.
"Who's that?" He asked.
"Woody. Settle" Garret hissed. He knew the boy was worried but he also didn't want to risk Jordan getting hurt, wherever she was. "Jordan, where are you?" Woody settled but it was all he could do to keep from grabbing the phone and yelling down the mouthpiece.
"Garret I'm ok. I'm here with a Kenneth Morea. His wife was brought in yesterday. Name of Sara Brandone? Ring any bells? Suspected homicide"
"Let me just check" Garret put his hand over the receiver "Woody, go get Lily to bring in the files from yesterday"
Woody nodded and left.
-------
"LILY!" Woody yelled down the corridor. People turned and looked at him. He didn't care.
Lily came hurrying out of Trace with a serious look on her face "Woody, you can't yell like that in here!" She scolded.
"Sorry. But Jordan's on the phone. She's in trouble"
'Oh" Lily said "What do you want me to do?"
"Dr Macy needs all the files from yesterday. Looking for one in particular- Sara Brandone. Homicide"
"Right I know the one. Dr Macy in his office?"
"Yeah. I'll see you in there" Lily nodded and both went in opposite directions- Woody back to Garret's office and Lily to get the files.
"She's bringing them" Woody said as he reentered the office.
Garret nodded an acknowledgement to Woody "Just getting the files now" He said into the phone.
It wasn't long before Lily came in carrying the files. She handed the relevant one to Garret.
"Right, I've got the file. Says she died from Blunt Force Trauma to the head?"
"That sounds right" Came Jordan's muffled voice from the phone. "Look, her husband says she did this to herself. Is that possible?"
Garret read through the file "I doubt it. But stranger things have happened"
"I didn't kill my wife!" the male voice sounded frustrated.
"Hey calm down, dude" Jordan said.
"What do you want me to do, Jordan?" Garret asked.
"Re-do the autopsy. Double check every little detail" Jordan answered "Please" She sounded almost desperate. Woody's heart felt a pang hearing her sound like that. Lily noticed the pain on Woody's face and gently rubbed his back.
"Alright. I'll get right onto it. Jordan, call back in twenty minutes ok?" Garret said, feeling so helpless. He was certain this was a homicide case, open and shut.
"Alright. Thanks Garret" The phone clicked off.