Chapter 12 — Written in the Dust

"Hospital coats are traditionally white so the blood can be bleached out of them," Dr. Kaylor said. "Blood is a hazard of working in a hospital."

"But no one knows where you were when Pham was killed, during the big aftershock this afternoon," Steve said.

"You just haven't asked the right people, commander," Kaylor corrected. "I went to the surgical wing after lunch to discuss emergency procedures in the face of these continuing aftershocks. I was there when the aftershock hit and we had one of those emergencies. Dr. Finch was making an incision when the earth shook. His hand slipped and he nicked an artery. I jumped in to help, not even taking time for proper sterilization, just dumping disinfectant on my hands. He clamped the artery with his fingers while I sutured the cut. I'm surprised I didn't get more blood on me." Kaylor smiled, a genuine smile of a job well done. "I haven't done surgery for several years. It was very satisfying to see I still had the knack and to save the life of a teenage girl whose life should never have been in danger." Kaylor blinked, then remembered whom he was talking to and why. "You check with the staff in the surgical wing, commander. I'm sure they'll confirm my alibi. I'm sorry Roland is dead. He was a busybody, but he didn't deserve to be murdered. We'll do everything we can to help find his killer."

The surgical wing was still buzzing about the administrator's heroics during the aftershock. The Five-o officers didn't even have to ask about the alibi. They heard the story twice as soon as they mentioned Kaylor's name.

Kono was called to see Charlie Fong in the lab. "Fong, you said you had something for us?"

"Something interesting," Charlie said. "I was analyzing the dust samples you collected at the 'accident' scene." His emphasis said he thought it was anything but an accident.

"It's just brick and mortar dust, isn't it?" Kono asked, as willing as Chin to play straight man for the experts.

"Most of it is, but the sample from the bottom of the victim's shoe also shows hydrocodone bitartrate and acetaminophen," Charlie said solemnly.

"Acetaminophen — that's Tylenol, isn't it? What's the rest?"

"Acetaminophen and hydrocodone bitartrate together, in these proportions, are the prescription pain killer Vicodin."

"Vicodin!"

Charlie nodded. "So maybe this case is related to the pharmaceutical thefts. And there's something else. I found a couple of microscopic flecks of paint on the brick."

"On the murder weapon," Kono corrected, looking at a text from Chin. "According to Max."

Charlie blew up a picture of the paint flecks, so Kono could see them.

"Is that color moss green?" she asked.

After getting the call from Kono, Steve and Danny went back to Kaylor's office.

"I could find this door in my sleep now," Danny muttered.

They found Watanabe standing nervously in front of the desk and Kaylor with his phone in hand and his finger on keypad.

"That was fast. I hadn't even dialed, yet," the doctor said sarcastically.

"You were right, commander. We have been hit," Watanabe said. He clutched a sheaf of papers in his hand. "Our supplies of Oxycontin and Vicodin have been replaced with lookalike pills. We tested all the narcotics in the supply room and these were sugar pills. They looked just like the real thing."

"There's more," Kaylor added grimly. "The substitution happened today. Pills issued this morning were what they were supposed to be."

"We want to check the supply room," Steve demanded.

Watanabe took them to the pharmacy.

The pharmacist was in the outer room with a small supply of the many medications needed each day. The main supplies were in a large storeroom that was kept locked at all times. The pharmacist opened it for the officers and pointed to where the containers of narcotics were kept.

Danny chewed his lip. He ran his gloved finger across the shelf, leaving a trail in a film of dust almost impossible to see. The detective regarded the paneled wall behind the metal shelves then, without warning, he punched the wall. The panel fell backward into the deserted cafeteria.

"It's a secret passage," he said. "You didn't notice anything?" he asked the pharmacist.

"There was a lot of banging and power tool noise from the cafeteria," the man protested.

"Where did you find Innis Construction?" Steve snapped at Watanabe.

"I don't know! Roland was in charge of maintenance," the Director of Procurement said. "But his assistant should know."

Roland called Kaitlyn Binnix while they hurried through the hospital to her office. She had the records ready when they arrived.

"According to this, Makiki Nursing Home recommended them," Kaitlyn said.

Steve and Danny exchanged a glance. Makiki was one of the nursing homes that had been hit by drug thefts.

"They also had references from Queens," Kaitlyn said. It was another of the theft victims. The woman made a sour face. "They offered a discount to medical facilities, as a 'way to give back.'"

"I'll bet we find everyone had some work done," Danny said.

Steve got a call from Lori. "So I've been going over the security footage from the hospital."

"I thought the earthquake knocked out the camera on the loading dock," Steve said.

"It did, but we've been going through the rest of the hospital. We've got Innis and Stainten going down in the elevator before the big aftershock. You can clearly see the reaction of people in the hospital to the quake. Then, while everyone is still recovering and cleaning up, Stainten and Innis come back up. Innis is hustling Stainten along. They go into the cafeteria, where the cameras are down because of the construction…"

"Convenient," Danny commented.

"…They come back out with Dugan just a couple minutes later, all of them carrying paint buckets."

Steve smacked his forehead. "They put the stolen drugs into the pickup right under Ab's nose. And we let them drive away!"

"Easy, boy, we had no reason to suspect them of anything then," Danny offered as consolation.

"I'm thinking that Stainten and Innis took some of the pills down — maybe Stainten's share. The quake hit and while they were dodging bricks, they spilled some pills right in front of Pham," Lori said.

"And then Innis, with paint on his hands, grabbed a chunk of brick and killed Pham," Steve said.

Steve was about to rush off to check Innis Construction when he got a call.

"Commander, this is Joe Stainten. I've got to talk to you," the man said hoarsely. "I saw something."

"I'll send someone."

"No, you. You're the one Innis is worried about."

"Where are you?" Steve surrendered.

"At my store. Please."

"We're on our way," Steve said. He sent Lori, Chin and Kono to check out Innis Construction. He and Danny went to Stainten Hardware.

TBC

A/N: Getting close to the end now. Just a couple of chapters to go.