The following morning, Jane began to find the answers to their extensive list of questions. There weren't many leads to follow in terms of finding out the identity of this mystery professor who had been in contact with Martin Richards before he died. Their only hope was to take his name back to the Bletchley Historical Preservation Society and ask questions.
"Well, he sounded like a very nice man. He asked about our roles and what we did as a group, but then his questions got quite… specific. Asking about machinery and blueprints. When he started asking those sorts of questions, I gave him Martin's number. He knew more about the machines, I said, more about Mercurius."
"So he mentioned Mercurius to you?" Jane paced the hotel room, phone pressed to her ear.
"Yes. And I knew Martin had been researching it, too. So I told him to call Martin."
"Was there anything specific he wanted to know?"
"Well, his accent was quite thick, but from what I could gather it sounded as if he was unsure as to whether the British had ever carried out the operation. You know, built the machine. Richard was in the same boat, searching for evidence and the like."
"Did you ever see him face to face?"
"No. Never. He was invited to join the meetings, but he never did."
"Okay. Well, thank you Joan. You really have been helpful."
"My pleasure, dear."
Jane hung up the call and put her phone down on the table. Propped up on the bed, Maura looked across at her.
"Helpful?"
"Well, she was the only other person this Professor Ruch-and-such seems to have spoken to."
"Ru-see-utsh. Jane, it's not hard." Maura pronounced the professor's name with a rolled 'r' and a perfect, clipped tone. "We need to find out who he is. I mean, if he's the Serbian connection in all of this, he could have Kaplowitz. He could have poisoned Harriet. And Rachel."
Jane nodded. "I know. We need to find him."
/
The inside of the Oxfordshire Police Department's technology department was dramatically different to the BRIC unit Jane and Maura were used to. The technicians all sat at separate desks, each as sterile as the last. The clinically white walls were bare, with none of the high-tech, cinema-style technology the pair had come to know.
In the corner of the room, Detective Greenly stood, watching a CCTV tape on one of the many computer screens. "Bollocks."
"Gesundheit" Jane exclaimed, smiling at the older man.
Maura smiled. "I believe the American translation is 'balls'."
Jane rolled her eyes.
"Thank you, Dr Isles."
"Always happy to help."
Maura took a step back, her hands clasped in front of her, as Jane's attention moved to the images on the computer.
"When did these guys get their CCTV installed? Even my dead grandma's security system worked better than this!"
Maura smiled as she watched her friend joke with the British detectives. 'Cop talk' was a language all of its own, and Maura noted the fact that it seemed to be pretty universal. Aside from some dialect differences, Jane could have been having the same conversation with Korsak or Frankie.
"So no facial recognition?"
"No, sorry. It's just awful quality. Plus, this guy keeps his head turned away from the camera."
Jane watched again as the tall, dark-haired man dropped his head and walked through the hotel lobby. There were no other cameras, and no witnesses to capture the events that followed.
"Have you guys got any idea how he got there? The hotel looks pretty remote."
"We're pretty sure he came by car. I'll take a look at the nearest cameras from each direction." The young technician spoke without taking his eyes off the screen.
"Brilliant. Thank you. Oh, and if you have time, it might be worth searching for the professor more widely. Any information on this guy would be a huge help."
/
"So there's no CCTV evidence, nothing pointing towards who this guy is, or whether it even is him. And even if it is, we've got nothing to link him and Kaplowitz. Nothing to link him to you. No reason to pursue him. The police are doing everything they can, of course, and there's still a lot of unanswered questions to pursue. And I'm trying to be objective, I'm trying so hard to be a scientist but you're my friend and you're hurt. I can't sit back and leave other people to do their jobs when it's my friend's life- livelihood- at stake. It just… I can't do it. It…"
"Can she even hear you?"
Jane walked into the hospital room, startling Maura slightly. They had left the police to their work, and visited Harriet on their way back to the hotel. Maura had managed to secure a promise of regular updates from one of the consultants on Harriet's care team, but needed to see her friend to make sure that she was in safe hands.
"I got you coffee. It's probably awful, but it's hot."
Maura smiled and took a sip. "I… I'm just airing my thoughts out loud. She can hear me on some level, but the cognitive processing required for understanding patterns of speech is likely to be compromised right now."
"And what are you thinking?"
"That it's true what you said. I always attract trouble."
Jane shook her head. "I was angry. And stupid. You know not to listen to me when I'm being childish."
"It's just that… things are so messy. Life is so messy. I can't help but envy people who work a 9-5, predictable job. People who can go to work every day without the lingering fear that they, or someone they are close to, might not make it. It's a horrible way to live."
"But any other life would be boring. I should know- I tried it. I'm here because I can't fight the urge to investigate. To ask questions. Just like you."
"I thought you were here because you couldn't trust me?" Maura said quietly, watching for Jane's reaction.
Jane shook her head, as if ridding herself of invasive thoughts, before answering quietly in her gravelly tone.
"No. I came here because I love you. Because if anything were to happen to you and I'd stayed away, I wouldn't be able to live with myself."
Maura sighed deeply, reaching across to hold Jane's hand tightly. Looking up, her eyes met the detective's and she felt a smile creep across her face.
"You love me?"
Jane nodded, her gaze intent. "I do."
The beeping and rushing of Harriet's machines seemed to fade into silence. Leaning closer, Jane reached out and ran her thumb protectively across Maura's cheek. The blonde closed her eyes at the contact, her dark eyelashes casting a shadow on her freckled skin.
Jane's phone rang violently in her pocket.
"Shit".
Looking down, she read quickly, before once again meeting Maura's gaze.
"It's Greenly. We need to head back."