Priscilla touched the place where the small scar resided underneath the waistband of her jeans, remembering the pain and soreness that had lasted for days after her own emergency surgery. “I had my appendix out a few years ago, and it was tough to even sit up a few hours after surgery. How did he manage to walk out with no one noticing he’d just had surgery?”
“Maybe he’s used to pain.” Laura consulted her tablet, then continued. “Or maybe he had the ability to push it down until he could deal with it later. The hospital noted that some morphine went missing after Culvert’s escape, along with extra bandages and dressings to take care of the wound site. It’s possible that Rachel somehow got together those items for him. The FBI’s still investigating that.”
Myers’s cell phone played the opening chords of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, and he responded quickly to the call. “Hello?” The agent’s demeanor changed as his body stiffened. The marshal listened, spoke a few muffled words, then disconnected the call.
Priscilla held her breath as Myers related the call’s content.
“That was Mac. They have a lead on Rachel’s whereabouts.” Myers cracked a smile. “She finally used her cell phone, allowing our tech guys to ping her location. Get this—she’s fifteen miles from here at a Motel 6 along Highway 32.”
* * *
Two hours ago, three additional US marshals had shown up to guard Priscilla; and Myers, Aldrich and Laura had left to meet FBI agents and the local sheriff’s department at the motel where Rachel Whitehurst might be. Dr. Devins and Priscilla decided to use the downtime for another hypnotherapy session in one of the bedrooms, while one marshal stayed outside and the other two worked their phones in the second bedroom with the door ajar.
Which left Luc with little to do. He folded the newspaper he’d read through twice and tossed it into the kitchen trash can. Nothing caught his attention on television. Without his phone, he tried to find something other than Christmas music on the clock radio, but gave up after hearing “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” on three separate channels. He surged to his feet to pace the few steps to the tiny kitchenette.
“Walls starting to close in on you?” Priscilla stood in the doorway.
“Yeah, you could say that.” He noted the dark circles underneath her eyes. The stress must be playing havoc with her ability to sleep at night. He certainly hadn’t been able to sleep soundly since he’d entered the hair salon three days ago. “How did it go with Dr. Devins this morning?”
Dropping into a chair at the small kitchen table, she rubbed her forehead. “I only remembered more details about the events surrounding the actual shooting.”
Luc filled in what she left unsaid: I didn’t remember anything more about you. It would certainly make it easier to officially put an end to their marriage if she couldn’t recall their wedding. The thought filled him with disappointment more than the relief he’d expected. Shifting the topic away from her session, he asked, “Would you like something to drink?”
“Some water would be great.” Priscilla hid a yawn behind her hand.
Dr. Devins came out of the bedroom, a small recorder in his hand, to join them at the table. “Priscilla? I think it might be helpful for you to hear what you said while under hypnosis. It might help to clarify the events of that night.”
Luc handed Priscilla a bottle of water. “Should I leave?”
Priscilla looked at Dr. Devins. “I’d like Luc to stay, if that’s okay.”
“I don’t think that would be a problem.” Dr. Devins grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge. “Let me get the marshals.”
Luc sat beside her at the table, while Dr. Devins spoke with the two marshals, who came out and joined them around the periphery of the table. Luc couldn’t remember their names, having met many new faces over the past three days. The taller agent appeared to be a few years away from retirement, with his shock of gray hair and the crinkles around his eyes. The younger man had a smooth complexion that made guessing his age difficult.
The two marshals, both balancing notebooks and pens, nodded at Luc and Priscilla. Then the doctor hit the play button, filling the space with the sound of his voice as he softly counted down to pull Priscilla under hypnosis.