Fatal Tide - Iris Johansen [18]
God, she hoped the police had found Carolyn.
Chapter Four
“Ms. Nemid? Mr. Kelby?” A heavyset black man in a tan suit was waiting at the hangar when they got off the jet. “I'm Detective Michael Halley. I talked to you on the phone?”
She nodded. “Have you found Carolyn?”
He shook his head. “Not yet. But we're looking very hard for her.”
Her hopes plummeted. “It's a small island. Practically everyone knows Carolyn. Someone must have seen her or heard from her. What about Maria Perez?”
He hesitated. “Unfortunately, we have found Ms. Perez.”
Melis stiffened. “Unfortunately?”
“She was discovered on the beach by a group of teenagers. Her throat had been slit.”
Melis felt as if she'd been punched in the stomach. She was vaguely aware of Kelby's hand closing on her arm in silent support. “How . . .”
“We don't believe the homicide took place on the beach. There were traces of blood in the outer office, Dr. Mulan's office, and also in the alley in back of the office building. The other tenants vacate the building at six, so the body was probably removed after dark and dumped on the beach.”
Dumped. He made her sound like a piece of garbage, not the funny, bawdy Maria that Melis had known for years. “You're sure it was Maria? There's no mistake?”
Halley shook his head. “We've had her roommate down to the morgue and it was a positive ID. We'd like you to come down to the station and give us a statement.”
She nodded numbly. “I'll do anything I can to help find Carolyn. But I don't know why anyone would want to kill Maria.”
“Blackmail?” Halley shrugged. “It's a possibility. One of the file cabinets was half empty and records were stolen.”
“What records?” Kelby asked.
“M through Z.” He paused. “She kept your file in the office, Ms. Nemid?”
“Of course. It was safe. The cabinet was always locked.”
“Evidently not that safe.” He frowned. “And I don't like the fact that other files were stolen. From the worried phone calls we've been receiving, it appears Dr. Mulan has had patients in all levels of the government. It could be extremely awkward if their records are made public.”
“Awkward?” Her numbness disappeared in a surge of anger. “It's too bad that your politicians may be embarrassed. I don't care if the files were stolen. Carolyn is gone, damn you. Find her.”
“Easy, Melis.” Kelby took a step forward and nodded at a Mercedes parked by the hangar. “I have a car waiting, Detective. We'll follow you down to the station.”
Halley nodded. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be insensitive. It's just that this crime is posing a problem for us on a number of levels.” He turned and headed for a brown sedan. “I'll be waiting for you.”
“Come on.” Kelby nudged Melis toward the Mercedes. “Let's get this over with.” He retrieved the key from a magnet box under the rear bumper and unlocked the car. “Or I can get Halley to wait until you're less upset.”
“I'm not going to be less upset. Not until we find Carolyn.” She got into the passenger seat. “I was hoping— It's much worse than I thought. Maria . . . they killed Maria.”
“You knew her well?”
She nodded. “She's worked for Carolyn as long as I've been her patient. She went along on a few of our trips. Carolyn thought she was good for me.”
“Why?”
“She was . . . different. My exact opposite. But . . . I liked her. She was always . . .” She stared blindly out the window as he started the car. “They slit her throat. My God, they slit her throat. Why?”
“The knife is quiet and quick.”
Yes, he'd know about that, she thought. She remembered reading somewhere that he'd been in the SEALs and they were accustomed to inflicting quick, quiet death. “She never hurt anyone. She just wanted to have a good time and squeeze joy out of every minute.”
“Then she must have gotten in the way.” He started the car. “It's usually how the innocent are made victims.”
“In the way of someone who wanted to get to Carolyn?”
“Or the files. Halley seems to think you may not be the only target.”
“What do you think?”
“Unless your friend made more than one phone call last night to people