“I am, thanks.”
“Did you get what you needed from IT?”
“I did, indeed.”
“Don’t hesitate should you need anything…anything at all.” She winks at me.
“I think I’m good, but thanks.” I nod, following Robyn as she leaves, her folder tucked under her arm.
She’s fast, weaving through the stragglers in the hallway without breaking pace, nodding at a few of her staff as she passes. I stay a step behind.
By the time we reach her office, she’s already got her hand on the door. She sees me behind her.
“Well,” she says, pushing it open. “I think that went as well as could be expected.”
“Yep. Thanks. It makes my job a whole lot easier.”
“I meant it. The sooner you have everything you need, the sooner you can go back to…doing whatever it is that you do.”
“I’ll be assigned to the next building. For now, this type of work is my main objective.”
She drops the folder on her desk and moves around to her chair. She doesn’t sit. She starts gathering things. She shuts down her computer screen with a sharp tap of the key.
“I’m calling it a day,” she says, not looking up. “I’m exhausted. The lack of sleep last night is starting to hit me hard.”
“Sounds good. I’m going with you.”
Her head comes up. Her hand goes still on the drawer she just opened.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m going with you,” I repeat. “I told you earlier that I’m assigned to this hospital, but also to you. Your safety is paramount, Dr. Keller.”
She doesn’t say anything for a beat. Then she closes the drawer and turns to face me properly.
“Does it have to be tonight?”
“As I said, we discussed it this morning, Dr. Keller. I need to see your vehicle. I need to drive your route home. I need to walk through your building, your apartment, check every window, every door, every weak point. I need to assess your home security. That’s the whole point.”
“I know what you said this morning.” Her tone is cool. “I’m asking if it has to be tonight. Surely tomorrow is fine?”
I watch her face.
She’s tired. That much is true. There are faint shadows under her eyes that weren’t there when I first walked in. But there’s also something else going on. She’s flustered and trying not to show it.
Why doesn’t she want me at her place tonight?
Is there something at home she doesn’t want me to see?
I don’t know her well enough to recognize what the tell actually is. It could be guilt. It could be nothing.
It’s my job to find out.
I’ve had the better part of the day with her laptop and her office drawers. I went through her emails, her calendar, her sent items, and her deleted items. I pulled logs off her work machine with the IT guy standing over my shoulder, none the wiser. I opened every filing cabinet in this office and leafed through every folder. There is nothing incriminating. Not a scrap.
That doesn’t mean she’s clean. It means I haven’t looked in the right place yet.
The right place could very well be her home.
