Page 111 of Power of the Mind

Diem

“Lemme get this straight.” I kneaded the red rubber ball Tallus had given me months ago as I worked through another wildly left-field idea from the brilliant Inspector Clouseau wannabe who’d dumped a new theory on the table the second we’d gotten to the office. “You’re accusing Janek Piotrowski of murder?”

“No.”

“You’re accusing her of accessory to murder?”

Tallus rocked his head from side to side. “Umm… maybe?”

I stared. Tallus stared back. The uncomfortable moment we’d shared in the headquarters parking garage lingered in the background, and I wore the shame like an itchy wool sweater two sizes too small. I wanted to step out for a smoke to calm my nerves, but I worried Tallus would judge my weakness or blame himself, so I suffered.

“Thoughts?”

I chucked the ball aside and fidgeted with desk detritus. “If you were a real client, I’d return your deposit.”

“Aww, you don’t mean that.”

“I do. You’re a fucking lunatic.”

“Answer me this. Do you or do you not agree that these deaths could have been a result of mixing unregulated drugs with prescription drugs.”

“Yes. Case in point, Ezra.”

“Okay. So, let’s say the unregulated drugs aren’t illegal and can be purchased at a natural supplement store. Let’s say the mixing of excessive herbal remedies with higher doses of prescription drugs caused these people to go into cardiac arrest.”

“I’m not a fucking doctor. I don’t know if that can happen.”

“It can. It does. Google it.”

“Okay, so what?”

“If these eleven people were referred to Janek by Hilty or Rowena, do you believe it’s possible she was giving them something that could offset their regular medications and cause a life-threatening condition?”

“Again, I’m not a fucking doctor. I don’t know. Maybe.” My hands shook, and I could hear my heart pulsing in my ears.

“Calm down, sweetie.”

“I am calm, and stop calling me that.”

I was not calm, far from it. I was fighting the worst craving for a cigarette, no thanks to a whopping mixture of stress and anxiety.

Tallus pulled up a creaky plastic chair and sat down, facing me. “That was my Miss Scarlett, by the way.”

“What?”

“Miss Scarlett. From Clue. The game. You know it?”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Tallus, it’s late. I’m tired. I don’t want to playgames.”

“It’s only nine thirty.”

“And I haven’t slept in days.”

Tallus’s gaze softened with understanding. I looked away. It clearly wasn’t a secret that I was struggling with what was happening between us, but I didn’t want to shine a light on it any more than we already had. I didn’t want to revisit the parking lot conversation. The hand job on the couch, the numerous kisses… sex in my bed.

“If it’s about earlier, then—”

“It’s fine.I’mfine. Your ‘Miss. Scarlett,’ or whatever the fuck, is weak as far as theories go. Even if the herbal stuff isn’t regulated by the FDA, naturopaths aren’t idiots. Aren’t they medical practitioners? That’s a lot of fucking school and training. They would take a drug history before handing you shit that would mix poorly with whatever you were on.”

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