Page 46 of Jenna's Threatened Sanctuary

Calvin chuckled. “Manners are overrated.”

Jenna cast a small smile at Oliver then moved her fork around the pile of eggs on her plate. Her head pounded a steady beat against her temple, stealing most of her appetite, but she needed to eat.

Calvin retrieved his plate of food and cup of coffee and returned to the table. Concern wrinkled his forehead. “How are you feeling this morning?”

Not wanting to say anything alarming in front of Oliver, she took a minute to weigh her words. “Like I’m living in some weird dream that I’m bound to wake from any minute. I’m devastated about Edward, but it just doesn’t seem real.”

“I’m sorry. For all of it. And I hate asking, but is there a chance he was involved in any of this?”

Her stomach turned. “I want to say no, but I’d never guessed any of this could happen.”

Hesitation skittered across Calvin’s face.

“Say what’s on your mind,” Jenna said.

Calvin chanced a quick glance at Oliver, who happily tossed eggs on the floor, then connected his gaze with her. “We know whoever we’re after has access to the hospital. He’s secured medical instruments, wore scrubs when attacking you, and knew how to flee the building while hiding his face from the camera.” He ticked the offenses off his fingers.

“All things Edward would have knowledge of.” Sighing, Jenna shoved her plate aside. “He wasn’t just my boss. He was one of my closest friends. Hell, he even promised to pull files from human resources to see if there were any complaints against me that I wasn’t aware of.”

Calvin straightened. “Did he show you any of the files? Did he find anything?”

A lump wedged in her throat. “He never got a chance.”

“Could those files be in his office?” Calvin asked.

She shrugged. “There’s only one way to find out.” As soon as Mrs. Collins woke, they’d head to the hospital. The truth might be in Edward’s office, and if it was, she would find it. Not only to clear Edward’s name, but to finally find a killer and put an end to this nightmare.

20

Calvin stayed close to Jenna’s side as she turned through the labyrinth of hallways in the hospital. Hushed whispers bounced off the bright white floors and the sad eyes of the staff were impossible to ignore. Not having any words, and wanting to stay as inconspicuous as possible, Calvin kept his chin down and ignored the pain pounding against his side as Jenna stopped in front of Dr. Church’s office.

Jenna plunged a hand in her pocket and grabbed her keys.

“You have a key to your boss’s office?”

“I told you. We were good friends.” With a quick glance over her shoulder, she shoved the key in the lock, opened the door, then preceded him inside before closing and locking the door behind her. She sucked in a shuddering breath.

Calvin pressed a palm between her shoulder blades. “Take a second. This is a lot.”

Shaking her head, she limped toward the desk in front of a built-in bookshelf.

Calvin followed, studying the modest room. Sitting at the desk, Dr. Church would have had a view out the window of the smattering of trees in the back of the building withthe mountains looming in the distance. The bookcase boasted medical journals and thick, hard-backed books of deep browns and blues. Framed photos took up open space on the shelves as well as the desk, which was neat as a pin.

Picking up a silver frame, he studied the smiling couple. A well-cut older man who kept himself fit and a petite woman with gray streaks through curling black hair huddled together while rain splashed down on them somewhere on a beach. Where most people would be put out, the couple beamed, laughing at the weather. “They looked happy.”

Jenna fell into the desk chair and slid open the top drawer of a filing cabinet. “They were happy.”

The firm tone of her voice warned Calvin not to argue, not to question. Bomb after bomb had been dropped on Jenna the last couple of days. Even if she was questioning her friend’s possible involvement in Stella’s murder, he didn’t need to voice his concerns. Not now. When the unspoken suspicions were clear enough for everyone investigating this case.

Pulling out a manilla file folder, Jenna leafed through the contents. “He pulled the information on Dr. Kent—the death of Tracey Mayfield.”

Calvin read over her shoulder. The information on the paper matched what he’d heard from both Jenna and Dr. Kent. “Anything else in the file?”

She flipped through the loose papers. “A copy of my complaint against Dr. Kent is in here, his response to my allegations, as well as a write up of Dr. Kent’s termination from the hospital.” She slid the file back in place and shifted through the protruding tabs. “Just standard paperwork.”

Calvin poked around the books, tilting them from their places and searching for hiding spots in the nooks and crannies or behind the leather tombs. Nothing. He spun around,searching for any other place the doctor could have tucked things away from prying eyes.

Jenna sighed and struggled to her feet. “We won’t find anything. I can promise you. If he’d had more to show me, it would either be on his desk or maybe he’d have taken it home. I’m sure Officer Sawyer has already been to his house, and I wouldn’t feel right showing up and upsetting Marin further. She has enough to deal with right now.”

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