Page 44 of Heart of a Hero

“I suppose it might go to Emily… um… Emily Klein. She’s the director of the whole Eastern Shore Home Health, but as far as I know, the information goes to Karen. She’s our head nurse for all patients.”

“Okay. And what happens after that?”

“Basically, Karen visits the home as soon as the patient is out of the rehab facility or the hospital. She makes an assessment, checks the house, then determines what they need and which one of us would be assigned to work with them.”

“What kind of work would that be?”

“Whatever therapy or medical assistance they need.”

“Not all of you are in each of the homes?”

“Oh no. Karen is the only one who goes to all the homes. She’s the one who makes the assessments.”

After a few more questions, they thanked Sharon and walked out to their SUV. Mark was glad Brad had kept his mouth shut, considering that Mark was battling a sick feeling that hit his chest directly.

As soon as they were seated in the SUV, Brad said, “You know?—”

“I know, I know. Karen is the only one who has been in every single house of the victims.”

“That doesn’t mean she’s involved.”

Mark twisted around and pinned Brad with an angry stare. “You think I’m not aware of that? I know in my gut she’s not involved. Yet she is now someone we have to interview. Not just someone who can give us information, but a person of interest.”

As soon as they returned to the station, they immediately headed to Colt’s office, finding him seated behind his desk. He looked up, lifted a brow, and said, “Talk to me. What’s going on?”

Mark didn’t see any reason to delay the inevitable. “Karen Drummond, someone we know from the American Legionand have met in other professional settings, will need to be questioned. And she’s the woman I’m dating.”

Mark ignored Brad’s wince and Colt’s continued lifted brow. Colt picked up his phone and jabbed at a button. “Lucille? Send John Sullivan and Elizabeth Perez into my office now, please.” He hung up the phone, then inclined his head to the chairs in front of his desk. “Might as well take a seat.”

No one said anything for a moment, and Mark felt each tick of the clock like a pounding in his head. After a moment, there was a knock on the door, and Colt barked, “Come in.”

John and Elizabeth walked in, looked at the other detectives, and then stood to the side after closing the door. Mark lifted his chin to them, but no one spoke.

“Okay, let’s have it,” Colt ordered, his voice firm and commanding as he leaned forward, eyes sharp with anticipation.

Mark shifted in his seat, glancing at Brad, thankful his partner understood the unspoken plea for him to take the lead. The last thing Mark wanted was to stumble through this conversation, not with so much at stake.

Brad cleared his throat and began. “We’ve been searching for patterns in all the breaking-and-entering cases. At first, nothing lined up—location, socioeconomic background of the victims, type of house, or the victims’ ages. It was all over the place. But then something clicked for Mark yesterday when we interviewed the latest victims. Every single one had recently been in the hospital or a rehabilitation facility.” Brad paused, letting that sink in before continuing. “From there, Mark made the connection. What if someone from Eastern Shore Home Health Services was involved, knowingly or not? Yesterday afternoon, we re-interviewed every victim by phone. Turns out they all either are or were receiving services from Eastern Shore Home Health.”

Brad glanced over at Mark, who was rubbing the back of his neck, trying to stave off the tension headache that had been building since morning. It wasn’t just the investigation that weighed on him—it was Karen. And what came next.

Mark’s voice was strained when he finally spoke. “Karen Drummond is the lead home health nurse for Eastern Shore. She’s the one constant in all of this.” He met the eyes of Elizabeth and John, feeling the tension settle heavier in the room. “She’s also the woman I’ve been seeing… we’re dating.”

“This morning, we went to talk to Karen to get a clearer picture of how the system works,” Brad explained. “She wasn’t available, so we spoke with one of the therapists. That’s when we learned how it works—Karen is the one who evaluates the patients and their homes. She decides what services they need. Some of our victims had a physical therapist, others a speech therapist or an occupational therapist, but none of them saw the same group of people. Karen is the only person who’s been in every single one of their homes.”

Mark swallowed hard, each word feeling heavier than the last. “So, we need to talk to her,” he admitted, his voice tight with the weight of it. “But now… now she’s not just someone we’re talking to as part of the investigation. She’s someone we need to interview fully.”

Colt’s sharp gaze shifted to John and Elizabeth. “That’s why you two are here. Mark won’t be part of the interview, and while Brad can take the lead, I want someone else conducting the actual questioning.”

Mark’s stomach twisted, the knot in his chest growing tighter. “Does she have to come in?” he asked, his voice tinged with desperation. He didn’t even bother hiding the raw emotion that surfaced. The idea of Karen feeling intimidated by being dragged into this situation in such a formal way made him ache.

Elizabeth leaned forward, her voice measured. “We can interview her at the office, but it may not be private enough. Would we be able to ensure confidentiality?”

Brad’s grimace answered before he spoke. “The home health offices are busy. Therapists, patients—people come and go. I can’t guarantee we’d have a quiet, private place to ask what we need to.”

Mark’s gaze swung from Brad to Colt. Colt also held his gaze, then nodded. “Okay. Brad, you and Elizabeth go ask her to come in. Obviously, she’s under no obligation to come, but help convince her that it will assist in the investigation. John, you stay here with Mark. We want everything done carefully and by the book. There’s no reason to upset her, but we also don’t want the DA to balk at how this was handled in case we get information that leads us to the perpetrators.”

As Brad stood, he gripped Mark’s shoulder. Then he left with Elizabeth. John stepped out of the office, leaving Mark with Colt.

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