“I don’t know who that is.”
Another woman, sitting in the next cubicle, said, “She’s gone.”
Decker looked over at her. “Gone? Did she refuse admission?”
“No. Two police detectives came and took her away.”
Chapter 18
I’VE GOT AN APB OUT,” said Andrews. “And I’ve spoken to the Coral Gables Police. They have no information about a woman being taken from Harden Hospital by their people.”
They were in the car outside the hospital.
White said, “So the detectives were bogus? The hospital staff said their badges looked real and Lancer went with them.”
“At this point it doesn’t look like they were legit,” said Andrews. “What the hell is going on?” He eyed Decker, who was in the rear seat staring moodily out the window. “Any thoughts, Decker?” he asked.
“Clearly the lady didn’t want to meet with us.”
“You mean she faked the faint and then escaped from the hospital with the help of a couple of buddies?” said White.
Decker continued to look out the window. “It wasn’t just her and a couple of buddies. It’s not easy to pull something like this together that fast. You’d need resources that can act on the fly. And contingency plans.”
Andrews said, “You don’t think Gamma is involved in this, do you?”
“We didn’t get to talk to apparently the only woman at Gamma who can tell us anything. And now we’re out here and they’re safely back in their little cocoon.”
“Roe said they would provide copies of their records,” countered Andrews.
“No, she didn’t. She said corporate counsel would determine whether they could provide us anything,” corrected Decker.
Andrews started and said, “Right, I guess that is what she told us.”
“So don’t be surprised if that counsel tells us Gamma can’t provide the documents without going to court. And we all know how long that bullshit takes. The strategy of running out the legal clock has become pretty popular. And by then it may be too late.” He turned to look at Andrews. “And when you called for an appointment with Roe, they had a chance to prepare. Whether it was just Lancer or some or all of them, I don’t know. But they acted fast.”
Andrews looked at White. “What do you think?”
“I think the question is, if we can’t get the info we need from Gamma on a timely basis, where do we get it?”
Decker said, “Presumably the judge would have some documentation of the threats. They weren’t found in her house, correct? Or on her answering machine, if she even had one.”
Andrews said, “They weren’t. But we’re still checking her cell phone and computers.”
“Then we might have to get them from the court,” said Decker.
“I’ll need to speak to our legal counsel,” noted Andrews.
“I didn’t mean that court, I meant Judge Cummins’s chambers. The evidence might be there. And there are people she worked with we need to talk to.”
“I was planning to do that,” said Andrews.
“And pull any CCTV footage from the hospital. We might get a look at the guys who sprang Lancer.”
“Okay, I’ll get on that.”
“And while we’re in the area, let’s go see where Alice Lancer lives.”
“We don’t have her address,” said Andrews.
“Yes we do,” said Decker.
“How?”
“I saw it on her admittance form to the hospital.”
“You remember it correctly?” asked Andrews.
“I wouldn’t worry about that,” interjected White.
“We don’t have a search warrant,” pointed out Andrews.
“She’s gone missing. Can we get by on a welfare check?” said Decker.
“I doubt that. And the locals do that, not the FBI.”
“She’s a potential witness in the murder of a federal judge.”
“Doesn’t matter. And to be clear, I’m not screwing up any prosecutions on a rookie Fourth Amendment fuckup.”
Decker looked at the man with a little more respect.
*
Lancer lived in the village of Miami Shores, a half-hour commute north of the Gamma Building. It was a village of well-kept-up single-family dwellings, a couple of small commercial areas, wide streets, and lots of trees residing along them.
“It’s a bedroom community for Greater Miami,” explained Andrews. “And also has a lot of retirees. But you could say that about most places in Florida. You ever think about retiring here, Decker?”