“If there’s one thing we don’t have a shortage of around here, Mitch, it’s handcuffs. For all the times I’ve seen our guests, ah, secured, I’ve never once seen them left with marks like these. It’s a bit odd. And, while you might think I’ve grown immune to oddities while working here, I assure you—there’s an ordinary to the extraordinary. This photograph very much falls outside my standard deviation of strange.”
Mitch ruminated on her observation for a moment. “Interesting,” he eventually said, pondering what to do with this new information. Then it came to him. “You know, I have a friend from a prior position, a medical examiner—one of the best in the state, in my opinion. Maybe I should get Penny’s file to her. Get her take on it. It will get a faster look-see than going through the state lab.”
Whitmore appeared to be in full agreement. “The mother’s the medical proxy, I presume,” she said. “I’m sure you’ll need her to sign some release forms and whatnot, so see to it, will you?”
“Sure thing,” Mitch said, still reeling. Why does she care so much?
“Penny’s a potentially important case, Mitch,” Whitmore said, as if reading Mitch’s mind. “She can give us—and by us, I mean Edgewater—a lot of attention. If it’s not an open-and-shut case as it appears to be, then selfishly, I think I can spin that straw into a bit of gold for this facility without violating any HIPAA obligations.” She paused and sighed, as if she’d caught herself.
“I know what I’m saying sounds crass,” Whitmore admitted. “But managing the money is in my job description, so yes, I’ll exploit every opportunity that comes my way. And it’s not all self-serving: more money means better care for our guests. If nothing else, your contact might give you some new insights to work with.”
Insights.
The word struck Mitch, and no surprise it was in relation to Penny. What could possibly give him the insights he needed into her world and her life? Grace didn’t have a diary of Penny’s she could share, but Mitch thought of Adam, whom he’d be visiting tomorrow and hadn’t yet seen since his return to rehab. As a child, Adam loved to draw and his pictures often reflected his mood. For a time he was something of a serious artist, and had what Mitch thought of as his blue period—sadder works done in a somber palette that in hindsight might have presaged his later turmoil.
Mitch thanked Whitmore for her time and made a mental note to call Grace and ask if she could rummage up some of Penny’s past creations for him to study. It was too late to help Adam avoid his addictions, but the trial wasn’t over, and until the verdict was announced, Mitch vowed he wouldn’t stop trying to help. He wasn’t fooling himself, however. Reaching his son had proved impossible, and getting through to Eve might be even harder.
CHAPTER 25
A FEW DAYS AFTER the ammonia experiment, Grace returned to Edgewater, this time accompanied by Attorney Greg Navarro. As the trial was drawing nearer, Navarro’s workload increased—as did Grace’s bill. They’d driven to Edgewater in separate cars, and the plan was for Navarro to meet with Penny in private, briefly. It wouldn’t take more than a half hour, he said, then he’d wait for her—off the clock—to debrief.
While Navarro and Penny （though of course it would be Eve） conducted their business in private, Grace and Mitch headed to the cafeteria for coffee and a chance to talk. She considered asking Mitch’s opinion about Ryan and his unrelenting hostility, but probably wouldn’t. He had his hands full. They all did.
Of everyone in the noisy cafeteria, Grace believed she was the only one sporting a visitor’s badge, which she had pinned to the lapel of her blue blazer. Mitch returned from the checkout counter carrying a steaming hot coffee for him and water for Grace. On the table Grace had put the leather portfolio case containing her daughter’s artwork, collected and saved over the years. She was incredibly curious what the art might reveal to Mitch, who had asked for this special showing.
“Children communicate ideas and feelings through their art,” he had explained. “If we can learn to interpret this language, we might be better able to understand Penny’s inner world. Maybe it’ll give us a way to get past Eve.”
“I’m glad I had some work to share. Penny hated her art, always wanted to tear up her drawings after finishing them, but I managed to save a lot for posterity. Not all, but a fair amount.”
She expected they’d dive right into it, but before Mitch unzipped the case, he announced he had something to share, a minor breakthrough with Eve that had come with a somewhat disturbing revelation.