Chapter 28
"Who comes up from the clinic," Samuel asked "and picks up the hospital's daily supplies?"
"The head nurse," the clerk answered. "She often goes through the storage room herself getting what she needs then just gives us a sheet telling us what she's taken."
Samuel took out his notebook. "Can you tell me who these others have been issued to?" he asked.
The clerk took the list and scanned through it. "No one," he answered. "Those items are still in supply. Each time sleeping bags are used and mattresses they're cleaned and put on the bottom of the stack, rotated up. Those were used just a short while ago. They'd be at the bottom of the stack. The same for the other equipment you've got listed here."
"I think you'll find it's missing," Samuel interrupted. "Kindly go and check. Return my notebook when you're done."
"Take it now," the clerk insisted, holding it out. I've memorized the numbers already!"
He hurried off. As he did so, Detective Fields came up and joined them. "Had a look at the attack scene," he remarked. "It's a Redman all right! I know him. Had him on an assault charge three months ago. The complaintant decided to drop the charges. It looks like this one didn't. What's going on here?"
"We're after the inside contact," Holmes explained. "This young man's pretty sharp. We're closing in fast!"
Samuel headed in to the supply office. "Officer White," he began, "I'm sorry but I must ask you some questions. Would there be any reason the local priest might have some power over your wife, some way he might have of controlling her, getting her to do his bidding?"
The officer looked disturbed but answered "There might be. We've been forced to have two abortions because the children haven't been viable. My wife has been deeply upset about it. I know the priest has been at her because of it. I've tried to get her to stop associating with them, but she won't give up her charitable work."
Samuel nodded. "Does your wife," he continued, "know the access codes to your computer? Could she manipulate the daily order sheets and, the names on the rosters?"
The officer grimaced. "I'm not sure," he answered, "but there's a good possibility of it."
Samuel nodded. The clerk came up. "Excuse me sir," he put in. I must inform the cadet officer those items he sent me to look for, they HAVE been removed from supply!"
"Thank you!" Samuel snapped. "Officer White, I must ask you for the keys to your residence. I'm afraid it will have to be searched."
The officer took a deep breath. "May I accompany you?" he asked.
Samuel looked to Holmes who answered his unspoken question. "He has a right to witness any search," Holmes answered.
"Yes sir," Samuel answered. "Let us go and pick up your wife."
When they reached the hospital there seemed to be a great deal of activity. Samuel motioned a nurse over.
"Where is the head nurse?" he asked.
"She said she wasn't feeling good," the nurse answered, "and went home. Cadet Star, there's something I have to tell you."
"Later!" Samuel snapped, as he and the others hurried off.
They grabbed a vehicle and headed to officer's housing. Officer White rushed ahead of them, got out his keys, and tried to open the door. It wouldn't budge.
"She's got the security bar in!" he cursed.
Samuel rushed to a public phone and called the fire department. "Emergency!" he announced. "We have a possible suicide at officer's quarters. We need emergency access through the window security bars IMMEDIATELY!"
"On our way!" a voice snapped.
Minutes later a fire truck rolled into the yard and two men rushed out. They came up to the apartment, sat a box on the floor, one man pulled six prepared charges from it, rushed to the window, and put them on the inside of the window bars. He then produced caps from the box, inserted them, rolled the wires back to the box, and plugged them in. The second man removed a detonator, played out the wires and ordered the others back.
"Clear!" someone called. The fireman twisted the key on the detonator. There was a loud POP. It didn't seem powerful enough to do the job, but the window bars sailed away to land on the floor with a BANG!
A third fireman rushed forward with an axe, broke out a window pane, unlocked the window, and forced it open.
"Clear!" he cried. Samuel was the first one through. The fireman came through next followed by the detectives. They found Mrs. White in the bedroom, still conscious but obviously in distress.
"Please, let me go to her!" Officer White cried, as the firemen held him back.
"Let him through!" Samuel ordered.
The man knelt beside the bed and took his wife's hand. "Joy!" he moaned, "My precious Joy! Why?"
His wife looked at him with profound sadness. "I wanted my babies," she answered, "I wanted to try. I know, I know! They would have only lived a little while. But I wanted to try. They could have been wrong. God could've given us a miracle. We shouldn't have murdered them. They shouldn't have murdered those poor children, those
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