My Private Detective

That wasn’t surprising. They’d lost Amy, and now their older daughter was wrongfully incarcerated for her murder.

“I think it would be better if no one came to visit me anymore. It can only drag everyone down further than they already are.”

None of the Ellises—neither Heidi nor her parents—had been subpoenaed to testify at Dana’s trial. In fact, Dana had asked that they not attend. It had made Heidi feel so helpless. She still felt that way, but anger had begun to replace her fears.

“You know me better than that, Dana. I refuse to just sit by. There has to be a way to reopen your case and get it heard again. Someone else killed your sister. Whoever committed the crime is running around free while you’re…”

Her voice trailed off because she was afraid she’d dissolve in tears in front of Dana. That wasn’t going to help her friend. Taking a deep breath to compose herself, she said, “I’m not sure how to go about it, but I’m going to find a way to get you out of here, no matter what I have to do!”

Dana’s sweet smile tore Heidi’s heart to shreds. “I love you for being so loyal. But there’s a time to quit, and this is it.”

“No! As soon as I leave here, I’m going to call your lawyer and ask him exactly what I have to do in order to get the court to take another look at your case.”

Her friend shook her head sadly. “He’s worked tirelessly on my behalf. If he says it’s all over, then it is.”

“He’s only one person, Dana. No one’s infallible. I’m thinking of hiring someone else and starting from scratch. Dad’s attorney knows a trial lawyer in Los Angeles who has the same kind of reputation as Mr. Cobb. If your attorney can’t help, then I’m phoning this other attorney as soon as I get home this evening.”

Dana frowned. “Don’t you dare use your money to try to help me. You’d be throwing it away. I couldn’t bear that.”

“My mom and dad love you, too, Dana. They told me they want to contribute because they believe in your innocence. They’ve known you all your life!”

Dana’s lovely face crumpled, and she broke down sobbing.

“I’m going to get you out of here. As long as you’re behind these bars, I’ll never be happy again.”

“Don’t say that. You’ve got your own life to live.”

“What life would that be? We’re like sisters! When you bleed, so do I. You’d stand by me no matter what, so let’s not resume that discussion. When you go to sleep tonight, be assured that I’ve already made phone calls to get the process started.”

“You mustn’t ruin your life for me!” Dana cried, burying her face in her hands.

“That’s my decision. In fact, the sooner I leave here, the sooner you’ll be freed from this place. So I’ll say goodbye for now. The next time you see me, I’ll be bringing good news. Hold on, Dana. Just hold on.”

She replaced the receiver and stood up. Dana followed suit. They pressed their hands together against the glass. Her friend’s ravaged face was the last thing Heidi saw before she turned sharply away and left the building; the last thing she heard was the horrifying sound of doors locking behind her.

To some degree, Dana had always suffered from claustrophobia. Heidi could just imagine how much worse that condition had become since she’d been here. The prison doctor refused to give her medication for it. That was another injustice that needed to be corrected.

As soon as Heidi got into her car, she pulled out her cell phone and called her parents. Fortunately they were home. She asked them to call the Turners and find out Mr. Cobb’s home phone number, then call her back.

Halfway to San Diego, she heard from her father, who gave her the number. She phoned immediately, and it didn’t surprise her to get the attorney’s voice mail. On a late Sunday afternoon he could be anywhere.

“Mr. Cobb? This is Heidi Ellis, Dana’s friend. I’ve just been to the prison to visit her. She needs medication for her claustrophobia. Surely something can be done to help her with that. But more importantly, we’ve got to get her out.” Her voice trembled as she spoke.

“Dana doesn’t belong in there. She’s not going to last very long. I’d like to reopen the case. If you’d get back to me at home and tell me what has to be done to make that happen, I’d be very grateful.

“I’m going to be frank. If you feel you can’t do any more for her, please let me know so my family and I can retain another attorney.

“Please call me as soon as you can. I don’t care how late it is. Thank you very much.”

Heidi gave him the number at her apartment and ended the call.

It felt good to have done that much, but when she hadn’t heard from Mr. Cobb by the time she’d returned to San Diego, she was frantic.

Unable to concentrate, she drove to her parents’ home in Mission Bay. Decisions needed to be made as soon as possible. Every minute that passed drained more of the life out of her friend.

IT WAS TEN AFTER NINE Thursday night as Gideon Poletti approached the nursing station. “Can you tell me which room you’ve put Daniel Mcfarlane? He asked to see me.”

The registered nurse on the oncology wing at St. Anne’s looked up from a chart. “He’s in west-160. Please keep your visit short. He has surgery in the morning.”

“That’s what I heard.”

While he’d been following up a lead in a missing person case, Gideon had received a phone call from Ellen Mcfarlane. Her husband, Gideon’s former boss, was in the hospital with prostate cancer.

Last year everyone in local law enforcement had gone through a hard time accepting the retirement of the brilliant, shrewd head of the San Diego Homicide division. The city had lost a great warrior.

Though another qualified detective with years of service in every department had been installed to head the division, it would be impossible to fill the older man’s shoes.

Gideon had always been good friends with Daniel, both on and off the job. But the older man had made himself scarce since his retirement, and Gideon hadn’t seen him in several months.

Following the arrows to the west wing, he found the room in question. Ellen was at her husband’s bedside. For a man about to undergo surgery, Daniel appeared as vibrant as ever. Unlike a lot of men in their late sixties, he still had most of his dark hair, which was finely streaked with silver.

“Gideon!” He sat up in the bed. “I’m glad you could make it.”

“I came as soon as I could.”

He hugged Ellen, who excused herself so the two men could talk. Then Gideon shook Daniel’s hand before pulling up a chair next to the bed.

“I’m sorry to hear about your illness.”

“So am I.” The older man chuckled. “But the doc assures me the surgery’s routine and I’ll be my old self in no time. I’ve decided to believe him.”

“I believe it, too, Daniel. Now, what can I do for you?”

A sheepish expression crossed the older man’s face, something Gideon had never seen before. He had a premonition that his friend was about to ask him an unusual favor.

“If you can’t or don’t want to help me out, all you have to do is say so. It would mean some sacrifice on your par—”

“Daniel,” Gideon interrupted him. His curiosity had reached its peak. “What is it?”

“All right. As soon as I retired, I was besieged with requests for speaking engagements, teaching seminars, interviews, you name it. I was even offered a university position.”

Gideon nodded. “I can imagine.”

“I turned everything down because of a promise I made to my wife. We’ve spent most of this year traveling or vacationing at our cabin in Oregon.

“Then a few weeks ago I got a call from the local school district asking me to teach an adult community education class on criminology. My daughter, Kathie, is a teacher serving on that board, and she put them up to it. I think she’s worried that her old man’s missing the department.”

“I think she’s probably right.”