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37.93% Igor Yevtishenkov / Chapter 11: Chapter 11. Justice Hurts by Igor Yevtishenkov

章 11: Chapter 11. Justice Hurts by Igor Yevtishenkov

CHAPTER 11

The phone rang unexpectedly. It was the lawyer Simon had mentioned - the one that helped out last time. Previously, the amount that he called would cause Fred to choke on his Coke, but he'd gotten used to it and didn't flinch at the ringing. Much like Danny, Fred had learnt to be a problem solver and he felt like he was succeeding. However, during their discussion, it turned out that Sofia was once again the problem. Fred could move to another state with Lisa, get a new job and tender his resignation from the hospital, but Sofia's documents would prove a mighty stumbling block. Last year, verification of all IDs with the new chipset had begun. However, as two-thirds of documents didn't meet the requirements, its introduction had been postponed. Nevertheless, all the documents would become part of one database and it proved impossible to add new ones. The last thing left for Fred to do was buying the rights of a dead body from Mexico, so that Sofia could then legally get married and apply for citizenship. The problem was that all migrants had to pass a test on arrival and then it would be decided if they could get a visa. Therefore, the original test results had to be replaced in the database, which had proved impossible so far.

The conversation with the lawyer took almost an hour, and during this time Fred missed two calls. The lawyer's figure disappeared in a taxi, taking with him a thousand bucks and leaving behind complete disappointment. It was time to go home, but the phone rang again and Fred immediately sank back onto the bench, feeling glad that this conversation would be outside.

Danny's familiar voice said 'Hi! Are you too busy to talk? Are you okay?'

'Yes. I was copying some documents,' he finally said in a hoarse voice.

'Great, well done! Are you okay? You sound sick and they say the new virus is transmitted via contact,' Danny spoke calmly, showing concern for Fred.

'No, no, that's all right. Don't worry. Thanks! I'm... we're... well, in short, I want to try living with Sofia in a different place.

'No, I'm fine thanks, don't worry. I'm…we're…well, in-short, Sofia and I want to move.'

'Yes, I know. You told me before.'

'I discussed how to do this with Simon and his lawyer. Hope you don't mind. Sofia's changed so much and not just because of your medication. The pills are strong, but it's obviously not them,' Fred was very worried and constantly shifted the phone from hand-to-hand and sniffed, not knowing how to wipe his nose. The spring air was cold, but he decided to stay on the bench.

'You helped too', said an encouraging voice through the receiver. 'There's no doubt that your kindness cured her. Is this a surprise to you?'

'Do you really think so?', Fred smiled for the first time and his face lit up with joy. A couple walking by smiled at him and he waved back. 'I've already found another place since my skills are vital, especially given the current virus situation. Although, I think it's exaggerated in my opinion. I'm a bit worried, but just want to take Sofia and Lisa out of here where it'll be calmer.

'Don't worry about it. I'm not against it.'

'Come with us?' it was hard for Fred to hide the hope in his voice, but cursed himself for it. The soothing tones of Danny put him completely at ease.

'No, I can't, how could I? Everything's okay at the clinic, I'm completing courses and I hope I'll get a raise soon. We'll be under quarantine soon and we'll be involved.'

'Yes, yes, I know,' said Fred, wiping sweat from his forehead.

'Have you spoken to Sofia about her parents?'

'Yes, I said we'd postpone for now and after we move, we'll have time to come back to that then. I want to make an ID for her, a real one.'

'Fred, are you serious? Have you spoken to Simon?'

'Yes. He says it won't work out. So for now, we just leave it.'

'She'll never calm down. How are you going to explain the problem with her parents to her? After all, at some point she'll raise the question,' when Fred heard the words, he bit his lip. 'Also, remember she believes Lisa is her daughter and doesn't know about the adoption. Did you forget that bit? What are you going to do about that?'

'No idea,' said Fred in despair. He didn't want to think about that now. For the first time in his life, he felt lucky and didn't want to jinx it.'

'Seems you were so carried away by moving and your future plans that you didn't think about these small details. Are you going to hide her entire life away? If it ever emerges that you were complicit in the forgery, you'll get…I don't even know how long…but you won't see here again. Without you, she'll die as it was you who taught her how to look after herself.' Fred nodded in agreement. 'Your idea to introduce her to Father Roger and the good work she's done helping others, is all down to you.'

'Yes,' he breathed, thanking Danny for such kind words.

'Then you must understand that you are not allowed to tell her that - how she got to the clinic, who her parents are and what we have to do with Lisa. Never. Do you understand?'

'Yes, I do.'

'How will you leave the hospital when there'll be an emergency there soon?'

'My lawyer advised me that it's even easier than before to quit without going to work,' Fred told Danny what he had to do. His friend whistled when he heard about the thousand dollar fee for the consultation, but this gave Fred confidence. In his life, there'd always been small hitches, but he found them easier to solve now he had money.

'Well done! By the way, are you watering my flowers?' Danny asked.

'Uh... yes, of course!' said Fred, although he had not done it for more than a week.

However, when Fred entered his apartment, all his dreams were left at the door. The kitchen was a complete mess and Sofia's bare feet stuck out from under the table. She sat underneath it, her back pressed into a corner, with her head laying on her chest and not breathing. Beside her lay a syringe and a towel that she had injected her hand with.

'Oh no!', Fred gasped. Danny's words whirled in his head 'There's no such thing as a former drug addict.'

Lisa sat unaware watching cartoons on the TV. Fred slumped in a chair, staring at the table covered in plastic bags and boxes. The decision had been made. He must quit his job, stay at home with Sofia for a week, find out the cause of her breakdown and then leave once and for all.


章 12: Chapter 12. Justice Hurts by Igor Yevtishenkov

CHAPTER 12

A few days passed painfully for William, where he tried to bury himself in his work to take his mind off everything. The investigation had stopped until the results of the autopsy were in, but other external factors had impeded its progress. The number of city patrols had increased, but the number of policemen hadn't. Money from the city's budget, combined with other funds, didn't solve the problem, and policemen couldn't stand on street corners without a break. This had a knock-on effect. One patrol checked two hospital perimeters more carefully, this time on-foot. They noticed a car in the parking lot that hadn't been moved for several days. A check of the license plate showed the Ford was registered to Michael Woodruff.

Tom didn't argue with him, because there was only one officer available and no-one else to attend the call. On route, they called the coroner from the funeral home and Sam from forensics. The old man asked questions, but when Tom said 'Okay' and hung up, the forensic expert had obviously left his office.

When the short, tired looking coroner opened the door of the dusty Ford, he immediately recoiled from the stench, despite wearing a mask. William realised there was a corpse inside and chewed his gum nervously, envious of Tom's composure. Tom stood drinking his coffee, talking to the press and one short female reporter was being particularly difficult. She was attractive, with straight black hair, a thin narrow nose, and regular features, obviously an Asian type, but, according to Tom's face, she was a pain in the ass.

'Lieutenant Lindstone is here!', the reporter exclaimed and, in a flash, she thrusted a microphone in William's face. 'Would you mind if I ask you a few questions?', without waiting for an answer, her interrogation began. 'Is it true that Dr Woodruff was the psychiatrist for both you and your wife? She was found dead in his house, wasn't she?'

'No comment' he said, and turned away.

'Despite Lieutenant Lindstone's reluctance to talk, which is understandable, the truth will soon emerge on the death of his wife in their psychiatrist's house, as detectives will no doubt find supporting evidence. Oh, sorry viewers, the body of what we can only assume is psychiatrist Michael Woodruff is being removed from the car and we can't show that on-screen.'

Moving away from the reporter, William began to look closely at the car doors. Sam Bryson and the forensics team were already there, beginning to look for evidence to take fingerprints from. Suddenly, Sam stopped and picked something up from a mat under the back seat. The medical examiner turned to Tom and showed him a small handkerchief with some kind of color pattern. At the same time, William heard a seething female voice:

'Get a close up! That'll look awesome!'

He soon realised that the reporter was asking for the cameraman to get shots of the evidence.

Sam Bryson placed the handkerchief in an evidence bag and handed it to his assistant to document. Work continued well into the evening and everyone was tired. Tom bought William and Sam coffee, then Sgt Huston arrived. After talking to Tom, William and Sam were called over.

'The hair's DNA is identical and they double checked. The hair we gathered from Woodruff's house had been left more recently,' he said, and sipped his coffee.

'So, it is Sofia's hair?' asked William.

'We need to check, hence we must exhume the body immediately, as next week may be too late', the sergeant confirmed.

'What do you mean 'late'?' William did not understand.

'There is information that governor Newsome declares a state of emergency and sends troops. We'll have to patrol streets instead of continuing with the investigation. So, we can get stuck,' Tom answered sharply for him and took another sip.

'How can it be this serious?' William asked, already knowing the answer. 'We need to go back to the clinic and ask some more questions.'

'The data hasn't been compiled since the last visit to the clinic, so let's wait for the exhumation. Jimmy, can you make sure everything's done quickly?' Tom asked the sergeant. Jimmy nodded and headed for the staff near the grave, being followed by the medical examiner. Tom turned to William, 'We've got a well-equipped office, haven't we?'

'What are you talking about?' William asked.

'There's a shower, you can shave, change your clothes and work nights. Let's get to it, we need to look at the evidence and they can finish up here without us. Hey, Sam, I owe you one!', he shouted to the forensic expert. Sam raised his thumb over his head without turning round.


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