The Wolf Code

“I can’t do that,” Robin said.  “I can’t tell you anything that Addie told me.  I’m sure you know that.”

“Murder negates patient-doctor privilege; you know that.”

Robin shook her head. 

“I don’t care.  I’m not going to do that to Addie.  There are things she told me that I promised would never leave this room.”

“But things have changed,” Senora said.  “Addie is gone, and you’re no longer bound by ethics.  In fact, you have a duty to tell me anything you know that might lead me to her killer.  If you refuse and I find out later that you had valuable information, you could be charged with obstruction of justice.”

“That’s fine,” Robin said tersely.

“I’m a federal agent.  This wouldn’t be a slap on the wrist,” Senora lied, knowing full well that the local courts would probably let the obstruction slide since she wasn’t invited to run her own murder investigation. 

Robin didn’t have to know that.

“I’d rather go to jail.”

“You’d rather go to jail than help us find Addie’s killer?” Senora asked, incredulous.

“What if I’m more afraid of being next if I reveal what I know?  Jail isn’t so bad if that means that I’m alive.  I don’t want to die.”

Senora was startled. 

“What?”

“If I tell you what she told me, I could be the next victim.  I’m not sure I’m willing to take that chance.  She revealed everything she knew to me.  In the beginning, it wasn’t much, but just recently, there was a lot coming out in our sessions.”

“We can protect you.”

“Like you protected Addie?”

“Addie was already gone when we were called.”

“And what about when she was picked up after her abduction?  Her real abduction.  What about then?  If that case would have been investigated thoroughly, perhaps we would have the person who held her captive all those years.”

“I wasn’t around to investigate that case, but I can assure you that I’ll be looking into that as well.  But I have almost nothing to go off of, and it seems as if you’re the only one who  might know what happened to Addie.”

“I know enough to know that I don’t want to know more.”

“And you might have the key piece of information that helps me find her first abductor, and maybe even her killer.  Don’t you want to do that?  For Addie?”

Robin was silent, but Senora could tell that the guilt was eating away at her.  She could see already that the woman was leaning toward doing the right thing.  She just needed a little push.

“Do you think that Addie’s death is related to her first abduction?” Senora asked.

“Of course, I do.  It’s part of the reason that Addie kept disappearing.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Addie wanted to set things right.  In her fragile mind, she thought each time she disappeared would be another chance for the authorities to get things right and actually figure out what had happened to her.  Yet every time she was found, they wrote her off as unbalanced.  Even when she brought them more evidence, they scoffed at her and shooed her away.”

“More evidence?”

“When Addie disappeared, she would hide herself away and go into these deep, dark places trapped inside her mind.  When she came out, she would remember a tidbit from her real abduction, and things would fall into place a little at a time.  But the Sheriff ignored her, claiming that she was making things up in an effort to get attention.”

“And you think the fact that she was starting to remember was what got her killed?”

“Of course.  The more she remembered, the more insistent she became that the Sheriff needed to investigate.  The Sheriff had already written her off as a flake, and he wouldn’t listen to her.  But everyone in town knew that she was trying to get the cold case reopened, so it’s not like her killer wasn’t aware that she was getting closer and closer to the truth.  He probably did it to shut her up before she said too much and got him arrested.”

“This is why we need you to tell us everything you know,” Senora said, her tone almost pleading.  “You know things that no one else could possibly know.  If we solve this case, you won’t have to worry about being the next victim.  And you won’t have to worry about someone else’s child being victimized.  You can end this and save the town from a monster.”

Senora let the words hang in the air.  She knew the instant when Robin finally gave in.

“I have to cancel my appointments for today and close up,” she said, her voice distant as she looked out the window toward the pond in the park behind the building she shared with so many other businesses.  “There’s a lot to cover, and I don’t want anyone to know that we spoke.”

“I understand,” Senora said.

“I need a moment to gather the files.  I’ll meet you down the hall in the large conference room around the corner.”

Senora nodded.

“Take all the time you need.  Is there a bathroom?”

“Right across from the conference room, and there’s a small kitchen in the corner of the conference room if you want some coffee.  This may take me a few minutes.”

Senora nodded again, and she and Ty left the room, heading down the hall. 

“Coffee?” Ty asked.

“Black with just a touch of cream,” Senora said, then stepped into the bathroom.

She caught sight of herself in the mirror and shook her head.  Her hair was a mass of unruly curls that had made their way out of the braid.  She ran her hands under the water, trying to smooth the errant strands down but failing.  Giving up, she hurried to finish her business, washing her hands again without giving her hair a second thought.

Ty was in the conference room, a steaming cup of coffee in front of him, and one beside it, a look of concern on his face.

“What?” Senora asked.

“Something isn’t right,” he said.  He set the cup down and started walking to the door.  “I’m going to check on her.”

His urgency got to her, and she felt that familiar rush of adrenaline.

“I’ll go with you.”

He nodded, leading the way.  Senora’s hand slid to her service revolver in the holster on her hip, just in case.

Ty knocked on the office door, then turned the handle.

“It’s locked,” he said. 

“Robin!” Senora said through the door, knocking loudly and turning the handle, though she knew it was locked.  “Robin, are you alright?”

“Something is wrong,” Ty said.  “I can feel it.  Step back.”

“Are you going to kick the door down?”

“Do you have a better idea?”

She didn’t.

“No,” she admitted.  “But you can’t just kick the door in because she locked you out.  We don’t have a warrant.”

“We’re not going to need one.”

“I hope you’re right,” Senora said as she stepped back.

“I don’t,” he said, his voice glum.

She felt the same thing he did, but she didn’t want to believe it.  It didn’t make sense.  They were only after information on Addie and nothing more.  They hadn’t told Robin she was in trouble, but the woman had to believe that.  Which meant that she knew something.