Sam was reviewing the mountain of reports and documents associated with the case when she received a call from Scotty’s school.
“Mrs. Cappuano, we wanted to let you know we’re sending Scotty home with his detail because he has a fever.”
“Thank you for the call.”
“We hope he feels better soon.”
“Me, too.”
Sam slapped the phone closed and made an executive decision. She went to see Captain Malone.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“My kids are sick. I was going to work the afternoon, but now Scotty is on his way home, too. I’ve got some stuff I can do from there, but just telling you where I’ll be.”
“Thanks. I just got a call from Faith that a hearing has been scheduled to discuss recent developments in the Eric Davies case.”
“That’s good, I guess.”
“I’m meeting with the chief and McBride to come up with a plan to circumvent the media shitstorm this will create.”
“Good idea. Let me know if I can help.”
“We might want you to make the statement if you’re willing to let us use you shamelessly. People are so interested in you, and the feeling is that it might go down easier coming from you—someone who’s had your own tangles with Stahl.”
“I’ll do whatever needs to be done to protect the chief and the department.”
“I had a feeling you might say that.”
“Keep me in the loop.”
“Will do. Hope the kids feel better.”
“Me, too, and I hope we don’t get it. Whatever it is seems hella contagious.”
“Yikes.”
“I’ll check in tomorrow and will text my squad.”
“See you then.”
On the way home with Vernon and Jimmy, Sam sent a text to her squad, updating them on her sick kids and asking them to call with any updates they might have.
As she waited for Scotty’s detail to arrive at the White House, she took a call from Freddie.
“Hey,” she said. “How’s it going?”
“We’ve just come from seeing Cauley in Greenbelt.” Freddie told her about what the man had said about Blanchet being found with the gun.
“How did he know that?”
“He said he heard it from his wife, who heard it from one of the others attached to the lawsuit. We believed him when he said he never could’ve harmed innocent kids, but that statement about the gun is sticking with us. We’re taking a more in-depth look at him. I’ve got Charles on the financials and social media.”
“What about a warrant for his phone?” Sam asked.
“I’m not sure we’ve got enough for that yet.”
“You won’t need much more. He had motive due to what happened to the wife and the social media post that broadcast his anger to the world.”
“Should we go back and bring him in?”
“That’s your call. You were in the room with him. You have to trust your gut.”
“My gut—and Gonzo’s—is saying no.”
“Then go with it until you know more. But I agree with taking a deeper look at him.”
“We had another thought that there might be more patients out there who aren’t attached to the lawsuit but who had similar experiences with Blanchet.”
“Good point.”
“We’re on the way to his office now to interview the staff, and we’re asking Public Affairs to put out a request for info from patients.”
“You’re doing all the right things.”
“I’m glad you think so.”
“I do for sure,” Sam said. “Did you hear there’s a hearing scheduled for the Davies case?”
“I hadn’t gotten that word, but I’m glad to hear it.”
“Me, too, even if I’m worried about the fallout.”
“What would your dad say?” Freddie asked.
“That you do the right thing, no matter the fallout.”
“Exactly.”
“Thanks for that reminder. I have to run. Scotty’s detail is pulling up. Keep me posted.”
“I’ll text you later.”
Sam closed the phone and stepped outside with Skippy to welcome their boy home. She took one look at his pale, pinched face and could tell he was seriously under the weather.
“Hope you feel better, Scotty,” his lead agent, Debra, said.
“Thanks.”
“Thank you, Debra,” Sam said.
“No problem.”
Sam took his insanely heavy backpack from him and put her arm around his shoulders. “Not feeling so hot, huh?”
“I’m feeling crazy hot.”
“Just like the Littles.”
“What’re you doing here?”
“My kids are sick, so I came home.”
“I’m glad you’re here.”
Sam squeezed his shoulder. “Me, too.” There was nowhere else she’d rather be.
The Georgetown offices of Drs. Blanchet, McInerny and Harvey occupied the entire second floor of a building on M Street, above a row of exclusive boutiques.
“I wonder if anyone will be there with one doctor dead and the other two out of the office,” Freddie said.
“Someone still needs to deal with the patients.”
“I guess.”
When he discovered the door to the office locked, Freddie knocked.
A few minutes later, a woman with gray hair and wearing a headset opened the door. “Help you?”
They showed their badges.
“I’ll have to get back to you,” she said to the person on the phone as she removed the headset. “Come in. The phones are ringing off the hook with patients wanting to reschedule. Needless to say, having all three doctors out was unexpected. This whole thing was unexpected.” She brushed at tears as she said that. “I watched the Blanchet kids grow up. It’s unimaginable that they’re gone. Even days later, I’m in complete denial that this could’ve happened.”
She led them into a conference room and turned on the lights. “I’d offer you something to drink, but all I have is water.”
“We’re fine,” Freddie said. “I’m Detective Cruz. This is Sergeant Gonzales.”
“You work with the first lady.”
“We do. What’s your name?”
“Oh, sorry. I’m Nancy Lee, the office manager.”
“How long have you worked with Dr. Blanchet?”
“More than fifteen years. Since he opened his first office.”
“How would you describe your relationship with him?”
“He and Lili were family to me. I’ve never married, and my extended family lives in Pittsburgh, so I spent a lot of holidays with them as well as kids’ birthdays, school events, gymnastics meets. They treated me like a beloved aunt, and I adored them all.” She took a tissue from a box on the conference room table and wiped her eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m still in shock.”
“We’re sorry for your losses,” Freddie said.
“Thank you.”
“What can you tell us about Dr. Blanchet’s relationships with his patients?”
“They loved him. Well, most of them did.”
“You’re aware of the lawsuit?”
“Yes,” she said through gritted teeth as her eyes flashed with indignation. “I’ll never believe he did what they say he did. In all the years I knew him, I never saw him be inappropriate with anyone, let alone a patient. He was a consummate gentleman and professional. He helped so many couples achieve their goal of parenthood. I could give you hundreds of names of patients who’d sing his praises. We’ve been overrun with calls from former patients, bereft over this senseless crime.” She put her hand on her heart. “As a woman, I know I’m supposed to believe the women making these charges, and I fully support their right to speak their truth. But I knew him. I knew his heart. And I just can’t believe he did what they say he did.”
“When four women have the same exact story,” Freddie said gently, “we believe them.”
“That’s the thing that’s always bothered me about it, though,” Nancy said. “They have the same exact story. It’s always felt manufactured to me. And I want to add… I volunteer at a rape crisis center. I’m an advocate for believing and supporting victims of sexual violence. But this…” She shook her head. “I’ll never believe it.”
“What would be their motive in banding together to make up such a thing?” Gonzo asked.
“I’ve thought long and hard about that, as I know Marcel did, too. The only thing we could think of was if they didn’t get the child they hoped to have when they came to him, they wanted financial restitution.”
“I assume they sign paperwork as patients absolving the doctors and practice of any liability if they should fail to conceive and carry a child to term,” Gonzo said.
“Absolutely. We have ironclad forms to that effect. We aren’t miracle workers. There’s always a chance of failure. But that kind of failure… It does something to people. We’ve seen it many times over the years.”
“How so?” Freddie asked.
“The disappointment is crushing,” she said. “Dr. Blanchet, in particular, was known for being able to get results in even the most difficult situations. When the treatments failed, as they did for all four of the women attached to the lawsuit, the patients experience more than just failed fertility treatments. It’s like the end of their dream to carry their own child. Some of them become bitter. We’ve seen that happen a few times. They want someone to blame, and their doctor is a handy target. It’s a rare reaction, but it does happen.”
While Freddie heard what she was saying, everything in him rejected the notion that failed fertility treatments would lead women to accuse Dr. Blanchet of the things they’d said he’d done to them. “I’m sorry,” he said. “All due respect for the losses of people you cared about, but I can’t, for the life of me, imagine anyone making up a story like those in the lawsuit because a doctor failed to do something that they knew he couldn’t guarantee from the beginning.”
“I was about to say the same thing,” Gonzo said.
“There’s no way he ever would’ve done the things they said he did,” Nancy said more forcefully. “I knew him for fifteen years. Worked closely with him for all that time. Was close to his family. I never once saw or heard him do anything inappropriate with women. Based on my experience with the rape crisis center, I know how to identify a predator. He was not a predator.”
“Did other patients ever complain about him?” Freddie asked.
“Never.”
“So these were the only four patients who ever complained about him in all his years of practice?”
“The only ones I ever knew of. Did you ever meet Marcel Blanchet?” she asked in a testy tone.
“No,” Freddie said for both of them.
“I saw him just about every day for the last fifteen years. If that man was a predator, I know nothing about anything. Even your own SVU detective determined there was insufficient evidence to charge him.”
If anyone other than Ramsey had investigated, Freddie would’ve felt better about that outcome.
“We hear what you’re saying and appreciate your input,” Freddie said. “Can you think of anyone else who might’ve had a beef with Marcel or Liliana that could’ve led to the murders of their entire family?”
“I’ve done nothing but think about that since the second I heard the dreadful news.” She reached for another tissue. “I can’t think of anyone who would’ve been capable of harming those sweet kids.”
He gave her his card with the usual instructions.
When they were outside, Freddie said, “I have no idea what to think about any of this.”
“Right there with you. There’s no way four women would make up a story like that and go public with it if it didn’t actually happen.”
“I mean, it is possible they made it up, but what I can’t see no matter where I look is why they would’ve done it. After what just happened to us, Elin barely wanted to talk to me about it. Sam was the same after she suffered fertility setbacks. I can’t see them deciding to take out their disappointment on the doctor by accusing him of such an egregious thing.”
“They never would have unless it happened,” Gonzo said. “I get that Nancy Lee was a devoted friend and employee of Blanchet’s, but she’s not objective in this matter. Like his mother, of course she’s going to defend him, especially now that he’s dead. They want to protect his legacy.”
“I hate this case,” Freddie said.
“I do, too. More than I hate most of them. Most of all, I hate that whatever happened, four innocent kids were killed.”
“Yeah, me, too. Where do we go from here?”
“Let’s go back to the house and regroup. We’ve still got the Cortez angle to further explore, so don’t lose hope yet.”
“I’m trying not to, but this is going nowhere fast.”
“We’ll catch a break. Eventually.”
“Any time now.”
When Freddie and Gonzo got back to HQ, Gonzo went to check in with Green and O’Brien while Freddie closed the door to the conference room to call Sam.
“How’s it going?”
“I’m extremely frustrated.” He updated her on the conversation with Nancy Lee.
“I agree with you and Gonzo. There’s no way those women would’ve gone to the police with something like that unless it actually happened. Take a closer look at Ramsey’s report on his investigation. It might shed some light.”
“I will.”
“Keep pulling the threads and doing what we do. Something will pop.”
“It would be good if it could pop soon.”
“I have full faith in you and the rest of our team.”
“That helps. How are the kids?”
“They’re doing okay, and so far no fever for me or Nick, thankfully. I’m still working my way through Liliana’s emails, texts, social media posts, work stuff. I’ll let you know if anything stands out.”
“Thanks for the help.”
“I’ll see you in the morning.”
“See you then.”
Cameron and Matt returned to HQ with Pascal and Gia Cortez at six o’clock.
“What a charming pair,” Matt said after he’d deposited them in interview one with a Patrol officer keeping an eye on them.
“They fought us every step of the way,” Cam added. “Her mother said she was calling a lawyer to sue us for harassment. We told her to please go right ahead.”
“Thanks for taking one for the team, you guys,” Freddie said. “Did they ask for an attorney at any point?”
“Nope,” Cam said. “The only mention of lawyers was by her mother about suing us for harassment. And we advised them of their rights—twice.”
“Great job,” Freddie said. “We’ll take it from here. I’m just waiting for one of the Millers to come in before we proceed.”
“I’m here,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Hope Miller said.
“Great,” Freddie said. “Let me call Captain Malone, and then Gonzo and I can have another chat with them.”