Chapter 61

I stood in the ladies’ room of St. Mary’s Hospital and splashed water on my face. I stared at my reflection in the mirror, surprised at how rough I looked. Rutting around and belly crawling in the woods had left its mark on my skin and on my torn guard uniform.

I’d take only a few minutes to check on J.T. and Julie, peek in on Maria and Cam, then I’d head back to the downtown location, clean up a bit, and see what Spelling needed me to do next.

The woman at the reception counter tapped a few keys on her computer and told me J.T. and Julie were on the third floor. I thanked her and rode the elevator up while getting my fair share of stares from visitors and staff alike.

At the nurses’ station, I inquired about all of my injured colleagues and Julie and whether I was able to check on them. Libby Jacobsen wore a name tag showing she was the charge nurse. If anyone, she could tell me the most. I directed my questions at her.

“Agent Harper and Agent Jenkins are still in X-ray. Agent Jenkins probably has a few cracked ribs from that hard impact, and we’re hoping Agent Harper’s jaw is only dislocated. With some manipulation, we may get it back in its proper place. Having a broken jaw is quite an inconvenience. Of course, we’re waiting on X-ray confirmation of that.”

I nodded with relief. “And his ribs?”

“Same situation as with Agent Jenkins. The X-rays will tell us more. Give me one second, please. She rounded the counter and, with a few taps on the computer keyboard, looked up and smiled. “Julie Harper is resting comfortably in her room. Would you like to see her?”

“I sure would.”

“Okay, right this way.”

Libby led me down two hallways to room 317. She knocked then pushed the door open and peeked around the curtain. “Julie, you have a visitor. Agent Monroe is here to see you.”

I heard Julie cough and clear her throat. “Sure, she can come in.”

Libby gave me the go-ahead and walked out. She closed the door behind her. I stepped around the curtain and saw Julie’s haggard looking face. My heart instantly broke for her. I was sure the ordeal she had been through would scar her for years.

“Julie?”

“Jade, please come and sit by me.”

I didn’t know Julie well, barely at all, now that I thought about it. We had met just once at our Christmas party. J.T. had spilled his cocktail all over his dress shirt, and Julie was kind enough to bring him a clean shirt from home. She stayed for an hour at most, had a glass of wine with us, and left. Because her brother was an FBI agent, Julie had endured the wrath of those evil people who wanted to punish J.T. and take down an armored truck. She ended up tangled in the mess of revenge that we still didn’t know that much about.

Julie tapped the bed and pointed at the chair on her left. “Sit here. I’d like you close to me.”

I took a seat and let out a deep sigh.

She chuckled at my appearance. “It kind of sucks to live far from your job. There’s no time to clean up, right?”

I had already forgotten how badly I looked. I felt my face flush, but I smiled, anyway. “Yeah, sorry, I didn’t have time to dress up. In all honesty, I was worried about both of you.” I squeezed her hand when she seemed to have gone back to that dark place for a moment. “Julie, I’m not here to ask you questions today. You need time to calm down and regroup. I only came to see if you were all right.”

“I am physically, save a few cuts and bruises. How’s J.T.?”

“I haven’t seen him yet. The nurse said he was down in X-ray, and they’re hopeful that nothing is broken.”

Julie looked away. The blinds were open, and her focus went toward the window. “It looks like a nice day after all. There’s no time to appreciate the sun when you’re held prisoner. Jade—”

I knew where her question was going. “The Pirelli brothers are already in custody. They’ll never hurt anyone again.”

“What about Carden Vetcher? Did you get him?”

“Carden Vetcher? That’s his name?”

“Yes. I heard the brothers call his name many times. J.T. did too, but we never saw the man’s face. He was either in the shadows or had a hat and dark glasses on. Today it was the mask.”

“It’s urgent that I update Agent Spelling.” I pushed back the chair and stood. “I’m sorry I have to leave so abruptly, but we didn’t have his full name before, only a hint that the last name Vetcher was somehow involved.”

She looked worried. “So, you haven’t captured him?”

“No, not yet, but ask me again tomorrow.” I drew the curtain by the door and left the room.

At the nurses’ station, I spoke to Libby again. “Are Agents Harper and Jenkins still in X-ray?”

“Sorry, but yes.” She gave me a gentle smile. “You need to go home and take a hot bath, Agent Monroe.” She looked me up and down. “A clean set of clothes will make you feel better too.”

“Thanks, I will. How about Agent Delgado?”

“I’m afraid she’s in the surgical suite getting stitched up.”

“Okay, I’ll check on all of them tomorrow. Please tell Agent Harper I was here.”

“Will do.”

I hit the button for the down elevator and left the hospital. In the car, I called Spelling as I drove. “Boss, Julie told me the mystery man’s full name. It’s Carden Vetcher.”

“So Vetcher did come into play. Sam Dunlap and C.V. Loomis were related after all, and now the C.V. makes sense. It stands for Carden Vetcher. Good work, agent. I’ll get somebody in Tech on that name right away. Oh, and the APB came back on Janet’s car.”

I was surprised to hear that they found the car so quickly. “Go ahead and tell me. It was abandoned, right?”

“Of course it was. I imagine there were far too many law enforcement agencies looking for it. It was left along the street off Hampton in a less than desirable neighborhood. He must have had somebody pick him up.”

“Sure, that makes sense. At least with his name, we can pull up his last known address and check out his associates.”

“Okay, I’ll get that started. Go home, Jade, and get some rest. I’ve already called in the second shift weekend agents. I’ve sent everyone else home too.”

“Are you sure, sir?”

“Absolutely. All of you deserve it.”