Free Fall Read Free

Take care of Samuel?”
    â€œYes. Part-time. He needs help with his G-I tube. And seizures. I’m basically on call all night long. Sleep in the guest room closest to Samuel’s bedroom with a baby monitor. On weekends I clean the house and do the laundry. Stuff like that.”
    â€œYou still do weekdays at Mainland Medical?”
    Mainland Medical is the hospital on the far side of the causeway that operates our Regional Trauma Center. It’s where the Medevac helicopter took Katie Landry when a sniper who was gunning for me shot her instead. Christine was one of Katie’s emergency room nurses.
    â€œNo,” says Christine, kind of softly. “I left Mainland a while ago.”
    â€œReally? What happened?”
    â€œI’d rather not talk about it, Danny. Not right now. Okay?”
    â€œSure,” I say. “Stay here. I need to talk to Mrs. Oppenheimer.”
    â€œShe’ll lie, Danny.”
    I nod and grin. “Thanks for the tip.”
    Mrs. Shona Oppenheimer and Officer Santucci are waiting for me out on one of the decks hanging off the back of the house.
    â€œMrs. Oppenheimer?” I say. “What happened here tonight?”
    â€œI wanted to print out a new diet I’d found on line for my sister, but Christine was hogging the printer with paperwork related to her position with Dr. Rosen.”
    â€œDr. Rosen?”
    â€œArnold Rosen, DDS. The retired dentist who lives in that big house up in Cedar Knoll Heights. It’s still the nicest piece of shorefront property on the island. It sits atop a bit of a bluff above the dunes, so Sandy’s storm surge didn’t swamp it.”
    I nod. The folks in Cedar Knoll Heights were lucky.
    â€œDr. Rosen is ninety-four,” Mrs. Oppenheimer continues. “Not drilling too many teeth these days.”
    Santucci chuckles. Guess these two had hit if off in my absence.
    â€œChristine works at the dentist’s home during the day, seven to seven. She works here nights.”
    â€œSo,” I say, “you two were fighting over the printer?”
    â€œHardly,” says Mrs. Oppenheimer. “Apparently, some paper became jammed in the feeder, and Christine started using the most foul language imaginable in front of my very impressionable young son.”
    â€œYour son was in the room with the printer?” I say because that’s not where the son said he was.
    â€œNo. He was in his room. But Christine was shouting so loudly, I’m sure he heard every word. That’s when I calmly asked Christine to leave.”
    â€œBut as I understand it, she lives here. Takes care of Samuel.”
    â€œThat was always a temporary arrangement. I can find other pediatric home health aides. In fact, I already have.”
    â€œI can verify that,” says Santucci. “She called the, uh …”
    â€œAtlantiCare Agency. They’re sending someone over right away.”
    â€œSo, you’re evicting Christine?” I say.
    â€œYou bet I am,” says Mrs. Oppenheimer. “She was like a wild animal. Charged at me. Kicked me in the shin.”
    She rubs her leg so I know which one got whacked.
    â€œI grabbed her by the neck to keep her at bay. But she kept swinging and trying to kick at me. I had to exert a great deal of effort to protect myself. I wouldn’t be surprised if I bruised her neck something fierce.”
    I rub my face a little. “You know, Mrs. Oppenheimer, Ms. Lemonopolous told me a very different story …”
    â€œOh, I’m sure she did. But don’t let those big brown eyes fool you, officer. That woman is a crazed monster.”

3
    S O , BASICALLY , WE ’ RE IN A “ SHE SAID / SHE SAID ” SITUATION .
    Both sides give completely different versions of what happened and the one semi-independent witness, Mrs. Oppenheimer’s son, can only tell us that he saw the two women whaling on each other in his living room.
    So I ask all three