We chat for a few more minutes, then I thank him and end the call. The timing of Kline’s death bothers me. He’d been a person of interest in the Leroy Nolt case. I’d connected the two men through Abigail Kaufman. Is it coincidence that he fell ill and died less than a week after the discovery of Leroy Nolt’s remains? Or did someone want him dead and make it happen? If that’s the case, what’s the motive? Did Kline know something about Nolt’s death? Was someone afraid he’d talk to the police? Or am I looking at this all wrong?

I pick up the phone and call Doc Coblentz. “I thought I might be hearing from you,” he begins without preamble.

“Doc, I need to know the cause and manner of death of Jeramy Kline.”

“You and me both. I’ve cleared my schedule and plan to perform the autopsy day after tomorrow.”

I’d been hoping he could do it sooner, but I’ve learned not to push. “Doc, is there some type of comprehensive tox screen you can run?”

“Are you looking for something specific?”

“Not really. But Doc Megason thinks Kline may have come into contact with some kind of toxin.”

“Such as?”

“Since Kline was a farmer, I thought we could check for pesticides. Or any farming-related poison that may have been absorbed, ingested, or inhaled.” I think about Jeramy Kline’s being Amish, their predilection for folk remedies, and add, “Is there a tox you can run that will isolate a toxin that’s plant in origin?”

“I can send samples of tissues, blood, and urine for a poison screen.” He pauses. “There are many toxins that don’t show up if we’re not looking for it. It would be tremendously helpful if you could be a little more specific.”

“I wish I could,” I tell him. “If you could just run everything you can think of.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“In the interim, I’ll talk to Abigail Kline and see if she can shed some light on the matter.”

“Kate, there’s one more thing: I performed the autopsy on the infant child Lucy Kester this morning, and I found some irregularities you need to know about.”

For a terrible moment I think he’s going to tell me that the little girl died at the hands of a first responder, after being mishandled, not knowing that first responder was me. “What did you find?” Closing my eyes, I brace.

“I don’t believe the child died from injuries sustained from trauma related to the tornado, as we’d initially assumed.”

“What do you mean?”

“The cause of death was a subdural hematoma—”

“What is that?” I interject.

“A hemorrhage between the dura mater and the brain.”

“Brain injury?”