‘You here to see Dr. Janine?’ the woman asked, with a hint of concern. People who came to see Janine typically had big problems.

‘I am, but I’m not a patient. Janine’s a friend.’

‘Oh, I’m glad she has friends. Awful thing she’s going through. She’s a good woman.’

‘Yes, she is,’ Cindy said.

‘The police should just leave her alone,’ the woman announced defiantly, ‘instead of hassling her the way they are. Damn cops.’

Cindy didn’t identify herself or her husband. ‘The police have a job to do. I’m sure everyone just wants the truth to come out.’

The woman shook her head. She had a narrow face with too much eye makeup, a big pile of dark hair, and a curvy, over-padded figure. ‘Wish I could believe that’s true,’ she said, ‘but you know how it goes. Woman gets too uppity, men want to tear her down. That husband of hers is no big loss.’

‘Did you know Jay?’ Cindy asked.

She shook her head. ‘I know his type, that’s all. Think a white wife makes them God’s gift.’

‘Well, the whole thing is a tragedy,’ Cindy said.

‘You’re right about that.’

Cindy got up and crossed the small office and sat down next to the woman. ‘Is he your only child?’ she asked, nodding at the boy.

‘Lord, no, three more back home. All girls. He’s the oldest. My husband’s watching the others. Didn’t think Dr. Janine needed the whole clan running around. My boy was born with a heart problem. Started getting worse last year. We thought we were going to lose him, but Dr. Janine saved his life. Believe me, I love that woman to pieces. It makes me mad to see the police and the newspapers talking about her the way they do. Anybody says something bad about Dr. Janine around me, I’ll kick their ass.’

Near the aquarium, the boy giggled at his mother’s language. Looking at him, Cindy could see the beginnings of a zipper scar on his skin, where his loose T-shirt hung on his chest.

‘Want the truth?’ the woman went on. ‘I don’t much care whether Dr. Janine killed her husband or not. Everything that woman does for people? All the lives she saves? I say, put that man in the ground and move on. Give her a medal or something for who she is. The world needs her doing what she’s doing.’

Cindy gave the woman a weak smile but didn’t reply. The trouble was that even people who defended Janine still thought she’d pulled the trigger. This woman didn’t believe that Janine was innocent. She simply didn’t care if Janine was guilty.

‘Cindy,’ said a Texas voice. ‘This is a surprise.’