Decker shrugged noncommittally.

Meecham shook his head. “Aw God, the whole thing just makes me sick! Poor Marie. She’s been battling endometriosis for years. Cramping, irregular bleeding, and fibroids to boot. Her plumbing was a mess.”

“Were her problems caused by abortions in her youth?”

“You do your research.”

“Part of the job.”

Decker waited for Meecham to continue. He was slow to respond.

“Were her conditions caused by prior abortions?”

Meecham took another drag on his cigarette. “Could have been if the procedures were botched. Or her problems could have been just bad genetics. From my perspective, I didn’t care what caused her problems. I was only interested in treating them. And how are her medical problems relevant to her and a missing baby?”

“Did Marie seem more depressed than usual? Say in the last six months?”

“Ah, I see where you’re going. You think her problems may have driven her over the edge?”

“I’m asking you. Was she depressed over her problems?”

“Of course, she was depressed. She was only forty and had begun to go through menopause.”

Menopause! Suddenly, Decker remembered Cindy’s mentioning menopause as a reason for doing a D and C way back when. Taking out his notepad, he said, “You want to tell me about it?”

“I suppose since she’s dead…I still feel funny talking about her to a noncolleague—no offense.”

“None taken.”

“Menopause can be quite an ordeal. Besides all the hormonal disturbances that wreak havoc on the system, there’s the emotional component. That time of life is hard for most women. At forty, cessation of menses is a bitter pill to swallow. It can do strange things to your mind.”

“Did Marie talk as if strange things were going through her head?”

“She never said she was planning on kidnapping a baby, if that’s what you mean.”

“I wasn’t referring to anything specific. I was referring more to her attitude.”

“Well, she was in hormonal flux. But she was bright enough to recognize it for what it was. We were trying a number of different therapies to help stabilize her mood swings.”

“Were they successful?”

“Yes, I’d like to think so. She said she was doing fine at work. Being home alone at night was hard for her. Depression was most likely to hit her then. I’m sure you know this, but her mother’s in a rest home. Marie doesn’t seem to have other family.”

“What about friends?”

“I’m sure she has friends, but who wants to talk about early-onset menopause with friends? I suggested she get a dog or a cat…something alive and unquestioningly loyal. And you know what, Sergeant? She listened! She said it helped her!”