“It’s more likely she was text-messaging the chief medical examiner,” Berger said. “Just speculation. But that would be like her to pass on information to him, especially if she could take credit for what somebody else did.”

“Covering her ass because she probably missed stuff,” Lucy said. “So she wanted to call the chief right away. I’d have to get into his e-mail to figure it out.”

“And you’re not going to do that,” Berger said.

Her shoulder was solidly against Lucy’s as she said it.

Lucy was so aware of Berger’s every motion, sound, and scent, she could be on LSD, based on what she’d read about it: an increased heart rate and higher body temperature, and crossover sensations such as “hearing” colors and “seeing” sounds.

“It might be something like that,” Marino was saying. “She’s a pilot fish. Has to swim after the sharks to get the leftovers they drop. I’m not making fun of her. It’s the truth.”

“What’s the Terri connection in all this?” Berger asked.

Lucy replied, “The photograph was sent to her, specifically, to the user account called Lunasee.”

“Sent by?” Berger asked.

“Scarpetta six-twelve sent it to her the first Monday of December, the third, and what’s not making much sense is for some reason Terri, I’m going to say it was Terri, deleted it, and whoever sent it also deleted it, which is why it wasn’t in the trash. I had to restore it with the neural networking programming.”

Marino said, “You’re telling us the photo was sent December third, and both parties immediately deleted it that same day?”

“Yes.”

“Was there a message with it?” Berger asked.

“Showing you that right now.”

Lucy moved her finger on the trackpad.

“This,” she said.

Date: Mon, 3 December 2007 12:16:11

From: “Scarpetta”

To: “Terri”

Terri,

I know you like primary source material, so consider this an early Christmas present—for your book. But I do not want to be credited with having given this to you, and will deny it if asked. Nor will I tell you who took it—wasn’t with my permission (the idiot gave me a copy, assumed I’d be pleased). I’m asking that you move the photo to a Word file and delete it from your e-mail as I’ve just now deleted it from mine.—Scarpetta

“Terri Bridges was writing a book?” Marino asked.

“I don’t know,” Lucy said. “But based on what Jaime and I have seen of this master’s thesis? Could very well be that’s where it was headed.”

Berger said, “Especially if she really believed all this material was coming from Kay, and I do think she believed that. I think Lunasee was Terri. For the record. Although I know it’s speculative.”