“Five,” he said, but there was no annoyance in his voice. “I’m glad you called. Dr. Bryant told me about your husband and his case. Fascinating to hear. Have you heard much about what it is I do and the new procedure that we’re working on out here?”

“Yes, Dr. Bryant told me about it, and I did some research online,” I said, feeling the hope rise in my chest. It was surreal to actually be talking to him after all this time.

And for the surgery to be a real possibility.

“Well, from everything Ruby has told me, it sounds like your husband might be a great candidate. I would need to meet him in person of course, to know for sure, but in the meantime, I could make some assessments based on his charts if he agrees to have them released to me.”

I nodded and then, realizing he couldn’t see me, spoke. “Yes,” I said. “You can email me whatever it is you need him to sign to release them, and I’ll get him to do it. I know he’ll be more than happy to get a review from you.”

“Sure thing,” he said. “I’m happy to do it. And then we’ll need to work on getting you guys out here as soon as possible. I’m really excited about this. It could be a real game changer, not just for you and your husband, but for our field.”

“As soon as possible?”

“Well, I’m sure you’ve read that the surgery needs to take place within the first eighteen months after injury. When did the accident occur?”

“A year ago,” I said, feeling the blood drain from my face. “I must have missed that.”

As I said the words, I felt any traces of the guilt I’d felt earlier disappear.

We were running out of time.

Chapter 14

Claire

The Night in Question

Claire stood outside the second-floor apartment and watched as two men carried the covered body of Beverly Brighton down the stairs.

It was a painful moment, the narrowness of the staircase making it hard for them to turn the corner onto the second-floor landing. There were four other people in the hallway, but they all stopped talking and observed an unplanned moment of silence while the men completed their work.

As she waited, Claire thought about what she’d learned so far. There were a few things that stood out right away.

One, someone had broken the glass at the back of the building to make it look like an intruder had entered the building that way. That was the most concerning piece of evidence she had for one simple reason: the only reason to make it look like someone had broken in was if the person responsible for Beverly’s death had already been inside the building.