Chapter Twenty-One
JULIE’S EYES WIDENED in surprise at the threat from someone she had considered a friend—different from Laura and Stacy, but still a friend. Before Julie could respond, Renee abruptly ended the call.
Rodney jumped out of bed and quickly put on his jeans. “Get dressed. We’re about to have company.”
Feeling nervous and anxious, Julie followed the directions, putting on her jeans, sweater, and boots in case they decided to go out.
Rodney walked to the door and glanced back at her. “Ready?”
She nodded, and he opened it, shouting to Pup as he went, “Call in Grits and Casper, ASAP!”
By the time they reached the bottom of the stairs, the young agent was wrapping up a call. “What’s up?”
Casey jumped up from her spot on the floor and ran over to Julie. She loved and petted the cute puppy, aware she was officially “at work” and should be overlooked.
“Hey, little one.” She adored the pup and longed for one of her own. Yet, the demanding schedules of the hospital and clinic would mean leaving the dog mostly in someone else’s care. She should probably get a cat or two. They didn’t require her attention all the time. In fact, they didn’t need her for most of the time. Julie chuckled.
Grits opened the front door, and he and Casper stepped inside. He glanced at Julie and nodded before turning back to Rodney. “What’s up?”
Rodney grasped her hand and pulled her close. At first, she tried to pull away, but he held on tightly, and she realized he wanted them to see their connection.
“Julie just received a verbal threat from Garcia’s wife. Have we investigated her?”
Grits nodded. “Devon has her on the list since she can access Garcia’s account. It’s possible she hired the hitman instead of Garcia.”
The term “hitman” sent a chill down Julie’s spine. Would Renee do something like that? It wasn’t as if Carlos would go to jail if he lost the case. After all, this was a civil matter focused on money. They stood to lose a significant amount and possibly their share in the clinic if the settlement exceeded what they could afford.
“I want her re-evaluated,” Rodney said. “That couple might be collaborating.”
Casper stepped forward. “It doesn’t make sense. It’s just a civil case. It’s about the money.”
Julie’s thoughts exactly. At least someone understood. “And the clinic,” she added. “They’re also suing the clinic, which means Carlos could lose his share.”
Grits turned to her. “You know these people. Do you think that would be enough for them to try to kill you?”
Her instinct was to shake her head. “No.” Then she wondered if she really knew either of them well enough to understand the intricacies of their marriage and financial life.
“I don’t think so, but I’m not sure.” She frowned. “However, Ash is right.”
The men gazed at Ash in disbelief, and he shrugged casually.
“This concerns money. Also, my testimony might not affect the case itself, so I don’t believe they would try to harm me for that.”
Rodney shook his head. “You’d be surprised at why people attempt to kill others. It can be for trivial reasons.”
Julie had seen enough gunshot victims to agree with that. But still….
“We have a team assigned to Garcia.”
Grits surprised Julie with that statement. She had no idea what they were doing other than protecting her, and maybe it was time to find out. “What else are you doing?”
“Let’s sit down,” Grits suggested.
The five of them sat while Casey relaxed at Julie’s feet.
“Devon is searching for anomalies in the finances of everyone we’ve identified as potential suspects. Whoever it is, they aren’t doing it themselves, so they must be paying someone and paying them quite a steep price.”
That made sense to her, but she wondered how Devon managed to do this legally. Wasn’t hacking a crime? She imagined he must have hacked because suspects wouldn’t give investigators access to their financial records.
“And?” She wanted to know what they had found. At this point, they should have uncovered something, especially if they were tailing Carlos.
“Jesse spoke with Dr. Garcia due to the large cash withdrawals but wouldn’t clear him. We’re monitoring him, nonetheless. Just in case.”
“What about Renee? She might be withdrawing money and shopping or something.” If the payments followed a pattern, then perhaps Renee was getting Botox. She was obsessed with the image she had to maintain as a successful surgeon’s wife.
“We’ve considered her, but until now, there was no connection. This threat changes that. We need to show those withdrawals were made with the intent to harm you. But,” he said, wincing, “the challenge is that cash transactions are hard to trace.”
“So, what are you going to do?” This point frayed Julie’s nerves. They were nowhere.
“We finally got a lead on the bomb signature from Chief Wise. We’re sending a team over to the potential bomber’s house now to beat the police. Chief gave us fifteen minutes to get the answers we need.”
Julie couldn’t believe how well the police had collaborated with this group. She hoped their efforts to seek answers wouldn’t resort to violence.
“Who else have you been watching?”
Grits and Casper exchanged glances before looking back at her.
Grits sighed. “We’re keeping an eye on your assistant and her brother.”
Julie opened her mouth to speak, but Grits raised his hand, stopping her.
“We don’t think either is involved. We believe that the damage to your office is unrelated to the bombing and shooting.”
Julie sighed with relief. She dreaded the thought of Gary being so enraged that he would trash her office. He had deserved to be let go from the job. It had been difficult for Julie, but she had given him too many chances, and he disappointed her with everyone.
Julie’s phone rang, and she glanced at the caller ID. It was Mary. She sent the call to voicemail. This was too important to ignore, and Mary had nothing urgent to say. She’d leave a message.
“Go on,” Julie encouraged.
Grits nodded. “We talked to a few other surgeons on staff to see if anyone was jealous enough about your potential promotion to act on their anger. They all checked out.”
Once more, Julie sighed in relief. She would hate to believe that the people who would soon be her staff would want to harm her.
“I hate to say this,” Grits said, “but we’re uncertain. That’s why we want to keep the protection detail going until we sort this out for you.”
But how long would that take? Would it require another attempt on her life to draw out the would-be killer? She mentally shook her head. She didn’t want that to happen.
“Do you think the person who made the bomb will reveal who paid them?”
Casper shook his head. “I doubt it, but it’s worth a shot.”
Great. They were back to square one, and now only Carlos—and Renee—have potentially engaged killers for hire.
Julie racked her brain, figuring out who might hold a grudge against her. “Did you check anyone with a problem with my surgical skills?”
Grits nodded. “It was a pretty short list. You do an exceptional job, Doc. Even those who lost someone appreciate the efforts you made to save their loved ones.”
Julie worked tirelessly and continuously read to stay updated on the latest surgical techniques to save as many lives as possible. She understood she couldn’t save everyone, and it devastated her. However, some patients came to her too late, or their injuries were beyond repair.
“I suppose that’s why they’re looking to appoint you as chief of surgery at such a young age,” Pup remarked.
It was amusing to hear Pup talk about being young. What was the kid's age? Twenty, perhaps? Maybe a bit older, but definitely under twenty-five.
“Thank you.” Whenever she received a compliment about her position, she felt embarrassed, as if she shouldn’t have it, despite knowing she possessed the surgical and leadership skills necessary to lead a successful team of surgeons.
Her phone rang again. It was Mary. She sent it to voicemail once more. Mary understood there were times Julie couldn’t answer, like when she was with a patient or in surgery. Well, this situation was equally important.
Grits and Casper exchanged glances, and Casper nodded in response.
Grits turned to Julie. “So, we looked into Stacy and Laura, too.”
Julie jumped up. “Why are you looking at my friends? They have nothing to do with this!”
Rodney took her hand, gently guiding her back onto the sofa beside him. “Hey, just relax and listen to us.”
Relax? Her pulse quickened at their audacity to check up on her friends.
Without missing a beat, Grits continued, “But we still haven’t cleared either of them.”
Julie frowned, knitting her brows into a deep V. “What do you mean by that?”
“Well, both of them tend to live beyond their means,” Grits responded, “so they might be able to hire someone if needed.”
“No! They wouldn’t.” Julie was furious now, and her anger was a force to be reckoned with regarding her friends.
“Julie,” Doc said, rubbing her palm with his thumb. “Could you just listen for a moment?”
She let out an exasperated huff, looking as if she were a stubborn kid caught doing something wrong. Yanking her hand away from Rodney, she crossed her arms tightly over her chest.
“All right, go ahead,” she said to Grits, motioning for him to continue.
Grits cleared his throat and said, “Well, the good news is we didn’t find any withdrawals that match either of the incidents.”
Incident? Someone had tried to kill her, and he was so relaxed about it.
“Of course not. They would never come after me,” she snapped back.
“Sometimes, it’s the people we least expect,” Casper interjected.
“Who else are you investigating?” Julie asked, eager to redirect the focus. The thought of her friends being capable of such a terrible act made her feel nauseous.
“Your students.” Grits shifted in his seat. “That’s how we found out about Marla changing the order.”
Thank goodness they found that out. The school expelled Marla, and Julie knew she was blaming her instead of taking responsibility for her actions. Could she have wanted to kill her? She didn’t care if she killed an innocent man.
“Is it Marla?”
Grits shook his head. “No, but we’ll monitor her for retaliation concerning expulsion. We can’t trust her after she attempted to kill someone and tried to pin the blame on you.”
Julie felt her heart warm at the thought that these men would keep her safe. She hadn’t even hired them—though she would pay them—and they went above and beyond.
“Thank you,” she said, glancing at Grits and then Casper. “Please give my thanks to the team.”
The men smiled. “Doc,” Casper said, “they’ll be happy to hear that.”
A thought struck Julie. “By the way—” She flushed with embarrassment but continued. “Thank you for packing the picnic lunch.”
“Our pleasure,” Grits said.
She turned to Pup. “Especially the chocolate.” They hadn’t eaten any, but she wanted the kid to know she appreciated his effort, which was rewarded with a cute blush on the agent’s face.
“So,” she inquired, “where does that leave us?”
Grits sighed. “Not in a good place. But while Devon checks the records, we’ll be your bodyguards.”
“Court has been rescheduled for tomorrow.” She gulped, her stomach knotting. “Do you think someone will try something before that?”
Rodney nodded. “If it’s about the lawsuit, then yes.”
She finally focused entirely on him. Julie loved this man, feeling it with all her heart and soul. She didn’t want him to get hurt while trying to protect her, but what choice did she have? If she tried to go alone, she might die. At least these men had weapons to keep her safe.
Her phone rang again, and she couldn’t believe it. Mary was calling once more. Why hadn’t she just left a message like usual? But since it was the third time, it might be something Mary thought was important. Since they had ended the conversation, she said, “Excuse me.”
Standing, she walked to the kitchen to answer the call. “Hello, Mary. Is everything okay?”
“Dr. Banks, you should come to the office. I discovered something important for you to see.”