Chapter 28
“Ijust found her like that,” Pepper said, tears streaming down her cheeks.
JD and I surveyed the grim sight. The deputies, ME, and the forensic team were en route.
“Tell me what happened,” I said.
“Dr. Latham likes me to arrive half an hour early to open the office and get prepared for the day. Rachel and Becky come in about quarter till, usually. Sometimes we have a team meeting. I came in, turned on the lights, and found her. The door was unlocked when I got here, and I thought Dr. Latham had beaten me here, which is odd.”
“Did you touch the body?”
“No.”
Dr. Latham was duct taped to a dental chair, her wrists secured to the armrests, her body wrapped tightly to the seatback.
Blood stained her lips and oozed from her mouth.
Someone had taken a sharp instrument and opened up the carotid artery in her neck.
Crimson had poured out, staining her white lab coat.
It was dried and crusted now. She’d been here for a few hours.
The bloody dental scaler on the bleached hardwood floor was the likely culprit. The assailant had raked it across the victim’s neck. Like a hook, the stainless steel device had ripped through flesh.
Dr. Latham hadn’t met with a pleasant demise.
Rachel and Becky arrived and found the grisly scene.
"What's going on?" Rachel asked as she approached. Then she saw the bloody mess and gasped. "Oh my God! Is that…?”
Pepper nodded.
With tousled hair and covered in blood, Latham didn't look like her normal self. Laura had been an attractive blonde in her mid-30s with hair that hung in a stylish cut above her shoulders.
First responders arrived, and I escorted Pepper and the others back to the waiting room while Dietrich snapped photos and forensic investigators chronicled the scene.
Once all the pictures were taken, Brenda would get to work.
"I thought she was out of town," Jack said, trying to hide the annoyance in his voice.
Pepper frowned. "That's what she tells everyone who has problems."
"How many people have problems?"
Pepper’s eyes grew large, and she gave an ominous nod. "A lot.”
Jack grimaced.
Pepper cringed apologetically. "Most people's symptoms resolve in a couple of days. She figures she can wait it out.”
"Doesn't sound like she’s a very good dentist to me. Maybe we’re dealing with a disgruntled patient.”
Pepper’s face scrunched up. "Let's just say there have been a few that have been…disappointed with the work."
"How does she have such a great reputation?" JD asked. "She gets five-star reviews online.”
Pepper couldn't help herself. She burst into laughter. "Those are all fake. You don’t believe those, do you? She paid some guy in India $50 bucks for those.”
Jack's face grew red. "But, she does everybody on the island?”
Pepper shrugged.
"So, let's talk disgruntled clients," I said.
Pepper’s cheeks puffed up as she thought about it, then she blew out a breath. "I'm not sure where to start.”
JD and I exchanged a look. This wasn’t making him feel any better about his tooth.
"We had one patient last month that had a bad experience with a crown—throbbing, aching, ulcerated gums. It may have gotten infected.
He came back a couple of times, but there was really nothing she could do.
She referred him to another dentist. He needed a root canal.
I think she sent him to Dr. Stockton. I'm not sure what happened.
Needless to say, he doesn't come back here.”
"What's his name?”
"I'm not supposed to divulge patient information.”
"Sure. I understand. But this is a murder investigation.”
She cringed. "I'm just not sure what I'm legally required to do in this situation.”
I asked Pepper to step into Dr. Latham's office so we could have some privacy. I didn't want the fact that Rachel and Becky were standing nearby to influence her answers.
I closed the door behind us after we entered.
Jack interviewed Rachel and Becky separately.
I asked Pepper, "Did Dr. Latham have any enemies besides disgruntled clients?"
"Well, you know she's going through a divorce right now. So, I don't think she's on the best of terms with her husband.”
She had my curiosity. "Do you know the reason for their divorce?”
"I don’t want to get too personal, but I guess it doesn't really matter now, does it?"
"Anything you tell me could be helpful for the investigation.”
Pepper frowned. "I'm not talking badly about Dr. Latham, but she wasn't exactly faithful.”
I lifted a curious eyebrow.
"Greg was no saint either.”
"They were both fooling around?"
"In her defense, Dr. Stockton is really attractive.”
"Dr. Stockton?”
"He’s the endodontist across the hall. Easy on the eyes. But I have a rule against married men."
"It’s a good rule. How long had she been having an affair with him?"
Pepper shrugged. "It's hard to say. A couple of months at least. I know sometimes they would do it right here in the office. Not during business hours, of course.”
"But she'd often stay late?"
Pepper nodded. "She would do procedures after hours for friends or special clients. Emergency situations.”
"She didn’t seem available for Jack's emergency.”
"Like I said, she tried to avoid people who were displeased with her work.”
It was infuriating.
"Do you know if her husband was aware she was having an affair?"
Pepper thought about it for a moment. "It's not like she was flaunting it. But I'm not sure she did a lot to hide the fact. I think they were both at a point in their marriage where they just hated each other. They wanted to rub it in."
"That's starting to sound like a motive for murder," I said. "How was your relationship with Dr. Latham?"
"We got along fine. I like my job, she paid me well, and she wasn't too much of a bitch to me. I mean, don't get me wrong, she could get in her moods. But everybody can.”
"Where were you last night?” I didn't think Pepper was involved, but I figured I should do my due diligence.
"I was at home. By the time I get off work, go to the gym, and grab dinner, I'm exhausted. I don't have time for anything else. I don’t see how my girlfriends can go out to the clubs every night of the week until two, then get up and go to work in the mornings. I mean, that was cool during college. I guess I’m getting old,” she said with a frown.
Pepper was far from old.
"No boyfriend?”
She frowned again. "Not at the moment. Why? You interested?" she asked with a flirty gaze.
I smiled. "You’re a witness in a homicide investigation.”
She frowned. “Oh yeah, there is that. But the investigation will be over someday, won't it?"
I smiled. "We've got a pretty good solve ratio.”
She liked the sound of that, possibilities in the air.
“Is there anybody else Dr. Latham had a problem with? Anyone who might’ve wanted to cause her harm?”