The Nature of Things

Chapter 45

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Casey did as he was told and got in the car. He was trying his best to talk the killer out of the plan to murder him next. He thought of jumping out of the car, but knew that would only buy him a few minutes if it didn't kill him.

He was almost trembling with fear when they pulled up in front of the church. The killer ordered him out of the car and led the way up the steps.

"It's time to ask for forgiveness for all you've done."

"Fuck you."

"You read the article; you know what I'm capable of."

"I'm not Craig. I will fight back."

"He tried and failed what makes you better?"

"I'm younger and stronger."

"You're weaker and not nearly as smart. You'll go down easy enough."

"I'll scream."

"No one will hear you."

"You won't get away with it."

"I already have."

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Brian wandered around the poolhouse perusing Justin's latest paintings. They were even darker than the ones he'd done right after the bashing. Brian was worried that Justin wasn't going to therapy and needed to talk about what had happened to him.

After spending most of the afternoon waiting for Justin, Brian was beginning to wonder what was keeping his partner. Maya had been fussy most of the day. It was as if she sensed the discord in the home and wasn't happy about her parents having problems.

Molly had been out all day with Cynthia and Adam. Jennifer and Tucker had gone shopping for furniture and Brian had been left to his own desires. Only he'd been left with a newborn and no help.

By dinnertime he was ready to pull his hair out and jump off a bridge. Maya had gotten fussier as the day wore on. She'd refused to eat when it was time for a bottle and she hadn't napped for more than fifteen minutes all day.

Justin wasn't answering his cell and his voice mail was now full of Brian's pleas for help.

It was almost nine before Brian tried to rock Maya one more time. She'd once again refused the bottle and looked almost helpless and afraid while Brian rocked her. Pressing his lips to her forehead once more he noticed that this time she felt very warm.

Carefully carrying her to the bedroom he found the thermometer in the medicine cabinet and took her temperature. When it stopped at 104, he started to panic. He called Debbie after not getting an answer on Jenn's or Justin's cells. Debbie instructed him to call Maya's doctor.

The doctor listened carefully to Maya's symptoms and told Brian to meet her at the hospital. He hurriedly bundled Maya up and strapped her into her car seat. He left a note on the door for Justin and drove as fast as he could with a baby in the car.

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Jennifer and Tucker went straight back to her small house and never noticed the note on the door. They were watching tv in bed and neither heard the phone ring.

Brian was getting desperate to find Justin. He still couldn't reach anyone other than Debbie who had thankfully met him at the hospital. She'd stayed with him and Maya in the exam room and was now sitting with Brian in the waiting room as they waited for Maya to be taken to X-Ray.

She was still fussy but the doctor had given her some infant's Tylenol to help bring down the fever and make her a little more comfortable. Brian left Maya with Debbie while he tried once more to reach Justin.

He'd just gotten back when the orderly came to take them to X-Ray. Debbie stayed behind to try to reach Justin once more. After an hour Brian came back and they sat once again as they waited to be taken back to an exam room once more. He was about to start cursing everyone in sight when the nurse came for them.

They'd been back in the exam room for only moments when Dr. Jamison joined them. She looked worried and that caused Brian to start to get scared.

"Mr. Kinney, I've looked at all of Maya's tests closely and I'd like to keep her here overnight for observation. I'd like to hook her to a heart monitor to keep a record of how her heart is functioning. The X-Rays have me worried, so I'm going to order an EKG. I'll have an orderly come and take you to a room on Pediatrics in a few minutes. I'm going to ask that someone stay with her at all times."

"Is it that serious, Doctor?" Debbie asked the question she knew that Brian was wondering.

"At the moment I'm not positive about anything. I would like to take the time to monitor her closely for at least a day or two. Once the EKG is done I should have a better idea of what we are dealing with." The doctor turned back to Brian and continued. "Don't worry, Mr. Kinney, we have the best cardiologists in the state here at Allegheny. If the need arises, Maya will be in the best hands possible."

"Thank you."

"Brian, honey, are you okay?" Debbie saw the weariness in his eyes and worried deeply about him.

"Not really. Do you think you could try to find Justin?"

"Of course, honey. I'll go by the house and check. Do you need anything?"

"Maya's teddy bear, the little purple one. She can't sleep without it and her blanket, the one with the giraffes. There is some breast milk in the freezer for her next feeding. If you could bring a few of those back, I'm sure the hospital can store it for us."

"Sure thing. How about I bring you back some coffee and a change of clothes, too?"

"That would be nice, thanks."

"She's going to be fine."

"I hope so."

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Casey knelt before the altar and held his head high. He was determined to go out on his own terms.

"Now it's time for you to beg."

"I'll never fucking beg."

"Oh, you will. Maybe not here, but you will."

"What the fuck happened to you to make you do this?"

"You."

With that one word the killer put a vial under Casey's nose and propped him up after he was out cold. Putting the gun in his hand, the killer helped him pull the trigger. The only fingerprints on the gun were Casey's and the note left on the altar helped set the scene for his suicide.

The killer had thought of everything, except for the one person who could point the finger. Unbeknownst to the killer, someone had witnessed everything.

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Two hours later Justin came running into Maya's hospital room, worry evident on his face. He was shocked to find Maya sleeping comfortably in a crib with Brian stretched out on the pullout sleeper.

Not wanting to wake either of them, he pulled up the recliner and settled in to watch over his daughter.

The next morning Brian woke to a steaming cup of coffee being held out to him by Justin. They hugged and kissed, both worried about Maya. They had just finished their liquid breakfast when Dr. Jamison joined them.

"I hear that Maya slept through the night. The nurses said she was an angel."

"She must've been exhausted, since she didn't sleep at all at home."

"She's a fighter, Mr. Kinney. You have to keep that in mind. I've looked over her chart and see that she was a preemie. How premature was she?"

"Almost two months," Justin volunteered.

"Did the mother get prenatal care?"

"Yes, her mother is my sister and she did everything the doctor's told her."

"Good, that makes Maya's chances a little better. Now Mr. Kinney, I'm assuming you are the father."

"No. Molly was raped."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't aware of that. Did she know her rapist?"

"In a way."

"Is he in jail here?"

"He was until two days ago."

"Ok, well do we know anything about his medical history?"

"He's my half brother."

"Did anyone in your family have heart problems?"

"My cousin had to have a heart transplant as a child."

"Do you know what for?"

"No."

"How about you, Justin?"

"My grandfather on my mom's side died of a massive heart attack and my dad's dad had to have quadruple bypass surgery a few years back."

"Well that gives me a place to start. It looks like Maya's heart is not functioning 100%. I'm worried about her getting oxygen to her brain and enough blood flow. I'd like to do a few more tests on her to see what exactly it is we are dealing with, but at the moment I'm going to have to wait on the results of those tests."

"Will she be okay?"

"I can't answer that truthfully right now, Mr. Taylor. Let her rest, feed her the breast milk and pray."

"Thank you, Dr. Jamison."

"I'll be back to check on her around lunch time. Don't be afraid to hold her, she needs the comfort of her parents more than ever now."

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Carl caught the call first thing that morning. He walked into the church expecting to find some junkie who'd overdosed. He wasn't prepared to find Casey lying in a pool of his own blood, holding a handgun.

All evidence pointed to it being a suicide, including the note that the minister had found on the altar. Carl read the words to himself, thinking that this tied things up almost too nicely. Looking at the note again he studied every word before bagging it for evidence.

Numerous pictures were taken of the scene before the body was removed. Just as his body was being loaded into the body bag, Carl spotted the small slip of paper peeking out of his pocket.

'Time's up.'

Carl knew that somehow Casey's murder was linked to Craig Taylor. Now he only had to figure out who wanted both men dead. His list of suspects was overwhelming and included almost everyone that Debbie knew and loved.

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