“All right, Gus. See you later,” Fran said with a sinking heart.

She had been planning to call Molly next and tell her that she needed to see her, but Gus’s mention of going out to lunch had given her an idea. Susan Branagan, the volunteer in the coffee shop at Lasch Hospital, had mentioned that she had earned her ten-year pin for service there, which means she was around when a young woman went into an irreversible coma more than six years ago, Fran thought. That isn’t the kind of event that happens often. She might remember who the young woman was and what had become of her.

Talking to that young woman’s family and trying to get details of her accident might be a tangible way to start checking on the story Annamarie had told her sister, Fran thought. Perhaps it was a long shot, but not an implausible one. But I hope I don’t run into Dr. Peter Black, Fran thought. He’d have a fit if he knew I was asking more questions about the hospital.

It was 1:30 when she reached the hospital coffee shop. The lunch hour was in full swing, and the volunteers were hard at work. There were two women bustling about behind the lunch counter, but to her intense disappointment, Fran saw that Susan Branagan wasn’t one of them.

“There’s a seat at the counter, or if you wait for just a minute, a table is being cleared right now,” the hostess told her.

“I guess Mrs. Branagan isn’t on duty today,” Fran said.

“Oh, yes. She’s here. She’s waiting tables today. There she is, coming out of the kitchen now.”

“Could I possibly wait for one of her tables?”

“You’re in luck. The one being cleared is in her area. It seems to be about ready.”

The hostess led her through the room, deposited her at a small table, and handed her a menu. A moment later a cheery voice addressed her. “Well, good afternoon. Have you decided what you’d like, or do you need a little more time?”

Fran looked up and immediately could see that Susan Branagan not only remembered her but now knew who she was. Keeping her fingers crossed that she wouldn’t be rebuffed, she said, “It’s nice to see you again, Mrs. Branagan.”

Susan Branagan beamed with pleasure. “I didn’t know I was talking to a famous person when you and I were chatting the other day, Ms. Simmons. As soon as I found out, I started watching you on the evening news. I love your reports on the Molly Lasch case.”

“I can see you’re busy now, but I’d love to speak to you for a few minutes later if you’re willing. You were very helpful to me the other day.”

“And since we talked, that poor girl you asked me about, that nurse, Annamarie Scalli, was killed. I can’t believe it. Do you think Molly Lasch really did it?”

“No, I don’t. Mrs. Branagan, are you off duty soon?”

“At two o’clock. This place clears out by then. Speaking of which, I guess I better take your order.”

Fran glanced at the menu. “A club sandwich and coffee would be fine.”

“I’ll put your order in right away, and if you don’t mind waiting, I’ll be glad to have a chat with you again later.”

Half an hour later, Fran looked about the coffee shop. It’s exactly as she said, she thought. You’d think there’d been a fire drill. The place was suddenly three-quarters empty. Both the clatter of dishes and the hum of voices had sharply diminished. Susan Branagan had cleared the table and promised to be back in a flash.

When she returned she was no longer wearing her volunteer’s apron, and she carried a cup of coffee in each hand. “Much better,” she said with a sigh, as she put the coffee down and settled into the chair opposite Fran. “As I told you, I love this job, but my feet don’t love it as much as the rest of me does. But you didn’t come here to talk about my feet, and I just remembered I’m due at the hairdresser in half an hour, so how can I help you today?”

I like this lady a lot, Fran thought. She doesn’t mind getting down to business. “Mrs. Branagan, you said the other day that you have your ten-year service pin?”

“That’s right. And, God willing, some day I’ll have my twenty-year pin.”

“I’m sure you will. I’d like to ask you about something that happened in the hospital a good while ago. It was actually a short time before Dr. Morrow and Dr. Lasch were murdered.”

“Oh, Ms. Simmons, so much happens here,” Mrs. Branagan protested, “I’m not sure I’ll be of any help.”

“You might remember this incident, though. Apparently a young woman was brought in after an accident she suffered while she was running, and she went into an irreversible coma. I’m hoping you might know something about her.”

“Something about her,” Susan Branagan exclaimed. “You’re talking about Natasha Colbert. She was in our long-term care residence for years. She died just last night.”

“She died last night!”

“Yes. It’s so sad. She was only twenty-three when she had the accident, you know. She fell while she was jogging and went into cardiac arrest in the ambulance. You know the Colbert family; they’re the ones who own the big newspaper chain, so they are very wealthy. After the girl had the accident, her mother and father donated the money for the long-term care residence and named it after her. Look across the lawn-it’s that lovely two-story building there.”

Cardiac arrest once she was in the ambulance, Fran thought. Who was the ambulance driver? Who were the medics? She’d need to talk to them. They shouldn’t be too hard to track down, though.

“Her mother collapsed when Tasha died last night. She’s here right now, and I understand she’s had a heart attack as well.” Susan Branagan dropped her voice. “See that good-looking man over there? He’s one of Mrs. Colbert’s sons. There are two of them. One of them is with her every single minute. The other one was down here for a bite to eat about an hour ago.”

If Mrs. Colbert dies from the strain of her daughter’s death, then she’s one more victim of whatever it is that’s going on here, Fran thought.

“It’s so painful for the sons,” Susan Branagan said. “Of course, for all intents and purposes, they lost their sister over six years ago, but still, it hits hard when the end really comes.” She dropped her voice. “I hear Mrs. Colbert went a little crazy after Tasha died. The nurse said she was screaming that Tasha had awakened from her coma and had spoken to her-which, of course, was absolutely impossible. She claimed Tasha had said something like, ‘Dr. Lasch, I tripped on my shoelace and went flying,’ and then, ‘Hi, Mom.’ ”

Fran felt her throat close. She could barely force out the words. “Was the nurse in the room with Mrs. Colbert at the time?”

“Tasha had a suite, and Mrs. Colbert had sent the nurse into the sitting room. She wanted to be alone with her daughter. But when Tasha died, Mrs. Colbert wasn’t alone. At the last minute the doctor got there. He says he heard nothing, and that Mrs. Colbert was hallucinating.”

“Who was the doctor?” Fran asked, although she was sure she already knew.

“The head of the hospital, Dr. Peter Black.”

If Annamarie’s suspicions were valid over six years ago, and if Mrs. Colbert was right about what happened last night, it sounds as if, after destroying Tasha, Black has continued experimenting on her, Fran thought.

Helplessly she looked across the room at the man Susan Branagan had pointed out to her. She wanted to rush over to him, to warn him that his mother was a danger to Dr. Peter Black, and that he should get her out of the hospital before it was too late.

“Oh, there’s Dr. Black now,” Susan Branagan said. “He’s going over to Mr. Colbert. I do hope it isn’t bad news.”

As they watched, Peter Black spoke quietly to the man, who nodded, got up, and began to follow him out of the room.

“Oh dear,” Mrs. Branagan said, “I just know it’s bad news.”

Fran did not respond. As he was leaving, Peter Black had spotted her, and they stared at each other. His eyes were cold, angry, menacing-certainly not the eyes of a healer.