Bonnie

“And did you meet his doctor in Atlanta?”

“I was only in Atlanta about six weeks before I went to basic training.”

“And you were obviously suffering a pretty intense distraction when you got down there.”

Gallo glanced at Eve. “You could say that.”

“Why are you asking these questions, Catherine?” Eve asked impatiently. “What difference does it make whether Gallo knew his doctor?”

“It makes a difference to me,” Catherine said. “I had to know if Gallo knew about Da

“What the hell are you talking about?” Gallo asked roughly. “I don’t lie, Catherine.”

“I couldn’t be sure. You’ve been behaving pretty weird since your uncle showed up on the scene.”

“Why would I lie about knowing Nils?”

“Thorazine.”

“What?”

“It’s one of the meds your uncle was taking. You told me once that he was once addicted to prescription drugs. It doesn’t surprise me. The amount of drugs he was given at the hospital in Atlanta was staggering. I imagine they kept him pretty well out of it in that VA hospital in Milwaukee, too.”

“He was in pain.”

“Maybe. But that wasn’t the main reason he was given drugs.”

“What is this Thorazine? And why would that have made you think I was lying to you?”

“Thorazine is a very powerful drug, and it was prescribed by both Nils and your uncle’s doctor in Atlanta. I recognized it because Hu Chang used it as one of the ingredients when he concocted a knockout potion that could also cause severe disorientation.”

“I imagine most pain medication can be used to do that.”

“Yes, but Thorazine was better than the majority of drugs.” She paused. “Because it was used in psychiatric treatments for schizophrenia. It was also useful in cases of split or multipersonality when combined with other drugs.”

“What?”

“Dr. Nils was a psychiatrist. The honorable discharge Ted Da

“No, he had a back injury.”

“Yes, but that was minor. He would have been able to return to active duty after his operation except for his mental problems.”

“It’s not true,” Gallo said harshly. “He was as sane as you are. And he wouldn’t have lied to me.”

“He did lie to you. It was all in that letter from Dr. Nils.” She paused. “Something happened on that last tour of duty in the Middle East. According to Nils’s letter, Da

“What kind of an incident?”

“Nils didn’t know. Perhaps the military didn’t want to crucify Da

“He would have told me. He wouldn’t have lied.”

“He loved you. You had a case of king-size hero worship. Do you think that wasn’t important to him? Mental problems carry a certain stigma in our society.”

“I wouldn’t have cared. I would have helped him.”

“But he’d always been your savior. He couldn’t stand to have the situation reversed.”

Gallo was silent, and Eve could see the conflicting emotions struggling in his expression. He finally said, “And you think he was so sick in the head that he could have killed Bo

“I’m not saying that. It’s a possibility. But maybe he only knew about her death and the people who killed her. Why would he kill Jacobs? All I’m saying is that the ugliness we saw in Da

“How, dammit? You said he wasn’t talking to Nils, and Temple hadn’t even seen him before he signed that death certificate.”

“The psychiatrist who treated him in Atlanta may be the key. Dr. Do

“You mean put him in an asylum. He’s not crazy. No one can tell me he is.”

“She’s not trying to tell you he’s crazy, John,” Eve said quietly. “Start thinking with your head instead of your emotions. He had a problem, and it might have caused him to do something that he wouldn’t have done if he’d been well. We have to find out if that happened.”

“So that you can kill him?” Gallo’s eyes were glittering in his taut face. “That’s where this is leading, isn’t it? You told me once that you’d kill the monster who murdered Bo

“And I would.” She met his gaze. “I won’t lie to you. If I find out that Ted Da

“I can’t let—” He broke off and drew a deep breath. “What are we talking about? He didn’t do it. I know he didn’t do it.”

“Well, I don’t know that, John,” she said grimly. “And if you get in the way of my finding out, I’ll take you down.”

“Cool it,” Catherine said quickly. “We’ll find out, Eve. I think Do

“Not my uncle,” Gallo said grimly. “He wouldn’t have chosen to look upon anyone as a father figure. He told me my grandfather was an addict and abused both him and my father. That’s why he was so horrified when he became addicted to prescription drugs.”

“Regardless, there could have been an element of emotional dependence on Do

“No case files. Which doesn’t surprise me. A psychiatrist’s records are usually ultraconfidential. Do

“Then how do we get in touch with him to ask him questions? Do you have an address or telephone number? Can you contact him through the hospital?”

“He’s no longer with this hospital. He resigned a number of years ago. He left no forwarding address. He placed all of his former patients with other psychiatrists and left his position.”

“Someone has to know where he’s at,” Gallo said. “He must have had contact with other doctors and patients and their families. Particularly if he went to the trouble of placing his other patients with competent professionals. He can’t just have disappeared.”

“Maybe he could,” Catherine said. “If he was paid enough.”

“You’re thinking that Temple’s payoff and Do

“Do