Waves

Part 23

After hanging up with Lara, Eve called Joe to tell him the news as she sped to her apartment to pack. "Joe, Connie Banks is alive! Someone dumped her off barely breathing and badly burned at a hospital in Erie three weeks ago and it took them up until now to properly ID her. She had a different driver's license in her purse and it wasn't until today when she came off the ventilator that she was able to say anything," Eve breathlessly blurted out, shoving underwear into a duffle bag.

"Wait—what?! She's alive?" Joe was shocked at Eve's update, his mouth hanging open while Eve told him the story again. "Listen, I hate to ask you to watch the damn cat again, but can you? Lara and I are heading to Erie to see Connie," Eve begged. "Of course. I'll grab my stuff and head over after practice. I can stay at your place so he's not lonely," Joe suggested.

"You are literally a lifesaver. I owe you Joe," Eve smiled. "Nah, I still have a massive emotional debt to pay down," Joe joked, "but hey, do me a favor, okay? Please be careful baby. There's obviously someone out there that doesn't want Connie-or by extension you, to be involved with this case."

Eve paused for a minute and sat down on the edge of her bed, chewing over Joe's words. He was right; this case and the moving pieces had evolved into something darker than Eve had ever imagined. She couldn't stop now though, not when she was so close to getting justice for Rooks.

"I'll be careful Joe, I promise. I love you so much," Eve said. "I love you more. Flossy and I will be waiting for you when you get back to Cincinnati." Hanging up with Joe, Eve grabbed her laptop and left for the airport.

Lara had already landed in Pennsylvania by the time Eve arrived, waiting anxiously for her outside of the terminal in a tiny rental car. The two women were silent on the drive to the hospital; their nerves filling the dead space. Both of them practically ran down the hall once they got their visitor badges at the entrance, only to stopped by a flurry of uniformed officers all congregating outside of Connie's room.

"It's okay, they're with us," a voice called out; Eve recognizing it as belonging to Adam Schwartz, the lead detective they'd met with at the DA's office in Cleveland. He grimly greeted Eve and Lara before updating them on what he knew.

"The doctors say it's a miracle she's still alive but they think she's gonna make it. They just transferred her from the burn unit to the ICU which is a good sign. 85% of her body is burned; she's been fighting sepsis, partial organ failure. A red van pulled up three weeks ago and pushed her out onto the steps outside of the emergency room before speeding off. The damn security cameras weren't functioning properly so we only got a partial plate."

"Has Connie said anything about what she remembers?" Eve asked. "Said she was standing at her coffee maker in her kitchen when she felt something hit her in the back of the head. Woke up in what she called a warehouse but could have been a garage or storage unit. Smelled gasoline before she felt her leg burning. Next thing she knows, she's waking up here," Adam read off from his notes.

"What about the other burned woman? The one in Connie's car?" Eve bit her thumb thinking of the body pulled from the bottom of the lake; yet another wrinkle in what had been an unending chain of strange events. "Molly Gibbons. Her ID is the one that was in Connie's purse. We don't have a ton of information on her and she wasn't reported missing," Adam frowned.

"Can we see her?" Lara peered through the glass pane on the door to Connie's room. "Sure. Her husband's with her right now. You guys will enter the gallery through the left side and stand behind the window. Use the button on the bottom panel to speak into the room," Adam replied. Eve and Lara gingerly entered the hospital suite, shuffling into the small gallery to sit down.