Ryan burst into the room. “I need to talk to you.”
“Wait in line,” Casey said. “I’m mediating a disagreement. Claire wants to call off Emma ASAP and get her out of the hospital in case Roger tries something even more violent. Marc thinks it would be too obvious if she abruptly vanished, plus it would be one less pair of eyes on Madeline. I’m inclined to agree with Claire. Madeline is well-guarded by professionals—a role that Emma’s not equipped to fill. There’s nothing more that she can do for us there. And after that ugly experience with Roger, I don’t want to put her in harm’s way. Who knows if Roger is going to retaliate—”
“Get Emma out of there,” Ryan interrupted. “She doesn’t need to face that asshole again. And I didn’t come in here just to talk to you. I need the whole team to hear this.”
Abruptly Casey switched gears and focused on Ryan.
“You found something. What is it?”
“A pretty explosive something.” Ryan explained what he’d discovered when he retraced Roger’s keystrokes.
“So the video recording is missing,” Casey said. “Is it possible there’s another copy?”
“Madeline said that Conrad was obsessive about his work,” Claire reminded them. “Could he have made a copy and taken it to Cres
t Haven with him?”
“There’s only one way to find out.” Casey reached for the phone and dialed Conrad’s number.
Conrad answered on the second ring. “Hello?”
“Conrad? It’s Casey Woods. I don’t mean to be abrupt, but I need to know if you made a copy of Ronald Lexington’s surgery.”
“That’s odd,” he replied. “My attorney called earlier and asked me the same question.”
Casey’s warning bells went off. “Did he tell you why?”
“Because the hospital’s counsel was requesting it. I assume they’re looking for something to save the hospital, although I’m not sure what that means for me. I doubt the video is going to help them. I’ve scrutinized it over and over. Still, I’d welcome a review by my peers. I probably should have asked some of my colleagues for their opinions a long time ago. Perhaps they’ll see something I overlooked. Maybe then I can live with myself and go on with my life.”
“So you did make a copy,” Casey said.
“I made a copy of every one of my surgeries. Watching them gave me a chance to study my technique and see if there was anything I could improve upon.” Conrad choked up a bit. “As I said, I watched Ronald’s surgery again and again before I was in such a dark place that I admitted myself to Crest Haven.”
“Nothing looked out of the ordinary?”
“I couldn’t find an error no matter how closely I studied the video. I doubt the hospital’s attorney will, either. But for the sake of the attorneys on both sides and the insurance company that’s defending me, let them pursue it. I welcome the scrutiny.”
“Do you still have a copy of the video recording?”
“I believe so. But truthfully, I’m not sure where. My apartment was trashed. Madeline and I had just divided up our property, and I have no clue where my discs ended up.”
“You didn’t take them with you to Crest Haven?”
“Definitely not.”
“Would Madeline know where to find them?”
“I’m not sure. I left her a voice mail. She must be on shift at the hospital, so her phone is on silent. I can call you as soon as I hear from her.”
“Please do,” Casey said. “Let us know even before you call your attorney. It’s crucial.”
Marc had stopped pacing and was staring off, eyes narrowed. “That must be what the killer was looking for when they ransacked Madeline’s and Conrad’s apartments. In both their places, the DVD collections were totally trashed. The intruder must have assumed that Conrad made a copy of Ronald’s surgery. If so, there’s something big on that recording—big enough for someone to ransack two apartments and then try to kill Madeline and Conrad.”
“Do you think Conrad is lying about having spotted what’s on there?” Claire asked.
“No.” Casey shook her head. “Conrad is focusing on his part in the surgery. I’m sure he doesn’t have a clue if there’s a detail he’s missing. And Madeline has probably never even watched the video.”
“If anyone finds out that the hospital’s on to the missing video recording and that Conrad made a copy, then Madeline’s danger level just went way up.” Marc looked grim.