No new emails. I tucked my phone away, questioning the odd sense of relief in my chest at finding out I was no further ahead. Making progress on my mother’s past would mean leaving here to go and deal with the people involved.
It would mean leaving Katarina... But I wouldn’t leave her here while she owed me. Where I went, she went. She hadn’t quite realized that when she was negotiating her terms yesterday.
She had given herself to me... and not once mentioned a time limit. And that worked well with my plan to keep her.
I caught myself smiling in my faint reflection in the window.
That oversight was going to cost her dearly. She had given me license to take whatever I wanted from her, for however long I wanted to.
Finishing my coffee, I stood and tapped my pocket to check for the roll of tape and painkillers I’d taken from the infirmary.
“Oh, you’re here, Father Lucciano.” Dr. Blackwood stood in the doorway watching me.
He was another unsettling fucker, but Katarina didn’t seem to lump him into the same category as Pavol and Benedict.
“Just leaving, actually.” I stepped away from the table. “I take it everything is wrapped up with Father Vargas, may he rest in peace.”
Dr. Blackwood nodded absently. “Yes, it’s a shock, honestly. Suicide by a man of the cloth is a sobering thing. How did he seem to you last night?”
Blackwood poured himself a coffee and collapsed into a chair by the window.
“I didn’t see him, I’m afraid. I was busy all day.”
Blackwood scrubbed a hand over his face. “I wonder what deep, dark secrets a man like Vargas had that could drive him to take his own life.”
“Perhaps something went wrong with the inspection. Thedirector of the board was here, I heard. Maybe Vargas wasn’t performing well as the head of this business.”
Blackwood looked surprised by my words. “Business? We help people here.”
I studied him for a long moment, holding his gaze silently until he fidgeted.
“Right, so you do. Still, it’s not funded by the Church and is run by a board of directors for profit. That describes a business to me.”
Blackwood shrugged. “I suppose. I don’t know your background, but in case you don’t know, in medicine, trying to make a difference, trying to help people without worrying about bureaucracy and funding and insurance, is next to impossible. Hallow Hall is the only place I’ve worked where the objective is just about helping people.”
The man was either very calculating or painfully naive. I didn’t have time for either.
“Hmm, yes, indeed. If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll go and make sure the patients don’t need anything. They must be unsettled by all of this.”
Blackwood nodded. “Good idea. In times like this, people need guidance. Help them.” He trailed off, his eyes fixed on mine.
Did he know something? There was a look in his eyes that held something I couldn’t quite read. Dr. Blackwood was a man to keep an eye on, clearly.
“Yes, of course. That’s why I’m here, to help people... just like you.”
I foundKatarina in the office. She volunteered her time there, and it seemed to be encouraged, seeing as she was one of the morelucid patients. There were plenty of younger patients who weren’t interested in volunteering, and then those who wouldn’t be capable.
I watched as she sat at a desk and stared down at some files in front of her. She traced her finger along lines of text on a spreadsheet and then jotted down something on a notepad. A bruise had bloomed on the back of her hand from last night. I didn’t like the way the sign of injury appeared against her skin. An orderly hung over the desk watching her. The same orderly I’d seen with her before. His expression showed he was fond, overly fond.
I didn’t like that one bit.
“Miss Dmitrova,” I said from the other end of the desk.
Katarina glanced up and jolted so hard her teeth clicked shut, and she winced. The orderly looked between us.
“Father Lucciano,” Katarina said, her eyes dancing away from mine. She bit her lip, right over the small cut my teeth had ripped last night.
“Ah, Father. You are the new holy spirit around here. Nice to meet you. I’m Alonso.” The orderly approached, sticking his hand out to shake mine.