Once Lost

Bill creakily pulled himself up and sat on the edge of the bed next to Riley.

“Has the agency assigned you a therapist?” she asked.

Bill nodded.

“Who is he?” Riley asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” Bill said.

“It sure as hell does matter,” Riley said. “Who is he?”

Bill didn’t reply. But Riley was able to guess. Bill’s assigned psychiatrist was Leonard Ralston, known better to the public as “Dr. Leo.” She felt herself flush with anger. But she wasn’t angry with Bill now.

“Oh, my God,” she said. “They’ve stuck you with Dr. Leo. Whose idea was that? Walder’s, I’ll bet.”

“Like I said, it doesn’t matter.”

Riley wanted to shake him.

“He’s a quack,” she said. “You know that as well as I do. He’s into hypnosis, recovered memories, all sorts of discredited crap. Don’t you remember last year, when he persuaded an innocent man that he was guilty of murder? Walder likes Dr. Leo because he’s written books and been on TV a lot.”

“I’m not letting him mess with my head,” Bill said. “I won’t let him hypnotize me.”

Riley was trying to keep her voice under control.

“That’s not the point. You need someone who can help you.”

“And who might that be?” Bill asked.

Riley didn’t have to think about it for more than a few seconds.

“I’m going to make you some coffee,” she said. “When I get back, I expect you to be on your feet and ready to get out of this place.”

On her way to Bill’s kitchen, Riley looked at her watch. She had little time to spare before the plane would be ready. She had to act quickly.

She took out her cell phone and punched in the personal number for Mike Nevins, a forensic psychiatrist in DC who worked for the Bureau from time to time. Riley considered him to be a close friend, and he had helped her through several of her own crises in the past, including a terrible case of PTSD.

When Mike’s phone started ringing, she put her cell phone on speaker, left it on the kitchen counter, and started setting up Bill’s coffeemaker. She was relieved when Mike answered the phone.

“Riley! It’s great to hear from you! How are things? How is that growing family of yours?”

The sound of Mike’s voice was refreshing, and she could almost see the fussy, well-dressed man and his pleasant expression. She wished she could chat with him and catch up with things, but there wasn’t time for that.

“I’m fine, Mike. But I’m in a hurry. I’ve got to catch a plane shortly. I need a favor.”

“Name it,” Mike said.

“My partner, Bill Jeffreys, is going through a rough time right now after our last case.”

She could hear a note of genuine concern in Mike’s voice.

“Oh dear, I heard about that. Terrible thing, the death of that young protégé of yours. Is it true that your partner has been put on leave? Something to do with shooting the wrong man?”

“That’s right. He needs your help. And he needs it right away. He’s drinking, Mike. I’ve never seen him this bad.”

There was a short silence.

“I’m not sure I understand,” Mike said. “Hasn’t he been assigned a therapist?”

“Yeah, but he’s not doing Bill any good.”

Now there was a note of caution in Mike’s voice.

“I don’t know, Riley. I’m generally not comfortable taking patients who are already under someone else’s care.”

Riley felt a flash of worry. She didn’t have time to deal with Mike’s ethical scruples right now.

“Mike, they’ve assigned him to Dr. Leo.”

Another silence fell.

I’ll bet that did the trick, Riley thought. She knew perfectly well that Mike despised the celebrity therapist with all his heart.

Finally Mike said, “When can Bill come in?”

“What are you doing right now?”

“I’m in my office. I’ll be tied up for a couple of hours but I can be available after that.”

“Great. He can get there by then. But please let me know if he doesn’t show up.”

“I’ll do that.”

As they ended the call, coffee was trickling into the carafe. Riley poured a cup and went back to Bill’s bedroom. He wasn’t there. But the door to the adjoining bathroom was closed, and Riley could hear Bill’s electric razor on the other side.

Riley rapped on the door.

“Yeah, I’m decent,” Bill said.

Riley opened the door and saw that Bill was shaving. She set the coffee down on the edge of the sink.

“I made you an appointment with Mike Nevins,” she said.

“For when?”

“Right now. As soon as you can get out of here and drive there. I’ll text you his office address. I’ve got to go.”

Bill looked surprised. Of course, Riley hadn’t told him anything about being in a hurry.