Page 170 of Forever Dead

Meg’s instruction had been clear. Calling this a consultation would not change what she was doing.

Foss’s address remained folded in her jacket pocket. Selena kept driving.

His house appeared at the end of a short drive bordered by bare shrubs. A porch lamp illuminated the front steps. Nothing about the property had changed since their first consultation. The same trimmed hedges. The same pale curtains. The same brass number beside the door.

Selena parked and took the cane from the passenger side.

Pain had settled deeper into the knee after the day’s activity, but she managed the steps without stopping.

Foss answered before she knocked a second time.

He wore dark trousers and a gray cardigan over an open-collared shirt. His glasses sat low on his nose.

“Agent Raven, to what do I owe this pleasure?”

“Sorry to turn up without calling. Doctor Foss.”

“Nonsense. Come in.”

Foss stepped aside, then looked beyond her toward the car.

“Sheriff Chase isn’t with you?”

Selena entered. “He’s in the hospital.”

Foss’s expression changed immediately. “Good Lord. I heard something on the radio about an injured policeman, but I didn’t realize it was him.”

“He was stabbed last night.”

Foss looked shocked. “Is he going to be all right?”

“He came through surgery. His surgeon expects him to recover.”

“That’s terrible business.” Foss closed the door. “I’m sorry. For him and for you.”

Selena gave a small nod. “Thank you.”

“Glad he’ll pull through, though,” he said. “I don’t know what this county has come to.”

The hallway looked exactly as she remembered. Framed medical certificates hung beside narrow shelves of books. The floors were polished. Nothing had been left out of place.

Foss gestured toward the study. “Come through. You look as if you’ve been on that leg all day.”

“I have.”

“I suspected as much.”

The study held two leather chairs and a desk crowded with journals. Foss moved a stack of papers from one chair before Selena lowered herself into it.

“What brings you back?” he asked.

“We found more of the material.”

Interest sharpened his expression.

“More?”

“A larger piece.”