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She circled back, drove to the rear of the building, and parked under a tree in view of the service entrance Her partner had claimed he’d shot Elise before she disappeared into the cornfield Maybe she’d die on her own, but it couldn’t be left to chance

It had been several minutes since the explosion at the lakefront, and she looked down the road for a sign of her partner He was nowhere in sight A small laundry truck approached the clinic and backed up to the service entrance The driver hopped out, rang the buzzer, and an orderly propped open the door

The woman smiled and reached for a s She applied a darkening creaht skin of her face, neck, and hands Then she pinned up her hair, slipped on the wig, and inserted a pair of brown contact lenses Next, she slipped on the black ball cap she’d worn earlier and pulled the brim low The final touch to distract frolasses

She waited until the delivery with a load of clean laundry, then she ducked through the open door The doorway opened into a cramped, dim stockroom She stepped behind a tall shelf stacked with sheets and blankets The deliverys of dirty laundry that lined the corridor When he stepped outside with a load, she snatched a re spot

She rifled through a twisted pile of patient gowns until she spotted a green doctor’s smock She ditched the ball cap and pulled on the s as the deliveryman reentered

“Uno más” She handed it to him and turned on her heels

Exiting the storeroo on the wall and entered the hospital’s main corridor

The clinic was larger than she expected, with more than fifty beds That would help protect her anonymity, but would make it harder to find the woman fro, holding the clipboard to her nose whenever an e doors plastered with red stripes ency room She opened one of the doors and peered inside

It was e up a treat back down the main corridor, she found another doorthe room, she encountered a leather-faced nurse

“¿Está de servicio?” the nurse asked

Unsure of her Spanish, the woman simply nodded, then scanned the recovery roo drapes Just tere occupied The nearest held an old man surrounded by family members At the far corner, behind a half-closed curtain, lay Elise

The woman brushed past the nurse, strode to Elise’s bedside, and pretended to study her medical ed, and she appeared sedated

The wolanced over her shoulder The duty nurse had taken a seat by the door and was typing on a computer She pulled the curtains around Elise’s bed, turned down the volu heart monitor, and stepped to the head of the bed Beneath her sun, but felt no need to use it In Elise’s unconscious state, she could be smothered quietly and without protest

The woman reached for Elise’s pillow, heard the curtains draw back She wheeled to face two flushed and breathless men, one tall, the other short

“Is she all right, Doctor?” Pitt asked