"Could she have tripped and fallen?"
"It's possible but, if that were the case, why bother to exert all the necessary effort to unscrew a banister and place it under her? Why not just call for help? She was found alone. Maybe it was an accident and someone panicked, but given the effort made subsequently to disguise it, I can't stop thinking someone intended to seriously hurt her and make it look like an accident."
I frowned, analyzing his logic. The fall sounded terrible but the way Austen described it, and from all the things he observed, it didn't seem accidental. He was right, if it were just an unfortunate accident, it made sense to call 911. Even if someone else were present and simply panicked when Sophie fell, they could have just left the scene. People would naturally assume someone fell down the stairs once they saw the blood Austen claimed was there previously. Unscrewing the banister and placing it underneath her was time-consuming, awful, conniving and deliberately deceitful. That time could have been better spent calling for medical assistance. Unless they didn't want to be discovered with her? Could they possibly have thought she wouldn't survive? Or that she was already dead?
"Do I sound crazy?" asked Austen.
"No," I told him. "Not at all. If it's okay with you, I'd like to inspect the spot where she was found."
"That's fine. I can give you our address and call my foreman to allow you full access. I can't leave Sophie's side. I only make exceptions to very quickly eat, use the bathroom, or rush home to shower, change, and race directly back here."
"Please don't trouble yourself. If you can give me your foreman's number and the permission to look around, I'll do that." I began to rise, looking down at Sophie. She appeared so peaceful in the bed, as if she were sleeping. Only the bandage around her head, the splint on her arm, and the machines clicking and whirring next to her hinted at what happened.
"Ms. Graves..."
"Lexi, please."
"Lexi... I don't mind being wrong. Hell, I hope I am. I'm a proud man but I can accept being told when I'm wrong. But if I'm not, then someone deliberately did this to Sophie. I don't know why anyone would hurt her and right now, if I'm right, they're getting away with attempted murder. I can pay you for your time, that's not a problem, but please, just..."
I placed a hand on his arm. "Let me first take a look at the scene and speak to your foreman. If I think it looks more like an accident, I'll tell you that and there won't be any charge. However, if I think there's something really there, I'll tell you and you can work out what to do from that point, whether to hire me or call the police again."
"Thank you," said Austen. Pulling his wallet from his pocket, he produced a business card. He wrote on the back and handed it to me. "That's Manny's number. I'll send him a message now, telling him to expect you."
We said our goodbyes and as I left, Austen slid back into his seat and picked up Sophie's hand again, murmuring something private to her. I slid the door closed and walked over to Alice. She was joined by two more nurses who both said hello as I interrupted them. "I'll walk you out," said Alice, which I translated to: I want to speak to you privately. "What do you think?" she asked as we entered the elevator.
"He's obviously very upset but he seems pretty smart and has clearly thought things through. He raised some interesting points."
"Do you think someone actually hurt Sophie?"
"I think it's possible. I'm going to ask around, take a look at the exact location where she was found, and get back to him."
"Thanks, Lexi. I really appreciate it," said Alice, patting my arm. "I can't imagine what he's going through but I'm sure he'll be relieved that someone is taking him seriously."
"You obviously did too," I pointed out. "That's why you called me."
I took the elevator down and followed the long, winding corridors to the EMT transport area. I found the same EMTs who brought Sophie in when they delivered another patient to the ER and they confirmed the story I'd been told. I contemplated that as I headed to the visitor's parking lot. Having endured a nasty experience upon leaving the hospital once before, I was relieved to step, uneventfully, into the sunshine. Before I could even walk to my borrowed car, my phone rang. A number flashed on the screen but it wasn't one I recognized.
"Is that Ms. Graves?" asked a male voice with a slightly foreign accent. When I confirmed it was, he continued, "This is Manny Ortega. Mr. Takahashi called me and said you were coming to the house. He said it was very important. Would you like to come now? I'm here so I can let you in."
"On my way," I eagerly replied.
The Takahashis lived in one of the nicest parts of Bedford Hills. The whole expensive neighborhood featured luxury homes on wide lots but Westmount was easily one of the most coveted streets. Recessed from public view behind a tall wall and fancy iron gates, the two-story brick house was an imposing character. I imagined it would be even more striking once the gardens were landscaped.
A tall, black-haired man in jeans and a padded vest, a toolbelt slung around his hips, waited for me beside a work truck opposite the house doors. A bit further along the driveway, I saw another older truck, parked next to a gleaming, black, brand new truck. That was a lot of trucks in one place for me.
I parked beside the work truck and hopped out, walking across to him. "Mr. Ortega?" I asked.
"Manny, please. We’re informal here. I tried calling Austen by his surname but he and Sophie said no way."
"Then you must call me Lexi."
"Follow me. Austen told me to let you in and allow you to go wherever you like. Is everything okay at the hospital? We're all so worried about Sophie."
I took an instant liking to Manny. Not only was the older man handsome, the deep gray that was filling in his temples was very attractive. He was pleasant to talk to and carried an air of capability about him, something I intuited from his calloused hands and the deep creases around his eyes. "I just came from the hospital and Sophie is stable but not yet conscious," I told him, figuring it wouldn't hurt to reveal one of the few pieces of information I gleaned about her health.
Manny unlocked the door and opened it, standing back to let me pass. I stepped into a large entryway that should have been bright and airy but was currently covered in a fine coating of construction dust. On my right, a staircase curved up to a mezzanine-style landing with thick, ornate, iron banisters. Immediately obvious was the missing panel in the middle of the landing. Manny must have noticed me staring at it because he said, "That's where Sophie fell."
I nodded and looked around for the missing piece. It was propped up against the far wall. "Do you mind if I look around some more?" I asked, glancing at the fetching foreman.
"Please go ahead. I'll wait by the door."
I walked over to the chunk of banister first, pulling my sleeves over my hands so I could examine it without leaving prints, just in case. Several of the spindles had blood on them, barely discernible against the black iron. That could have been consistent with Sophie landing on them, or the blood from her head wound splattering them.
"Austen said one of your work crew found her? Is that right?" I asked.