The Ideal Man

FIVE

Finding out who the blond runner was on the track turned out to be surprisingly easy.

A shoot-out on hospital grounds with FBI agents swarming all over the park was big news. Every local station led the evening broadcast with a report about the downed agent and the hunt for the perpetrators. The hospital was still buzzing about the incident. The staff, the volunteers, even the patients wanted to rehash the event. Some even did a bit of embellishing.

Willis Cogburn knew how the gossip grapevine worked and used it to his advantage. Dressed as a deliveryman for a local florist, he carried a potted plant with Agent Sean Goodman’s name on it into the hospital. It was late afternoon when he made the delivery, and the lobby was empty except for a few volunteers milling around behind the reception desk waiting to help anyone who wanted assistance.

An older, white-haired gentleman, wearing the name tag “Roland,” looked up the number of the patient’s room, marked it on a Post-It, and stuck it to the bright red bow attached to the plant before setting it on a cart with other floral arrangements ready for delivery.

Willis didn’t have to ask where Sean Goodman was. All he had to do was engage the volunteer in conversation while he leaned over the counter and read the room number.

“How’s that FBI agent doing? I sure hope he’s going to make it,” Willis asked sympathetically.

“He’s almost as good as new,” Roland said. “One of the aides told me they already moved him out of ICU into a private room. He might even get to go home as early as the day after tomorrow.”

“That’s good to hear,” Willis said. Shaking his head, he added, “You all had quite a commotion here, didn’t you? Were you on duty?”

Roland vigorously nodded. “I sure was, but I didn’t see any of it happen, thank goodness. I didn’t even hear the gunshots.”

“What exactly did happen?”

Roland was eager to recount what he had heard, and when he had finished, another volunteer named Bill added a few facts.

“The way I heard it,” Bill began, “a man and a woman were running away from the federal agents, and then suddenly the man turned around and shot the agent closing in on them.”

Roland plopped down in a swivel chair and rested his elbows on the arms. “That’s how I heard it, too,” he agreed.

“Did they catch the man and woman yet?” Willis asked, knowing full well they hadn’t.

“No,” Bill said.

“But they will,” Roland interjected. “And when they do, that pair will be put away for a long time. You don’t get off with a light sentence when you shoot a federal agent.”

“Have you heard why the FBI was after them?” Willis asked, leaning on the counter as though he had all the time in the world to chat.

“I heard it was a sting operation,” Bill answered eagerly. “They were selling guns or drugs or something.”

Roland shook his head. “That’s not what I heard. One of the secretaries in admissions told me the security guard said they were passing government secrets.”

Before the two men could get into an argument, Willis steered the conversation in another direction. “Does the FBI know who they’re looking for?”

“FBI agents and cops have been crawlin’ all over the place trying to get information, looking for witnesses,” Roland said.

“Miles down in X-ray told me the agent was close enough he could identify them if he had to.”

“That’s great,” Willis replied. “You know what I heard?”

“What’s that?” Roland asked.

“There was a girl on the track who might have seen the whole thing. Someone said she was a high school kid running laps.”

Roland snorted. “There wasn’t any girl on the track,” he scoffed. “It’s our own Dr. Sullivan. Does she look like she’s in high school to you, Bill?”

“No, of course she doesn’t. More like college age.”

“What kind of doctor is she?” Willis asked.

“Surgeon,” Bill answered. “She’s the one who took the bullet out of the agent. Lucky for him she was there when he got shot.”

“Sure is,” Willis said. “Any other witnesses that you know of?”

“I’m sure if anyone else got close enough to see the man and woman, the FBI will find them. They’ve been talking to everyone around here.”

“That’s right,” Roland agreed. “They stopped me on my way in this afternoon to ask me questions.”

After a few more minutes of conversation, Willis Cogburn was on his way to his car. He’d parked in the back lot so no one would see he wasn’t driving a florist van. Once he was inside, he made a call.

He didn’t waste time on a greeting but said, “Goodman will be going home at the earliest the day after tomorrow. He’s in room four twelve, so you can keep tabs on him in case they let him go sooner. Remember, George, we don’t do anything until Cal gives us the go-ahead. Just be ready.”

“Did you find out who the girl is?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, then, let’s get this done. The sooner the better to my way of thinking.”

“That’s not your call. You know the instructions. I get her at the same time you get Goodman. Cal doesn’t want any deviations from his plan. He wants it to happen simultaneously.”

“Cal doesn’t even know for certain if Goodman or the girl can ID him or Erika,” George pointed out.

“He’s a careful man,” Willis replied. “He doesn’t take chances, and he’s paying us a lot of money.”

“That’s right,” George said. “But we don’t get the rest of the money until the job’s done, and like I said, the sooner the better.”

“How many times do I have to say it? We wait for the go-ahead.” Willis all but shouted into the phone. “You were in the army, for God’s sake. Show a little discipline. You should be used to taking orders. You don’t want to get on Cal’s bad side. I brought you in because you’re my little brother, George, but my neck is on the line here. Don’t screw this up. If you do the job right, he’ll want to use you again, and each time you’ll make more money until you’re a regular like me. Be patient.”

Unfortunately, George was not the patient kind.