Diagnosis Murder 4 - The Waking Nightmare Read Online Free PDF

state from what he could see in an x-ray or determine from a tox screen. What afflicted Rebecca Jordan wouldn't show up in any medical chart.
    There was nothing more he could do to help her now. There might not be anything he could do to help her at all.
    Mark suddenly realized how tired and hungry he was. It was after eight p.m. He left the ICU and went to the elevator, pushed the DOWN button, and idly glanced around.
    There was only one person sitting in the waiting area. The man occupied one chair, his Stetson occupied another. He wore a corduroy jacket, crisp white shirt, faded jeans, and sharp-toed leather boots. The man seemed engrossed in the Ladies' Home Journal he was reading. The headline on the cover read: TEN BEAUTY SECRETS EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW.
    It struck Mark as a great photograph. The Marlboro Man catching up on beauty and skin care tips.
    The Marlboro Man .
    An old, outdated advertising icon. What made him think of that ?
    Clearly, it was the guy in the chair, who was just a man with a weather-beaten face wearing a cowboy hat. There were a thousand other cowboy images that could have come to mind.
    Why the Marlboro Man?
    And then it hit Mark. It was so obvious.
    Marlboro cigarettes.
    His visit to see Rebecca Jordan had reminded him of Lenore Barber, the other suicidal woman he'd encountered today. His subconscious was graciously reminding him that he hadn't been able to save either one of them.
    Hurrah for Mark Sloan.
    The elevator arrived and Mark stepped inside, irritable now as well as tired and hungry. What a lousy day. As the doors closed, he glanced again at the cowboy, who was setting aside the Ladies' Home Journal for the latest issue of Cosmopolitan .
     
     
    CHAPTER FIVE
     
     
    Mark met Steve for dinner at BBQ Bob's, the restaurant his son and Dr. Jesse Travis bought a few years ago when the original owner retired. Steve and Jesse arranged their lives so that most of the time one of them was there to run the place while the other pursued his day job.
    It was a charming dive with loyal customers who didn't mind wearing bibs when they ate. For years, most of the customers looked like long-haul truckers, construction workers, and professional wrestlers. While business wasn't bad, customers could always count on finding plenty of open tables and empty stools at the counter.
    But lately, at lunch and dinner, the tables filled up fast and often there was a line out the door, thanks to Jesse's shrewd reworking of the menu to capitalize on the low-carb craze. In addition to the usual fare, slathered in barbeque sauce, Jesse introduced a menu of smoked-only meats and carb-conscious side dishes.
    Now the place was filled with fresh-faced, carb-counting carnivores ready to feast on the wide selection of meat and a leaf or two of lettuce.
    Mark almost felt guilty occupying a booth, taking it away from a paying customer. As the principal investor in BBQ Bob's, he enjoyed the privilege of never paying for a meal. But he was costing them double if, by taking the only available seat, he was simultaneously denying them the opportunity to serve someone else.
    If Steve resented Mark taking a booth, he didn't say any thing about it; he was too busy thinking about "The Case of the Dropped Dead Skydiver," which was what one local TV station was already calling the homicide on their early evening newscast.
    "When they put it like that, it sounds like Encyclopedia Brown should be investigating the murder," Steve said, wiping some barbeque sauce from his chin. "He'd probably have a lot better luck."
    "Give yourself a break, Steve," Mark said, washing down his last bite of brisket with some draft root beer. "You've only been on the case for a few hours."
    "Usually I've at least got something to go on," Steve said. "Or you do." He looked hopefully at his dad.
    "Sorry, Steve," Mark said. "But nothing jumps out at me yet, no pun intended."
    "Uh-huh," Steve said.
    "I see you've learned a few things from Amanda," Mark