“The four hundred dollars in cash you paid yesterday covered our priority toxicology screen,” he said.

“What was inside the sample container?” I asked.

Doctor Aris cleared his throat again, sliding the printed pages across the blotter toward my side of the desk.

“The laboratory analysis is complete,” he said.

“The fluid you gave me contains a heavy concentration of a specialized pharmaceutical sedative.”

“Is it a lethal chemical?” I asked.

“No, Mrs.

Vance,” he said.