Pulled the trigger. And nodded once. It was done. And done well.
Just a few details to wrap it up, and he’d be ready to visit Leah’s fishbowl once again. He pulled on his gloves and prepared to divest Mr. Skinner of his Armani suit After all, Skinner would find it unbearably hot when he arrived at his final destination.
Chapter Ten
Friday, February 20,
2:15 P.M.
Kristen and Jack watched Julia pull the linen string from Ross King’s torso. Her appointment completed, she’d come down to watch Julia autopsy King. Hell, if an autopsy couldn’t clear her mind, nothing could. She’d met Jack on the way in, his face grim. He’d found nothing new on the clothes or crates or dirt from the gravesites. He was there to find anything to point him toward another lab test that might turn up something.
And because he has a thing for Julia, Kristen thought. Too bad everybody knows it but Julia.
„Whoever did this sure as hell knew what they were doing,“ Julia said. „Nice, neat stitches, even placement, no tearing.“ She looked up and met Kristen’s gaze, her eyes distorted by the goggles she wore. „He’s either a doctor or queen of the quilting bee.“
„Or a hunter,“ Jack added from where he stood on Kristen’s right. He shrugged when Kristen and Julia looked at him in surprise. „I used to hunt with my uncle. Lots of deer and ducks. He could dress a duck with nicer stitches than a surgeon.“
„It explains the clean incision,“ Julia remarked, looking back down at the body.
Kristen moved closer, watching Julia’s gloved hands. „What do you mean?“
Julia pulled back a flap of King’s skin. „There aren’t any indications of hesitation.“
„No jagged edges,“ Jack said and Julia nodded.
„Exactly. The incision only goes as deep as it has to.“
She pulled both flaps back, exposing the anatomy beneath. „There’s no damage to the organs… from the knife anyway. Here’s where the bullet went in. Whoever did this was damn good with a knife. I wouldn’t have thought of a hunter, but you could be right.“
„It’s a possibility.“ The deep voice behind her set off warning bells in her head, and she had barely a moment to compose herself before turning to find Reagan standing in the doorway. Filling the doorway, Mia barely visible behind him. Awareness buzzed between them and the morning memory still burning, Kristen looked away.
„Detective Reagan,“ Julia said. „Did your mother bring lunch?“ she asked hopefully.
Reagan moved into the room and it suddenly became that much smaller. „Maybe next time,“ he returned. „So our boy’s a sharpshooter with a quick needle. Did the autopsy turn up anything else?“
„Not yet.“ Briskly, Julia bent back down to the body.
„What did you find out about the white van?“ Kristen asked and Reagan turned, his eyes narrowed in reproach and for a moment he said nothing. She knew he knew about her call to Spinnelli and that she’d offended him by not calling him first. Possibly even hurt him.
But she hadn’t been able to call him. The wounds she herself had raked open that morning were still raw, the humiliation still too fresh. He thought he knew, but he didn’t. And even if he did, there was no way he’d ever understand.
„It was a flower delivery van,“ he finally said, just as quietly. „Spinnelli’s got a few men canvassing the Arboretum area where King’s body was found to see if anyone saw a similar van. Hopefully it hasn’t been so long that the trail’s gone cold.“
One of Julia’s techs came in with a clipboard. „Well, this is something you don’t see every day,“ Julia said. „Two of your Blade vies have evidence of cellular damage. From the look of these slides, I’d say your gang boys at one time were frozen solid.“
Mia tsked. „Freezer burn. Shoulda’ used Saran Wrap.“
Reagan shot Mia an amused look before turning back to Julia. „That makes sense.“
Julia raised a brow. „It does?“
Mia nodded. „The three Blades were in the photo together, but they were last seen at different times. We wondered what our humble servant did with the first bodies while he killed all three. He wanted them all in the photo together, since they did the crime together.“
Reagan crossed his arms over his chest. „This could mean that he’s storing them in a place where he can’t risk detection. If he hadn’t frozen them, the first two bodies would have started to stink before he bagged all three.“
Mia scrunched her mouth. „Or he could just be the fastidious type.“
„This could also support his being a hunter,“ Jack said. „A hunter would have a big freezer for his game, especially if he went for deer.“
Reagan nodded slowly. „You’ve got something there,“ he said, then looked over at Mia. „After the press conference, let’s pay a visit to the local target range. I’ll bet they have a club for hunters or know where we can find one.“
„Ask for members that go for deer and fowl,“ Jack advised. „You don’t sew up deer after they’re dressed, but you might stitch up a bird. I’ve got to get back now. Bye, Julia.“
Julia looked up from King’s body with an absent-minded smile. „Bye.“
Mia rolled her eyes as Jack left with a backward wave. „Idiot,“ she muttered, but Kristen wasn’t sure if she meant Jack or Julia and frankly was in no mood to care. All she was looking for right now was escape from Reagan’s eyes that seemed to follow her every move. She’d pulled on her own coat and was two steps from the door when Mia stopped her with a lifted hand. „Wait. We actually came to talk to you about that database you keep. The one of all your cases. Did you keep track of whether or not the victim was satisfied with the outcome of the case?“ Mia asked.
„Or more importantly,“ Reagan’s voice rumbled softly, „with you. We’re looking for someone who didn’t blame you for losing.“
Kristen swallowed, the sound of his voice sending prickly tingles up and down her spine. He was too close, way too close, but there was no room to back away. So she drew a deep, steadying breath instead, unwillingly drawing in the smell of him. Soap… and gyros. He’d had gyros for lunch. „They all blame me, one way or another. But I’ll go through my list and try to remember everything I can.“ She glanced at her watch and felt the tension already throbbing in her neck spike, this time at the thought of Zoe Richardson’s planned conversion of Spinnelli’s press conference into a three-ring circus. „It’s showtime, people.“
Friday, February 20,
3:00 p.m.
This is better than sex. The thought struck Zoe as funny, even as she acknowledged the truth of it, but she didn’t smile. Cameras were poised, the stage set with microphones and two straight-backed chairs. A door on the left opened and two men walked to the podium. One was John Alden, Kristen Mayhew’s boss, the other Lieutenant Marc Spinnelli.
And speaking of the devil… As Alden and Spinnelli took their places on the stage, Mayhew entered, flanked by Mitchell and Reagan. Zoe frowned inside her head at the sight of Reagan who thought he was pretty hot stuff, giving them the slip this morning. Still surrounded by her honor guard, Mayhew moved to the sidelines, her face devoid of any signs of their earlier altercation until she spied Zoe sitting in the front row. Mayhew’s response was quickly masked, but not before Zoe saw her green eyes flash.
Spinnelli stepped up to the microphone and the vague murmurs ceased.
„You’ve heard we are investigating a string of connected murders,“ Spinnelli announced without preamble and Zoe felt more than saw the heads turning her direction.
Thank you, thank you, Zoe thought.
„Yesterday we recovered five bodies. All were declared homicides. As you know, all the victims had within the past three years passed through the justice system, but were either acquitted or released by way of plea. The investigation is being led by Detectives Mia Mitchell and Abe Reagan of my office and supported by the State’s Attorney’s Office. We currently have no statement on the status of the investigation other than to say we are applying all urgency to its resolution.“ He paused and cameras flashed.