by Joe Conlan
Typically, a crime scene investigator would do their absolute best to avoid stepping in any bodily fluids to prevent evidence contamination. In this instance, it would be impossible. Just about every square inch of the living room carpet was saturated with razed flesh, blood, and or brain matter. The men hiked up their pants and placed plastic booties provided by the ERT over their shoes. With each cautious step they took further into the cabin, they heard the squishing sounds of the blood as it soaked into the slippers. Trying his best to ignore the unpleasant conditions, Leland carefully inspected each of the bodies and the surrounding area, keeping the number of steps he took to a minimum. Besides the obvious ravage to her body, he noticed Deborah was naked and made a note to himself to instruct the ERT to test for a semen sample. They studied and photographed the position of the bodies and their relationship to each other. Leland carefully examined the walls and floors for any blood or tissue spray patterns and took pictures when necessary. When he saw the remains of Jack Tyler, he immediately knew from the proportions of the damaged flesh he was shot with a high powered automatic pistol at point blank range. The two men scoured the room visually for bullet holes in the walls or ceiling. To minimize disrupting the scene, Leland ultimately decided to let the ERT continue the search for cartridges after the team was through with their analysis. When they had completed their inspection of the room where the bodies were located, they searched the remainder of the suite for any potential clues. On the courtyard, Leland found the table set up for a game of dominoes. The ERT would have to dust each individual piece for fingerprints then later bag them for storage. He took photographs of the scene making a mental note there were four folding chairs arranged around the game table. There was nothing found of any particular interest in either the kitchen or the bedroom. Once Leland and Frye had done as much as they could under the circumstances, they sent the ERT in to do their thing. Leland expected they would be spending a good part of the day combing the cabin for evidence both large and small. They would be particularly interested in items such as hair, carpet fibers, fingerprints, bullet cartridges, blood, rags, cigarette butts, clothing fibers, plant debris, pollen, metal filings, cosmetics, paint specks and any other trace evidence that could possibly be connected to the suspect’s world. Special Agent Jonathan Frazier was on his way from Quantico. The profiler would be the last to analyze the crime scene after all the evidence was collected, but before the bodies were removed to be transported to the M.E’s office. The Captain was waiting for Leland and Frye in the hallway just outside the suite. Interviewing Daniel was next on Leland’s list of things to do. He asked Bjornson to be taken to the brig. Complying with the request himself, Bjornson escorted the agents to the bowels of the ship where the rare passenger suspected of a crime was detained. When the men entered the office adjoining the brig’s lone cell, the all too familiar stench of stagnated blood and decaying brain matter assaulted their senses. The security officers manning the jail had neglected to clean Daniel for fear of destroying evidence. The Captain introduced Leland to Ted Hauser. Directing his inquiry to the lead security officer, Leland asked, “Has he made any statements?”
“That would be difficult. He’s been unconscious or sleeping, I don’t know which, for the past two hours. I tried to get him up several times...no luck.”
“Where’s the doctor? Agent Falcone lost a decent amount of blood, he’s most likely heavily under the influence of some drug and you just let him sleep for two hours?”
Feeling the need to step in, Captain Bjornson responded, “Our doctors on this ship are extremely qualified and well-trained. He’s been thoroughly examined by Dr. Kriek. The doctor tells me he’s in stable condition.”
“I don’t know. He doesn’t look stable to me,” said Leland. He attempted to wake Daniel to no avail then directed his attention to Daniel’s chest and abdominal area to ascertain whether he was still breathing. His respiration was definitely somewhat shallow and sluggish, the rising and falling of his diaphragm just barely perceptible.
“I don’t like the way he’s breathing,” Leland continued. “I’ve seen a lot of drug-induced comas over the years. I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the case here. Let’s get him back up to the infirmary. I want him re-examined by Kriek. I wanna know if we need to get him to a hospital.”
“Not a problem...Hauser, get him up to the infirmary,” ordered Captain Bjornson.
“Hold on. Before we move him, I just want to get a few pictures.” Leland had Frye take several quick photographs of Daniel from all angles, front and back then released him for transport to the infirmary.
Leland’s next order of business was to set up a command center. He asked Bjornson if there was a space available large enough to accommodate at least fifty agents and their equipment. Time was ticking and innocent passengers would soon be getting restless, not to mention a killer could be on the loose. An efficient plan to interview each and every individual on the ship, including crew members was essential. Captain Bjornson suggested the theatre which had more than enough space to comply with Leland’s request.
Dealing with angry, impatient crowds was the last thing Leland needed. He had enough on his plate. An orderly process to capture the murderer and interview passengers now being his number one priority, he was reminded that Annie hadn’t shown up yet. Her knowledge of the ship and its facilities and protocols for security could be helpful for organization and implementation of the operation. He pulled his cell phone from its case attached to his belt and called her.
“Hello Agent Leland. I’m sorry I’m running late. I’ve really had a rough time getting myself together this morning. I promise I’ll be there soon. I’m on the road now. I shouldn’t be more than ten minutes. How’s Daniel?”
“He’s been sleeping or unconscious for the past two hours. He’s not breathing great. He’s been transported from the brig to the ship’s infirmary. The doctor’s examining him now to make sure he’s not in a drug-induced coma. I’m expecting he’s gonna send him to the hospital.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t wait. I can get an ambulance there right away.”
“I’m sure he’ll be ok if your doctor knows what he’s doing. The Captain assures me Kriek’s gonna keep an eye on him. We’ll get him the care he needs. I have no doubt we’ll be calling that ambulance in the next few minutes.”
“Ok well, I assume no one’s located Damien Drysdale?”
“We haven’t started a coordinated search or the interviews, yet. We need to come up with an organized and effective plan. I’m getting some reinforcements in here and believe me, we’ll scour the ship from top to bottom. The Ft. Lauderdale Police Department and Broward Sheriff’s Office are sending as many men as they can spare over here. Our S.W.A.T. team is on its way, too. I’m not gonna assume anything at this point. I don’t know for a fact this was Drysdale. He’s a top suspect for sure, but we’ve just started the investigation.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Annie was thinking this guy had to be a total moron. She continued, “I think it’s obvious what happened here. We can’t let this guy slip through our fingers.”
“Relax. I’m not saying it wasn’t him. Believe me, if the asshole is on this ship, he’s not gettin’ past me. I’m just sayin... there’s a lot to consider here and we’re about an hour into the investigation. I don’t jump to conclusions. It’s come back to bite me in the ass too many times. Don’t worry, finding Drysdale will be our number one focus. I can promise you that. And I’d like to get started.”
“Sorry, I’m not myself. This has been the worst nightmare I could possibly imagine. I just want that maniac caught.”
“No worries. Our goals are exactly the same.”
“Alright, well, if you’re ok with it, you can use the port terminal building to take statements. That way the disembarkation process can run more efficiently. We can let the passengers off in groups, interview them then let the ones who clearly have nothing to do with the murders be on their way.”
“Excellent plan. I’m gonna need cooperation from your people to get the terminal building set up. Who should I talk to here, the Captain?”
“I should be there in a minute. Where are you on the ship?”
“I’m in the theatre.”
“Ok, I’ll meet you there. See you in a few.”
Shem was unable to get any sleep during the night. The thrill from the murders had been sending an uninterrupted supply of adrenaline coursing through his veins. He was incapable of sitting still, much less falling asleep. At least, he would have more than a sufficient amount of energy to bring this night to a successful conclusion. When he arrived at the cabin after finishing the job at the suite, he immediately pulled out his laptop from its hiding place under the bed and booted up. Once online, he hacked into the Joy of the Seas’ current passenger list and erased all traces of Isaac Jefferson from their database.
For the entire seven days of the cruise, he did his best to avoid being seen entering and exiting the room. The most difficult challenge was evading the stewards who were constantly in the hallways and servicing his cabin. The first two days, he carefully and covertly observed the behavior patterns of the housekeeper assigned to his cabin. Based on the information he collected, he chose the best times for ingress and egress. In order to avoid being heard by neighbors, he only used the bathroom well after midnight and never left or entered the room without being sure not a sole was present. Whenever he was inside the cabin, the first order of business was to don a pair of gloves. Upon exiting, he wiped down both sides of the door handle with a handkerchief. He slept on the floor every night and each time he left the cabin, he hid his bags under the bed beneath the extra blankets and life preservers that were stored there.
Every steward was required to keep a list of their passengers in the maintenance office located on the floor they serviced. Shem printed out a copy of a new falsified passenger list after deleting Isaac Jefferson, dated it the first Sunday of the cruise then headed for his steward’s station at the end of the hallway. The previous Monday, he searched that same office, his specific task to find where the list was kept. He located it in a file on a shelf directly above the steward’s desk.
Aware the door to the maintenance room was typically locked, Shem took his lock picking kit with him on that last morning of the cruise. He broke in with relative ease, found the file exactly where it was on his prior visit, replaced it with the new list and returned to his quarters.
Shem had intentionally reserved a cabin that would be facing the terminal building when the ship returned to Port Everglades. As soon as it pulled into its mooring that morning, he kept a look out on the dock from his balcony for the boarding of immigration officers. There were at least twenty-five of them milling about waiting to embark. He waited a good forty-five minutes after they boarded to decide to make his final move. Earlier, he dressed in his immigration uniform he purchased from Uniformswarehouse.com. During the night, he threw his clothing suitcase overboard leaving only the suitcase/briefcase which contained some articles he didn’t want to leave behind.
He grabbed the case, opened the door to the cabin and peeked out. Seeing no one, he left the room and made his way to the stairway. Descending the steps two at a time, he wasn’t too concerned he would run into any immigration officers. He was pretty sure they would still be meeting with ship officials to devise a plan for getting passengers off the ship. He couldn’t believe his good luck when he arrived at the gangway on Deck 4. The purser who greeted him with his German shepherd at the port building the previous week and a Homeland Security officer were manning the exit. He approached the duo and said, “Good morning. How’s it goin? It’s been quite a week, hasn’t it? We usually don’t have this much drama at the port over an entire year.”
“Good morning, Officer,” the purser responded. “Nice to see you again. It’s been one thing after another. This ship can’t seem to catch a break. I’m wondering if they’re making a big drug bust or something. Where’s your dog?”
“She hasn’t been requested. The FBI has their own K9’s. They don’t need me here anyway. Everyone at our office was so anxious to check out what was happening on the ship, we left no one back at the office to take calls. I was the lucky one elected to go back. I can’t say I’m not happy to get out of this mess. It could take a while.”
The Homeland Security officer commented, “We may not be able to get everyone off the ship until late tonight or maybe even tomorrow. You’re a lucky man. Unfortunately, they’re not telling us much. You wouldn’t happen to know what’s going on, would you?”
“I could tell you but then I’d have to kill you.”
The officer and purser chuckled at what they thought was a joke. After a few more minutes of small talk, Shem was permitted to disembark. As he made his way to his vehicle parked in the employee parking garage, he whistled the tune, “Happy Days Are Here Again.”
Shortly after Daniel’s examination by Dr. Kriek, he and Agent Leland made the decision to transfer the patient to Broward General Hospital. The emergency room physician on duty ordered a host of blood tests upon Daniel’s arrival. Based on the concentration of six-monoacetylmorphine found in his system and the amount of time that had elapsed since the ingestion of the drug, the doctor diagnosed a near heroin overdose. He ordered the immediate intra-venous administration of naloxone, a medication commonly used to counteract dangerous levels of opiates in the blood. Only when he was certain his patient’s condition had stabilized, he phoned Leland and advised him Daniel could remain unconscious for as much as an additional twenty-four hours. At that point, Leland’s only option was to focus on conducting the ship interviews and finding Drysdale, if, in fact, he was responsible for the murders. He asked the purser’s desk for a list of adult male passengers who were travelling alone. It was uncommon for people to cruise without friends or family, making the list short. Four men were identified and called over the public address system for immediate questioning. It was obvious that none of them were Damien Drysdale since the youngest of the group was fifty five years old.
By mid-afternoon, a team of twenty-five men and women from four different law enforcement agencies were able to examine and release five hundred passengers. The FBI’s S.W.A.T. team, equipped with King’s employee photograph of Damien Drysdale, was searching every cabin and common area on the ship. If they didn’t locate him by the time all passengers were deposed, it was Leland’s plan to use K9s to search every inch of the luxury cruise liner.
As far as the lead investigator was concerned, there was absolutely no way Drysdale could have gotten off the ship without being seen. Every exit to the dock was guarded by at least one King employee and either a Ft. Lauderdale police officer, Broward County Sheriff’s Office deputy or an officer of the ship. Photographs of Damien Drysdale were posted in all common areas and gangways. If Drysdale was on the ship, they would catch him.
Leland along with Frye, other task force members, Captain Bjornson, those cruise officers in charge of navigation and ship security had already considered the question whether Drysdale could have jumped ship anywhere in close proximity to the port or anywhere else for that matter. The first call Leland made after receiving notice of the murders was to the United States Coast Guard. He requested they send a fleet of boats and helicopters to usher the Joy of the Seas to port. The Coast Guard rendezvoused with the cruise line in the Atlantic Ocean, eighty five miles from the coast. Six boats flanked the Joy while two helicopters shined floodlights on the stern, bow, starboard and port sides until it was securely tied to the dock. During the entire escort mission, they were keeping a close eye to be certain no one attempted to escape overboard. If the murderer jumped ship more than 85 miles out to sea, there was no way he could have survived. It was also highly unlikely that Drysdale had an accomplice waiting with an escape boat. No other craft were detected through the ship’s navigation and radar systems for hours before the estimated time of the murders until the formal escort arrived. That
type of thing would have been recorded in the log. Further confirmation was provided by eyewitness accounts of those officers responsible for sighting other vessels and the like with the naked eye.
The forensics team had been diligently collecting evidence at the scene for many hours. By that afternoon, they determined there were four sets of fingerprints on the dominoes. Throughout the remainder of the suite, there were countless distinct prints found on the walls and various surfaces. They would be run through AFIS, an electronic databank that compared unidentified latent and patent fingerprints to the known fingerprint file. The team was also able to conclude there were only two sets of fingerprints on the murder weapons. One of the sets belonged to Daniel. The others were already identified as those of the Lieutenant who disarmed him.
The medical examiner that inspected the bodies came to the conclusion that Deborah engaged in some form of sexual relations just before or after the time of the murder. She was able to identify dried semen along the exterior walls and on the labia of Deborah’s vagina. Those samples were stored for later DNA testing. Around four o’clock in the afternoon, the ERT completed their examination of the crime scene and the bodies were being prepared for transport to the County Coroner’s Office. Leland was hoping to have complete autopsy reports by the following morning. He already contacted the Chief Medical Examiner of Broward County who promised he and his team would work tirelessly throughout the night.
The ship roster reflected there were 2,534 passengers and 1,209 crew members. At 6:00pm, ten hours after the interviews began, 1,800 passengers were questioned and released. Every interviewee was first compared to the photograph of Damien Drysdale then given an opportunity to examine it to ascertain if they had seen him at any time during the cruise. As of yet, no one had recognized him. Leland was beginning to wonder whether Drysdale was actually on the ship. Certainly, by now, someone would have been able to identify the picture.