“Well, according to the courts, it sure as hell didn’t make you innocent either. You should have done time for the kiddie porn, too. A lot of time. You lucked out doing a little time for sex with a minor.” She glared at him.
“What people don’t know can’t hurt them,” he smirked as he lunged toward her again.
Kathryn pulled the trigger, and the bullet lodged just above the bridge of Eric’s nose.
His mouth fell open, and he began to lift his hand toward his face when he dropped to the floor. He wasn’t moving. His eyes stared at the cabinet next to him and blood ran down his cheek and dripped into the pool forming on the white tile. Blood also saturated his shirt from the shoulder wound. She watched him for a few moments until she was sure he was dead.
Slipping the gun back into her purse, she murmured, “No more kiddie porn or raping children for you.” Her mind flashed back to the Sunday in church with Pam and the kids. She could imagine Eric hard at labor breaking up brimstone--whatever that was.
Kathryn grabbed the change container and closed the apartment door behind her. She walked through the quiet building. The street was empty, and she climbed into her car and headed home.
~ * ~
After her post-execution ritual, Kathryn slipped into a pink t–shirt and a pair of pink flowered PJ bottoms and looked at her bed. It seemed empty and cold. She walked into the living room, poured a glass of wine, and settled on the sofa. She lay her head on a throw pillow and reached for the remote. Soft music filled the room, and Kathryn texted Nick.
After an hour of sipping wine and texting, Kathryn yawned. Nick sent another text about their next date and asked her if she would spend the night again. She didn’t read it since she had drifted off to sleep.
Kathryn woke with a start when she saw the sun coming through the window. She grabbed her phone and saw the last text from Nick. She also noticed she had an hour until she needed to be at work. She took a deep breath and blew it out.
Walking to the kitchen to make coffee, she texted Nick apologizing for falling asleep. Kathryn also let him know she’d love to spend the night and then added the word “anytime.” He replied with a row of bright yellow smiley faces and a red rose. One last text let her know he was running late and would see her at lunch.
Kathryn took a large cranberry muffin from the freezer and popped it into the microwave to thaw and warm. She had time to enjoy her breakfast and two cups of coffee.
~ * ~
Kathryn arrived at the morgue a short time before her shift began. The room was lit up brightly, and she knew Doc had been working. She reached into her pocket for the door remote when she saw a vase and single red rose sitting next to the doors. The clear glass vase was tied with a red and white ribbon. A card was attached to the ribbon. Kathryn knew immediately that it must be from Nick. The vases and roses were sold in the gift shop and she doubted anywhere else was open for flower purchases at this hour. Possibly the twenty-four hour market, but the vase looked familiar.
She picked it up and saw her name on the envelope. Pulling the card out, it read simply: “I agree. Anytime.” She felt her heart skip a beat. Warmth surged through her body. The feeling encompassed her. A year of marriage to James had never made her feel this way. Was she falling for Nick or had she already fallen? Kathryn couldn’t remember a time when she and Nick weren’t friends. Friends and now lovers. Life was good.
Kathryn placed the vase on her desk and hurried to change. She disposed of the gloves in the red hazard bags and then walked back to her desk and dropped her purse in a drawer. She walked to Doc’s office and knocked on his doorframe.
“Hi, I just wanted to let you know I was here,” she smiled.
“I heard you.” He replied. “Looks like you have an admirer.”
“It’s from Nick.” She couldn’t fight the smile she felt spread across her face.
“Nick, our Nick the orderly,” Doc scrunched his eyebrows.
Kathryn nodded. “He’s a great guy and he’s in nursing school. I plan to help him with his studying.”
“Well, good for you. You should be doing more than hanging around with dead people.” Doc laughed.
Kathryn agreed. “Nick is more fun.”
They were laughing when they heard the bell ring. Someone needed to access the morgue. Kathryn turned and saw Detective Wayne. She smiled and hurried to press the door button and invited the detective into the morgue.
Kathryn expected he might show up and hoped she hid any shock or nervousness.
“Good morning, Detective. I take it you’re here to see Doc. He’s in his office. Go on in.” She smiled and then settled at her desk. While the detective strode to Doc’s office, Kathryn pulled out her phone and sent a quick text to Nick.
“Thanks. Lunch?”
Then she added a little heart. Nick must have been busy because his answer was the single letter “k.”
Kathryn turned on her computer and pulled up a file she had been working on before she left on Friday. She also scanned the intake records for the weekend trying to figure out why the homicide detective returned. Her answer was simple. They brought David Squires in early Sunday morning.
“Damn,” she muttered. “They found him quickly.” She returned to her work knowing Doc’s autopsy report would show death by gunshot and list homicide as the cause of death. She leaned back in her chair and listened to the conversation coming from Doc’s office.
Dr. Graydor asked, “Did the bullet fragments match as I thought they would?”
Detective Wayne answered, “Yup, but something my firearms examiner said intrigued me.”
“What’s that?”
“After she confirmed both bullets were the same caliber, she said if she had this case twenty years ago, she’d be looking for a cop as the killer.”
“A cop,” Doc said. “What made her think that?”
“The damage you described and the mushroomed bullet made her wonder that since she seldom sees this particular combination it could be from an old police revolver. It’s a bit different from current observations of guns on the street.”
“Interesting,” Doc said. “With the headshots, I was thinking some kind of gang activity. That puts a different spin on it. Well, I hope we don’t see another, but maybe she’ll learn more when I can remove all those fragments from the brain of the first victim. It should be solid enough for dissection soon, but then again the x-rays of both victims show similar damage.”
“Agreed,” Detective Wayne’s voice floated out of Doc’s office. “Something is odd about these cases. I don’t see gang members using an old revolver. If there is another, we’ll know more.”
Doc asked, “Could some kid have taken his father or grandfather’s gun?”
“Anything’s possible, but with the accuracy and one shot kill, I doubt a kid would do this.”
Kathryn heard a chirping sound and the detective’s voice. “Wayne. Yeah, I’ll be right there. We got another one doc. Wanna drive with me?”
“Thanks, but if it is murder, I’ll be bringing him back here so I’ll take the van. Write down the address will ya.” Doc stuck his head out of his office door and spoke to Kathryn.
“Page Coyle. Tell him I need him for a run now.”
“Yes, sir,” she answered and sent the page to Coyle’s pager. Her phone rang in a few moments, and she relayed the message to Coyle. She hung up listening to him spouting obscenities. A few minutes later, Doc came out of his office carrying his black bag, and the elevator ding announced Coyle’s arrival.
Before he walked through the double glass doors, Doc turned to Kathryn and said, “You’re in charge.” The doors closed and Doc and Coyle were on their way to what Kathryn assumed was Eric’s apartment.
Kathryn sent Nick a text telling him she had to stay in the morgue through lunch. Nick texted back that he would bring lunch down to her during his break.
She sat back in her chair contemplating her next move.
I wonder if that old guy was
an ex-cop. I hope all these executions don’t end up on National news, or he might wonder about his old gun. But then, it isn’t the only .38 Special around, and if he sold it illegally, he would be in trouble, too. Maybe I should move up the next execution just in case I need to take a longer break than I expected. Kevin is one man that needs to be executed soon. Tomorrow night or tonight depending on what I hear from Doc when he returns.
Kathryn busied herself with her work until she heard the elevator ding and Nick walked out carrying a white bag from the cafeteria. She met him outside the morgue and said, “Let’s sit out here. The atmosphere is a bit better than inside, and I can still hear the phone. Besides Doc said I was in charge and I can’t break the ‘no food’ rule can I?”
He smiled and bent over to kiss her. “Sure,” he said placing the bag and two bottled ice teas on the small table near the elevator.
She hugged him and gave him a proper kiss. “Thanks for the rose. It was a nice surprise.”
He winked and said, “I’m full of surprises. Let’s eat.” He handed her a grilled chicken sandwich and a bowl of fresh fruit.
“How do you know what I like? Have you been spying on me?” Kathryn asked.
“Not spying just admiring from a distance.” He grinned at her and grabbed a roast beef sub out of the bag.
They chatted and ate until Nick’s lunch break was over. He grabbed her and pulled her into a passionate kiss. He whispered in her ear, “Let me know when you want to go out again. Anytime works.”
“Soon,” she whispered back.
He tossed the bag in a trash can next to the elevator and waved as the doors closed. Kathryn took a deep breath. She was ready to follow Nick calling out “anytime is now,” but she knew Doc would be back soon and she needed to get the morgue set up.
The service elevator dinged and she knew Doc was back with Eric’s body. She would be ready to assist and keep her ears open.
Chapter Ten
Kathryn looked up as the doors opened, and Joey Coyle pushed a gurney holding a black body bag into the morgue. He groaned and swore under his breath. She heard him and offered to help.
“I can do this myself. I don’t need a little girl to help me,” Joey grumbled.
“Coyle.” Dr. Graydor’s voice boomed from the doorway. “What have I told you about respect? You show it to everyone, alive or dead, in my department. If I tell you again, the next time you discuss a job will be at the unemployment office. I’ll need you in a little while. After transferring the body, go wait in the specimen room.”
Joey rolled his eyes, removed Eric’s body from the black body bag, slid it in a cooler, and headed for the specimen room. Kathryn fought the urge to laugh. The specimen room was a small windowless room off the main morgue room that held specimens. It’s where Doc kept items for future study or dissection. One wall held a bank of refrigerators filled with specimen jars and slides. A second held a large white board with Doc’s scribbled notes only Kathryn could decipher. The third held a storage cabinet filled with gowns, masks, and gloves. The fourth wall was plain gray brick and held the only door. The door to freedom that Coyle was unable to approach. Kathryn knew he hated the room and thought he must deserve a time-out.
Detective Wayne followed Doc into the morgue. “You were a little hard on the boy weren’t you, Tim?”
Doc shook his head. “That kid is more trouble than he’s worth. Do you know he came up with some ploy to hit on nurses to the point that all the single nurses have joined a celibacy club just to keep him away?”
Detective Wayne’s laugh filled the morgue, and it was a pleasant sound in a usually gloomy place. Kathryn smiled at him, and he asked, “Did this Coyle kid hit on you with his scheme?”
“Not this time because I have a boyfriend, but he has tried other things before. I have to admit the latest movie scheme was bad even for Joey.” Kathryn answered.
The detective’s eyebrows raised. “Movie scheme? Was it that bad?”
Kathryn blushed and said, “Maybe Doc should explain.”
The detective and the doctor exchanged a few words, and the detective laughed again. “That’s a new one. He sounds like the hospital scoundrel.”
Kathryn laughed and nodded.
Doc turned around and asked Kathryn to get the portable x-ray machine. As she pushed the machine closer to Eric’s body and readied the machine, a thought crossed her mind.
If I ever need to get rid of the gun because the police are getting close, I’ll find a way to get into Coyle’s place and hide it there. He has a huge gun collection. What’s one more?
She hid a smile as she x-rayed the bullet wound in Eric’s head and shoulder.
Doc called Joey out of the specimen room and told him to get the film up and back from the radiologist STAT. Joey grabbed the brown envelope and ran out of the morgue to the elevators.
Doc chuckled, “That’ll keep him busy for a little while.”
Kathryn worked at her desk but could hear Doc and the detective’s conversation. They spoke about family and sports. Nothing that would help her, but she was patient.
Kathryn’s computer beeped, and she noticed she had an e-mail from the radiology department. She walked into Doc’s office and said, “It’ll be a while before Joey gets back with the actual film, but Dr. Whetstone e-mailed the images so you can get an idea. The shoulder x-ray shows a good piece of the bullet is still intact.”
Doc jumped to his feet, and Detective Wayne followed him.
Kathryn hurried to cooler #3 and opened the drawer. She pulled out Eric’s body now resting in a clear plastic bag. She pulled his body onto an autopsy table and set out Doc’s instruments. Doc and the detective walked up behind her.
She watched as Doc pulled a nearly intact bullet from Eric’s shoulder.
What the hell happened? Those are supposed to mushroom. Is there enough intact to match it to my gun? Breathe Kathryn. Listen to what they say. You need to make decisions with a clear head.
“Kathryn,” Doc said. “Get me an evidence bag so Jackson can take this with him.”
She turned and felt a small icy shiver run down her spine when she heard the bullet hit the stainless steel bowl. She turned back and handed a small plastic bag to Doc. He dropped the bullet into the bag and handed it to Detective Wayne.
The detective slipped the bag into his pocket as Coyle rushed back into the room. “Here, Dr. Graydor. I brought the x-rays.”
Doc looked up. “Thanks, get back to work.”
Coyle ran back out of the morgue without a word or glance in Kathryn’s direction.
Kathryn said, “I think you scared him.”
“Let’s hope it lasts. Now, let’s look at the head x-ray.”
~ * ~
Kathryn’s concern about the nearly intact bullet plagued her mind the rest of the afternoon. If the detective and his ammunitions expert realized it came from a .38 Special, they would narrow their search of suspects to people they thought might own one.
Then again Kathryn thought they will be looking at retired officers and those with old registered guns. Mine is unregistered. Did that old man register it at some time? Why would he sell it illegally if it could be traced back to him? It must be a stolen gun or one he picked up illegally someplace, too. Worse comes to worse; I’ll dump it at Coyle’s house.
She smiled and heard her phone beep. The smile left her face when she read Pam’s text.
“Guy in the park has a record for domestic battery. Beat his wife nearly to death and sexually abused his eight-year old daughter. Enclosing newspaper link.”
Kathryn pulled up the article and read how this creep, Greg, terrorized his wife and child. The wife explained she caught him with their daughter, but she was on a heavy pain med IV drip, and they couldn’t use her original statement. When she was alert, she recanted and said she must have been hallucinating. She was attacked by a stranger. The little girl, unable to see her mom while she was hospitalized, naturally asked for her dad. His lawyer got him off.
Eventually, he and his wife divorced, and he moved across the state. Greg now lives less than a block from the playground.
Kathryn’s hand shook as she gripped her phone tightly. She couldn’t fight the tears that streamed down her cheeks. That girl was only a little older than Kathryn when Mr. Waters abused her. Greg would do it again. She had to stop him before he did. The execution would be tonight and then she would lay low for as long as it took until she knew how the police investigation was going. Doc and Detective Wayne were good friends. She was sure they would talk, and Doc always spoke with her about cases and previous cases.
She returned Pam’s text.
“Don’t worry. You stay with them and be sure Rob’s mom is aware of what he looks like. You can show his pic to the kids. They learn about strangers in school. Make it sound like a lesson, and they’ll remember. Love you. Call later.”
~ * ~
Doc stuck his head out of his office to remind Kathryn it was time to go home. She had been trying to look hard at work, but her mind was honing details of tonight’s execution.
She stood and said goodnight as she headed for the dressing room. On her way to the elevator, she texted Nick:
“Long day. Headache. Need a nap. Call later.” She added a smiley face and heart. On her way to her car, she received his reply.
“Ok, feel better. Waiting for the call.” He added a smiley face and two hearts.
This is getting serious. I like it. Kathryn thought as she hurried into her car and drove home. Nick’s text kept her smiling the entire drive.
In a hurry to put this execution behind her, Kathryn went through her local coffee shop drive-through and bought a large vanilla latte. Once home, she finished it with a dinner of a chocolate nut protein bar and a red delicious apple.
The sun set a few minutes before Kathryn was dressed and ready. She hadn’t been able to case out Greg’s home, but she knew exactly where it was. Too close to the park and too close to Pam’s, she passed it several times without noticing. It was a newer three story apartment building, and she hoped it didn’t have a security system.
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