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May 12, 2004
Ghosts in the Machine Redux
"Dr. Logan," Judge Rainier took off his glasses and reached for the bottled water he'd been sucking on quietly while Jimmy and I had made our best case. "All of this is very interesting, but I don't understand what exhuming Marianna Harlon's body will do for your case."
"There are too many questions around her death." Jimmy jumped in. "I don't think that anyone killed Denise intentionally. But I think the reason she is dead has a great deal to do with how her mother died and why?"
"She committed suicide." The judge reminded him.
"There wasn't an autopsy," I pointed out. "No blood work... just the word of her father and the detective first on the scene."
"Is this going where I think it's going?" The judge asked suspiciously.
"We have reason to believe that Denise was killed by her father." I replied. "But I have to prove that. The blood work you have in your hands is preliminary. If the other tests concur, Denise Harlon's father is Detective Riley Hunter. I will have the more accurate test back in three weeks. Hunter was first on the scene at Denise's murder and Marianna's murder."
"Do you really think that you can prove how she died after seventeen years?" The judge reached for the paperwork Jimmy proffered.
"I can try." I replied.
"Try?" The judge looked me over.
"I owe her the respect of giving it my best shot."
-----000-----
"You know," Jimmy and I shared a pizza as we waited for the crew to deliever Marianna Harlon's casket to the morgue. "If we are wrong..." he stopped for a moment.
"We aren't" I said. "And even if we were, all the circumstantials led us straight to Rilsy."
"Really?" JImmy asked. "I feel like..."
"The blue wall fell a long time ago." I had heard it ad nauseum from my ex. Loyalty can only go so far. The clamoring of the metal doors in the recieving area stopped our conversation.
"I guess it's moot." Jimmy stood and set his lunch aside. "So what exactly are we looking for?"
"It's too late for bloodwork." I walked to the back of the lab, Jimmy on my heels. "I am looking for obvious signs of strangulation, trauma or trace evidence of her attacker that might still be on the body."
"Here goes," Jimmy took a deep breath and reached out to help the other techs open the casket. Dirt and dust burst into the air as the lid to the casket fell back. "I don't think you are going to find anything." Jimmy's voice caught me.
"How come?" I walked closer.
"Because Marianna isn't here." Jimmy replied.
Posted at 11:50 pm by huntress100
May 6, 2004
Carefully, I pulled apart the cigarette butts that Jimmy brought me. He was on a deadline now. Cheif Leary had given him exactly three days to test his theories, which Jimmy had only told the cheif enough to get them the three days and no more. I was not surprised when, a few hours later the DNA test I'd ran came back a preliminary positive. Riley was Denise's father. It would take nearly three weeks to get an RFLP test back, but what I had done was enough to take to a judge.
"I want to talk to her now!" I could here Riley Hunter's voice booming from the front lobby. Heavy footfalls were followed by the stacatto of my assistant's heels down the tiled halls toward my lab.
"Dr. Logan..." Her voice was tight.
"I heard," I stopped her, turning to face a red faced Riley. "What is so pressing that you need to upset this entire office?" I asked impatiently. I could guess what was wrong.
"Your patients are dead." He spat. "I doubt that I am disturbing them. What the hell do you think that you are doing?"
"You tell me." I played stupid.
"You're fucking Jimmy and he's trying to get my ass booted off the force." He walked toward me. "What gives?"
"I run tests and do autopsies." I replied calmly. Now that he was close, the stink of liquor was obvious on his breath. "I process what I am brought or called to. Personally, I have no stake in anything that is going on with you."
"Leary has me on ass duty." Riley paced. "He says that I am a liability. My objectivity has been called into question. I hate you and you hate me but what the hell did I do for you want to ruin my career?"
"I have done nothing to you." I advanced on him, being tired of being yelled at. "If you are in trouble then you did something wrong. But I will give you a piece of advice."
"What's that?" Riley seemed stunned that I had faced him down.
"If you know anything about Denise Harlon's death, no matter how small, you need to tell it."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Sudddenly Riley sounded scared.
"I am not accusing you of anything." I said. "But things are not adding up here. I have reviewed my own findings. Denise died of two causes. She overdosed and someone attacked her if not as it was happeneing, then soon after she died. Whoever killed her knew her and loved her. They wanted to cover up what had happened, not for themselves but rather to spare her family pain and preserve her dignity." I paused. "The person that killed her, loved her."
"I have already talked to Mayzer." Riley dropped into detective mode. You have to give the devil his due. Riley could be a fuck up but he was a good detective. "He didn't do it. He has an alibi."
"There was DNA at the scene, " I lied. "I'll be collecting samples from family members and friends, Mayzer included. If he didn't do it, I am going to find out who did."
"You said there was no semen." Riley was shocked.
"There was a cigarette butt." I replied.
"Anyone could have dropped it." Riley countered.
"It was under her body." I continued my ruse. "It was even an unusual brand." I knew Riley's brand. "It's a clove cigarette, a Samporina."
"So you have a teenager." He said. "Its a fad these days."
"Or the habit of someone who had spent time in Spain or the habit of someone who is used to the finer things in life. They can't be bought in cartons and are nearly five dollars a pack." I stopped for emphasis, letting him stew. I could hear Jimmy's footsteps down the hall.
"I know Joshua Harlon," Riley said thoughtfully, no doubt trying to finesse me. "He smokes them."
"He's a possibility. "Jimmy was in the doorway now. "But I also know of several other people around her who do, Mayzer included."
"What is going on?" I could tell that Jimmy was mad. My assistant obviously called him.
"Everything's fine." I smiled up at him, greeting him with a hug. "Riley and I were just comparing notes on what I found today." Jimmy looked uncomfortable. "The cigarette we found at the scene had DNA." I continued. "Now all we have to do is to get the judge to order swabs on all the principals in the case and I should have my killer."
"Cool," he grinned far too wide. "I have good news too."
"Do tell," I replied.
"Not now." Jimmy said. "At lunch. You want to join us?" He turned the question to Riley.
"Naw..." He began to walk away. "Leary took me off the case. I'm riding a desk for awhile"
No one spoke until Riley was gone.
"He came after you?" Jimmy asked.
"I can handle myself." I warned. The last thing I wanted in the office is Jimmy playing Sir Lancelot. "Riley is Denise's father." I told him. "But I can't get the most accurate test back for about three weeks."
"So we have a motive for Riley to kill her if the judge believes our scenario." Jimmy said.
"Judge Rainier will listen to us." I suggested.
"How can you be sure?" Jimmy asked.
"Women's intuition," I replied.
"You want to go see him after lunch?" He asked.
"We can eat later." I reached for my coat. Jimmy grabbed my notes.
Posted at 04:08 pm by huntress100
May 5, 2004
As much as I hated it, I had other cases to tend to and so did Jimmy. It was a few days before I saw him again. I was busy sawing open a skull when he rushed into my lab.
"Miss me?" I felt a quick kiss on my cheek.
"Intensely," I spoke above the saw's buzz. "You got any good news?"
"A lot of maybe's," I saw him fish his notebook out of his coat pocket out of the corner of my eye. "How hard is it to do a DNA test?"
"On what?" I turned the saw off.
"Riley and Denise." He replied. "But I need to do it so that he does not know."
"Spit it out," I stood toe to toe with him. "You think that Riley is her father?"
"Denise was only a year old when Marianna killed herself." Jimmy replied.
"You don't think Marianna killed herself, do you?" I asked.
"Why does Joshua Harlon want this closed so bad?" Jimmy asked. "He was at the station this morning demanding to see the chief. If Denise's parentage is in question, there are alot of different problems for Mr. Harlon."
"Such as?" I continued to work. Jimmy was cool. I was in the middle of weighing a brain. It never phased him.
"The Wainright family is very wealthy and very self important." JImmy began his theory. "If Riley Hunter is Denise's father, the Wainright's would likely pull their financial support from several of Joshua Harlon's businesses and they would have disowned Denise."
"OK," I said. "That gives Joshua Harlon motive to want to end the investigation. But where does Cheif Leary fit in?"
"Harlon got him his job." Jimmy said. "Those of us who act simple overhear alot." He teased. "Cheif Leary barely finished high school. He'd have been a textile worker if he hadn't 'discovered' politics."
"So Harlon was helping him get into politics when Marianna killed herself." I said. "But why would Riley kill Denise if she was his daughter?"
"Riley said that it could have been an accident." Jimmy suggested.
"You don't do that sort of damage by accident." I stopped working and took off my gloves. "All of the injuries had to have happened simultaneously to her death or within minutes of it."
"Say he is her dad." Jimmy paced. "He tracks her down because he just has to tell her. She's been dating Mayzer. Riley would have hated that. He has a daughter by his ex wife and he runs a background check on every guy she dates. So he confronts her and Denise is so hopped up on Mixer that she attacks him. They struggle and she falls to the ground. Riley tries to help her up. She starts siezing up with an overdose and then dies in front of him. He pulls out that bowie knife he carries and stabs her to make it look like an attack. He's not a stupid man. He knows where to stab to kill someone."
"Why would he hide the overdose?" I stopped him.
"Harlon does not want her parentage to become public." He said. "I am sure that Riley and Harlon were involved in Wainright's death. I am sure that Riley realized once he confronted Denise that he had made a mistake and that he could lose everything for opening his mouth."
"Get one of Riley's cigarette butts next time you guys are together." I stopped his theory. I knew he could be right. "I have DNA from Denise. If we can prove that Riley is her dad then maybe you can prove enough to get Marianna exumed."
"Why would you do that?" Jimmy asked.
"She's a ghost with a tale to tell." I replied.
Posted at 10:17 pm by huntress100
May 2, 2004
I am sure that I had not slept in days when Jimmy and I saw each other again. In fact, I had spent the night in the lab trying to find the unique properties of this god awful mess called Mixer.
"Got any good news?" I asked, not looking up from my work. This was the first time Jimmy and I had ever worked this closely and I had learned his footfalls. I knew he was here before he got to the door.
"I missed you." I felt his hands on my shoulders. "And maybe I have good news. How about you?"
"Azurevan contains cocaine." I turned to face him. "As to why the tox screens show positive for GHB, that is anyone's guess. I am a medical examiner, not a chemist."
"Does it match what I brought you?" He asked hopefully.
"Yes," I smiled. "It is an exact match. So we know how it is being made."
"And why we have not caught it before now." Jimmy added. "That sample came from the evidence room. It was taken off of a couple of Summerville High students a month ago."
"After Marshall Walker ODed?" I hated to think that I missed it.
"Yeah," He said. "So we have been getting dead kids and thinking that it's crack and it isn't. I never even checked Marshal for GHB."
"Why would you?" Jimmy asked. "Its a date rape drug."
"True," I walked toward my office, yawning. Jimmy followed. "So now the question is, who gave the drug to Denise and is it the same person who killed her?"
"And that is what has me puzzled." Jimmy said. "Riley has finished the interviews. Denise got the drug from her best friend, Courtney. They cooked it up. Courtney's mom takes Azurevan."
"So her being high on this shit has nothing to do with her death?" I waited.
"I can't say that." Jimmy replied. "But the killer did not give her the drug. Courtney says that her boyfriend could not be at the party because he had 'business' to take care of."
"Business..." I spat. "No doubt the business of trafficking this shit. You got any other good news?"
"Not good," Jimmy looked nervous. "Mayzer is old enough to be Denise's father. Joshua Harlon is so over protective of Denise. I can't understand how he let her become involved with Mayzer."
"She's was a teenager." I said. "I was hell on wheels when I was her age."
"You still are," Jimmy chuckled. "But I take your point. Harlon may have had no real influence in the matter. But..." he stopped.
"What?"
"Just something Riley said." He replied. "You want to get out of here and get some lunch?"
-----000-----
"So," I waited for the waiter to leave. "What did Riley say?"
"I was just a kid when Denise's mom died." Jimmy began. "Riley and she..."
"They were involved?" I guessed.
"They were having an affiar." Jimmy corrected me. "Riley never talks about Marianna. She died of an overdose of valium after they split up."
"And her husband?" I asked.
"He had a boating accident about three months later." Jimmy said.
"Accident?" I asked.
"It wasn't on your watch, Cassie." He replied. "But today Riley just looks up at me an says that he thinks that this wasn't a murder. That maybe it was an accident?"
"You're kidding?" I thought I would choke. I'd done the post mortem.
"That was my response." Jimmy said between bites. "But Riley thinks Mayzer is innocent and I can't tie him to the scene and I am begining to wonder..."
"You think Riley killed Denise's mom." I said.
"Riley lived through that boating accident." Jimmy's voice took a hardness that I was begining to recognize as the gears turning. "He says that he and Jason Wainright held no ill feelings about Marianna but I never bought that."
"The guy can't forgive me for turning him down for a date." I laughed. "I don't buy it either. But I can't prove murder without a body and both Marianna and Jason are long dead. I don't see a judge giving me permission to dig them up."
"No," Jimmy agreed. "But I am starting to wonder..."
"What?" I asked. "You think Riley is somehow involved in this?"
"He's my partner, Cassie." Jimmy took a long sip of his ice tea. "He's got nearly twenty five years on. What if I am wrong?"
"Why would he kill Denise?" I asked. I mean, I can't stand Riley Hunter but Jimmy's suspicion was out in left field.
"I think it was an accident." Jimmy said. "Riley is not the cleanest bird in the coop. That problem with the Baldwin evidence was not his first. I just don't have a motive."
"Can you even place Riley with her at the time of the murder?" I asked.
"Who was first on scene?" Jimmy countered. "Riley found her."
"But she'd been dead for three hours." I countered. "He killed her accidentally, stayed there with the body, got his act together then called the body in and stayed to do the investigation? That's a stretch."
"I know." he agreed. "But something ain't right about this."
"So what do you want to do?" I asked, my meal now finished, I knew I had to get back to the morgue.
"I have to go with my gut." Jimmy said. "Riley is caught up in this. He is sure that Mayzer is innocent but he has yet to interview the guy. Cheif Leary wants this closed now and oddly enough, so does Joshua Harlon. What is everyone trying to bury?"
"You tell me." I waited.
"I'm not sure." Jimmy said. "Can I borrow your computer?"
"What happened to yours?" I asked.
"A virus. The damned thing crashed." He said. "I have to get a new one. But I need to google something."
"Come over after work and you can google to your heart's content." I said. "I'll even make dinner."
-----000-----
Jimmy googled and I cooked. Not that I minded. I was home. It was quiet. My face was not on the news and, no matter what the outcome of Jimmy's research was, he had already informed me that he planned to spend the night. Actually, he brought in a fresh suit and tie and put them in my closet. I doubt he's going home.
"That's it!" Jimmy shouted. "That's fucking it!"
"What?" I brought him a plate of spaghetti and sat down beside him.
"Joshua Harlon was still mayor when Marianna killed herself. Riley was the senior on the case. It was not common knowledge that Riley had an affair with her." He was almost breathless trying to explain this. "Joshua stepped down from the mayorship and passed it to Cheif Leary. Only he wasn't cheif then. He was just a small time poltician. He became cheif after he finnished his one term as Mayor."
"So what did Joshua Harlon do?" I asked.
"He went to New York." Jimmy said. "He took Denise to New York. They didn't come back until she started high school."
"You got all this off the internet?" I asked.
"And the depatment's database," He said, "and county courthouse records and the police records of Joshua Harlon and Cheif Leary."
'Holy shit." I was impressed. "You know you are going after skeletons to solve a current murder. You could blow some lives apart."
"Denise is dead." Jimmy said flatly. "I think that's reason enough to dig up the bones."
Posted at 02:02 pm by huntress100
May 1, 2004
I sent Jimmy home sometime before light and I was later then usual getting into the office. I am not a woman given to sentimentality as it concerns relationships. I did it once with disasterous results. But my interlude with Jimmy had been incredible and even the problems in front of me had not wiped the smile from my face.
"Dr. Logan?" Police Chief Leary's massive form loomed large in my door way.
"Yes sir," I looked up from the report I was writing.
"We need to talk," he came in and sat down without invitation.
"About the news last night?" My stomach turned over due to the thought and the lack of breakfast.
"No," he smiled wearily. "You did fine with that. It's about the details of the Harlon case. About Mixer."
"She tested positive for GHB." I stopped him. "Jimmy says that GHB is all that is left in the system after a person takes Mixer... or do they smoke it?"
"They smoke it," He clarified. "Either way, this is going to be hard. Her family refuses to hear that she was using drugs. And Victor Mayzer... well we have him under surveilance and Jimmy's going to have a sit down with him today."
"So what can I do to help?" I asked.
"I managed to get some of this Mixer." He fished out of his pocket a small baggie of white rocks that looked just like crack. "I need you to isolate how this is different from crack. We know that Mayzer sells marijuana and ecstacy but we have never had intel that suggests he sells crack. If we can prove that this is what Denise was using before she was killed then we can link it back to Mayzer."
"Are we sure that he killed her?" I asked.
"Intel says that the man does not do drugs at all, not even alcohol." Leary replied. "NYPD says that he claims to be a diabetic. I have Riley running down everyone at her birthday party."
"About Riley..." I began.
"He has an ego problem." Leary stopped my question. "You will be dealing with Jimmy."
"It's more than ego." I said. "If he tampered with..."
"I can't talk about that, Cass." He said. "But he isn't senior on the case. Jimmy is."
"Good enough," I picked the little baggie up off my desk. "Is there anything else I need to know? Anything that might help me solve this riddle?"
"Not really," He stood. "Just make sure to get plenty of sleep."
"What?"
"It's a small town, Cass." He replied. "Louis Caruthers saw you and Jimmy at Little Bangcock last night."
"We had dinner." I really wish I hadn't sounded so defensive.
"I know." He smiled. "But Riley is riding Jimmy's ass already."
"There are days that I wish I were an unethical woman."
-----000-----
Mixer stinks. I can't imagine how anyone could be in the room while they cooked up this shit. I went down to the local package store and got a bottle of Everclear then went home to get the unused portion of Azurevan that Dr. Roth had prescribed for me a few years ago. I had finally donned a hasmat mask just to get through this little experiment. It was easy to make Mixer... too easy. You just crush the pills into a fine powder and mix in enough alcohol to make a thick paste. Then you "cook" it. I used a bunsen burner. God knows what Victor Mayzer uses. I was doing a chemical analysis of my Mixer compared to the drug Cheif Leary gave me when Jimmy slipped into the lab.
"Hey..." he touched my shoulder and I nearly jumped out of my skin. "I didn't mean to scare you." He smiled down at me. Did I tell you how tall Jimmy is? He must be six foot six. He has to bend his head down to get through the door of the lab. "What smells like shit?"
"Mixer." I replied, not removing the hazmat mask that stood between me and that god awful stink. "I was making up a batch."
"Leary came to see you , huh?" He replied. Jimmy looked a little uncomfortable, like he didn't know what to do. Hell, I didn't know what to do either. The last time I saw him, he was putting my eyeballs on the ceiling.
"Yeah," I walked toward my office. "I am trying to locate what makes this drug different. It might be the only way to connect it to Mayzer."
"I don't think Mayzer killed her." Jimmy sat down while I got out of the mad scientist get up.
"Ok," I sat across from him. "Why?"
"First, no one saw him at Denise's party." He replied, opening his notebook. "Riley has interviewed most of the party goers. And I had a visit from her boyfriend."
"Mayzer?" I am sure my eyes were wide as saucers.
"Yeah," he smiled. "Mayzer is inconsolable or he could win a fucking Oscar. He has put up a reward for anyone who has information leading to the arrest of her killer. It could be a cover, but I don't think so."
"Gut instinct?" I asked.
"Kind of," Jimmy was blushing.
"What?"
"Cassandra," There it was again. I had to break him of that.
"James?" I stopped him.
"It doesn't work." He smiled broadly. "My mama calls me James."
"Look Cassie," He capitulated. "There are people that I have known in my life that, if they were suddenly not there, it would hurt. If one of those people were gone, I'd be doing what Mayzer was doing... bawling my head off and trying to find who took them. You know?"
"Is there anyway to trip him up?" I asked, not bothering to try to get him to say what I thought he really meant. I have known this guy since he started the force six years ago. This was the first time I had ever entertained any idea that he might have such strong emotions.
"That was what I was hoping you could answer." He said. "Any ideas?"
"Don't worry about his motives or feelings right now." I said. "You can come back to that after we pin him for the drugs. The drugs will give you leverage. He either did it or he knows who did."
"You sound like a cop." Jimmy said.
"My ex was a detective with the NYPD." I replied matter of factly. It wasn't matter of fact. I'd been divorced nearly a decade and it still hurt sometimes. "My dad was a medical examiner. My brother is a uniform in Texas. It runs in the blood."
"Damn," He smiled. "When were you gonna tell me all that?"
"When you asked, detective." It was my turn to flirt for the moment.
"Anything else you want to tell me?" he stood.
"Yes," I looked up at him. "Last night was incedible. Go find me some dope to compare this shit to and for god sakes, don't say anything to Riley that we will later regret."
"There's a "we"?" he asked curiously.
"Yes," I got up and walked over to him. Unsentimental or not, I was quite amenable to seeing more of Jimmy. "There is an us. Outside of the job there is an us that is getting to know one another better."
"Would you like to go to dinner tonight?" He stammered.
"I'll cook." I replied. "Mr. Caruthers has a big mouth."
"Well," he shuffled a little.
"Jimmy," I took his hand. "I'd give you a kiss but I can't reach you. Kiss me and get out of here. I have work to do."
Posted at 09:38 pm by huntress100
Apr 30, 2004
Ugly women should never be on TV
It was official. Denise Harlon died from stab wounds to her abdomen. The murderer hit her femeral artery and she bled out... probably while he was raping her. I waited for the funeral home to retrieve her body before I finished for the day. I finished up the paperwork. God, I wish I had found DNA. The bastard used a condom. I actually felt bad for Jimmy. Riley had already stopped by to tell me that he was senior on the case and that I had best not forget it. I out rank him. I told him to kiss my ass. Not that I would actually let him.
"Dr. Logan?" one of my assistants rushed in with a stranger on her heels. "This gentleman is from the Post." She was flustered. We were not used to dealing with the press.
"Can I help you?" I didn't bother to get up and I didn't offer him a seat. There was no need in him getting comfortable. He wasn't going to be staying.
"I'd like to ask you about the murder of Denise Harlon." The man said. "My name is Jeffrey Mathers."
"Well, Mr. Mathers," I figured that I had best measure my words carefully. "That is an ongoing investigation and I am not at liberty to discuss it with you. But I am sure that the police department told you that."
"Actually, Detective Hunter said that, if I wanted an update that I should come to you." The man still stood, still waiting uncomfortably to be invited to sit.
"Detective Hunter was trying to get the heat off his back," I wanted to say ass but I knew that this was going to hit the papers. "If someone said the wrong thing, it would be on my head not his. I suggest you speak with the police chief or the city solicitor."
"No one is talking," The young man sat without the invitation. "And Denise Harlon is gentry. Everyone wants to know."
"It's call human decency." I hate reporters. I hated them in New York and I hated them in Boston. That's why I chose a small city. "Joshua Harlon and his family have the right to mourn Denise's death without the press making wild speculations on how she died. Even if I wasn't the Cheif Medical Examiner and even if it wasn't my legal duty, I wouldn't tell you anything. Its just wrong."
"I'm sorry you feel that way." He stood. "WOCV is planning an expose about Denise. They think she was working in the sex trade and she was dating Victor Mayzer."
"Who?" My stomach churned.
"Victor Mayzer," he repeated. "Transplanted from New York three years ago." He walked to the door. "He's supposedly the person responsible for the influx of ecstacy and some sort of new party drug into the area. The rumors say that Denise died of an overdose of this new drug."
He didn't say anything and neither did I.
"Dr. Logan," my assistant returned, looking even more nervous. "There are a few TV cameras out here. I called Detective Wallace."
"I'll be there in a minute." Now it is my turn to stand.
"I did warn you," Mathers smiled but it didn't seem malignant.
"You did," I ushered him out of my office and into the main office. A few TV cameras was an understatement.
"Dr. Logan..."
"Before anyone asks me anything..." I yell as loudly as I can above the cacaphony of voices. "I cannot comment upon anything where the murder of Denise Harlon is concerned. Turn your cameras off and leave please."
"She was dating a known drug pusher, did you know that?" Someone from the back of the entryway shouted.
"Unfortunately, I never met the victim before her death. I know nothing of her except what I have learned since we found her." It is hard to keep your cool when you realize that the case you thought was straightforward is really not.
"Is it true that mixer was found in her system?" Another asked.
"What is Mixer?" I hoped that I looked clueless. This must have been the party drug that Mathers was talking about.
"Right..." The press was laughing. Maybe this was a good thing.
"Look guys," it was time to try to make friends with them. "I don't have any information I can give you but the truth of this case, whatever it may be, will eventually come out. Please, I am asking you to back off and give the Harlon family a chance to grieve. This is hard. No one should have to lose a loved one the way Denise Harlon died. Please respect them enough to not make this a media circus."
"How did she die?" Another asked.
"She was murdered." I replied flatly, staring down a cameraman. "And that is all I will say."
"Are you ok?" Jimmy Wallace rushed in through a side door as the press was packing to leave.
"I handled it." I replied. "But we need to talk privately and then I need to go find your partner and put a bullet through his skull."
"On a good day you are pissed with Riley." Jimmy walked me back to my office. Not that I needed a white knight but it was sweet of him nonetheless. "What did he do now?"
"He came here to let me know that he was the primary on this case." I began, lighting a cigarette and passing him one too. "I told him to kiss my ass. I figured that I owed you that. But then he told Post reporter Jeffery Mathers to come see me for info about the case."
"Did you tell him anything?" Jimmy asked cautiously.
"No," got up and went for a diet pepsi. "You want one?" I tossed the question over my shoulder.
"I have a better idea." Jimmy stood. "Let me take you to dinner. We have to eat and you can tell me all about it on the way."
I almost said no but in one day I had gained a strange respect for Jimmy Wallace. So I was old enough to be his aunt. It was steak and fries.
"You don't have to ask me twice." I had to smile. I hadn't been "out" with anyone since the hot DA from New Jersey who came to assist in the Unger case three years ago. Jimmy opened the door for me, waiting.
-----000-----
Dinner was not steak and fries. In fact Jimmy had damn good taste in food. We went to a little thai restraunt down on Main Street.
"So what do you know about Mixer?" I asked after I recounted the story.
"Riley thought I was nuts," He said between bites. "It looks like crack but it's the by product of Azurevan, a strong anti-deppressant."
"And?" I had taken this drug. It was very strong... too strong.
"They buy it up and cook it down in grain alcohol" Jimmy said. "Even Chief Leary was unaware of it. It's hard to trace because the only thing that stays residual is the alcohol, which is almost non existant because of cooking and it causes tox screens to positive for GBH."
"She had high GBH levels." I concurred.
"What do you know about Victor Mayzer?" I asked.
"What are you?" Jimmy chuckled. "A detective?"
"Mathers says that Denise was dating Mayzer." I replied.
"Her grandfather says it's not possible." Jimmy said. "But we know that parents and grandparents live in a fantasy world sometimes where these things are concerned."
"I did a little digging." I took some printouts from my purse. "She's clean here but Denise was in New York two months ago. She got clipped selling but the record does not say what."
"I'm not telling Riley that you found this." Jimmy took the report.
"What is his problem with me?" I finally had to ask someone. The guy and I had never gotten along.
"He thinks you are gay." Jimmy said matter of factly. "He asked you out once and you declined. every since, he's been insulted."
"Little dick, big ego..."
"Damn," Jimmy laughed. "Do you ever have a time when you don't say what you are thinking?"
"Sure I do," Jimmy was flirting... or it looked like that... it was weird but flattering. "You have no idea what I think of you or anyone else."
"Sure I do," Jimmy finished his beer. "I know that you think I am an innocent and that you feel sorry that Riley is my partner."
"I feel sorry for both of us because Riley is your partner." I corrected him. "And I think you are sweet and well intentioned, not innocnet. Innocent men do not take out women who are old enough to be their aunt."
Well I certainly caused us both to take a beat. I really wished that I hadn't said that.
"I asked you out," he said with a smile. "Because I knew that Riley was nuts and you are the most intellegent woman I know and I am not half as goofy as I look or as slow as I seem."
"I never said..."
OK, I was in trouble. Jimmy took my hand.
"No, you never said it, Cassandra."
"Jimmy," I had to interrupted him. The last man to call me by my given name was my ex husband. It felt wierd. "Cassie is fine. And thank you for the compliment and I don't think you are slow." I took a deep breath. "And you do not look goofy."
"You should see me on the golf course." He had yet to let go of my hand.
"I don't play golf." was all I could think to say. I'd have moved my hand but I am pretty sure that I was in shock.
"So what do you do for fun?" He asked.
"My job." I replied. "And I watch old "Law & Order" repeats."
"That sounds like fun." He stood and helped me to my feet. I can't tell you why I didn't take control of this situation. I don't normally let a guy flirt with me so outrageuosly. Maybe Jimmy was right. I had underestimated him. He was not slow. It was a ruse for cunning. I just wonder how long he had planned to ask me out.
"Law & Order" repeats sound like fun?" I asked, trying to get some semblance of balance to this conversation.
"Look lady," He helped me with my coat. "You are a very tough nut to crack. I like you. Can I please come home and watch cop shows with you?"
-----000-----
"That is my absolute favorite episode." Jimmy yawned and stretched. This was the weirdest date I had ever had.
"They are all your favorites." I turned off the tape.
"So, are you going to tell me how you ended up marrying a guy named Logan?" He asked. "Surely your ex knew about your fetish."
"My maiden name is Logan. My married name was Kennedy. I took my maiden name back when we divorced." I replied. I really hate talking about my ex and suddenly, or maybe not so suddenly, I felt very comfortable with Jimmy Wallace.
"Wow," he grinned. "Talk about a weird coincidence."
"Next topic." I flipped to the news with a yawn and curled back up into the crook of his arm.
"What is the next topic?" He asked. I turned up the sound.
"This," I said. My face was on the screen. We watched in silence.
"You did fine." Jimmy took the remote and turned off the TV before I could open my mouth.
"I didn't say anything that will cost me my job." I sat up.
"Riley set you up for that." Jimmy's voice was hard. "I'd bet next week's pay on it."
"Because I turned him down for a date nearly a decade ago?" I really wanted to either kill Riley or forget him.
"If you promise me that you won't get upset I will tell you what I know." Jimmy was doing his best to be the white knight. I let him. It was late and we were alone and I wouldn't have to explain my "weakness" to anyone but myself. I let him ease me back onto the couch.
"I'm listening." I said quietly. Out of character for me, the worried look that rose onto Jimmy's face was clear.
"Remeber the Baldwin case two years ago?" Jimmy began.
"The one where we almost lost the guy because evidence had been tampered with?" I refreshed my own memory.
"Riley was the one that tampered with the evidence." Jimmy said.
"And his vacation?" I knew the answer now.
"He was on administrative leave." Jimmy said. "And when I challenged him today about the Harlon case, Cheif Leary sided with me. I am the senior on the case."
"So I am number one on his list again." I said.
"Next topic." He smiled down at me and suddenly I really didn't give a damn about Riley Hunter or Mixer or anything else.
Posted at 04:22 pm by huntress100
Apr 29, 2004
What I hate, most of all... sometimes anyway... is when I am right. Denise Harlon had just turned eighteen and her mode of dress was likely due to a no doubt raucous 18th birthday party. There was GBH and THC in her tox panel and whoever she had sex with, consensual or otherwise, was O negative and had diabetes. I covered her body and took the reports to my desk. It was time for a cold diet pepsi (my drug of choice) and a cigarette.
"Dr. Logan?" You have no idea how glad I am that the man in my doorway was Jimmy Wallace, Riley's slower and less irritating partner.
"Come on in," I motion to him. "Want a diet pepsi?"
"No," He smiles way too much for a guy in a morgue. My assistant thinks Jimmy has a crush on me. I am old enough to be his... his aunt. His older aunt. "But can I bum a cigarette?"
I pass him a stick with a smile. "Where's Riley?"
"He's got the flu." Jimmy took a long drag off the Virginia Slim that looked far too effeminate in his hand.
"I'm sorry." My luck's improving.
"I'm not."
"Anyway..." I am not touching that with a ten foot pole. "Your victim was out celebrating her 18th birthday. Her name is Denise Harlon. And I am 99.99% sure the sex was not consensual."
"Oh God..." Jimmy's whisper told me that this was going to be special. "I know her."
"How?" I hate waiting but he looked like he was going to cry. This is why I normally deal with dead bodies. Live ones talk.
"Denise Harlon is the grandaughter of Joshua Harlon, the former mayor of Summerville." He replied. "Denise and I..."
"You were dating?" I asked. Jimmy was young but Denie was still too young for him.
He shook his head silently. "I was her mentor in her junior year of high school. She wanted to be a cop."
"I'm sorry." I have to reach for him. My heart really did go out to him. "Are you going to be ok?"
"I want everything." Jimmy wiped his eyes bravely. "This is my case."
"What do you think Riley will have to say about that?" I pass him a folder with copies of my report.
"Fuck Riley." He stood.
"Not on my worst day with your dick," I grinned evilly at him. I had to make him smile. Jimmy's like everybodys little brother. It worked. He sunk back down in the chair, laughing. "This is my home number," he said once he caught his breath. "If anything breaks, call me first." He stood again. "I have to go see Joshua Harlon."
Posted at 02:07 pm by huntress100
Apr 28, 2004
Have you ever noticed that the phone rings right in the middle of the best dream in the whole world? I would like to tell you that I was dreaming of world peace or the Goddess or last Imbolc...but I wasn't. I was dreaming about my favorite TV cop, a pair of handcuffs and... well never mind... you get the picture. I wish the cops I worked with were half as hot.
Four in the morning and I am standing over the mutilated body of a young woman. She couldn't be more than eighteen. Who the hell does shit like this?
"I guess the COD is kind of obvious, huh Cass?" Det. Riley Hunter is the biggest pain in the ass on the police force of the small city of Summerville. The problem is, with the exception of his partner Jimmy Wallace, he's the only pain in the ass in the Summerville police department. The city's only big enough to have two detectives.
"Nothing is ever obvious." I reply dryly. Jimmy's kind of slow but he's not as irritating. "Where's Jimmy?"
"He's got the flu."
My dumb luck. I have to ignore Riley and get to work. My luck is really sucking this morning. It's cold and it has started to rain. The techs (all two of them, both part time and both well equipped with the ten hour training course in forensics from the local technical college) are rushing to collect what trace evidence there is before it washes away.
"It isn't natural causes," I finally turn my attention to Riley, who had been standing over me, watching like a hawk until the rain started. "You have a homicide. I will be more sure of the specifics after I get her out of the rain but it looks like a rape followed by a murder."
"She's dead," Riley snorts at me like an old pig laughing. "But what makes it rape? She looks like a pro."
"Torn panties, bite marks to your lower abdomen and semen on her thighs." I hate when I have to spoon feed them.
"She looks like a pro." Riley repeated, squating down beside me, meeting my gaze. "They get paid for this."
"They get paid for sex." I get up to leave. "If she said no, it's rape."
"But she didn't say no." He followed. I continue walking. I have more to do than argue with this guy. I've lived in Summerville for nine years now. He has solved five cases without the help of the Charleston police or the FBI.
"How do you know?" Riley caught up with me... unfortunately.
"How do you know that she didn't?" I had finally made him stop to think. The few extra seconds bought me the time to get out of there and to the morgue.
Posted at 05:33 pm by huntress100
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