Chapter Twenty #3
“If we didn’t have a vet in the cooler who was missing a kidney, and a city ME whose dad had a penchant for illegally harvesting them to make half a billion dollars, it wouldn’t be an issue.
The sins of the father are not those of the son, but in this case, a defense attorney will research the team, and the second they see during discovery that we found those skulls because a man showed up dead and he was missing his one organ… ”
Chris closed his eyes.
“I’m tired.”
Yeah, she could see that.
They all were, to be honest.
“I’m sorry. I know how excited you were, and you can still hire him, but not until we figure out if he’s involved. Between you and I, this person knows a lot about forensics, and yesterday, Alexi left right around when we did. That night, we had a body. I need to prioritize you,” she admitted.
He lifted his head off of the back of the couch and looked at her.
“Why me?”
She told him what Ethan said.
“He’s playing with me, and to rattle me, and run experiments on how I react, he might come for people I care about. You’re here in the morgue. I want Alexi out of here, just to make sure our bases are covered. All the techs here have been vetted, and we know you’re safe, but I can’t risk it.”
He palmed her cheek.
“I get it, my love,” he said. “He can’t be here if his family compromises an investigation. I’ll keep him on the back burner.”
She was to the point.
“If you need backup, get one of the doctors back home to come here temporarily. I know that if you ask Dalia, she’ll come for a case or two.”
He might have to do that because he was older, and battling his health, and running another office was wearing him down.
“Okay, Sweetness. We’ll tell him together. Call him in.”
When she went to the door, she stuck her head out.
“Doctor Redmond, can you come here?” she asked, getting the man to head her way.
When he came into the room, she closed the door behind her, and had him sit down. Elizabeth stood behind Chris, watching the man to see how he reacted.
“Doctor, we need to talk,” Chris said.
The man didn’t look worried.
“Sure. What’s going on? Do you need me to cover for you? I’m refreshed from a good night’s sleep. I can take over, Doctor.”
Oh, he wished.
Chris shared what they knew.
“We found out about your father, and the second you saw a victim with a missing kidney, you should have told me and recused yourself from this.”
It caught him off guard.
Elizabeth saw his face.
Oh, he hadn’t seen that one coming.
“When this goes to court, this opens a door for the defense to question our investigation. I work damn hard to make sure all the holes are closed, and nothing slips through to damage a case my wife builds for the prosecution.”
He sighed.
“I’m not my father.”
Well, unfortunately, when you were working on a federal case, you carried all the sins.
“Alexi, I’m sorry,” Chris said. “Having you here is problematic for the case. If we didn’t have a dead body where an organ was removed…”
He stopped him.
“I’ve been fighting my father’s choices for a very long time,” he admitted.
“I would never break my oath as a doctor, and as someone who has worked tirelessly to make sure that I get justice for the victims. That being said, I understand. Yes, I should have come to you, but I’m damn tired of being compared to him.
What Gregory Kach did was horrific. Yes, he paid his dues by doing time, but it should have been longer. ”
Elizabeth was studying him, and the man was genuinely upset.
But about what?
That was the question.
She knew that this killer would flaunt himself, and hide under a smartly-created guise. She also knew that it went back YEARS, and what Gene had inadvertently brought up to cover their bases.
Could it be this man following in his father’s footsteps?
The man didn’t fight.
Surprisingly.
Instead, he said one last thing.
“I apologize for putting you in this position, Doctor. It has been great working with one of the best forensic pathologists in the field, and I appreciate being able to see you do it in person.”
Alexi stood.
“Ma’am,” he said, nodding. “I apologize for compromising your case, and I recuse myself from here on out.”
With that, he walked out, saying nothing more.
Well, shit.
That was…abrupt.
“I kind of expected him to fight a little,” she said. “You know, call me a cunt or something.”
He laughed.
“You get punchy when people call you that, Elizabeth. You know that.”
Ehhh, he wasn’t wrong.
“Well, that’s handled,” she said, as Shadow leaned against Chris, and he scratched him behind the ears.
He was blunt.
“I can’t go sleep at the hotel. I’m going to have to catch some sleep here. Shadow and I are crashing on the couch,” he admitted.
Immediately, she touched his forehead, and he wasn’t warm, so she knew he wasn’t ill. That bought them some time. Call Dalia. She’ll come.”
He laughed.
“Oh, I know. I just want to find competent people to work for us. Why is that so damn hard? Who do I have to pay to come work for me next?” he asked, rhetorically.
At that moment, Tony stuck his head in the room.
“Well, why start now?” Elizabeth asked, making Chris laugh at Tony’s timing.
The man had an uncanny knack of showing up when there was a punchline.
It was his gift.
“Chrissy got the trace to be sent. It’s coming by special courier via the FBI out of Salt Lake City. Chrissy got them to personally escort it.”
Well, she had it under control.
Elizabeth kissed her husband on the forehead.
“You guys good?” Tony asked.
Since he’d been on their team from the start, she was to the point. Elizabeth told him about Alexi.
He gasped.
“It’s always the quiet ones. Oh, well, he can’t steal my bestie away now. He was getting a little too friendly with Chris. I didn’t like him.”
She laughed.
“I’m going to leave you in good hands, Christopher. Good luck,” she said, getting up. Scratching Shadow, she went to walk past Tony.
He stopped her.
“Uh, you gave the dog love, but not me? I’m like a pet,” he stated, trying to lighten the mood.
It was heavy in there.
She scratched him behind the ear, and he thumped the floor with his foot to be funny.
Chris laughed.
“Be safe, Elizabeth,” he said. “You’re playing a dangerous game,” he added.
Oh, she was aware.
As she headed out, her phone rang, and she pulled it from her pocket. On the screen, Callen’s face was waiting for her to answer the video call.
She motioned to Ethan, Raphael, and Ivan before heading for the door. Then, she answered.
“Hey, handsome. You just left. Are you okay?”
They could see he was in the passenger seat, heading down a road.
“Yeah, Angel. My search came back, and I finally got to the names lower on the list, like you requested. I was running Jeffrey’s family.”
She recalled.
“What did you find?”
He laughed.
“Oh, well, you’re not going to believe this.”
Let it be known that she hated when every single conversation began that way.
ALWAYS.
It was never a good indicator that she was going to like the information that followed.
“What now?”
Callen shared.
“His mother, Joyce Von Gunter, died three years ago. She’s buried in a cemetery near her last known address.”
She blinked.
“What?”
Callen nodded.
“Our cemetery caretaker told us he takes care of his mother. He’s cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs because she’s no longer with this world.”
Well, shit.
She didn’t see that one coming.
NOT.
AT.
ALL.