Chapter 21
TWENTY-ONE
The detectives arrived at the medical examiner’s office, which as usual, wasn’t their favorite part of the job. McGaven had the most difficulty, but had accepted it as crucial in investigating their cases and had worked through his struggles.
Katie wondered if Dr. Dean was doing better.
The doctor had acted differently than usual the last time they had come to the morgue.
He had been curt and dismissive, which wasn’t his usual demeanor.
Dean was a colorful character, known for his Hawaiian shirts and casual attire, and his tireless work with detectives on many cases.
Katie and McGaven walked through the main doors, into the clinical and sterile atmosphere.
There was nowhere to escape the strong disinfectant, which always connected your brain to the fact that it was related to dead bodies.
The tile floor was extra shiny, making the overhead fluorescent lighting down the long hallway more noticeable.
It seemed to be exceptionally quiet today.
Usually you could hear voices conversing or doors opening, the sound of a gurney being pushed.
Katie slowed her pace and looked at McGaven.
He wore the same confused expression she imagined she did.
“Let’s go to the usual examination room,” she said quietly. She felt a little creep factor but tried to brush it off—the mind goes there when you know you’re surrounded by the dead.
The detectives walked farther down the hallway and stopped at a room where the swinging doors were wide open. There were two gurneys inside—both had a sheet covering the body.
Katie waited at the entrance. It wasn’t long before they heard a door closing and the sound of footsteps across the room.
Dr. Dean appeared and greeted the detectives with the usual smile. “My favorite detectives. Hello.”
“Hi, Dr. Dean,” said Katie.
McGaven nodded. He was clearly maintaining his composure for the unveiling of the bodies.
The doctor’s attire matched his bright, bubbly personality. He had on a bright-red Hawaiian shirt with large flowers, khaki shorts, and sandals. He also wore a white lab coat that had thin red streaks of blood on it along with some spatter.
Dean moved into the exam room. “I do meet with other detectives, but you two always seem to bring me the most interesting cases.”
“Where is everyone?” asked Katie.
“It’s a slow body day and we’re down a few employees. We don’t know yet if their positions will be filled anytime soon,” he said sadly. “Budgets.”
“Sorry to hear that,” she said.
“You and me both.”
The detectives moved closer to the gurneys. Katie could see a hand that wasn’t quite covered.
“Okay,” said Dean, pulling the sheet off the first body as if he were a magician. It was a bit over the top, but the horror effect set in.
Katie glanced at her partner and his focus was on something else on the wall and not the body. He seemed to be easing his vision into it.
Dean went to the counter where two file folders were waiting.
He picked up the first one. “Okay,” he said.
“My reports and photos have been sent to both of you and to John.” He paused as if he had to study the results again or wanted to make sure he had all the information correct.
“We have the first victim found at the police-fire construction site who has been identified as Ian Griffin, fifty-two-year-old male, Caucasian, fairly good health. There are signs of bones showing early osteoporosis and he would have been battling arthritis pain.”
“That’s Meredith Collins’s brother, the one who reported her and her daughter missing.” Katie wanted to reiterate to her partner.
McGaven nodded.
“We have estimated that he has been buried anywhere from six months to possibly two years. He was buried in an area with large amounts of shale and rock, and this can protect the body from the natural process of decomposition despite being buried in a shallow grave. I’m leaning toward the lesser time.
I’m sorry I can’t be more precise for your investigation. ”
McGaven had retrieved his notebook and was jotting down notes.
“No, this is quite helpful,” Katie said. It meant that Ian Griffin had been murdered and buried more recently. The big question was why. Was it the same killer who had killed his sister and niece almost twenty years before?
Dean went to the laptop that was sitting on the counter and flipped up the monitor. “Here are pieces of the clothes he was wearing and the contents of his jeans pockets. I’ve sent these to John for further investigation.”
“Noted,” she said. For an instant, she remembered how sweet John was to fix them on-the-go breakfast sandwiches that morning.
“The contents of his pocket were an empty silver money clip, thirty-five cents in change, and a faded piece of paper. It’s mostly disintegrated. John might be able to reconstruct it.”
Katie took a closer look at the computer screen. The money clip was silver and distinctly resembled the bracelets his sister and niece were wearing. “The money clip and bracelets look like they might be made by the same designer,” she said to McGaven.
He wrote that note down and said, “I’m sure John is looking into that.”
“Dr. Dean, so the big question is—” Katie started.
“Ah, the best for last.” He turned the skull slightly and it was clear there was a bullet hole in the back of the head. “I was able to retrieve a nine-millimeter bullet and send it to forensics. This is not a self-inflicted wound. It’s ruled a homicide.”
Katie figured as much, but having an official manner and cause of death helped them to move forward in the right direction.
“Was there anything else?” she asked.
“The only other factor was that his right pinky metatarsal was missing. I thought perhaps it somehow was broken during the burial or excavation. But”—he showed the detectives the hand—“it’s clear he had been missing his finger for some time.
You can see it’s been healed over. How he lost it could have a million answers, but he went into that grave without that finger. ”
“Can you tell if it was severed by something like a knife or some kind of high-powered tool?”
“I really can’t give you a precise analysis with what’s here, but if I had to take an educated guess it wasn’t an accident of tearing the appendage; it definitely looks like it was a clean cut.
It could have been a tool of some kind.” Dr. Dean paused for a moment, giving the detectives a few moments to ask more questions.
Then he covered Griffin and went to the other gurney.
Both Katie and McGaven took a couple of steps back to avoid the removal of the sheet, however this time, for whatever reason, the medical examiner rolled it back, revealing a body lying on its stomach.
With curiosity, Katie moved in closer. There were strange markings on what was left of the shirt and jeans. The rib bones protruded through the sparse clothing. More unusual markings were on the back of the skull.
“This body has been identified as Bruce Collins,” said Dean. “He had a great set of teeth that had recent dental work before death. He was a thirty-six-year-old Caucasian male, in good health.”
Katie was shocked. The body found in a deep hole at the Collins property was that of the owner and Meredith’s husband. She observed McGaven.
“Seems someone is eliminating this family,” said McGaven.
Katie asked the obvious. “What are those markings?”
Dr. Dean sighed. “Separating those injuries took some time.”
“There’s more than one injury?” said McGaven.
“This man was, without a doubt, tortured numerous times. It was difficult to figure out what was used on him to cause these marks through the skin and flesh to the bone.”
Katie thought that whatever the killer was trying to accomplish, they were trying to either make an example out of Bruce Collins or make the torture last for their own pleasure. Either way, it was a grisly death.
“With most of the skin and tissue gone, it was difficult to tell the layers of the torture. But through various lighting, I surmised he was first beaten with, most likely, something fairly lightweight. Anything heavier would have broken up the skeleton. Then the second layer, there was deep cutting, and finally it appears something was used to scourge him—that’s where you see the damage to the bones. ”
“And to imagine that Collins was aware while it was happening,” she said, shocked.
“He would probably have passed out from the pain and then regained consciousness on and off,” said Dean. “And the process continued over and over, so it’s not hard to believe that this case is homicide.”
“Was there any other damage to his body?” said McGaven.
“No, his skull and extremities were not damaged,” said Dean. “It is estimated that he was tortured for many hours, possibly days. Again, his time of death was anywhere between six months and two years ago.”
“So both of these men could have been killed and buried around the same time?” she said.
“It’s possible, yes.”
Voices were heard down the hallway.
Dr. Dean glanced at his watch. “If you don’t have any more questions at this time, I need to get to another appointment.”
“Of course. Thank you, Dr. Dean,” said Katie.
“Always lovely seeing you both,” he said as he left the room.
Katie was still reeling from the information the doctor had given them. At least they now had solid findings. She hoped the horrific details they’d learned would help fill in some of the blanks in the investigation.
Once they returned to the car, Katie asked her partner, “What do you think?”
“I think I won’t sleep for a week.”
Katie raised her eyebrows. “I’ve never heard of such a brutal murder. Three layers of torture! And it does raise questions.”
“I’ll say.”
“Like, how the different murders were of different types and level of force—one bullet to the skull as opposed to that awful torture.”
“Maybe the killer had a lifetime of hatred and rage for Bruce Collins,” said McGaven.
Katie nodded. “That would assist with the killer profile, but what about the others?”
“Collateral damage?”
“It’s a possibility.” Katie thought about the potential reasons for the murders. “Or there could be more than one killer,” she said.
“Or a family of killers.”
The detectives got in the car.
Katie paused before turning the engine over. “You may have something there.”
“What do you mean? Family of killers?”
“I can’t help but think about those photos of Meredith and Misty.
They looked so happy and seemed like a typical mother and daughter.
The interview Ventura had with Griffin about his niece was loving and caring.
How could this family have been targeted by a murderer or murderers? How could one of them be a murderer?”
“Maybe someone snapped in the heat of the moment and someone else got revenge?” suggested McGaven.
Katie nodded. “So Bruce Collins killed his wife and daughter, and then Ian Griffin kills Collins for killing his sister? Maybe his rage got the better of him and could explain the torture? I know it sounds far-fetched but it could happen—and does…”
“So by that theory, who killed Griffin?” said McGaven.
“That’s the real and underlying question. I think it’s the person who has been following the investigation and who most likely rigged that trap.”
“We need to dig more.”
“Yep,” said Katie. “Just like Buck said, we need to trace the family tree beginning with Bruce Collins. The brutality of his death could be a key to all this.”