Secret Sins: Murder in the Church (6 page)

this security setup,
and
you’ll know this is a long way from being a
inspection. Captain West walks over and opens the cabinet and bends

He picks up the remote control and presses the stop button and nothing happened. I
stuck my finger into the machine to see whether or not there was a type inside, “Empty.”
Captain West asks, “Where’s the VHS type?”
I looked at my finger, and it was covered with dust. “This machine hasn’t been used
for a long time, and you said the equipment malfunctioned!”
Two more security guards came into the room
and from the looks of them
they
should have retired years ago.
It’s not my intent to get under old Humpy’s skin, and as Kenneth stammered to find
the right words, “We’ve had some special problems that involve cuts in t h e
budget.” I
simply stated, “I’ll be speaking to the director to discuss the lapse in security.”
Kenneth raised his voice, “This is a morgue! People don’t normally go out their way
to commit homicide in a MORGUE!”
Captain West told old Dumpty, or should I say Kenneth that, “If I were you, I’d
clean out my desk.”
Kenneth and the two guards leave the room, and I had an idea, “I saw a bank across
the street.” “Maybe
there’s something on their tape,”
asserted Captain West.
I attempted to raise an objection, “I’m not sure we’ll gain access.”
Captain West frowned, “Banks can be a little funny
about
getting
involved
with
anything
that does not have anything to do with bank robbery.” Captain
West
looks
directly at me and suggests, “Maybe you and some of your NSA friends can pull some
strings.”
The last time I dealt with a bank; in fact, it was the Federal Reserve Bank. That was
an experience I didn’t care to repeat. “Possibly, but I can’t make any promises.”
Captain West replies, “Fine, but in the meantime we need to Head over to B. Mosley
Mortuary.”
I hate funeral homes. I always have an extremely defiant attitude regarding funeral
homes and undertakers.
Captain West has a decidedly
impersonal viewpoint when I come’s to stating the
facts, “There has been a body snatching.”
“I know the funeral home and the location in
the City of St. Louis.” Captain West stood there looking at me smiling as I told him, “I
grew up in that neighborhood and they may be capable of a lot of things but, “Someone
stole a dead body?”
In my line of work, I expect almost anything, but “This has got to be a first.”
His eyes met mine, and he sighed, “Someone came in and stole the body of Ray
Murdock,” said Captain West.

CHAPTER 15
Chief of Police, Darnell Logan

Drug deals have taken a wrong turn down a dead end street. The unfaithful wife
or husband we re counted among the dearly departed, Ice
Cream trucks
that
sell
more
than
just Popsicle’s, these are open and closed cases the majority of the time. But, every
once in a while there will be a case that is so far outside the box that it breaks the mold
and the Ray Murdock is that kind of case.

I
and
Commissioner, Richard Horton are twenty-five
year
veterans
of
the
police
force, but to look at us now we are a couple of three hundred pound mammoth’s unable
to run from the conference room to the water cooler and that’s while being chased. I say
the heck with it, shoot and ask questions later.

Commissioner
Horton
walked
sandwiches, chips
and
a
Diet Cola
washing because we wish all the fat wouldn’t settle around our middle. We dig right into
the box begin gorging ourselves. “We need to bring the Murdock case to a close.”

I explain, “The Medical Examiner is still trying to figure out what poison was used.”
Commissioner Horton’s motto is: “Why take the
time
to
read
the
report
when
someone’s willing to tell you what’s in the report.” He stops in the middle of a bite and
looks at me like I’m dead crazy, “I thought Murdock drowned?”
in
carrying
a box with
two
foot
long
submarine
to
wish
it
down.
We prefer wishing rather than
I looked at the double ham, beef and cheese on my sandwich and attempted to go
through my song and dance of explanations, “He did, but had he not drowned he would
have died from being poisoned.”
“Reverend Shawn Graves and his church are
well- connected and I’ve got attorneys from New
York and California
breathing down my
neck,”
rants Commissioner Horton as he looks at his
watch, “Captain West is supposed to be her.”
I was about to take a bite and paused, “He’s doing field work with Detective Breeze.”
I took a momentary pause, “There’s been a new development in the Murdock case.”
He glances up from his sandwich at me, “Oh yeah?”
“Captain West and Detective Breeze went on a call at B. Mosley Mortuary regarding
a missing body.” I t o o k
a quick bite of my sandwich i n an
a t t e m p t
t o
k i l l
t h e
h u n g e r .
Commissioner Horton squints his eyes and frowns, “Excuse me.”
“The body of Ray Murdock has been stolen,” I murmured aloud.
Commissioner
Horton
begins
his
tirade, “What does this get filed under lost and
found, robbery, or a body snatching. Wait until the News Media get hold of this, the
departmental cost is going to make it extremely difficult to keep the NSA operation secret, and
we better hope the media doesn’t get wind of if!”
“As I see it we don’t have much of a choice,” I respond.
With
a
mouth
full
of
food
and
ranting
like he’s
got
Mad
Cow
Disease, “The
Mayor shoved Agent Virginia Breeze and the NSA down our flipping throat!”
My feelings are no secret to Mayor Joel Golden and the Police Commissioner, “I
don’t like
the
idea
of
our
having
no idea
of
what she’s working
on
and
she’s
not
required to answer to either of us.”
Somewhat calm, “I know. It has a very bad stench. To squelch any hint suspicion,
we’ll keep playing along.”
I scarfed down the last bite, “Absolutely, and at the first opportunity...”
Commissioner Horton has a renewed sense of authority he cuts me off mid-sentence,
“Get rid of Agent Virginia Breeze.” He places the sandwich wrapper into the empty potato
chip bag then tosses it NBA style into the wastebasket across the room.
There is get of rid of her. Then there is, GET RID OF HER. I learned not to ask
too many
questions long
educated
guess and hope
difference how we get rid of her as long as it gets done.
ago,
but some
matters are best
decided
by
making
the
best
for the best. At the end
of the day, it does not make any

CHAPTER 16
Detective Virginia Breeze
There is a swarm of police squad cars, crime scene vans, and a unmistakable
unmarked van with U.S. Government issue
plates parked
in front B. Mosley

Mortuary
on
Natural
Bridge
Road. Television News trucks have found
their spot directly across the street at the Knights of the Black Circle Lodge Parking
lot. Since its private property and they paid to park, the police had no luck in forcing
them to leave. When I looked at the black van I knew immediately whom it was, and I
inform Captain West, “ATF guys.”

Captain West says, “That explains Natural Bridge being hey had closed for the last
three hours.”
The ATF gave
all clear signal minutes prior
to our arrival. If you’ve ever driven
on
Natural Bridge Road, then you already know that it i s
busy twenty-four- seven. In St.
Louis word of any major crime makes three rounds on the streets before it even hits the
evening news, and the news traveled on the street at the speed of light of a body stolen
from B. Mosley Mortuary.
Brad, Troy, Captain West and I are sitting in Brad’s
office
as
I
begin
my
preliminary
investigation. Brad’s office is what
must be the
standard funeral director office. Along one of the walls, I see several small scale models
of coffins. They are small enough to fit into a doll house. I decided to keep it simple,
“When did you notice the body missing?”
Brad answered, “Troy and I came down after dinner to prepare the body, and that’s
when we noticed the body was missing.”
Troy adds more detail to the events of the evening, “We searched the entire area
and that’s when we noticed the side door.”
Captain
West looks
at Troy’s
baggy
pants and
long
dreadlock’s
with
complete
contempt and his contempt is matched only by his question, “What made you think you
had to look anyplace other than where you left the body?”
Troy smiles politely in my direction, “Well you see…on the way here Ray Murdock
sat up straight in back of the Hurst, so I thought if he could sit up then he could get up
and walk off like a Zombie.”
I did my best to hold back a laugh, but I managed a smile, and suggest to Troy,
“You’re not really interested in being an Undertaker? Are you?”
Before Troy could answer his Father, Brad
suggests, “Troy? Why don’t you go upstairs and check on your mother? Without another
word, Troy exits the room.
Captain West and I are escorted through the funeral home by Brad Mosley. We pass
through a room of coffins of various designs, sizes colors. Like cadavers have toe tags,
so coffin had a price tag hanging out of the foot of each coffin. Captain West stops to
look at a solid gold plated coffin with a blank name plate at the head, “Nice,” He looks
at the price tag of seventy thousand dollars, “Christ Jesus! Bet you’ve been holding that a
while?”
Brad glances at the coffin, “That’s a special order that arrived three weeks ago.”
I comment to Captain West and Brad, “Guess the customer changed their mind?”
In a cold professional tone, “Mrs. Murdock ordered it several months ago.”
Brad is about to continue to his embalming lab, and I demanded an explanation,
“Ray Murdock was still alive three weeks ago!”
I insisted, “You said Mrs. Murdock ordered it?”
Brad continued, “It’s not unusual for our
more
wealthy
customers
to
make
pre-burial arraignments.
My replied hostilely, “Yeah. Just before they
turn up dead?”
Captain
West, “Something stinks
around here, and it’s not the stiffs.”

CHAPTER 17
Detective Virginia Breeze

We were led through a maze of rooms and refrigeration units. It feels a s t h o u g h
we had been walking
through
this
maze
of
death
forever
and Captain West whispers,
“Any day now.” Brad Mosley heard him to my surprise, and Brad informed us, “Almost
there.”

Brad opened the door and we enter the embalming lab, but the Hydraulic Operating
Table with a burgundy cover on the floor drew my attention. I looked at the cloth and
asked, “What’s this?”

“That is a First Call Cover. It’s used to cover the remains” Brad answers.

I see various body lifters and transfer devices hanging overhead, but the machine in
the corner drew my attention next. The machine looks like a blender, and again I ask, “What
that?”

Without going into anything technical, he says, “Porti-Boy Embalming Machine.”

I begin opening the various cabinets and see different types of chemicals used in the
embalming process. I look at the Undertaker and ask, “Any chemicals missing?”
Brad came over and looked at all the chemicals, “Nothing is
missing.” He proceeds
to opening another cabinet with even more chemical’s and adhesives, “Everything is…” He
looks at the boxes of various adhesives, “There are several boxes missing.”
Captain West presses Brad, “What’s missing” Brad looks at me and replies, “Thanoseal
Flesh is missing.”
I ask, “What’s it used for?”
I remove a small notepad from the pocket of my black Armani Leather Jacket as Brad
describes in detail the purpose of the Thanoseal Flesh, “It makes damaged human flesh
look natural,
but I would not have had to use it on Ray Murdock because he had no
cuts, scars, burns and gunshot wounds that required natural looking human flesh.”
I scrutinized the various surgical tools on a stainless
steel
tray setting on
a
cart
next to the Hydraulic Operating Table. I observed another tray of plastic tubes and a case
of plastic bags.
In all my years as an investigator, this is the first time I’ve ever been on the seen a
mortician’s lab and the tools of the trade. Captain West looked at the box of plastic bags
and inquires, “What the bags for?”
Brad stood watching and waiting for the next question, “Those are used to store body
parts.”
Captain West simply replies, “Aha…Okay?” I ask, “You incinerate them on site?”
Brad replies, “No.
They
are
stored at
the foot of the casket and buried with the
body.”
I am stunned to learn this kind of detail, “Really?”
Brad continues, “Haven’t you ever heard old cops use the phrase, this case is in the
bag?”
Captain West looked at Brad strangely and said, “I heard people say that, but I had
no idea this is what they meant.”
Without moving, I looked around the room
for anything that might seem out of place and I notice a cubby hole of a doorway that
looks as though it leads nowhere and as I point in the general direction I ask, “Where does
that lead?”
“It leads down another passageway,” Brad leads the way, “Come and I will show you.”
It is a narrow entryway that makes a shape turn into the Embalming room from the
driveway of the Mortuary. The door is hanging off its hinges. There are a group of men
wearing military clothing with enormous letters that read, ATF. A tall man with blond hair
and blue eyes wearing an ATF jacket walks up to
Virginia
and introduces himself, “I’m
Agent Frank Masterson. After a brief pleasantry, Agent Masterson hands me a piece of
soft white putty and I begin pinching it between my thumb and forefinger and Masterson
explains, “We found small traces of explosives like what you’re holding.”
I
immediately
stop
pinching
it
and
looked
at it
and Captain
West
responds,
“OMFG…WTF?”
I try to pass the C4 putty to Captain West, and he yells, “I don’t want it!”
Agent Masterson took the sample and I ask, “I’m surprised it didn’t take the entire
build out?”
The Undertaker, Brad Mosley is standing to the side, and he informs me, “Detective
Breeze I have the funeral service for Alonzo Simmons in one of the chapels that I need to
attend to.”
Captain West remembers, “That’s kid was killed in the drive-by shooting last week.”
Brad answers, “Yes.”
I looked at him, “Of course go right ahead” and Brad Mosley leaves.
“This was a low level charge and this guy knew what he was doing,” states Masterson
as he points at the door frame and hinges.
Captain West asserted, “You mean this guy is military?”
“The culprit could be, but I seriously doubt it,” he says as shrugs his shoulders.
I
smiled
at
Masterson
and
inquire
jokingly, “I’ve have the feeling you know
something.”
“That’s very intuitive of you Detective Breeze,” as he hands me a flirtatious grin like
he’s handing me chocolate.
Captain West
can
be
very
impatient, “You two can play
kiss face
another time
because I don’t have the time!”
Agent Masterson steps closer to Captain West, forcing Captain West to look up as
Masterson explains, “Demolition Companies use C4 and other types of explosives in the
construction trade.”
Finally everyone is on the same page and so to
confirm
my
understanding, “So
we’re looking for someone that may have worked in construction or demolition?”
“That’s a big affirmative,” replied Agent Masterson.
I look at the door and hinges meticulously, “Wouldn’t this have made a loud noise
that would have been heard?’’ and after I ask that question we heard the sound of a car
backfiring with a loud, “BOMB!”
There
is the
sound of a loud
rhythmic
beating
of
a
car
stereo
and Captain
West comments, “Must be Satan’s Heartbeat.”
Agent Masterson, “Yes, but as you can hear, other background sounds can camouflage
any low level explosions.”
“Yeah I’ve got the
point,” but as busy as Natural Bridge is I know someone saw a
dead body being carried out.
“I want to point out that there was a Construction Company that had a break in at
one of their supply buildings several months ago,” informs Agent Masterson.
Captain West shakes his head, “Murdock Construction?”
“You
got
it. Murdock Construction and
Demolition, Inc.,” responds
Masterson
as he
hands me his business card at the ATF. He smiles, “Just
in
case
you
need
anything,”
The
three
of
us
walk
outside
and
onto
the sidewalk.
We
watch
the
crowd
of
young people gathering on the sidewalk as we stop on the
sidewalk to talk. Suddenly, a black sports car
with dark tinted windows slows down near the crowd. We watch as the window is rolled
down and in automatic response Masterson and I pull our weapons at the same time as a
man in a grey hoodie fires shots from an AK-47 into the crowd. Three people are hit
including Captain West. Masterson and I return fire. The shooter falls in the direction of
the driver. I’m sure both I and Masterson hit the shooter in the shoulder and chest. Agent
Masterson continues firing off rounds and his last shoot shatters the back windshield as the
car speeds away, “No tags!” yells Masterson.