The Dark Rift: Ascension (The Dark Rift Book Series 1) (9 page)

"That's odd. I mean, the only thing you and the boy have in common is you both came into contact with a corpse, but not even the same corpse." Mei brought out a bottle of sterile solution and a small tray. She set the tray in Jodie's lap and washed her arm, carefully dabbing at the skin with a swab, the solution dripping into the tray. Jodie could smell lavender and a hint of something smoky floating in the air around Mei's head. "I'll put a compress on it and we'll give you a few to take with you. Be sure to change them at least once a day until this heals. You might want to see a doctor if this doesn't start getting better right away. Regardless, the moist compress should help to minimize the damage to your skin."

Jodie spoke loudly so that Nick could hear. "You know, I've been wanting to tell you both how much I appreciated your help yesterday. I must've seemed a little insane."

"Actually, when we first found you, we were wondering what you were up to and whose clothes you were wearing," Mei said. "They looked so big for you. We thought you mighta gone on a bender, like Wending thought. Then, when you started talking to us, things started making more sense."

Nick's voice echoed to the back of the ambulance. "Yeah, that was kinda scary, too. Is there really some serial killer out there after you? Did you find out anything since yesterday?"

Pulling her sleeve down after Mei finished taping the compress, Jodie said, "Well, no, not yet. I'm hoping the body we're picking up will tell us something. Otherwise, we're pretty much in the dark. What I wanted to tell you was ... the woman's face ... well, it ... well, it was rearranged. It looked vaguely similar to how John Nelson mutilated his victims, but I got such a brief look, I don't know. I was pretty freaked out. Today, when we pick her up, I need to see her. Something is nagging at me about this woman, though. Like her age and description in general don't fit his MO."

"Well, she'll be pretty cold, packed in dry ice and wrapped in plastic, but you should be able to see her face, at least," Nick said. "You'll have to make it quick and clean so we don't contaminate anything. After we pick her up, we'll give you some gloves and a disposable gown to wear."

"Thanks. I'll keep it simple. Isaiah from the bureau - he's riding in back of us with Bob, my partner - he's an FBI forensics specialist. He'll be sitting in on the autopsy, but it'll take time to get her to the city and scheduled with the coroner. Some results will come back quickly and others will take longer to process. In the meantime, it would be nice to know if John Nelson is out there and if he's followed me up here." Jodie noticed that the EMTs were both silent and said, "Don't worry. I have a big gun."

"You'd better make sure to get a smaller belt to hang it on though," Mei said. She let out a little giggle. "Your pants are falling down with the weight of the thing. We'd hate to have to treat you for a gunshot wound to the foot when it hits the floor."

"Thanks, I appreciate the suggestion," Jodie said, allowing a smile to creep across her face. She appreciated Mei and Nick's attempts to lighten the mood. Moreover, she felt connected to them in a way she didn't understand. The ease of their conversation and mutual caring made it feel to Jodie like they'd been friends for years. She didn't recall anyone other than Bob who she'd ever felt this good around.

Nick turned to glance at Mei and Jodie. "We're here. Time to meet Jane Doe." Nick pulled into the lot of the grey brick building and did a y-turn, backing up to an overhead door. "I'll run in and open up the door."

The Camaro pulled up, facing the front door of the building.

Motioning out the front window, Mei said, "I thought Wending said the coroner wouldn't be here until Friday. It looks like he's in his office or left his light on, at least. But, his car isn't here, unless it's inside."

Nick got out of the ambulance and started walking to the front door. Jodie reached past Mei into the front seat. She knocked on the driver's side window to get Nick's attention and motioned for him to return to the van. He sauntered back with a confused look on his face. "Sorry, but I couldn't get out the back because you've got us against the door. I should go in there first, just to make sure everything's okay," Jodie said.

"Well, sure. Okay," Nick said, shrugging.

Mei jumped out of the ambulance and Jodie crawled through the passenger seat to get out. She, Bob and Isaiah moved up to the glass front door. Isaiah went around to the back of the building. Jodie tugged on the front door. A bell tinkled as she pulled it open a crack.

"Anyone here?" Bob called inside. "FBI. Is anyone here?" No answer came. Bob took up a defensive stance. Both Bob and Jodie pulled their guns from their holsters. Jodie motioned to Nick and Mei to get back into the ambulance. The EMTs both complied, jumping in their vehicle, locking the doors. Jodie pulled the door all the way open and Bob swung into the building, gun drawn, knees bent, eyes scanning. The agents moved, room by room, making their way to the back of the building. They cleared each room, finally ending up in the autopsy bay. The freezer storage room was locked. Bob went to the back door and looked out the small security window. Isaiah was watching the back of the building, gun drawn.

Bob opened the door and called out to him. "Anything?"

Isaiah shook his head.

Bob waved him in. "Looks like someone forgot to lock up," Bob said.

Jodie pulled open refrigerated drawers, which were all empty. "There sure doesn’t appear to be anyone here, alive or dead," she said.

"I'll get the EMTs and see if they know how to get into the freezer storage," Isaiah said, leaving the room.

"This is odd. The EMTs told me they brought another man here who was retrieved from the river. I don't see any sign of him, either. Apparently, he was brought into the coroner in six pieces. He must be in the freezer, too" Jodie said.

"They used a grappling hook to retrieve a corpse in a suspected homicide?" Bob asked.

Jodie nodded.

"Idiots," Bob said.

The tinkle of a bell came from the front door, followed by the sound of footsteps. Isaiah entered the room, with Mei and Nick trailing.

"Do either of you know how to get into the freezer? It's locked," Bob said.

"I can help with that. Old man Tyler showed me where he keeps the spare key," Nick said. He walked over to a metal desk in the corner of the room, opened the drawer and reached up under the desktop. He pulled out a key with a grey piece of tape stuck to it. "Ah. One more use for duct tape," Nick said with an appreciative tone to his voice. He walked over to the door, inserted the key and opened the lock. "The honor is all yours, Agent Watts," Nick said, pointing to the door.

Jodie opened the lock and pulled on the handle. A sucking swish noise sounded as the door came open. A blast of cold air hit her in the face. She reached over and flipped up the light switch. A bagged body lay on a gurney in front of her. "Okay, I think we’ve got someone here. Bob, are there any gloves out there? I need to unzip this bag to find out who’s on ice."

"That's odd. Shouldn't there be more than one body?" Bob said, peering into the freezer.

Mei walked over to a box sitting on a shelf in the office and pulled out two gloves. She handed them to Bob. "Here you go," Bob said.

"Thanks." Unzipping the bag, she said, "I’ll just verify this is the right ... what the hell? There’s a man in this bag. He’s in one piece, so I’m assuming he’s not the guy from the river. There’s no one else in this room, either."

Nick stepped forward and looked at the man in the bag. His face went slack and he took a step back, bumping the backs of his thighs into a desk. "Oh, shit. Well, that would be old man Tyler, himself."

"The coroner?" Jodie asked.

"The one and only," Nick said, with a grim tone to his voice. "What's happening? I don't understand."

"We'd better call Wending and get him over here. Plus, the county sheriff would be a good idea. Who knows what a mess Wending will make of this on his own," Bob said.

"Maybe we should get the cavalry on the line, too. It might be a good idea to get our own guys here since there doesn’t appear to be any resources to work with," Isaiah said, pointing at the coroner’s body.

Mei looked confused. "I don’t understand. What’s going on here? Did someone murder the coroner?"

"It sure looks that way," Jodie said. "And the other bodies are gone. Where would they be taken if someone made a mistake?"

Nick pulled out a desk chair and sat, bending at the waist with his head between his knees. Mei rushed over to him. "Are you okay, Nick?"

Nick raised his head, revealing his pale face. "Yeah. I'm okay. But I have no idea where the bodies could be. We don’t usually have murders or missing bodies, and dead people floating in rivers and lying in the road. We have normal crimes here. When people die, their families come to claim them. The funeral home up on Main Street comes and gets them, there’s a service and then they go directly to the cemetery. Then, we all go out to the bar. Done."

"Well, we’ll have to find out what’s happening and quick. In the meantime, let’s get Wending over here," Jodie said.

"I’m on it," Bob responded, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket. He walked up to Jodie and spoke quietly. "I'm going to call outside. That'll give me a chance to see if our follower is back. Did you notice we had company on the way in?"

"I noticed a vehicle about two hundred yards or so in back of you, but I don't remember seeing it when we pulled up to the building," Jodie said. She could feel that gnawing sensation returning to the pit of her stomach.

"My point, exactly. Maybe I can find out where he went."

Jodie glanced over at Nick and Mei, noticing the discovery of the coroner took its toll. They didn't look like the same people she'd met the day before. She could sense none of the joviality she'd experienced earlier. In fact, both EMTs looked distraught; Nick on the verge of breaking down. She knew the best way to keep them functional was to give them something to do. "While we’re waiting for him to show up, I’d like both of you to think about where the paperwork might be for the two people we were supposed to find here. I’m assuming whatever belongings they had were also bagged and stored, unless those things were taken, too. Please don’t touch anything. For protection, let’s get some gloves out of Isaiah’s kit in the car."

"Can’t we use these?" Nick said, picking up the box of gloves and waving it in front of Jodie.

"I think she said don’t touch anything, Nick. That would probably include the box of gloves," Mei said.

Nick set the gloves down. "Oh. Sorry. I'm not thinking clearly."

"I know we already pulled gloves out of the box, but that was before we knew what was happening. From here on, everything in this building is part of a crime scene, so let’s all be careful not to contaminate the evidence," Jodie said.

"Okay, Nick, let’s go get some gloves," Mei said, leading him out of the room. "Some fresh air might be good for both of us, too."

Isaiah brought in a camera and evidence kit from the car and went to the body in the refrigerated room. "Wending’s on his way. Said he was not too far down the road, so he’d be here in about five minutes," he told Jodie. He pulled back the zippered bag, being careful not to disturb the position of the body, and started his examination. Jodie watched him for a moment and then heard the wail of a siren in the distance.

Jodie and Isaiah glanced at each other. "I wonder if that siren is really necessary around here," she said, leaving the room to meet Wending outside. Jodie joined Bob, Mei and Nick at the car and grabbed another set of gloves, disposing of the first set in a biohazard bag. Since she’d handled the bag the corpse was in, she didn’t want to contaminate anything else in the room.

"Any luck, Bob?" Jodie asked.

"No, none at all. If the car was parked around here, it's probably gone. I think Officer Wending has put the fear of God into all living creatures with that racket." Bob sighed loudly.

All four of them watched as Wending’s cruiser slid sideways into the parking lot, siren blaring, lights flashing, a spray of gravel landing at their feet. He jumped out of the car, jogging toward them.

Bob shot Jodie a look of frustration. He turned his attention to Wending. "Good God, man. He’s already dead."

"Well … oh ... uh … okay. Where is he? What happened?" Wending asked.

Jodie noticed Nick wavering. She reached out to help him, but Mei was there first, grabbing onto his arm to steady him.

"He’s inside. Isaiah is doing some preliminary work on him to see if he can figure out the cause of death," Jodie said. "While we’re waiting for him to finish, we’d like you to contact the Sheriff’s office. We’re going to bring some people up here to assist, too."

"Uh. Oh, yeah," Wending said.

"I’ve been thinking about where the coroner would store personal effects and they’re generally kept right with the body," Mei said to Jodie.

"You mean personal effects offa the woman and the floater from the river?" Wending asked. "If you need that stuff, I’ve got it at the office." 

"I don’t understand. Why didn’t you tell us before that you removed personal items from them?" Jodie asked, now teetering on the brink of losing her temper completely.

"Well, ya didn’t ask, that’s why. If you want them, though, I got ‘em, little lady."

Jodie looked at Wending, feeling disgusted.

The look on Bob's face mirrored hers. "I need to talk to Officer Wending a minute," Bob said. "Maybe you should all go inside and sit in the waiting area before Nick falls over. I don't think you'd be disturbing any evidence there."

Jodie wondered what Bob had on his mind. Whatever it was, it was clear Wending would be getting a piece of it.

"Sure. That sounds like a good idea," Mei said.

Jodie reached out to help Mei steady Nick. "Are you okay?" Jodie asked.

"Yeah. It's just that I've known old man Tyler most of my life. This is so wrong. I'm scared, too. Aren't you?"

"Not so much scared as very confused. We'll figure it out. Don't worry," Jodie said.

"I'm terrified. I don't even want to go back to work after this," Mei said.

Jodie was starting to feel the effects of no rest. Four hours of sleep weren't enough after what she'd already been through and the smell of the coroner's office was making her light-headed. She wondered if and when this endless stream of bodies would ever stop. She needed air, so let Mei lead Nick go back inside and sat down on the side of the building where she could still overhear Bob and Wending. She was curious what Bob had to say.

"Whadya need to talk to me about?" Wending asked Bob.

"Officer Wending, I sense you don’t have a lot of respect for the FBI. What you need to realize is that we've got a lot of experience with these types of cases and you're getting in the way with all of your condescending bullshit. See, I’d hate to have anybody have to come out here and ask you about some things, like destruction of a corpse with a grappling hook, or improper handling of personal effects."

"Okay, so what’s your point? You threatening me?"

"Why, yes, Officer Wending. I think that I can speak for all of us in saying that we'd appreciate you stopping this hick cop routine right now. Now that we understand each other, drop the little lady crap when you’re talking to Jodie or, one of these days, she might just shoot you."

Jodie peeked around the side of the building to see Bob walking toward the front door, with Wending in tow. Wending's eyes met hers and he lowered his gaze. Bob's tendency to be overprotective came in handy sometimes. Other times, like today, she found it a little annoying. Most importantly, she felt off her game, like she wasn't able to deal with simple brainless sexism. Any other day, she would have dealt with Wending herself, but something wasn't right here and figuring out what that something was sapped all of her energy. Jodie made a lap around the building to clear her head, watching for any sign of the mysterious car that followed them earlier. As she reentered the building, Nick called to her and she walked into the coroner's office to see what he wanted.

"I remembered something. I think old man Tyler kept a written record, like a diary of notes he didn’t share with anybody. I saw it one time when he was doing an autopsy on Billy Benson, a neighbor kid who got shot by his friend when they were deer hunting. He’s got a notebook around here somewhere with some information. He used it to record the autopsy information and then he’d transcribe everything into his computer. I didn’t see the computer anywhere, though."

Jodie started to gently poke through items on the desk, checking to see if the notebook was covered with paperwork.

"Nick, did his notebook look like this one?" Mei said, pointing underneath the desk at a notebook lying under a pile of documents.

"Could be," Nick said, bending over to look under the desk.

Jodie pulled on a new pair of gloves, reached down and picked up the notebook. She set it on a plastic bag on the desk and used a pencil to open the cover. "This stuff must have fallen off the desk. Looks like he’s got entries in here by date." She flipped the pages until she came to yesterday. "Well, here they both are. Says the woman had an abnormal amount of non-therapeutic endodontic therapy work done with exposed cavitations, whatever that means."

"She had holes drilled in her teeth and exposed holes in her jaws," Mei said, grimacing. "The description makes it sound like it wasn’t done to fix her teeth because he says it was non-therapeutic. That's disgusting."

Jodie stared at Mei for a moment, trying to take in what she heard. Although it sounded like torture, which Nelson was certainly capable of, she'd never known him to drill into anyone's teeth before. Jodie thought it just didn't fit his MO. She kept reading in the notebook. "There’s some information in here about the dead man who was pulled from the river, but no details other than the coroner's condemnation of the condition of his body." Directing her attention to Wending, Jodie said, "Officer, I’d like to see the personal effects. Can we take a ride over to the station while Isaiah and Bob keep working here?"

"Sure, lit-- Sure, Agent Watts," Wending said, walking toward the door.

I just might want to shoot him after all, Jodie thought, fleetingly. This guy never quits. "Nick and Mei, why don’t you head back to work. I’ll stop by later and see how you’re doing." The EMTs glanced back and forth at each other with anxious expressions. Jodie thought they both looked uneasy with the idea of returning to the empty EMT station. "Tell you what, Officer Wending and I will drive back with you. I think this bandage needs to be changed, anyway. I’ve been pulling gloves over the top of it and think I could use a replacement."

"We could change it right here, out in the van," Nick said.

"Let’s do it back at your office. While we’re at it, we can check to see if everything is safe and secure." Jodie was becoming attached to her newfound friends. Best not to take her eye off of anyone if Nelson was following, she thought.

They all headed out of the coroner’s office into the bright light of a beautiful summer morning. Jodie wished she was enjoying a quiet morning out on her porch with a mug of steaming coffee warming her hands. That and a nice book. She mentally promised herself a full bookcase of them when this was all over.

Jodie and Wending rode silently over to the EMT station, followed by Nick and Mei in their van. When they arrived, Jodie walked up to the front door and checked it. Locked. "I’ll check the back," she told Wending, walking around the side of the building. The back of the building was vacant and the door locked. The windows were too high to reach, but all looked untouched. Jodie came around to the front of the building in time to see Wending entering the building through the front door. Jodie wondered why Wending ever became a cop. It seemed obvious to her that he hadn't paid attention during procedures training.

He pushed the door open and yelled out, "Everything looks fine here."

Jodie approached the EMT van. "Stay right here," she said. She went into the building and checked all of the rooms, making sure the windows were locked. Maybe I’m just being paranoid now, she thought, as she waved Nick and Mei into the building. Mei retrieved a bandage and some tape from the stockroom and re-bandaged Jodie’s arm, while Nick sat in an office chair, staring off into space.

"Don’t know what you’re thinkin' mighta been in here, Agent Watts, but looks like we chased all the ghosts out," Wending said with a grin.

Jodie ignored him. "Mei, thanks for the new bandage, it really helps. It feels a lot better. Like it's healing. I need to take care of some things this morning, but I’ll be back to check on you. You call me if anything seems out of the ordinary. Keep the door locked and call Officer Wending to accompany you if you get called for a transport." Then, leaning in close to her and whispering, she said, "I don’t know what help he’ll be, but maybe you can protect him." Mei finally smiled, the first Jodie had seen in awhile.

"Okay, Officer Wending, let’s go see what you have in those evidence bags." She was hoping Wending used gloves and that he’d bagged and stored the evidence properly. Knowing him, everything was contaminated by now. They drove to the police station and Wending pulled his cruiser in front. He unlocked the door and they walked in, the officer turning on lights as he went. Jodie was still feeling spooked and kept her hand on her gun, ready for any surprise that might be waiting for them in the station.

"It’s right over here," he said, as he pulled a file cabinet drawer open and extracted two small clear zip lock bags. Both bags were sealed shut and labeled by the coroner. "Got these from Tyler to see if I could figure out who these folks were. Not much to go on, though." One bag was marked unidentified male, deceased September 10, the other marked unidentified female, deceased September 12.

Unidentified female. That was who I hit … when everything started.
Jodie realized she felt a headache coming on. Nothing was in the bag, except for a crumpled piece of paper with numbers written on it. She held it up to the light, examining it.

"Yeah, couldn’t make heads or tails of what that meant," Wending said.

Jodie read the numbers out loud. "415645, 1235216." She set the bag down and picked up the other bag, marked unidentified male. A ring, likely a wedding band, and a business card were inside. The card was weathered by the river and stained with blood and soil. The words on it were no longer legible, but Jodie's mind raced when she recognized the logo in the corner of the card. "Gypsum Aeronautics … this card is from Gypsum Aeronautics."

"What’s that? Gypsies?" Wending asked.

"No. Gypsum Aeronautics. My parents did some work for them years ago. I recognized the logo from my dad’s office." No, it couldn’t be him, Jodie thought. But the description of the dead man certainly could describe her father. "I need to make a quick call," she said, holding her cell phone and walking out the front door. Jodie’s hands started to shake as she dialed. She held her breath until her father answered the phone.