THE GIRL IN THE WINDOW (The Inspector Samuel Tay Novels Book 4) (42 page)

“A hollow point,” Dr. Hoi said. “It exploded just like it was meant to. Then it pulverized her brain. I have nothing for you but these fragments.”

“A hollow point,” Tay repeated, still trying to process what he was hearing. “So you don’t think this could have been a crime of passion, the result of some kind of—”

“Inspector, this was an execution,” Dr. Hoi interrupted. “The killer chose a .22 revolver loaded with hollow points, a weapon that is useless for anything
except
an execution. Whoever this woman is, her killer came prepared to murder her and then coldly did so.”

“Then why did he beat her so badly first?”

“He didn’t.”

`”What are you talking about?” Tay asked. “Her face looked like hamburger.”

“The beating occurred postmortem,” Dr. Hoi said. “As you have already pointed out, there was relatively little bleeding. If the decedent had been alive at the time she was beaten, she would have bled a great deal.”

Dr. Hoi paused for Tay to frame another question, but when he didn’t she continued.

“Your killer handcuffed this woman’s wrists and ankles, put an assassin’s handgun against her right ear, fired one shot, and then used some sort of club to crush her face. The facial marks are consistent with the butt of a gun so I’d guess her killer shot her in the head and then used the same revolver to beat her face in.”

“Why would the killer beat her after she was already dead?”

“Rage?” Dr. Hoi shrugged. “That would be my guess, but you’re the detective here, Inspector. I just cut up dead bodies and try to find out what made them dead.”

Dr. Hoi leaned back and waited a few moments for Tay to speak again. When he didn’t, she fiddled briefly with her pen, then abruptly pushed herself away from her desk and stood up.

“That’s about all I have now, Inspector. I should get back to the report. I ought to have it completed by Monday and I’ll see that you get it immediately. Now unless there’s something else…”

“No, I don’t think so,” Tay said as he rose slowly to his feet. “Nothing else. Thank you.”

Dr. Hoi offered her hand and Tay took it. It was cool to the touch. He was suddenly seized by a wild impulse to pull it toward him, open her fingers, and press her palm to his forehead, but he resisted.

“Take a left outside and go through the door,” Dr. Hoi said.

“Follow that corridor all the way to the end and you’ll be back in reception.”

“Thank you, yes,” Tay said.

Tay sensed Susan Hoi was waiting for him to say something else, but he couldn’t think what it might be.

“Have a nice weekend,” she eventually said when he remained silent.

“Thank you.”

And then he left, closing the door behind him.

Tay followed Dr. Hoi’s instructions and before long found himself outside the mortuary, standing on a concrete walkway next to a lawn that was mowed as smooth and tight as a putting green. He got his bearings and began to walk back to his office, taking it slow.

That’s the ticket, Tay thought to himself. Take it slow. Take it all slow.

The afternoon was hot and clear and the sky was a dense, crystalline blue. It looked as perfect as the inside of a ceramic bowl.

Jake Needham is an American screen and television writer who began writing crime novels when he realized he didn’t really like movies and television very much.

Mr. Needham has lived and worked in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Thailand for nearly thirty years. He is a lawyer by education and has held a number of significant positions in both the public and private sectors where he took part in a lengthy list of international operations he has no intention of telling you about. He, his wife, and their two sons now divide their time between homes in Thailand and the United States.

Please visit
www.JakeNeedham.com
to learn more about Jake Needham’s novels and read his ‘Letters from Asia’ in which he tells his readers about some of the real people, places, and things that appear in his novels.

THE GIRL IN THE WINDOW, copyright © 2016 by Jake Raymond Needham

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, contact the author at the following email address:
[email protected]
.

Cover © 2016 by Jake Raymond Needham

Excerpt from THE AMBASSADOR’S WIFE, © 2006, 2011, 2016 by Jake Raymond Needham

Ebook edition ISBN 978-616-7611-28-0

Trade paper edition ISBN 978-616-7611-27-3

First edition, ebook: Half Penny Ltd, Hong Kong, 2016, ISBN 978-616-7611-28-0

Second edition, trade paper: Half Penny Ltd, Hong Kong, 2016, ISBN 978-616-7611-27-3