Hurting ... yeah. Braddock resisted the impulse to roll his eyes. This guy was such a suck-up.
“Yes. But now I don’t know.” She glanced at Braddock. When he didn’t stop her, she added, “He may have been murdered by the same person who killed Shelley.”
“CJ, I must insist that for your own protection you stay at my home for the rest of your visit.”
Braddock’s cell phone vibrated. For once he was glad. This guy was about to make him gag. “Braddock.”
“I found it.”
Cooper.
“It?” Braddock’s attention was still on Abbott, who was countering each of CJ’s protests oh so eloquently and kindly.
“E. Noon.Get over here, Braddock. You’re not going to believe this.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Cooper waited at the front door.
Twenty or so neighbors still loitered just outside the crime scene perimeter. Hoping to get a glimpse of Banks carted away in a body bag, no doubt. Some would linger out of morbid curiosity; others, the ones who had been the deceased’s employees in one capacity or another, more likely to ensure he was actually dead.
Braddock’s partner motioned for him to hurry. He weaved his way through the crowd. When he’d double-timed it up the steps, Cooper shoved shoe covers and gloves at him and whispered, “You gotta see this, Braddock.”
“You’ve pushed my expectations to the max.” He hopped on one foot, then the other, to pull on the protective shoe covers. “This better be good.”
She cut him one of those I-am-not-shitting-you looks as she ushered him through the door. “Trust me, our killer has a truly warped sense of poetic justice.”
Braddock snapped the gloves into place as he went. “Nothing like a little originality.” The organized chaos of the evidence techs continued to play out in the kitchen like a carefully choreographed theater production.
The ME’s assistants were bagging the body. Obviously the perp hadn’t left his John Hancock on the body. Before Braddock could ask just where the big surprise was, Dobbins said, “We found the penis. The dog didn’t eat it.”
“Show it to him,” Cooper urged, that just-wait look still on her face.
Braddock’s curiosity spiked. “Where’d you find it?”
His partner and the ME exchanged a look. “You tell him.” Cooper smirked.
Dobbins picked up the plastic container next to her gear and turned back to Braddock. “The dog didn’t consume all of the victim’s genitals. The penis was severed and inserted ...” Another of those glances at Cooper. “Into the victim’s rectum.” His partner pressed her lips together, but there was no way to disguise the twinkle of amusement in her eyes. It wasn’t actually funny, but when guys like Banks got theirs like this, it was hard not to be somewhat entertained.
Dobbins opened the container. “There’s the signature.” Despite being smudged with blood andother stuffBraddock didn’t really want to think about, the signature was visible.E. Noonwas written in black, maybe with a Sharpie or other permanent felt-tip marker, along the flaccid length of the victim’s penis.
The rub of metal against metal announced that the assistants were preparing the gurney for exiting the premises. “That’s my cue.” Dobbins closed the container and grabbed the bag that accommodated the tools of her trade. “Considering the connection between this homicide and Shelley Patterson’s, I’ll try to fit Banks in late tomorrow.”
“That would be extremely helpful.” Braddock held up a hand before she could get away. “One other thing. You’re sure there was nothing like this”—he gestured to the container—“when you did your prelim exam on Patterson?”
Dobbins shook her head. “Not that I encountered. But, as you say, in light of this ...” She glanced at the container. “I’ll certainly be looking for her missing clitoris.”
When the ME was out the door. Cooper said, “One of the neighbors stated that Ricky’s aunt was away visiting a relative. So far not a single one of them saw or heard anything last night. Other than the dog barking, but he did that a lot, so it wasn’t something that would have aroused much suspicion. Not until he started howling.”
“Of course no one heard anything.” That was always the case in the village. Hear no evil, see no evil. What you didn’t see and didn’t hear couldn’t get you killed. As far as the dog howling, Braddock had a theory on that. The poor animal had probably gotten confused and distressed after his frenzy ended.
“A couple of uniforms have Nash’s residence under surveillance. Nothing’s moving around over there.” Cooper glanced around the room. “You want to poke around here a little more or go on over and question the King?”
“Let’s pay Nash a visit now. We can come back here later when the techs have finished up.”
“So what happened over at the sister’s?” Cooper asked as she picked her way through the living room.
Braddock waited until they were in his SUV and headed for Dubose Street before explaining. “She woke up with blood all over her sheets this morning.” He met his partner’s gaze as he slowed for an intersection. “Forensics is rushing the test to determine if the blood could have come from Banks or if we have another body waiting somewhere.”
