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“Haven’t gone back to Augusta yet?” he asked.
“I actually live here,” she said, rising to shake his hand. “I just keep a condo in Augusta. I’m one of thirty-five medical examiners appointed by the chief medical examiner, whose office is under the attorney general’s department. It’s a volunteer job. I’m assigned to this part of the state. But I have a medical practice in town. And I also work here with my brother, Fred. We both have degrees in mortuary science, and are licensed embalmers. My brother also has a degree in funeral services. Plus we’re certified in cremation services, which is the route more people are choosing.”
“You’re a very busy woman, Ms. Guillaume.”
“I’m used to juggling lots of balls in the air. Keeps me energized and engaged.”
She sat down and pointed to a chair, which Devine took. “What can I do for you?”
“Angle of bullet entry on Jenny Silkwell?”
Guillaume’s cheek bulged as she clenched her jaw. “What about it?”
He just stared at her until the woman dropped her gaze and started to fiddle with a pen on her desk blotter.
“I suppose you’re referring specifically to the path the bullet traveled through the deceased’s head.”
“I know quite a bit about guns and shooting them. There are basically four ways to do it: prone, sitting, kneeling, and standing. The latter, for a long-range shot, is by far the worst because it’s the most inaccurate. The best is the first method. It takes away most of the physiological wobbles that can mar the shot. And while three hundred yards away at night, with rain and wind, is not the most difficult shot an accomplished sniper has to make, it’s not easy, either. And you’re not making it by standing.”
“Really?” she said, not looking convinced at all.
“Yes, really. If you’re holding your weapon under your own power, you do not have a stable foundation to prevent body shakes. A sniper rifle feels like a barbell. I don’t care how strong you are, or whether you use the sling for support to create tension between the rifle and your arm, the so-called Hasty Sling, you’re going to get some movement. Some hunters use the kneeling position in knee-high grass, placing the elbow on the lower quad muscle, not the bone of the knee because bone on bone is not stable. Same with the sitting position. None of that matters very much over a short distance, but it’s critical at long ones. And the only way the angle of entry makes sense inthiscase is if the shooter wasstanding, probably less than ten feet from Jenny, not over three hundred yards away lying on his belly.”
He had taken a risk telling her this, since she could run to Harper and reveal to him all that Devine had just said. But he remembered the smile she had given him at the end of their first meeting. He thought she could possibly be an ally. Well, he would find out if he was right or not.
“I see that you’ve thought this through.”
“I try to do so in all important matters.”
“DidyourME come to this conclusion?”
“It wasn’t that hard, was it?”
Guillaume steepled her fingers and sat forward, her elbows pressed into her desktop so rigidly that her own fingers were now shaking.
“The fact of the matter is, I made noofficialfinding on anything that you just spoke to. I accurately measured the angle of entry and exit. I did not address where the casing was found or make an opinion or finding as regards the exact distance between the shooter and the victim or the firing position the shooter was using.”
“Spoken like a prepared witness in court.”
“Itry to be accurate.”
“So do I. The thing is, Harper and Fuss have never raised that point with me. As far as I can tell, their official position is the shot came from where the casing was found.”
“I’m not sure I know what to tell you.”
He decided on the direct route. “Is it just me or does this town have secrets?”
“Every place has secrets,” she countered.
“I think Putnam hits above its weight on that score.”
“Maybe it does,” she conceded.
“My only goal is to find out who killed Jenny Silkwell.”
“I know,” she said in a bare whisper.
He sensed a shifting dynamic between them right now.
