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“I didn’t see anything. All I can tell you is when I did my eight o’clock rounds, he wasn’t there. When I came back around at nine, he was.”
“Do you follow the same routine on every shift?”
“For the most part. We all do.”
Gonzo handed him a business card. “Have your boss give me a call.”
“I’ll tell him.”
Freddie went to meet the medical examiner team.
After Gonzo took down Dennis’s address and phone number, he asked the EMTs if he was okay to be released.
“His BP is very high, Sarge.”
“Why don’t you take him in, just to be sure?”
“That’s not necessary,” Dennis said. “I’m not supposed to leave the place unattended.”
“It’s crawling with cops, and I’d feel better if we had a doctor look at you.” Gonzo didn’t want the man dropping dead on his watch. “Better safe than sorry.”
Dennis released a deep sigh. “If you say so.”
Gonzo nodded to the EMT, who helped Dennis get settled in the back of the ambulance. “If you think of anything else I should know, you’ve got my number.”
After the ambulance pulled away, Gonzo called Captain Malone. “I’m at the scene where Bryant was found. Someone is sending a message with the way this kid was killed. I wouldn’t have recognized him if he hadn’t been wearing the same sneakers he had on earlier. Student ID in his pocket confirmed his identity.” He told him everything he’d learned from the security guard.
“What’re you thinking?”
“Do we know who picked him up when he was released?”
“I’ll find out.”
“We need Crime Scene here. Is anyone available?”
“Haggerty has released most of his team back to regular duty while the forensic people do their thing at Stahl’s. I’ll send them over.”
“After we get them started, Cruz and I will pay the father a visit.” It also occurred to him that he’d have to call Bryant’s mother, who’d seemed sweet and sincere when she’d told him Randy was her whole life. God, he wasn’t looking forward to that.
“Damn,” Dr. Byron Tomlinson said as he stood over the bloody body. “Do we have a positive ID?”
“Randy Bryant,” Cruz said. “Age twenty, a student at GW, originally from the Milwaukee area.”
“Any clue what landed him here?”
“Nothing solid yet,” Gonzo said. “But a time of death would help tremendously.”
“I’ll get it for you as soon as I can.” Byron gestured to his team to prepare the body for transport. “Did I hear this kid was in our custody earlier on the murder-for-hire case but was cut loose?”
“You heard correctly,” Gonzo said.
“Is that going to be a problem?”
“Your guess is as good as mine, man.”
“The father lives in Adams Morgan,” Freddie told him.
“As soon as Crime Scene arrives, let’s pay him a visit.”
