She had not been sexually assaulted. There were traces of sedative in her system, but that sedation had mostly worn off. She had fought desperately against the ties binding her, rubbing the skin at her wrists raw.
Death had indeed come from the metal spike that had been thrust through her—with considerable force.
Amy watched in silence, breathing through her paper mask, and trying to remain completely still to listen.
Observing an autopsy was always painful but could be crucial. Or not. She did believe the medical examiner spoke for the dead as no one else could. But sometimes, the dead had little to say that wasn’t already known.
Suddenly, John grabbed his chest; his eyes caught Amy’s as he keeled over, slamming into the autopsy table. Before he could crash to the floor, Hunter was at his side, lowering him down carefully, saying something to Carver about his heart.
Amy cried out, ready to run to him.
“Larson, I need room!” Carver said.
She stopped, standing still as a rock, barely breathing.
Dr. Carver left the dead to help the living, ripping off his gloves as he bent over John. He began shouting orders to his assistants in the room.
Before she could dig her own phone from her pocket, one of the assistants had dialed for an ambulance.
“His medicine!” Amy called out to Dr. Carver. He searched John’s pockets, then slipped a tiny pill beneath his tongue.
Sirens could be heard. An ambulance, coming to the morgue. It seemed like an oxymoron.
Carver explained to the EMTs that John had suffered a heart attack.
And all she could think was that they shouldn’t have had that pizza. And she couldn’t let her partner go off to the hospital alone; she had to be with him.
He was the best partner.
He had become the best friend.
She stared at Hunter Forrest, who had quickly and efficiently seen to John, and to every command Dr. Carver had given.
His face was hard, but knit with grave concern.
Then his eyes touched hers as she wavered. “Amy, go.” Hunter told her. “Go with John. He’ll need you. I can be our eyes and ears for this.” He seemed to hesitate. “Go,” he repeated. And then he added, “Trust me.”
She was aware then that he must know she was skeptical about him, not at all sure she wanted to work with him. But she knew something else at that moment, too.
She did trust him.
She turned and ran out of the autopsy room.
3
Hunter stripped off his paper gown. The autopsy, at last, had come to an end. Dr. Carver left his assistant to close up the body, and he and Hunter headed for Carver’s office for a recap of the results.
“It didn’t appear that she was sexually assaulted before the murder,” Carver said, sitting behind his desk, “but she led a very active sexual life.”
“You think she was engaging in sex work,” Hunter said.
“I think it likely,” Carver said. “Again, her age was somewhere between twenty and twenty-four, tops. She must have been on the streets for a while as she was showing signs of malnutrition. As to the murder, yes, she was tied to that stake. She struggled fiercely. And it took more than one person to drive that spear into her heart. She was on the cross when it was done—that was obvious from the blood flow.” He hesitated and shrugged. “The slashes were done to her face before she was raised on the cross. That murder was carried out with great cruelty. She didn’t just die. She was tortured before she was killed.” He leaned back, shaking his head. “South Florida, especially the big cities on the east coast, has their share of violence. It’s mostly drug-related, domestic or even accidental when people become the victims of gunfire when they happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time—mostly stray bullets. I’ve been at this job for almost ten years now. Started in the lower ranks, of course. I’ve seen bodies in barrels, half-consumed by fire, stabbed, strangled and shot. But I’ve never seen anything so brutally carried out as this. Hunter, you’ve got to catch this guy.” He was silent a minute. “These people... As I said, the force needed took two people.”
“Two strong people, right?” Hunter asked.
“Yes—to lift and wield that spear. But that’s not just my knowledge as an ME. I’m going to say that it’s simple logic. It isn’t easy to pierce through bone and the human body like that. But that doesn’t mean both killers had to be male, though it’s likely.”
Hunter’s phone was buzzing in his pocket. Carver checked his, as well.
Amy had them both on her list for sending out messages from the hospital; they were receiving the same information at the same time.
And it was another text from Amy. Dr. just came out again; John remains stable. They’ll be moving him to intensive care. He doesn’t believe, at this point, that irreparable damage has been done. Still in the waiting room; hope to be let in soon.
He saw Carver was busy texting back even as he texted back himself.
Thank God. Keep us posted.
He saw Carver’s reply. Thank God. Keep us posted.
They looked at each other and grinned.
“Medically, we should be optimistic, right?” Hunter asked.
Carver nodded. “He had the good sense to have that heart attack with a medical doctor near. Yes, I’m a medical examiner but I went to med school to get that job, you know.”
“Right,” Hunter said, and smiled. “I’m glad you were there.”
“You don’t need to go over there yet,” Carver said. “They’ll let in one visitor at a time, when they do. Give it until tonight.”
“John was divorced, and his ex-wife passed away in a traffic accident around six years ago,” Hunter said. “But he has a son and a daughter. I’m sure Amy is contacting them now. Might take a bit for them to get here. His daughter is in Virginia and his son is up in Jacksonville. I know Amy isn’t going to want to leave until someone else has arrived to be with John.”
“He’s going to need to be in that hospital a few days, though—and then he’s going to need to get some rest and change some of his habits.”
Hunter shook his head. “Amy was just scolding him for eating pizza last night. He’s a good man, and we’re going to need him around a long time to come. I’ve known John to down a twenty-two-ounce steak. Yes, he will have to change a few of his ways.” Hunter stood. While he wanted to see John and assure himself that his friend and sometime coworker was hanging in, he knew there was nothing he could do at the hospital.
“All right, I’m going to head back out to the murder site and interview a few of the locals.”