sniffed it. Son of a bitch! His hand trembled as he set it on the table. You just found our poison.
Manny sat down heavily. Good lord! She examined the bottle. Wait a minute. Why would anybody drink something that smelled like this?
Because it didnt. Theresa Alessis died yesterday. That means she drank from the bottle two or three days ago. The carbon tetrachloride has been building up in the headspace ever since. But if you opened the bottle often enough and let the gas escape, you might not notice the odor. Only about an inch is left. What she drank was enough to kill her.
He doesnt know Im in the room, Manny realized. The look in his eyes said his brain was running at full speed, and he frowned with a concentration she had not seen before, even during the autopsy. Handsome. Almost beautiful.
What are you thinking? she asked.
He was startled into awareness of her. Im thinking about the color of Pete Harrigans eyes.
JAKE DIDNT WANT to waste a moment. Weve got to get to Harrigans cottage, he said. Grab your keys.
But youve already been there, I thought. You were there just last week.
Yes, to clear out the study and get rid of the furniture. This time were looking for something different. He grabbed her wrist and started out the door.
She shook her arm free but kept up with his pace. Fatigue, excitement, bewilderment, and foreboding created a volatile cocktail in her stomach. You think he was poisoned, dont you?
He turned to look at her. His expression was somber. Yes.
But you said he was dying anyway. Why murder a dying man?
Dont you see? There was exasperation in his tone. Because of the bones.
* * *
The cottage had been broken into again. This time it had been trashed. The cardboard boxes of everyday household furnishings that Jake and Sam had packed were strewn about haphazardly. Furniture was overturned and pillow feathers dusted the floor like snow.
They walked through the rooms, assessing the damage like residents returning home after a tornado. How long ago do you think this happened? Manny asked. She realized she was now holding on to his arm, but he seemed to take no notice of it.
I spoke to Mrs. Alessis day before yesterday. She never mentioned another burglary, only that she worried about getting everything sorted and packed for the Salvation Army, said she was tired. It mustve been the carbon tetrachloride affecting her.
What do you think they were looking for, the Johnnie Walker Blue?
I dont know. You wouldnt have to do this much damage to figure out it isnt here.
Maybe they trashed the place because they couldnt find it.
More likely they were looking for something else. He stopped. Jesus! I may have it. I took home a lot of stuff from the study, piled in boxes and plastic bags. Ill have to go through it as soon as I get home.
Ill help you, she thought, but felt too shy, too foreign, to say so. Instead she said, Why do I get the feeling that you know more about this than youre letting on?
I dont. Really. Its one thing I learned in the MEs office: people dont change not that often, anyway. You see someone come in dead of a knife wound, theyve got half a dozen healed scars from other fights. We find old bullets in people whove died of new gunshot wounds; its like theyve been rehearsing their own ending. Why would a sophisticated killer, whos gotten away with an apparently undetectable murder, risk exposure?
Feeling dizzy, she righted a chair and sat down. Youre scaring me. Sophisticated killer? We meet tonight to discuss a forty-year-old case of malpractice. Now youre telling me we have two murders, one of them, the housekeepers, unintentional. And Mycroft may have been threatened. What does that mean for us? They know were looking! The last was almost a howl. The possibility of danger made her exhaustion unbearable. Was the trip to
Manny sat down heavily. Good lord! She examined the bottle. Wait a minute. Why would anybody drink something that smelled like this?
Because it didnt. Theresa Alessis died yesterday. That means she drank from the bottle two or three days ago. The carbon tetrachloride has been building up in the headspace ever since. But if you opened the bottle often enough and let the gas escape, you might not notice the odor. Only about an inch is left. What she drank was enough to kill her.
He doesnt know Im in the room, Manny realized. The look in his eyes said his brain was running at full speed, and he frowned with a concentration she had not seen before, even during the autopsy. Handsome. Almost beautiful.
What are you thinking? she asked.
He was startled into awareness of her. Im thinking about the color of Pete Harrigans eyes.
JAKE DIDNT WANT to waste a moment. Weve got to get to Harrigans cottage, he said. Grab your keys.
But youve already been there, I thought. You were there just last week.
Yes, to clear out the study and get rid of the furniture. This time were looking for something different. He grabbed her wrist and started out the door.
She shook her arm free but kept up with his pace. Fatigue, excitement, bewilderment, and foreboding created a volatile cocktail in her stomach. You think he was poisoned, dont you?
He turned to look at her. His expression was somber. Yes.
But you said he was dying anyway. Why murder a dying man?
Dont you see? There was exasperation in his tone. Because of the bones.
* * *
The cottage had been broken into again. This time it had been trashed. The cardboard boxes of everyday household furnishings that Jake and Sam had packed were strewn about haphazardly. Furniture was overturned and pillow feathers dusted the floor like snow.
They walked through the rooms, assessing the damage like residents returning home after a tornado. How long ago do you think this happened? Manny asked. She realized she was now holding on to his arm, but he seemed to take no notice of it.
I spoke to Mrs. Alessis day before yesterday. She never mentioned another burglary, only that she worried about getting everything sorted and packed for the Salvation Army, said she was tired. It mustve been the carbon tetrachloride affecting her.
What do you think they were looking for, the Johnnie Walker Blue?
I dont know. You wouldnt have to do this much damage to figure out it isnt here.
Maybe they trashed the place because they couldnt find it.
More likely they were looking for something else. He stopped. Jesus! I may have it. I took home a lot of stuff from the study, piled in boxes and plastic bags. Ill have to go through it as soon as I get home.
Ill help you, she thought, but felt too shy, too foreign, to say so. Instead she said, Why do I get the feeling that you know more about this than youre letting on?
I dont. Really. Its one thing I learned in the MEs office: people dont change not that often, anyway. You see someone come in dead of a knife wound, theyve got half a dozen healed scars from other fights. We find old bullets in people whove died of new gunshot wounds; its like theyve been rehearsing their own ending. Why would a sophisticated killer, whos gotten away with an apparently undetectable murder, risk exposure?
Feeling dizzy, she righted a chair and sat down. Youre scaring me. Sophisticated killer? We meet tonight to discuss a forty-year-old case of malpractice. Now youre telling me we have two murders, one of them, the housekeepers, unintentional. And Mycroft may have been threatened. What does that mean for us? They know were looking! The last was almost a howl. The possibility of danger made her exhaustion unbearable. Was the trip to
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