Milo said, “Makes sense, it’s a conspicuous vehicle, why risk being seen during the day? What about time of death?”
“That’s a bit trickier,” she said. “Rigor had come and gone and I didn’t find any evidence of freezing or refrigeration. But again, the lack of decomp suggests the victims were killed and stored in a well-insulated space before being transferred to the limousine. A naturally cool environment—a cellar, say—or strong air-conditioning could’ve been enough. Also, moving bodies can disrupt rigor. The most I can tell you is twelve to thirty-six hours prior to discovery. But if we’re assuming the bodies sat there for around twelve hours and we factor in time to clean them up, dress them, put them in the car, we need to tack on additional time. The big problem is drive-time. We have no idea where they came from.”
“No freezing. So not long-term storage.”
“Most probably not.”
I said, “Basia, could we go back to the causes of death for a sec? Like you said, four victims and three separate methods is unusual for a mass murder. So maybe we should be thinking about this as individual killings grouped together, methods tailored to each victim.”
“Tailored how?”
“Smothering someone’s harder than shooting them. The woman’s compromised health might’ve made her more suitable than the men.”
“Hmm. It’s a thought, Alex. She was carrying plenty of weight—one hundred eighty-one pounds on five foot four. But the muscles of all four limbs were extremely atrophied, meaning a good deal of her bulk was nonfunctional fat. So, yes, she could have been overpowered fairly easily. What about knife rather than gun for the fittest victim, Gurnsey?”
I said, “A more personal death. The way he was posed fits that.”
“I’ll say. Personalanddemeaning. But the woman was demeaned as well.”
I said, “She could’ve been a player in his scene.”
“Hmm…you could be right. They certainly don’t present as a likely couple.”
Milo said, “Any defensive wounds on Gurnsey?”
“As I said, I’m not doing him but I don’t believe there were.”
“A sneaky knife attack also fits up close and personal, Basia. One thing we’ve learned about Gurnsey is he lived for sex. Guy like that, gets in a compromising position, lowers his guard, the killer slips in the blade.”
“Cuddle turns to cutting,” said Basia. “Okay, gentlemen, time to sift through more marine sludge but I promise not to forget you. When I finally get home tonight, I will drink Tokaji and search the literature for cases where animal blood was used as a supplement to a human homicide. There’s a ritualistic feel to it, no?”
Milo said, “Satanic ghouls prowling the Westside? God forbid, Basia.”
“My, youaregetting religious.”
“Parochial school memories never die.”
“How true,” she said. “Sometimes I still dream of nuns. And I won’t tell you the content of those dreams. Good luck, gentlemen.”
Milo said, “One more thing, Basia. Can we get quick DNA on the dog blood, at least find out the breed? I get hold of a suspect, he’s got a black Lab, whatever, it’s another brick in the wall.”
“We’re not talking a live animal, Milo. The amount of blood, survival would be out of the question. But sure, once I have multiple samples I’ll send them out. Now back to my gas mask.”
Milo said, “Too bad the governor wants to be president.”
“Doesn’t everybody?”
“Not the people I want to hang out with.”
She laughed. “Yes, that would be a grim soiree.”
—
He put the phone down and faced me. “Like you always say, kiddie psychopaths practice on animals. Maybe this one never stopped.”
I said, “This feels different from a practice run. All performance, no rehearsal.”
He shook his head and rubbed his eyes. “Doing that to a pooch. Why does that make me even madder?”
