Gowned, gloved, and masked, Andy was working on the body with his usual careful thoroughness. He glanced up when he saw them.
"Morning. Very bad situation," he said sadly, and May knew he was referring to Sheriff Jack's family connection. Her heart sped up another gear as she realized that the intense pressure was bearing down on herself and Owen, and the forensic team, to solve this.
"It's unbelievable. What have you found so far?" she asked.
"Well, the time of death was probably around six p.m. last night. I imagine he would have come home, and the killer would have been waiting. I think that's how it played out, because he still had his car keys in his hand, and as you can see, this is his work jacket. The garage light and the kitchen light were both on, as of this morning."
"And Molly found the body? Did she move or touch anything?"
"No, she knew what to do. She didn't touch a thing. She called the local police immediately, in tears. She was very upset. She's gone next door and the neighbors are caring for her," the forensic officer said. “Her mother is on the way.” May remembered that Sheriff Jack had been divorced some years ago, and that his wife lived a two-hour drive away, on the other side of Minnesota.
She looked down at the victim's blue, canvas jacket with 'Leo's Luxury Items' embroidered on the back, the white lettering stained with blood in a couple of places. Then, after a moment's mental preparation, she looked at the rest of the corpse.
Ed was a big, strong man. She saw that instantly and with some surprise. He was tall, broad shouldered, and with powerful hands. It would have taken some effort to overpower him, she thought in shock, wondering how the killer had done so. Had he been completely surprised?
Andy provided the answer she was looking for, and one she hadn't expected.
"See here," he said. "His eyes are swollen and were tearing up before death. The skin around them and on his face is inflamed. I'm taking samples and testing, but so far, I would put money on the fact that he was pepper sprayed, close up and direct."
Pepper sprayed? Someone pepper sprayed this man. May glanced at Owen, seeing the same shock in his eyes.
Someone had been waiting for him, with the intention of blinding him and then stabbing him. This was a cold-blooded killing. What kind of person would do such a thing?
"So, it was a planned attack, then," Owen said, echoing her thoughts.
"Is there any pepper spray in the home?" May asked.
"No sign of any in the kitchen. So, the killer must have brought it with him, or at any rate, taken it away," one of the forensic techs responded.
"What about the stab wounds? Any initial findings?" Owen asked anxiously.
Andy nodded, then added, "I will double check in the postmortem, but it seems the killer was right-handed. A weapon with a large, sharp blade was used, but there's no sign of it at the scene. A hunting knife, or a very sharp kitchen knife. There are a number of hesitation marks. It seems this killer wasn’t fully committed to the stabbing, or he wasn’t fully competent with the weapon."
"So, it doesn't give us any actual clues as to the identity of the killer, but it does tell us about his or her mindset and personality," May said, wishing there was more information.
"No further clues as yet," Andy agreed. "But we're working on it."
"Does it seem as if only one person attacked Ed?" May asked.
She was wondering if it had been a robbery gone wrong, that Ed had walked in and surprised a gang. Not that such a thing ever happened in Tamarack County in her memory but May knew there might always be a first time. Since becoming deputy, she'd had to handle a spike in crime, which was part of the trend in small-town crime sweeping the country, but still stressful and disturbing.
"There's no sign to tell us either way," Andy said.
"Any defensive wounds or other injuries?" Owen asked, frowning.
"I see no other injuries or even defensive wounds, but that would probably be because he’d turned away from the spray and was completely distracted."
So, there had been no struggle. The pepper spray had ensured that, despite the inaccuracy of the stabbing, Ed had been easily overpowered.
Andy, who seemed to be finished with the body, quickly stepped back, making room for the crime scene techs to bag and tag the body.
"But what's that?" May asked. There was something in the corner, half hidden under the cupboard that the forensic tech was now working his way toward.
"It's a flashlight," Owen said.
A long, heavy metal flashlight? On the floor, when the lights had been on?
"I wonder if Ed heard something, or sensed something," May concluded, looking at that telltale sign. "He grabbed that to defend himself before walking in and thought it would be enough."
