Hidden Fire, Kobo Read Online Free PDF Page B

his back. It was almost dawn. Connor had found a clear partial print,
but it, too, wasn't in the fingerprint database. It would be weeks, maybe
months before the CODIS system gave them anything on the DNA, assuming the man
had a record. Randy extended the scope of missing persons reports to five
counties, with nothing matching the vague description of their victim. But with
a body dead barely a day, it was possible nobody had missed him yet.
    "I'm going to grab a shower before
the morning shift gets here," Randy said. "Doc's cutting at eight and
I can see if the county CSI team has any results."
    Kovak rubbed his eyes and took another
sip of coffee. He grimaced and shoved the mug across the desk. "Eventually,
even the good stuff turns on you. But thanks for getting me through the night."
    "If you're smart, you'll hide the
rest of the bag, or it'll disappear."
    "I'd put it in my locker, but it
would probably end up tasting like old socks. I think this is one treat that's
going home with me." He crossed to the printer and picked up a stack of
paper. "I'm hoping ViCAP has something with the knife pattern. Meanwhile,
I'll finish these reports."
    "Can you handle the incoming calls?
Half the town's likely to think our John Doe is their missing Uncle Edgar or
swear they saw the killer skulking around in the bushes."
    Kovak nodded. "No lead too small. No
citizen too nuts." He scratched his fingers over his scalp. "And I'll
follow up on last night's door-knocking with county."
    "Good luck," Randy said. "I'll
see what the county lab's got as long as I'm going to be over there for the
autopsy."
    "Sometimes that's what it takes. You
want to grab a bite at Sadie's before you head for the morgue?"
    Randy realized Kovak hadn't been working
with the reserves of a substantial dinner from Rob's the way he had. His
partner hadn't complained about the vending machine fare, which was unusual.
Then again, this case was a heck of a lot more than their normal Pine Hills
petty theft, traffic violations and the occasional breaking and entering.
    He hesitated. Sarah often stopped at
Sadie's for a morning cup of coffee, but not this early. Besides, he didn't
need the distraction. "I'm fine. But you go on. Maybe we'll meet for
lunch, assuming I have any appetite after an autopsy."
    Given the early hour, traffic on the
interstate was light and Randy arrived at the morgue by seven-thirty. He wound
his way down the stairs and through the dimly lit corridors to Charlotte's
office where he tapped on the wired glass pane in the door and let himself in.
She sat back in her chair, her legs crossed at the ankle on her desk, reading
the newspaper.
    He stood half a step inside the doorway. "Morning,
Doc."
    A tiny nod acknowledged his presence, but
her eyes remained on the paper. He waited until she finished, folded it neatly,
placed it in the wastebasket and smiled at him over black half-rimmed reading
glasses. "Don't know why I bother, but I can't break the habit. Nothing
but half-truths and lies."
    "Comics are usually entertaining,"
he said.
    One corner of her mouth turned up. "Park
it, Detweiler." She inched her head toward a wooden chair. "I've got
a report to finish. Coffee?"
    The thought of more caffeine in his
system and acid in his belly turned his stomach. The aroma would mask the odor
in the lab, but Charlotte would never let him bring anything inside. "No,
thanks. Shall I gown up?" She was persnickety about any possible
contamination of samples, but her findings were gospel in court.
    Another nearly imperceptible nod.
    "Meet you in the lab, then."
She grunted and he left her to her computer.
    At precisely seven fifty-seven, Charlotte
approached the lab where Randy, wearing yellow disposable coverings, leaned
against the wall by the door.
    "How much sleep did you get last
night, Detweiler?"
    He straightened and shook the cobwebs
from his brain. "I remember going to bed Tuesday night in 'Frisco. What
day is it now?"
    Her glare was almost motherly.