The Arx Read Online Free PDF Page B

Gloria told me the father died in a construction accident eight months ago.”
    “It was before Ralphie was even born. He wasn’t interested in the baby anyway. His only interests were drinking and gambling.”
    “Could some relative of the father be hanging around?”
    “Not as far as I know. I think whatever relatives he had are back east somewhere.” Rebecca sat back. “It makes no sense at all. And then to find the poor thing… that way. Poor Gloria.” Her voice broke again. “You’d think that would rule out any relative – if they wanted Ralphie they would have kidnapped him, not killed him.”
    “Speaking of Ralphie,” Frank said, “I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but… did you find anything strange about him?”
    She shrugged. “Not really. He had an unusual way of staring at you.”
    “Like an animal.”
    “Yeah, I guess.”
    “Something’s missing,” Frank said. “Too bad we can’t get a copy of the Coroner’s report.”
    “My ex-roommate from university is pretty high up in the Coroner’s office. I might be able to convince her to give me a copy.”
    He leaned forward. “Could you do that? We don’t have much to go on, but it’s a start.”
    He grabbed a sugar packet out of a bowl on the table, shook it a few times, and put it back.
    She narrowed her eyes at him. “Are you sure you’re up for this?”
    He took a large swig of his coffee. He needed a smoke. “Don’t worry about me,” he said, getting up from his chair. “I’ll be in touch. Let me know if you hear anything.”
     
    A few days later, Frank was wakened by a loud noise. He found himself lying cross-ways on his bed, still in his clothes. At first he was confused and rolled over to swat his alarm. Then he realized it was something else: his phone was ringing. He staggered to his feet and reached for it.
    It was Rebecca.
    “My friend came through,” she said. “I’ve got a copy of the Coroner’s report, if you want to have a look.”
    They agreed to meet back at her office. Frank formally met Judy, Rebecca’s receptionist.
    “Wow, a real live detective.” She smiled, as Frank shook her hand and introduced himself.
    “Ex-detective,” he corrected her, smiling.
    Rebecca led Frank to her office and Judy brought them both coffee. When she was gone Rebecca closed the door and took a seat behind her desk. Frank sat facing her. She unlocked a drawer, pulled out a white plastic flash drive, and plugged the device into her computer. She swiveled the screen around for Frank to view.
    “I’ve read it already,” she said. “The cause of death is asphyxiation, either accidentally or on purpose. The burning of the body occurred after death.”
    Her face was drawn, like she was fighting to hold it together.
    “The report’s not due to be officially released for a few days,” she continued. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t broadcast that you’d seen it.”
    “My lips are sealed,” Frank said. “Can I borrow your mouse?”
    Rebecca passed him the mouse. He flipped through the written records, scanning the comments and conclusions. He stopped at a page with photographs of the dead child. His stomach turned as he viewed the charred corpse. Even with his years of experience with death and mutilation he found the images shocking. He switched on his cop’s detachment and forced himself to look.
    “Huh?” he suddenly said, zooming in on a photograph. “I’ll be damned…”
    “What?”
    “They’re gone.”
    “What? What are gone?”
    “The teeth.”
    “Teeth?”
    “There’s a clear shot here of the mouth and gums. There’s no sign of any teeth.”
    “Well, of course…is that so surprising?"
    "When I first met Gloria at Janet's place she had Ralphie with her, and we all went to look at him. She specifically pointed out that he already had two top incisors coming in. I saw them myself. She said they'd just come in within the past couple of days. She was kind of proud of it, like it made him