The Laughing Corpse Read Online Free PDF Page A

of a human being. There was the shoulder, white bone sticking out where the arm had been torn away. That was all. All there was. I stood too quickly and stumbled. The carpet squeeshed underfoot.
    The room was suddenly very hot. I turned away from the body and found myself staring at the bureau. Its mirror was splattered so heavily with blood, it looked like someone had covered it in layers of red fingernail polish. Cherry Blossom Red, Carnival Crimson, Candy Apple.
    I closed my eyes and counted very slowly to ten. When I opened them the room seemed cooler. I noticed for the first time that a ceiling fan was slowly turning. I was fine. Heap big vampire slayer. Ri-ight.
    Dolph didn’t comment as I knelt by the body again. He didn’t even look at me. Good man. I tried to be objective and see whatever there was to see. But it was hard. I liked the remains better when I couldn’t figure out what part of the body they were. Now all I could see was the bloody remains. All I could think of was this used to be a human body. “Used to be” was the operative phrase.
    â€œNo signs of a weapon that I can see, but the coroner will be able to tell you that.” I reached out to touch it again, then stopped. “Can you help me raise it up so I can see inside the chest cavity? What’s left of the chest cavity.”
    Dolph dropped the sheet and helped me lift the remains. It was lighter than it looked. Raised on its side there was nothing underneath.All the vital organs that the ribs protect were gone. It looked for all the world like a side of beef ribs, except for the bones where the arm should have connected. Part of the collarbone was still attached.
    â€œOkay,” I said. My voice sounded breathy. I stood, holding my blood-spattered hands out to my sides. “Cover it, please.”
    He did, and stood. “Impressions?”
    â€œViolence, extreme violence. More than human strength. The body’s been ripped apart by hand.”
    â€œWhy by hand?”
    â€œNo knife marks.” I laughed, but it choked me. “Hell, I’d think someone had used a saw on the body like butchering a cow, but the bones . . .” I shook my head. “Nothing mechanical was used to do this.”
    â€œAnything else?”
    â€œYeah, where is the rest of the fucking body?”
    â€œDown the hall, second door on the left.”
    â€œThe rest of the body?” The room was getting hot again.
    â€œJust go look. Tell me what you see.”
    â€œDammit, Dolph, I know you don’t like to influence your experts, but I don’t like walking in there blind.”
    He just stared at me.
    â€œAt least answer one question.”
    â€œMaybe, what?”
    â€œIs it worse than this?”
    He seemed to think about that for a moment. “No, and yes.”
    â€œDamn you.”
    â€œYou’ll understand after you’ve seen it.”
    I didn’t want to understand. Bert had been thrilled that the police wanted to put me on retainer. He had told me I would gain valuable experience working with the police. All I had gained so far was a wider variety of nightmares.
    Dolph walked ahead of me to the next chamber of horrors. I didn’t really want to find the rest of the body. I wanted to go home. He hesitated in front of the closed door until I stood beside him. There was a cardboard cutout of a rabbit on the door like for Easter. A needlework sign hung just below the bunny. Baby’s Room.
    â€œDolph,” my voice sounded very quiet. The noise from the living room was muted.
    â€œYes.”
    â€œNothing, nothing.” I took a deep breath and let it out. I could do this. I could do this. Oh, God, I didn’t want to do this. I whispered a prayer under my breath as the door swung inward. There are moments in life when the only way to get through is with a little grace from on high. I was betting this was going to be one of them.
    Sunlight streamed through a small