Progeny Read Free Page A

that.”
    “The initial cause of death?”
    “Ed was going to get started on the autopsy as soon as Rick and Pax were done. I should probably give those guys a ring and see where we are at.”
    “Did you talk to anyone from the press?” Bostok asked.
    “I gave them the usual—we’re investigating, and we’ll have a press release for them at a later time.”
    Captain Bostok rapped his knuckles on my door. “Okay. Get in touch with Rick and let me know if they found anything.”
    “I will. Hey, who is still around that worked the Redding case?”
    Bostok held out his hand for me to pump the brakes on that topic. “Let’s just see what we get back from Rick and Ed first,” he said.
    “McCarthy worked one of the cases. He said there were details there that weren’t made public. It could be our best lead.”
    “You’d want to talk to the major. We have a few people still around, but at the time, Danes’s lieutenant was the lead, and Major Danes was the number two.”
    “Really?” I raised my eyebrows. “I didn’t know that.”
    “He’s not big on talking about it. Get whatever you can from Ed, Rick, and Pax. After that, we can talk with the major.”
    “Fair enough,” I said.
    “Where’s Rawlings?”
    “At his desk, the last time I checked. I had him getting a directory of the local residents to call. It seems people in the neighborhood there don’t like answering their doors for cops. What do you need him for?”
    “It’s something that I need both of you for, but it can wait. I’ll talk to you after a while.” Bostok turned and walked back toward his office.
    I scooped up my desk phone and dialed Ed over at the medical examiner’s office. The phone rang twice before the receptionist picked up.
    “Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Office. This is Brenda.”
    “Hi, Brenda. It’s Lieutenant Kane. Is Ed in?”
    “Sure, let me page him. I think he’s in the back. One second.”
    “No problem. Thanks.”
    Hold music played in my ear longer than usual.
    The phone picked back up. “Hey, Lieutenant. Ed says he’s busy with the autopsy at the moment, but if you’d like to come down, he can go over everything with you in person.”
    “Sure. Thanks, Brenda. Tell him I’ll be down in a bit. Hey, are my forensics guys still there?”
    “I believe they are sitting in with Ed during the autopsy.”
    “Okay, I’ll be down shortly.”
    I clicked off and left my office. I found Hank at his desk, his phone resting on the shoulder of his jet-black suit jacket. A list of telephone numbers, half crossed out, sat in front of him on his desk. “Do you want to ride with me over to Ed’s?”
    He rocked his head back and forth. “Um. Nah, go ahead. I’m going to keep dialing here.”
    “Any luck so far?” I asked.
    “Nope. I have fifty or sixty numbers to go.”
    “Okay, I’ll be back in an hour or so. We’ll catch up then.”
    “Yeah, that’s fine. I’ll probably be through these numbers by then. Hopefully, we get something.”
    I left Hank to it and took an unmarked Charger from our parking lot. The drive over to Ed’s was surprisingly traffic free. I pulled to the front of the county ME’s office a few minutes after one. Rick’s car was in the lot. The guys were still there. I walked up, pulled the green glass doors open, and entered the lobby.
    Brenda flashed me a smile from the front desk and pointed down the hall. “They’re in the fridge. Head on back,” she said.
    I walked the hallway and pushed open the stainless-steel doors. I found the guys in the back room where the autopsies were conducted. Rick and Pax stood to one side of our victim. Ed had his back toward me.
    Ed looked over his shoulder in my direction. “Lieutenant. We’re just about finished up.”
    I walked over and took a spot next to Rick and Pax.
    “Any evidence?” I asked.
    “We’re going to take the gauze the man wore back to the lab and process it. We’ve learned a few things here, though,” Rick