“If the Gorts are captured, I have a feeling something will happen. Judd Turlock is going out to the quarries to direct the operation personally.”
“You think the Gorts will be killed? Because of the way Beckert feels about them?”
“I could be wrong.”
“I thought Beckert left the department.”
“He did, technically. Turlock will be acting chief until there’s an official appointment. But the thing is, Turlock always does what Beckert wants. Nobody here believes that’s going to change.”
“That worries you?”
“It always worries me when the face of a situation is different from the truth. A resignation should mean that you’re actually gone. Not just pretending to be gone. You understand what I’m saying?”
“Perfectly.” Not only was an appearance-reality gap a worrisome thing, it was the basic challenge in every investigation—breaking through the shell of a situation to discover what was really there. “Anything else you want to tell me?”
“That’s it for now.”
As Gurney ended the call he noted that he still had one message he hadn’t listened to yet—from Dr. Walter Thrasher. Now, while he was still parked, was as good a time as any.
“David, this is Walt Thrasher. Based on what you’ve found so far, that excavation of yours may turn out to be of considerable historical interest. I’d like your permission to probe the area further. Please get back to me as soon as you can.”
Whatever it was that might be of interest to Thrasher was at that moment of little interest to Gurney. But a phone conversation with the ME could provide an opportunity to address other subjects.
He placed the call.
The man answered on the first ring. “Thrasher.”
“I got your message. About the dig.”
“Ah, yes. The dig. I’d like to scrape around a bit, see what’s there.”
“Are you looking for something in particular?”
“Yes. But I’d rather not say what—not yet, anyway.”
“Something of value?”
“Not in the normal sense. No buried treasure.”
“Why all the secrecy?”
“I hate speculation. I have a fondness for hard evidence.”
That was, Gurney thought, as good an opening as he was likely to get. “Speaking of evidence, when do you expect to get your tox screens on Jordan and Tooker back from the lab?”
“I emailed the report to Turlock yesterday afternoon.”
“To Turlock?”
“He’s still the CIO on that case, is he not?”
“Yes, he is,” said Gurney confidently, trying not to expose any out-of-the-loop uncertainty. “He’ll probably forward your report to the DA’s office, and I’ll get a copy from Sheridan. Is there anything I should pay special attention to?”
“I report facts. Prioritizing them is up to you.”
“And the facts in this instance are . . .”
“Alcohol, midazolam, propofol.”
“Propofol . . . as in the Michael Jackson OD?”
“Correct.”
“Propofol’s administered intravenously, right?”
“Right.”
“I didn’t think it was commonly available on the street.”
“It’s not. It would be a tricky substance for the average addict to deal with.”
“How so?”
“It’s a powerful sedative with a narrow therapeutic window.”
“Meaning?”
“The recommended dosage level is relatively close to the level of toxicity.”
“So it’s easy to OD on it?”
“Easier than with most street drugs. And there’s no antidote—no equivalent to Narcan for opiates—no way to bring you back once you go over the edge.”
“Could a propofol OD have been the cause of death?”
“Direct cause of death for both individuals was strangulation, leading to heart and respiratory failure. I’d say the propofol was administered earlier for its sedative rather than toxic effects.”
“To eliminate the pain of the branding? To keep the victims quiet and manageable?”
“The sedative effect would be consistent with those outcomes.”
“This case gets more interesting every day, doesn’t it?”
“Indeed. In fact, your call caught me on my way from the autopsy table back to my office.”
“Autopsy on who?”
“Officer Loomis.”
“I assume his death was the result of the complications you’d expect from a bullet to the temporal lobe?”
“The temporal lobe was creased but not perforated. He almost certainly would have recovered from that, possibly with some ongoing deficits. Of course, one can never be sure with brain injuries. His death was actually caused by complications arising from tissue destruction, sepsis, and hemorrhaging in critical brain-stem structures, primarily within the medulla oblongata.”
Gurney was puzzled. “What’s the connection between that area and the part of his head where he was shot?”
“No connection relevant to the outcome.”
“I’m confused. Are you saying that his death was not caused by the delayed effects of the gunshot to his temple?”
“His death was caused by the delayed effects of an ice pick driven into his brain stem.”
Gurney didn’t have time to ask Thrasher all the questions that came to mind. He settled for three big ones.
First question: How long before Loomis’s deteriorating condition was noted could the stabbing have occurred?
