Flashback Part 10: Not What They Seem
By Shadow Runner
Shadow_runner4u@hotmail.comPart ten in the series
Everyone associated with the Gargoyles is the property of Disney and whole slew of others who have a lot more money than I do. Do you seriously think I'd be eating Ramen Noodles out of a paper cup if I were making any money off this…?
Only a few belong to me…. That ain't saying much…. But if you like them and want to borrow, please ask first.
For Pony… who puts up with delay… after delay… after delay…
Hope you like and happy reading! J
***** ***** *****
Elisa and Matt sat in Captain Maria Chavez's office armed with what they knew was about to turn their lives upside down. They were going on almost 24 hours with no sleep but neither of them was the least bit tired.
They were however very irritated. The meeting was not going well in part because Mayor Anderson had insisted on being present when they reported their findings from the Medical Examiner.
Mayor Anderson stood just behind Captain Chavez, looking smug, "So what did you find Detective Bluestone?"
Elisa felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up. He was acting like she wasn't even there and it bothered her all the more. She wanted nothing more than to walk over and slap the look off his face but a soft nudge from Matt forced her to put the thought aside.
Chavez looked that the man with distaste, "Detective Maza is lead on this… If you want to know what they found then ask her." She looked back at Elisa, "Who did the cutting?"
"Jack Miller, over at County General. He was at the scene last night so he's pretty up to date on the situation. Besides, I've worked with before on a couple of cases and he's one of the best."
Captain Chavez leaned back in her chair, "All right, tell me what we got."
Elisa made a mental note to thank her later for blowing off Anderson and opened the file. "No ID found on the body so they're listing him as 'John Doe #64'. White male, approximately 20 to 25 years of age, 5'10' in height and weight of 178 pounds. Dressed in blue jeans, black T-shirt, denim jacket, Black boots, socks and no underwear."
"The clothing analysis is not necessary Detective," Anderson replied blandly, "Just move along to the results if you don't mind."
Elisa ignored him and continued, "Defiantly blunt force trauma. Multiple broken bones, crushed skull, with massive internal injuries, but it appears most the damage was inflicted after death... Miller couldn't positively determine what was used but he was certain there had to have been a weapon of some sort involved. No way this kind of damage could have been done with bare hands. He also didn't rule out that this guy might have been beaten in order to cover up the real cause of death..." She handed the file to Chavez.
Chavez flipped through the report, then looked up at Elisa, "So there is no chance this was an accident…"
"No way," Elisa pointed out several pages in the file, "The vertebrae in the neck were crushed indicating he may have been strangled and the nature of the uniformed bruising indicated a chokehold of some kind… maybe with the forearm… The hyoid bone in the throat was broken and that's consistent with strangulation… We still need the toxicology report but Miller should have it later today."
Chavez flipped through the rest of the report, "No distinguishing marks or tattoos visible… well… that is no big surprise since the body was such a mess." She flipped through the file again and looked over at Matt, "What's your take on it?"
Matt shrugged slightly, "Like the report says, looks like someone choked him until his neck broke, then beat the tar out of him to cover it up." He looked over at Anderson, "That would make it a homicide, which falls under Major Crimes…"
"Detective Maza..." Mayor Anderson turned to look at Elisa as he reached over and took the case file from Captain Chavez, "Does this strike you as a typical homicide?"
Elisa fought the urge to snicker. She could see he was trying to bait her into a verbal confrontation but she was rapidly heading to the point where she might consider taking him up on the gesture. "There is nothing 'typical' about a homicide, Mr. Mayor."
He ignored Elisa's comment, "But there would be some sign of a struggle… and since your report indicates no such struggle…" He looked up from the file, "This would have had to happen fast."
"Not necessarily. We might be looking at several people being involved rather than a single individual." Elisa produced a second file, "This is the advance report from the crime scene. No blood, no weapon, no witnesses, no prints we could lift, and even if we did, there is no one to even trace them back to unless the perpetrators have a felony file already. In fact, there is nothing to indicate this is where the man was killed…."
Chavez looked up at her, "So you believe the body might have been dropped there?"
"That would be our guess… Forensics said the body was clean. No dirt, fibers, or trace evidence from the scene where he was found.
Anderson looked at Matt, "Would it not take a great deal of strength to beat and move a man from one location to another?" His comments made Elisa wonder where he was going with this.
"Yeah, but like Elisa…" Matt checked his words, not wanting to use the familiar with the Mayor present. He got the distinct feeling if he did, the Mayor would too and he was certain Elisa would not appreciate the man using her first name as if they had somehow become friends in the last 10 seconds. "Detective Maza said we might be looking at more than one person…"
"Well then it is not inconceivable one of the beasts could have caught him, killed him, and then moved the body to this location…"
Elisa felt the last threads of her patience break loose, "This could have happened in any number of ways and most of them… hell, all of them, are better explanations than gargoyles! Money, drugs, gangs…who knows what this guy might have been involved with!"
"Please Detective, does this really appear to be a 'gang hit' to you?"
"Why are you so dead set on blaming this on gargoyles!?" She challenged.
Mayor Anderson gave Elisa a hard glare as he spoke. "Why are you so determined to discount what is painfully clear to the rest of the world? I would think someone of you obvious intelligence would not be so quick to discount first hand reports from all over the city."
Elisa did her best to side step the man's argument, "They don't even exist!"
"Well the rest of the city seems to accept the fact that they exist… there are even reports of you being seen with them…"
"This would be the same city that believes there are sixty foot alligators living in the sewer right?" Elisa felt her temper rising, "What the rest of the city thinks it believes is not the point. Are we just gonna blame every crime on 'gargoyles'? Oh yeah that's a good idea…'' She leveled a hard glare on the Mayor, "Sorry to burst your bubble, but 'Police' work involves uncovering the truth, not fiction… "
"So it's the truth you're after?" Anderson moved towards her as if to challenge her point, "And what would that truth be? The truth according to Detective Maza? How skewed would that be?"
Elisa tensed and took a step forward, "No more skewed than yours!"
Under normal circumstances she might have been caught off guard by his comments, but at the moment she was more upset by the statements than the implications. She glanced over at Matt who had moved up beside her. At first she thought it was to prevent her from attacking the man but quickly realized he was equally upset as well.
Captain Chavez cut them all off before the situation could escalate, "That's enough. Maza, sit down…" She leaned back and glared at Mayor Anderson making it clear she too did not appreciate the insinuation either.
Anderson quickly realized he was sorely outnumbered in the room and dropped his eyes back into the report. His eyes scanned the documents until he found what he was looking for, "Your report says he was a member of the Quarrymen…"
"I never said he was a Quarryman…" Elisa tried to yank the report back but the Mayor refused to let go.
Matt looked at his partner, if they had wanted to keep this low key, it was out now. He looked at the Mayor and forced a neutral expression over his face, "We have nothing to indicate he was…"
Mayor Anderson tossed the report on the desk as if it had bitten him, "He was found with a Quarrymen necklace around his neck! What else were you looking for? A Union Card?"
Elisa ignored the Mayor's comments and leaned over the desk speaking directly to Captain Chavez, "Read the prelim report. The broken hyoid bone confirms the victim probably died as a result of strangulation…"
"We can read Detective…" The Mayor replied icily.
"Look at these pictures." She indicated several photos they'd received from the autopsy. "Miller said the neck and head area seemed to show the most damage. Hell, half this guys teeth were knocked out." she tossed the remaining files onto the desk, "It doesn't make sense to go through all that trouble only to leave something that blatant on the body…"
The Mayor was trying to push his point home. "The Gargoyles are involved… It's probably a warning from them…"
Chavez looked at the pictures and then at Elisa, "Is it remotely possible someone might be targeting the Quarrymen…?"
"Anything is possible but it still may not be the motive, this could be some guy who just happened to have a Quarrymen necklace. A simple matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time."
Matt cut in, "The ME estimates the body had been there for about two hours. That means the murder would have to have been around 6 PM, give or take thirty minutes. When we got there, there were at least 60 to 100 people on the scene, not to mention half a dozen news crews. No one has claimed the body and he doesn't match any of the missing persons reports we have on file. Besides, if there was a gargoyle involved someone would have seen it, and based on the statements we took, nothing indicates one was involved."
Elisa was lost in thought and something clicked in the back of her mind but she couldn't place it. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she scarcely heard Captain Chavez speaking to her. Matt nudged her slightly, bringing her out of her reprieve, "Ah…I'm sorry… I guess I missed that last part…"
Chavez appraised her slowly, once again the Detective seemed to be fading out of the conversation, "I was saying is there anything else about this case I need to be updated on?"
"With what we have right now…" Elisa said slowly, "broken neck, sever beating, massive blood loss, but nothing found at the scene… I don't want to speculate any further…"
Captain Chavez knew what the detective was getting at. Elisa didn't want to say or do anything further if the case was about to be jerked out from under her. She looked back over at Matt, "You're certain there is no indication of gargoyle activity in this?"
"Nothing indicates one was involved." he replied firmly.
She nodded and then looked back at Elisa, "Fine, Bluestone is still your partner so he's on the hook as support, however this is not a GTF investigation."
The Mayor was furious, "This is an outrage! I plan to discuss this with the Commissioner…"
"Send him my regards. When he hears it from you it will be for the second time. My decision stands. This is Maza's case."
Anderson turned and stormed out of the office. Chavez shook her head and looked at her two detectives, hoping she made the right decision. "Alright let's get busy on this… Maza I want a list of people who were on the scene…"
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Owen Burnett sat alone in his office. He'd just finished going over the cooperate repots for Xanatos Enterprise and as expected the Xanatos' would continue to be financially secure for the rest of their lives and probably remain that way for the next three to four generations.
He straightened up the files and then set them on the corner of his desk to be delivered later. Leaning back in his chair, he took a deep breath before picking up a data pad which contained the agenda for the next meeting. He wanted to verify who should be attending in the unlikely event one of them was foolish enough to not attend.
As he scanned over the information, the ringing of the private line pulled him from his tasks. He glanced over to the Caller Identification Unit and noted the number had a restricted ID, meaning the caller did not want it traced back to them. Flipping a few buttons on his console he checked a second unit which told him the number was a cellular phone. A few seconds later the number was identified as belonging to the New York Police Department.
Reaching over hit a button and put the call on speakerphone, "What can I do for you Detective Maza?"
"I'm not even going to ask how you knew it was me…" Elisa voice sounded tired over the line, "I need you to do me a favor, tell Goliath and the others to meet me on the West Side after sunset…"
Owen leaned forward, "Detective, I am Mr. Xanatos personal assistant, not a message service… A private line has been established for the Gargoyles…"
Elisa cut him off, "Well I'm asking you. Will you do it or not?"
"Of course Detective…" Owen paused for a moment, "Will there be anything else?"
The line was silent for some time before the detective spoke again, "Not unless you have something for me…"
The blond headed man's expression remained unchanged as he tapped his stone hand on the desk softly, "No Detective Maza… I do not…"
Owen believed he could almost see the look of irritation forming on her face as she spoke, "Whatever… Just make sure Goliath gets the message…"
Owen tapped the disconnect once the line went dead and looked at the phone thoughtfully. He knew what the detective was asking and he wasn't entirely truthful in his response to her and it was obvious she knew it. Of course she wasn't being very forth coming either.
But that would be changing soon.
After a moment he stood up and walked over to a file cabinet and pulled several files out and returned to his desk and set them down. He placed her file on top and pulled out the DNA scan and traced a finger down the information until he came to the microscopic section that had been altered. There was no doubt this small abnormality was the reason Elisa Maza was able to experience the Bonging at all.
It was the only logical explanation, but there were subtle differences which made Owen question the status of Gargoyle/Human Bonding.
According to Hudson, who had been less than willing to even discuss the matter with him, a Gargoyle felt and knew nothing during the Stone Sleep therefore the connection, even between bonded mates, was severed while sleeping.
Elisa and Goliath both stated the Bond was severed during Stone Sleep but the nigh Elisa was injured, the Bond was clearly not severed.
Despite the anomalies in her genetics, she was limited as to what she could pick up from Goliath and usually had to focus unless they were in close proximity.
Therefor, it appeared her connection to him was restricted to a certain degree.
Goliath on the other hand was able to locate her almost anywhere in the city by the beat of her heart and knew if she was responding to a strong emotion without having to focus at all.
Therefor it appeared his connection to her was not restricted.
Which could mean Goliath was responding to more than just the gargoyle traits now engrained in Elisa Maza.
Which was far more interesting to Owen… and David Xanatos.
***** ***** *****
There was very little for them to do. The sun had set a few moments ago, and Elisa sat in the Fairlane, waiting on Matt to come back with something for them to drink while waiting for the others to show up. She was flipping through her copy of the case file, looking at the crime scene photos and replaying what little she knew about the events that night in her mind.
She still had the uneasy feeling there was something obvious she should be seeing but whatever it was, it was still eluding her.
She closed the file just as Matt pulled open the passenger door and climbed in. He handed her one of the cups and sat down while trying not to spill coffee all over himself as he did. Elisa waited until he got himself situated and then handed him the case file, "Well the Mayor was right on one aspect. Whoever did this was probably big…"
"Yeah…" Matt glanced over the contents of the folder and looked over at her, "OK, under normal circumstances, who would be our usual suspects? I mean, if you had to pull in one person on a homicide case, who would it be?"
Elisa brushed a strand of hair away from her eyes, "Human or otherwise?"
"Both." He replied with a smile. All things considered, it might not be a bad idea to think about ALL the usual suspects.
Elisa was quiet for a moment, "Well, on the human side, and if this was a year ago, I'd have said Xanatos…"
Matt took sip of his coffee and wiped at his chin as some of the contents spilled out of the spill proof lid, "And now?"
"Doubtful… but I reserve the right to change my mind… besides I'm sure he'd buy an alibi if he thought he might need one." She took a deep breath, "Beyond that… Severious… maybe a of the member of the Pack… I don't know, pick a problem child…"
After a few minutes of silence Matt spoke softly, "You didn't mention Dominique Destine…"
"Yeah, well… there's a reason for that…"
Matt waited patiently for her to continue and when she didn't he gave her a questioning look, "OK… care to elaborate?"
Elisa took a sip of her own coffee and winced realizing Matt hadn't put any cream or sugar in it. She hunted around on the seat looking to see if he had even bothered to get any, "Simple… I don't think it's her…"
Matt dug into his pocket and pulled out the packets his partner was looking for and gave her a cocked eye, "You're kidding…"
"Don't get me wrong…" Elisa set the coffee of the dash and emptied the creamer and sugar into the cup and replaced the lid, "Normally she would have been at the top of my list, but this isn't her style…"
Matt paused and seemed to consider Elisa opinion before responding, "But she does have the motive… I wouldn't be so quick to discount her, in human or gargoyle form."
"Maybe," Elisa agreed after a moment, "But it's not like Demona… there's not nearly enough flamboyance and I doubt she has the patience to work this way. Despite what people see on TV, it takes a lot of time to strangle a man and then beat him the way this guy was…"
She looked up at the horizon and saw several winged forms moving in their direction. A few minutes later she heard the soft thumps of their landing in the darkened alley.
They exited the car and walked over pulling down the police tape as they entered the darkened area. For some reason it looked more onmious than it had the night before night. Elisa assumed it was the lack of light and the fact she was worried some unwanted guest might show up at any second. But the fan fair was gone; the press had lost the sent of blood and had other news to cover.
For now.
So far the Quarrymen information had not been made public but it was only a matter of time before it became common knowledge. Elisa wanted to be one step ahead of the game when that happened.
Goliath, Hudson and Angela stood in the darkened alley waiting for them causing Elisa to wonder where the others were. It quickly dawned on her there was no way Goliath would allow the entire Clan to come along. Some one had to remain behind as back up… just in case.
"Elisa," he replied in his deep gravely voice.
Even after at this time, it still gave Elisa goose bumps to hear him speak her name. She smiled at him, mentally letting him know she wanted nothing more than to be held by him, but this was not the time or the place for self indulgent fantasies, "Thanks for coming…"
Angela took a step forward and handed Elisa a paper bag, "We thought you might want this…"
Elisa cocked her head and opened the bag. A wide grin spread over her face as she pulled her bomber jacket out. A quick examination showed no sign of blood and nothing to indicate what she and the jacket had been subjected too. Slipping it on happily she smiled at the others, "I'm totally going to owe Fox for this…"
Hudson walked over and placed a fatherly talon on her shoulder, "Evenin' to ye lass… What causes ya to be bring us out this evenin'?"
She was about to respond when her pager went off. It was the emergency response number for the 23rd's Desk Sergeant. She looked over to Matt, "Let me see your cellular…"
He reached into his pocket and tossed her his cell phone. Elisa caught in mid air and dialed the number, "Yeah, this is Maza…" She stood still as she listened to the voice on the other end and Goliath felt her anxiety level rise several notches. "Ok, we're on our way… Yeah, call the Medical Examiner's Office… Ask for Jack Miller and tell him we'll meet him out there…"
She turned to the others but it seemed they knew what it was before the words even got out of her mouth, "We got another one…"
***** ***** *****
Elisa stood over the body. She didn't really need to look but did so anyway. Once again the victim was badly beaten to the point no identification could be made visually. She could see the silver Quarryman necklace glinting slightly in the night and Jack Miller had confirmed this man too had a broken neck.
Matt walked over to her, "This makes two. No ID and no witnesses." he pulled her off to the side and lowered his voice, "What the hell is going on?"
"I don't know…" she replied softly.
"Well we had better come up with something quick." They both turned and watched as yet another news van pulled up, "The press is gonna short stroke this…"
"Tell me about it…How did they get here so fast?" she quietly replied. Matt shook his head, he had no idea either.
Elisa looked out over the scene. So far what they were seeing was consistent with the other case, so there was little doubt in her mind they were dealing with the same killer or killers. The big question was why? Why kill Quarrymen? She walked over to where Miller was bagging up the body for transport to the morgue.
He winked at her as he collected his things, "Lovely night for a homicide isn't it Detective?"
She ignored the look but smiled at him, "Is there anything about this one that's different from the other?"
Miller stood up and pulled his rubber gloves off, "Let's just say I could probably forgo the cutting and just xerox the last report I gave you. Hell it looks like they even had the same style of clothing on."
Elisa shook her head, "I was afraid you'd say that…"
"Well the upside is I might be able to tell you the weapon you should be looking for… this one has what looks like wood fragments lodged in the chest cavity and I can defiantly tell you the body was moved. I found a few areas which show signs of lividity…"
Elisa perked up at this information. Lividity was the pooling of blood in the body when it remained in one position for an extended period of time after death. The fact that the body showed some sign of it was a break.
"Where at?" she asked while pulling a small notebook out of one of the interior pocket of her bomber jacket. She was beginning to feel more like her old self since getting it back.
Miller noted she didn't have a pen and pulled one from his own pocket and handed it to her as he spoke, "Front side, on the arms and legs…"
Matt glanced over to the body, "This guy was found on his back…"
The ME nodded, "Well he was on his face for a while before he was moved here."
"Great…" Elisa muttered jotting down a few notes, "Anything else?"
"No, but the tox screen for the other Doe should be ready, so if you want, swing by in the morning and I'll give it to you after all the festivities..."
Elisa nodded, "When do you think you'll have the final report on the other Doe?"
"Well since I'm sure you're gonna beg me to do this one… Give me a week…" He pickled up his gear and left the pair to their investigation.
Matt turned to Elisa, "Well where do you want to start?
Elisa scanned the area as they moved about the scene, "Matt… when was the last time the press has either beaten us to the scene or arrived within seconds of us?"
"You mean outside of the last hamburger we scrapped up or without Xanatos being involved?" Matt paused waiting for her to jump all over the comment and decided she wasn't in the mood to bash on Xanatos at the moment. He gave her a close look, "What are you getting at…?"
"Think about it…" Elisa exhaled a breath of exhaustion mixed with animosity, "Nothing was called out over the police frequencies so I doubt the info got out that way and since we haven't issued any press releases about this…"
She pointed in the direction of the news crews who were in the process of setting up their equipment but only one crew appeared to be reporting already.
The news crew for WVRN.
The same news station Jon Canmore used to work for.
Elisa looked back to meet Matt's dubious expression, "Travis Marshall."
"What about him?"
"He was the first reporter on the scene last night and tonight…"
Matt gave her a suspect look, "Well… He is a reporter… It's part of his job to find this kind of stuff out…"
A look of understanding came over Matt's face, "You think there's a leak..."
Elisa nodded in the affirmative, "I think he has someone on the inside… In fact I'm betting on it…"
"Are you nuts?!" he exclaimed. "I thought crackpot theories were my department…"
"Not any more…" Elisa sighed again and looked up the rooftops. In the shadows she could scarcely make out the shape of Goliath and the others, "I want this to stop Matt. Before it's too late…"
***** ***** *****
Once again he stood in the crowd, watching and observing.
He smiled grimly as he took note of Elisa Maza's actions. She was looking to the rooftops, unaware that the real threat was only yards away from her.
Slowly he moved away from the crowd, planning the next move.
***** ***** *****
"So, Captain Chavez, what is the latest on the Quarrymen Killings?"
"Detectives Maza and Bluestone are processing the scene now…" Maria Chavez took a deep breath before continuing, "We're getting closer, it's only a matter of time before we get whoever is responsible."
"You mean 'them' don't you Captain?" Mayor Anderson stood behind Commissioner Stanton with a smug look on his face.
She chose to ignore the remark keeping her focus on the man before her, "My detectives have been working on this round the clock. They are the best and they'll get him."
She put a bit more stress on the word 'him' than she intended and it wasn't lost on either of the men.
Commissioner Stanton looked to the Mayor and then back at his chief of detectives, "Tell me again why you felt this was not a Task Force matter…"
Captain Chavez took a deep breath and slowly began to fight the fight she was no longer sure she could win.
***** ***** *****
"Damn it!"
John Castaway balled up the newspaper and threw it across the room. He couldn't believe what he was reading. He glanced over to where three charter members of the Quarrymen were waiting for his orders, "Have either of these men been confirmed as members?"
Allen Jenkins flipped through a large ledger, "Not yet Sir, but we still have fifteen members we haven't been able to contact."
Castaway glared at the young man, "Then why are you still sitting here? Christ do I have to do all the thinking around here? Get the fuck out there and find them. Better yet, go down to the Medical Examiner's office and request to see the bodies…"
The young man flinched slightly, "I tried this morning when the story broke but they wouldn't let me. The guy I spoke to down there said I'd have to go through Detective Maza or Bluestone to view the bodies."
John clenched his teeth tightly, "They are doing this to draw us… me… out…" he murmured under his breath.
Jenkins wasn't sure what his boss was referring to, but got the distinct impression the conversation was over. He stood and the other two men followed his lead, "What do you want us to do Sir?"
Castaway fingered the Quarrymen pendant, which hung around his neck and for the first time since the Beasts tore his family apart, the consequences of his actions were of no concern to him. He turned to the men, his expression unreadable, "Find them… I don't care how you do it… but find them…"
Jenkins nodded to him and fought to keep his expression neutral as he walked out the door, but inside he was glad to see the boss had come to his senses.
It made his job that much easier.
***** ***** *****