NIGHTMARES
CHAPTER THREE OFFICE OF THE MEDICAL EXAMINER Wednesday, January 15
The body of Officer Anna McBride was laid out on a steel autopsy table. The sheet covering her was spotted with dried blood, in large gory splotches.
Dr. Robyn Bauman was peering at something through a microscope as the three of us stood around the body.
Elliot sighed. "Rob-yn," he called. "Come up for air."
"Just a sec," she said. She took another minute with whatever it was she was doing and came over to us. Seeing three of us rather than just me and Elliot, the Assistant ME looked puzzled. Without a word, she reached back to the counter and grabbed two pairs of gloves. She handed one pair to Goren and put the other pair on herself.
As Elliot and I stood there, amazed, Goren pulled the sheet back and began to look at the body. Stepping to the right, he pushed Elliot out of the way.
"What the-" Elliot said.
Goren gave him a funny look. Elliot shut up. Yeah, Goren was a wise- ass, but we had all heard that he was a really smart wise-ass.
Officer McBride's body was a sickening sight, even for me. There was medical equipment-IV lines, gauze, sponges and stuff-all over her chest, in a haphazard pile. The IV line was still in her arm. There were bandages over her head and face, and Bauman worked silently to cut them away from the crusted, blackened mess. If I hadn't seen her ID, I wouldn't have recognized her. There were shallow red slash marks up and down her breasts, belly, and legs.
"Sharp knife," said Bauman.
"Mm. Clean cuts, though," Goren bent over close. Oh, uck. "Gimme a tweezers, Rob." She handed him a pair of surgical tweezers. He carefully probed the wound in her belly and picked out a small blue thread. He motioned his hand at Bauman. She rolled her eyes and handed him the magnifying glass. "Blue.Uniform fiber?"
Bauman shook her head, looking at him from behind large, round glasses. She was letting him do what he wanted, but I could tell she was totally unimpressed.
"Maybe. Gotta do a fiber analysis."
"Okay.okay." Goren put the fiber in an evidence bag.
Bauman reasserted herself. "Cause of death looks like the blow to the back of the head. Her skull was crushed." Bauman turned the woman's head gently, revealing a gaping wound, skull and brain tissue. She got her own evidence envelope. "Let's see if there's brick frags."
"Hang on, hang on." Goren looked closer than I would have. He slid his gloved fingers around on what used to be Anna McBride's skull. Her hair was stiff and sticky. "There's a chunk of hair missing here."
I shrugged. "Maybe they cut it in the ER?"
"Mm.no.THIS piece they cut in the ER.THIS piece.he took this piece with him." He looked at Elliot. "Still like the boyfriend for this, Stabler?"
I put my hand on my partner's arm and gave him a warning pinch. He rocked back on his heels and smiled. It wasn't a very happy smile.
Goren lifted the corpse's hand. He looked, used the glass, then-uck, he sniffed the tips of her fingers.
"Aw, that's gross," Elliot said.
Bauman looked at him. "Maybe." Turning to Goren-the-Wonder-Cop, she said, "Well?"
"Hm. She scratched him good. I think he was wearing aftershave. She must have gotten his face or his neck."
Bauman leaned forward and sniffed. "Give ya that one, Detective." She scraped under the nails.
Goren took the other hand. "Defense wounds. Here.here.She fought back. She didn't want to die."
"Yeah, she got him good," said Bauman. "If we find this squirrel, we got his DNA. Lab'll type it then run it through the computer." She shrugged. "Maybe we'll get lucky. After I do the tox and the internal, I'll give you a call."
The three of us hit a diner for a coffee-and. Elliot spread himself out on one side of a booth, leaving me to sit next to Goren. I ended up shoved against the window, with him on the outside, which was a pain, cause he was a lefty and kept stabbing me with his elbow. The man had no sense of personal space.
"I still like the boyfriend," Elliot said, adding milk to his coffee.
Goren poked his finger into a jelly doughnut. The jelly was unpleasantly red and goopy.
"We hafta catch up with him first," I said, pushing away my bear claw. I wasn't hungry anymore.
"Finn and Munch tried," Elliot said. "He's not at home, and he didn't show up for work today. They're watching the building, and we put a couple of uniforms on the McBride's home in Brooklyn in case he shows up for a condolence call."
"Quite a team you have," Goren said, watching us, missing nothing.
I looked over at him curiously. I figured he knew I was looking, but I wanted to check him out anyway.
I felt petite, sitting next to him. I could see that he had good muscles under the carefully-tailored material of his jacket. Nothing off- the-rack here. His hands were restless, as were his eyes. He continually scanned the diner as we spoke, seeming to miss nothing, and he tore a napkin into strips. With anyone else, I would have called it a nervous habit. With this guy, it seemed more.thoughtful, as if he were thinking deep thoughts. His shoulder was hard and warm against mine. He was strong and calm, unlike Elliot, who was a perpetually coiled spring, sometimes wound too tight.
I blinked. My mind was drifting.
Elliot's phone burred. When the person on the other end spoke, he met my eyes, color draining from his face. Ice water spilled down my spine.
"Okay.okay." said Elliot, sticking the phone back in his jacket. He looked at me. "We got another one," he said.
CHAPTER THREE OFFICE OF THE MEDICAL EXAMINER Wednesday, January 15
The body of Officer Anna McBride was laid out on a steel autopsy table. The sheet covering her was spotted with dried blood, in large gory splotches.
Dr. Robyn Bauman was peering at something through a microscope as the three of us stood around the body.
Elliot sighed. "Rob-yn," he called. "Come up for air."
"Just a sec," she said. She took another minute with whatever it was she was doing and came over to us. Seeing three of us rather than just me and Elliot, the Assistant ME looked puzzled. Without a word, she reached back to the counter and grabbed two pairs of gloves. She handed one pair to Goren and put the other pair on herself.
As Elliot and I stood there, amazed, Goren pulled the sheet back and began to look at the body. Stepping to the right, he pushed Elliot out of the way.
"What the-" Elliot said.
Goren gave him a funny look. Elliot shut up. Yeah, Goren was a wise- ass, but we had all heard that he was a really smart wise-ass.
Officer McBride's body was a sickening sight, even for me. There was medical equipment-IV lines, gauze, sponges and stuff-all over her chest, in a haphazard pile. The IV line was still in her arm. There were bandages over her head and face, and Bauman worked silently to cut them away from the crusted, blackened mess. If I hadn't seen her ID, I wouldn't have recognized her. There were shallow red slash marks up and down her breasts, belly, and legs.
"Sharp knife," said Bauman.
"Mm. Clean cuts, though," Goren bent over close. Oh, uck. "Gimme a tweezers, Rob." She handed him a pair of surgical tweezers. He carefully probed the wound in her belly and picked out a small blue thread. He motioned his hand at Bauman. She rolled her eyes and handed him the magnifying glass. "Blue.Uniform fiber?"
Bauman shook her head, looking at him from behind large, round glasses. She was letting him do what he wanted, but I could tell she was totally unimpressed.
"Maybe. Gotta do a fiber analysis."
"Okay.okay." Goren put the fiber in an evidence bag.
Bauman reasserted herself. "Cause of death looks like the blow to the back of the head. Her skull was crushed." Bauman turned the woman's head gently, revealing a gaping wound, skull and brain tissue. She got her own evidence envelope. "Let's see if there's brick frags."
"Hang on, hang on." Goren looked closer than I would have. He slid his gloved fingers around on what used to be Anna McBride's skull. Her hair was stiff and sticky. "There's a chunk of hair missing here."
I shrugged. "Maybe they cut it in the ER?"
"Mm.no.THIS piece they cut in the ER.THIS piece.he took this piece with him." He looked at Elliot. "Still like the boyfriend for this, Stabler?"
I put my hand on my partner's arm and gave him a warning pinch. He rocked back on his heels and smiled. It wasn't a very happy smile.
Goren lifted the corpse's hand. He looked, used the glass, then-uck, he sniffed the tips of her fingers.
"Aw, that's gross," Elliot said.
Bauman looked at him. "Maybe." Turning to Goren-the-Wonder-Cop, she said, "Well?"
"Hm. She scratched him good. I think he was wearing aftershave. She must have gotten his face or his neck."
Bauman leaned forward and sniffed. "Give ya that one, Detective." She scraped under the nails.
Goren took the other hand. "Defense wounds. Here.here.She fought back. She didn't want to die."
"Yeah, she got him good," said Bauman. "If we find this squirrel, we got his DNA. Lab'll type it then run it through the computer." She shrugged. "Maybe we'll get lucky. After I do the tox and the internal, I'll give you a call."
The three of us hit a diner for a coffee-and. Elliot spread himself out on one side of a booth, leaving me to sit next to Goren. I ended up shoved against the window, with him on the outside, which was a pain, cause he was a lefty and kept stabbing me with his elbow. The man had no sense of personal space.
"I still like the boyfriend," Elliot said, adding milk to his coffee.
Goren poked his finger into a jelly doughnut. The jelly was unpleasantly red and goopy.
"We hafta catch up with him first," I said, pushing away my bear claw. I wasn't hungry anymore.
"Finn and Munch tried," Elliot said. "He's not at home, and he didn't show up for work today. They're watching the building, and we put a couple of uniforms on the McBride's home in Brooklyn in case he shows up for a condolence call."
"Quite a team you have," Goren said, watching us, missing nothing.
I looked over at him curiously. I figured he knew I was looking, but I wanted to check him out anyway.
I felt petite, sitting next to him. I could see that he had good muscles under the carefully-tailored material of his jacket. Nothing off- the-rack here. His hands were restless, as were his eyes. He continually scanned the diner as we spoke, seeming to miss nothing, and he tore a napkin into strips. With anyone else, I would have called it a nervous habit. With this guy, it seemed more.thoughtful, as if he were thinking deep thoughts. His shoulder was hard and warm against mine. He was strong and calm, unlike Elliot, who was a perpetually coiled spring, sometimes wound too tight.
I blinked. My mind was drifting.
Elliot's phone burred. When the person on the other end spoke, he met my eyes, color draining from his face. Ice water spilled down my spine.
"Okay.okay." said Elliot, sticking the phone back in his jacket. He looked at me. "We got another one," he said.
