Sid cut a deep Y-incision from the shoulders all the way down to the groin of the elderly man found in an apartment full of cats. The body itself reeked of cat smell, the odor having clung to the man's clothing and seeped into his very skin. Sid was used to all sorts of smells, but the combination of decomp and cats was almost too much, even for him.
"Good God," he said, touching his wrist to the end of his nose.
Danny walked in just in time to hear the ME's grumblings.
"Just when you think you've smelled it all," Danny quipped, standing next to Sid.
Sid turned, giving Danny a half smile. He had to admire the young man for not flinching at the smells in the room. Maybe his nose was stopped up.
"It's amazing how the human skin can absorb all sorts of odors, isn't it?" Sid asked as he took skin samples from the body.
"Yeah," said Danny; "I was more than happy to get out of my clothes after we processed the place. I think I'll just throw them away; don't know that I'll ever get the scent of cat pee out of them" he said, and Sid nodded.
"Looks like," Sid said, cutting into the lungs, his scalpel making a soft squelching,
"Our victim here had excessive emphesema, probably from years of heavy smoking."
He looked sideways at the young CSI beside him.
"If this doesn't convince you to quit that habit," he began, indicating the blackened lung tissue.
Danny grinned, holding up his hand.
"Yeah, I know." He said, and looked again at the lung tissue Sid had cut for a biopsy.
"So you think that's what killed him?" He asked, and Sid shook his head.
"Surprisingly, no." He jabbed at a lung with his scalpel.
"See the swelling of the bronchial tubes?" He asked, and Danny nodded.
"I'd say, without going any further," Sid pulled his glasses apart, allowing them to rest on his chest,
"Our victim here was allergic to cat dander."
Danny crossed his arms, nodding his head.
"Is that your official COD?" he asked, and Sid gave him another sideways glance.
"Since I've just started, no. But I won't rule it out. Anything's possible. Animal to human transmission of disease isn't a stretch. I just wonder what I'm going to find when I open up the heart. Some parasites can get into the organs and travel to the heart, brain, liver, eyes, and wreak havoc all over the place." He explained, and Danny sighed.
"When you find out what kind of havoc killed the man, let me know, will you?" Danny asked, and Sid nodded.
"Will do," he answered, and Danny slapped him on the back.
"Have fun," he joked, and Sid rolled his eyes.
"I'm sure I will." he said under his breath, and cut another piece of lung tissue for biopsy.