Chapter 2

By the time Mac and Duckman were back to the crime scene, Madam Foster was gone, and Lieutenant Woolwine was nowhere in sight. Other policemen were still milling around, and now an elderly gentleman with a walrus mustache and white coat was kneeling beside Frankie's body. He had on latex gloves and had turned the dead girl's head and was examining her neck. "So what does it look like?" Mac asked. The man looked up, "who are you?"

"Just family."

"Until I do an autopsy," the man replied, "I cannot really speculate."

Judging by the nature of the wound," Mac said, "it looks like someone shoved an icepick, or something finer to sever her spinal cord."

"Eh? Maybe," the coroner got up, "step aside son." He walked over to uniformed police officer, and pointed to Frankie, and then towards outside. The policeman nodded, and made his way toward the stairs.

Mac looked down on the lifeless Frankie, and noticed something on the front of her grreen hoodie. There was a little splotch of blood. "Hmmm," Mac observed, "interesting." Frankie's hoodie was open to reveal her Powerpuff Girls T-shirt, and her bare belly. Mac looked closer along the zipper, and noticed another splotch of blood there. He scratched his head. "you find something?" Duckman asked.

"Okay," Mac answered, "Frankie was stabbed from behind. If the wound I saw was fine and round, we would assume she was definitely stabbed with a sharpend icepick, or something long and fine."

"So what?"

"In the first place," Mac pointed out, "there would be very little or no blood. Furthermore, if there was blood, it should be on the back of her hoodie, not the front." Mac pulled out a penknife, and took a small portion of the bloodstained fabric, and put it in his pocket. "I will have to use Herriman's laboratory and have that fabric analyzed."

"You mean ol' stingy has a laboratory?" Duckman asked all wide eyed.

"Yup, but very people know about it. Let's get out of here. I have seen enough." Both he and the Duckman went upstairs.

Mac called Bloo, Co-co, Eduardo, Wilt, and Duckman into one of the many bedrooms at Fosters. He shut the door and faced the five figments, "Originally I was going to just brief Bloo and Duckman of the day's events. I decided to extend a hand to the rest of you here, because I trust you all implicitly." The five friends nodded. Mac pointed toward the window, "as you can see they are taking away someone who really touched our lives." Everyone on the room could see two men carrying the blanket covered gurney coming out of the basement entrance, and making their way toward a white van. The five figments started to hang their heads in sorrow.

"Okay guys," Mac stated, "I know this has been a tragic day for all of us. I am going to need your help, but if you want to back out now, I understand. Just do not tell any of the other IF's." The group nodded. "Good," Mac continued, "everyone here is in. I know for a fact Frankie was murdered. The way it was done, was to leave a very little or no mark readily visible on the body. Here is what we know," Mac pointed an index finger in the air, "first: Frankie goes on her lunch hour from work and NOT with Kathy, but to the park with the video game I loaned her. Second: Nobody sees hide nor hair of Frankie, until Jackie Khones disIcovers her body in the basement near the furnace. Third: I have a funny feeling that the splotch of blood on the front of her hoodie was not hers, but her killer's." The group of IF's all listened with wide eyes and gaping mouths. "This kid is good," Bloo whispered to Co-co out of the corner of his mouth.

"Pay attention Bloo!" Mac scolded.

"Real good," Bloo whispered to himself.

So here is what I want," Mac continued, "I want to question those individuals that would have a motive; both human and imaginary. I want those individuals to be ones that Frankie did not like."

"Does that include me?" Duckman asked

"No," Mac answered, "I mean never really liked. She liked you a lot after getting to know you." Duckman wiped his brow with relief. "Since Khones discovered the body," Mac said, "I think we should question him first. I also want Dylan, Chris (the pizza boy), and Goofball John Magee brought here as well."

"Why is that Senior Mac?" Eduardo asked.

"Because somewhere between the hours of noon and a little after three, a murder took place," Mac answered, "and somewhere between the park and the basement is a lot of miles to cover. Those individuals live within those miles."

"I thought Goofball was from Canada," Wilt said.

"The Magees bought a house here, because the father got tired of commuting to the Washington side to work from the Canadian side. So I heard anyway," Mac replied.

"Co-co, co-co, co-co?" Co-co asked.

"What do we do?" Mac answered, "okay I want you (pointing to Co-co), and Eduardo look around the entire park for anything suspicious. Wilt, I want you and Duckman to round up the individuals I want questioned. I will provide a list when this brief is over. I want to start with Jackie Khones." Both Duckman and Wilt nodded. "Bloo," Mac said, "you and I have a lot of work to do. Let's get our behinds up to Herriman's lab and analyze the bloodstained fabric I got off of Frankie's hoodie. Everyone has their assignments." Everyone left the room in different directions.

As Mac and Bloo started to dash up the stairs to the third floor, Madame Foster whistled to them, "no running in the house dearies." She motioned for them to approach her. As the pair were facing the little old woman, Madam Foster looked at Mac, "you have your detective cap on don't you."

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Bloo asked. Madam Foster Beckoned Mac to come closer, "I hope you nail the person who killed my granddaughter." Mac had a shocked look on his face. "Don't worry," the elderly lady said, "I will not tell a soul." Mac smiled, then grabbed bloo. The pair scurried up the stairs to Herriman's lab.