Reid and Blake had no problem locating the low profile cement block building where the Monroe County Coroner's Office was located.
"Dr. Warner," the short, dark-haired woman introduced herself as the agents walked into her small office.
"Doctors Blake and Reid," Blake and Reid both held up their credentials.
"I assume you are here about my latest puzzles?" the coroner guessed.
"Yes," Blake agreed. "What can you tell us about them?"
"Well, I'm still waiting for the toxic screen on both the victims," Dr. Warner explained as she picked up her clipboard and several files. "I assume you want to see the bodies. They are right down here in the morgue." She began walking out the door.
"In a minute," Reid stopped her. "Right now, I'm more interested in the bones that were found in the vicinity of the first UFO sighting."
"I have those in the lab," the coroner turned to lead the way across the hall. "I have some questions of my own about them and have asked the university to send someone over to give me their opinion."
"We would be interested in what they have to say," Reid told the woman. "From the pictures we have seen, the breakage seems more indicative of old, dried out bones than those of a more recently deceased person."
"That's what I thought," Dr. Warner agreed as she pulled a plastic sheet off a long, stainless steel lab table where she had assembled the skeleton. "Also, there is no indication that they had been out in the winter weather. They would have frozen and expanded in the cold, and then contracted as the warm weather developed. There is no sign of that. However, I don't have the expertise or equipment necessary to determine exactly how old the bones might be. That's why I asked for assistance."
After pulling on gloves, Blake picked up a thigh bone and examined it. "It does look rather brittle to me," she commented. "And, look here where it has started to break – It appears to be splintering."
"When did you say the expert is scheduled to arrive?" Reid questioned as he examined a distal phalanx.
"Early tomorrow morning," was the reply.
"Well, in the meantime, I suspect we had better examine the more recent victims," Blake commented as she returned the thigh bone to the table.