A/N: Sorry for not posting last week. Things got a little crazy with my schedule and I didn't get a chance to write.
Chapter 23
Captain Benson watched as the loose floorboards were pulled out of the way in the space in the front left room of the first floor. There was nothing to report from the upper floors. That did not surprise Benson but she was glad that things were double checked.
"What is that smell?" Officer Babatunde asked as he put the back of his hand to cover his nose and mouth. He had stuck his flashlight down into the hole while lights were brought over to see what was down beneath the floorboards.
"It's not death – though it isn't fresh either," Officer Hopkins gagged.
"That, gentlemen, is a crappy attempt to cover the smell of decomp. My guess is that the kitty litter stopped working and just added to the problem," the Captain said.
"How does kitty litter stop working?" Officer Abrams was confused but just as disgusted as her colleagues.
"Well, just like anything else, once it stops absorbing, the remainder of whatever is left continues to stink. Howey didn't seal the space up so there could be dead rats in there or…" Benson stopped explaining as Officer Holman spoke up.
"The sewer main let go," he pointed his flashlight at a broken metal pipe in the space near the kitty litter and unknown number of bodies. While the building had obviously not been in use, the sewer main had been running in what should have been a crawlspace. Howey could have damaged it when trying to hide the bodies or it was already broken and he figured no one would want to go near it. There had been a massive rain event in twenty-eighteen and it would seem that the overflowing street sewer mains found their way into the hole via the broken pipe.
"Contamination, wonderful," Lieutenant Fukuzawa shook her head – as if things couldn't get worse.
"Explains why the kitty litter didn't help. No one touches anything in the hole. Radio for the Medical Examiner and tell her to go to the address across the street. Make sure she brings Tyvek suits," Benson ordered.
"Yes ma'am," Officer Hopkins grabbed his radio and made the call.
"I think we better check in with the others, don't you?" Lieutenant Fukuzawa gave her a look.
"Yes, but I'll call on my cell. Let me know when CSU has had a look at the backyard," the Captain said.
"Will do," Fukuzawa nodded. Benson quickly dialed her other teammates one by one then she called Trooper Gonzales and then the FBI teams. It was a lot but she managed to cobble together a terrible picture.
"Captain Benson, Sergeant Izumi needs you out in the yard," Officer Abrams told her once she hung up with the last FBI team.
"Thanks," it was a halfhearted answer.
"Ma'am?" Abrams was concerned.
"It's so much worse than we originally thought," Benson shook her head.
"How bad ma'am?" The officer asked.
"Each building has a minimum of two bodies in them. Most of them are not hidden too well but well enough that someone wouldn't look too much into it. Worse still, Howey is not hiding in any of them. Fibbies are calling in a nationwide search and notifying the Canadians, Mexicans, and Interpol," the Captain explained.
"That is awful," Abrams shook her head but then had an idea.
"I'm not sure how to say this, but how is it that no homeless people got into these buildings? I mean this place shows no signs of squatters," she surely thought that someone who was looking for somewhere dry and out of the wind would have tried to get in. The chain and padlock would just have them looking for another way in, rather than the front door.
"Excellent work Abrams. We need the forensic accountants to check Howey's financials. He could have been making stops at home improvement stores," Benson agreed.
"What about the dead people's credit cards?" Officer Hopkins chimed in from the other room.
"As soon as we get them identified, we'll have to check. That would have been the smart thing to do before they were cancelled," the Captain said. It was clear that Lieutenant Fukuzawa encouraged her officers to think behind just being a patrol officer. Benson thanked them and then quickly went outside.
"Sergeant Izumi, what did I need to see?" The Captain asked.
"This ground was disturbed but the reason would seem to be to scoop up the hidden bodies. They don't reside here now but there definitely was something here," the Sergeant said.
"How can you tell?" Benson wanted to know.
"There is a large swath of disturbed earth that the GPR made quite visible. No animal den, I can tell you that," CSU tech Lauren Dancy spoke up.
"He must have used this yard and when it started to get too full, he moved the bodies to the other buildings," the Captain heaved a sigh.
"Isn't that risky?" Sergeant Izumi raised an eyebrow.
"Would you notice someone loading a black bag into their car in this neighborhood?" Benson gave her a look.
"If I wasn't a cop, then probably not," Izumi nodded.
"We'll search for bones. The FBI is going to take this case over once we have all the evidence from these buildings and yards," the Captain said.
To Be Continued…