Agatha stared out the side window of Hank’s BMW. He’d stopped by the house and explained that Jakes had asked them to come back on in a consultant capacity, and he’d also told her that Lawrence had chosen the area to take his sabbatical. Between that and the fact that Hank was acting like their argument had never happened, she was reluctant to go back to the cemetery with him. She also wasn’t too keen on facing Jakes again either after their earlier interaction, but she was willing to put it behind her for the sake of solving a good mystery.
It was mid-afternoon, but Coil had ordered bright mobile light stands on scene for when dusk began to fall. The place had been guarded like King Tut’s tomb all day long, and there was a definite hostility in the air between the local cops and the Feds.
“Are you sure it’s okay to be here, or will you throw us out again?” Agatha asked Jakes good-naturedly.
Jakes grinned and held out his hand to shake hers. “I do apologize, ma’am,” Jakes said. “I promise to be on my best behavior.”
She saw Lawrence come up behind Jakes, and she felt her smile go stiff. Lord, she had no idea why she’d ever been engaged to the man, much less why she even dated him. She’d been lonely was her best guess, and she’d been getting to that age where she’d been thinking of marriage and children. And he was brilliant in his field. But he’d bored her to death. He’d also annoyed her endlessly. Needless to say, their engagement had been very short.”
“Hello, Agatha,” Lawrence said. “It’s lovely to see you again. You can imagine how surprised I was to see you in the restaurant today.”
“Yes,” she said, narrowing her eyes. “Very surprising.”
“I apologize if I alarmed you.”
“You didn’t,” she said. “What are you doing here?”
“Special Agent Jakes requested my assistance on this investigation,” he said, shrugging. So here I am. I assure you; it was completely coincidental.”
“Hmm,” she said, but she felt herself relax some. It was a specialized field, and these skeletal remains were definitely unusual. It would make sense they’d want someone with his skill.”
Lawrence looked at her slyly—a completely British look that only someone with his level of snobbery could pull off. “Oh, by the by,” he said. “Congratulations are in order for your engagement. I had the chance to meet your Mr. Davidson. Of course, I’ve spent years reading his case files. He’s quite brilliant.”
“Yes, he is,” she said, and left it at that.
“Okay, team,” Coil said, calling everyone together. “We’re going to be cooperating with the FBI and the state’s historic preservation society to make sure that we not only solve this crime, but that we protect our great history and heroes.”
Agatha barely kept from rolling her eyes. Coil was laying it on thick for the outsiders and the media. It was all part of the political game. Fortunately, it was Coil up there and not her. Diplomacy wasn’t a virtue she possessed.
She moved closer to Hank and spoke in a low voice so only he could hear. “What’s your take on this?”
“Too soon to tell,” he said. “But I’m very interested in the biker Deputy Springer saw in the area.”
“You think the Rattlers are still looking to get back at you?” she asked.
“Sure, but I don’t think it’s connected to this. It’s just something to tuck away for later.”
“I’m going to hand this over to Agent Jakes,” Coil said.
“Thank you, Sheriff,” Jakes said. “We’re all here to do the job. The most important thing is that we find who did this and recover what was taken from these historic graves. So put your egos behind you and get the job done. The CSI team has finished processing the immediate area around the graves for footprints or other evidence, so you’re clear to move within the perimeter. Sheriff Coil and I are both here for questions if you have any.”
“That’s our cue,” Hank said.
“For what?” Agatha asked.
“To get answers to a few questions that have been rattling in my brain since this morning.”
“You too?” she asked.
“Yes,” Hank said, looking at her oddly. “But I’m interested to hear what’s been on yours.”
Agatha took a deep breath and put her hands on her hips. “I always thought these gravesites were memorials to the heroes who fought and died at the Alamo,” Agatha said. “It’s not until today that I realized they’re actual graves with the real soldiers buried in them.”
“Why’s that a problem?” Hank asked, staring at the remains in one of the caskets.
“Because it says on the headstones that these men fought and died at the Alamo.”
“I’m still not seeing why this is a problem,” Hank said.
“Because it’s well documented in history that General Santa Anna’s army of four thousand slaughtered the one hundred and eighty rebels fighting for Texan independence. And after the dust settled, Santa Anna’s men piled all of the bodies up and burned them in three funeral pyres. It burned for days, and there are no records of any bodies being returned to their families, much less five of them,” she said, pointing to the line of graves.
“Yeah, that’s definitely a red flag,” Hank said. “There’s something else suspicious. Have you noticed?”
“You’re quite right, Detective Davidson,” Lawrence said, coming up behind them.
Agatha gasped in surprise, but Hank just gave Lawrence a look to let him know he was definitely intruding.
“I’m sure you’ve both noticed by now that the skeletal remains in both coffins are female.”
Lawrence’s voice hadn’t been soft when he made the announcement, and a group gathered around to hear what he had to say.
“Yes,” Agatha said, annoyed on Hank’s behalf. “Hank was just explaining that to me when you walked up, Bacon.”
“Who’s Bacon?” Coil asked.
“Oh,” Agatha said. “I meant Dr. Lawrence.”
Andrew turned pink and cleared his throat. “Just a silly nickname,” he said.
“How’d you know it was female?” Coil asked Hank.
“It’s hard to tell actually,” Hank said, “But males are generally larger, and their bones are thicker with sharp corners. That in itself doesn’t exclude females, but what really sets them apart…”
“Is the pelvis,” Lawrence interrupted, putting his hands at his hips and rotating his pelvis.
“Good grief,” Agatha said.
“Nice form, Doc,” Coil said. “I bet you do a real good Macarena.”
“Beg pardon?” Lawrence asked.
“Never mind,” Coil said. “Sorry to interrupt, Hank. Keep going.”
“The female’s body is built for childbirth. Her pelvic bones are shorter and more rounded, and the tailbone is more flexible to accommodate gestation and child delivery.”
“Are you saying my hips are wide?” Agatha asked, raising a brow.
“Your hips are perfect,” Hank said.
“I was just thinking that myself,” Lawrence said. “You’ve quite lovely hips. They have an excellent rhythm.”
“Shut up, Lawrence,” Coil said. “You’re standing in front of an open grave. It’d be really easy for Hank to shove you in one.”
“Oh, well,” Lawrence said, pursing his lips.
“Rally up everyone,” Jakes called out. He jumped up on the hood of a cruiser so he could get everyone’s attention. “It looks like this has taken an unexpected twist. I’ve just been informed that Dr. Lawrence will escort both skeletal remains to Austin where he’ll be able to examine them in a lab. Preliminarily though, it looks like both remains are female, and are not, in fact the bodies of Major Nathan Hills or Lieutenant Wayne Brush. Because of this fact, this is no longer being treated as an historical preservation site.”
“Austin, sir?” Lawrence asked. “Why do I need to go to Austin? Isn’t there somewhere suitable I can work in the area? I’d like to stay close to the scene…” He snuck a look at Agatha that Hank didn’t miss. “Just in case.”
“Get to work Lawrence,” Jakes said. “I want to know who these women are, and if they were put there in place of remains that were stolen. And I wanted answers yesterday.”