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Darby
Mark was uncharacteristically quiet as we walked through the halls to the morgue. I didn’t know what was up with him but had the feeling something I’d said in the car bothered him. Maybe it was just my confrontation with Kozak et al.
Holly Stack went to one of the long drawers along the side wall and opened it, then pulled out a tray. She unceremoniously drew back the sheet.
Prairie lay beneath.
I’d long ago gotten used to seeing the naked form after death, but even though I was used to it, I still cringed. There was no dignity in death, especially if you were murdered. Your spirit was gone, but your body remained, and if you died under unnatural circumstances, you were almost always cut open.
I didn’t exactly fear death, but I shuddered to think about the ways my body could be used after my passing.
Through my gown, I touched my necklace. It looked like a common charm, but it held my post-death instructions. Pops knew it was there, as did Holly and Lieutenant Douglass.
Holly caught my movement but said nothing. “Okay, let’s get to it. Prairie Rasmussen, aged 37 and seven months, expired at approximately 20:47 on Sunday after suffering what appear to be multiple stab wounds.”
Mark glanced at Holly. “Appear to be?”
“They all go in straight for the first half-inch or so, then they curve, some up, some down, and the downward ones are more frequent than the upward.”
I frowned. “What caused them?”
Holly shook her head. “No idea. But I found trace evidence in the wounds. I sent it to the lab.”
“Well, she was found with clothes on,” Mark said. “Trace is probably from that.”
Holly shook her head. “The fibers weren’t the same color as the shirt. And there was something else I can’t identify. I sent it to the lab too. We should have something in a few days on that front.”
Mark bobbed his head slowly, then pointed at the slashes on Prairie’s arms and lower torso. “What about these wounds? Caused by the same weapon?”
Holly shrugged. “I’m presuming so, but the pattern is different than the chest wounds. Those are more diamond shaped; these others are rounded.”
“Multiple assailants?”
“My gut tells me no, but it’s not always right.”
“How much did she suffer?” I asked. Looking at the wounds made me grimace, imagining the pain she could have gone through. Sometimes during resuscitations, I’d get phantom flashes of pain where the victim’s wounds were. I couldn’t begin to imagine what I could potentially feel with Prairie.
And it all seemed to revolve around how long they’d suffered until death occurred. When I’d revived my colleague Peter after Costa Rica, I’d been in utter agony. He’d died five days after he’d received the injuries which had ultimately killed him.
“Not very long. One of the wounds penetrated her heart muscle and severed her aorta. She’d have bled out very quickly.”
“What about the possibility of revival?”
Holly shrugged. “You’re a miracle worker, Darby, but this may be beyond you.”
Mark clicked his tongue. “The witness didn’t believe Prairie would want to be revived.”
Holly frowned and stared down at Prairie. “I can’t believe that. She loved life. Always so pleasant to work with. I can’t see her not wanting to come back.”
I reached out and put my hand on Holly’s arm. “I’m going to do what I can.”
Holly nodded. “I just can’t believe she’s gone.”
Mark rounded the tray and put his hand under her elbow. “Doc? You okay?”
She sighed and turned toward me as I came along her other arm. “Yeah, it was a difficult morning. My colleagues offered to do the autopsy, but I couldn’t let anyone else take her.”
My heart tightened a little. Of course, she’d do that. Even after she’d told us she’d get another doctor to do it, she’d do it herself.
“Don’t look at me like that,” she said. “I know what I said yesterday, but I wanted to make sure we didn’t miss anything.”
“Doc,” Mark chided. “If this case goes to trial...”
“I recorded everything. I know my colleagues will back me up if anything happens. I did everything by the book. Cross my heart.”
I patted her on the back. “The point is you shouldn’t have done this, not necessarily for her. I know you can do professional distance. But this is for you. You know her.” I gestured back at Prairie’s naked form. “It’s not about her, not right now.”
Holly nodded. “Yeah, maybe a stupid move on my part.” She forced a smile. “But it’s done. Now, enough about me. Do you have any questions?”
I scanned the body. “Is it just me or does she lack defensive wounds?”
“You’d be correct.” Holly moved back to the gurney. “She knew her attacker, wasn’t afraid of them, and probably was caught completely by surprise.”
Mark and I exchanged a frown.
“Your best guess, Doc?” Mark said.
She shrugged. “You guys are the detectives.”
“But you have to admit this is a unique case, and you know a few of the players.”
“I don’t want to say anything to skew your investigation. I like Prairie. Yes, she works for the DSHA, and we all know what a reprehensible agency it is, but she was a pleasant woman.” Holly paused. “Are we done looking at the body?”
A few minutes later, we settled in the sitting area of her office.
Mark pulled out the digi-paper we’d gotten from Clark Hunt. “We have a list of supers who had negative interactions with Prairie. Know any of them?”
Holly scanned the paper over carefully, sipping tea. “A handful are SHS members. A few I know for other reasons.”
“Mark them,” he said.
Technically, it was evidence, but with digi-paper, you could always return it to an unaltered state, or make a copy sans markings.
She put checks and dots next to about half the names. “The dotted people I know outside of the SHS. To the best of my knowledge, they’re not members. I’ve met some of them professionally, others I know from school. When you’re a superhuman, you find your kind.”
Mark accepted the digi-paper. “And the checks?”
“Members of the KC SHS or its regional branches—St. Joseph, Lawrence, Sedalia, Topeka, Ottawa, Emporia, Columbia, Chillicothe.”
I craned my head to look over Mark’s arm. “Know any?”
“Well enough to know I want to keep my distance from some of them.”
Mark glanced at me. “I think I’m done here, do you have any other questions?”
“Not that I can think of.”
All of us stood, and I shifted my gaze to Mark. “I need to talk to Holly about something else.”
He narrowed his eyes. “I’ll bring the cruiser around—unless you’re not feeling up to snuff.”
“I can meet you in the Flexion.”
He took my gear bag with him.
As soon as he’d left, Holly raised an eyebrow, “Okay, what’s up? You haven’t looked like yourself since you walked in.”
I thought about telling her about what had happened at the resuscitation. My hesitation was enough to have her drag it out. Holly sat me down and did a full workup right there, just to reassure herself.
As she finished, I figured I could change the subject to what I really wanted to ask about.
“Do you know a superhuman named William Young?” Maybe I could get some information or background on the handsome new super in town.
She turned away to put some of her tools back. “Sailor on the USS Stargazer between here and Mars, isn’t he? An engineer?”
Darn it. I was hoping for actual intel on Will. “No one locally?”
She shook her head. “Nope. Why?”
I hesitated.
“Okay, Darb, I may not be an empath like Genova, but I do know you. Who is William Young?”
“Someone I met last night. He works in our office, started yesterday, but transferred up from somewhere down south. I was curious about him.”
Holly gave me a knowing smile. “Do I detect hints of attraction, Darby?”
I blushed and looked down at my boots. “Maybe. He left a flower and a handwritten note on actual paper on my desk this morning.”
Holly’s eyes lit up. “Really! That’s sweet. What’s he like?”
“I don’t know. I only met him for a few minutes. But he knew who I was.”
“So,” she said, an ornery gleam in her eye. “Is he handsome?”