Ghostly death, p.5
Ghostly Death, page 5
"This is our M.E.," one officer said to the plain clothed man, then looking at Lance he continued. "This is Terry Williams. He saw the girl jump and called it in."
"I didn't jump! I was pushed," the ghost girl cried. "I didn't jump!"
Lance's eyes widened just a bit as he glanced her way, but he quickly looked back at Terry and offered his hand. "I'm sorry you had to see that."
"I couldn't believe what I was seeing." Terry shook his head. "I was just out for a walk and happened to look that way. I saw her falling. I hurried over here, praying she was okay, but…" he trailed off as he looked at the body.
Kyle walked up, bypassing them and going directly to the body. Lance watched as he parked the gurney and then set the bag down on the ground. Lance was sure Kyle could do everything himself if he was allowed to, but without a license, Kyle could only assist.
"If you could see if she's got any I.D. on her, that would help." One of the officers turned to glance at the body.
"I'll see what I can find." Lance left the group and headed over to where Kyle was. He needed to speak to the ghost but couldn't until he was alone with her or was sure no one was watching them. Having heard her say she was pushed, he was going to look at this as a murder, not a suicide. Not that it would really change anything he had to do, but since there wasn't a crime scene team looking around, he would do what he could to look for any evidence.
"She looks young." Kyle stared at the woman's body. Her long brown hair was now coated with coagulating blood, and her legs were both broken with compound fractures. "Looks like she landed on her legs, then her head hit that rock." Kyle gestured to a bolder a few inches from the woman's head.
"I didn't feel the pain." The ghost of the girl stood behind Kyle.
Lance glanced up at her and gave a small smile.
Her eyes went wide. "You see me?"
He barely nodded.
"But the others don't, do they?" She walked closer to where Lance was pulling on his protective gear.
"No," he whispered.
"You have to tell them that I didn't jump. I didn't commit suicide." Her eyes glistened as if filling with tears.
Lance had seen this before. There were no tears to fall, yet the ghost appeared to have tears in her eyes. It was the strangest thing. He glanced back at Kyle, making sure he wasn't paying attention to him. When he was sure he wouldn't be heard, he whispered to the ghost. "Stay with me. I can help, but not here." He pulled what he needed from the bag and went to the body. He looked at Kyle. "Glance around and make sure nothing flew off the body when she hit. Look for a purse or something. Maybe jewelry."
"On it." He stood and started wandering the area around the body.
"My wallet is in my backpack. I don't know where it ended up." The ghost's voice broke with emotion. "He hit me when I was getting into my car after work. I came to as he was dragging me onto the bridge."
Lance glanced up, surprised at what she was saying. It was the middle of the day. Who would be brave enough to kidnap someone from their work, then drag them unconscious to a public bridge? Sure, the area was quiet and didn't have a lot of people around, but still, it would have been risky. Someone could have seen them. Lance was sure there were cameras on the bridge. At least there had been a few years back when he'd dealt with another suicide case.
He finished the exam and then checked her pockets to see if he could find any I.D.. As the girl had told him, there was none. She had a small notepad in her pocket along with a pen that now leaked ink all over Lance's gloves. "I need an evidence bag."
One of the officers hurried over and held one open for him to drop the notebook in. Then opened another for the pen so it didn't leak ink onto the notepad. "That it?"
Lance nodded. "Didn't find any I.D. The notepad appears to have a bunch of numbers written in it. I didn't see a name anywhere. Hopefully, her prints are in the system, but as young as she appears, it's doubtful."
"Should I go into that light?" the ghost asked.
"Not yet!" Lance said loudly, then cursed himself for speaking out loud.
"Not yet, what?" Kyle asked.
"Was just thinking out loud." Lance laughed at himself. "Sorry." He ducked his head as he prepared the body to be moved, only glancing up once Kyle had moved to pull the gurney closer. Lance met the ghost girl's stare. "No light. Not yet. I need to talk to you first." His voice was barely a whisper, but she nodded, letting him know she'd heard.
The light was something every ghost saw. Most walked into it directly after dying. He was told it was warm and welcoming and called to a ghost to enter it. He figured it was the portal to whatever came next. Not every ghost went into it. Like those who lived with him, they ignored it. The light never went away, but he heard it got easier to ignore it the longer you went without entering it. It was something he couldn't see.
Kyle helped him get the body into the bag, then onto the gurney. Lance took a moment to look around the area before saying his goodbyes and following Kyle back to the van, making sure the ghost was with them.
Once they had the body loaded, Kyle climbed back into the front seat. "I hate suicides, but when they're young like this one, it's even worse."
Lance nodded, though he was aware this was a murder, not a suicide. The issue would be how to prove that without any evidence. They couldn't use a ghost's testimony as official evidence. He was going to have to pray he could find the area she'd been hit and knocked out during the autopsy and that it would show she was injured before falling from the bridge. The likelihood of that was going to be slim with the amount of head trauma there was.
Lance quickly pulled out his phone and sent a text to Angus.
Lance: I have a ghost who claims she was murdered. Appeared to be suicide. I'll be at the morgue another hour or so. If I don't see you there, I'll bring her home with me.
Angus: On my way to your office now.
Lance: Doors are locked. On my way there. Meet me by the back garage. About ten minutes away.
Angus: Thumbs up emoji.
Lance smiled and set his phone back into his pocket.
"Must have been Angus to get you to smile like that." Kyle grinned.
"It was. He's meeting us. Hopefully, once I get this intake done, he and I can grab dinner and head home. He's got two cases that have kept him busy. I'll take any time with him I can get." Lance hated that he was just about to add a third case to Angus's pile, but he couldn't ignore a ghost's claims. It was something they had to investigate.
He settled back, taking the time to relax, because something told him that the rest of the evening wasn't going to be as easy as dinner and kicking back at home.
CHAPTER SIX
The last thing Angus had time for was a trip to the morgue, even if he wanted to see Lance and get at least a hug and kiss before he jumped back into case files. Still, if he had a ghost claiming they were murdered, he had to listen. He could have easily waited for Lance to bring the ghost home and talk with the ghost later, but he had no clue who this ghost was and if it was someone they'd want to know where they lived.
He pulled up by the back of the Medical Examiner's Office and parked, wishing there was shade. It was hot. Too hot. His dress shirt stuck to his body, and he needed a shower seriously bad. He still had stuff to do before he could go home. He'd been waiting for Gail Smith to get back to him, but when she hadn't, he'd arranged to meet with her family this evening. Being a minor, it was only right to let her parents in on what was going on and alert them that there could be a risk to their daughter since her two best friends had already been killed. He'd found out that Gail got off work at four. He arranged to be at her place by seven, hoping she'd have at least called him by then, but so far, he hadn't heard from her.
In the rearview mirror, he saw the Medical Examiner's van pulling up to the large garage door. He waited for it to open, then walked inside as it parked. A second later, Lance climbed out of the passenger seat, and Kyle from the driver's side. "You're working late?"
"Sam had a dentist appointment and this call came in right before I was going to call it a night." Lance leaned in and kissed Angus quickly. "Thanks for coming by. I just need to get this body in and we can talk."
"No problem. I have a meeting at seven, but I'm all yours until then." Angus stepped back as Kyle and Lance pulled the body from the back of the van. He kept his distance as they rolled it into the morgue.
"Guess that means dinner is out." Lance glanced over his shoulder.
"Yeah, I can grab something on the way home if you want." Angus hadn't even had time to think about food, but he was hungry.
"I'll grab something from that Italian place and have it ready for you when you get there," Lance told him. "I'll be done long before you are."
"Thanks. I shouldn't be too late. I'll wait for you in your office for now. Take your time." He watched as Kyle and Lance pushed the body into the back where the bodies were held for autopsy. He had no idea what they had to do when a body came in. He figured there had to be a shitload of paperwork to do. He entered Lance's office and sat down, wondering what this ghost had to tell him. It wasn't often that Lance came across a ghost in the morgue who claimed to be murdered, but this was hardly the first time. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, wishing he could take just a short nap, but there wasn't time. He had less than an hour to get to the Smith's home. He'd sent Amy home. He could handle a simple interview himself. Tomorrow, Franks would be back and things would get back to normal. Busy, but normal.
"You look exhausted." Lance moved into the office and shut the door.
"I am. It's been a long day." Angus sat up straighter.
"And here I am making it longer." Lance kissed him before moving to sit behind his desk. "I haven't had time to talk to the new ghost. We were called to pick up her body under the Fairway Bridge. We assumed she was a jumper, but she claims she was pushed." Lance glanced to the other side of the room where the ghost must have been standing.
Angus was used to being unable to see them since he'd grown up with his mother seeing ghosts, but he still wished he had the ability. It would make things so much easier if he could question the ghosts without a go-between. "Let's start with her name and age." Angus pulled out his notebook and pen.
"Just so you know, we weren’t able to identify her on scene, so you can't let on you know her name until we find another way to identify her." Lance glanced to where the ghost was standing. "I'm Lance and this is my boyfriend, Detective Young. He can't see you but knows I can. We'll help you if we can. What's your name?"
Angus waited in silence while Lance listened and made his own notes on a pad on his desk.
"She says her name is Gail Smith and she's seventeen. She was—" Lance started.
"Wait." Angus held up a hand. "Gail Smith?"
"Yeah? You know her?" Lance asked.
"It's her family I'm scheduled to meet with tonight. I wanted to question Gail about her friends' murders and warn her to be careful." Angus ran his fingers over his short hair and sighed. "Well fuck. This changes everything."
"Are you talking about Fiona Bloomquist and Elizabeth Bradly?" Lance asked.
Angus nodded.
"She knows about both deaths. She found out on the news this morning while she was getting ready for work. She thought about calling in sick, but knew they were already short staffed, so she went in. She was planning on going over to talk to Gavin tonight once she got home and changed." Lance leaned back in his chair. "She didn't think she was at risk."
Angus nodded as he tried to think how to handle this. He couldn't go see her parents and tell them she was dead. How would he ever explain that a ghost told him? If her body had no I.D. on it, he had no choice but to wait and let things play out as they normally would. The family would have to report her missing, then be notified that the medical examiner had a body matching her description. It was going to be a long, drawn-out mess. "She said she was murdered?"
"Yeah, we all thought she was a jumper. It's what most of us think when we get a call for a body under the bridge, but she was very vocal that she was pushed. She didn't jump." Lance seemed to be listening to Gail as she spoke to him.
"She left the nursing home she works at around four and was walking to her car when she was hit from behind. She remembers pain on the back of her head, then nothing until she came to as someone was dragging her to the bridge. He never spoke or said anything as he pushed her from the bridge. She tried to fight but was in too much pain and confused."
"Were you able to see the person?" Angus asked the ghost even though he couldn't see her.
Lance shook his head. "She said he was wearing a black ski mask. He had on gloves and a long-sleeved shirt. She gripped the arm of his shirt as she was pushed, trying to hold on, but it tore."
"Make a note of that. If she tore his shirt, she might have held the material in her hand until she hit the bottom." Angus made a note in his book. "Is she sure it was a man?" He was already pretty sure whoever was killing these girls was a man due to the strength needed to strangle someone and maneuver that large bucket of cement, but he couldn't be one-hundred-percent sure.
"No, but she thinks it was. He was bigger than her. Not much, but his arm felt stronger, and he moved her easier than she would think a woman could. He was dragging her, but she got the feeling he wasn't much taller than her," Lance told him. "Are there still cameras on the bridge?"
Angus shrugged. "Last I knew there was, but that's been ages ago. I'll find out. My problem now is that I know she's dead, but I can't let on it's her until she's identified through non-paranormal connections. I'm going to have to go meet with her family tonight. Question them about Fiona and Liz and warn them to tell Gail to be careful. They'll have to report her missing tomorrow and go through the proper channels." He sighed and looked over to where he thought Gail was standing. "I'm sorry I can't do more. I will investigate your murder off the books for now. That way we'll be ahead once we finally identify your body." He had no idea what he could really do until she was identified, but the fact she was dead told him they had a possible serial killer on their hands. He could call in the feds once he confirmed her death was murder. He glanced at Lance. "Will you be able to tell if she jumped or was pushed?"
Lance shook his head. "Doubtful. Her body was a mess. I'll try and look for trauma to her head that happened when she was hit from behind, but even that will be hard to find considering the damage from the fall. I'll do her autopsy first thing in the morning. Until then, I'd like to invite her home with us, if you're okay with that."
"Sure, I don't mind. I have more questions for her that I don't have time to ask right now. I need to go speak with her parents. That's not going to be fun since I have to keep quiet about her death for now. Introduce her to the others and have them help her adapt. I'm sure she has a million questions." Angus was glad that Ray and Bethany lived with them and were always willing to help a new ghost understand what it was like to be dead. He stood. "I'll be home as soon as I can. I'll try and figure out a way to start investigating things without drawing attention to myself." He leaned in and gave Lance a soft kiss, aware Gail's ghost was watching them. He pulled back and turned to where he figured she was. "I'll do my best to help you. I'm guessing whoever killed you also killed Fiona and Liz. We just need to figure out who that person is. We'll talk more when I get home tonight. Thanks for sticking around to help."
"See you in a few hours. Go out the back door in the garage. I've got to find Mack and talk to him before I leave." Lance smiled.
Angus nodded and left the room, wondering how things always ended up so get so crazy. Having ghosts around did help in the long run, but it made things so hard at first because he couldn't use what they told him until they found a way to do it by the book. He made his way out of the building and to his car, cursing the evening heat that had it feeling like a sauna. He started the car, leaving the door open until the air conditioning pushed the hot air out. He had ten minutes to get across town to the Smith's house. Once there, he'd act as surprised as they were that Gail wasn't home yet. He'd tell them to search for her car at work and along the way she usually drove home. He hoped they'd find it in the parking lot of her work. Even more, he hoped there were cameras there showing her getting attacked. It was the break they needed. So far, they had no information about the killer other than the little Gail had just given him.
Traffic was heavy, but he still managed to make it across town in time to pull up in front of the Smith's home at seven. Like her other friends, the home was in the upper-class area of town where the richer families lived. He hadn't had time to find out what the Smiths did for a living, but he would in time. He sat for a moment, dreading what he was about to do. He hated himself for lying to a family when he knew their daughter was dead, but if he went in telling them he'd seen her ghost, they'd think he was crazy. He'd show up to work tomorrow with orders to go see the shrink. He didn't have a choice in this, no matter how crappy it was.
With a sigh, he forced himself to get out of the car and head up to the door. He rang the doorbell and waited only a few seconds before a man answered. He wore a very expensive suit as he smiled and pushed the door wide. Angus smiled. "I'm Detective Young. I spoke with your wife earlier today."
"Yes, she told me you'd be dropping by. I'm sorry, but Gail isn't home yet. We've tried to call her, but if she's working, she doesn't always check her messages. She was supposed to be off at four, but it's not uncommon for her to work extra shifts if she's needed. I hope that won't be a problem. Please, come in." The man stepped back, allowing Angus inside.
"It's not a problem, but I will need to speak with her at some point." Angus smiled again as a woman stepped into the entry hall. She was short, probably no more than five feet tall and several inches of that was due to the hairstyle she had. She was also dressed nicely in a simple but beautiful summer dress.
