Page 15 of Identity Unknown
“I don’t answer to the families,” is Wyatt’s sharp response.
“Most of all the Brileys want to be assured that their loved one is handled properly—”
“What’s going on?” I interrupt.
“Why, good afternoon, Doctor Scarpetta. How long have you been standing there?” Spanks gives me an insincere smile.
“Long enough,” I reply as Marino and I walk up.
“As always, nice to see you, ma’am.” Another big grin that could be a tooth whitening ad.
He shakes my hand, squeezing it painfully hard as he always does. This time I return the favor, my grip strong from decades of cutting through stubborn tissue and bone. He winces, sliding his hands in his pockets, his cloying cologne blending with the acrid odors of death and insecticide.
“I was just explaining our earlier communications,” he says to me.
“And what might those have been since I don’t recall the last time we talked,” I reply.
“There’s just too much to remember these days,” he says sympathetically.
“You and I haven’t communicated this entire year so far.” I set the record straight.
“And besides that, the doc’s got a fucking photographic memory,” Marino feels compelled to say.
“I’ve been telling Mister Spanks that you’re not releasing Luna Briley yet.” Wyatt speaks up heatedly.
“Such a tragic accident.” Spanks sadly shakes his head. “It’s appalling what little children know about these days. Nothing’s safe. Apparently, she could be quite stubborn and willful for such a cute little thing.”
“Who asked you to testify?” Marino fires back at him. “And why are you here?”
“To pull something, that’s why.” Wyatt nails Spanks with an accusatory stare. “The only reason I let him through the security gate when he just now showed up unannounced is he said he left a stretcher here and needed to pick it up.”
“What stretcher?” Marino stares at the folded one inside the back of the hearse.
“The one he brought to make the pickup.” Wyatt is so irate he’s practically sputtering. “In other words, he lied so he could come in and body snatch.”
“Luna Briley’s not going anywhere until I say, and that could be a while. Days, at least, as I’m sure you’ve been told.” I look at Spanks in a way that gives him fair warning.
“I can’t help but find it strange that you’re not done with her yet. To do what else?” he says accusingly.
“The case is pending for now.” That’s as much as I’m going to tell him.
“I’ll be sure to let them know you’re not interested in honoring their wishes. But I don’t think it’s the best idea riling them any further. Mister Briley in particular. He’s awfully powerful,knows folks in high places. I’m talking as high as places get.” Spanks is on the brink of threatening me. “He’s already complaining about your office.”
“Ask if we give a shit,” Marino says, his grip white-knuckle hard on the handles of the heavy Pelican cases, his muscles straining.
“You need to leave now,” I tell Spanks. “Don’t pull another stunt like this or we won’t be so forgiving next time. Wyatt, please make sure he’s escorted out of the parking lot.”
“You got it, Chief,” he says as Spanks slams the hearse’s tailgate.
The vehicle bay’s door is retracted, the sun directly overhead as Marino and I leave the building. Virginia and U.S. flags flap loudly, their swivel hooks clicking against tall metal poles in front of the padlocked glass entrance. The wind is picking up, the barometric pressure dropping, and I can feel the storm front’s approach.
“What we just witnessed was a crime. There’s no other way to slice it.” Marino continues venting as we put on our sunglasses. “The attempted removal of a dead body is a felony. And it’s all recorded on our security cameras. I should get Jesse Spanks’s ass arrested.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I reply as we walk past rows of cars, a few people coming and going on their lunch breaks.
I find myself constantly looking for the white Escalade, relieved that there’s no sign of it. Marino’s blacked-out FordRaptor pickup truck is halfway across the parking lot tucked at an angle near the fence where no one will ding the doors.
“How come you parked way over there?” I ask him.