Dead Memories (D.I. Kim Stone #10)(15)

‘Was the car on ground level?’ Kim asked.

Dobbie nodded.

‘So, we could be looking at some homeless guy who wandered in, fancied a comfy seat in one of the cars, fell asleep, went unnoticed and got more than—’

‘You think he was alive?’

Kim shrugged. ‘Dunno, Dobbie, that’s what we’re going to have to find out but hang on,’ she said, frowning. She remembered a TV programme she’d recently seen. ‘Don’t you strip these cars of everything but the paint before they go in the crusher?’

‘Hell, yeah, that’s where we make our money. Seats, pedals, wiring, the lot comes out.’

‘So, when was that done?’

‘Fuck me, Inspector, I can’t remember…’

‘So, the boot might not have been checked?’

‘Should have been if these lazy bastards were doing their job. There’s carpet and sometimes spare tyres been left in there.’

‘Well, our victim had to have been in the car somewhere,’ she said. ‘And I’m assuming your guys didn’t move him aside to take the seats out, and put him back again.’

He donned an expression that said it wouldn’t surprise him.

She couldn’t yet rule out that a vagrant hadn’t wandered in unnoticed and got into the car and that they were dealing with some kind of tragic accident. What she needed were the owner or car details.

‘Okay, Dob, when you gonna have that information for me?’ she asked, looking at her watch to underline she was talking hours.

‘Soon as the lazy bastard who was supposed to strip the car gets this place tidied up.’

Kim nodded her begrudging acceptance and stepped out of the office.

‘Well, Rubik’s a bit of a puzzle, isn’t he?’ Bryant asked as they headed towards the car.

She paused with her hand on the car door.

‘Bryant, please tell me you didn’t just call our guy in the cube Rubik?’

He nodded. ‘I considered Ice but I think this name we’ll remember.’

She shook her head as she got into the car.

‘Where to?’ he asked, starting the engine.

‘Russells Hall,’ she said. ‘Wanna see how the boys are getting on with Rubik and see if the present I ordered for them has arrived.’

‘Present?’ he queried.

‘Oh, yes, I’ve ordered something that I think they’re going to need very much.’





Twenty





It was almost four when Kim pushed the button to access the morgue area. She headed for the end of the corridor, just before the fridge, to a room she’d only seen used once before, when Keats hadn’t had enough space for a two-car accident. Seven people had been burnt beyond recognition. The charred bodies of four adults and three children had been lined up against the wall. She shuddered at the memory as she entered for the second time.

‘Hey, guys, how’s it going?’ Kim asked, standing between them as they pondered opposite sides of the cube.

Mitch held a saw and Keats held a scalpel.

‘We have to try and loosen some of the metal,’ Mitch said.

‘You’ll destroy valuable evidence,’ Keats said with exasperation. ‘We need the tissues intact for testing and for clues.’

‘We’re on the same side with that one, Keats, but we can’t get bits of him out until we’ve loosened some of the crumpled metal.’

Kim looked from one to the other as the exchange continued.

‘Inspector, your thoughts?’ Mitch asked, as Keats rolled his eyes. He didn’t much care for her opinion.

She shrugged. ‘Personally, I’d get the chainsaw on it but what do I know?’ she said as they both shot her a horrified glance.

Kim did not envy either one of them. Ultimately, they wanted the same thing: to preserve the body to get information. Keats’s medical training steered him in one direction and Mitch’s efficiency dictated that the sooner they opened up the metal the sooner they could both get answers.

Kim stepped back to the edge of the room, stood next to Bryant and folded her arms.

‘It’s like two kids who’ve been given a present to share at Christmas and can’t decide how to open it.’

‘Yeah, one could almost forget there’s a person in there who has lost their life,’ Bryant said, quietly.

‘Said the man who has named him Rubik,’ she noted.

‘Well, he’s certainly puzzling the life out of these two,’ he noted as they continued to move around the cube observing at every angle.

‘Yeah, amusing, isn’t it?’ she asked.

‘Definitely, but not gonna yield us answers any time soon.’

‘Oh, Bryant, chill out.’

‘The irony is astounding,’ he said, and then turned to her. ‘Hang on, you should be stamping your feet by now and issuing them with threats of violence. I find your calmness disconcerting.’

She offered him a smile. ‘Be patient.’

‘Didn’t you say you’d ordered something that could help?’

Kim hesitated as she heard the whoosh of the automatic doors at the end of the suite.

‘Yep, and I think it’s just arrived.’