Touch of Red (Tracers #12)(35)

“Damn. I really wanted to nail that guy.”

Sean sat on the edge of her desk and folded his arms over his chest. “So, Callie. You know some of Brooke’s friends at the Delphi Center, don’t you?”

Callie looked instantly suspicious. “I know Alex and Maddie. Why?”

“Brooke’s ex-boyfriend is hassling her, and I need to get the dope on him.”

Callie frowned. “Hassling her how?”

“He was in her house last night while she was gone. It freaked her out a little.”

“That would freak me out more than a little. Who the hell is he?”

“That’s what I don’t know. She won’t talk about him with me.”

“She probably figures you’ll break out your badge and go bust the guy’s chops.”

“Hey. Would I do that?”

“Absolutely. Why don’t you admit you have it bad for this girl?”

“Fine, whatever. Will you get me a name?”

“What, you mean hit up some women I barely know for gossip about another woman I barely know? Because, you know, being female and all, I’m into that?”

Sean just looked at her.

“Why don’t you get Ric to help you? His wife works at Delphi. She might know Brooke.”

“I’m planning to ask him, too, but I want to see what you can find out.”

Callie rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll do it. But you owe me, Byrne. Again. You’re racking up a lot of debt.”

“I know.” He paused. “In the meantime, what’s new with the case? You hear anything on the knife?”

“Not yet.” She checked her phone. “Their knife expert is supposed to call me once he’s had a chance to look at it. You know Travis Cullen?”

“No.”

“He’s probably off this weekend, like most normal people, so I’m not expecting to hear anything until tomorrow at the earliest.”

Sean’s phone buzzed, and he pulled it from his pocket. “Ric,” he told Callie as he answered the call. “Hey, what’s up?”

“Can you meet me at the station house? It’s important.”

“I’m here now. Why?”

“We need a team meeting. Mia just called me from the lab.”

Sean’s pulse kicked up. “What is it?”

“She finished running those DNA tests from Samantha Bonner. We have a hit.”

? ? ?

Callie watched as Ric’s wife blew into the conference room.

“Sorry, I’m late.” Mia dropped a computer bag on the table. Her cheeks were flushed and her strawberry blond hair looked windblown. She pulled off an oversize barn jacket and draped it over a chair as she glanced around.

“Everyone’s here but Lieutenant Reynolds,” Ric said, claiming the seat beside her.

“You guys can brief him.” Mia checked her watch. “I have to pick up the baby from my sister’s in an hour.”

Callie watched as Mia set up her computer, impressed by the woman and also envious. Mia somehow managed to juggle the top job at the Delphi Center’s DNA lab, marriage to one of the best men Callie knew, and now motherhood. And she didn’t even look tired.

Well, maybe a little tired. She took a gulp from a Venti-size coffee before settling in for her presentation.

“All of you probably know that the pathologist sent over some items from the autopsy. The victim’s bloody clothing, and also the rape kit, which included nail clippings.” Mia looked around the room. “The rape kit was negative for semen. And we swabbed all the clothing, but didn’t come up with any blood that wasn’t the victim’s. The nail clippings, however, yielded a lead.” She took a deep breath. “We recovered biological material not belonging to Samantha Bonner.”

“She clawed him,” Sean said.

“That’s what it looks like.”

Mia tapped some keys on her computer, and the black and white bands of a DNA profile appeared on the screen behind her.

“I thought the ME said there were no defensive injuries,” Callie said. “That she didn’t have time to fight back.”

“She didn’t sustain defensive injuries, such as scratches or parry wounds, but that’s not to say she didn’t cause any injuries. Based on what we found, I’d say she managed to get a few good swipes in.”

“So you found blood under her nails?” Sean asked.

“And skin cells, yes. We ran the sample through the database and came up with a partial hit.”

Callie leaned forward. “Partial?”

“That’s right. Have you heard of familial DNA? There have been several high-profile cases. The Grim Sleeper case in LA, for example.”

“How exactly does it work?” Callie asked.

“I should probably start by clarifying a few things about how we run DNA. Basically, when we analyze genetic material, we can’t look at the entire chromosome. That would take too much time. Instead, we look at certain genetic markers where people’s DNA is highly variable. You follow?” Mia glanced around the table. Then she turned to face the image on the screen.

“The DNA from under Samantha Bonner’s fingernails shares eight of thirteen key markers with a DNA profile that is already in the database. In other words, it’s a partial match.”