Did forensics find any evidence on Charles Loften’s body? Berry got right down to business as he approach Dave’s desk.
Good morning to you too Berry.
I was thinking that maybe there was something there that connected with all the other stuff… Berry shut the door behind him. I have a few things that you might be interested in too,., I’ve been able to get some inside information… kinda scary… I’m beginning to think your case and mine are one in the same.
The M.E. has finished examining the body, but I haven’t been able to get with Metzer yet… he runs the lab... kind of an uptight person… always on the go… he told me he would call if he had anything, and I would rather not bother him since he gets sort of touchy… but I can call him if you feel it’s really important.
I’m not trying to be pushy… it’s just that I believe the sooner we have some evidence the sooner we have some answers. I am hoping there is something there that can give us a lead… if they found anything… it might put us onto some things… that’s all I am saying…
Ok, I’ll give him a call in a minute… So what’s the scary news you have?
Ahhhh, you ever heard of a man named Agustus Rensillere?
Nope can’t say that I have… what’s he got to do with it?
He’s what they call a power broker… a man behind the curtain type… a lot of power, but not up front about it… he put’s other people into powerful positions… to do his bidding. From what I was told almost every politician owes him in one way or another… makes it almost impossible to pin him down on any illegal activity.
My sources have indicated that he is behind a push to remove most college sports programs from state supported schools. He wants to replace them with national amateur sports leagues that are not restricted by the current college sports regulations… the goals of the plan is to provide government approved gambling for the fans and thus make large amounts of money from all the proceeds.
HIS goal is however about gaining more power. He has made a deal with a current senate member by which new legislation is being introduced that sets up his plan in exchange for a presidential bid for the senator. However, I am sure the real payback he wants is control of the presidency.
You’re talking about Senator Johnathan Taylor right? Dave was beginning to put all the pieces together from Berry’s info. So it’s a political battle with very high stakes? That explains the motive… the means may be the organized crime families, but we need to find more connections to get the opportunity… that is not going to be easy with the major players that appear to be involved.
That’s why I was hoping there was forensics evidence that we could use to tie up the loose ends. I would bet my last dollar that the murder of Charles Loften is tied to all this some way and maybe the killer made a mistake… that would give us some real physical evidence to work from and some leverage on the case.
I’ll call Carl right now… hang on a second… Dave was a lot more enthusiastic about bothering him now… he dialed the lab and waited for Carl to answer. Hey Carl, this is Dave Lutz…. I was wondering if you got anything off the Loften body… YOU DID… yeah, that’s great… how long will the search take? Ok, I’ll be waiting for your call.
I didn’t know they could do that, but apparently he was able to get most of a fingerprint off of the deceased’s hand… something about superglue and how it reacts when it is vaporized… anyway, they are running the print through the database right now. He is going to call me if he gets a match. While we’re waiting you want to fill in that paperwork?
Geeze, I was hoping you would forget to get around to that… I guess it has to be done sooner or later… might as well… better than just sitting here waiting for the match results. Berry sat down in front of Dave’s desks and began to sort through the various forms that Dave had shoved towards him.
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I appreciate you picking up the last of it for me. I would have had to change my plans to get back in time. Did you have any problems? He was a little shaky the last time we spoke. I had to reassure his that it was ok and this was the last time I would be need it.
No problems. It went fine. She was short with her answers. She didn’t want reveal that he had been taken out to remove him as a possible problem later.
I didn’t want to ask you in the first place to locate someone for me, but as you know, I don’t travel in the same circle as you do, and it would have been difficult if not impossible for me to find someone that could keep quiet about my work. It’s important, and I believe it can change so many things wrong in this world.
Sophia handed her the case… you know I don’t really support what you are doing, but you are my sister, and if you can’t help family who can you help …
Oh, it’s packed in dry ice… so you will need to transfer it to a cold storage location after you open the case.
She left with her prize. She was thinking that her work was the most important thing in her life, and that Sophia could never understand the loss she experienced or how it had affected her life… she would change all that… her work would change it so no one would have to go through that again!
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Alice, I need to talk with you privately, can you come in here for a minute and shut the door? Alice got nervous whenever Marie sounded so serious. She always thought she had done something that displeased Marie when she was called into her office, and she never wanted to displease her.
As you know Alice, I have been conducting some psychological research to help determine the basis behind aggressive behavior. I have been using various scenarios and some MINOR psycho active medications to assist in this research. Recently I have discovered that small quantities of some of these medications have come up missing… it’s not really anything that serious, but I don’t want to get in trouble with the academic people who are supporting my efforts… accountability is very important in this research.
Yes Mrs. Burton, I understand that… I have always tried to be very strict in accounting for every penny we spend. As you know, I’m not really informed on the details of your research… you have mostly keep it to yourself… but from my position, I’m not aware of anything out of the ordinary going on…
I am not accusing you of anything Alice… I just wanted to ask if you were aware of the situation.
Like I said Mrs. Burton, I don’t have any real detailed involvement in your actual research activities… I mainly deal with the lecture tours… the scheduling and the expenses they incur… but I will check into what I can find out if you like.
That will not be necessary Alice… I was just asking… you do a fine job working with my lecture circuit, and that’s what I need from you the most. That will be all.
Leaving Marie’s office Alice was a little relieved that Marie had actually paid her a complement in a roundabout way and didn’t suspect her. She was thinking that keeping a low profile had actually been a benefit this time...
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I know I told you that it was all I would need, but it seems that I have come up a few doses short… I was hoping you could make the same arrangements for me.
I’m afraid that is impossible at this point. It appears that my contact has gone out of business and will not be available to supply you any longer. You will have to make do with what I gave you, and with that she hung up the phone.
Marie was frustrated with the phone call and couldn’t understand why she would not help get her more. After all she had already done you would think a small thing like this would be a simple request. She had no idea that the supplier had stopped doing business because he was dead.
While Marie was on the phone Alice quietly slipped out to take care of what she called some personal business… it was something she had been planning to deal with for several days. She could not let Marie’s work become daunted by the likes of a few loud mouths. She had been able to deal with the other situations that could have stopped the progress of Marie’s work… now she had some unfinis
hed business to take care of and if she played it right, it would help keep Marie in a positive position and also put aside one any possible threats to Marie’s research…