3am

Chapter 5

At the ME's main office, the receptionist shows us into Graham's office and tells us he is just finishing up on some paperwork and that he should with us in just a few moments. Less than five minutes after she leaves, Graham himself walks in. Graham is an older man with silver hair and blue eyes. He stands just over six feet tall, is slimly built, and has small round eyeglasses. He stands out at most crime scenes, and not because of his height. Graham favors wearing a bowtie and a leather jacket. I have heard some female CSIs and officers remark that it is too bad he is taken because he is fine. And I begrudgingly agree that Graham is a handsome man. I just wish I look half as good in a leather jacket.

Graham smiles when he spots us sitting in his office. "Ah, so you two do exist! I was thinking they had staged the crime scene to give me something to do..."

"Sorry Graham," I say. "We were going to come to the autopsy, but we had some important things to discuss first."

"Won't happen again," Liam adds.

Graham laughs. "Oh sure. If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, I wouldn't be stuck in this dead-end job..."

"I call BS!" Liam says with a laugh. "You would still do this job because you love it! You love the medical mysteries and more importantly, you love bringing closure to grieving families."

"Yeah, you are right," Graham replies. "Even if I was a multi-millionaire, I would still be a medical examiner."

"So Graham, what can you tell us about John Doe #2?" I ask, trying to bring our conversation back to the original topic.

"Not much," Graham concedes. "Cause of death is definitely strangulation. Probably by the same weapon as the first John Doe. Best guess? A thin rope, roughly four millimeters in diameter. No fibers left behind so I can't speak to color or type of material, but if I had to guess I would say some kind of paracord."

"What makes you sure it is the same guy?" I ask, playing the devil's advocate. "I mean, I know we don't get that many strangulation/dump jobs, but still..."

"The unique way the rope is used to strangle the victims," Graham replies. "The killer doubles over the rope to create a loop. He or she comes up to the victim from behind, slips the rope around his neck, and then slides the two ends into the loop. Then all he or she has to do is slide the loop down and pull up the ends. He or she can tighten the hold as they see fit. It is actually quite genius since it allows complete control over when the victim dies."

"And both bodies exhibited the same markings?" I ask.

"Yep," Graham says with a nod. "On the back of the neck is a very distinct pattern left by the loop of rope." He pulls out a photo to show us. In it, I can clearly see an open loop impression bordered by the red-tinged damaged skin.

"What about a man in the moon tattoo?" I ask, after I am done studying the wound.

"Wasn't one," Graham replies with a shrug. "I checked every inch of John Doe #2 and there wasn't a single tattoo on him."

"What?!" I ask, shocked. "How can there not be a tattoo?"

"I don't know," says Graham with another shrug. "Maybe the killer got lucky with victim #1. Maybe he already had the tattoo when he was grabbed and murdered."

I don't buy Graham's explanation for a moment, but I wisely choose to keep my mouth shut. No point in antagonizing the medical examiner. Liam has a couple of other questions about the two victims, and then we stand to take our leave. At the doorway, though, I remember my mental note about toxicology. I tell Liam to head on back to the office and that I would catch up with him later. Turning back to Graham, I say, "Hey, just wondering. Has the tox report come back on John Doe #1?"

"Nope, but it should be back in the next day or so," Graham replies. "Why?"

"I have a theory that our killer is drugging the victims to make them compliant to minimize the signs of a struggle at the scenes. But I have no idea what he or she would be using."

"Hmm..." Graham ponders the question. "Well to be honest, there are not that many drugs that would do that. Most of them fall into the muscle relaxer category. But I will double check that with my daughter and get back to you."

"That would be great," I tell him. "Also, just to refresh my memory, muscle relaxers require prescriptions right?"

"Well..." Graham begins with a sly grin. "You know what they say. If you have the money, you could buy the world..."

"All right, smartass," I retort. "I mean in general. Average Joe would have to have a prescription to get ahold of muscle relaxers, right?"

"In general, yes. Unless your killer has a dealer swiping them in pharmacy robberies, then yes, someone has a prescription. But that someone may not be your killer..." Graham adds. "The prescription holder might fill and sell their medication, and your killer could be a customer."

"I know," I say. "I thought about that. But even if that is the case, there is still a paper trail to the seller. And if we can find the seller, then we can get them to flip on the buyers and track them down one by one. And at some point we will find the killer. I just have to find prescription."

"That is assuming the killer is dosing your victims with a muscle relaxant," Graham says.

"I know."