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Olivia reached for her radio. “Dispatch, this is Detective Olivia Everhart, County PD. Requesting immediate response from ME, homicide and crime scene units to the Terrene Theater. We have a confirmed deceased individual on site. Declaring a crime scene. Over.”
“Dispatch to Detective Everhart, confirm Waverly Junction Police and Waverly County CSI team to secure the area for forensic analysis.”
She looked at Jackson and knowingly continued over the radio, “Station 3 Captain, please relay to all firefighters present that the Terrene Theater is now a crime scene. Dispatch requesting additional county police units for preservation of evidence until the arrival of investigative units. Over.”
Jackson gave her a thumbs-up, then went over the radio, “This is Station 3, Captain Reynolds. Roger.”
Liv turned to the fire company. “We need to secure the area until the ME arrives. Preserve the scene as much as possible. Let's keep our distance, guys and gals.”
Jackson had half his firefighters set up a perimeter around the body. “Watch for any flare-ups.”
The firefighters were quiet, their usual banter silent. He assigned the remaining men and women to continue the overhaul.
Olivia and Michael began to prioritize the first steps of their investigation. She crouched over the body and lifted her camera. “Who are you?”
She and Michael began to walk in concentric circles from where they found the body as she shot photographs. Looking through the lens always focused her thoughts. Any anger she felt toward Michael disappeared. Work took the priority.
“What do you see, Liv?” Jackson’s baritone voice was warm against her ear.
She shuddered. “Nothing yet.”
* * *
Smoke and flames erupted from small hotspots as Jackson’s keen eye watched the scene. He needed to keep the detectives and his firefighters safe. He knew Michael, the same age as him, had transferred to the Waverly Junction Police Department from the New York City Police Department. He had more time on the job and more experience than Olivia.
Livvy hadn’t gone through fire school yet. And though she was collegiately trained on how fire behaves, after her experience with the e-bike, he wished she had the fire school experience under her belt. Because of her injury, she wouldn’t start the academy until the following week.
He stood in the current fire scene, lost in thought. He turned to meet Liv’s eyes.
“ME is here,” she called.
“Liv, you sure enjoy ruining my day off.” Molly Everhart, her face painted with stage makeup and her hair pulled into a high ponytail, walked over to the remains. Her assistant photographed the scene from multiple angles. “He was naked. I don’t see any melted clothing or visible injuries. I’ll know more when I get him on my table.”
“Him?” Olivia asked.
“No subpubic concavity.” Molly pressed her lips together.
“Boss, he’s really crispy. We need to scoop him,” the assistant said.
Molly and her assistant used a sterilized scoop stretcher to lift the corpse into a body bag, then they sealed it to prevent leakage or contamination during transportation. Molly labeled the remains with an identification tag, including date, time, and location of recovery.
The body was placed on top of a rolling stretcher to move it from the scene. Jackson signaled two firefighters to help.
Before they left, Molly, Michael, and Olivia independently shot more pictures.
Olivia held her gloved hand up and knelt beside where the body had lain.
“Liv, I’ll grab samples,” Michael said.
“I want it all. I’ll ask the crime lab to take samples too, cast it and then take it down six inches.” She ran her gloved hand through the indentation where the body had rested. “There’s no burnt wood beneath the indentation, nor any indication of blood. The body was here before the fire. Black ash?”
Michael shook his head. “Liv, that’s skin.”
As she gently sifted through some more remains, she lifted up what appeared to be a glass vial.
“Livvy, it’s like the one at—” Jackson said.
Liv shook her head and waved her hand to stop him from speaking. “It’s a glass vial with a phoenix etched into it.” She placed the object in her palm.
