Simple Genius

Chapter 48

“Gas leak,” sheriff Hayes said as they stared at the charred rubble that used to be the makeshift morgue.

“Isn’t that what they always say?” Michelle said.

“And you said the ME died?” Sean asked.

Hayes nodded. “He was in there working on Rivest’s remains. There’s not enough left of him to do an autopsy on.”

“So Rivest’s and Monk’s bodies?”

“Pretty much bone and cinder.”

“That’s way too convenient, don’t you think?” Sean said.

“I thought I told you to keep the hell out of my way,” boomed a voice.

They all three turned to see FBI Special Agent Ventris striding toward them. He came to a stop a few inches from Sean’s face. “Do you have a hearing problem?”

“He’s working with me, Agent Ventris,” Hayes said hastily.

“I don’t give a shit if you’re working with God Almighty Himself, I told you to stay out of my way.”

“I just came down here in response to a call I got from Sheriff Hayes,” Sean said evenly. “And would you care to explain to me how the FBI has jurisdiction over a local death that’s unrelated to any federal matter or person?”

Ventris looked ready to take a swing at Sean. Michelle stepped between them.

“Look, Sean and I used to be part of the federal side too, Agent Ventris. Our main contact was Len Rivest and now he’s dead. Sean discovered the body; it’s only natural that we want to stay informed about the matter. But we will in no way interfere with a federal investigation. All we’re looking for is the truth, same as you.”

Her words seemed to take a bit of the steam out of Ventris.

Hayes quickly said, “Sean, maybe you better fill in Agent Ventris on your theory about Rivest.”

“I don’t want to be seen as interfering,” Sean growled.

“Just lay it out,” Ventris snapped.

Sean grudgingly explained about the absence of towels and the bath mat and the missing plunger and his theory of how Rivest could have been killed. “We’d asked the ME to check the body for a trace of something like that happening.”

Ventris studied the pavement for a few moments. “I actually noticed that there were no towels,” he said. “And the bath mat, but I didn’t know about the plunger.”

Michelle said, “So you were suspecting murder too?”

“I always suspect murder,” Ventris said. “I’m bringing in a team to go over everything here.”

Sean said, “And you’re interested in Rivest’s death because you think it ties into Monk Turing’s, which was on federal property.”

“So maybe we should join forces,” Michelle suggested.

“That’s not possible,” Ventris said. “If you have information you want to share with me, fine, but it’s not a two-way street. We have ways of doing things at the Bureau.”

“I thought your ways of doing things included working with the local police,” Sean said.

“And I fit that bill,” Hayes added.

“But they don’t,” Ventris replied fiercely, glaring at Sean and Michelle.

“Isn’t the point that we catch whoever did all this?” Michelle said.

“No, the point is, I catch them,” Ventris snapped.

“I’ll make it easy for you,” Sean began. “We’ll just make it a competition. Who gets there first gets the credit. But just so you know we’re going to kick your ass.” He turned and stalked off.

Ventris turned on Hayes. “If he in any way impedes my investigation, you’ll be going down with him, Hayes!”

“I’m just trying to do my job here,” Hayes shot back.

“No, apparently you’re trying to do my job.”

Ventris noticed Michelle staring at him and smiling.

“What the hell are you looking at, lady?”

“Should’ve taken me up on my offer of cooperation, Ventris. Because when we crack this thing you are going to look like such an idiot.” She turned and walked off.

“I can arrest you for saying shit like that,” Ventris screamed after her.

Michelle turned back around. “No, you can’t. It’s that little bedrock thing called free speech. Have a nice day.”

A minute later Hayes joined Sean and Michelle in front of her truck. Hayes said, “Great, we’ve now managed to piss off the CIA and the FBI.

Who we gonna do next? DEA?”

Michelle said, “Assuming the morgue was blown up on purpose, the question becomes why.”

“And the answer seems obvious,” Sean remarked. “There was something on those bodies that the ME would find that would point us down the right road.”

“He’d already done the cutting on Monk,” Hayes pointed out. “So it couldn’t have been Monk’s body they were worried about.”

“Right,” Sean said. “Burning up Rivest’s body means we can’t tell if my theory on how he was killed was correct.”

Michelle added. “Do we know if the ME had looked for that already?”

“If he did he didn’t have a chance to tell us,” Hayes said quickly. “I asked him to call me as soon as he found anything and he never did.”

“We can follow down a lead Ventris doesn’t have,” Sean said confidently.

Michelle looked at him. “Which is?”

“Valerie Messaline.”

Hayes groaned. “Damn. I was afraid you were going to say that.”