Page 7 of The Lost Bones
Coffees were poured. Coats were shed. Wet shoes squelched. Mops swept over the puddled water people had unwittingly brought inside the station. Mackenzie was in the restroom, tying her hair in a high ponytail and smoothing her ironed pantsuit. She powdered her eye bags to cover the dark circles from a disturbed sleep, then analyzed her face. All her pores and blemishes were covered by a layer of foundation. She felt safe, hidden behind her armor, not letting anyone know just how much she was affected. Mad Mack had a reputation to uphold.
“You’ll be fine,” she chanted to herself, and after steadying herself, she was ready to head to the meeting.
Everyone was already in the conference room. Lieutenant Atlee Rivera, who oversaw a few departments in the Lakemore PD, was a tough woman with olive-colored skin and thick dark hair. Her no-nonsense demeanor had gelled with Mackenzie. She stood next to a whiteboard, reading a file intently. Sully was snacking on donuts in a corner. Nick was sipping his coffee, listening to Jenna, a junior detective. Then there was Austin, who still wore the same clothes as yesterday, standing outside the room but peering in.
From afar, it looked like a regular briefing session.
But then Mackenzie noticed the little things. Rivera clenching and unclenching her fists. Sully swallowing without chewing properly. And the corners of Nick’s eyes were tight.
“Detective Price,” Rivera said in her strong voice, removing her glasses. “You’re here. We can get started now.”
Mackenzie sat next to Nick, throwing a glance at Austin outside.
“I don’t know why he’s so mad at me,” she whispered. “It’s not like I know more than he does.”
Rivera cleared her throat and raised an eyebrow at Sully, who returned to the table. “All right. Let’s begin. Since Detective Kennedy has a personal connection to the case, he is not to be included,” she instructed sternly. “I had a chat with him this morning, but I expect him to be curious. His behavior is understandable, so the onus is on everyone in this room to be professional. Understood?”
A string of nods and grunts of agreement.
“Becky, can you hear us?” Rivera asked.
“Yep.” Becky’s voice came from the phone.
Rivera pinned pictures of Sophie and of Mackenzie’s car to the whiteboard. “Sophie Fields was found in the trunk of Detective Mackenzie Price’s car on the morning of April 11. CSU is still looking for any clues in the car, but the victim’s body was left on a four-mil flat poly construction sheet, the brown rug, which Detective Price stated in her statement doesn’t belong to her. Becky, what were the results of the autopsy? Do we have time of death?”
“The body was definitely frozen, as confirmed by measuring the activity of an enzyme called short-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase—an enzyme that plays a role in our bodies’ thermal regulation. Also, her tissues under the microscope show formation of ice crystals and ruptured cell membranes. Unfortunately, time of death is typically inconclusive if the body has been frozen. It doesn’t show any signs of decomposition, which suggests that the victim was frozen immediately after being killed. But based on levels of the enzyme found, I’d say she was frozen for approximately three months.”
“But she’d been missing for almost two years,” Jenna pointed out. “She was last seen in Lakemore in March 2018.”
Mackenzie opened the case file on Sophie Fields that they had received from the Riverview PD. “She was wearing a white blouse and denim jeans. But the body was dressed in a yellow hoodie and black jeans.”
“Any signs of her being held captive, Becky?” Nick asked.
“There are ligature marks around her wrists and ankles. I’m screening her blood and liver for drugs and toxins.”
“And the cause of death?” Mackenzie asked.
“Strangulation with either a wire or a thin rope, based on the bruising on her neck.”
“Signs of assault?” Sully asked.
“Few scrapes and bruises. A broken arm that wasn’t healed properly. It’s at least a year old. There was no assault antemortem. No signs of sexual assault either.”
“Okay, thanks, Becky. Keep us posted on anything new.” Rivera disconnected the line and sat back on her chair. “Suffice to say, Sophie was held at some point before being murdered. What’s her background?”
“She was a graphic designer for a company in Port Angeles,” Mackenzie recited without having to check the file. “Parents died many years ago in a plane crash. No siblings. Co-workers and fiancé said her behavior leading up to her disappearance was normal.”
“We need to approach this case like it’s brand new,” Rivera declared. “Riverview PD was in charge last time, but I wantourpeople to re-interrogate everyone and double-check everything.” Her eyes drifted to Mackenzie and softened. “About that note found on her…”
Mackenzie pushed back her shoulders and sat straight, refusing to cower. “It’s been sent to the crime lab to dust for prints.”
An awkward silence brewed in the room.
“There should be a patrol car outside Mack’s place at all times,” Nick said with purpose.
“What?” She glared at him.
He sighed, frustrated. “Someone broke into your car and left a body.”
