Free Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark Page A

fact that he was now dead.

 

SEVEN
     
    When Mike finished his conversation and returned his attention back to me, I decided to share with him what I was thinking. Had Liz been there, she might have told me to be quiet. On the other hand, if there was a treasure-hunting element to this case, that would actually be a good thing for me personally, as it would help take away any focus that might point toward my government investigation/work suspension problem.
    I launched into a full explanation about the will and the diamonds and the papers Troy had found. Just as I finished, we were interrupted again, this time by the news that the medical examiner had arrived. Mike excused himself, saying he would be back and for me to stay inside and out of the way.
    I agreed, though after he was gone, I moved through the house all the way to the screened porch, which was close to the pool area. From there I would be able to hear and see what was going on outside while technically remaining inside, as directed.
    Stepping onto the wooden slat flooring of the porch, I realized that the night air was getting chilly. Pulling my dress jacket more tightly around me, I moved to a wicker chair near the back, turned it toward the pool area, and sat there in the darkness.
    Though I could barely see over the pool fencing, I could easily hear the conversation between Mike and the ME. She confirmed right away that thewound on Troy’s thigh had definitely not been caused by a gunshot. Instead, she said he had been stabbed by something jagged.
    “I’m thinking of a woodworking tool, like a circular saw, maybe? Or a gardening trowel, a hoe. Something with a sharp edge, but jagged. Not like a knife.”
    “The other victim said there was some kind of creature here,” Mike said. “Does it look like it could have been done by an animal?”
    I leaned forward, listening intently for her reply.
    “Yes and no. Some sort of big sharp claw could have done this. The nature of the cut mark would be consistent with that. The problem is, claw marks usually show up as several parallel lines, not just one, especially with the big cats. So I don’t think it was a mountain lion or a cougar or bobcat. I suppose it could have been a bear, if that bear happened to have one prominent claw.” She went on to say that whatever animal had done this, if indeed an animal had done this, at the lab she would be able to look more closely at the wound and check it for evidence. “A gash this deep can hold plenty of debris.”
    “So was that cut the cause of death? Did he bleed out?”
    “I don’t know yet. The froth in his lungs and the nasal hemorrhaging both point to drowning. The skin on his feet tells us the body wasn’t in the water too long. I’d say half an hour at most. The skin on his hands…I’m not sure what’s going on there. It’s blistered and red, see?”
    They were both quiet for a moment, and then he murmured something I couldn’t quite make out. Judging from her reply, there was something under Troy’s fingernails—a residue of something white that had managed to remain despite his having floated in the pool.
    “If you look here,” the woman said, “you can see he also bit his tongue, which tells me he may have had a seizure.”
    Mike asked about other signs of a struggle, other cuts and bruises. She replied that she could see no visible signs of forced drowning, such as bruises around the neck, shoulders, or head. Nothing like that at all.
    “There
is
massive bruising around this gash in his thigh,” she added. “We’ll check the rest of his body at the lab for other cuts and contusions, but I don’t see anything else that jumps out at me right now.”
    I couldn’t understand Mike’s next remarks, but it sounded as though he was saying that regardless of how Troy died, whether from bleeding to death or drowning or a seizure, there was no question that he had been bleeding heavily from his leg, and that by following the trail of blood