Free Gabriel's Revenge (The Adventures of Gabriel Celtic Book 2) by J.T. Lewis Page A

immediately had the body shipped over to the coroner’s office, where Doc Elliot found prick marks on the back of the neck. He later confirmed the presence of some sort of ancient poison in Frank, Cur… Curry…”
    “Curare?” I said aloud in surprise. I was familiar with this somewhat, it having originated in South America. It was generally made from a concoction of native plants found there, and natives there still used it sometimes for hunting with darts and blowguns. Usually used on small game, I knew that a large enough dose could easily kill a human.
    “Yes, that’s it!” Allen said with relief on his face. “Anyway, we have been unable to find a motive for anyone killing him; I personally can’t fathom the idea that anyone would want to do him in. We went through his files, but they are just a hodgepodge of old cold cases I assigned to him months ago. Nothing even remotely life threatening that I can see. Two of them were suicides that seemed slightly suspicious, but even those don’t seem to be related in any way, nothing threatening at all. I do know that he was on to something though; he had started exhuming some of the bodies of some of the accident victims…with my authority of course.”
    “The one thing that possibly could have helped us; his notebook, is missing. There is a possibility that it was taken when he was killed.”
    I flash back to the dream, remembering the strange man taking something out of Frank’s pocket before placing the coat over him on the ground. I mulled over this information for a few minutes before moving on to another question I had.
    “Who’s Staples?”
    Allen got a grin on his face then. “It’s actually two people Gabe.”
    “When you left, I hired a new investigator named Nathan Stafford, goes by Nate. He’s a young guy, just out of the academy, but he showed a lot of promise, and he has done a pretty decent job so far.”
    “A few months ago, I had some extra money in the budget, and a stack of cold cases we needed to get to. Frank volunteered to take on the cold cases, so I hired another young investigator named Michael Naples to help Stafford with the day to day stuff.”
    “Anyway, those two are as thick as thieves, kinda reminds me of you and Frank.”
    Allen stopped suddenly when these words left his mouth, embarrassment crossing his face as he wondered if he should have mentioned Frank and me during better times.
    “Sorry,” he intoned quietly, not certain where to go next.
    “Frank and I were great together,” I said. “But for many reasons, that is no longer the case. I went off the deep end, and he got himself killed. You don’t have anything to apologize for Allen. Frank was a great partner, and a good friend, and I will miss him everyday for the rest of my life. But it’s just not the same anymore, life goes on, and it’s time for the new blood.”
    Seeming satisfied with my answer, Allen continued on with his description, but maybe with just a little less exuberance.
    “Anyway, after a few times of yelling for Stafford and Naples, the name just sort of ran together, so we call them ‘Staples’.”
    Seeming to remember something, he quickly reached into his pocket, pulling out a badge and leather case.
    “Before I forget, here’s your badge back,” he said as he handed me the case. “Seriously Gabriel, it’s good to have you back, even under these circumstances. We need someone with your depth of knowledge.”
    I nodded my head while staring at the shiny metal object in my hand. This used to be a real source of pride with me; everything I had done in my professional life was a reflection of the pride I took in what the badge represented. Considering what it had cost me in the last couple of years, it now seemed like nothing more than a piece of steel wrapped in a leather pouch.
    Sticking it in my pocket, I had just one more question for my boss.
    “When can I get a look at Frank’s files?”
    “They are in the back seat. I figured