Abacus

that the bag was thrown into the river at that point…” He paused for a moment. “Then the cool deep water there would have slowed the decomposition process.”
    Jesse chipped in. “ If there is no decomposition, there is no gas, therefore no buoyancy, which could have kept the head submerged for an extended period of time. As a result, the head may have been preserved quite well, making accurate estimation of time in the water almost impossible.”
    There was s ilence as the team considered his hypothesis. Hobbs cleared his throat and continued. “The divers will be back tomorrow morning to widen their search.” He looked around the table. “Can anyone think of anything else we need them to have a look at?”
    Leanne raised h er hand. “Yes, well, there may have been some signs of marine predation on the head, perhaps they could let us know what lives down there.”
    Hobbs nodded as he scribbled notes in his notebook. “Anyone else?” he asked as Leanne persisted,
    “ On second thoughts, if the divers cannot identify marine life, and let’s face it, I’d be surprised if anything can live in the Botany River. The local pro-fisherman may be able to help for sure. They’d be able to tell us what they net closer to the bay on a daily basis.”
    Randall waited for Hobbs to catch up wi th his note taking before speaking. “Big guy, I would still like to determine for sure if the bag was thrown in at that location or any other place. I think the only way we are going to be able to determine which it is, is by performing some kind of re-enactment.”
    Sheik looked at Randall, amused. “What, boss, you want Hobbs to hack off someone’s head and toss it in?”
    Laughter fi lled the room as Randall smiled. “Yeah, yours, Sheik, you smart-ass Arab.” Once the laughter settled, a measured Randall again spoke. “Hobbs, liaise with Leanne, weigh the head and bag together to give us a gross weight. Fill the bag with something of similar shape and weight, tie a rope to it and toss it in. It is important the object be a similar shape so it has the capability to roll, we need it to perform like the head. If the divers go in at the same time, they should be able to determine if it moves in the current.”
    “Sounds good , boss. So I guess we are going to have to do it when the current is running it’s hardest.”
    “ Yeah, that’s right,” Randall agreed. “Preferably the run out tide.”
    Hobbs made a few more notes in his book, looked up and hes itantly asked, “Anything more?”
    Randall got to his feet and leant on the table. “Listen, guys, from here on in, this investigation will be ably led by Jesse. I will be assisting him. So all future decisions and any questions you have, are to be run by him first. Jesse will be tasking you all, and of course, in Jesse’s absence, I will be available to you.”
    The team looked surp rised by Randall’s announcement as he had always led past homicide investigations.
    “Well , lady and gents, you have all been briefed, so all that is left to do is have a little wager on motive. So what’s it gonna be… lust, revenge or greed?”
    Hob bs piped up. “Well, boss, severed head, hacked off crudely, put me down for lust.”
    Randall nodded. “ Good, good.”
    Georgie G chipped in. “Initial cause of death probably bullet hole, point of entry above the right eye, almost execution style. I’ll take revenge.”
    Randall raised his eyebrows. “Also very plausible. Nice one, Georgie G.”
    Sheik shrugged. “I’ve got nothing, they have the first two covered. I guess I am up for greed.”
    “Well , you are the entrepreneur in the office, aren’t you? So greed is a good fit, Sheik,” Jesse joked.
    Randall looked a t Leanne for contribution. “Well, I don’t know what the motivation is… but what I do know is that if we don’t identify him, motive won’t matter.”
    “Boy , you sure know how to spoil a game with common sense, don’t you, Leanne?” Georgie G quipped, gathering up his things.
    Randall looked down at his wrist watch. “There is very little we can achieve tonight, so everybody rest well and be prepared for some very long hours from here on in. We will have another meeting in the morning at seven A.M. sharp, where you can all meet the analyst. See you then.”
    On the way out of the room Sheik stopped to speak with Jesse who was chatting with Randall. “Excuse me, boss, I’ve just got a quick question for Jesse.”
    “He’s all yours,”