Stop Dead (DI Geraldine Steel)

on.’

     
    Miles turned his attention to the body.
    ‘I gather there was no identification on him?’
    ‘We’re working on that,’ Geraldine replied.
    ‘Hmm. Well, he was in his late seventies, I’d say, not very well nourished, and he had a variety of health issues going on. He was small, not much over five foot, and had advanced arthritis and was developing scoliosis of the spine giving his shoulders this hunched appearance. He suffered a coronary some years ago, but he was basically healthy.’
    ‘Sounds like it,’ Sam muttered.
    ‘What I mean to say is, he didn’t die of natural causes.’
    ‘People fished out of the canal generally don’t.’

     
    Geraldine threw Sam a cautionary glance, vexed by her surliness. No one liked to see dead bodies, but there was no need to antagonise Miles. It wasn’t his fault the old man was dead. It was important the pathologist remained committed to helping them. Any tiny piece of information he could provide might prove crucial in solving the case. Without his full co-operation they might only hear the minimum facts of the examination, and Geraldine wanted more than that. She wanted Miles to feel comfortable enough to share his gut reaction with them.

     
    ‘As you can see, the method of killing was the same as that used in the Henshaw and Corless cases.’
    Gazing down at the cadaver, its skin hideously wrinkled and discoloured, Geraldine could distinguish little similarity between the other two bodies and this one. They could have belonged to different species. The pathologist swept the victim’s hair aside to reveal an ugly gash on the side of his head, alongside a large area of bruising.
    ‘He was hit on the left side of his head, a severe blow which probably knocked him out, and almost certainly killed him.’
    ‘So it might not have knocked him out but –’ Sam had barely begun to speak when Geraldine interrupted her.
    ‘Go on, Miles.’
    Sam scowled and fell silent.

     
    ‘He was hit here,’ he indicated the victim’s genitalia, ‘in exactly the same way as your earlier victims.’
    ‘So this was the same killer?’
    ‘I’d say so, yes.’
    ‘Is there any doubt about it?’ Geraldine pressed him.
    ‘No. I’d say not. Of course I can’t be a hundred per cent sure but I’d say there’s no doubt really that the same person committed all three murders, unless the killers were communicating with each other about their methods. It’s an identical murder.’
    ‘But very different victims.’
    Geraldine gazed at the grotesque cadaver. It looked like a monstrous frog with its skinny legs and bloated torso.

     
    Miles shrugged.
    ‘That consideration doesn’t really fall within my remit. All I can tell you is that the three bodies have been killed in the same manner. That the three murders were carried out by the same hand is a matter on which you can speculate, but it’s not a matter of scientific interest. He hadn’t eaten since around midday but had been drinking shortly before he died, beer from the look and smell of it. Not an excessive amount but he might have been intoxicated, depending on his tolerance. Like I said, he’s a small man.’

     
    ‘Did you find any female DNA on this victim?’ Geraldine wanted to know.
    ‘For goodness sake,’ Sam said before the pathologist had a chance to reply. ‘Look at him. He was hardly likely to be gallivanting around with women. He could barely stand up on those.’
    She gestured at the dead man’s frail legs. Miles inclined his head at Geraldine, pointedly ignoring Sam’s outburst.
    ‘I believe so.’
    ‘How do you mean?’
    ‘Wouldn’t it have all been washed away in the water?’ Sam asked.

     
    He shook his head impatiently.
    ‘Not necessarily. But this victim hadn’t engaged in pre-mortem sexual intercourse.’
    They all glanced down at the shrivelled body, none of them voicing their thoughts.
    ‘So it’s not the same as Patrick and George at all,’ Sam said.
    ‘The cause of death was the same. The disposal of the body was different in each case. As for the motive – well, as I say, that’s not for me to determine.’

     
    ‘So what about the DNA?’ Geraldine prompted him.
    ‘Yes, I was coming to that. We found a strand of hair entangled in the victim’s watch strap.’
    ‘A shoulder-length dark hair?’ Sam said, her voice raised in excitement.
    ‘No, it was a shoulder-length blonde hair.’
    Geraldine and Sam looked at one another in surprise.
    ‘Do you mean