The Penitent One (Boston Crime Thriller Book 3), Brian Shea [best non fiction books of all time .TXT] 📗

"All right, good. We’re all in agreement, then,” Kelly said. "Let's start at the beginning and look at what we've got so far. Maybe we can find something to add to the board."

Heads turned to the dry erase board affixed to the wall nearest Kelly. The board wasn’t held in much reverence by his colleagues, but for Kelly it was a tool he felt very comfortable with. He had used it during his time as a crisis negotiator and found the board’s visual fluidity an excellent way to highlight case facts and keep them in sight of the group. As the brainstorming continued, details would be added as needed, its simplicity a great way to keep a finger on the pulse of an investigation. Kelly always made sure he photographed the board prior to departing The Depot. The men and women of Homicide had a penchant for doodling, and he learned the hard way to capture and wipe the board prior to leaving for the night.

The smudged writing on the board displayed key notes they’d obtained since the onset of the investigation. The list did not adequately convey the effort it took to reach its current state, a bleak outlook thus far for the case’s progression.

Vic: Benjamin Tomlin, age 46 (priest)

Timeline: 10:00-10:30 a.m.

MOD: Gunshot left temple

Caliber unk

No round No casing

Wit: Donovan O’Brien

Interview: Y

Deborah Shoemaker

Interview: N

Surveillance Cameras

Interior: N

Exterior: 3 (patrol checking)

Forensics: Pending

Autopsy: Pending

UID: Mark on hand

Suspect: None

"We’re looking at a lot of dead ends on this board,” Kelly said. “The bloody footprints were confirmed to be from Officer Chandler’s boot, so that’s another dead end." The comparison had been quickly completed by Charles and his young crime scene tech protégé Dawes, photographed, and was now in the pile of pictures spread out on the tabletop.

Kelly stared at the board, lost in thought. "So we've got no witnesses, no close-in cameras that may have picked anything up immediately around the church or on the inside. Patrol is checking a few externals from surrounding businesses, but I’m not holding my breath.”

“I’ve got a call into Jenkins at the Eleven,” Mainelli offered. “He’ll give us a heads-up if anything comes from it. His guys are working on pulling the tapes.”

“O’Brien appears to have been first contact with the decedent. Nothing else we’ve discovered points to the contrary. With that, I think we have a pretty solid timeline established, and it’s an extremely tight window. Right now we have no description for a suspect. Shoemaker will be coming in tomorrow morning for an interview. More disturbing, though…" Kelly paused, focusing his attention on the lower half of the board. "We've got a single gunshot wound to the left side of Father Tomlin's temple, exit wound right-side temple, and pass-through with heavy cranial damage. The round struck the wall of the confessional on the opposite side. Charles has confirmed after carefully evaluating the impact area and confessional chamber after the body removal that no round was found on scene. That’s a big problem for me. For a whole lot of reasons."

Kelly turned to face Barnes and Mainelli, who were seated side by side across the table. "I don't like to make conjectures this early into an investigation, but for our suspect to remove the round from the wall shows me we have somebody with practical experience—possibly dealing with a professional."

Mainelli rubbed his eyes for the second time in not as many seconds. "Like I've said before, anybody with internet and YouTube access can find ways to beat a crime scene. Or at least make it harder. Every banger we come across lately seems to know better than to leave their shell casings on scene, at least if they're not too high or drunk to do so. We're only catching the stupid ones now.”

“Maybe you’re right and this wasn't a professional, but I’m with Mike,” Barnes weighed in. “Somebody took the time to make sure the round wasn't on scene and no casing was left behind. You take those two pieces of evidence out of the equation and we're grabbing at thin air."

Mainelli was the portrait of frustration. They’d been stuck in this loop since Charles had confirmed the missing evidence.

"I get it, but we have to consider that possibility. And then there’s the other problem." Kelly tapped the capped end of the dry erase marker in his hand against the board. This was the elephant in the room, the unspoken piece nobody really wanted to talk about. Were they looking at a serial killer? The mark cut into the priest’s hand was identical to the one carved into murdered BPD Patrolman Danny Rourke’s hand. The photograph from the case file of Kelly’s former patrol partner was nearby and open. The view of the strange X marked on his partner’s right hand in the web joining his thumb and index finger stared back at him.

Kelly typed on the keyboard, and the monitor on the wall came to life with a side-by-side comparison of both photographs. Without going into the forensic aspect of what tool could have left the mark, on first inspection they looked eerily identical.

"You think whoever did your partner is the same guy? He reappears after—what, eight, almost nine years to kill a priest? Please, tell me the connection. I’ve got to understand this." A hint of sarcasm was sprinkled not too lightly into Mainelli’s words.

It was Kelly’s turn to rub his eyes in exhaustion. "If I knew the connection, we'd already be heading out of this room to find the perp. I can't make sense of it. That's why I've got it up on the screen and on the board. And you should know better than most that there's no such thing as coincidence in what we do."

Barnes had remained silent for the majority of this round of conversation but decided now would be the time to insert herself. "I agree with Mike. It's just too damn coincidental, too close, too connected to not be the same. And