Page 63 of Bonded in Death

“He was pronounced, on-site. Witnessed?”

“As with any death, I viewed the body, signed off, and as the deceased had no family, ordered the cremation.”

“I’d like to speak with the prison surgeon regarding the death.”

“He was attended by Dr. Martin J. Pierce. Dr. Pierce is no longer on staff.”

“Why?”

Meedy let out an audible sigh. “He resigned and relocated.”

“Where?”

“You appear to be grasping at straws, Lieutenant. I don’t have that information, nor any need for it.”

“Okay, how about when? When did he resign and relocate?”

Meedy didn’t grind his teeth, but Eve could tell he wanted to.

“One moment.”

She played it out in her mind as she went into another holding pattern.

“Dr. Pierce left our staff on November twenty-first of 2056.”

She thought: Son of a bitch. “The ashes. Where are Potter’s ashes?”

“For pity’s sake! Buried, of course. We’re not heathens. Unclaimed remains are buried.”

“I need them dug up, transported to the lab in New York.”

“Lieutenant, I’ve been patient with your odd line of inquiry, but—”

“No, you haven’t, not especially. But I don’t care about that. I care about making damn sure Conrad Potter is dead. We can get DNA.”

“I have neither the authority nor the inclination to exhume remains for such a tenuous reason. I suggest—”

“I do. I’ve got the inclination, and I’ll get the authority. You’ll hear back from me.”

She clicked off, sat for ten seconds as it fell into place for her. Then contacted her connection at Interpol.

Inspector Abernathy looked both surprised and a little pleased. She recalled he’d been a stiff one, too. But he’d loosened up considerably by the time they had Cobbe in custody.

“Lieutenant Dallas, what an unexpected surprise. How—”

“Listen, no time for small talk. I’m going to run the highlights. You have to trust me.”

“I do?”

“Yeah, you do. I need cremated ashes exhumed and sent to my custody, from the burial site at the prison in Manchester. The one they call Five Hells. Nial Meedy’s warden. He’s not cooperating.”

“This isn’t in my purview.”

“You can make it your purview.”

“And I’d do that because?”

“The ashes are purported to be of a Conrad Potter—life sentence for war crimes, Urbans era. I’ve got a body in the morgue that tells me those ashes aren’t Potter’s. I believe I have your war criminal in my city.”

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