Another new chapter from Into Thin Air

Harvey stood at the rear of the Ident van. He pulled out an iodine fuming kit from a cabinet inside and opened it up. The kit contained several disposable fuming wands and enhancer ampoules. The wand came in two parts: a vinyl blowing tube about four inches long; and a plastic cylinder with a glass vial inside holding iodine crystals.

After Harvey laid out a large evidence bag on top of the cabinet to protect the work surface, he donned a pair of safety goggles and removed the fuming wand from its clear bag. He attached the blowing tube, then grasped the cylinder in his hand where the glass vial was located and held it for a full minute. The heat from his palm would speed up the sublimation of the iodine.

Next, he crunched up the vial between his thumb and forefinger. Taking the photo from Audra, he set it paper side up on the evidence bag. She watched as he removed the hinged cap on the nozzle and aimed the wand toward the photo until it was about an inch away. He inhaled a lungful of air and then blew through the tube. A small piece of filtering wool near the nozzle stopped the crystals and glass from coming out.

Human breath was hot enough to cause the iodine crystals inside to produce a vapor that can be blown over a suspect document. If latent prints were present, they would absorb the vapor and reveal themselves as a yellowish brown print with decent ridge detail. The technique was old, yet still effective to use on paper products in the field without requiring the expensive fuming chamber back at the lab.

Audra could see the paper discoloring slightly from the vapors, but no fingerprints were appearing. Harvey took another deep breath and blew through the wand again. He tried a third time. Nothing.

Audra’s mouth pinched in frustration. The suspect had obviously worn gloves.

“Sorry, Detective,” Harvey said.

“Hey, it was worth a shot.”

“We can try ninhydrin and DFO at the lab, but that would destroy the photo.”

“No, don’t. If any latents were there, the iodine would’ve revealed them, correct?”

“Should’ve.” Closing the cap on the nozzle, Harvey tied a knot in the wand, dropped it back into the plastic bag it had come in, and sealed it shut with tape. Later, he would dispose of the bag in a safe manner.

Jim said, “Who do you think took that picture?”

Audra twitched her shoulders. “I have no idea.”

“I can’t see it being anyone at the scene.”

“Could be a passerby,” Harvey said. “I did notice the odd Mountie stop out there, talking to our guys directing traffic.”

Jim suggested, “Maybe someone at the Tantallon detachment did it. Pissed off because you’re investigating one of their own. Their building is right down the road from here.”

“Word’s getting around, Detective,” Harvey added.

Audra looked at both men. Two questions gnawed at her brain. Had the picture been left by another Mountie simply trying to intimidate her? Or had it been left by the other person or persons involved in the disappearances? And if so, what extremes would they take to keep their anonymity?

Audra put a hand to her stomach where a small knot began to tighten. “Who else besides us knew about the note the Sergeant left?”

Jim rubbed his face. “Malone, Coulter, Lefevre, Judge Lancaster, Thorne. You know Thorne would’ve reported this to Chief Morris. And he and RCMP Chief Superintendent Hyde are pretty tight.”

Audra nodded to herself. Talk of the note circulating came as no surprise to her. Cops were some of the worst gossip hounds around and those in her department were no different. It had been a systemic problem top brass refused to address ever since she’d been working there. Sometimes the gossip got so bad, it brought her back to her days in high school.

Harvey slid the photo into a clean evidence bag. “What do you want us to do with this?”

She held out her hand. “I’ll take it.”

“You going to show that to Thorne?”

“Not yet.”

“You should,” Jim told her. “No matter how you look at it, it’s a threat toward a fellow officer.”

“For now, can we keep this between the three of us?” Audra asked them.

Jim said, “Sure, Detective.”

Harvey passed her the bag. “I won’t say anything. But I agree with my partner.”

She stared at the photo of herself. “I know, and I will. Just not right now.”

“First thing in the morning, we’ll start digging through the contents of the Sergeant’s hard drive,” Jim said. “It could take a while. You know computers can have a staggering amount of information to look at. We’ll begin with images, searches, maps, who he was in contact with.”

Audra realized the clock was ticking now. With word out, every minute that passed gave Christaki’s associates time to destroy evidence.

“Great.” She gave the men a thumbs-up. “See you guys then.”

She crossed the driveway to her car. As she hopped inside and sat back against the seat, the weight of the day began to press on her bones. She stuffed the photo into a folder on the passenger seat, then rolled off her gloves. Taking out her cell phone, she called Sam Keating.

“Hey, Detective,” he answered. “What’s up?”

“Hey, Sam. I have a question for you.”

“Okay. Shoot.”

“When you were here at Flat Lake Drive earlier, did you happen to see anything on my windshield?”

Keating breathed into the phone. “No, didn’t notice. I parked behind Ident. Your car was off to the side. Why, what was on your windshield?”

“Uh, nothing. Sorry to have bothered you.”

A pause. “Is everything all right?”

“Fine. Everything’s fine.”

“You sure? You certainly don’t sound fine, Detective.”

Audra pinched the bridge of her nose. A part of her regretted making the call.

“I’ll tell you about it later,” she said. “I promise.”

Another pause. “Well, okay then.”

“Have a good night, Sam.” With that, she hung up.

For a moment she watched Jim and Harvey packing up their van. Then she started her car and backed out of the driveway.

The road was quiet even though the hour crept close to 9 o’clock. Audra drove along slowly, her eyes on the headlights cutting the growing dark in front of her. A short distance away she stopped for a red light at the intersection at Flat Lake Drive and Hammonds Plains Road. When it turned green, she turned left then pulled over to the shoulder.

She lowered her window and gazed at the Tantallon detachment on the other side of the road. Under the soft glow of pole lights, she could see the small parking lot full with both RCMP cruisers and officers’ own vehicles. Closest to the road, a center console boat sat on top of a trailer.

Out beyond the parking lot shimmered the purple water of Flat Lake. The sun had sunk well below the horizon, but its rays were still lingering around to saturate the sky with soft blue light.

Audra shifted her focus back to the detachment. Once more she found herself wondering if someone in there had left that photo. It very well could be. Then why was she leaning more toward the other person or persons Christaki mentioned in his note? Because she wanted it to be?

Checking her side mirror, she steered onto the road and continued across an overpass. On the other side she drove down the ramp for the eastbound Highway 103 and gunned the engine.

She headed straight to her department on Gottingen, where she signed in her sidearm. After gathering up the Christaki files from her office, she left for home.

The case shadowed her thoughts for the entire drive. Who had operated the camera in Christaki’s hunting photos? A partner? Had he set up the camera on a tripod himself and set the self-timer? More importantly, where was the camera?

Tomorrow, Audra would process the photos she took at the house. After that she would track down Christaki’s ex-wife to obtain a background on him. She had no need for a psychological autopsy to determine the Sergeant’s lifestyle, like she would do with other suicide cases.

Audra wanted to find out who Christaki’s close friends were. Did he have any hunting partners? Were there any indicators the man had another side to him, a violent one?

When she coasted her car down Ogilvie Street, Audra saw Daphne’s dark bedroom window. The living room window flickered with the light of a television. Daniel had to be still up.

The dash clock read 10:23. She had been on the go for over sixteen hours and she could feel her body now longing for her soft bed.

Daniel was standing at the kitchen table when she walked in. He wore a white t-shirt and pajama pants, as if he had just gotten ready for bed.

“Hey, babe,” he greeted. “You had a long day.”

“Too long,” Audra said, removing her shoes. “I meant to call and tell you I’d be late getting home. I never got the chance.”

“You were gone before I got up this morning.”

“Early callout. I didn’t want to wake you.” Audra carried her folders into the den located right off the kitchen and placed them on the desk. “How was your day?”

“Flat out.”

“It’ll be like that till the end of the month, eh?”

“Yup. Even well into May. Sometimes June. We always have a bunch of stragglers filing their taxes after the deadline.”

Audra returned, took off her coat, and hung it on a hook by the back door. “What did you guys have for supper?”

“Leftovers. Want me to heat some up for you?”

“No, not going to bed.”

“Did you eat anything today?”

She had to pause to think about that. “Um, a coffee and oatcake, I think. Yeah, I did.”

Daniel crossed his arms, giving her a silent look.

“You know I don’t eat much.”

“But an oatcake?”

“I know. I just got too busy with this new case.”

“I know not to ask. Want me to put on some tea for you?”

Audra relented. “All right. Chamomile, please.”

Daniel filled a kettle with water and placed it on the stove. As he got a mug from the cupboard and dropped a tea bag into it, Audra ate a banana at the counter.

“How was Daphne’s day?” she asked between bites.

“Well, not sure. She told me they’re starting Periodic Law. Seemed kind of discouraged about it.”

“She’s struggling with science this year.”

“Maybe she inherited that from me.”

Audra turned to him. “You had trouble with it too?”

Daniel nodded. “I read it’s a thing. Kids sometimes struggle with the same subjects as their parents.”

“Hmm, maybe we should consider getting a tutor for her. It might help her learn more efficiently, and at her own pace. She won’t have those time restraints of the classroom.”

Daniel gave her a long, thoughtful look. “It might help her confidence.”

“Let’s see if we can find one.” Audra tossed the banana peel into the compost bin under the sink. “I’ll check online tomorrow.”

“Before you move forward, I think you better see how she feels about it. You know how private she is.”

“I’ll talk to her.”

The kettle let off a piercing whistle. Daniel removed it from the burner and extinguished the flame. He filled the mug with hot water, then handed it to Audra.

“Thanks,” she said.

She sat at the table and put the mug down on the placemat to let the tea bag soak for a few minutes.

“So, can we expect you as late tomorrow night?” Daniel asked her. “That first forty-eight and all.”

Audra blew steam off the top of the mug, took a sip. “With any luck, I hope to make it home by suppertime. I will need you to drive Daphne to school again, though. I’ll be heading out around seven-thirty.”

“I can certainly do that.”

For a time, they talked about the mundane stuff all married couples do: shopping for groceries at the end of the week; digging out the patio furniture from the shed; buying a few bags of mulch and some new flowers to freshen up the garden out front.

Before retiring, Audra prepared the coffee maker to brew at 6:15. That night, she lay awake, unable to sleep. She found her mind troubled by the Christaki case, the photograph left on her windshield. Finally, at two-forty in the morning she sat up on the edge of the bed. Moonlight poured through slats in the blinds. Daniel snored quietly behind her.

She went to the window and stood with her face lifted up to the sky. Much of the stars were drowned out by Halifax’s street lights and lit-up buildings. That became one of the things she missed when she had moved into the city—the shimmering river of stars on a clear night. She found it hard to even glimpse the Big Dipper.

A sudden movement below caught her attention. She looked to see the dark form of a raccoon waddling down the sidewalk. It stopped briefly to sniff something, then continued on.

Audra glanced at the digital clock on the nightstand just as the glowing red numbers turned over to 3:00.

I’ll be dragging my ass today, if I don’t get some sleep.

With a weighted sigh, she crawled under the covers again and shut her eyes. She breathed in and out for at least ten times, trying to clear her mind and let her body relax. At some point, she managed to doze off. When she awoke again, the clock displayed 6:44.

She lay there for a few minutes, not wanting to get up. A kind of sickening fatigue gripped her entire body. Even her bones seemed to ache.

Rolling over, she realized the space next to her was empty. She became faintly aware of the shower running in the master bedroom.

Slowly, she got out of bed and went downstairs to find Daphne sitting at the kitchen table, eating a bowl of cereal.

“Morning, honey.”

“Hi, Mom. What time did you get home last night?”

“Oh, it was late. Close to ten-thirty, I think.” Audra poured herself a fresh cup of coffee. “How was your day at school?”

“Gah, I don’t know.”

“Science again?”

Daphne looked over at her. “Dad told you.”

“He did.”

“I told you before, Mom, I’m not the sciency type. There’s too much you need to know.”

Audra took a seat on the other side of the table and sipped some coffee. “Your father and I discussed bringing in a tutor for you a couple of evenings a week. How do you feel about that?”

Daphne paused. “A tutor?”

“It might help you. Your father struggled with science too. He thinks it might be hereditary.”

“I bet you were a brainiac in school.”

Audra gave a light chuckle. “God, no. Math used to give me a lot of trouble.”

“That’s my best subject.”

“Your father’s too, I believe. Likely why he became an accountant.”

Face thoughtful, Daphne stared at her bowl. “I don’t know, Mom.”

“There’s a little over two months of school left. A tutor might help you get your grades up in science.”

Daphne made a tiny movement with her shoulders. “I guess.”

Audra could sense her daughter’s reluctance. “Hey, we don’t want to force you into something you don’t want to do. Just think about it, okay?”

“Sure, Mom.”

Audra winced at the time on the clock: 7:12. “Well, I really need to get my butt into gear. Busy day ahead and I’m already running behind.”

“Aren’t you going to have breakfast?”

“I don’t have time. I’ll pick up something on the way.”

“Will you be late again tonight?”

“No. I should be home by suppertime.” Audra rose from her chair and kissed the top of Daphne’s head. “You have a good day at school, honey. We’ll talk more later.”

After a quick shower, she gathered up her files from the den, and left the house. The morning had turned gray and wet with a rain almost cold enough to be snow.

On her drive to work, she swung by Cabin Coffee on Hollis Street and purchased a breakfast bagel and a Chai tea to go. When she reached her department, she bumped into Jim in the hallway outside her office. His face was drawn, his eyes red and tired. He carried a digital camera in his hand.

“Good morning, Detective,” he greeted. “Hope your night was better than mine.”

Audra stopped. “Why, what happened?”

“Oh, the usual idiocy,” he grumbled. “Got called out at two-thirty in the morning. Someone decided to torch a car over on Redwood Avenue.” He brought up the photos on the camera’s LCD screen for her to see.

The series of images showed a car engulfed by shooting flames with black smoke billowing into the air; others revealed the charred shell, its tires melted off the rims.

Jim said, “By the time Station Six got there, the car was fully consumed. Luckily, no one was hurt. And there was no property damage other than the vehicle.”

“That’s a boat of a car,” Audra noted. “What kind is it?”

“A Crown Vic. Two thousand three.”

“And you’re quite certain it was arson?”

“Oh, yeah. Little doubt.”

Audra frowned. “Weird. We’ve been seeing a lot of that with stolen vehicles around here. Mostly expensive ones, though. Thieves would drive them out to an isolated trail somewhere and set them ablaze.”

Jim nodded. “A lot of them end up in Harrietsfield. But not this one. This was torched right in the owner’s driveway.”

“Any witnesses?”

Jim shook his head. “Everyone was in bed at the time. A few neighbors woke up when the tires started exploding. Said they sounded like gunshots going off. The owners slept through it.”

“Wow.”

“It never ends in this city, does it?”

“No, that it doesn’t.”

“Anyhow, I need to download these photos and do up some paperwork. Harvey and I will search Sergeant Christaki’s laptop right after that. I’ll be in touch.”

“Thank you, Jim.”

Audra went to her office and settled into her desk chair. Before getting down to work, she ate her breakfast bagel. She sipped at her tea as she logged into her computer and dug up the information on Christaki’s ex-wife Leanne Brock.

Audra took out her cell phone and punched in the woman’s number. It rang five times before the voicemail kicked in. Audra left a short message then hung up.

An hour later, Leanne returned her call. “Detective Price,” she said. “I’m assuming this is about Shane?”

Audra leaned back in her chair. “Yes. I’d like to ask you a few questions, in person if I could.”

“Um, do you want me to go to you?”

“No, no. I can swing by your place.”

A pause. “Today is not a good day.”

“Tomorrow?”

“Early afternoon. Say one o’clock?”

“That works for me.” Audra verified her address. “Thank you, Ms. Brock. Have a nice day.”

After hanging up, Audra cleared a space on her desk. Then she laid out the arrest records of the seven missing people in a collage. She took a seat again and began cross-referencing the arresting officers along with the booking officers for connections. Only two, Caelan Little and Katlyn Hill, who went missing less than three months apart, had the same arresting officer in 2004—Constable Geron Fitch. Audra remembered he had transferred to Quebec sometime in 2007.

She propped her elbows on the desk and pressed her hands into her temples.

What in these people’s backgrounds reveal the truth known only to them and Christaki and any accomplice he might’ve had? The arrests? Has to be. What else?

She flinched when her cell phone rang. It was Harvey Doucette.

“Hey, Detective,” he said. “Did you hear from Thorne?”

“No. Why?”

“We’re being pulled.”

Audra sat up. “What do you mean we’re being pulled?”

“The Mounties. They’re taking over the case.”

Audra felt her heart drop. “Are you shitting me?”

“Afraid not,” Harvey said. “I had a hunch this would happen.”

As he spoke those words, a knock came at Audra’s door. Captain Thorne poked his head in. “Detective. When you have a minute, can I speak with you in my office, please?”

Audra lowered the phone from her ear. “Be right there.” After Thorne shut the door, she said to Harvey, “Well, I guess I’m getting word now.”

“I heard. I’ll talk to you in a bit, okay?”

“Okay. Bye.”

Audra gave her head a vigorous shake. She could feel heat flushing through her body.

Calm down, she told herself. Calm down.

She waited a few minutes until she reined in her emotions. Then she went to Thorne’s office.

Walking in, she cut right to it. “What’s this about us being pulled?”

Thorne snapped his head back, surprised. “You heard.”

“I did. What’s going on here?”

“I need you to pass in all the reports you have compiled on Sergeant Christaki. The RCMP are going to handle it from here.”

“This is my case.”

“It’s their boy.”

“That’s bullshit, Captain. They’re going to take the case and bury it.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do know that. And so should you.”

Thorne’s face screwed up into a mask of confusion and restrained anger. “What do you have against the RCMP? I know some other members in the department who seem to share your animosity toward them. I don’t understand it.”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it’s because they look down their noses at us and treat us like a third-rate police force.”

Thorne stared at her with a stunned disbelief in his eyes. “What case do you have exactly? You have a vague note with seven names on it and no real explanation.”

Audra placed her hands on her hips and pushed her shoulders back. “Seven names of people who went missing in our jurisdiction I might add. None of whom left behind an electronic footprint since they vanished. None of whom were ever heard from again.”

“So, Sergeant Shane Christaki was a serial killer? That’s what you’re saying?”

“It’s possible. At the very least he knew something about the disappearances of those people.”

“Then why not just confess? Name names. He was checking out anyway. What did he have to lose at that point?”

Audra shrugged. “What I’ve learned about him so far is that he lived and breathed the RCMP. And look at the oath of secrecy they all have to swear. To keep their mouths shut about RCMP business. Maybe that was a factor.”

Thorne broke eye contact and looked off toward the office window, his tongue pushing against the inside of his lower lip. In a softened voice, he said, “I’m sorry, Detective. The decision wasn’t mine. I got my orders, and now you have yours.”

“This came from Chief Morris, didn’t it?”

“Yes.”

Audra’s fingernails dug into her palms as she squeezed her hands into tight balls. She had to bite her tongue before she said something she’d regret. She turned and left, slamming the door behind her.

In the hallway outside her office, she found Harvey waiting for her. He had a manila envelope in his hand.

“You look pissed,” he said.

“I am pissed.”

“Jim and I didn’t think you’d take this lying down.”

Audra thrust out her chin. “I’m not.”

Harvey handed her the envelop.

“What’s this?” she asked.

“The photos we took at the Sergeant’s house last night.” He gave her a USB flash drive. “These are some files we managed to pull off the laptop. Pics, documents, some email contacts. We didn’t have time to dig too deep, unfortunately.”

“Where’s the laptop now?”

“Bagged up for the Mounties. Cell too.”

“You know what they’re going to do with this case, don’t you?”

Harvey nodded. “Make it disappear.”

“Yeah. Just like those seven people. Thank you, Harvey.”

She entered her office and stared at the folders on her desk for a full minute.

Oh, I’ll pass in everything all right.

She gathered up the reports and began feeding them, sheet by sheet, into her photocopier.