One by one, I named the bones.
“Obviously human,” Corcoran said.
“Animals had scattered bones over approximately twenty square meters,” I said.
As I projected my site map, Ryan produced hard copies. “Dr. Brennan documented the position of each skeletal element.”
When Corcoran and Schechter looked up, I resumed the presentation, moving outward from the central cluster through the dispersed remains.
“Each plastic cone marks the location of a bone or bone cluster.” Advancing through the images, I again identified body parts. “Right femur, tibia, and patella. Right calcaneous. Right tarsals, metatarsals, and phalanges. Right radius. Right ulna and hand bones. Left lower central incisor. Right upper central incisor.”
“Could we move this along?” Schechter said.
Ryan resumed.
“Given Ms. Jurmain’s known history of alcoholism, the evidence of prescription drug abuse, eyewitness accounts, and the climatic conditions on the night of her absence from the inn, the coroner ruled manner of death as accidental and cause of death as hypothermia exacerbated by intoxication.”
“You’re saying Rose got drunk, wandered off, and froze to death.” Schechter.
“Basically, yes. Shortly, Dr. Brennan will discuss skeletal identification and analysis of trauma.”
“Not shortly. Now.”
“Sir?”
“Enough of this ridiculous subterfuge.”
Startled, I looked at Ryan. His face was a stone mask pointed at the lawyer across the table. Recognizing his expression, I jumped in.
“Detective Ryan has been providing background for the coroner’s conclusion. But if your preference is to move on, we have no objection.”
“I suggest we go directly to your report, Dr. Brennan.”
“I suggest you specify what it is you want.” Ryan’s tone was a steel blade.
“Very well, Detective.” Schechter’s chin cocked up slightly. “My client does not believe his daughter died of exposure. He believes she was murdered.”
Placing both forearms on the tabletop, Schechter laced his fingers, and leaned in.
“Further, he believes Dr. Brennan concealed that fact.”
4
MY EYES JUMPED TO CORCORAN. HE CONTINUED STARING AT THE screen.
“Is that so?” Ryan’s tone suggested trench warfare. “To what purpose?”
“That is what I intend to find out.”
Schechter wiggled manicured fingers at the pointer.
I handed it to him.
“Project the close-up of the undisturbed remains.”
Stomach knotted, I did as requested. As demanded.
The red dot appeared on the half-buried skeleton, drifted across the mandible, the clavicles, and the upper ribs. Coming to rest, it performed jerky pirouettes around the breastbone.
“That’s the sternum,” I said.
“I am aware of that.”
The gut clench eased. Was that where Schechter was going? If so, he was a bigger dumbass than I thought. He must not have consulted an osteologist.
Closing the death scene file, I opened another containing photos taken at the LSJML. The first few depicted a body bag, zipped then unzipped, the latter displaying jumbled bones visible in the bag’s interior.
The next series showed an autopsy table, dirt-encrusted skeleton atop the stainless steel. A few bones were connected by desiccated muscle or ligament. Most lay loose, in positions approximating those they’d occupied when the body was intact.
“Here you see the remains as they arrived at the morgue, prior to any manipulation. Shall I identify individual elements?”
Schechter gave another haughty wave. The old wheezer had quite a repertoire.
“Shall I explain my cleaning process?”
“Not germane.”
“Dandy. Let’s proceed to ID.”
“My client does not question that the remains are those of his daughter.”
“Groovy. Let’s talk about trauma. Shall I clarify the terms antemortem, perimortem, and postmortem?”
“Succinctly.”
“With skeletal remains, antemortem refers to trauma occurring prior to death, injuries sustained earlier in life and showing evidence of healing. Perimortem refers to trauma suffered at or close to the time of death. Postmortem refers to trauma inflicted after death, damage associated with decomposition, abuse of the body, animal scavenging, and such.”
“How is this germane?” Clearly, Schechter liked the word.
“It is
Again the hand.
“I will not belabor the importance of distinguishing between perimortem and postmortem trauma. I would like to make clear, however, that, for the anthropologist, this distinction has more to do with bone quality than it does with time of death. It’s a complex subject, so forgive me if I oversimplify.
“In fresh or living bone the moisture content is relatively high and the collagen, the component that gives bone its elasticity, is somewhat flexible. This permits a certain degree of bending under stress. With decomposition, moisture is lost and collagen degrades, so the bending capability diminishes. In other words, dry bone responds to loading like an inorganic, rather than an organic, material. It fails, or breaks, when subjected to smaller forces. Think of a green stick versus a dry stick. The former yields, the latter snaps under pressure.”
Schechter made a note on his tablet but did not interrupt.
“Practically speaking, this means that fractures to dry bone are less clean and have more jagged edges. Fragments tend to be smaller. Breakaway spurs, relatively common in fresh bone, are rare. Concentric circular and radiating fractures, patterns produced by the transmission of energy through bone, are uncommon.”
“Most impressive. We’re all experts now.”
Knowing his game book, I ignored Schechter’s rudeness.
“Distinguishing an antemortem injury or defect is equally important in accurately determining manner of death. Since the first signs of healing are often difficult to detect, skeletal remains are examined on three levels, macroscopic, radiographic, and histologic.”
“Let’s skip the jargon.” Schechter.
