Chapter 3

Detective Reynolds arrived at the crime scene an hour after the first 9-1-1 call. A large crowd of onlookers had gathered, in addition to a dozen black and whites, an ambulance, and several reporters from local television stations and newspapers. The area was awash in a sea of swirling red, white, and blue lights.

He pulled his unmarked Crown Victoria behind one of the squad cars and parked. He stepped out of the vehicle and was immediately approached by Detective Kennedy.

"Hello, Detective. Sorry they got you out of bed for this one. It looks like a mugging that went bad," Kennedy stated as he approached the senior officer.

Detective Phil Reynolds had been with the force for thirty years and a homicide detective for the last twenty. Normally, he wasn't assigned to these kinds of cases-serial killings and murder-for-hire were his specialty.

"Well, I got out of bed, and I'm here, so I might as well take a look," he replied.

"That's fine with me."

"Give me a rundown on what happened," Reynolds commanded as they dipped under the yellow crime scene tape that formed a perimeter around the area.

Kennedy began explaining what information they had gathered so far. He reported that around ten that evening witnesses heard three gunshots. Two of the witnesses ran over to the alley and found the victim. They checked his pulse, but he was already dead.

The witnesses stated that as they approached the alley, there was a man calmly walking in the other direction. Because they had been more concerned with where the shots came from, they didn't pay much attention to him. However, now that they had time to think about it, they think it's odd that the man didn't seem curious about the gunfire.

He further explained that in the last hour they'd been able to determine that the victim was Lance Evans, a lawyer for the law firm of Schuster, Weston and Briggs on Michigan Avenue, and that he lived just a couple of blocks away from the crime scene.

They theorized that the victim probably had his ring, watch, wallet, and coat stolen. The victim's ring finger and wrist displayed marks consistent with wearing a ring and watch, but neither was present, and since he was returning from work and no wallet was found on him, his wallet was also probably stolen.

"How'd you ID the victim without his wallet," interjected Reynolds as he surveyed the surroundings.

"Oh, I forgot to mention that," Kennedy apologized. "A neighbor of the victim came down to join the gallery of people watching us and recognized him. We got another neighbor to come down and corroborate the ID."

"How come you think he had his coat stolen?" Reynolds questioned.

"I sent a couple of officers over to the victim's law firm, and the night watchman remembers the victim leaving at around nine-thirty. Since it was cold tonight, the officers asked the security guard if he remembered the victim having a coat when he left the building. He did. The guard also thinks the victim might've had a briefcase, but he's not absolutely sure."

Reynolds thanked Kennedy for the synopsis. Then, he asked to talk to the two witnesses who had discovered the body. Kennedy led the detective to the squad car where the witnesses, Frank Donnelly and Peter Sikes, were filling out a preliminary statement.

"This is Detective Reynolds. He'd like to ask you a couple of questions," Kennedy explained to the men.

"Fine, but can we hurry this up, it's getting late and I'd like to go home," Donnelly stated, Sikes nodding in agreement.

"This will only take a minute. I was just wondering if the man you saw walking away from the alley was wearing a jacket."

Both men thought about it for a second, and Sikes answered, "Yeah, I think he was." Donnelly agreed.

Reynolds continued, "Besides the jacket the man was wearing, did you happen to notice if he was also carrying another coat?"

"I think he was," Sikes replied.

Donnelly, again, nodded in agreement and added, "You think he was the killer and stole the coat from the victim?"

"Possibly. Thank you for your help. We'll be in touch if we need anything further."

Reynolds, leaving Kennedy behind to finish with the two witnesses, turned and started down the alley toward the victim. The medical examiner, crouched down beside the body, examining it, had arrived earlier and was preparing to take it to the morgue. He walked over to the M.E. and looked down at the victim, lying in a large pool of blood.

"What does it look like?" he inquired as flashbulbs went off around them, while forensics continued gathering evidence.

The M.E. looked up from what he was doing and upon seeing Reynolds, asked, "What are you doing here? I thought this was just a robbery that went sour-not typically your kind of case."

"It looks that way, but you never can tell. So, what have you found?" he asked. He had worked with Jack Gallagher, the M.E., for a long time, and over the years, they had gained a mutual respect and admiration for each other's talents.

"Well, from my cursory examination it looks like three shots fired at close range, probably a .22. As you can see from all of the blood, the victim quickly bled to death. One of the bullets probably hit a major artery, but I'll know conclusively tomorrow."

"Thanks, Jack." He gave the M.E. a pat on the shoulder and turned away.

He started walking back to his vehicle. He had seen enough for now. The crime didn't match the profile of cases he was usually assigned. Still, something didn't quite fit.

Upon reaching his vehicle, Detective Kennedy came over to him and asked, "So, it's a mugging that went bad, correct?"

Reynolds looked back at the younger detective, glanced up and down the street thoughtfully for a second and replied, "I'm not so sure about that."

"What! You can't be serious?" Kennedy exclaimed, astonished by the statement.

"I'm not saying it's anything more than that, but there are a couple of inconsistencies I don't like."

"Like what?"

"First, there doesn't seem to have been any kind of struggle. Besides the bullet holes and blood, there aren't any scratches or bruises on the victim's face. His shirt isn't ripped or even messed up in any way. So, if he didn't put up a struggle and gave his assailant what he wanted, then why did the mugger shoot him?"

"Ok, granted that doesn't make much sense, but maybe the mugger didn't want the victim to be able to identify him," Kennedy countered.

"Possibly, but most muggers aren't killers. They just want to score some quick cash. But, your theory is definitely possible."

"What else don't you think is kosher about the crime?" Kennedy asked skeptically.

"I believe the man that the two witnesses saw walking away was the killer."

"I agree with that, but why does that make you think there's more to this than a mugging?" Kennedy asked.

"Because the man was walking. When a mugging goes wrong, muggers don't walk, they run like the devil is chasing them. Professionals walk, amateurs run," he explained.

"Those three bullet holes back there weren't done by any professional. A professional would've shot him once in the heart and once in the head at that distance and made sure he was dead."

Reynolds paused as he thought about that for a second and then answered, "What if he was a professional, only he wants it to look like a mugging. So, he steals the victim's belongings and shoots him like an amateur, but still in a way that he knows will kill him."

"You came up with that theory because the guy walked away, instead of running," Kennedy replied.

"Well, that and thirty years of experience. I know it's a bit of a stretch, and it probably played out the way you believe, but I hope you don't mind if I keep tabs on the case, in the off-chance something crops up to support my wild theory."

"No problem, I still believe it's a mugging gone bad and nothing more, but I'll let you know if something surfaces that you might want to know about."

"Thanks. I appreciate that."

Reynolds slid back into his car and drove away. Detective Kennedy watched him leave, shaking his head, and thinking to himself that the older detective was finally starting to lose it.