1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 224 Theodore: Rubbing with alcohol
the next morning.

Theodore, Bernie, and Billy Hawke went to the Third Precinct and found Detective Thomas.

Detective Thomas led them to the medical examiner's office and enthusiastically recounted his experience of apprehending the criminal.

By tracing the stolen goods that appeared on the black market, he quickly found the thief hiding in his house.

According to him, he was working with two other colleagues. He took the lead, kicked open the thief's door, and stormed in with a gun.

The thief was lying on the sofa, feeling blissful, when he saw him and was terrified. He jumped up from the sofa and staggered to the window, intending to jump out and escape.

As a result of using too much, the thief became weak and limp, and after several attempts, he was unable to climb onto the windowsill and was cornered against the wall.

Detective Thomas recounted the story with great enthusiasm, clearly having recovered from the previous blow.

Bernie and Billy Hawke exchanged glances, both thinking of the Seventh Precinct, which had been holding a body-pushing contest on the water with its sister departments.

Bernie used to have some opinions about the Third Precinct's work attitude, but after seeing the Seventh Precinct, all those opinions disappeared.

Regardless, the Third Precinct is still fulfilling its duties; they've just passed many cases to the FBI.

At least they didn't secretly dump the body in the Fourth Precinct's jurisdiction.

Thinking this, Bernie sincerely praised him a few times, which immediately made Detective Thomas beam with joy.

The group arrived at the forensic office and met the professor, who had just changed his clothes.

Detective Thomas greeted the professor, pointed to the FBI agent beside him, and inquired about the autopsy report.

The professor yawned, waved to them, opened the filing cabinet, and took out a bulging file bag and a report that was only a dozen pages long.

The report was handwritten, and there were many scribbling marks on it.

This appears to be just a draft.

The professor opened the file bag and poured out a bunch of photos.

Theodore roughly estimated that there were at least sixty or seventy photos.

The photos are clear and detailed, with two shots taken at almost every location to ensure that the results are not affected by the loss of any one photo.

Theodore glanced at the photos on the table and asked the professor:
Where are the deceased's clothes?

The body they found at the 7th Precinct was clothed, but because the body had been kept in refrigeration, the clothes were frozen to the body and could not be removed.

The professor called out the name of a young forensic doctor.

The young forensic doctor quickly came over carrying a paper bag, and a familiar, cloyingly sweet stench wafted towards us.

The paper bag was wrapped in several layers, but even so, traces of dampness could still be seen at the bottom of the outermost layer.

The professor took out gloves from the drawer and handed them to the others. After putting on a pair himself, he took the paper bag, opened it, and pulled out a purple dress.

A strong, foul odor quickly filled the entire office.

The young forensic pathologist who brought the paper bag had already quietly left when he saw the professor wearing gloves.

Detective Thomas gagged, covered his nose, and backed away, gagging as he did so.

Theodore and his two companions didn't react as strongly as Detective Thomas, but they were unwilling to get too close and be "infected" by the stench, so they all took two steps back and kept their distance.

The professor remained calm, examined the dress for a moment, then grabbed the two shoulder straps and shook the dress off completely.

The dress has a low neckline and a fitted design, which effectively highlights feminine features.

The skirt has several inconspicuous snags, small holes and loose threads, and the once vibrant purple color has faded significantly.

The professor pointed to a clearly visible, regular hole in the dress:

“I cut a piece of fabric and took it home to ask my wife. She said it was synthetic fiber and very cheap.”

"This one might only cost a few dollars."

Bernie looked at the professor with suspicion and made many guesses about his wife's profession.

The professor remained calm, and after showing off the dress, he pulled out a flesh-colored cotton ominous sign.

The ominous sign was loose and sloppy, with the clasp on the back already rusted.

Next was a pair of nylon stockings, covered in mud and sand, looking quite dirty.

When the professor unfolded it, large areas of the stockings were visible as being torn, with some places even showing large holes.

The professor put them back into the paper bag and handed the bag to Theodore:
"These are all the deceased's clothes."

"The deceased was not wearing shoes, no bag was found, and there was nothing in his pockets."

Billy Hawke cleverly stepped forward, took the paper bag, tucked his clothes down a bit, and placed the bag in the corner.

Detective Thomas saw that the clothes had been put away, took two steps into the room, and then immediately went back out.

The office was still filled with that cloying, rotten smell, which was nauseating.

Bernie thoughtfully pulled a mask from the table and handed it to Detective Thomas.

Detective Thomas smiled gratefully at Bernie, then immediately let out a series of gagging sounds.

He quickly put on his mask and took two steps back.

The professor glanced at Detective Thomas, then picked out a few photos of pre-dissection cadavers from the pile and handed them to the four men:

"The deceased was a Black woman, 5 feet 3 inches tall (approximately 160 centimeters). Due to prolonged immersion in water, followed by exposure to sunlight, refrigeration, and thawing, the body was in a state of severe decomposition."

He pointed to the area beneath the body in the photo:

"The parts of the body that came into contact with the body bag, such as the back and buttocks, had been completely rotten and decayed due to being soaked in the seeping putrid liquid for a long time. They were impossible to grasp and would fall off at the slightest touch."

Theodore picked up a photograph and looked at it.

The body in the photo was not quite the same as the one they had seen in the 7th Precinct's medical examiner's office.

The corpse was completely naked, highly swollen, with distorted facial features, protruding eyeballs, an enlarged tongue sticking out of the lips, and an abdomen bulging like a drum; the skin on the hands, feet, and other parts of the body was wrinkled and white over large areas, as if the corpse was wearing gloves and socks that could be taken off at any time.

The professor then handed over a few more photos:
“There was an irregular, horizontal subcutaneous bruise about 3.1 to 3.9 inches (about 8 to 10 centimeters) wide on the neck of the body.”

"The bruises are dark purplish-red on the front and sides of the neck, and are slightly interrupted at the nape of the neck. There are punctate and linear abrasions at the edges of the bruised area."

Theodore looked at the professor:
Was the deceased strangled?

The professor met his gaze for a moment:

"I performed an autopsy on the body's neck."

"A large area of ​​bleeding can be seen in the subcutaneous tissue and muscle layer of the neck, including the sternocleidomastoid, thyrohyoid, and platysma muscles."

"Fragmentation of the hyoid bone and thyroid cartilage, with significant bleeding at the fracture ends."

He began to release a series of photos:
"The body's thoracic organs were in normal position, numerous reddish-brown hemorrhages were visible on the surface of the heart and lungs, the oral cavity was clean, and no drowning fluid, foam, or foreign objects from the water were found in the trachea and bronchi."

Theodore looked through the photos and nodded.

These are all typical characteristics of death by mechanical asphyxiation.

The three people behind him were completely confused.

The professor didn't expect them to understand, and started a one-on-one conversation with Theodore:

"The stomach contents of the corpse were partially digested pasty substances, and the intestines were empty."

"The estimated time of death is 2-3 hours after the last meal."

After a pause, the professor continued:
“There was a circular ligature groove above both ankles of the body, 0.5 inches (about 1.2 centimeters) wide.”

"The skin around the ligature is leathery, with clear edges, and no subcutaneous bleeding, swelling, or bruising." He rummaged through the pile of photos, found a clear picture of the ligature, and handed it to Theodore.

Theodore took the photo and looked at it:

"The rope was tied after the deceased died. Based on the traces of the rope groove, the other end of the rope should have been tied to a heavy object."

"The falling weight helps the body sink to the bottom of the river, preventing it from floating up randomly."

The professor neither confirmed nor denied this.

"The body's ribs and limbs showed signs of multiple fractures and healing marks."

"There are extensive, proliferative granulomatous ulcers and a large amount of scar tissue in the genital and groin areas."

“There are a large number of cauliflower-like or papillary wart-like growths on the vulva, vagina, cervix, and around the anus.”

"There are clusters of small blisters or erosions on the genital mucosa."

"There are numerous scars left from induced abortions on the uterine wall."

"The fallopian tubes are significantly thickened and have pus accumulation, forming adhesions with the ovaries and intestines."

As he spoke, the professor rummaged through the pile of photos and then handed them to Theodore one by one.

Bernie peeked out, then reached out and pressed Billy Hawke's head back down.

The professor glanced at Theodore, whose expression remained unchanged, and remarked:

"Gonorrhea, syphilis, genital warts, genital herpes... as well as trichomoniasis and pubic lice."

"She has contracted almost every sexually transmitted disease imaginable."

"This is a walking infected body."

Theodore thought for a moment, then looked at the professor:
"Was the deceased a prostitute?"

The professor cautiously provided the answer:
"I've only ever seen so many X-ray diseases on prostitutes. It's rare to see so many X-ray diseases on other corpses."

Theodore then asked him:

"What was the time of death?"

The professor shook his head:
"The fact that the body was frozen and thawed, and then soaked in water for a long time, all of these factors greatly affect the estimation of the time of death."

"Based on the degree of decomposition of the body and the state of the stomach contents, I can only confirm that she died between the evening of May 17 and the early morning of May 19."

That is, about 36-72 hours before the body was found.

The estimate of the time of death was so broad that Theodore began to doubt the professor's skills.

However, considering the body's rather tortuous history—being soaked in water, exposed to the sun, frozen, and thawed—it's understandable that the estimated time of death would have a large margin of error.

The professor gathered the photos together and put them back in the file folder.

He told Theodore that the official, detailed autopsy report would be available that afternoon and would be sent directly to their office.

Theodore thought for a moment and asked the professor:

"Is it possible to reconstruct the deceased's appearance?"

The professor shook his head and randomly picked out a photograph of a corpse's head and face to show to everyone:

"The body was highly decomposed and unrecognizable; no one could tell what she looked like before she died."

Theodore was somewhat disappointed.

They were like a walking plague, moving from the medical examiner's office to the parking lot, and the detectives from the Third Precinct all shunned them.

Detective Thomas kept a distance of nearly ten yards from them and escorted them to the parking lot.

He didn't move forward, but stood at the door, covered his nose, and said goodbye to them in a muffled voice.

After leaving the third precinct, the three men first sent the victim's clothing, which resembled a biological weapon, to the FBI lab for further examination.

Theodore asked the lab to photograph the clothing and to reconstruct the deceased's body shape based on the size of the clothing and the detailed autopsy report that might be delivered that afternoon.

Researchers at the FBI lab were cautious about Theodore's request.

They had never conducted a similar reduction experiment before.

After leaving the laboratory, the three went to the Logistics Department of the Administration Bureau to pick up a new set of uniforms.

Clothes stained with the stench of corpses are generally difficult to clean thoroughly. With ample funding, FBI agents often simply discard the clothes and replace them with new ones.

This is within the normal and reasonable range of wear and tear.

After changing their clothes, the three left the Department of Justice building and drove to George Washington University.

On the way, Billy Hawke said he always felt that sweet, rotten smell lingered on him and in his car.

This made him a little anxious, so he asked Theodore and Bernie if there was any way to get rid of the smell as soon as possible.

Theodore reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of crushed coffee beans.

Bernie went even further, pulling a small cloth bag directly from his pocket. Inside, you could see ground coffee.

"Remember to bring this next time, or a pipe."

"Now..."

He glanced back at Billy Hawke and shook his head.

Theodore brought the crushed coffee beans to his nose and sniffed, smelling a mixture of coffee aroma and a strange, stench of decay.

This smell is even more intoxicating than a cloyingly sweet, rotten smell.

He nodded in satisfaction, stuffed the coffee beans back into his pocket, and pointed to a convenience store he had just passed:

"You can quickly wipe exposed skin with alcohol."

"Shave off your beard, and it's best to shave off your hair too."

"The fluffy structure of hair can better absorb odors, making it virtually impossible to clean them properly."

Billy Hawke touched his hair, looking troubled, and asked:
Can alcohol clean it?

Theodore's gaze lingered on the top of his head for a moment, then he nodded:

"If you want to lose a lot of hair, this is a good way."

Bernie comforted him:
"Go back and wash it slowly with soap and shampoo for a few days, and the smell will dissipate on its own."

Billy Hawke was not comforted.

He just wanted to get rid of the odor as soon as possible, ideally before he left work.

He couldn't wait to get out of the car and go to a convenience store on the roadside to buy a bottle of whiskey, and began to rub his exposed skin with the whiskey while grimacing.

With the alcohol and his vigorous rubbing, Billy Hawke reeked of alcohol and quickly turned bright red, like a boiled shrimp.

Only then did he realize what was happening and nervously asked if the redness would fade before he left work.

Bernie glanced at Theodore, suspecting that Theodore was doing it on purpose.

Theodore nodded seriously.

Billy Hawke was relieved.

He sniffed it and found that the stench had indeed faded, so he started rubbing it vigorously again.

(End of this chapter)