Sawyer got up from the chair and shook his head.
“You’ve made some good points, Lee, but there’s still a lot of
indisputable trace tying Sidney Archer to the crime scene,” Liz
rejoined.
“Being at a crime scene and being the perpetrator of said crime are two
different things, Liz,” Sawyer said heatedly. Liz looked pained at the
agent’s sharp rebuff.
As they were leaving the lab, Sawyer had a final question. “You get an
answer on the gunshot residue test yet?”
“I hope you realize the bureau’s firearms section doesn’t really do the
GSR tests anymore, since the findings weren’t typically turning up
anything relevant. However, since it was you requesting the test, of
course no one balked. Give me one minute, Agent Sawyer, and I’ll
check.” Liz’s tone was plainly antiseptic now. Sawyer didn’t seem to
notice as he moodily studied the floor.
Liz went back to her desk and picked up a phone. Sawyer was staring
over at the limo, looking for the world like he wanted to make it
disappear. Jackson watched his partner carefully, a trace of concern
filtering through his eyes.
Liz walked back over. “Negative. None of the victims had either fired
a gun or handled a recently fired weapon with their bare hands in the
six hours before their death.”
“You’re sure? No mistake?” Sawyer asked, his brow laced with furrows.
Liz’s usually pleasant face quickly turned to a scowl. “My people know
how to do their job, Lee. A GSR test is not that complicated, although,
as I said, it’s not routinely done anymore because a positive finding
may not always be that accurate; there are so many substances out there
that could, in practice, give a false positive.
However, that nine-millimeter would have thrown off a good deal of
residue, and the test result was negative. I’d say the confidence level
in that finding should be very high. However, just in case you didn’t
catch it, I did add a disclaimer about their bare hands. They could
have worn gloves, of course.”
“But none were found on the dead men,” Jackson pointed out.
“That’s right,” Liz said, looking at Sawyer triumphantly.
Sawyer ignored the look. “Were there any other prints found on the
nine-millimeter?” he asked.
“One thumb print, partially obscured. It belonged to Parker, the
chauffeur driver.”
“No one else’s?” Sawyer asked. “You’re sure.” Liz said nothing.
Her expression plainly answered the question.
“Okay, you said Parker’s print was partially obscured. What about
Archer’s prints? How clean were they?”
“From what I recall, fairly clean. Although there was some smudging.
I’m talking about the grip, trigger and trigger guard.
Her prints on the barrel were very clear.”
“The barrel?” Sawyer said this more to himself. He looked at Liz.
“We have a report on the ballistics yet? I’m real interested in the
trajectory patterns.”
“The autopsies are being performed as we speak. We’ll know soon enough.
I’ve asked to be advised of the results. They’ll probably call you
first, but in case they don’t, as soon as I hear, I’ll buzz you.” She
added with a trace of sarcasm, “You’ll want to make sure they didn’t
make any mistakes, of course.”
Sawyer looked at her for a moment. “Thanks, Liz. You’ve been a big
help.” His sarcastic tone was not lost on either Liz or Jackson.
Lost deep in thought, his massive shoulders sagging, Sawyer trudged away
slowly.
Jackson stayed behind for a moment with Liz. She watched Sawyer leave
and then looked over at Jackson. “What the hell’s eating him, Ray? He’s
never treated me like that before.”
Jackson didn’t answer right away. He finally shrugged and turned to
leave. “I’m not sure I can answer that right now, Liz. Not sure at
all.” He quietly followed his partner out.
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
Jackson climbed in the car and looked over at his partner. Sawyer was
sitting there, his hands on the wheel, staring off into the darkness.
Jackson looked at his watch. “Hey, Lee, how ‘about some grub?” When
Sawyer didn’t reply, he added, “My treat? Don’t pass that offer up. It
may not be repeated in your lifetime.” Jackson gripped Sawyer’s shoulder
and gave it a friendly squeeze.