A Year At The Opera

Chapter 18: Getting Some Answers

A/N: It feels good to be back after that hiatus and I hope y'all enjoy this!

WC: 6800  words

*

Joe

After a day of lying in bed and agonizing over his words to Martha, wondering if he'd been too harsh, nothing could give Joe a sense of normalcy than going to his job and so, sipping on the last of his coffee, Joe entered the Ellesburg Police Department a little after 10. He waved to the few officers still leaving the night shift and all the ones just coming in. He was glad his days of working the night shift were over, those days without sun made him feel like a corpse, or worse — a vampire, only rising in the dead of night to do what was required of him and then heading back to bed before the sun rose and reminded him that it existed.

Positive thoughts, he reminded himself as he sat down at his desk.

"Hey," Jack said from across the room, walking over to Joe.

"Hey," Joe responded, turning his computer on.

"So what's the plan for today?" Jack asked.

"Right now, just go through all we have on the Justice case," Joe chucked his empty cup of coffee in the trash bin next to his desk, "And then check up on all the evidence reports, see if we're missing something. A man that rich and powerful having no enemies? It doesn't make sense. Either we missed something or someone is lying."

"How can I help?"

"Double check everyone's statements, alibis, all the things we found at the crime scene. I have a gut feeling this was personal in some way. Meanwhile, I'll make some calls, see about those reports."

Jack nodded and jogged back to his desk. Joe picked up the phone and called the forensics department.

As the phone rang, Joe couldn't help but notice that it felt too quiet at the station today. He didn't mind the quiet, it helped him focus but he wondered what it was about.

The forensics department finally picked up the phone and Joe followed up with them about the crime scene. Given the condition and location of the crime scene, evidence had been hard to gather and their reports hadn't revealed anything too significant. The only footprints they had found were those of the kids, and there was no DNA to speak of that could hint towards the identity of the culprits, not even off the clothes of the victim nor anything else. It was a dead-end and the only suspects Joe had now were the kids but they didn't have any motive, and neither the opportunity, considering they didn't even head up to the cabin the day after Carson was killed.

Joe was beginning to get frustrated. Toxicology showed signs of mild intoxication and that damned poison and that was it. The doctor had to be lying somehow, they had to be. Either they facilitated it and were involved or they were covering for a fear of being pulled into this mess but there had to be something wrong there. There was no other reasonable way to source the poison.

Then there was the question of Carson's whereabouts on the day of the murder. He had left the office early but nobody knew where he went, nor how he got there since his car was still missing, or how he ended up buried in a hole in a forest.

Joe picked up his phone to call Trey to see if he had anything but before he could press the button, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to find exactly the man he was looking for.

"Guess what?" Trey asked, practically jumping in place.

"What?"

Trey held out a file. "We got a hit."