Chrysoprase

Prologue

Thud!

I am doing my morning rounds through the Blue Ridge Colosseum enjoying the peace and quiet. I know in a matter of hours this place will be full of loud concert goers. The Rebel Riots concert has been sold out for weeks. Their opening act is Hell's Bitches so I know the crowd will be getting rowdy tonight. It's only 10 AM but it feels more like 10 PM. Normally I would be invigorated by the thought of the energy from the concert, but my brother, Michael and his family are visiting and they have a two-month-old that does not sleep through the night and doesn't want anyone else to either. Every two hours the crying would wake me up again.

Suddenly I stop in my tracks, I don't know why. Instinct maybe? I turn towards the main part of the stadium and see movement from the other side. A body topples over the balcony railing. A wet thud accompanies the sight of the body landing on the concrete at the bottom of the seats. I'm too far away to actually hear it, but my brain knows from previous experience what it sounds like.

There shouldn't be anyone but my crew in this building at this time of the day. WTF!!

I react instinctively and radio for a complete lockdown of the building. There is pushback because of the concert that will be taking place in a few hours. I assure them it's absolutely necessary. The time it takes to get the lockdown moving means the killer could have gotten away. I hope not but I realize that it's probable.

As I race around the stadium, I listen to my team checking in one section at a time.

Rob and Greg still haven't checked in – they should have been closest to the incident. Now I'm worried about them as well. Was it one of them down there? I run faster, not worrying about drawing attention now.

I skid to a halt just outside the area where the body is located.

There are men surrounding the site making sure no one gets close until I get there. Other members of my crew are checking in from upstairs where Rob and Greg have been found unconscious."Okay guys back up, widen the perimeter." 

As I have the men move back so I can get closer there's a call over the walkies for a medic from upstairs. Jerry radios, "We found them. Rob is non-responsive, and Greg has a GSW back to front with no exit. He's groggy but very unfocused."

I know I need to put their conditions in the back of my mind and focus on my task. I carefully approach the face-down body making sure not to step in any bodily fluids. I feel for a pulse and find a very faint one. Some instinct causes me to make a quick decision to act as though there isn't one so I can disperse most of the guys to help look for the assailant.

Calling for an ambulance I advise them the victim is deceased. Keeping only the guys I trust with me, I assign the rest of the team to begin searching. Sending them to methodically search the entire building, one floor at a time, and to check every nook and cranny, documenting everything that is out of place.

I tell them I want answers before the concert-goers begin arriving. "Remember, there is a meet and greet at 6. The Roadies will want to start their final setup and sound checks by 3. We need this handled before then."

I know the lockdown is going to slow down the setup, but there's nothing that can be done about that. When the coroner arrives, they're escorted directly to me by 2 guards from my team.

When I see who was sent I know they can be trusted to keep their mouths shut about what I'm going to tell them and ask them to do.

After verifying that the guards have left to return to their posts and no one else is around to hear, I update them on the plan. "The senator is still alive but barely and we need to move fast. Pictures of the crime scene and the "body" have already been taken. We're taking him to Doc."