Two Wrongs (Detective Inspector Ross Reed Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

sun? He sniffed reluctantly at the air. There was a smell he recognised but couldn’t identify. At least it wasn’t flesh, baked or otherwise. He had seen dead bodies before but most had been in a state of rest, laid out for identification. Only traffic accidents had tested his threshold for keeping his stomach contents and he pondered what injuries Carmella may have suffered and how recent. Had she died today and her killer had no more use for her? His mind worked overtime in painting horrific images that turned his stomach and he fought hard to shake them off, knowing he had to approach the scene with no pre-set thoughts.
    He showed his ID card to the officer keeping guard and signed the visiting sheet. There was a strong smell of moss and damp soil. The smell he had noticed just a few seconds ago was stronger now but he still couldn’t pinpoint what it was. He looked down into the pit and amongst the natural habitat was a white canvas tent that was protecting the body from the elements. Police tape created a temporary pathway which would have been searched thoroughly by the crime scene officers and the rest of the area left untouched. Reed made for the tent with the same enthusiasm as a child being led to the dentist. Despite the mass police presence, an eerie silence took over the deeper he descended and just the sound of cracking twigs and his own breathing accompanied him. 
    As soon as he entered the little entrance of the tent he was greeted with the sight of a female foot- small, elegant and housed in a strappy high heeled shoe. The rest of the body was obscured by thick plants curling over it. Taking into account the description that had been given of the clothes Carmella had been wearing, he knew it was her.
    Reed bent at the knees to get a small advantage. He wasn’t allowed to get right in there with her and didn’t much want to. She was laid flat on her back with her arms tucked neatly beside her. A thin layer of grime covered her skin and clothes. He walked to the opposite end so that he could see her face more clearly. She looked like she might be sleeping, not in the peaceful heavenly way that everyone imagines but in the gormless slacked jawed way that people really are in their sleep. Blood had dried to her head and matted her hair. Maybe the litter that surrounded her might hold some clues. Then Reed noticed something; the blood on her head went slightly to one direction. It defied gravity and ran upwards towards the sky, meaning her body must have been moved at some stage or at the very least turned over.
    The murders Reed had dealt with before were the result of robberies, muggings or street fights which had escalated to something more than intended. They could be described as almost accidental killings. The only intentional murder he could recall working on was the case of Andrew Gate. Mr Gate had shot his wife after finding out she was having an affair. He called the police straight away after doing it and confessed all. Gate had a reason for his actions. Or had the reason just been more obvious?
    Reed quickly gave himself a mental slap. There were sick and twisted people out there and just because he couldn’t rationalise the murder of a young girl, it didn’t mean that somebody else didn’t have what they believed to be a good reason. Some people had morals that wouldn’t allow them to throw rubbish from the car; here, someone had tossed a young girl’s body into this piss-stinking litter trap. 
    “Hello Detective Inspector Reed. Nice to see you again, although, I will say not the best of circumstances. I hear you’re in charge of this one.” It was head pathologist, Doctor Michael Steed. Reed welcomed the strange little man’s interruption.
    “Hello Mike. Yeah I’m in charge of this one. I didn’t see your car.”
    “The car’s here, I’ve been here a while. You just weren’t looking. I saw you trying to put off coming up here, so I gave you a minute before offering my support.