Page 8 of Dead Serious: Case 3 Mr Bruce Reyes

“If you could let us know when you’ve completed your examination of the bones, we’d appreciate it,” I say. Dr O’Hara grunts in assent, his attention firmly affixed on the strange pile of bones in their cocoon of mud.

“Come on, Danny.” Maddie tugs on my sleeve. “My toes have gone numb. Let’s get back to the office and get the kettle on.”

I nod at her and then turn back to the doctor. “We’ll speak soon. It was good to meet you, Dr O’Hara.” He gives an absent wave. I can tell we’ve already lost his attention, so we head out of the tent flap and once again into the rain.

I nod to the officers standing guard, feeling a wave of sympathy for them being stuck out in this weather. We trudge back across the waterlogged pitch, our feet making sucking noises through the mud. Fortunately, the rain seems to have eased up from driving needles to a constant drizzle. The wind, however, has kicked up a notch, so much so that it starts blowing Maddie sideways. I end up having to grab hold of her hand to tow her across to the carpark.

“Bloody hell.” Maddy blows out a loud breath as we settle in the car and slam the doors closed.

“I know,” I commiserate as I stare out of the windscreen at the threatening sky.

Maddie turns to look at me. “So, what do you think?”

“About the bones?”

“It’s a bit weird, isn’t it?”

“Not the weirdest thing we’ve seen recently,” I reply, thinking back to the mummified remains of Maeve Landon’s last husband we found folded into a luggage trunk.

“With any luck, it won’t take Dr O’Hara long to figure out the age of the bones.” She taps her fingers on the steering wheel, deep in thought.

“I think we should try and get hold of the 9-9-9 call, see if we can figure out who discovered the bones and how,” I muse, my curiosity piqued.

“Shouldn’t be too hard.” Maddie starts the engine and switches the heater on.

I shiver as Maddie pulls away, the car bouncing uncomfortably as it hits potholes and divots. “Jesus Christ, I’m going to need a chiropractor by the time we get out of here.” Maddie winces.

“Don’t expect the department to pay for it.” I smile as we finally turn out onto the main road.

The car, being fairly small, is buffeted unnervingly by the wind, causing Maddie’s hands to tighten on the steering wheel. “I hope to god we don’t get called out again until this storm dies down.” She scowls, leaning in closer to the windscreen and setting the wipers to a faster setting as the rain once again starts pounding down. “Christ, I can hardly see anything.”

I can hear the unease in her voice. “Why don’t you pull over, Maddie? I’ll drive.”

“No, it’s fine, it’s my turn. I’ll just—” Her voice breaks off at the very loud and very ominous sound of something splintering.

“What the—” I’m suddenly jerked forward, and my seatbelt snaps my body back sharply, knocking the air from my lungs. I reach out instinctively to grasp the dash as Maddie wrenches the steering wheel, swerving the car violently. The back fishtails as Maddie slams on the brakes.

The next few seconds are a whirl of colour, sound, and confusion. We’re spinning as a huge tree trunk comes crashing toward us. I barely have time to register the airbags deploying before the sound of crushing, twisting metal fills the car. Intense pain sears through my body and a cry of agony tears from my mouth before everything goes black.

3

I’m startled out of sleep by the insistent ringing and vibration of my phone against the surface of the bedside table.

I grab my glasses and shove them on my face, nearly poking myself in the eye. Picking up my phone, I blink several times to try and focus my blurry vision and ignore the painful throb in my head.

“Hello?” I croak.

“Hello, may I speak to Mr Tristan Everett?” A polite female voice asks.

“Speaking.”

“Hello, Mr Everett.” Her voice softens. “My name is Sarah. I’m a nurse at Kingston Hospital. We have you registered as the next of kin for Mr Daniel Hayes.”

My eyes open wide as I shoot upright in bed. The room spins, so I clamp my eyes shut, trying to block out everything but the voice on the other end of the phone. Sharp fear bolts through me, followed by panic.

“What’s happened?” My voice creaks unevenly. “Where’s Danny?”

“I’m sorry to inform you that Mr Hayes was involved in an accident.”