Picture Me Dead by Heather Graham

body—before the press got to her. Then he had to work this like a regular case. Swallow the haunting images and bitterness of the past.
    The forensics experts would study soil samples and any microscopic clue that the crime scene investigators could bring in. Gannet would do the autopsy. They had good people working on the case; they would have more to go on as the reports came in. He depended on his associates. He knew that they could practically pull rabbits out of hats. Still, they weren’t magicians, and they couldn’t work miracles.
    As to the obvious…
    A woman had been murdered. Brutally.
    She had been dead for at least several weeks, maybe several months.
    Her ears had been slashed, as if it had been a ritualistic killing.
    He knew damned well that he had to be careful; he couldn’t assume that her death was a continuation of a killing spree from the past. Every possibility had to be explored.
    â€œCopycat!” Bryan Jay shouted out as he walked away. “There could be a copycat killer out there as well, right?”
    He refused to respond.
    Copycat…
    Yeah, copycat…
    Maybe. And maybe not.
    As he once again approached the murder scene, he saw that Marty, Doc Gannet and Mandy Nightingale were talking together.
    Marty glanced his way, and he knew. They were talking about him. Worrying about him.
    Well, there was no need.
    He was fine.
    This time, he damned well meant to catch the real killer.

CHAPTER 4
    F irst thing Monday morning, Ashley was busy digging through the stacks of newspaper Nick had bundled neatly at the back door, ready to go out with the recycling. She was startled when she heard her uncle behind her. “Ashley, what are you doing?”
    She jumped, sorry that she had woken him in her frenzy. The stacks were no longer neat. She had tried first for Saturday’s paper, thinking the accident would surely have been written up in the local section. But she hadn’t been able to find it.
    She grimaced. “Hey, sorry I woke you. We saw an accident on our way up to Orlando. I was trying to find out what happened. Did you hear anything?”
    Nick scratched the overnight growth of stubble on his chin. At fifty-two, he was a great-looking man, with lots of character sketched into the lines of his face. He didn’t look particularly young—a lifetime in the sun and wind had seen to that. But his bone structure was excellent, and all time had done was weather in an appeal that hinted at an intriguing life lived to the fullest. The gray streaks coming into his sandy hair fit well with the original coloring, and he had cool blue eyes that seemed to hold an ancient wisdom.
    Wisdom be damned. At that moment, he shrugged, shook his head and yawned. He was wearing a bathrobe over pajama pants and knotted the robe as he made his way to the coffee brewer, reached for the pot and found it empty. He stared at her blankly. She always made coffee.
    â€œSorry, I’m afraid this accident has been haunting me,” she said, reaching behind him for a filter in the cabinet while he poured water into the carafe.
    â€œNo, no…it’s all right. I am capable of making coffee, you know,” he said, his tone a bit indignant. Of course, that was Nick. He was an independent man. He’d raised her. And he could damn well take care of himself. Nick was impatient with anyone who couldn’t manage the basics of getting by on their own.
    â€œYou really didn’t hear anything about an accident?” she asked him.
    â€œHey, it’s Miami. There are lots of accidents. In fact, it’s a strange day where there isn’t a pile-up on one of the highways,” he reminded her.
    â€œDo you know where the local section from Saturday is? There ought to be a blurb or something. I mean, a man was killed. At least, I’m pretty sure he was dead.”
    â€œUm…yeah, I’ll get it for you. It’s in the bedroom.”
    â€œI can