Revelations 12 Page 8

  “I see us killing in the name of religion. The horror of war, there is no Holy War. This is a contradiction in terms. When we kill, we are killing God. I have devoted much prayer and thought to this. I am not wrong.”

  “You are very much correct, Simon. Unfortunately, our leaders and the leaders of other faiths have misled their followers. Many are corrupt and power is a drug that they cannot do without. Like politicians, they create a crisis to take the focus off of their corruption, and the bigger the crisis, the less the focus is on them. War is the biggest crisis of all, so they love war.”

  “What is the answer, Father?”

  “The end is clearly written in Daniel and The Book of Revelations. Jesus, when asked, discussed it in detail. Other religions have also given clear warnings. No one can stop what is to come.

  “Simon, treasure blinds many so they fail to see the prophecy happening around them. We are powerless to change the destiny of the world. However, we can change our destiny and that of those around us. We can give no greater gift than to bring someone to Him.”

  “Father, I have searched for truth. I have prayed that I see without judgement or prejudice and it is the greatest challenge of my life.”

  “Perhaps, Simon, you are being too hard on yourself. We are human with faults and weaknesses; our job is to overcome them. You are still very young and you have the rest of your life to perfect yourself.”

  “Thanks Father, I think at the rate I’m going I’ll need longer than that!”

  Fr. Mark smiled. “Trust me we all feel the same about ourselves.”

  *

  “Perfect timing Beth: 6:15pm. In about 10 minutes, I’ll head over to the bushes and look out for them passing.”

  “Great, I’ll just sit here worrying then…”

  “It will be fine, trust me. Hey, you know that buddy I told you about who served in Vietnam? He called me back this morning. From what he found out, John A Holman died of injuries in combat, but that’s not all. He said the cause of death was recorded as a bayonet to the chest but one of the guys who was with him that day swears it was not a bayonet.”

  “He said they were patrolling through thick jungle at the time and a guy came out of nowhere and put a knife into his heart. They shot and killed the guy but the knife was actually left in him. When he told me that, a shiver went up my spine.”

  “I’m not sure what to make of that, Robert. It has to be just coincidental.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I think as well.”

  “Anyway, final check: gloves, screwdriver, flashlight and sample bag for hair. I’ll see you back here soon, they should be passing by shortly.”

  “Hang on, Robert. What you done to your shoes?”

  “I held them over a candle and melted the soles. The ground is dry I don’t want to leave any clear footprints. I’ll incinerate them with these gloves when we get home.”

  “Wow. I wonder sometimes who I married.”

  “Isn’t it great, Beth, when a plan comes together?”

  “You got it already?”

  “Yep, let’s go.”

  *

  “What happened? Tell me, did you have to break in?”

  “I just went around the back, the door was open. I went into his bedroom and he had a comb on a shelf so I took some of the hair and put it in the bag and left. See: no drama.”

  “You have everything with you that you took?”

  “Sample bag with hair, flashlight, unused screwdriver, and gloves, check.”

  “Wow. I’m impressed, Robert. Well done!”

  “I’ve sent off for the two sets of sample kits. They should arrive soon so, hopefully by the end of next week, the lab will start the testing. They said, about two to three weeks after that, they will let us know the results.”

  “Why do they send two sets of sample kits?”

  “They said it’s policy. They send two so that if the first set of samples is damaged in testing, they will call me. Then I can send the back-up sample kit to them.”

  “You know, Robert. Whatever happens, I’m really glad we made the decision to do this. It was so hard in the beginning but, somehow, it is getting that much easier now. I feel it’s bringing us closer together as well.”

  “I feel the same way, Beth.”

  *

  Martha and Simon turned off the main road and headed down the country track towards their home.

  “So, Mom, did you fill out the application form?”

  “Yes, I dropped it off at the bank this morning. It’s crazy the cost of going to university these days. The Manager told me, as it’s a student loan, it won’t be a problem. I should have gone to him for my car loan instead of Martin Bernstein.”

  “Mom, he was only doing his job. It was nothing personal.”

  “Don’t you go defending him, I’ve never had bad credit for anything.”

  “Yes, Mom, but then you’ve never had any money either.”

  “Anyway, Simon, enough of that, before you go into the house stand back and let me show you a thing of beauty.”

  “That’s it, Mom? You opened the bonnet.”

  “Yep, the part worked. The mechanic said it was not from the same model but he managed to fit it. You’re impressed aren’t you?”

  “I couldn’t be more proud, Mom!” Simon shook his head. “Speaking of the model, what type of car is this?”

  “It’s a Vauxhall Victor, son. Your dad was so proud the day he bought it. Unfortunately, the name fell off the back a few years ago.”

  “Did it fall off or did Vauxhall send someone round to remove it?”

  “Oh, ha, ha. Very funny!”

  “I didn’t open the bonnet just to impress you. We are going to fix the radiator leak.”

  “Mom, I know nothing about cars and you know even less.”

  “Well, what do you make of this?”

  “It’s an egg you’re holding.”

  “Exactly! The mechanic told me that if I can’t afford to fix the leak then just crack an egg and put it in the radiator. It will settle into the hole and stop the leak.”

  “You are joking, right?”

  “Nope. That’s what the man said.”

  “Oh God!”

  “Don’t you take the Lord’s name in vain, Simon J Holman!”

  “It was not in vain, Mom. He’s the only one that can rescue this car, and it maybe even be beyond Him!”

  “Just let’s get on with it, but watch out when you take the radiator cap off. It was over-heating on the way here.”

  For Robert and Beth, this was the day they had waited for. The lab results were in the post and they would almost certainly be delivered today. Robert looked out the living room window.

  “This is it, Beth. I can see him across the road. He’s just delivered some mail over by the Fullarton’s and he’s headed over here now.”

  The letter did not even hit the floor. It was caught as it came through the front door of the Osbourne home. “Come on let’s go into the living room and open it.”

  The lab results showed a 94.6% likely match between samples provided.

  “We have him! This has got to be it, Beth. I told you our hard work would pay off. Let me give Amos a call. We’ll try to meet up with him for lunch.”

  “So, what you think, Amos? A 94.6% match! I knew it was him. There was just no one else it could be.”

  “I don’t even want to ask how you guys got a sample from Holman. Well done!”

  “Yes,” said Beth. “Please don’t ask.”

  “We have to go about this the legal way. I’m going to have to assign someone to look into it. We have to build a case with sufficient weight and get a judge to grant us permission to bring the boy in. The examiner must take a sample. We will then send it o
ff to the lab from there.”

  “Are you serious, Amos? How long is that going to take?’

  “I’ll put someone on it that I know well and I’ll let him know the background. Don’t worry, he will get enough to sway a judge.”

  “So how long are we talking about?”

  “I’m guessing, four to six weeks before we can approach a judge. But once he agrees, we usually get the paperwork, with the warrant back from him in a matter of days. Look, I know you want this to happen by tomorrow, but it can’t. You have waited nearly three years. We have to do this the correct way. We can’t be seen not to by his defence lawyer. He will pick up on any failure on our part not to adhere to procedure. He will get the case thrown out on a technicality. It’s got to be watertight.”

  “You’re right, Amos. We can’t screw things up at this stage. Beth and I will continue to build the case against him and I’ll let you know if we find anything else. We’ll leave you to do your part.”

  *

  “Hi Annamae, come on through to the kitchen,” said Martha. “So, you feeling better?”

  “Yes, a lot better; I finally got over that cold. It had me feeling really rotten at one point, so I just stayed in.”

  “What you been up to, Martha?”

  “Not too much, the usual. I’ve actually been thinking recently that, with Simon having finished school and heading off to university soon, he won’t need me like before, so I might look for a job.”

  “You work? Doing what?”

  “Well, there is a lot I can do but, when I left school, you remember, I did that Secretarial Course and I learned to type pretty fast. I’ve been seeing, in the big offices, the girls typing on the computers. So, I could catch up on my typing skills and, at the same time, I can learn about computers.”

  “Are you serious, Martha?”

  Martha took a sip of coffee.

  “Yes, Annamae, I’ve been thinking about it a lot. I want to get out and meet new people and I can sure use the extra money. With the expense of university, I was kind of hoping you would have encouraged me.”

  “I’m happy for you, Martha. It’s just that I’ve seen you at home for so long now, I can’t picture you working.”

  “Well, we’ll see. First I need to practice my typing and learn about computers. Then I can apply for a job, so it won’t be anytime soon, that’s for sure.”

  “Good news, Martha, on Simon going to university. At least we will have him close by for another four years. When does he start?”

  “In a few weeks, so I gave him a list of things I want done around the house before he starts. I told him I don’t care what his plans are, I want the list completed.”

  “What’s he been up to in his free time?”

  “He’s been hanging out with Linda and her friends a lot.”

  “Don’t tell me – the same Linda from the graduation party.”

  “Yes, same girl. He says they are still just friends but he speaks really highly of her.”

  “I don’t like her for him at all. She is far too grown up in the way she carries herself, all smothered in makeup.”

  “Come on, Annamae. I think that’s a bit unfair. You have never spoken to her. You can’t just make that judgement from just seeing her once.”

  “Oh, I know her type. I’ve seen them thousands of times.”

  “Anyway, don’t go making trouble and, if you come over and she is here, just be nice and don’t embarrass your only nephew.”

  *

  “Come on in Mr and Mrs Osbourne.”

  “Thank you, Dr Cooper.”

  “Please sit down and just call me Bob, everyone does. Firstly, I’m sorry it took me a while to get back to you. I actually started looking into what you asked at the time, but I was struggling to make sense of what I was being told, so it took a while. Actually, I still have not understood what happened that day.”

  “That’s okay, Bob. What did you find out?” asked Robert.

  “Well, no one from dispatch assigned any doctor to your home that morning. I am certain of that. I’ve asked around and I’ve checked the logbook, there is no record of it. In fact, they did not even know about Julia’s murder that morning. The first record of it in their books is the actual report Dr Brockman logged and filled out that afternoon. Unfortunately, this was not picked up at the time. Everyone just assumed someone else called him and no one checked the log.”

  “But I thought Sheriff Joe called here and asked for an examiner to be sent over…”

  “I’m sure he made the call, but it did not come through to this Office as it would have been recorded. They log all calls and they sure don’t forget to log a call by the sheriff regarding a murder.”

  “So, how did Brockman end up at the crime scene?”

  “I have spent a long time trying to answer that question, as well as who he is, but no one seems to know. I contacted every Medical Professional Body that I am aware of and there is no Dr Brockman. One thing I will say, though, is that I looked at the Medical Report and the other paperwork he filled out and this guy for certain has some form of medical background. He used medical terminology and used it correctly, in a way that a layperson would not have been able to without at least some decent level of training.

  “I then spoke to Sheriff Joe. He said there was no reason not to think the guy was a professional. Everything about him, in his words, ‘screamed doctor’ even though he did not agree with his findings.”

  “Dr Brockman used our Medical Forms. Actually, he did not have a choice because of where the murder was committed, so I knew he must have come in here both to collect and submit them. I asked around and a couple of people remember seeing him that day. Anne in the back office clearly remembered him. She said, when he signed in, he signed as Dr Brockman. However, he had photo ID hanging around his neck and she noticed it said Dr Brookman. She asked him about it and he said something to the effect that ‘it’s a typo’ and he has never got around to getting it replaced. The photo on it, she swears was definitely him, so she had no reason to doubt what he said.

  “I began to think, from what Sheriff Joe told me, the way he filled out the paperwork and the ID he was wearing, he hadn’t just studied medicine but been around medical facilities and crime scenes. This guy knew what he was doing, from all accounts. In the checks I had made to locate him, I had used the name Dr Brockman. However, after what Anne told me, I looked for him as Dr Brookman and straight away he showed up in the system.”

  “That is amazing, Bob. Did you get his details? Needless to say, we need to speak with him straight away.”

  “Yes, I learnt quite a lot about him. In fact he died eighteen years ago in a canoe accident on the river. His canoe was recovered but his body was never found.”

  “This can’t be real, Bob. So, what’s going on?”

  “I wish I could tell you guys, I really wish I knew. Look I’ve put a lot of time into this and taken it as far as I can. I’ll leave you to look into it from here but stop by and let me know what you find out.”

  “We will, Bob, and thank you so much again, we really appreciate your help.”

  “No problem. I wish you both all the best moving forward with this.”

  “Thanks again, Bob.”

  CHAPTER 11

  Robert and Beth were in the spare bedroom that they had converted into an office. They were surrounded by all the paperwork and evidence they had uncovered.

  “Have a look here, Robert. This looks almost identical to the knife we are looking for. Look at the symbols. They are the same on both sides of the handle. You were correct; the knife was not a regular knife. According to this, it is an Athame, which it says was used by pagans in sacrificial ceremonies.”

  “I agree, Beth. It looks very much the same, not just the symbol engraved on the handle but the sha
pe of the blade as well. What does that mean for Julia? Why would such a knife have been used on her? Look, let’s go over everything we have.”

  “Okay, Robert, let me get the folder from the cabinet.”

  Footprints:

  “We have established that the type of shoe is Converse All Star High Tops, they were likely purchased on High Street. The store Manager, Donna, identified Simon Holman out of fourteen photos.”

  Hair:

  “The lab report confirmed a likelihood of 96.4% likely the same individual, using Microscopic Hair Analysis, Amos has started work on getting enough evidence to go to a Judge, to bring suspect in for the medical examiner to take a hair sample.”

  Fingerprints:

  “Expert ruled they did not belong to Holman – yet to be matched to an individual.”

  Suspect’s father, John A Holman:

  “Eyewitness claimed he was killed in Vietnam, combat related injury. He was stabbed in the heart and the knife left in him.”

  Murder Weapon:

  “Almost certainly identified as an Athame. Further investigation needed.”

  Dr Brockman:

  “All enquiries have failed to track him down. Nevertheless, he was in fact at the crime scene because Dr Cooper fell, or was likely pushed, down a flight of stairs that morning. Turns out, Dr Brockman’s ID has his name spelt Brookman, who died in 1968 in a canoe accident – body never recovered.”

  “Look, Beth, we need to get Amos in on this. He can find out a lot more about Dr Brookman than we ever could. I feel terrible asking him to help us yet again.”