Hollywood Notorious: A Hollywood Alphabet Thriller Series (A Hollywood Alphabet Series Thriller Book 14) by M.Z. Kelly Page A
Authors: M.Z. Kelly
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present when the body was initially found. Based on that, the liver temp, and stomach contents, I would estimate our victim had been dead for only four to six hours before she was found.”
“That means right after he took her, our boy got his paintbrush out and worked fast,” Darby said, stating the obvious.
Brie ignored him and continued. “There were no signs of sexual assault. Chemical analysis of the tissues and underlying muscular structures indicates sodium hydroxide was used to denude the flesh. That act was done in a precise manner, to remove the skin from her body in specific areas, while preserving others.”
“Is that chemical easy to obtain?” Leo asked.
Brie nodded. “It’s commonly used in commercial and industrial oven cleaners and drain openers. It’s also used to digest tissues of animal carcasses, roadkill, and, in some cases, deceased humans. Due to its low cost and availability, it’s even been used to dispose of corpses by criminals. I remember reading somewhere that one of the Mexican drug cartels used it to dispose of several hundred bodies.”
I thought about our Day of the Dead display being a holiday celebrated in Mexico and Latin American countries and wondered if there was any connection.
“How would our suspect apply the lye, but leave the skin intact in some areas?” Leo asked.
“It would have to be a very methodical process, probably involving washing the body and making sure that the sodium hydroxide was applied sparingly.”
“Seems like a lot of work to go through to skin someone,” Darby said.
Brie raised her brows but didn’t respond.
The room was quiet before I asked Brie to summarize her thoughts about what happened to the girl. She took a moment before answering. It was obvious that she was exhausted.
“I think everything that happened, probably including the way she was taken, was done in a controlled and precise manner. Her body was washed and shaved prior to the application of the sodium hydroxide. The drawing on her face must have taken a couple of hours of methodical work to complete. When that was done…” Brie’s chocolate eyes found each of us. “…her heart was removed and the paper was inserted.”
“I get everything you just said,” Darby told her, “except the cause of death. What was the specific cause of death?”
Brie’s beautiful face seemed to take on the pain of the world as she answered. “Everything I’ve described happened pre-mortem. The cause of death was the final act. Our perpetrator cut open his victim’s chest and ripped out her beating heart.”
ELEVEN
It was late in the day by the time we wrapped up at the coroner’s office. Brie’s finding that our victim’s heart had been torn from her chest by her assailant while she was still alive, only added to the brutality of the horrible crime. Despite her findings, we were still drawing blanks regarding a motive or suspect. All I did know was that, with the images of our victim all over the Internet, the pressure to break something loose was only going to grow.
Brie invited Bernie and me to her house for dinner, telling me that she would take me home later. I was exhausted, but agreed to the proposal when she said it would give me a chance to bond with her daughter. Lily and I played dolls in her room while Brie and her boyfriend, Phyl, prepared dinner.
I found the little girl had an active imagination, as she told me about Princess Anna from the movie Frozen.
“Anna goes on a journey to find her sister, Elsa, who has magical powers to turn things into snow and ice.”
“She sounds like a pretty amazing princess,” I said. “Would you like to be Elsa?”
She smiled. “Yes. I would use my powers to freeze everything.”
“Why would you do that, sweetheart?”
“Because then my mommy would live forever. The cancer couldn’t get her.”
I took a breath, feeling the heaviness in my eyes. I brushed the little girl’s hair off her forehead, saying, “I
“That means right after he took her, our boy got his paintbrush out and worked fast,” Darby said, stating the obvious.
Brie ignored him and continued. “There were no signs of sexual assault. Chemical analysis of the tissues and underlying muscular structures indicates sodium hydroxide was used to denude the flesh. That act was done in a precise manner, to remove the skin from her body in specific areas, while preserving others.”
“Is that chemical easy to obtain?” Leo asked.
Brie nodded. “It’s commonly used in commercial and industrial oven cleaners and drain openers. It’s also used to digest tissues of animal carcasses, roadkill, and, in some cases, deceased humans. Due to its low cost and availability, it’s even been used to dispose of corpses by criminals. I remember reading somewhere that one of the Mexican drug cartels used it to dispose of several hundred bodies.”
I thought about our Day of the Dead display being a holiday celebrated in Mexico and Latin American countries and wondered if there was any connection.
“How would our suspect apply the lye, but leave the skin intact in some areas?” Leo asked.
“It would have to be a very methodical process, probably involving washing the body and making sure that the sodium hydroxide was applied sparingly.”
“Seems like a lot of work to go through to skin someone,” Darby said.
Brie raised her brows but didn’t respond.
The room was quiet before I asked Brie to summarize her thoughts about what happened to the girl. She took a moment before answering. It was obvious that she was exhausted.
“I think everything that happened, probably including the way she was taken, was done in a controlled and precise manner. Her body was washed and shaved prior to the application of the sodium hydroxide. The drawing on her face must have taken a couple of hours of methodical work to complete. When that was done…” Brie’s chocolate eyes found each of us. “…her heart was removed and the paper was inserted.”
“I get everything you just said,” Darby told her, “except the cause of death. What was the specific cause of death?”
Brie’s beautiful face seemed to take on the pain of the world as she answered. “Everything I’ve described happened pre-mortem. The cause of death was the final act. Our perpetrator cut open his victim’s chest and ripped out her beating heart.”
ELEVEN
It was late in the day by the time we wrapped up at the coroner’s office. Brie’s finding that our victim’s heart had been torn from her chest by her assailant while she was still alive, only added to the brutality of the horrible crime. Despite her findings, we were still drawing blanks regarding a motive or suspect. All I did know was that, with the images of our victim all over the Internet, the pressure to break something loose was only going to grow.
Brie invited Bernie and me to her house for dinner, telling me that she would take me home later. I was exhausted, but agreed to the proposal when she said it would give me a chance to bond with her daughter. Lily and I played dolls in her room while Brie and her boyfriend, Phyl, prepared dinner.
I found the little girl had an active imagination, as she told me about Princess Anna from the movie Frozen.
“Anna goes on a journey to find her sister, Elsa, who has magical powers to turn things into snow and ice.”
“She sounds like a pretty amazing princess,” I said. “Would you like to be Elsa?”
She smiled. “Yes. I would use my powers to freeze everything.”
“Why would you do that, sweetheart?”
“Because then my mommy would live forever. The cancer couldn’t get her.”
I took a breath, feeling the heaviness in my eyes. I brushed the little girl’s hair off her forehead, saying, “I
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