Unlucky in Law by Perri O'Shaughnessy Page A

tipped. They stopped Stefan for a silly but legitimate traffic infraction. Anyway, I want you to examine the bones of Constantin Zhukovsky as well as the blood found in Christina Zhukovsky's apartment. Meanwhile, Paul will be interviewing Alex Zhukovsky.”
    Ginger, surprised, said, “Hasn't anyone talked to Zhukovsky before? If Wyatt is innocent, Zhukovsky must be the killer.”
    “He's been interviewed before, but barely.”
    “Where are the bones now?”
    “They're still in a morgue locker at Natividad Hospital in Salinas, but Alex Zhukovsky recently demanded their return for cremation. The police are inclined to turn them over to him. The bones don't directly relate to the charges, except as proof that Stefan robbed the grave. And, privately, between you and me, he did. They have plenty of proof, but they didn't even charge him for that crime.”
    “Why do we want the bones, if the prosecution isn't even bothering to test them?”
    “Because Alex Zhukovsky wanted them.” Nina propped one of her small, chain-bedecked, pointy-toed shoes on her desk, and wound a finger through her hair. She felt the groove between her eyebrows digging inward, toward unsettling thoughts.
    “What kind of tests are we after, with regard to the bones?” Ginger asked.
    Nina bit her lip. “I'm counting on you to help me with that question.”
    “At least a genetic profile, then, if possible,” Ginger said, making a note. “I'll look for poison, anomalies, strange diseases, anything that pops up. That okay?”
    “If Zhukovsky wanted those bones for a reason, and you can find it by examining them, I know you'll find it.”
    “So we'll grab a couple of bones for me before he burns them. A femur. The pelvis. Big bones, okay? Those are both impressive enough to be fair bets for DNA even after all this time.”
    Nina made notes. “You'll get them. But we have to work fast.”
    Sandy knocked and brought in coffee for both of them. “I thought you deserved better than that ancient coffeepot in the back room, so I went to the coffee place on Ocean,” she said.
    “You are the best,” Ginger told her as she went out again to answer a ringing phone.
    Nina leaned back, forcing herself to relax. Her body felt constricted in several places by an invisible but robust nylon rope. She couldn't quite believe how much work lay ahead.
    After a minute, Ginger picked up a file and went on, “Okay, I know what to do on the blood and the bones. Now, let's talk about the murder itself. I've just skimmed the autopsy report, but it's a clear strangulation death. Have you looked at a domestic violence angle?”
    “Christina wasn't married, and Klaus's investigator hasn't identified a significant other, but we'll be looking into that. Any thoughts?”
    “Strangulation is statistically suggestive of a male killing a female. I mean, someone who goes for the throat is usually passionately angry and you have to be strong to maintain the sustained force necessary to kill.”
    Nina nodded. “It's a kind of horrible intimacy.” Ginger raised her eyebrows, and Nina went on, “In answer to your next question, Stefan Wyatt swears he never knew Christina Zhukovsky. Never saw her, never met her, never heard of her.”
    “Is he violent?”
    Nina said slowly, “He does have a couple of violent priors. I plan to talk to him about them. As far as I know now, he was young, drunk, stupid. Things got out of hand. He really isn't a violent type.”
    “Oh, really.”
    “No women, no strangling.”
    “Still.”
    “I know. It's possible the priors will come in during the first phase of trial when the jury is considering guilt or innocence. Klaus and I will fight that, of course.”
    Ginger said, “I was hoping I'd meet Mr. Pohlmann today. He's in charge of the case, isn't he? The four months of investigating and pretrial work so far?”
    “He's in charge of the case.”
    Ginger didn't follow up on that, but her perplexed expression told Nina she was as concerned as