Chapter 3

   Deputy Vince Gerben led Yaritza to the morgue in the back of the building. It was a somewhat long hallway to the double doors, but not long enough for Yaritza. “It’s not in a basement or anything?”

  “No, our old examining room was down the street. You know, the coroner’s building. It was condemned last year for being out-of-code. So, this is the temp office until a new one’s built.”

  “And when will that be?” Yaritza asked the question, but she didn’t give one rat’s ass about the answer, it was just small-talk.

   They finally got into the room, and Yaritza let out a small yelp when she saw the naked body in front of her. Gerben looked quizzically at her. “What’s wrong?”

   Esteban composed herself, then walked over to the body. “I see a dickless guy the first time, I’m a little surprised. But I’m sure you played the cool dude when you saw him, right?”

   Gerben coughed. “Not exactly.”

   Yaritza looked all around the body for a few minutes. Aside from the lack of genitalia, missing penis and sac all missing, she noted the holes in his head. One was in the right temple, one in the left, and the other smack in the middle of the forehead. She looked at Vince. “You didn’t mention the new ventilation system in his body.”

   Gerben shrugged. “The missing dick was the main thing.”

  “Where’s your coroner?”

  “In Reno, I think.”

  “You think? Wasn’t he paged?”

  “Uh, no.”

   Yaritza looked up from the body at the clueless twerp standing near the door. “Son, why do I get the feeling I was called here so you wouldn’t have to really deal with this?”

   Gerben scowled. “Look, lady, we don’t get this kind of-“

  “No, YOU look, kid. I’m not ‘lady’, I’m Detective Yaritza Esteban! And I came up here because my boss told me to. How I handle myself here and what I say to you is entirely my call, get me?”

   Gerben’s eyes were wide with a mix of awe and anger. “Let’s see what MY boss has to say to that.”

  “Let’s! Call him from that damn fire so I can deal with a real cop! And while he and I talk, maybe he can tell me where your coroner is, it isn’t my job to analyze the dead body, it’s a coroner’s.” Yaritza got out her cell. “What’s his number?”

  “Who’s?”

  “Your boss!”

  “He’s busy with the fire!”

  “I’ll make him un-busy with it. Doesn’t take that many cops to handle a fire.”

  “It’s a big one.”

  “I’ll shove a big one up your ass if you don’t give me his number, boy!”

   Gerben’s face turned a deep red. “Stop calling me boy and kid! I’m 25.”

  “I’m 36, so you’re a kid to me.”

   Gerben stood there. He wasn’t going to give her any more information. Yaritza punched a number on her cell. “Kylie? It’s Esteban…how are you today….how’s Jake?…Listen, can you find out if there’s a fire going in or around Rhyolite?…Well, it seems that there’s such a big one that it took most of the Nye County sheriff’s office to cover it, save one pathetic deputy who can’t secure a crime scene without a grown-up to watch over him….” She said the last part while giving an evil look to Gerben, who was looking down at his feet. “I see….thanks hon, see you probably tomorrow.” She turned off the cell and looked at the deputy. “What fire?”

   Gerben shook his head. “It’s police business.”

  “If I drive out there, am I going to find a fire, or am I going to find a bunch of drunk cops?”

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Because the only reason my boss isn’t there is because it’s his anniversary week and he’s pussy-whipped. He and your boss are friends, in case you didn’t know, and my friend told me it’s a kind of camping trip each year.” She looked at him more closely and smiled. “The coroner’s there, too, isn’t he?”

   Gerben nodded slowly. “They do maneuvers out there, kind of like week-end warriors. I’m the low man on the totem pole, so I was left in charge here.”

   Yaritza sighed and relented a bit. “Look, if you can just drop the bullshit, I think we can try to get along. Deal?”

   He looked up again, less red in the face. “Deal.”

  “All right. Would you guess that he died by the little operation he had, or by the gunshots?”

   Gerben looked at the body for a moment. “If I had to guess, I’d say the gunshots.”

  “Good, you have some common sense after all. What told you that?”

  “Doesn’t look like he was tied up, and if someone were going to castrate me, I’d have to be tied up damn tight.”

  “Yep. I’d say the castration was an afterthought. The reason, I don’t know.”

   Gerben narrowed his eyes. “It almost sounds like a satanic thing.”

  “I don’t know, Vince. We don’t have any facts, other than that he’s dead. Speaking of which, who is he?”

  “Wallet was taken, and I haven’t looked for the ID yet. Maybe it’s in the lake. Wanted to wait for you.”

   Yaritza nodded. “I think we’ve seen enough of the body for now. Let’s go to the car.”

Chapter 2

                                                            

   It was too damn early for a call from anyone!

   Yaritza Esteban looked at the alarm clock. It was 4:30a.m. She had not been called this early since her ex-fiancee had proposed to her 2 years ago, and she had hung up on him then, too. She picked up the phone, growled, “No!” then hung up, getting back to sleep instantly.

   Thirty seconds later, the phone rang again. She let 3 rings go by before she picked it up. “You must have a morbid desire to be kicked in the nuts,” she groaned.

  “Detective Esteban?”

  “No, it’s the Maytag Lady!”

  “Detective, this is Deputy Vince Gerben from the Nye County Sheriff’s office.”

  “Wrong county, Vince. What the hell do you want?” Yaritza asked as she rubbed her eyes.

  “Your department said you’re good at the gruesome, and we need that.”

   She raised her eyebrows. Good at the gruesome? “Uh, could you be more vague?”

  “We have a body on the ET that’s, well, in bad shape.”

  “Is it a dead body?”

  “Of course.”

  “All dead bodies are in bad shape, that’s their nature. What’s the ET?”

  “What?”

  “The sky is blue.”

  “I don’t understand you, ma’am.”

   Yaritza finally sat up in exasperation. “I said, what the hell is this ET that the body was found on?”

  “Oh, state route 375, known as the Extraterrestrial Highway.”

  “I see. So what’s the bad shape of this body, besides its lack of ability to walk?”

  “Well, uh, it’s, um, missing something.”

  “You don’t sound too sure.”

  “I saw it, Detective, I’m sure.”

  “What’s it missing?”

  “His…genitals.”

  “The Bobbitts must be in town then.”

   The deputy paused. “Doesn’t it shock you?”

  “Not this early. Wait till I see it, if I see it.”

  “Can you come up as soon as possible? Our office is in Tonopah.”

  “You say my department okayed this?”

  “Yes, we don’t have the manpower right now to cover this. Big fire near Rhyolite has most of us on that, skeleton crew at the office for days now.”

   Yaritza looked around for her bra. “I’ll have to get confirmation first, from my boss.”

  “Captain Corday already told us you’re coming.”

  “I’ll ask him again, then. If he remembers, I’ll come up there.”

  “Fine, when’s the earliest you can be here?”

  “Is he still dead?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then I think he’ll be dead at lunch, which is when I’ll probably be there. Did you seal off the area?”

  “Hard to seal off a lake, which is where we fished him from. His car was impounded.”

   Yaritza groaned. “You moved the body to your office, didn’t you?”

  “We had to, no room to keep it at the lake, and I’m the only one who could be on this.”

  “Well, we’ll be lucky to solve this, whatever it is.”

  “Look, Detective, I know where everything was, I marked it.”

  “With bird seed?”

  “No!”

   Detective Esteban yawned. “If we keep talking, I’ll never get there.” She hung up, found her bra, then headed to the bathroom.

   Six hours later, Yaritza pulled into the parking lot of the Nye County Sheriff’s office in Tonopah. It had been a long drive, and she wasn’t happy to be there. After getting some clothes on, she had called up the station, and was immediately put on to her supervisor.

  “What’s this about Nye County?”

  “You’re going.”

  “Why?”

  “Because you handle the sick stuff well.”

  “Can I refuse?”

  “No.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I owe the sheriff one from another case.”

  “So long as we’re not pissing in their yard.”

  “In this case the gate was left open for us to piss. It’s probably nothing, but I want you to look at it. Get going!”

   Yaritza had learned years ago that when her boss had made a decision, she was stuck with it, and he never changed his mind, even when he was proven wrong. Luckily, when it came to a case, he could be swayed if the evidence was steel-hard, and he always backed up his officers when he trusted their instincts. That trust, unfortunately, was not a constant.

   She walked into headquarters, where a man of no more than 65 inches was packing a sports bag. He smiled when he saw her. “Detective Esteban?”

   Yaritza half-smiled. “You my sleep spoiler today?”

  “Sorry about that. I’m Deputy Vince Gerben, the main guy here today. Actually, for a couple of days now.”

   She nodded, ready to get to business without the chitchat. “So where should we start, the crime scene or the body or the car?”

   Vince scratched his head. “Uh, this isn’t really, uh, my area of, uh….”

   She held up a hand, already irritated but showing patience somehow. “How about if we check the body first, then go over the car, and then look at the area that you cordoned off with bird seed?”

   The deputy started to protest, but he caught the slight smile that indicated he could stay on her good side. “Sounds good.”

Chapter 1

   It was one of those rare southern Nevada days when the sky was overcast during the month of May. It was a warm day, but the desert had not quite reached the summer temperatures it was known for. Mark Robertson was hopeful that those days would not arrive for a few weeks. His complexion was so fair that even five minutes in the sun would turn his skin into burning crimson. On this day, however, there was no fear of that. It was a great day for a desert drive, and after taking himself out to breakfast at the local Blueberry Hill restaurant in northeastern Las Vegas, he set out toward the desolation.

   Robertson was 33, and had lived in Las Vegas for more than twenty years. He had really known no other place except for the early years in Bullhead City, Arizona, and he remembered hating that place for its lack of excitement. No, Las Vegas was his home, and he had no desire to ever move. A steady career as a casino bartender had provided him plenty of excitement, as well as access to lots of women, both local and from out-of-town. In his opinion, he had it all.

   With six CDs of heavy metal from the 1980s, he sped down U.S. 95, moving past the northwestern suburbs. When he finally passed the Mt. Charleston turnoff, he smiled. He was finally entering the true desert, getting away from the smog-infested valley for at least a few hours. His first CD, Metallica, got him past Indian Springs, Amargosa Valley, and Beatty. A brothel in Amargosa tempted him briefly. He had experienced one before in Pahrump, but the last time he had had a bit of a scare when the girl hadn’t tested well during the routine screenings. It turned out to be the fault of the lab tech, though. Still, Mark was a bit self-conscious about it.

   Van Halen was next, and luckily it was the 2-CD set, because Mark was on the long stretch between Beatty and Tonopah. Hell, they were all long stretches in the desert, that’s what he liked about adventures like this. Nothing to think about, no job, no girlfriend, no ex-wife, no married paramour. Just him and the car and the music, and the road. It was heaven. He made a brief stop in the semi-desolate town of Goldfield for a soda. He was tempted to check out the town a bit, but all he wanted to do was drive. Tonopah was only a few miles more down the road. He stopped there to get gas and a sub for lunch.

   After Tonopah, he headed east on U.S. 6. This was another stretch he enjoyed. The highway offered the occasional mountain passes, with never-ending valleys between them. Unlike 95, there was little traffic on 6. The highway went through only 2 real towns in Nevada, making it undesirable for commercial traffic, whereas 95 linked Las Vegas with Reno and Carson City. After about a half hour, he reached highway 375, known as the Extraterrestrial Highway. He had never seen an alien land or take off on that road on the several occasions he had driven it. Still, for a man who loved desert scenery, the road was another slice of heaven. The next stop was Rachel, where a bar awaited him. For a change HE would be served, an opportunity he rarely experienced anymore. Long hours at his own job made him dislike visiting other casinos to get served, and there were not many bars in town that he considered worthwhile. Going to a bar in a remote corner of the world, however, was something special.

   After driving a few miles down 375, he saw another car approach, a red Volkswagen Jetta. He hated those kinds of cars, with the exception of the classic Bug. He preferred his Chevy Beretta. He had driven a few Japanese cars in his life, and thought a few of them were worthy, but he believed in American products, and was sad that the domestic automotive industry was falling apart.

   He passed the car, admiring the cute blonde driving it. The color did not suit her, she looked like she was a natural brunette. She was alone, as far as Mark could tell. However, he was thirsty and did not feel like chasing. He continued for five miles before realizing that the Jetta was behind him! Had she made a wrong turn somewhere? That seemed unlikely, as they were only a few miles from 6, and she had been going in the direction of that road. Maybe she thought he was a hot number himself? Mark smiled at the thought. A little sexual fantasy in the middle of nowhere seemed to fit on this day, and the beer could help develop it further when he reached Rachel.

   The Jetta’s horn honked twice. Mark looked in the rearview to look at the girl. She was indicating for him to pull over. This was too good to be true! He obeyed the request. He pulled off the road, right before a small lake that surrounded the highway. The Jetta pulled off right behind him. Mark got out of his car, hoping his breath wasn’t too bad from the sub he had eaten.

   The woman got out of her car. She looked to be perhaps 30, maybe 35. She smiled easily, which helped to make Mark feel at ease. “Hi there, sexy!” she said with a slight purr.

  Mark looked at her. Through her sunglasses, there was now something familiar about the face. The voice was also ringing a bell, and she was disguising it. “I know you.”

  “Maybe.” She took off her sunglasses. “Hello Mark.”

  “You.”

  “Me.”

  “How did you find me?”

  “That’s not important now. What is important is my message.”

  “What message?”

  “This is for Nora.” The blonde then moved to the side, and a figure scrunched in the back seat of the Jetta pumped three bullets into his head. Mark fell backwards against his car, the blood splattering against it as he hit the ground. The man put his gun away, then looked at the woman. “He’s dead. There’s nothing left to do.”

  “Oh, your job is done. Mine isn’t.” She walked over to Mark and felt him…all of him. He had a hard-on. In the middle of nowhere, it was almost tempting…one last time, her way! But, she had work to do. She went to her car to get a small toolbox and put gloves on, then got on with her task.