The Cigarette Killer by Claudia Hall Christian

Author:Claudia Hall Christian
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: strong female character, mystery fiction, forensic science fiction, seth and ava myserteries
Publisher: Cook Street Publishing [email protected]

“Yes, he did,” Captain Ferguson said.

A wave of laughter broke some of the emotional tension in the room.

“Turns out, one of the few things that actually helps with the sarcoid is cigarette smoke,” Seth said. He shrugged. “It’s a big secret. The doctors don’t want anyone to know because cigarettes cause cancer and the like. But shit, Mitch was dying anyway.”

Seth took a breath and slowly let it out.

“Did you smoke?” Jocelyn asked.

“Never,” Seth said with a shake of his head. “Playing the piano is takes real physical stamina and strength. I’d never risk it. But Mitch smoked.”

Seth sat up a little taller.

“We were at down Lockheed Martin,” Seth said. “We were looking at some remains — every time they build there, they find more skeletons.”

“Really?” Jocelyn asked.

“That’s another story,” Seth said. “We were there looking at these bones, and Mitch lights up a cigarette. Well, since the last time we’d been there, Clinton had signed an executive order mandating no smoking in Federal Buildings. Before that, everyone smoked everywhere. So Mitch was smoking. We’re following the head of security to the remains, and he doesn’t say anything about the ban. Mitch lights another on our way into the building, and the head of security stops. He tells us that smoking is not allowed in Federal buildings.”

Seth raised his eyebrows.

“It seems crazy today, but we’d never even heard of such a radical idea,” Seth said. “The head of security points behind us. I turned around and saw all of the people lined up under the awning. They were out there puffing on their cigarettes even though it was snowing.

“I don’t know how to explain it,” Seth said. “Something about the people huddled together in the wet snow. It made me think that maybe our perp’s victims were cigarette smokers. No cell phones, of course, so I went inside to call the coroner. By that time, we had so many bodies.”

Seth shook his head at horror.

“She and her team had cataloged all of the injuries and every characteristic of the people down to their ring size and shade of nail polish,” Seth said. “I didn’t have it in front of me, so I called her to ask about the smoking.”

“Were they smokers?” Jocelyn asked.

“More than half,” Seth said.

“72 percent,” Jocelyn said. “That’s what we have on your page of our website.”

Seth nodded to acknowledge her.

“So there I am, standing in the freezing fucking cold next to Mitch while he smoked,” Seth said. “I just kept thinking that this had to be it. It felt like the answer. But they weren’t all smokers. Mitch asked me what was going on, so I told him. And he laughed at me.”

“Laughed?” Jocelyn asked.

“He pointed out, one at a time, all of the non-smokers who were standing in the snow to talk to their friend,” Seth said.

“Like you,” Jocelyn said.

“Like me,” Seth said. “From there, we started targeting where people bought cigarettes. There weren’t as many places then as there are now. At that time, cigarettes were sold only at liquor stores and gas stations.

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