Chapter 65

65

Things just moved too slowly for him. Daniel struggled to fight the impatience. The warehouse fire had been hard to contain—it was still not out enough for forensics to get inside yet. Especially with the threat the chemical aspect added. But they had initial forensics reports from Heather and Powell now. They wouldn't hold up in court fully—but they were a place to start.

Daniel studied the image on the digital screen. "That's…a lot of DNA."

"I found dozens of samples. Some of them can be easily eliminated as suspects—they all have Coleson DNA, so I'm assuming family. There are two that are obviously Heather's daughters…with Detective Wilson. I marked them in green here," Ashlie said, sending him a look out of her big green eyes. Everyone had been talking about him—and Heather.

Daniel wasn't a fool.

People were choosing sides.

He suspected this woman was on the Heather side. He just nodded. "That makes sense. Go on."

"Well, I have some samples I can identify here from our own database. This one here on the left shoulder belongs to Dr. Samia Coleson. It matched a sample from an open assault from mid-November. The largest DNA sample belongs to Samia's full sister. I highlighted those in yellow." Ashlie was a quiet woman who blended into the shadows. But she was competent and intelligent, and Haldyn greatly liked her.

Ashlie blushed every time Gunnar or Daniel looked at her. Hell, she wasn't any older than Hope Coleson. She had that same innocence about her too. Daniel suddenly felt about eighty-five years old.

"What are all these samples in blue?" Gunnar asked. He hadn't said more than two words to Daniel at a time since he'd shown up in the lab at Daniel's summons.

"These belong to Powell Barratt along this arm and side here. I suspect Heather had her arm around Powell for a significant portion of time, considering the placement."

"And these samples here?" Gunnar asked, his words coming out a bit strangled. Daniel got it—Gunnar was probably imagining just how Powell's DNA had gotten on Heather. Imagining how afraid she would have been. Daniel had known Powell for almost forever. She tried to be assertive and forceful when needed, but at heart, she was reserved and loving and kind.

To know someone had deliberately hurt her, terrified her.

"Those are where things get a little complicated, actually. These two here…show a familial relationship. Same paternal DNA. This is a male—it was a skin sample. Touch DNA. And sweat DNA." Ashlie's tone turned grim. Daniel tensed. He saw what she meant. Where the samples in red were located. "He touched Heather's breasts. Probably hard, from the density and shape of the samples, and his hands were sweaty. We can prove that. Bastard. He is also related to this sample here, on Heather's shoulder. Half siblings. One male, one female. And…he's related to other samples. We'll get into those in a minute."

"There was a woman there? That close to Heather?" Gunnar asked. "Why didn't Heather say something?"

"I'm not sure. It's not just a touch sample. Saliva mixed with something else. I sent it to trace, and I'm waiting to get it back." Ashlie clicked something, and it zoomed in. "These samples are all ovaloid in shape and small. But they match these other two. Relatives."

"How so?" Gunnar asked.

"It matches this sample here—half brother of this sample. And it matches this sample and this one—Samia Coleson. Definitively. Through their common fathers. And to this male sample here. And more importantly…"

She isolated all the samples until just the one on Heather's pants that was so relevant was highlighted, as was the male sample over the chest area of the sweatshirt, and the samples to Samia Coleson, the sample for the unknown full sister—either Eden or Summer Coleson—and the sample on Heather's left shoulder.

"These samples here are all related in some way. The sample here on the pants—is the biological father of the remaining four samples." Ashlie looked at Gunnar and Daniel. "It's pretty clear. The man who spit on Heather's pants is Samia Coleson's biological father. One hundred percent match."

"That would make him most likely Heather's brother-in-law. But wouldn't she have recognized him?" Gunnar asked.

"Powell said the room was dark. And it was almost twenty years. Heather would have been sixteen or less then, if they were estranged. Maybe she just didn't see him well enough to recognize him," Daniel said.

"So this male sample here is Samia's half brother. And this shoulder sample is Samia's half sister."

"It was a relatively strong, fresh sample. There were also matching touch DNA samples along here and here. Especially the pocket. Almost tucked inside." She highlighted more areas on the screen. "If you want to know who this sample belongs to, you are going to have to talk to Heather. Tell her, and Hope, we here in the lab are thinking about her. And if she needs us, we're here. No matter what."