“No. But you should be able to find out who made it. It’s pretty unusual.”
“We’ll put someone on it.”
“You’ll see that the handle is too thick to slide between the bars. That means the killer had to be inside the car when Melville was stabbed.”
“How did Zelko get out?” Morales asked. “You said that the car was stuck between the second and third floors when the alarm went off.”
“That’s the mystery,” Robin answered. “When the car stopped between floors the alarm went off, but someone in the car had tohit the Stop/Alarm button because you couldn’t reach into the car from the outside while the car was moving. Nelly didn’t see anyone on the stairs.”
“You got in and out through the escape hatch,” Carter said. “Zelko must have gotten out through the hatch too.”
“Surely Zelko killed Mr. Melville and Mr. Trent,” Dr. Ashcroft said.
“He probably did,” Robin replied.
“Do you have doubts?” Carter asked.
“Not really. Ken and I talked about this. I was the first person on the landing after the alarm went off, and I didn’t go out right away. So Zelko could have gotten in and out of the car before I left my room. My only problem is that I don’t understand why he would kill Melville or Trent.”
“Maybe he killed them because he’s an insane, homicidal maniac,” Pine said.
Robin smiled. “That’s one explanation, but Zelko didn’t strike me as being a raving loony.”
“He’s anything but,” Dr. Ashcroft said. “Victor Zelko may be insane, but he is also brilliant and a very organized thinker.”
“I asked Sheila Monroe if Zelko knew Melville,” Robin said. “She’s pretty certain that their paths never crossed. And why would he murder Justin Trent?”
“Maybe Trent figured out that Zelko wasn’t a detective, and Zelko was afraid Trent would tell everyone,” Carter said.
“If Trent thought Zelko was a killer, he wouldn’t have gone down to the basement with him.”
“Maybe he didn’t figure it out until they were in the basement,” Morales said.
“That’s one explanation.” Robin shook her head. “I know Zelko probably killed both men, but my lawyer brain is forcing me to look at other possibilities.”
“I’m going with Occam’s razor,” Carter said.
“When there are multiple solutions to a problem, the simplest solution is usually the correct solution,” Robin said.
Carter nodded. “If there is a homicidal maniac on the loose and two murders, the maniac is probably the killer.”
Robin frowned. “You’re probably right.”
“This is giving me a headache,” Pine said. “Let’s take a look at Mr. Melville.”
The three men got out of the elevator, and everyone followed Ken and Robin to Frank Melville’s bedroom. The corpse had started to decompose, and a pungent odor stung Robin when she opened the door. She was glad that Nelly had stayed downstairs.
Dr. Ashcroft studied the victim, the murder weapon, and the wound.
“We’ll have to wait for the autopsy, but it certainly looks like your theory about the cause of death is correct,” he told Robin and Ken.
“Let’s let Mr. Melville rest in peace,” Pine said. “Can you show us where Mr. Trent was killed?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Robin was relieved that the low temperature in the freezer kept Justin Trent’s corpse frozen and made the odor of death almost undetectable. It also made everyone uncomfortable, and the men took very little time with Trent.
By the time everyone was back on the ground floor, the medical examiner, some of the technicians from the crime lab, and the officers who were going to help with the search had arrived.