Stepping away from the lamb to give them a little space, Dragos let his talons retract as he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped off his hands. It was getting noisy outside. Questions were being asked, along with demands.
Concentrating on his small task, he said, “This meat was refrigerated, so it’s a little stiff, but it will still show you want I want you to see. If you look closely at the marks I just made, you’ll see there is a bit of tear to them. The edges are jagged. It’s hard to kill someone like this. It’s messy. Likely as not, you’ll tear out chunks of flesh when you do it.” He looked up and met Johnson’s sharp gaze. “Colton’s wounds are not like this, Ben. They’re surgical. The edges of the cuts are sharp. They were made with blades, not talons.”
“Why are you telling me this, now?” Johnson asked. His shock and fear had receded, and he studied Dragos with his arms crossed.
“Because this is the single piece of evidence I have that will be the most compelling for you,” Dragos told him. “The killer might have been cunning, but aside from being stupid, he was also bigoted and insulting. He believed the first thing anybody would think when they saw Colton would be that a Wyr had killed him. In my house, Ben. With my handpicked staff, my highly trained and reliable security. With my wife present. He believed that everybody would think the Wyr were that stupid. And he ignored the fact that none of us have any motive to commit this crime.”
Only then did Dragos let his rage show. Pia swallowed hard, and Johnson’s gaze flickered, but he didn’t flinch or back down like he had a few moments ago.
A knock sounded at the door, and a man called out, “Mr. President, are you all right? The first lady is asking after you.”
Johnson raised his voice. He sounded strong and steady. “Yes, Brock. We’re all safe in here. I’ll let you know when I’m done.”
“Very good, sir.”
Johnson said to Dragos, “So the wounds are the most compelling piece of evidence, you said. What other evidence do you have?”
“Other than Colton’s blood and Pia’s scent—she was the one who found him, by the way—there were no other scents. The killer was wearing KO Odorless Odor Eliminator. Only deer hunters wear the scent blocker, or Wyr criminals—and of course now anybody who is involved in the Right to Privacy movement is wearing it too.” Dragos gave him a cynical smile. “But only the Wyr would know that or be able to make that claim, and nobody would be listening if we were the suspects. And the only people wearing KO Odorless Odor Eliminator here tonight are human. Your killer is one of the humans.”
Johnson drew in a sharp breath. “Do you have any idea who the killer might be?”
Dragos shook his head. “No, and I don’t care. At first I trapped myself into thinking I had to find the killer before Colton’s murder was discovered, but then I realized—this isn’t my problem. I’m insulted that the killer did this in my home, and I’m offended, but this is a human issue. And the fact that it happened during the one week when humans and the Elder Races were making an active effort to maintain good relations is disturbing. Aside from whatever the killer had against Colton, someone doesn’t want us to get along, Ben.”
“My God, what a bloody mess,” Johnson muttered. He rubbed his face and looked at Dragos over the tops of his fingers. “Okay, I believe you.”
Dragos relaxed slightly. “Thank you,” he said. “I appreciate that. My staff has been looking for the murder weapon, but they have instructions to take photos only and not to disturb anything if they find it. And security has been reviewing recordings of who disappeared from view from the cameras placed in the rooms during the time that the murder took place.”