CHAPTER 5
Autism Research Center (ARC)
Jakarta, Indonesia
West Jakarta Police Chief Eddi Kusnadi mopped sweat from his brow as he walked into the crime scene — some science lab on the west end of town. A neighbor had reported a gun shot. It was a nicer neighborhood, the type where neighbors had political connections, so he had to check it out. The place was obviously some kind of medical facility, but some of the rooms looked almost like a day care.
Paku, one of his best plain clothes officers, waved him to a room in the back where he found an unconscious woman on the floor, a dead man in a pool of his own blood near her, and several cops standing around.
“Lover’s quarrel?”
“We don’t think so,” Paku said.
In the background the chief could hear several kids crying. A native Indonesian woman entered the room, and upon seeing the bodies, instantly began screaming.
“Get this lady out of here,” the chief said. Two officers corralled her out of the room. He said to Paku, the only remaining policeman, “Who are they?”
“The woman is Dr. Katherine Warner.”
“Doctor? This is a medical clinic?”
“No. A research facility. Warner is the head of it. The woman you just saw is one of the nannies for the children — they’re doing research on retarded children.”
“Doesn’t sound very profitable. Who’s the guy?” the chief said.
“One of the lab technicians. The nanny says another technician offered to watch the kids, so she went home. The nanny says two kids are missing.”
“Runaways?”
“She thinks not, says the building has safe guards,” Paku said.
“Security cameras on the building?”
“No. Some observation cameras in the rooms with the kids. We’re checking footage.”
The chief bent down and looked the woman over. She was skinny, but not too skinny. He liked that. He felt for a pulse, then turned her head side to side to see if she had any head trauma. He noticed minor bruises on her wrists, but she seemed otherwise unharmed. “What a mess. Find out if she has any money. If so, bring her to the station. If not, dump her at the hospital.”