Chapter 8 Summary

Scarpetta and Marino return to the clearing where the Harvey and Cheney bodies were found to search for the bullet casing, thinking this might be the missing object that the killer is concerned about. They spend a great deal of the afternoon searching with a metal detector and a shovel only to find the casing in the last place they look. A few days later, Scarpetta arrives at work to find a letter from Mrs. Harvey threatening court action if she does not release the autopsy report. Scarpetta is called to the offices of her boss, the secretary of Health and Human Services. Scarpetta explains her conversation with Wesley, in which she was told not to release the autopsy reports to Mrs. Harvey. Despite his anger, the secretary agrees that Scarpetta should fulfill her promise to the FBI.

When Scarpetta arrives back in...