“Not that I know of,” Lou said. “He’d been sick for a number of years, but I never knew the diagnosis. I hadn’t heard anything about a liver transplant.”

“If he didn’t have a liver transplant, then the floater isn’t Franconi,” Jack said. “Even though the DNA lab is having a hard time confirming it, I’m personally convinced the floater has a donated liver.”

“What else can you people do to confirm that the floater and Franconi are the same person?” Lou asked.

“We can request a blood sample from the mother,” Laurie said. “Comparing the mitochondrial DNA which all of us inherit only from our mothers, we could tell right away if the floater is Franconi. I’m sure the mother will be agreeable, since she’d been the one to come to identify the body initially.”

“Too bad an X ray wasn’t taken when Franconi came in,” Jack said. “That would have done it.”

“But there was an X ray!” Laurie said with excitement. “I just found out this evening. Marvin had taken one.”

“Where the hell did it go?” Jack asked.

“Marvin said that Bingham took it,” Laurie said. “It must be in his office.”

“Then I suggest we make a little foray to the morgue,” Jack said. “I’d like to settle this issue.”

“Bingham’s office will be locked,” Laurie said.

“I think this situation calls for some creative action,” Jack said.

“Amen,” Lou said. “This might be that break I’ve been hoping for.”

As soon as they had finished eating and cleaning up the kitchen, which Jack and Lou had insisted on doing, the three took a cab down to the morgue. They entered through the receiving dock and went directly into the mortuary office.

“My God!” Marvin commented when he saw both Jack and Laurie. It was rare for two medical examiners to show up at the same time during the evening. “Has there been a natural disaster?”

“Where are the janitors?” Jack asked.

“In the pit last time I looked,” Marvin said. “Seriously, what’s up?”

“An identity crisis,” Jack quipped.

Jack led the others to the autopsy room and cracked the door. Marvin had been right. Both janitors were busy mopping the expansive terrazzo floor.

“I assume you guys have keys to the chief’s office,” Jack said.

“Yeah, sure,” Daryl Foster said. Daryl had been working for the medical examiner’s office for almost thirty years. His partner, Jim O’Donnel, was a relatively new employee.

“We’ve got to get in there,” Jack said. “Would you mind opening it?”

Daryl hesitated. “The chief’s kind’a sensitive about people being in his office,” he said.

“I’ll take responsibility,” Jack said. “This is an emergency. Besides we have Lieutenant Detective Soldano with us from the police department, who will keep our thievery to a minimum.”

“I don’t know,” Daryl said. He was obviously uncomfortable, as well as unimpressed, with Jack’s humor.

“Then give me the key,” Jack said. He stuck out his hand. “That way you won’t be involved.”

With obvious reluctance, Daryl removed two keys from his key chain and handed them to Jack. “One’s for the outer office, and one is for Dr. Bingham’s inner office.”