“Odd that he isn’t dressed up in some way too,” Warren said. Val did note that the boy wore jeans with a beige pullover sweater. Snow boots were on his feet. He looked like a regular kid who just came in from outside, apart from his gaping throat and blood-soaked clothes.

“No winter coats?” Gavin asked, looking around.

“No. None were found in the church. The mother’s car was discovered in the back of the parking lot here. No coats in there either.” Val was sure the boy at least, was alive when he came into the church; the evidence was obvious for that. Did his mother bring them both here without coats, or did someone else take them away?

“The murder weapon for the boy?” Gavin asked, glancing around. “Is that here?”

“Yes. After it was used, it was placed on the pulpit behind the altar.” Val pointed to a large wooden lectern with a simple cross engraved on the front. “It’s bagged for evidence, and in box three, if you want to take a look.”

Gavin walked over to a row of cardboard evidence boxes, which were clearly numbered. He pulled the lid off “three” and removed a sealed plastic bag holding a large knife with a bright red handle and a long intimidating silver blade.

As he turned the bag around, Val said, “It looks like some kind of hunting knife, the kind you get from an outdoors store.”

“That’s exactly what it is. It’s a fillet knife. And it’s used to cut up everything from fish to large game,” he said. “These are typically razor sharp because they’re meant to slice through bone.”

“Jesus, that blade has to be about nine inches in length,” Warren remarked. “You think something like this belonged to the mother?”

“If she was looking for an instrument to do the job, then it’s likely,” Gavin said.

“Hopefully we’ll get fingerprints, or DNA off the handle,” Val said.

“I don’t think that will tell us much,” Gavin responded.

“What do you mean?” Val asked, surprised.

“If this knife belonged to the mother and she used it, we’d expect her fingerprints and DNA to be all over it.” Gavin put the bagged knife back in the box. “A killer would have known we were expecting it too, and would have placed them all over it.”

“That would be a smart killer. And someone who knew the victim. The ceremonial aspects have to have some significance for her,” Warren said, shaking his head. “Mitch, you can’t be thinking this isn’t anything but a murder–suicide. It’s far too dramatic for anything but that.”