Cross Bones Read online

  “Fans of TV’s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation should be in heaven” (People) stepping into the world of forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan, star of Kathy Reichs’ electrifyingly authentic bestsellers.

  The key to a modern murder lies in the sands of history.

  Examining a badly decomposed corpse is de rigueur for forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. But puzzling damage on the body of a shooting victim, an Orthodox Jewish man, suggests this is no ordinary Montreal murder. When a stranger slips Tempe a photograph of a skeleton unearthed at an archaeological site, Tempe uncovers chilling ties between the dead man and secrets long buried in the dust of Israel. Traveling there with Detective Andrew Ryan, Tempe plunges into an international mystery as old as Jesus, and centered on the controversial discovery of Christ’s tomb. Has a mastermind lured her into an elaborate hoax? If not, Tempe may be on the brink of rewriting two thousand years of history—if she can survive the foes dead set on burying her.

  “A RIVETING THRILLER.” —Charlotte Observer (NC)

  “FANS OF TV’S CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION

  SHOULD BE IN HEAVEN.” —People

  Includes a bonus epilogue:

  “FROM THE FORENSIC FILES OF DR. KATHY REICHS”

  Also inside:

  an excerpt from Break No Bones

  Register online at www.SimonandSchuster.com for more information on this and other great books.

  www.fox.com/bones

  TM & © Fox. All Rights Reserved.

  AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPH BY MARIE-REINE MATTERA

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  KATHY REICHS, like her fictional creation Temperance Brennan, is a board-certified forensic anthropologist for the Laboratoire de Sciences Judiciaires et de Médecine Légale for the province of Quebec, a position she also held at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, State of North Carolina. She is Vice President of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and serves on the National Police Services Advisory Council in Canada. A professor of anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Dr. Reichs received her Ph.D. at Northwestern University. She now divides her time between Charlotte and Montreal. Her debut novel, Déjà Dead, brought her fame when it became a New York Times bestseller, a #1 international bestseller, and winner of the 1997 Ellis Award for Best First Novel. Bones to Ashes, her tenth Temperance Brennan novel, is forthcoming in hardcover from Scribner.

  Her website is www.kathyreichs.com.

  “TEMPERANCE BRENNAN IS THE REAL THING.” —Newsday (New York)

  “SUCH BLOODY GOOD BEACH READING!” —USA Today

  “TEMPE IS A BREATH OF FRESH AIR . . . . REICHS [IS] THE QUEEN OF FORENSIC THRILLERS.” —Western Cape City Vision

  “THE SCIENCE IS FASCINATING . . . EVERY MINUTE IN THE MORGUE WITH TEMPE IS GOLDEN.” —New York Times Book Review

  “You’ll be up most of the night” (Entertainment Weekly) following forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan inside these suspense-charged international bestsellers from

  KATHY REICHS

  CROSS BONES

  “Reminiscent of The Da Vinci Code . . . . [An] intriguing summertime read.”

  —The Canadian Press

  “Reichs is in top form . . . . Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code has nothing on Cross Bones.”

  —Omaha World-Herald (NE)

  “Forensic detail and [a] swiftly moving plot . . . . Reichs takes Dan Brown’s religious conspiracy theory one step further.”

  —Charlotte Observer (NC)

  Also available from Simon & Schuster Audio

  MONDAY MOURNING

  “Breathtaking technical detail.”

  —Entertainment Weekly

  “Fans of Patricia Cornwell will relish the forensic detail . . . . Fast-paced . . . suspenseful.”

  —Booklist

  “The science is downright snazzy, the mystery plenty devious, and both highly enjoyable.”

  —Houston Chronicle

  BARE BONES

  “Scalpel-sharp . . . . Suspense-filled.”

  —Sunday Tribune (U.K.)

  “Fascinating.”

  —The New York Times

  “Keep[s] you turning pages well into the night.”

  —The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec)

  “Right up there with Patricia Cornwell’s early Kay Scarpetta mysteries . . . . [Tempe’s] dedication, intelligence, dry wit, and femininity really shine through.”

  —Booklist

  GRAVE SECRETS

  “Riveting.”

  —St. Louis Post Dispatch

  “Reichs is in a class all by herself.”

  —Ann Rule, New York Times bestselling author of Green River, Running Red

  FATAL VOYAGE

  “Buckle up and take this voyage.”

  —People

  “The plot moves with electric force . . . . Morbid yet captivating.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  Praise for her #1 international bestsellers

  DEADLY DÉCISIONS

  “A high-octane forensic thriller.”

  —People

  “Reichs has brought the detective story into the twenty-first century.”

  —The Toronto Sun

  DEATH DU JOUR

  “The writing is snappy, and the forensic detail gruesome—and riveting.”

  —Entertainment Weekly

  “Another scary ride through evil past and present. Read it and creep.”

  —Mademoiselle

  DÉJÀ DEAD

  WINNER OF THE CRIME WRITERS OF CANADA’S ARTHUR ELLIS AWARD FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL

  “Déjà Dead can lie side-by-side with the works of Patricia Cornwell . . . . Both do a fine job of telling a good, sometimes scary tale.”

  —The Washington Times

  “Scary enough to keep the lights on and the dog inside. Reichs is that good.”

  —Daily News (New York)

  ALSO BY KATHY REICHS

  MONDAY MOURNING

  BARE BONES

  GRAVE SECRETS

  FATAL VOYAGE

  DEADLY DÉCISIONS

  DEATH DU JOUR

  DÉJÀ DEAD

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  A Pocket Star Book published by

  POCKET BOOKS, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020

  www.SimonandSchuster.com

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2005 by Temperance Brennan, L.P.

  Originally published in hardcover in 2005 by Scribner

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

  For information address Scribner, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020

  ISBN-13: 978-0-7434-5302-8

  ISBN-10: 0-7434-5302-6

  This Pocket Star Books premium edition June 2006

  POCKET STAR BOOKS and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  Cover design by Jae Song; front cover image by Kenneth Garret/Getty Images

  Contents

  Acknowledgments

  The Facts

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter
6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  From the Forensic Files of Dr. Kathy Reichs

  'Break No Bones' Excerpt

  For Susanne Kirk, editor, Scribner, 1975–2004

  and

  For Dr. James Woodward, chancellor,

  University of North Carolina at Charlotte,

  1989–2005

  Thanks for the years of support and encouragement.

  Enjoy your retirements!

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  As usual, I am deeply indebted to many of my colleagues, family, and friends for their time, expertise, and advice.

  Dr. James Tabor, Chair, Department of Religious Studies, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, lit the initial spark for Cross Bones, shared his personal notes and research findings, checked a thousand fine points, and gallantly squired me around Israel.

  Dr. Charles Greenblatt and Kim Vernon, Science and Antiquity Group, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Dr. Carney Matheson, Paleo-DNA Laboratory, Lakehead University, coached me on ancient DNA. Dr. Mark Leney, DNA Coordinator, CILHI, Joint POW-MIA Accounting Command, and Dr. David Sweet, Director, Bureau of Forensic Dentistry, University of British Columbia, answered questions about modern DNA.

  Azriel Gorski, Head (Emeritus), Fibers and Polymers Laboratory, Division of Identification and Forensic Science, Israel National Police, gave advice on hair and fiber analysis, and on the workings of Israeli law enforcement.

  Dr. Elazor Zadok, Brigadier General, Director, Division of Identification and Forensic Science, Israel National Police, allowed a tour of their Forensic Science facility. Dr. Tzipi Kahana, Chief Inspector, Forensic Anthropologist, Division of Identification and Forensic Science, Israel National Police, familiarized me with the Israeli medical examiner system.

  Dr. Shimon Gibson, Jerusalem Archaeological Field Unit, took me to sites throughout Israel, and answered many questions about his homeland.

  Debbie Sklar, Israel Antiquities Authority, provided a private tour of the Rockefeller Museum.

  Officer Christopher Dozier, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, and Sergent-détective Stephen Rudman, Superviseur, Analyse et Liaison, Communauté Urbaine de Montréal Police (retired), supplied information on obtaining phone records.

  Roz Lippel helped keep the Hebrew honest. Marie-Eve Provost did the same for the French.

  Special thanks go to Paul Reichs for his insightful comments on the manuscript.

  Credit must be given to two books mentioned in the text: Masada: Herod’s Fortress and the Zealots’ Last Stand by Yigael Yadin, George Weidenfeld & Nicolson Limited, 1966; The Jesus Scroll by Donovan Joyce, Dial Press, 1973.

  Last, but far from least, heartfelt thanks to my editor, Nan Graham. Her advice made Cross Bones a far better book. Thanks also to my editor across the pond, Susan Sandon.

  And, of course, to Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, Co-Head of the Worldwide Literary Department, Executive Vice President, and one of the first two women appointed to the Board of Directors of the William Morris Agency. Way to go, girl! Thanks for hanging in as my agent.

  CROSS BONES

  Depart from evil, and do good. Seek peace, and pursue it.

  —Jewish Holy Scripture,

  Psalm 34:14

  The fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for them that make peace.

  —New Testament, James 3:18

  And make not Allah because of your swearing (by him) an obstacle to your doing good and guarding (against evil) and making peace between men, and Allah is Hearing, Knowing.

  —Koran 2:224

  THE FACTS

  • From 1963 to 1965, Masada, site of a first-century Jewish revolt against the Romans, was excavated by Israeli archaeologist Yigael Yadin and a team of international volunteers. Yadin’s workers recovered the fragmentary and commingled remains of approximately twenty-five skeletons from a cave complex, designated Loci 2001/2002, located below the casement wall at the southern tip of the summit. Unlike other human remains found within the main complex of ruins at the northern end of Masada, these bones were not immediately reported to the press.

  In the 1990s, a photo surfaced of a single intact skeleton that was also recovered from Loci 2001/2002 during the 1963 to 1965 excavation. That skeleton was never mentioned or described by the project’s physical anthropologist, Nicu Haas. It was not discussed by Yadin in his published reports or interviews.

  • Formal field notes were not kept during the Masada excavation, but oral briefings took place regularly between Yadin and his staff. Transcripts of these sessions are archived at the Mount Scopus Campus of Hebrew University. Pages covering the period of the discovery and clearing of Loci 2001/2002 are missing.

  • Neither the bones from the twenty-five commingled individuals, nor the articulated skeleton, nor the contents of Loci 2001/2002, are described in the six volumes of the final Masada excavation publication.

  • Though Nicu Haas was in possession of the bones for more than five years, he published nothing on the commingled individuals or on the complete skeleton recovered at Loci 2001/2002. Haas’s handwritten notes, including a full bone inventory, indicate he never received the complete skeleton.

  • In the late 1960s, Yigael Yadin stated in press interviews that carbon-14 dating was seldom done, and that it was not his job to initiate such tests. The journal Radiocarbon indicates that Yadin sent samples for carbon-14 dating from other Israeli excavations during that period. Despite uncertainty concerning the age of the Loci 2001/2002 remains, Yadin never sent samples for radiocarbon dating.

  • In 1968, the skeletal remains of a “crucified man” were found during road construction north of the Old City of Jerusalem. The deceased, Yehochanan, died at approximately twenty-five years of age, during the first century. A nail and wood fragments were embedded in one of Yehochanan’s heel bones.

  • In 1973, Australian journalist Donovan Joyce published The Jesus Scroll (Dial Press). Joyce claimed to have visited Israel, met a volunteer from Yadin’s excavation team, and seen a stolen first-century scroll from Masada containing the last will and testament of “Jesus, son of James.” According to Joyce, the scroll was smuggled out of Israel, presumably to the USSR.

  • In 1980, roadworkers uncovered a tomb in Talpiot, just south of the Old City of Jerusalem. The tomb contained ossuaries inscribed with the names Mara (Mary), Yehuda, son of Yeshua (Jude, son of Jesus), Matya (Matthew), Yeshua, son of Yehosef (Jesus, son of Joseph), Yose (Joseph), and Marya (Mary). The coexistence of the names in one tomb is rare. Skeletal materials have been submitted for DNA testing.

  • In 2000, American archaeologist James Tabor and his team discovered a freshly robbed tomb in the Hinnom Valley, outside Jerusalem. The tomb contained twenty ossuaries, all but one shattered. The lower chamber held a burial shroud wrapping a fragmentary human skeleton and hair. Carbon-14 testing showed the shroud was first-century in age. Microscopic examination revealed the hair was clean and vermin-free, indicating the deceased had been of high status. Anthropological analysis determined the remains were those of an adult male. DNA sequencing demonstrated a familial relat
ionship among most of the other individuals buried in the tomb.

  • In 2002, Israeli antiquities collector Oded Golan revealed the existence of a first-century ossuary inscribed “James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus.” That fall, the ossuary was made public. While experts agree that the small stone coffin is first-century in age, controversy surrounds the authenticity of the inscription. Circumstantial evidence suggests the ossuary came from the vicinity of the Hinnom, possibly from Tabor’s “shroud” tomb.

  A formal request was submitted to the Israel Antiquities Authority for DNA testing of bone material found in the James ossuary. DNA sequencing would allow comparison of the James ossuary remains with those recovered from Tabor’s Hinnom “shroud” tomb. The request was denied.

  As this book went to press:

  • In January of 2005, indictments were issued against Oded Golan and several others for the forgery of antiquities. Mr. Golan maintains his innocence, and continues in his insistence that the James ossuary is authentic. Experts remain divided.

  1

  FOLLOWING AN EASTER DINNER OF HAM, PEAS, and creamed potatoes, Charles “Le Cowboy” Bellemare pinched a twenty from his sister, drove to a crack house in Verdun, and vanished.

  That summer the crack house was sold up-market. That winter the new homeowners grew frustrated with the draw in their fireplace. On Monday, February seventh, the man of the house opened the flue and thrust upward with a rake handle. A desiccated leg tumbled into the ash bed.

  Papa called the cops. The cops called the fire department and the Bureau du coroner. The coroner called our forensics lab. Pelletier caught the case.

  Pelletier and two morgue techs were standing on the lawn within an hour of the leg drop. To say the scene was confused would be like saying D-day was hectic. Outraged father. Hysterical mother. Overwrought kids. Mesmerized neighbors. Annoyed cops. Mystified firefighters.