Pat Ritter. Books

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'The Proposition' - Page 71:

‘Kate – would you slow down a little, thank you. We’ll reach the scene and you can have your time with Larry.’ Bundy asked Kate in a polite voice.
‘Don’t worry he’ll gloat about the find. He always told me he’d find Peter before I did. Everything is falling into place. It’s just through those trees and along the road where Peter lived. It’s falling into place Bundy.’ Kate looked glum.
‘It mightn’t even be Peter’s remains, have you ever considered the possibility. You’re putting the cart before the horse. We won’t know until a proper examination is complete. No good worrying about it now. If it is him and Larry has got one up on you, then so be it, but until then – settle down and do the job right. Don’t worry about who discovered the body.’ Bundy tried to be compassionate.
She parked the vehicle close to a ‘Don’t Enter’ sign. Both alighted with Kate extending her steps two to Bundy’s one. He started to feel his age and knew to take it slower otherwise he wouldn’t be used to anyone. She almost began to run when they were only a few metres from the crime scene.
A crime strip coloured blue with white checks, which they never had in Bundy’s time, surrounded the area where the skeleton remains were found. A uniform police office holding a clipboard asked Bundy and Kate their names and identification before they entered the area. Kate displayed her official police badge whilst Bundy showed an identification photograph, he carried when entering police headquarters. They entered the crime scene.
Two plain clothes officers stood opposite a small bush. The ground was disturbed. Bundy saw Kate walk toward these two officers. It was obvious she knew them and they knew her...

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'The Proposition' - Page 72: Chapter 9

‘Larry, this is Bundy Quicksilver. He’s helping me with the disappearance of Peter Clayton.’ they shook hands. It was a firm grip. Bundy always was keen to shake another person’s hand.
The handshake told much about the other person, particularly if they smiled with a warm greeting. If it was firm, he immediately liked the person; however, if the other person declined to shake his hand, there was a reason.
Larry Smiles was of similar rank to Kate’s rank. They were both Detective Superintendents. This rank puzzled Bundy for when he was a detective if you held this rank you wouldn’t be at a crime scene. Your official duty was at Police Headquarters Command Post directing operations. Things had certainly changed since his days in the job. Detective Superintendent Smiles was in-charge of Homicide.
Human bones were discovered by a forestry worker who was spraying poisonous weeds. He’d told Detective Superintendent Smiles whilst he was spraying near the bottom of a bush; he felt something different he walked on. The ground was soft. It wasn’t a stick so he kicked the toe of his boot against the object, discovered human bones, a femur bone of a human being.
Bundy saw the remains of a shallow grave with a human bone protruding. He moved closer - it was difficult to see the complete picture from where he was standing.
‘Don’t go too close, Bundy; we’re waiting for our forensic people to arrive.’ Detective Superintendent Smiles asked in a kind voice.
‘Sorry – I’ll keep out of the way.’ Bundy left the crime scene and returned outside of the colour ribboned perimeter. Habit overtook his senses, he recorded on a clipboard a diagram of the position of the human remains, where different officers stood, estimated size of the area where the human remains were found. After he completed, Kate walked over to stand beside him...

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'The Proposition' - Page 73:

‘What’re you doing?’ She asked in an inquisitive voice.
‘Recording the scene, taking notes of where everyone is standing. Who’s the name of the other fellow with your friend Larry?’ Bundy asked.
‘He’s a trainee detective. I didn’t get his name. Larry didn’t introduce us. Is it important?’ Kate asked.
‘I’ll put him down as trainee detective – that’ll do for now.’
‘You do know I recorded everything on my mobile phone – don’t you?’ Kate explained.
‘What – does that thing take videos?’
‘Yes.’ She opened her mobile telephone and showed Bundy the video she recorded of the scene, with conversations between her and Smiles.
‘It’s no wonder you love that thing. I’d sleep with it if it can do everything you’ve shown me.’ Bundy was surprised to see the re-enactment of the crime scene; discovery of the human remains and heard the conversation between both parties at the crime scene displayed on Kate’s mobile phone.
‘What’s next?’ Bundy asked Kate to know what she intended to do.
‘We’ve got to wait for our forensic team, Larry has arranged to have trainee police from the Police Academy together with SES volunteers to search the area for anything which could lead to the identity of the deceased person.’
‘Do you think these remains are Peter Clayton?’ Bundy asked...

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'The Proposition' - Page 74:
‘I don’t know - I’m not a pathologist. It’s only a couple of kilometres through those trees where he went missing. They could be, and the bones look as though they’ve been here for quite a while. We’ll wait until the forensic people arrive.’ Kate advised.
‘I wouldn’t mind if Quincy had a look at this crime scene and get his opinion on the remains.’ Bundy asked.
‘I doubt it would be possible. Larry doesn’t know Quincy and he wouldn’t want another forensic scientist, especially retired one, thrashing over these remains until he knows who they belong to.’
‘Can you ask your friend Larry, if we can borrow a bone to see if Quincy can detect DNA? Quincy already has Peter’s DNA; if there is a match, the case is solved in discovering Peter’s body.’ Bundy requested.
She walked away to think about his request. If the femur bone were taken to Quincy and he examined it to compare DNA, it would solve the investigation immediately. How would she disturb the remains without Larry knowing? No – it’s a stupid idea. We need to be patient.
‘Sorry Bundy, I’ve thought about your request and it’s a stupid idea. I can’t do it.’ Kate admitted.
‘Do you want me to ask Larry to hand me a piece of bone, so we can have Quincy examine it for DNA? Or I could contact the Commissioner to ask his approval.’ He commented.
‘Don’t be ridiculous. What will he think of us, wanting to tear the skeleton apart, like a cooked chook, before the forensic people get here? And if you ever try to reach the Commissioner without my knowledge, I’ll have your guts for garters - understood. Do you understand?’ She repeated in a direct voice looking Bundy directly in the eyes as she spoke the words with a sneer on her face.
‘I’m only trying to help. I’ll wait.’ Bundy replied...

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'The Proposition' - Page 75:

‘I think it’d be better if you did.’ Kate agreed.
Bundy remembered a couple of similar times he was involved with skeletons, more like these one where human remains had been located. His first memory of a human skeleton was found inside galvanised iron sheeting wrapped around a trunk of a tree, in the middle of a paddock. A tree poison contractor discovered the remains.
His thoughts travelled back in time. Because the remains couldn’t be moved before they were examined, a forensic pathologist travelled from Brisbane to examine them. A smile spread across his lips as he remembered a convoy of police vehicles heading to the property. When they arrived; a host of detectives, from the local area and homicide gathered around the tree. If it weren’t so serious, it would have looked strange to an outsider.
After the pathologist examined the bones, he discovered they were over one hundred years old. Bundy looked at the galvanised iron sheeting and thought, galvanise iron wasn’t invented until the early century. How could this galvanised iron be used at the time?
Once the identity of the skeleton was established it was suggested to interview the owner of the property to determine the identity of the deceased. Bundy had the job to interview the owner who informed him the remains were of an elder aboriginal tribesman who died many years ago from old age, aboriginal custom was to bury the skeleton in a tree. Case closed.
Next time Bundy discovered skeleton bones was near a creek bed. They’d washed alongside the creek bank. This time because the bones were scattered it meant the whole area needed to be treated as a crime scene.
For days Bundy with a team of other police sifted sand through sand sifters, ones used to shake sand through wire gauze. Small bones were discovered however not all the skeleton was found. Eventually there was sufficient bone to identify the deceased person...

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The Proposition' - Page 76:

Bundy discovered when he investigated the location of these bones, a local youth had been drinking; fallen into the creek and disappeared while he was fishing. He’d been reported missing but at the time it was thought he’d left the area. Another case closed.
Bundy thought this one was a little different to compare with the other two investigations thirty years before. Many things had changed, one being the media. Sound of helicopters circled above, reporters with television cameras stood waiting to interview Detective Superintendent Smiles or any other officer who would give them a story to broadcast over the airways.
‘Don’t you think we should go and tell Mary about finding a skeleton not far from her home? When she sees anything about this find on television or hears on the radio, she’ll have kittens.’ Bundy asked Kate.
‘Yeah – we better, I’ll tell Larry we’ll be back soon.’ Kate left to speak with Detective Superintendent Smiles.
After Kate and Bundy left the crime scene Kate said, ‘I’d better phone to see if she’s home.’ She parked the vehicle off to the side of the road; extracted her mobile telephone from her trouser pocket, opened the flap and punched in some numbers. Sound of a ringing telephone echoed in the vehicle.
‘Mary – is that you, Kate here, will you be home, Bundy and I want to speak with you. It’s quite urgent.’
Kate nodded her head as if in agreement with the caller, said her farewell and closed her phone.
‘She’ll put the kettle on.’ Kate informed Bundy.
Parking the vehicle at the front of Mary’s home she waited at her front steps, ‘what’s so important you’ve got to speak with me, have you found Peter?’ Mary had tears in her eyes...

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'The Proposition' - Page 77:

‘May we come inside please Mary?’ Bundy asked in a soft and kind voice.
‘, the kettle is on, I’ll make us a lovely cup-of-tea.’ She beckoned both inside her home. They sat at the dining room table.
‘What’s this all about?’ Mary asked determined to find out if they’d found her son dead or alive.
‘We’re not positive,’ Kate interrupted, ‘skeleton bones have been found in a shallow grave not far from here in the forestry.’ Kate concluded. She stretched her hand across the table and held Mary’s hand tight.
Tears welled in Mary’s eyes, ‘skeleton – found – in – forestry,’ she muttered. ‘Are they Peter’s?’ She cried.
‘We won’t know until a DNA test has been completed by the forensic people.’ Kate answered softly still holding Mary’s hand and looked directly into her eyes.
‘Didn’t you take some of Peter’s hair and clothes to be tested?’ Mary asked, sitting upright, and staring into Kate’s face for an answer.
‘Yes, we did. Those samples you gave us we took to Bundy’s friend, Quincy Simpson, who was a forensic scientist and is now retired.’
‘Why can’t he examine the remains?’ Mary implied.
‘Because he’s no longer a forensic scientist working in the field, he’s retired.’ Kate whispered loud enough Mary could hear her clearly.
‘This is stupid. What does it matter who examines the bones? If the skeleton is Peter’s; my mind will at least be put to rest after all this time. What if they aren’t Peter’s bones?’ She asked still holding onto Kate’s hand now with both her hands clasped together around Kate’s fingers.
‘You’ll be the first to know.’ Kate’s eyes developed tears, she looked into Mary’s eyes to see the hurt she didn’t mean to place upon her, but she needed to tell her about the recent discovery just in case the skeleton was her son, Peter Clayton...