Grain Journal - March/April 2008 - (Page 21)

Northern Star II FICTION SERIES – PART 20 Northern Star Merchandiser Howie Carr has admitted to General Manager Gil Maier that he has been carrying on a relationship with World Genetix Salesman Ike Raynor, and that’s why he brought Ike to the cooperative to sell GMO test strips. (The sample strips Ike had left at the elevator had given a false negative on samples of biotech corn.) Gil, Howie, and Board Member Curly Petersen have gone to Ike Raynor’s apartment to find out what’s going on and have discovered a trail of blood leading into the kitchen. “Nobody touch anything!” Gil shouted, his training as a military policeman taking over. This obviously was a crime scene, and Gil’s instincts were to avoid contaminating any potential evidence. Gil started into the apartment, followed by Curly and Howie. He followed the trail of blood, taking care not to step in any of it, into the kitchen. A sink and counter space, with cabinetry above, ran the length of one wall. A small kitchen table and a tall cupboard were placed along the other. A refrigerator stood at the far end, and Ike was sitting on the floor with his back to it, slumped over. His chest was covered with blood. Howie turned a pale shade, let out a noise somewhere between a moan and a squeak, and ran back into the living room. Curly didn’t react so dramatically, but he looked stunned and glanced back and forth several times between Ike, Gil, and Howie in the other room. Gil knelt down slowly on one knee next to Ike, being careful not to touch any of the blood on the floor or anything else. He reached over and felt for a pulse in Ike’s neck at the carotid artery. There was nothing. Gil looked up at Curly and shook his head. “He’s gone.” While the farmer looked shocked, he didn’t seem to be in total meltdown the way Howie Carr was. “You’d better stay with Howie and make sure he’s going to be okay. I have some training in what to do.” “Should I call the police?” Curly asked. “Not yet,” Gil replied. “I have some training in police work back from my time in the military.” Curly nodded and went into the living room. Gil heard Howie starting to sob in the next room. Meanwhile, the elevator manager forced himself to think things through. Sooner or later, he knew, the Chicago police – most likely Detective Hal Washington – would be going over this crime scene with a fine-toothed comb. To avoid getting into even more trouble than he already was in, Gil would have to be very careful not to disturb the scene in any way that would destroy or alter evidence. He went over to the living room door and looked out. “Curly, Ike appears to have died from a gunshot wound,” Gil said. “I need you to do something for me, but be careful to touch as little as possible, and don’t step in any blood.” Curly nodded. “I want you to look around the room and see if you can find any kind of shell casing from a bullet. Whatever you do, don’t move it, and don’t touch it. Just call me, and tell me where it is. Got that?” “Got it,” Curly replied. “And make sure Howie doesn’t leave or do anything stupid,” Gil added. Gil went back into the kitchen to see if he could find any sort of workable clues to the apparent murder. He looked around the sink and adjacent counter and found nothing out of the ordinary, just dish washing liquid and some wash cloths, several boxes of breakfast cereal on the counter. Ike presumably was single, so Gil was surprised not to find any dirty dishes in the sink. Some bachelors must be uncharacteristically good housekeepers, he thought. He pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and used it to open the cabinet beneath the sink. There were some cleaning supplies, a box of kitchen wastebasket-sized trash bags, and a five-pack bag of rubber gloves that already had been opened, with several pairs left. Excellent, Gil thought. He pulled one pair of gloves out of the bag, carefully replaced it where it had been in the cabinet, and pulled on the gloves. He then crossed the kitchen to check out the cabinets there when he heard Curly call out to him. Gil stepped into the living room. “Right here,” Curly M/A GJ 21 http://www.grainnet.com/nsblog

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Grain Journal - March/April 2008

Grain Journal - March/April 2008 March/April 2008 Grain Journal Table of Contents 2008 Merchandising Outlook NGFA Opposes CFTC Risk Management Exemption Northern Star II Fiction Series Part 20 Corn/Soybean Merchandising … John Beurskens Wheat Merchandising …Kyle Smith Issues at the CME Exchange Futures Markets United Cooperative, Rock Springs and Beaver Dam, WI Facility Feature Auburn Bean & Grain, Auburn, MI Facility Feature New Cooperative Inc., LuVerne, IA Facility Feature Pearl City Elevator Inc., Lena, IL Facility Feature Safety Facility Feature: Tate & Lyle, Le Roy, IL Luckey Farmers Inc., Sugar Ridge, IL Facility Feature Old Time Elevator: Franklin Elevator Inc., Franklin, IL Portable Ladder Safety … Adam Schupp OSHA’s Top 10 Violations … Lynn Larsen Warm Weather Sampling Program … Linda Mason Manager Profile … Michael Sulzberger Manager Profile … Chris Blair Grain Salvage Computer Software Case Study … Summit Software Inc Grain Notes Grain Notes Reducing Dust Collection System Energy Costs Temporary Storage System Case Study Grain Quality/Technology Congress Drive Belt Maintenance Iowa Air Permits Steel Storage Tanks Inspection Ideas New TWIC Port Security Program GEAPS Exchange 2008 GEAPS Annual Meeting GEAPS Safety Awards GEAPS Associate Directors GEAPS Leadership Conference GEAPS/NGFA OM&T Seminar Henry Kaufman Foreign Language Memorial Scholarship Harold Reece Grain Handling Operations Memorial Scholarship Harold Reese Scholarship GEAPS 2008-09 International Officers GEAPS 2008-09 Associates Board of Directors GEAPS Exchange Sponsors GEAPS Exchange 2009 Call for Presentations Planning For Your Next Construction Project OSHA Local Emphasis Program For Missouri Temporary Storage Systems Security: Protecting Grain Inventories … Curtis Haugen West Central Cooperative CEO Jeff Stroberg Interview Product Review: Conveyor-Mounted Hopper Gate Opener Product Review: Wear Protection Materials Product Review: Housed Bearing Unit Product Review: Temporary Storage Grain Piler Product Review: Magnetic Separators Product Review: Indent Length Separators Product Review: Baghouse Filters Product Review: Draeger Multi-Gas Monitor Product Review: Grain Cleaner Product Review: Locomotive Remote Control Product Review: Baghouse Controller Product Review: Steel and Fabric Storage Buildings Product Review: Flaking Rolls Monitoring Equipment Aeration NGFA Trade Rules Seminar Global GM Crop Acres Three New Biofuels Ideas Dust Collection Actuators Automation Integration Systems Concrete Tank Builders Cleaners 2008 Bin Rescue Workshops Obituary … Ralph Klopfenstein GIPSA News USDA 10-Year Crop Projections Grain News Belting Protectants Fumigants Scales Elevator Manager Short Course Crib Storage History … Part III Regulatory News Temporary Storage 2008 Prospective Planting Report Product Survey … Monitoring Equipment Product Survey … Dust Collection Systems Product Survey … Fall Protection Product Survey … Bin Sweeps Ethanol Events Product Survey … Fumigants Storing and Handling DDGS Bluebonnet Feeds, Ardmore, OK Facility Feature Exporting DDGS 2008 International Feed Expo Feed News KSU Feed Courses NGFA/NAEGA 2008 Priorities Ad Index

Grain Journal - March/April 2008

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