Detective Vicki Nelson finished her workout with a slow jog. Heading to the showers, she decided to take a quick one before heading back to the precinct. Most women use their lunch to shop or catch up with friends but not Victory Nelson. She spent her lunchtime working off her frustrations or just staying fit. Either way, she wasn't the 'let's do lunch' kinda girl.

Of course, if she had a boyfriend, she might not have quite so much frustration to work off or that's what her coworkers tell her. Right. After her last relationship went so badly, she decided being alone was better. She was strong, independent and didn't need a man. Right? Right. She had the occasional fuck session but that was it, no more emotional commitment, ever again, right?

"Right," she breathed out as the hot water rushed over her body. Using her hand, she rested it on the cool shower tile, closed her eyes and remembered the last time she felt a man's big rough hands on her body-Detective Mike Celluci's to be exact. Now that they were apart, romantically at least, it make working somewhat…different. It wasn't difficult or hard, just odd at times. Sexually, he still satisfied her but emotionally, she was dead and gone, or so she liked to think.

Her body hummed with the blood rushing through her worn but firm muscles, her lungs burned from the strain she'd placed upon them and the rhythm of her heart slowed just enough to bring her breathing back under control. She finished showering, pulled her wet hair into a tight ponytail and dried off. After getting dressed, she looked at herself in the mirror. At thirty-seven, she looked damned good for her age. Her body was in shape, she had very few lines around her eyes or mouth and she was just tan enough to be normal looking. After adjusting the belt on her dress pants, she decided it was as good as it was going to get and headed back to work. She did her best to get the image of what she'd seen the night before out of her mind and wondered if she'd really seen it at all. A man was attacked in an alley and granted, she'd seen the attacker but what was it she saw? She knew this case might very well cross her desk but she was hoping like hell it wouldn't. How would she explain what she saw and would anyone believe her? She was a cop, for fuck's sake, she should have stopped to help the locals but since she was so unsure of what she saw, she kept quiet. Although she wasn't quite drunk, she'd had a little too much to drink so maybe, just maybe, she'd been imagining things. While having this private conversation in her head with herself, she suddenly remembered something else.

"Damn, I didn't eat," she muttered as she got into her car. Finding the nearest drive thru, she grabbed a greasy cheeseburger, a coke and fries. Her job and regular workouts afforded her the ability to splurge every now and again. Since Chinese food was her Achille's heal, she knew she'd work out forever to continue to eat what she wanted in that particular genre.

"Hey, Victory," Vicki heard a voice yell as she exited the vehicle. She sighed.

"Hey Dave, what's up?"

Dave was the new guy and she loved working with him but he was like a lost puppy at times. A big, jovial man, his mocha skin always contrasted with his bright smile, just like the one he had spread across his face as he huffed and puffed toward her while she walked into the building.

"Hey," he huffed loudly, "got a minute?"

"Sure, just headed back in from lunch, whatcha need?" she continued walking as they talked. After a bit, she realized she needed to slow down or Dave just might collapse.

"Well, seems we got a weird case, I was wondering if I could hang around, you know, learn some things from you and Detective Celluci?"

Vicki stopped, "New case? What new case?" Her stomach lurched and for a moment, she was afraid her cheeseburger would be seen again but not in a good way.

Dave grinned, "Yeah, well, word is," he looked around then leaned in, "we got a freak on our hands."

Vicki grinned back and shot an eyebrow up, "What's new?" and continued inside.

"Hold up," Dave jogged after her, sending his huffing into overdrive, "for real though, this one is freakish, worse than normal freakish. Please, let me in on it."

"Seriously, Dave, I have no clue as to what you're talking about. Let me get with Mike, alright?" Vicki gave him the look that said 'conversation is over' and he nodded in understanding. Pushing the glass doors open, Vicki saw Mike in an animated conversation on the phone.

"…well find out then, will ya?!" he yelled before slamming the phone down. Leaning back, he ran his hands through is hair and sighed.

"Sounds like you got a little problem goin' on and," she leaned on the edge of his desk, "Dave tells me you got a case you're not sharing with me."

"No, you and I got a new case that just popped up," he said as he handed her a folder.

"Ah.." Vicki flipped it open, read the synopsis and frowned, "what is this? A freak serial killer that rips out the throats of their victims and drains their blood?" Did she say anything, should she say anything? She didn't know yet, she was going to stay quiet and let things play out. She didn't want to corrupt the case but she knew, as a detective, that something freakish this way was coming.

"Yep, pretty much," Mike sighed.

"And?" she prompted.

"And what?" he shrugged.

"First, you can't lie, second, you can't lie, especially to me," she shot back.

Mike put his hands up, "Okay, okay," he leaned forward and spoke softly, "this young girl came in here, a Coreen somebody, she says," he rolled his eyes and said, "she says this Ian Reddick was her boyfriend, that she was on the phone with him when he was attacked and well," Mike cleared his throat, "he saw something.

Vicki sighed and added, "Me too…"