"She used to be a very pretty girl." Officer Hank Katts thought to himself as he stared at her driver's license. For just a moment he was transfixed by the haunting image. She looked so young- she was in her early 20s when that picture was taken and she looked happy. At least her smile made her look happy. Hank could almost image a time in the young woman's life when she was happy, had friends and family, and a bright future. Maybe she was a college student or she could have had a full-time job working in an office somewhere. Maybe she was a musician, maybe she was an athlete, and maybe she was brilliant. The only thing officer Katts knew for sure was that she was dead.
As he lowered the small photo from his vision the image became very different. It was nearly two years after that picture had been taken and the last photographs of the woman would be done by the medical examiner. She lay sprawled across the floor of the abandoned restaurant, and she had probably died more than twenty four hours ago. Most likely she died of a drug overdose and once her friends realized that she was dead, they took everything of value that she had and left her for someone else to find. This wasn't the first time that Hank found someone like this and he knew that it probably wouldn't be the last. Hank still had to wonder about the events in this person's life that led to this.
It was a chance encounter that led officer Katts here. Not only was Hank scheduled to have the day off, but he wasn't supposed to be patrolling this area. He happened be nearby and responded to a call about a car alarm- which turned out to be a false alarm- when his K9 partner Rudy caught the scent of trouble. Rudy brought Hank to the abandoned building and the grisly scene. The area was considered to be on the 'bad side of the tracks,' but a few years ago it seemed to be on the rebound. At that time a wave of immigrants were moving in and revitalizing the community. Buildings were being restored, streets were being cleaned, and people could be seen walking down the streets. All of that changed with an influx of a new drug called crock. This new drug was highly addictive and left a path of destruction in its wake.
As the medical examiner's team and the backup police arrived at the scene Hank attention turned back to the technical aspects of the job. Office Katts walked outside to meet the forensics team and help them begin their investigation. Hank knew that he'd have quite a bit of paperwork to finish at the office for the rest of the day. It was turning out to be a horrible Thursday- the morning was a mess and the afternoon was going to be filled with tedious paperwork. Hank was also looking at working through the entire weekend. Even though being a cop had always been his dream, sometimes the reality of the job wasn't pleasant.