Piper Chapman woke up at 6 a.m. as usual, turned off the alarm clock, stood up from the bed rubbing her sleepy eyes and headed to the shower. She just stood there relaxed under the cold water. Some people might think that it's weird to enjoy the cold shower, but it always made Piper more alive, she didn't know why.

She had been working in NYPD for almost 8 years and 5 years as a homicide detective. She had always dreamed to become a detective. She had worked really hard to deserve a promotion and she was on seventh heaven when it happened. So for the past few years her life was a pure perfection. She was so into work that she hardly had a personal life, she just hadn't enough time for that and it was okay for Piper.

She stepped out of the shower wondering what this day would bring her: another unidentified body or maybe kidnapping. She loved her job, she loved helping people. Piper desperately wanted to give people their last hope, to show them there was still justice in this world. Piper was having a cup of coffee when her phone rang.

"Detective Chapman. Okay, I'll be there in 20 minutes."

It was only 7 a.m. and there was already a new body. This world is so strange and violent. Piper suppressed depressing thoughts, put on her clothes quickly and left the apartment. She arrived at the place even faster than she thought. She left her car and made her way to the crime scene where her colleagues were busy making photos of victim and interrogating people who had found the body.

"Hey, Chapman", Piper was greeted by one of her partners, detective Nichols.

"Hey, Nicky. What have we got here?"

"Male, Caucasian, two shots in the chest, long distance, which leads us to the suggestion that the killer is a professional."

"Where the hell is Bennett?"

"Look to the left, running to you like he burned his ass."

"Chapman", Piper heard her second partner's voice. "We've got an ID, name Tom Raymond, 35. It's definitely not a robbery as he still has got his wallet on him."

"Any information on the caliber?"

"Not yet, but it looks like our killer used a silencer as no one heard the gun shots."

"I'm going to talk to Polly about the time of death, I'll meet you at the station, guys. Try to work something out till that time."

Piper approached her best friend a.k.a. pathologist who was leaning over the body.

"Hey."

"Good morning, sweetie."

"Have something for me?"

"Well, the time of death is between 3 and 4 a.m. That's all I can tell you so far, I learn more as soon as I'll get to the laboratory."

"Alright, I think I'm going to the station now then. Meet you there?"

"Of course, I give you a call when I'll know something new."

Piper sat in her car and made her way to the precinct. It was going to be a long day, the first days of a new case were always the longest ones. She entered the precinct and went up on the fifth floor where her office was situated. Nichols and Bennett were looking through some files and making calls.

"Any information on our vic?" Piper asked not really hoping to hear a positive answer.

"Actually, yes", Nikki answered. "Listen to that, seems like this case can be an interesting one. Tom Raymond was… any guesses?"

"Nichols, for God's sake."

"What? We can even make a bet."

"Bennett?" Piper asked the other detective impatiently. She loved Nikki and how she could light up the worst situations with her jokes, she just wasn't in the mood for that.

"Well, our victim was working for the International Drug Cartel for the past 10 years. He was more a pawn than some important person in such a business. No previous convictions though, only few charges, but nothing special. No family, no girlfriend, no leads to his bosses, nothing at all to be truthful."

"You two are lame", Nikki said.

"Shit", Piper cursed. She hated when there were no leads and she hated drug dealers. "Give me something, guys."

"Don't worry, boss", Nichols laughed. "We've found a cell phone in his jacket, running trough the calls now, maybe we'll find something."

"Thank, God. I was starting to think that it was a dead end."

"Come on, it's us, team Chapman. We'll always find something."

"You continue with calls, I'll try to know something from FBI on him. I have doubts they'll gladly share the information with us, but we need to try at least."

FBI as she expected wasn't very helpful. All they said was he wasn't under witness' protection and that they had never heard of him. She was starting to feel desperate.

"Guys, do we have his address, anything?"

"Not yet. He didn't definitely live in NY, maybe he stayed in a hotel, we didn't figure it out yet."

"What about calls?"

"Nothing unusual so far, except maybe…"

"What?"

"He had received about 5 calls last few days from the same unknown number."

"That's something, trace it, Bennett."

"On it. Won't take more than 5 minutes. Yes, I've got it. Name Alex Vause, female, lives here, in NY. Was charged for carrying drug money few years ago, but steered clear as there wasn't enough evidence."

"Alex Vause?" Nikki asked, "I know that case. She's working for IDC as well, but, as Bennett said, she left no trace. She isn't surely just a pawn."

"Bring her in. We need to have a little chat."

They brought woman after an hour, it wasn't like she was hiding or something. Nichols and Bennett led her to the interrogation room.

"Want us to question her?" Nikki asked as they closed the door with Vause in the room.

"No, she's mine, thanks."

Piper cleared her mind, looked through woman's case one more time and entered the room. Alex was vey good looking, she had dark hair and magnificent deep eyes. Piper thought to herself that if she weren't a criminal, she would definitely fall for her. But she was connected with drugs and she could be their killer.

"So, Ms. Vause. How do you know Mr. Raymond?"

"What, Tom? We used to go in the same college."

"Very interesting. He's about 5 years older than you. And I thought old college friends know each others numbers, but yours is unknown on his list of contacts"

"What can I say? I liked to make friends with older people and it's nothing strange in having a new number."

Alex Vause was very confident, it was clear that she had been interrogated many times before and knew what to say. She smiled at detective licking her bottom lip.

"What is it, anyway?"

"He was killed, Ms. Vause."

"Fuck", Alex put off the glasses she was wearing and rubbed her eyes.

"Where were you last night about 3 and 4 a.m.?"

"What? Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"I was at home. Sleeping. That's what people do at nights, right, cutie face?"

Piper looked Alex straight in the eyes.

"Got someone who can confirm it?"

"Sure, the girl I was with, here, she left me her number." Alex took a piece of paper from the pocket of her jacket with a phone number on it.

"So, if you're not going to press charges, I'd like to go now", Alex stood up from her seat. "Except, you don't want to leave me your phone number. I'd really like that", she chuckled.

Piper started to lose her patience. The woman was charming as hell, but she drove her crazy by such behavior. And she was certainly involved in that case somehow. Christ, she was a drug dealer who was slipping away again!

"Listen to me carefully. I work there long enough to know how to deal with people like you. I know who you are. Well, almost everyone who familiar with your case knows what do you do for life. And if they can't find the evidence, I can. I'll find everything on you, I'll bring you back there and put you in the prison, suck all the information dry from you before that. I swear."

"So passionate, so intensive. You need to get laid, detective", she smiled widely at Piper and left the room.

"Fuck!" Piper swore.

"That was hell of a chat!" Nicky said to her as Piper left the room.

"She knows something."

"Of course she does. She's like one of the richest drug dealers ever. We just don't know how to get closer to her. Maybe you should give her your number."

"Shut it. I'll try to figure something out. There's no way she left no trace after her. If she carried the money once, she made a mistake somewhere."

"Well, there's nothing we can do today anyway, it's almost 10 p.m. You should go home, have a rest."

"Yeah, probably. Till tomorrow, guys."

"Bye."

Piper arrived at home at 10.30 but she had no intentions to sleep. She needed to press this woman against the wall. She felt there was something. Something she wasn't seeing. She looked through hundreds of cases that included drug dealers. Her name popped up in a few foles but there was not enough evidence again. It was almost 2 a.m. when it hit her. Of course, more likely she was an importer who used the mules to transport drugs and money. Of course she was. Piper smiled at herself uncontrollably, now she knew what to do. The next morning she spoke with her chief and asked for help. They worked hard until the very evening, when finally they connected Alex with dozens of cases. She was so in their hands.

Her colleagues brought Alex in the interrogation room again and Piper started to feel victory spreading through her veins. She entered the room with a confident smile.

"So you want to give me your number after all?" Was all Alex said.

"You were arrested for drug dealing, you know that? You're going to prison for God knows how long. I told you, I'd find something."

"I knew you will. And, you see, you can't arrest me. I shouldn't even be there." Alex said not stopping to smile.

Piper was confused. Something was wrong. She started to get nervous when Alex's lawyer and Mr. Caputo, her chief, came in and said he'd settle everything from there.

Piper left the room not knowing what to think about all of that.

She had to wait for eternity until Mr. Caputo and Alex's lawyer left her chiefs office where they shifted after Piper and Alex were interrupted. The three of them shook their hands and Alex left with her lawyer and two officers.

"I have bad news for you and the good ones", Mr. Caputo told approaching her.

"What was that? I don't understand."

"Looks like we weren't aware of some things, DEA should have told us. All that time she was under house arrest until the court will make a decision."

"What decision?"

"I received a call from the judge while you were in interrogation room. The good news is that this case will be cracked soon."

"How's that, sir?"

"And there's the bad news – you're now working with Vause."

Piper's jaw dropped as she heard him saying that. She planned to send this woman to prison, not to work with her. How that was even possible?

Mr. Caputo continued, "She made a deal with the Government, Chapman. She confessed in some of her crimes and gave them information on some drug dealers. Vause was so helpful that they proposed her to work with DEA as a consultant during her sentence instead of going to prison. And of course she agreed."

"Wha…"

"It's not the end of the story. The Governor, a good friend of our precinct, decided that it was a good idea if she would help us with this case. And what do you think? Vause said it would be her pleasure. She added that she would be working only with blondie. Which, I assume, is you. And if you agree, she will be under your full responsibility until the end of the case."

"No way, no, sir. No way!"

"You have to, Chapman. It's was an order. We can't do anything about that."

No fucking way.

Please, review. I tried really hard, I swear. I know it isn't very logical, but I'm planning to concentrate more on their relationship than on the actual case. Tell me if I should continue this thing, I'm not sure yet.