AN: I own neither WTD, nor any character, nor the turkey (last is dedicated to the memory of Ernie, an amazing little cat with a passion for these birds)

A serious crime

Detective Superintendent Boyd has never been a friend of Christmas. Well, in fact, he has not been it for a long time. First it always reminded him of the family he had lost in general and especially of Luke as little boy. Second Peter Boyd hated the way people went crazy during the Christmas time. All this shopping and consuming drove him as mad as all the joyful songs, the stay together, the happiness, the parties, the smiles and the whispering.

He was looking forward to some calm days at home. Actually, he loves the feeling being a bit like Ebenezer Scrooge. He would welcome some days full of laziness, books, he would not read, Christmas songs, he would not hear, because he would turn neither the radio nor the TV on… Well, maybe he would turn his TV on, but just for watching some reruns of sport events, which he missed because of work.

His team has already been excited about the Christmas holidays for weeks. Mel, Frankie and Spencer would spend the free time with "family and friends". Grace would travel abroad for skiing, she had told him. Rumours said something about a well-off surgeon, who would accompany her to the Alps.

Nonsense, thought Boyd. Christmas was bloody nonsense.

On other hand, he hoped that nobody would reopen a cold case during the next few days. He did not want that the members of his team would have to work instead being together with their loved ones. When he shared this thought with Grace, she commented that she had never expected that he is so different from Ebenezer Scrooge - and she asked if he had met the ghosts of Christmas the year before.

Due to the paperwork to be finished before the holidays, the party of the team on Christmas Eve was only a small one with only some punch and cookies self-made by Frankie. They sang some songs; in fact, the team sang some songs. Boyd listened and said something about it that brought Grace to the conclusion that he used to be an opera critic in one of his former lives.

Finally, one by one they left until DSI Boyd was the last one in the office. He enjoyed the sudden silence. No computer was beeping. No printer made any disturbing noise. None was chatting. No gruesome murder was to solve. This is the spirit of Christmas, thought DSI Boyd, the silence and the praised peace.

When he left the building, there was fresh snow outside. A white sheet covered everything. The Detective Superintendent did a deep breath. The fresh air was astonishing and wholesome. Of course, he would never confess that he loved these rare moments of snow and peace, but he did and enjoyed it.

Later that evening Boyd's mobile rang. It was just five minutes after he opened the first bottle of the delicious, red wine, good friend had sent him as a Christmas gift from Italy.

"Sorry to disturb you, boss, but there is a serious crime we have to solve immediately", Spencer's voice told him. "Mel will pick you up by car in ten minutes."

"Oh, Christ", answered Boyd with anger in his voice. For one moment, he sat upright on his sofa then he changed his slippers with his boots and took his coat.

Mel was already waiting outside. "Sorry, boss, but DAI Miller was calling Spence about a serious problem. He asked for immediate action. It is about a terrible crime series."

Boyd muttered. "Why was he calling Spence and not me? I mean, I am the head of the unit, am I not?"

"Yes." Mel delayed answering for a second. "But it did not look so fundamental in the first moment. Now we are sure indeed that this has been one of the important crimes for the last twenty years."

"Any details?" Boyd's mood was awful.

"Yes," Mel hurried to answer. "Some guy reported several victims terribly burnt; dozens of them, since years and every one during Christmas time. He delivered one of them to Met and they forwarded it to our laboratory."

"A cold case then, but with a hot beginning?" Boyd laughed rough.

Mel rolled her eyes. "It is not funny, don't you think? It is a serious crime at Christmas." Her voice sounded enraged. "Terrible would I call this"

They arrived. DSI Boyd left the car and entered the building immediately. Mel slowly followed him after she had parked the car. Grace and Spencer were awaiting both of them in the meeting room.

"News?" Now the fresh case has already thrilled Peter Boyd.

Spencer nodded. "We have got a suspicious person as well as an identikit."

His boss did a quick look. "He is a Santa Claus lookalike, is he not?"

Grace groaned shirty. "Peter, this is disrespectful."

"Yes, Grace," he answered. "But it is true, too." A further groan by the psychologist was the reply.

"The body is with Frankie?" Boyd was hurrying. He wanted back to his calm home and the bottle of Italian wine as soon as possible. "So, let's go to the laboratory."

"It smells like a roast chicken, did not it?" joked Boyd, when they went into Frankie's kingdom.

"This is ridiculous, Peter," Grace was furious about this thesis. "Please keep in mind that this is about suffering creatures."

Mel made a sound like giggling, but Boyd discovered that she had to catch serious cold. She was hiding nearly her whole face in a handkerchief. Even Spencer was coughing. This team was really in need of some days off.

"Well," said Boyd adventurous, "let's start fast and return home just as well." He clapped his hands. "Where is Frankie?"

"Here I am," the pathologist answered. "Everyone ready?"

"Yes," answered the whole team in common and Frankie lifted the white cloth.

Instead of the dead body, Boyd was awaiting, a roast turkey on a plate came into his view. Several plates filled with potatoes, Brussels sprout as well as a huge Christmas pudding stand next to the bird. Grace opened one of the cupboards and took a bowl full of Christmas punch including four mugs out.

Boyd just stood aside. He was too surprised for remark anything.

"Everything is cleaned and disinfected," hurried Frankie to assure. "Mel and I drudged the whole afternoon to clean up all perfectly."

"Yep, nobody would doubt this," replied Spencer.

"So, merry Christmas to us all," Grace said with a cheerful face. "And enjoy your meal!"

"Well", Boyd said to Grace an hour later, "you asked me about meeting the ghosts of Christmas last year. I think I did tonight." He grinned bright. "I met all four of them"

--- End

Merry Christmas to you all! :-)))