"Hey Nat, you got a moment?" A deep familiar voice sounded over her shoulder from the desk situated directly next to hers.
"Stan, please, you can't expect me to have a moment with all this paperwork I still need to file from this past month's case." Natalie's finger hammered away at the keyboard in front of her, the dark circles becoming ever obvious as the glow from the screen further illuminated her face.
"Yeah, well you need a moment to eat otherwise I'll have another death on my hands, literally." Stan held a burger in front of her face, "Here, I had Gabe pick it up when he and Thea when to grab lunch."
"Thanks." Natalie took the burger in her hand and about swallowed it whole. "How do you manage all this work? I mean, yeah patrolling the beat was rough for years, but that was nothing compared to all the files and reports we go through each day. Some days I question if I shouldn't have just stayed as an officer. I mean, not that I don't enjoy the job, but, I question myself when I've gotten shot at more in this last month than the past couple of years combined."
Stan turned over at her, peering over his glasses with his golden eyes. "Look, girl, something I need you to understand is that you were chosen for a reason and it may not look like it, but you're an asset to the precinct. Plus, I hate admitting it, but we couldn't have cracked this last case without you." He gave her a grin and ran a hand through his raven hair, slicking it back.
"I suppose... It's just hard on days like today when you're up to your neck with old paper work that should have been done weeks ago and looking over the clues that should have been so obvious." She glanced over at him as she put her strawberry blonde hair into a high pony tail.
"Sometimes that's how the cookie crumbles. But seriously, You gotta start taking care of yourself better. Stress and lack of sleep is hardly good for anyone. Couple that in with poor dietary choices and you're on the path to an early grave." Stan turned back around, grabbing a file from Nat's pile and began plugging away at the computer again.
Natalie rolled her eyes, "Like you're one to talk, Daaad. You smoke half a pack a day!"
"Yeah yeah yeah, I got it, Mom." He waved her off.
It had been about a month since Natalie had been transferred into New York City's 6th Precinct's homicide detective's unit. She had been part of the force now for about 5 years since she had turned 20. It wasn't until recently when her superior and the Commissioner for the 6th had formally requested for her to be promoted that she really put thought in becoming a detective. She knew that it would be hard work and knew that it didn't quite guarantee her to be out of harm's way, but she definitely wouldn't trade it for anything as the experience would be worth it. So far, she couldn't lie, it had been amusing and was nice being able to see a first hand, behind the scenes view at how cases got closed.
She also was thankful for the fact that her coworkers were all pretty down to Earth for her tastes. Her partner, Stan, at age 26 was only a year older than her. Sure he was a bit rough on the outside, but he was a lot more caring than he would ever let on. She still was coming to terms with how ruthless he was at times with interrogation and how brash he could be as he literally muscled important evidence from suspects. However, he only did so out of necessity, mainly because his intuition always was strong when it came to dealing with highly suspected perpetrators. In some ways, she was a bit jealous of how adept he was in that regard of having that almost sixth sense.
"Hey guys!" Natalie was startled from her thoughts a door opened, "The commissioner requests our presence!"
"DAMN IT, ANTHEA! What have I told you about knocking?! Now my coffee is all over these files!" Stan glared over the tan woman who stood before him as he shook off a report folder.
"Stan, you never change. But seriously, you should know better than to put your feet up on the desk like that since this isn't the first time it's happened. Anyways, we gotta go, Zad says it's urgent and I'd rather not get my ass chewed for taking up too much of her time." Gabe rested his arm on the door frame as he motioned them out of the office with his thumb.
"Christ, if she's gonna chew our asses out, I've got a couple of cans of "insta-ass' at my place!" Stan got up from his desk and adjusted his holster straps that slung over his shoulders over his charcoal turtleneck.
Natalie stacked her packet on top of her already cluttered desk and followed behind them, "I wouldn't push it. You know the moods she can get it... If the Samuel's case was any indication."
"Rookie, I know you've been here a month, but when you've been on for as long as Gabe and I have, you'll gain a better appreciation for the days where her anger only peaks at that level." Thea tousled one of her auburn curls.
Gabe visibly shuddered as if he was recalling a somewhat traumatic moment, "Yeah, I'd have to agree with Anthea. It's like she becomes a whole new person, though you gotta admit, she's real successful at running things around here, let alone the other departments she oversees."
Natalie glanced over at Gabe and Thea, admiring their years of experience. Both of them had been in the homicide unit for quite a few years, at least 8 or so years from what they could gather. They had seen their fair share of hard cases and had made quite a name for themselves within the city area. It was rare for them to go longer than a couple weeks to round up a case, however there were a few cases that would slip through their fingers. It helped that Gabe had joined the force straight after high school and had an acute awareness of his surroundings at all moments; hardly anything got through his watchful eyes. Perhaps, it was that sense in which Gabe had understood Anthea's feelings for him which eventually lead to their marriage only a year ago.
The four entered the commissioner's office. Immediately the smell of lavender and a slight hint of leather greeted their nostrils as Natalie looked around. She took note of the earthy tones spliced with hints of violet caressing the walls. What space there was, had been occupied with a lone bookcase, various filing cabinets, and paintings with a modern art vibe. It still amazed her at how clean the office was and yet the desk would mimic her own with papers and files stacked to the brim.
In movie style fashion, the leather chair situated behind the desk spun around with Zad sitting clad in her pin stripe suit, legs crossed and case file in hand. "Took you guys long enough to get here! Anyways, beyond that... We have a new case that just came in. I'm not sure what you guys have heard in the news lately, but whoever we're looking for has been running rampant throughout the city and has now decided to move into our neck of the woods."
"Oh, I remember hearing about this while I was on patrols last month before I switched over!" Natalie's jade green eyes perked up as she leaned against one of the file cabinets, "The Blood Cross Killer, right?"
"Very impressive McAllister." Zad tapped the side of the file against the desk as she rose from her chair. "The Blood Cross Killer has been notorious in the fact that when he does kill someone, it's done in, what's the word, an almost heavenly fashion if there ever were one. The only real lead we have to go off of right now seems to be unable to talk. One of the deputies brought a kid in from the crime scene and while he had only just showed up and called the cops. Understandably, seeing as how he's the victim's son, he's pretty traumatized."
"I'd be willing to bet that this kid is probably scared and trying to do his best to process what happened." Gabe thumbed his chin, furrowing his brows in thought.
"That's what the cops are suggesting down in the interrogation room." Zad tousled her short pixie hair.
A small clink of metal echoed in the room as flames shot up from a Zippo lighter as Stan lit up a cigarette. "So, I'm assuming this happened within the hour?"
"Well, initial reports are suggesting that the actual murder happened quite a few hours ago. It's just a shame this kid doesn't have a lot of information for us to really go off of. Forensics is currently working the scene for clues. But, we'll be lucky if we find anything worth noting. Whoever is doing this is pretty thorough with covering their tracks. Thea, Gabe, you guys go to the scene and see what you can discover. Stan, Nat, both of you go and see if you can acquire any more information off the kid downstairs." Zad handed the case file to Nat.
Gabe and Anthea spun on their heels as they exited the office with Nat and Stan following close behind. "You two, wait a second." Zad planted her hands on the desk.
"What's up Commish'?" A slight groan came from Stan's mouth, "Did my ass not get chewed up enough the last time I was in here?" He hissed out a lungfull of hazy smoke from between his lips.
"Cut the crap, Luce! Besides I don't need an invitation to chew your ass out, you should know." Zad threw a paperclip at Stan, nailing him in the forehead.
"Fuck, that hurt. Why I oughta throttle you one of these days. And quit calling me Luce. I told you I hate that nickname." He rubbed the contact point, feeling the warmth emanating from it.
Zad raised a foot up on her desk, her high heel clacking as it made contact. There was no mistaking that she had a towering stature, coming in at about an inch above Stan, and only heightened by the heels she wore. "Well, if that's how you wanna play, I'm sure you wouldn't mind my 5 inch heels making contact with your face. I'm sure your nose missed feeling the bottom side of my Jimmy Choo's."
"E-excuse me, I'm sure the foot to face meeting is a long awaited reunion, but what was it you needed, Ma'am?" Natalie timidly raised her hands up, darting her eyes between the two. She could almost see the electricity sparking between their glaring gazes.
Zad cracked a grin as she leaned forward, resting her forearms on her knee. "I knew there was a reason I requested you, McAllister. Anyways, I need you guys to also get in contact with Mick and Kris over at the 24th. They've been working the hell out of this case and can probably give you what leads they have. I have faith that if anyone will be able to, you guy will be able to nail the perp."
Natalie blushed a little at the vouch of confidence from the Commissioner. "Th-thank you Ma'am. We'll get right on it! Come on Stan, we should probably get moving on questioning the kid."
"Alright, but make sure you're ready next time, Zad. This isn't over yet." Stan took a long drag on his cigarette, closing the door behind him as Nat stepped out of the office.
Nat thumbed through a couple documents of the file and handed the initial police report to Stan as they stood within the listening area of the questioning room. Stan's eyes darted up, his intent gaze on the kid in the room through the see through mirrored window who couldn't have been any older than at least 13, maybe 14 on the high side. He sat on the metallic chair with roller skates and his hat pulled down, shielding his face. Stan had a feeling this probably wasn't his first run in with the law, but probably his first in a case that involved him so emotionally.
"Alright, let's go in. But let me do the questioning. I've got a pretty good handle on this kid already." Stan jammed the paper back at Nat.
Nat followed behind Stan, quickly tidying her blazer as Stan opened the door. She had done this numerous times before in the past month, but she was still a newbie to the whole intense questioning part that she didn't really have to partake in during her time on the beat patrol. She nestled herself in a chair next to Stan, opposite of the kid, opening the file and took hold of the Polaroid photo that forensics had included. She was a bit shocked at how young he seemed to be.
"Hi there Felix, my name is Stan Samil and this is my partner Natalie McAllister." Stan inched his chair closer to the table, "I know this is probably a rough time for you and probably was quite a shock for you to see what you did."
A small fan in the upper corner of the room was the only audible sound as Stan glanced over at the boy who hid his arms further up in the sleeves of his hoodie as he fidgeted with them in his lap. Stan grabbed at the metallic ashtray on the corner of the table as he lit his cigarette, his voice sympathetic. "I'm sorry you had to go through that but Felix, we need to know what you saw in order to find out what we can to help get justice for your dad."
Felix used both hands and adjusted the bill of his hat and meekly looked up, his face stony. Stan's lips tugged at the corners as a warm smile crossed his face. "Thanks Felix. I know this is probably hard for you, but can you tell me what happened when you got home?"
Natalie looked over at Stan, something unreadable glimmered in his eyes as he stared at the teen situated in front of him. She had never seen that type of expression in her partner and it was slightly intriguing. Usually his face was so full of expressions ranging from happiness or anger, but there was something about this, perhaps a bit of sympathy, almost bordering on reminiscing his past. Natalie quickly averted her gaze as Stan glanced over at her from the corner of his eyes. 'Nat, now's not the time to be inquiring about his history...' she thought to herself as her eyes glanced back to Felix.
The young teen cleared his throat, his posture shifted to look as tall as he could. "Well, I had come home from school a little earlier than normal. I was expecting dad to be there cause generally he works from home and doesn't really go out anymore except to church. But, anyways, like I had said, I came home a little earlier because Dad and I were gonna go out for my 13th birthday. And like usual, I called out for him as I normally do when Iot home and it was odd cause I didn't really hear anything as I came in through the door. So, I called out to my dad again and still didn't hear a thing. That's when I turned the corner into the living room and saw my dad lying on the ground. Of course I ran over to him and before I even reached him, the smell of blood hit me like a freight train and at that point I didn't really even need to go any further. I just kinda knew. That's when I called the cops."
Stan ashed his cigarette along the side of the ashtray. "That must have been a pretty traumatic sight to see. Now, I assume the apartment you live in has no elevator access, as in there's no elevator to be found there?"
"No, most of the apartments over there don't really have much in the way of elevators. Or at least the ones you can afford on low income." Felix's head bowed down a little.
"Did you happen to notice anything odd on your way in or as you headed up the stairs? Or do you know of anyone that might have been around at the time that this happened, Felix?" Stan blew a trail of smoke from between his lips.
Felix paused and raised a hand to his chin, "I wish I could say that I did, but I don't really remember much. Everything went by in such a blur."
"That's completely understandable. Well," Stan dug inside his pocket and handed a business card to Felix. "Here's my contact info if you remember anything or need anything. We'll do everything we can to get the answers you're looking for. Come on Nat, let's go."
Nat looked as Stan rose from the chair and spun around to see him reaching for the door handle. She felt an unmistakable sympathetic sadness as quickly whipped her head back towards Felix, "Hey, you said it was your birthday today right?"
Felix's eyes spread wide. "Y-yeah."
Nat got up and walked to the other side of the table, kneeling in front of him, Stan's gaze drawn to her as she smiled up at Felix. "I remember the day my mom died, I was about 10 years old when she passed away on my birthday. I remember I cried the whole day."
Felix balled his hands as his whole body trembled. His stony and almost aloof expression quickly began to crumble as his the rims of his eyes were dotted with tears. "I-I'm not going to cry."
Natalie's eyes softened as she leaned forward wrapping her arms around him. She felt Felix crumple below him as tears wracked his frame. She knew how hard it was as a kid to try and hold composure in such a painful time. She distinctly recalled as she consoled her own brother the very day that should have been meant to celebrate her birth even as she had spent the whole day crying, herself. He held himself in for so long till that evening when Nat went to his room and gave her brother a hug and he completely broke down. There was no way to mistake the parallel in the situation she now found herself in with Felix.
Stan's eyes widened at Natalie as he saw her run her fingers through Felix's hair. He felt something bubble within his consciousness that he couldn't quite explain seeing her in that light. He had learned a lot about his partner in the past month, but she hadn't really opened up much in regards to her own family life. It was a bit of a shock to see her looking so vulnerable as she held the teen tight.
A few minutes passed before Felix was able to gain composure and he wiped his face with the sleeves of his hoodie. He flipped his hat around and glanced up at Nat in an almost pleading way. Nat smirked with smiling eyes, "Don't worry, I won't tell a soul."
"Thanks lady, err, I mean Natalie." He pulled a hand through his sleeve.
"No problem, Felix. You can call me Nat though." She shook his hand. "Hey, what are you doing tonight? If you'd like to, why don't you join my partner, Stan and I, for dinner? It'd be a shame to have you celebrate your 13th birthday alone." Natalie looked over her shoulder at Stan and winked at him while smiling as Felix's face lit up through reddened eyes.
Stan grinned and gave them both a thumbs up. "Sure, I know a pretty good pizza joint a few blocks down from here."
"But before that, Stan and I have to go get in touch with a couple other detectives to see if they found anything relating to your dad's case, okay? We'll meet back up with you here in a couple hours. So about 6, sound good?" Natalie smoothed over Felix's hair as she stood up.
"Sure, that sounds good. I should probably go shoot some hoops or something since I can't quite go back home right now with all the people at my house." Felix stood up and skimmed across the room towards the door in his roller blades.
Stan watched as Felix zoomed through the halls towards the precinct entrance. He turned around, slightly thrown off by his partner standing next to him. "Did anyone ever tell you you're pretty good with kids?"
Natalie smacked Stan playfully against his head as she walked out the door. "Hmmm, couldn't at all be due to the fact that I'm pretty much taking care of a grown up man-child now, is it?" She gleefully chuckled as she walked out of the interrogation room.
"HEY! What's that even supposed to mean?!" Stan called after her as she headed towards the elevator.
"I plead the fifth!" Natalie pressed the call button.
"Please, you think I'm a kid? What kind of detective do you take me for?" Stan swiped his thumb against his chin. His tone saturated with sarcasm and slight discontent.
"I don't know , you tell me. Now, let's get in touch with Thea and Gabe to see if they were able to find anything out." The door to the elevators opened.
"Fine, but you make any more comments like that and so help me I will make you fill out all of our case files for the rest of the year." Stan brashly slammed his thumb against the button for the 4th floor.
Natalie scoffed as she glanced up at her partner. "I'd like to see you try."
"WHY I-" A blast of sound waves rang through Stan's pants pockets, nearly jolting the two.
"Shout at the Devil? REALLY?! I thought I told you to change that God forsaken ringtone!" She crossed her arms as she rolled her eyes at him.
"Detective Samil here," He held a finger up at Nat. "Oh, Thea, good timing, what did you guys find out?" Stan's brows furrowed as Nat's head tilted inquisitively. "We'll be right over."
Stan snapped his cell phone shut, "Looks like they found something down at the crime scene that's of some potential interest. Seems like the embers on this trail is burning a bit brighter."