Detective Catherine Chandler sat at her desk, resting against the back of her chair. Her dark hair was pulled into a single braid that came down her right shoulder. Her leather jacket was draped over the back of her chair. In her right hand was a framed photograph that she stared at absentmindedly. It was a photo of her family during their latest trip down to Florida. It was the first trip they'd taken since Brooke and her father were married. Brook and her father had been sitting on a stone wall beside the pool of their hotel. Thomas' arm was casually wrapped around Brooke's waist. Heather was sitting on the ground in front of them. Brooke had her arm wrapped around Heather's neck. Cat was standing behind her dad, leaning against him. Her arms were wrapped around his neck. Every one of them was smiling up at the camera, the first memento as a new family. Cat sighed heavily.
"What's wrong?"
Cat turned toward her partner, Tess. "Huh?"
Tess was sitting at her desk, going through something on her computer. Her eyes never left her screen as she continued. "You've been staring at that picture for twenty minutes, sighing every three. What's going on?"
Cat sighed-despite herself-and turned to Tess. "My dad's birthday's this weekend."
Tess arched one of her brows and glanced toward Cat. "And you're having trouble getting him a gift?"
"Oh no, he told me in specific detail what he wants." Cat replied.
Interest peaked, Tess turned from her computer. "And you can't get it for him?"
"He wants, and I quote 'to see me happily settled off with someone and not spending every waking moment enclosed by my work' end quote." Cat explained.
"Wow. That was really specific." Tess' brows now shot up. "But I thought dads didn't want to see their little girls grown up.
"Well apparently there's an age limit for that and I have reached it." Cat replied. "I mean, back before the wedding Heather told me that he's afraid I'm going to be alone forever simply because I hadn't RSVP'd for the wedding. And now here it is, over a year later and he's bringing it back up."
"Being fair, he has a point." Tess said.
Cat raised one of her brows. "Oh?"
"Okay, you haven't spoken about going out on a date, or going out in general since Zeke. You deny anything and everything implied where Evan is concerned; I mean it's like you're a hermit. You go home, go to work, catch the bad guys, go home and do it all again the next day." Tess explained.
The truth was, Catherine already had someone in her life right now. He was the reason she never went out or away for the weekend, because she's was always with him. But there was no way Catherine could ever let that slip again. Even if it was true, explaining Vincent's situation was just too big of a risk and they were both lying too much as it was. It was easier for them all to let everyone believe Catherine had no life outside of work.
Catherine opened her mouth to reply, but the sight of Joe stopped her. Tess noticed Cat's face and turned. His face was grime, as it was every time a brutal case came through. From the look on his face, it was going to be a very bad one. Neither one could bring themselves to ask the question.
Joe beat them to the punch. "Chandler, Varges, you got a case."
The New York Palace was one of the most luxurious hotels in Manhattan. Its rooms and suits ranged from 360 to 1530 square feet. Each room was equipped with a full desk, in-room safe, ironing board and iron, marble bathroom, terry robes, and electronic key and security system. And that was the basics for the rooms. The victim was a young woman, appearing in her mid-twenties. She lay horizontally across the ultra-plush mattress. Her head hung over the edge of the bed, her right hand beside her face. The white sheets were wrapped around her naked body, barely providing any cover around her. The sheets and mattress were stained crimson. Dozens of stab wounds covered the woman's torso. Blood dripped from her fingertips and mouth. Her blue eyes were still opened, now glossed over, forever immortalizing the fear in her eyes.
Catherine stood on the far side of the room, barely able to maintain her composure. It had been a long time since she'd seen anything so brutal. The last time…she'd been with Vincent. He'd lost control, but this. This was done by someone else. They'd intentionally plotted this and left a young woman to bleed out. This was evil in its purest form.
"Victim is Michelle Foreson. Twenty-six. Id's from Ohio." Tess began. She stood beside Cat, leaning against the wall. Tess did not do female brutality well. None of them did.
"Who found her?" Cat asked.
Tess motioned into the next room. "Her bridesmaid buddies. Came in to get her for the rehearsal and found her like this."
Cat turned to Evan. "Do we have a time of death?"
"Based on the lavidity of the body and liver tempt, I'd estimate between one thirty and three this morning." Evan explained. "The cause is clear, exsanguination. She bled out."
"She's been lying in here for ten hours." Cat mumbled.
"And no one heard anything." Tess explained. "The rooms next to Michelle's belong to the rest of the bridal party. And everyone was out partying."
"So why was she still in her room?" Cat asked.
Evan stood up from the bed. An intern walked in with the gurney. They gingerly worked young Michelle into the black bag and zipped it up. They lifted her from the bed and onto the gurney. As Evan moved with the bag, his foot kicked something beneath the bed. The room's occupants stopped moving. Evan looked down at his foot. Catherine walked to the bed and knelt down. She lifted the sheets and found a green cased phone beneath the bed. She pulled it out, watching the blood covering the screen.
"Looks like Michelle tried to call someone before she died." Cat said, slipping it into an evidence bag and passing it to a CSU member.
"Get a name?" Tess asked.
"Yeah, David." Cat answered.
Tess folded her arms. "You thinking boyfriend?"
"Or something." Evan said.
The women turned back to Evan, who slowly lifted a condom that had been entangled in the sheets with the victim.
Cat looked at the condom and sighed. "Looks like we may have a third party involved."
"Or it could be the killers." Tess replied.
"Either way, we need DNA on that."
"I'll put it on the top of my list." Evan said, bagging the condom. He nodded to his intern and they wheeled the gurney out of the bedroom.
Tess moved to Cat. "Okay, so we have a used condom, incomplete phone call made while she's dying, but not much for signs of struggle. So either she didn't see it coming until it was too late-"
"Or she didn't think they were a threat." Cat finished. "But either way, nothing is making sense."
"Think it's time to talk to the bridesmaids?" Tess asked.
Cat nodded. "Definitely."
They walked back out into the living room. The CSU team reentered to continue their search. On the sofa sat three grief stricken young women. Each one sported the same look; red eyes, smeared make up, and visible discomfort in the light. If Catherine didn't know any better, she'd guess they were suffering from painful hangovers and shock of finding Michelle dead.
"Ladies, this is my partner Detective Chandler, we've just got a few more questions for you." Tess said.
"How much longer are we going to do this?" asked the red head. She wore a bright yellow cocktail dress that was wrinkled around her body. Most likely the same dress she'd gone out in last night and then slept in.
"Hailey, right?" Tess asked.
Hailey nodded.
"You told the officer's you all left the hotel around nine thirty and when to your friends bachelorette party." Tess said.
Hailey nodded again.
"Why wasn't Michelle with you?"
"She said she wasn't feeling good." Answered the blonde.
Hailey snorted bitterly. "Yeah right.
One of Tess' brows arched. "She lied?"
"Damn right she lied." Hailey answered. "She was the smart one too."
"Why's that?"
"Because she didn't have to spend the night watching Carly get drunk off her ass and make an even bigger bitch of herself." Hailey answered.
"Hailey!"
"You know it's true!" Hailey snapped.
Tess frowned. "Okay, I'm confused."
"Carly's the bride." Hailey explained. "And she's a twenty-four carrot bitch. You ever see the show Bridezilla's? The worst brides shown are Carly on a daily basis…before she got engaged."
"Michelle hated her." The blonde…Audrey continued.
"Was Carly aware of this?" Cat asked.
"Most likely. Carly was a bitch, but she wasn't stupid." Hailey answered.
"So how did Michelle end up as the maid of honor?" Tess asked.
"David." Answered the third girl.
Catherine and Tess exchanged glanced. "David?"
"Carly's fiancé. David and Michelle were best friends back in Ohio. They grew up together. David begged Carly to have her included in the party." She explained.
"We're going to need to know where to find them." Tess said.
"And possibly a photo of them."
i'm back! alright, let's get this show on the road!
