(Most characters part of the L and O universe)
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CRUSHES, CRIMES AND CHRISTMAS
Chapter 1
December, 2010
Christmas in New York City is a spectacular sight to behold. The entire city illuminates with holiday spirit as the streets are filled with festively-decorated lined streets, holiday-themed store windows, and warmly-bundled shoppers. The entire city is turned into a winter wonderland.
Everyone knows that Christmastime in the Big Apple is truly the stuff dreams are made of.
Everyone, that is, except Mike Cutter.
The closest he ever came to Christmas enjoyment was observing the holiday celebrations through the window of his office in the District Attorney's building.
With his hands shoved in his pockets, he looked out of the glass window at the drifting snow. High above the sounds and lights of the city, he stood and watched the city below transformed into a fairyland of yuletide wishes. The showcase was meant to bring Christmas into his heart, but all he saw was overcrowded commercialism. He turned away from the window to look at the various files piled high on his desk.
Work and more work. But that was fine with him. Just like other years, work will see him through the holidays. At least the last three years had not been too bad. The only reason why the Grinch wasn't out in full force for him then was that Connie had stayed behind to help ease the workload. It made the days leading up to Christmas bearable.
But as things were standing now, he didn't think Connie would working late alongside him this year.
Lately, her working pattern had changed. Oh, she came in, worked hard and put in her hours, but by the time six o'clock arrived, she was already reaching for her thick coat and woolen scarf. And then with flurry of warm farewells and a bright smile, she was gone.
Mike went and sat at his desk while his eyes wandered across to her office.
She had left hours ago, but he missed her presence. He stared at her empty desk now, wondering what has been making her so excited to leave lately. He never asked her directly, because frankly, it was none of his business. Still, he hoped her leaving earlier than usual was just due to the holiday season and that she would begin working late again once the festivities were over.
Just having her in the same room with him made his day brighter.
Buzzzzzzz! Buzzzzzzz!
The irritating buzzing from his Blackberry interrupted his private thoughts. He looked at the screen, his heart lurching at the chance that it might be her. No such luck. It was Lupo.
"Cutter." Mike identified himself. He hadn't realized how exhausted he sounded until he actually heard his own voice spoken out loud.
"Mike, it's Cyrus," Lupo's sighed loudly through the speaker, sounding just as tired, "looks like the Central Park Strangler struck again."
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When Mike had arrived at the crime scene, he was grateful that at least it had stopped snowing.
A specific area had been condoned off with yellow crime scene tape, highlighting the area where the dead body had fallen. The foreboding place was the perfect spot for a murder. The ground was blanketed with snow and the night air seemed particularly cold and dreary in this isolated section of Central Park. Darkness surrounded the entire area with the only brightness coming from a lone park-light above and the police vehicles' flashing lights.
Murmurings could be heard as police milled about, not happy to be spending their holiday investigating a murder.
Already allowed past the yellow crime scene tape, Mike now stood on a slushy iced area next to a jogging path. His wool coat was buttoned all the way up, his collar pulled up, an official DA's badge pinned near his lapel. He didn't frequent a crime scene often, but sometimes it helped if a legal expert were present on more high-profile cases to insure the investigation was on the up and up.
He gravely viewed the dead body and didn't look up, even when he heard two sets of footsteps approaching.
"A Merry Christmas to you, Mike," Lupo dispassionately said, as he and Bernard came up and stood beside him.
"Detectives," Mike greeted them, "not the warmest of nights to be out."
When he spoke he saw puffs of cold air coming from his mouth. Lupo cupped his hands together in order warm his hands.
"Yeah, but we're still warmer than her," he indicated with his head at the dead body on the ground.
The victim was a young woman, her body twisted at an unnatural angle. As the coroner examined the frigid body, Mike stared at the dead woman's face. Her mouth was opened in a silent, frozen scream. Her white zipped jacket melded against the backdrop of the white snow. She was wearing black Lycra jogging pants that showed off her long, muscled legs.
Bernard spoke out, "We haven't identified the victim yet, but as you can see, she had obviously been jogging when she was attacked."
"I can see that," Mike said, a sadness in his tone. He tore his eyes away from the body to look at the detectives, "the other two victims had been joggers, too."
"And just like the others..." added Lupo, "she'd been strangled."
"Who called it in?" Mike questioned.
"Anonymous," Lupo responded.
Bernard gave a quick look around, as if he were looking for someone else to show up, "You come by yourself, Mike? Where's Connie?"
Mike shrugged, trying to look nonchalant, "Who knows? Home, perhaps. Seems she wants to join the human race and work regular hours."
"Hmmph!" Bernard guffawed implausibly, "that certainly doesn't sound like her."
"Actually, the way I hear it, she's probably not home and definitely not alone," Lupo commented.
Bernard looked at his partner, "Oh yeah? What makes you say that?"
"I'm no gossip-monger" Lupo claimed, "but according to Jenny, Connie is being squired around town by some hot-shot, rich guy."
"Good for her!" Bernard encouraged, "it sure beats looking at dead bodies in the dead of the night!"
Mike bit his lower lip as he absorbed every word. As always, he would keep personal thoughts close to his heart. Instead he would change the subject by continuing with the investigation.
"So, any indication regarding the time of death?" he asked.
Not the smoothest transitions, but it got the detectives back on track.
"Well, according to the coroner who just left," Lupo explained, "her torso temperature had been slightly more elevated than her arms and legs. Rodgers estimated the time of death to be no longer than three hours ago..." He then indicated the marks on the victim's neck, "...and it wasn't a peaceful death, either."
"It never is," Bernard commented as he turned to Mike, "Like the other two victims, she had been attacked from behind."
Lupo pointed to the nearby bushes, "According to the track marks, we figured the perp hid in those bushes over there. Then when the victim ran past him on the path, he tackled her, pinned her to the ground and then viciously strangled her."
This time when Mike looked down, he purposely eyed the dead woman's feet, "...and afterwards. like the others, the killer took her left shoe."
"Trophies," Lupo murmured disgustedly, "as if killing her weren't enough."
This was definitely the handiwork of the Central Park Strangler.
"Hey, take a look at this, you two..." Bernard bent down and took a look at the right shoe, which was still on the woman's foot, "...this running shoe looks relatively new," he announced, "the sole shows hardly any wear, the leather is barely creased."
"Was it the same for the other two murdered joggers?" Mike asked, "had their shoes been fairly new?"
Bernard stood up, "Pretty much. And that may work to our favor. If all three bought their shoes recently, maybe those stores will have a records of their purchases," Bernard looked down sadly at the body, "And regarding this Jane Doe, I'll have some of the officers canvas the neighborhood for witnesses."
"You do that," Lupo had closed his notepad, "Meanwhile, I'm going to head back to the office and check missing persons."
He turned and walked away.
"Hey! Wait up!" Bernard yelled over to Lupo, trekking quickly in the snow to catch up with him.
"Why, B," Lupo looked back teasingly exasperated at his partner " is it really necessary for us to be together at all times?" he jested.
"It IS if I'm to be your ride," Bernard joked back as he walked in tandem with his smiling partner.
Their voices and footsteps soon faded as they departed from the crime scene.
Mike adjusted his collar even higher as he felt the night air getting cooler. He looked down at the body laid out in the pristine snow and tried to view her with a professional detachment. But he couldn't. She was probably loved by many but had died with not a friend in sight. He was still present when the body was eventually covered and taken away. Soon the spectators scattered and were gone, while police officers left to file their reports.
He had no choice but to trudge back to his car in solitude, the lone street lamp providing his only source of light. Mike looked up at the sky when he felt snowflakes beginning to quietly drift down, dusting the shoulders of his wool coat.
It looked to be another Christmas spent alone.
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Hello!
I'm so happy to be back! I've been busy writing for other sites, but no matter how much I love writing those stories, writing for Law and Order is like coming back home!
As you know, my hope for this show had been that Mike and Connie would have ended up together at the end. So here is another version of that love story, set against the backdrop of what I hope is an intriguing case. I've tried to stay canon with this story in that it was Mike who always held the feeling for Connie. But I'd also like to think that she, too, suppressed feelings for him, too. (who wouldn't LOL) Until now.
So when it's cold outside, snuggle up in your fluffiest bathrobe in front of a warm fireplace while you sip hot cocoa as you read this. Hopefully, like me, this story will have you falling in love all over again!
Holiday hugs,
DaisyDay
(Please review!:D)