Law & Order CI: Riddle Me This

Author's notes: Welcome back, everyone, to the third story concerning Bobby and Maria Goren! (It's so nice to write that!)

Redemption Song proved such a hit, that I wanted to write more, more, more! So here I am, presenting you Riddle Me This, a mystery to have your head scratching, your heart pounding and your eyes locked on the screen! Enjoy! Previous disclaimers apply.

Chapter one.

Alex Eames, senior detective, looked up from her computer screen to see her partner, Robert Goren, enter the MCS squad room with his new wife and her niece, now Maria Goren, in tow. Both were sporting biscuit-coloured tans and honey-moon smiles.

'Well, look who's back in the country! It's about time! How was Australia?' Eames asked, leaping up and embracing her niece warmly. Bobby scratched his nose, a small smile playing on his lips.

'It was great Aunty! We went to Brisbane and I took Bobby to all the great theme parks. We also got lucky; Guy Sebastian is doing a tour at the moment, so we went and saw him play,' Maria replied, releasing her aunt and hooking her arm through her hubby's. Alex grinned at Goren.

'And?' she asked, knowing full well what was going to come next. Bobby hated being wrong.

'And... and... and Maria was... right,' Bobby admitted in a halting voice, rather sheepishly. Alex laughed.

'Two Guy nuts in the family, I don't think Dad will be able to cope,' she giggled. Maria rolled her eyes and Bobby blushed. Alex extended her left hand to her partner.

'Well, I'm really happy for you both,' she said. Goren grabbed her hand and peered at it closely.

'This can't... this isn't... Eames, is this what I think it is?' Bobby breathed as Eames snatched her hand back, but not before Maria caught a glimpse of the flash of light from the platinum and diamond band that encased her ring finger.

'Aunty, are you... are you engaged?' Maria gasped as Eames nursed her hand, her face burning.

'Well, just after you two left on your honeymoon, Daniel and I went out to dinner and, well, he proposed and I accepted,' Alex mumbled, looking everywhere but at her partner. But Bobby was beaming.

'Eames, that's... that's fantastic!' he cried, bear-hugging her tiny frame. Alex beat her small hands against his torso until Bobby realised that he was cutting off her air supply. He released her and stepped back, wrapping his arms around his 5'4" detective wife. Maria snuggled against him and smiled at Alex.

'Congratulations Aunty, Daniel's a great guy. He'll make you really happy,' Maria said. Alex nodded, a smile spreading across her face.

'We gotta go check in with Deakins, but we'll be back,' Bobby said, leading his wife away. Alex sat back down in her chair, a warm glow filling her up. Not only were two of her favourite people in the world back in town, but she could now ditch the drop-kick Deakins had assigned to her as a temporary partner.

Captain James 'Jimmy' Deakins gave the newly-weds a similar welcome back, cuffing Bobby genially on the shoulder and congratulating him on his recent nuptials.

'So when are you two starting back?' Deakins asked, sitting back down behind his desk. Bobby shot a look at Maria, who looked coyly at the captain.

'Er, well, we were thinking... maybe... Monday next week?' she said timidly. Deakins arched an eyebrow.

'Monday? That's a little soon, don't you think? Aren't you kids planning to, er, start a family?' he asked, looking from detective to detective. Maria blushed.

'We... um... are, but Bobby and I agreed that we're both better off at work. We'd drive each other nuts if we had to bum around the house for another two weeks. Besides, we'd have plenty of time for that when we'd get home from work,' Maria replied shyly. Bobby sniggered and Deakins shot him an incredulous look.

'Dear God, Goren, if I hadn't worked with you for so damn long, I'd say you were crazy,' Deakins sighed. With a dismissive wave, the captain let the pair exit his office. Seconds later, ADA Ron Carver entered with a stack of paperwork.

'Rumour has it that the Gorens are back from their honeymoon,' he said, passing Deakins the pile. Deakins dropped it on the desk and rubbed his forehead.

'For once, the rumours are true. Bobby and Maria are back. They start back next Monday.'

'That's a little soon, isn't it?'

'If I didn't know Goren so damn well, I'd say yeah. But both of them insisted that they were perfectly happy to return on Monday.'

'Sheesh, you'd reckon Goren would wanna at least start a family. Especially after, well, certain recent events,' Carver said, staring up at the ceiling. Deakins nodded tiredly.

'The rumour mill also churned out another good one. Seems like the marriage bug is biting around here and that our other detective Eames has been well and truly bitten,' Carver said listlessly. Deakins groaned and opened the drawer in his desk. After rummaging for a few moments, he extracted a rectangular piece of card which he handed to the ADA.

'Got it yesterday. Marrying this guy, Burfield,' he said as Carver scrutinised the simple yet elegant invitation. He handed it back to Deakins.

'Well, I know what I'll b doing this afternoon.'

'And what's that, Mr. Carver?'

The ADA grinned and opened the door to the captain's office.

'Sucking up for my invite.'

Bobby arrived home with his new wife and three suitcases in tow. He dropped the cases and threw open the door to their apartment. Sweeping his laughing bride off her feet, he carried her over the threshold and spun her around in the living room.

'Welcome home, Mrs. Goren,' he laughed, his intelligent brown eyes sparkling as he stared into hers. Maria nuzzled his nose.

'Welcome home, Mr. Goren,' she whispered, planting a soft kiss on his rough, unshaven cheek. Goren dropped her unceremoniously onto the couch and threw off his suit jacket. They had changed into more professional clothes at the airport so that they could visit the precinct without getting rattled for their holiday clothes. Maria reached up and loosened his tie slightly. Bobby leant down and kissed her neck.

'Bobby, do you think that we're rushing back to work a little too soon?' Maria asked softly. Bobby dragged his lips away from her and stared.

'How do you mean?'

'Well, maybe Deakins is right. Maybe another two weeks is what we need,' Maria said, entwining her fingers through his soft curls. Bobby gave her a half-smile and stroked the arm that ran past his right shoulder.

'We'd drive each other nuts, you know. Completely bonkers. We need the stimulus,' Bobby replied. Maria grinned darkly at him and stroked his left hip.

'I can think of one stimulus that they can't provide at work,' she murmured, pulling him down to her. Bobby sighed contentedly as her kiss found his Adam's Apple.

'I don't know so much... see, the last time I was there, they hired this hot little junior detective from Australia...' he moaned. Maria giggled against his throat.

'Now, now Bobby, there'll be no more playing the field. I'm the only team you'll be batting for now,' she said warningly. Goren laughed and buried his face in her hair.

'I wouldn't even consider a trade, my darling. Never in a million eons and then some.'

Monday arrived, cool and crisp as Alex Eames stepped out of the elevator and onto the floor of the squad room, sucking thoughtfully on the lid of her morning coffee. She almost choked on it when she spotted her partner sitting quietly at his desk, tapping away at his computer.

'You're back early,' she said as she sat across from him. Goren looked up, barely concerned.

'Not really. Maria and I decided that going back to work was the best for both of us.'

'You mean you've had enough of sleeping with your wife already? Goren, you've been married four weeks!'

Bobby looked her gently.

'I never said I was tired of sleeping with Maria. I simply said that going back to work was the best idea. We're both the type of people who get bored easily. We need the work to keep us satisfied.'

'Funny thing for a newly-wed man to say.'

Bobby rolled his eyes and kept typing at his computer. Alex smiled and looked up. Deakins was heading their way. He arrived and gave Goren a quick nod.

'Heads up kids, first case of the week,' he said, dropping a file on Goren's desk. The detective seized it eagerly. Alex grimaced.

'Some stimulus,' she said. Deakins looked at her.

'I told them that you'd be at the crime scene in twenty minutes,' he said. Goren grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and stood up.

'Let's go.'

Amid the flashing lights of the crime scene photographer's flash, Goren darted around the corpse, examining it from every angle. Alex read the initial report.

'Tommy Whitfield, thirty-seven, apparent suicide,' Alex said, looking down at her partner. Goren looked up at her.

'Occupation?'

'Writer, or would-be writer. Apparently he was behind that quiz book that was supposed to be the big thing this summer.'

'Really? Didn't it flop?'

'Yeah, badly. Apparently MENSA said that a three year old could have solved the riddles in it. The big hit became the big flop.'

Goren studied the body carefully. The man who lay on the floor of his family home was roughly Goren's height, yet not as muscular. His hair was a dirty blonde and his skin was pale. The senior detective lifted the man's hand and checked his fingernails. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his pocket knife, scraping under the nails and depositing the residue in an evidence bag. He handed it to the clean up crew.

'Send this to the labs and give me a complete forensic on it. Tox screen, narcotics, you name it. Bring me the results as soon as you can,' Goren said. The crew member nodded and whisked away. Alex stood by her partner.

'You think this might not have been suicide?'

'I don't know. There might be foul play, there might not.'

'Why do you think...?'

'Remember the case we did when Strick killed his mother when he was ten?'

'You think that one of the kids did it?'

Goren looked back at the body.

'I don't know, Alex. I just don't know.'

'So there were no signs of struggle, no other injuries and nothing that suggests that Whitfield was murdered in a robbery? So why don't you think that it was suicide?' Deakins said upon reading the initial report back at the precinct. Goren swung aimlessly on his chair. Deakins looked up.

'Alright, smart guy, why don't you think this was a suicide?'

Goren sat up straight.

'I never said that he didn't suicide, I just said that he might not have suicided,' he replied, as a young lab tech walked in and handed Goren a folder.

'Tox report?' Alex asked as Goren flipped through it quickly. He nodded. He looked at Deakins.

'Can we get Whitfield's medical records? I need to know whether he was on medication for depression,' he said. Deakins sighed and picked up the phone.

'I'm on it.

Goren sighed as he pushed the door open to the apartment. It wasn't the first time he had been presented with a murder case that looked like a suicide. This just wasn't the way he planned on coming back to work.

'Hey there, handsome.'

Goren whirled around to see Maria setting their wedding silver on the table, accompanied by lit candles and bowls of creamy pasta. He smiled and hung his jacket up by the door, loosened his tie and undid the top button of his shirt.

'What's the special occasion?' he asked as he kissed his wife lightly on the cheek. This must be how Deakins goes home... why on earth didn't I get married earlier?

'Do I need a special occasion to cook you a candle-lit dinner?' Maria replied, walking back to the table, holding Bobby's hand. He pulled her chair out for her and when she was seated, swept around and sat across from her. From the first bite, Bobby was certain that he had married an excellent cook. Maria had made beef tortellini with a creamy bacon and mushroom sauce, followed by a chocolate fondue. After his wife removed the last traces of chocolate from around his mouth (something he found quite enjoyable), she led him into the lounge room where the floor had been cleared.

'One surprise after another,' Bobby murmured, massaging her shoulders gently. Maria rested her cheek briefly against his hand before reaching out and flipping the stereo on. The opening strains of a very familiar tune poured out of the speakers as Maria gripped his hands.

'Is this what I think it is?' Bobby asked as he spun his wife across the floor. Maria grinned.

'If you're asking if this is the song we first danced to, then yes,' she replied, dipping back and sliding her hand down his arm. Bobby laughed.

'This is definitely the way to come home,' he said as he brought her back up slowly, his hand running the length of her spine, causing a shiver to run through her. Maria studied her husband's face.

'Something's up at work, isn't it?' she said abruptly. Bobby let her go as her hands migrated to her hips and her eyes had a calculating look settle in them. Bobby sighed. He might as well tell her the truth.

'Come sit down and we'll talk about it,' he said, motioning to the couch. They sat down and Maria folded her arms, looking at him seriously.

'Now what's up?' she asked. Bobby explained about the Whitfield death.

'... so you see, Deakins doesn't think that he was murdered.'

'Did you order a full tox screen?'

'Obviously. Turned up evidence of depression medication and rat poison.'

'Was he on depression medication?'

'Ordered the medical files, but they won't be in until tomorrow.'

'Bobby, you've faced crime scenes that looked like suicides before, what makes this one different?'

Bobby got up and began pacing the floor. Maria sat up and watched him closely. She'd seen her husband in this mood before. All she had to do was listen. He faced her.

'This is different because it wasn't a normal crime scene. It was set up... like a riddle. Like whoever did this wanted us to crack the riddle.'

'What riddle? Explain to me.'

'The victim died from rat poison, but when we interviewed the neighbours they said that the pest control had come last month. We checked his credit cards and every nearby store and no-one said they had seen him buy the poison. Then we turn up the medication? There's something going on. Something we haven't noticed.'

'Go back to the crime scene. Bobby, everything is a riddle to you.'

'But this was... different. Normally, it's a riddle by default. This was a riddle by choice. I'm not even sure he was murdered in the house, but the car had a full tank of petrol.'

'Bobby, was he married?' Maria asked. Bobby nodded.

'Yes. We haven't spoken to the wife yet.'

'I suggest you do it and do it soon. If you're right about this becoming a murder investigation, you need to catch it before it gets out of hand.'