Chapter 1
"I'll be right back!" I gather my long blonde hair into a high ponytail before bending down to up a box containing evidence. I then make the short journey down the narrow alleyway and turn right around the corner to the unmarked sedan. As it's just me and Nick left at the crime scene, I don't mind helping the CSI, especially if it means we get out of the afternoon sun a little quicker into the cool, dark of the lab.
We're just finishing up at the scene of a particularly high profile crime. Eve Fisher, 24, only daughter of casino mogul Bruce, brutally murdered in an apparent kidnapping / ransom gone wrong. At the outset Bruce Fisher seemed to follow the kidnappers instructions by not involving the police, but had sought to double-cross them by hiring his own hit-men in return. Only it didn't go down that way and now we're cleaning up the mess. A downtown shootout forced the gang's hand and Eve paid the ultimate price. Nick is working the dump site while the rest of the crime lab retrace Eve's last steps. Bruce is an FOS (Friend of Sheriff!), so given the high profile nature of the case the whole Graveyard Shift has been working through the night and beyond to process and log all the evidence. The rest of the team has already headed back to the lab to begin the arduous task of sifting through what evidence they've already collected, hoping to strike it lucky and break the case quickly. Which leaves Nick to finish up what's left here with me as his muscle!
As I walk I smile to myself, recalling the day's banter. I get on well with Nick, and why wouldn't I, with that easy Texan charm and those strong good looks. I've had a soft spot for Nick since I first met him as a fellow CSI. I guess working with him was the only perk of the job back then. I was so disappointed when having just qualified for my shield, the Sheriff pulled my papers and my detective career was put on hold for life in the crime lab. Eventually I got the chance to follow my dream of becoming a detective but the trade-off was leaving Vegas for Boulder City. At the time I was happy for the fresh start, between Ecklie, Sara and the others, the office politics was just too much to handle. However, I didn't realize at the time just how much I would miss Sin City. So I bided my time and when an opening came up back with Vegas PD, I jumped at it.
Reaching the sedan I pop the trunk, loading my cargo. As I close the trunk my attention is drawn away from my rambling thoughts by a sudden bang. Gunshot! In Nick's direction! I run towards the front of the sedan, desperately reach through the open drivers side window and grab the radio mic. "This is Detective Sofia Curtis. Shots fired at Jefferson and Third, possible officer down. I need immediate back-up and a bus on a rush!" I receive a garbled acknowledgement from dispatch and I set off running in Nick's direction, SIG-Sauer drawn.
God, Nick, please be okay...
Sofia is no sooner out of sight when I spot a group of three men creeping through a gap in the fencing at the Northeast corner of the crime scene. The area is a piece of dusty wasteland, roughly the size of a basketball court, surrounded on three sides with wire fencing. The fourth, westerly side is partially fenced, partially red bricked wall with an open gate leading down the alleyway to the unmarked car. The South and East sides lead to yet more wasteland, demolished housing from a crooked HUD scheme, while inside the perimeter to the North sits a rickety, three sided, corrugated iron hut housing some beat up trash cans. Behind the waste ground is a street where a four-story semi-derelict apartment block still stands. What was once a thriving community is now a crumbling neighborhood overrun with drug addicts and squatters.
"Hey Man, what ya doin'?" One of the men enquires.
"Hey guys, you really shouldn't be here. This area is sealed off, police crime scene." I say in my most authoritative law enforcement voice.
"No kidding!" The man sneers. He is short, mid-twenties, sunken, shifty eyes.
"So you best be movin' along now, there's police everywhere."
"Really? All we could see is you and your pretty little friend." Short's eyes narrow.
Shit. They've been watching us, waiting for an opportunity to pounce. They're obviously looking for something valuable - chemicals, drugs, weapons or whatever. Now I notice the short one is carrying a hand gun, the other two are wielding baseball bats. I put my hand on my holstered Smith & Wesson and quietly release the safety. They keep approaching, fanning out across the court. I'm quickly running out of options so I draw my pistol and point it towards the short ringleader. 'Stop or I'll shoot.' All three just smirk, almost daring me to pull the trigger. They continue to advance towards me and the taller two are now flanking me on either side, the guy to my right is wearing a dark blue tee-shirt and the guy to my left a grey hooded sweatshirt. I fire a warning shot over Short's head. That's when Tall Grey suddenly pounces, lunging at me, bat swinging. Before I know what's happening I feel a sharp pain on the left side of my skull and I cry out as wood meets bone and I lose all power, my body falling face down towards the dusty ground. I'm dazed but still conscious as I register sharp kicks into my ribs. Crack, crack, crack... my ribs cave in under the pressure of the constant pounding. I struggle to catch my breath. With every kick that lands I am more and more incapacitated. I groan weakly. The final kick rolls me onto my back and I hear squeals of delight as I'm roughly frisked and freed of all my personal possessions.
"Hey man, check this out!' From my peripheral vision I see Tall Blue reach down and scoop up my gun. He caresses it, turning it over in his grip, arms extended, eye squinting down the barrel sight.
"Hand it over!" Short demands, wrenching it out of Tall Blue's hands.
"Hey..!" Tall Blue complains to no avail.
Handing the gun to Tall Grey, Short says, "Okay Hoops, time to shine. Go show our pretty little cop a time she won't forget for the rest of her brief life" all the while staring down the alleyway towards Sofia's position.
Oh God no, Sofia!