Chapter 1
Brian sat at his desk, looking over yet another petty ante case that had come to him. Jesus, what a step down from Homicide at the 71st Precinct, but then again, it was his own damn fault for his present situation.
That was the only drawback; Brian had let his emotions get the best of him when it had come to victims. Hell, even his partner had been equally guilty of it at times, but it had never gotten to the point where Paul wanted to punch someone out. No, he had punched walls and file cabinets instead.
From the time the male dancer's body had been found, Brian had been determined to find the son of a bitch responsible for killing the kid. What had been worse was when he and Paul had to inform the guy's mother that her only child was dead and the nature of how he died. It was part of the job that both of them had despised most of all.
But what had pissed Brian off most of all was despite the forensic evidence, despite the witness who had testified to the letter what they saw of the victim being last seen alive with the suspect, and even the thorough investigation itself by Paul and Brian, thanks to the asshole being able to afford a highfalutin, bullshit attorney (and Brian's own secret suspicion that there was a jury bias because the victim had been gay), the fucking jury had acquitted him of murder.
Paul had gone into the men's room and beaten on the stalls in frustration, shattering a couple of knuckles in the process.
Brian had spotted the perp outside the courthouse with a smug look on his face. It had sent him over the edge, especially after seeing the victim break down in sobs and flee the courtroom once the verdict had been read.
The vision of the poor woman was still in Brian's head when he had decked the arrogant asshole, breaking his jaw. The bastard should have been lucky Brian had let him live.
It hadn't mattered that the case was over; one way or another, Brian had vowed to get justice for that kid and his family in the end.
It didn't turn out that way. The perp was now threatening a lawsuit against Brian and his department. There was also a possibility of an assault charge, but both that and the possibility of a civil suit would be abandoned–if Brian was terminated from the department.
Of course, Paul had gone to both their superiors and IAB, pleading his partner and best friend's case. Were they just going to let one of their best detectives go just like that over one lapse of judgment?
No one was quite sure what had happened, but in the end, Brian was booted from the department, demoted to "The Tombs," which was a step above career suicide. Paul had some chick as his partner now, probably some bimbo from Traffic who'd blown the captain to get Brian's old job while he was stuck in The Tombs busting low-level dealers, gangsta kids, shoplifters, and hookers. Nice.
And the partner they had stuck him with. Freaking hell; "Ball Shooter" Detective Marie Davenport.
What a piece of work that chick was; she had gotten booted down to The Tombs from her own precinct after a shootout with some suspects in a drug ring, hitting one of them square in the balls. Whether she had done it deliberately or it happened by chance hadn't been made clear.
IAB had later ruled it an accident, but it had cost Marie both her own post and reputation. Now she was known as the cop who shot a guy's balls off, and most men now stood clear. Even the guys at The Tombs had warned Brian about "keeping a close eye on his boys" once Marie had been assigned as his partner.
It could have been worse, though, Brian thought. Better stuck in The Tombs with his pension intact with a loose cannon female partner than being canned altogether. He should really thank Paul some way for saving his ass, though the guy risked his own jacket in doing so.
He now looked up as Marie dragged in a now-familiar face for booking. Brian looked at the girl and sighed.
"Joey," he said, "how many times are you going to get dragged in here before it gets through your skull to quit selling yourself?"
"I didn't do nothing!" the young hooker protested. "Fuckin' Vice and your bitch partner tricked me!"
"All part of the job," Brian replied, shaking his head. The girl couldn't have been more than eighteen, yet she was going downhill fast. It was only a matter of time before some psycho john sliced her from ear to ear. One hooker he had tried to save had already ended up dead that way; it was only a matter of time before they got to Joey unless she got her ass off the streets.
"Process her," he nodded to Marie. "And then take her to County."
"You're a pig," Joey hissed at him.
"It's for your own damn good, Joey. One day you'll thank me," Brian replied.
"Asshole," she hissed again as Marie led her off.
Just another day at The Tombs, Brian thought, going back to his paperwork.
