Chapter 2
Fraser, Ray, and Dief made their way to the 10th floor of the building to the offices of Morgan and Associates. They were met by a secretary who was being interviewed by a detective.
"Excuse us," Fraser enquired, "my apologies for intruding, but what has happened?"
"And you would be?" the detective asked.
Fraser offered his hand, "Constable Benton Fraser, Royal Canadian Mounted Police. And this is my associate, Detective Ray Kowalski of the Chicago P.D."
The detective shook Fraser's hand, "I'm detective Bill Dubreuil of the Toronto Police. I was in the process of interviewing… what did you say your name was again?"
"Angela," the secretary replied. "Angela Fitzgerald." She was transfixed on the Mountie. Ray just had to roll his eyes at another woman fawning over Fraser.
"Anyway," Detective Dubreuil continued, "Ms. Fitzgerald was telling me about a murder that happened earlier."
"Was it the case of a disgruntled co-worker?" Ray quizzed.
"Oh no," Angela stated. "Mr. Crawford, the victim, was conducting interviews for a new Administrative Assistant because I'm going on maternity leave in a couple months. I went to check on him because it had been a while since the last candidate left, and when I went into his office, that's when I found he had been stabbed to death."
"Stabbed to death?" Fraser asked, "Is there any sign of the murder weapon?"
"I didn't notice one being left behind," Angela answered. "I saw him dead in a pool of blood and I immediately called the police."
"Hmm," Dubreuil mused.
"Something wrong, Detective," Fraser asked.
"Sounds like Marsala's back to her old ways," Dubreuil replied.
"Wait, her ways?" Ray asked astonished. "A woman is the possible killer?"
"Yes, Detective Kowalski," Dubreuil confirmed. "About a year ago, we had a string of mass murders where companies interviewing candidates for Administrative Assistant positions ended up being murdered after one particular woman had been interviewed. Cynnamon Marsala was her name. By the time we took her in, she ended up killing three interviewers, a rival applicant, her neighbour, and her boyfriend. She was set to be locked up for years, but it was deemed she was psychologically unstable. So because of that defence, she was sent to the Ontario Shores Mental Health Centre in Whitby as part of their Forensic Psychiatry program."
"Isn't that a little flawed?" Ray inquired. "The woman killed six people and she got off on an insanity plea?"
"The human mind can be quite complex, Ray," Fraser explained. "In some people, there is a chemical imbalance in the brain that can cause them to act irrationally. It appears in the case of Ms. Marsala, her psychotic behaviour is triggered whenever she feels rejected to the point where she feels the need to lash out at those who have wronged her."
"Exactly, Constable," Dubreuil confirmed, "you've got her psychological profile down pact."
"Thank you kindly, Detective," Fraser commented. "As part of another case, I spent time at a mental hospital, so I know how some people can be."
"I'm surprised they didn't keep you in longer," Ray quipped.
"Inspector Thatcher thought that quite a bit," the Mountie responded. "Personally I thought Constable Turnbull should be the one committed, but that's not important right now. The fact of the matter is there is a psychopathic killer roaming the streets, and I feel its best if we can assist Detective Dubreuil in trying to track down Ms. Marsala."
"You don't really have to do that, Constable," Dubreuil hesitated. "I'm sure we can handle things on our end."
"Trust me, Bill," Ray interjected, "with Fraser he'll do practically anything to help solve a case. It's like some sort of Boy Scout mentality he has."
"Well, I could use a couple extra hands," Dubreuil debated.
Hearing this, made Dief whine. Fraser turned to him and said, "Oh I'm sure he meant you could help out too."
"Is that an actual husky?" Dubreuil asked.
"Actually, he's my wolf," Fraser corrected. "He's been with me ever since he helped me escape a mine shaft in the Territories. The only problem is he's deaf."
"I hope he's had his shots then," Dubreuil said. "We could use a police dog on this case."
"I'm sure Diefenbaker will be glad to help out then," Fraser responded. Dief barked in glee.
Dubreuil gave Angela his card in case any new developments came up, then turned to leave with Fraser, Ray, and Dief. Although he thought the concept of having a Mountie, an out-of-town cop, and a wolf aiding in the case was out of the ordinary, Dubreuil believed having extra men on the job would be beneficial. Little did he realise how out of the ordinary Fraser can be.