"Joe?" Stephanie walked through the house. 'I'm pretty sure he was there last night. Right?' No one was home but Bob. She grabbed a bowl of cereal and sat in front of the television. Though it was early, she was feeling quite rested.
"…Our sources say it occurred at 4 o'clock this morning. We are informed that there was one fatality and the suspect is still at large. He should be considered armed and dangerous." The newscaster concluded.
"This is Trenton. Aren't they always?" Stephanie mumbled with a full mouth of Frosted Flakes, pointing the spoon at the TV. "What else is new. This is why I don't watch the news." Stephanie prepared for the day and went through her skips. "What do you think, Bob? How about Pinkie?" Bob's lack of excitement mirrored Stephanie's own, but she grabbed her stuff and headed out anyway.
Stephanie headed east out of Hamilton Township to Pinkie's listed address. She pulled up to a modest one-story home. For as many houses that were on the block, the yards were quite spacious. Stephanie rang the doorbell and waited. An average looking and built man of about 38 answered the door. He was clean in dress and hygiene. His skin was lighter than Ranger's and his accent not quite Spanish with drawn out vowels. "Yes, Miss?"
"I'm bond enforcement with Vincent Plum Bonds. You missed your court date last week." Stephanie ran through her spiel.
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, I didn't realize. I thought it was tomorrow."
"If you come with me, we can go down to the station and you can get a new date."
"Ahh, and you would drive?" He inquired.
"Of course."
"Wait here and I will go grab my identification."
Stephanie stood on the porch while he went to the back room. She could hear rustling and muttering. "You doing okay in there Pinkie?"
"Just fine. One minute please."
Stephanie took interest in the tree next to her that was beginning to change to a vibrant yellow. After staring off into space she looked at her watch and realized she'd been there for ten minutes. "Pinkie?" No reply. She stepped into the house and continued to call. Nothing. "Shit." She muttered at the garage door opened to the back alley. "Every time."
Dejected, she kicked the door, surprisingly hard, and grimaced at the pain in her toe. She half limped/walked back to her car and drove to the office, stopping at Tasty Pastry. Connie was filing her nails and nearly ten o'clock was still too early for Lula.
"Bad morning already?" Connie asked eyeing the pastry box.
"Pinkie gave me the slip. He was so nice about it too!"
"Oh, well, go get Mo. Today's his cart cleaning day, so he'll be available. Hear anything new on Paige?"
"Nothing, I haven't even seen Joe today."
"I got nothing except what everyone else knows."
"Thanks, Connie. I'm off for Mo."
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"God, Walker, I'm fucking tired!" Morelli complained setting the file he had been looking at into his lap.
"Deal with it, Morelli. This is the last one. We're so close, then we can call it a day." Paige said scribbling hastily on an envelope.
"Nothing like calling it a day at ten in the morning."
"Technically the shift never ended." Paige tossed the file over Joe. He studied the case in front of him and the one Paige had thrown, doing a double take.
"What the…"
"That's what I thought." Paige agreed stretching, still in the same clothes from yesterday. "God, I stink. I'm ready to go home."
Morelli lifted and eyebrow. "And where's that?"
"Marriott downtown. I have until Friday to find a real place before the department stops paying. I got a few ideas, but I'll manage. So what do you think?" Walker asked nodding.
"I think in you should stay around here."
"No, Joe. What do you think about those two cases?"
"Oh! It's the same guy."
"My thoughts exactly. Let's get him so we can sleep." The detectives grabbed their guns and badges and took the beat up cop car. "Wow, this is quite the mobile."
"Yeah, we can't let the bad guys think the department has money." Morelli joked as they puttered out of the lot. "We gotta supply housing for new hires you know?"
Paige rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I never asked for it, it was offered. Besides, it's only for three nights. I'm sure I can find a living situation."
They drove down Halsey and got to the house they were looking for. Police backup already lined both sides of the street. "This is going to be easier than I thought. Bed is looking better by the minute." Morelli said walking over to the man in charge. "How's it going Marty?"
"We got the suspect surrounded, and we're getting ready to go in the back. It's all covered here Detective." He was a stout man with a barbell mustache that Morelli always thought looked way too Colonel Mustard.
"Great, we'll take off then. To the hotel, Walker?"
Joe and Paige drove in silence to the Marriott. He pulled into the parking lot and walked in with her. "Do you want to come up?"
"Nah, if I do, I'm sure I won't leave and I know my bed at home is a hell of a lot more comfortable than what they have here."
"Any messages for 1401?" Paige asked the desk clerk.
The mousy lady tapped a few buttons on the computer and then produced a piece of paper. "Just one ma'am."
"Thank you. So?"
"So, how about I pick you up tomorrow morning around eight? I could use a little bit of shuteye."
Paige nodded and walked to the elevator. Fourteen floors later, she was sliding her card into the door of her room. The light flashed green, but instead of going in, calling room service, and waiting for her coffee and food, she pocketed her key and went down to the bar. Fortunately the coffee was always readily available. She stood at the counter downing the fresh brew moaning with satisfaction. She sat at the bar and the friendly bartender slid her a coaster.
"Miss?"
"Good, morning. I'd just like some more coffee, a bowl of oatmeal, a raspberry scone, and an orange, please."
"Rough morning already?"
"That obvious?"
"Nah, that's only your fourth cup of coffee in ten minutes and you look like you already worked a full day. Sure you don't want something stronger?"
"Whatch ya got?" She said sliding her cup towards him. He smiled and filled her near empty mug with triple sec. Paige smiled and raised her cup to the bartender. Her food arrived and she ate greedily, feeling satisfied. For the second time that morning she took the elevator up to the fourteenth floor. Paige leaned her head against the door and counted on her fingers. "Thirty-one hours? That's not bad." She muttered to herself. "Who would have thought Trenton would be this wild?" She fished her key out of her jacket and waited for the green light to blink. She stripped down to her panties and silk camisole leaving a trail of clothes and shoes from the door to the bed. Many times before she had experienced long hours, but it had definitely been awhile and she was normally running on adrenaline. She hit the pillow and never looked back.
000000
"Mo?" Stephanie called from his row house porch. "It's Stephanie from Vincent Plum Bonds."
A rather large bellied man wearing a standard white hot dog apron came to the door. "The charge was bogus!" He yelled in a very heavy Italian accent swinging a sausage. Stephanie was dumbstruck as she stared at Mo wondering if he slept in his vending apron and if he always walked around with a chain of hot dogs in his hand.
"If you come down to the station with me then we can get you rebonded, you won't even miss work tomorrow."
"Don't you see, Fluffy…"
"Stephanie," She corrected him.
"I don't want to get rebonded, I want nothing! I will sue him! He hit my wiener stand!"
Stephanie's stomach growled as she was mesmerized by the twirling sausages. It was nearly noon and she was hungry. She thought for a moment and pulled out her phone. "Connie, is there a way maybe we can get Mickey to drop the charges on Mo? Uh huh. He wants to sue the department for damages to his cart. I suppose. Okay. Bye." She turned back to Mo. "Connie's going to see what she can do, but it's going to take at least a half hour."
"I see, Fluffnie,"
"Stephanie," She corrected him again.
"Well then, Muffy, how about you come in for some nice schnitzel? I just made some fresh sauerkraut."
'Call me whatever you want!' Not one to give up free food, especially Mo's, Stephanie obliged and walked in to have lunch with Mo. "Sure! Muffy, Fluffy, What's the difference? I'd love some lunch."
Nearly two hours later Stephanie got the call from Connie. "Good news, Mo, Mickey dropped the charges."
"How wonderful, Fluffy! Those cops are all crooked anyway. Did you have to buy them off?"
"Actually, Connie reminded Mickey how embarrassing it would be to say he was assaulted by a hot dog, and she also told him that if it went to trial you would never serve any Trenton cops again. You can imagine his response to that one!" Mo walked Stephanie to the door. "Thanks for lunch Mo."
"Anytime you want, Fluffy! You just stop by my cart." He waved from the door and Stephanie climbed into her Corolla. Instead of looking for her other skip, she decided to go back to the office.
"Shit girl! You got free schnitzel? Damn!" Lula exclaimed from behind the desk.
"What are you doing back there, Lula? Are you…filing?"
"That's my job ain't it? My manicurist said I shouldn't be getting' no skips for two days. Said it's bad for the nails, more prone to breakage and all."
"I think I'm going to call it a day ladies. Tomorrow will be another day to find Pinkie and Donald."
"You want another? I got an easy bond for Darla Zantos. She's relatively harmless except she hit her husband with a frying pan."
"What's the bond?"
"Seventy-five hundred."
"Wow! Why so much?"
"She slapped the "babysitter" with it too."
Stephanie shrugged and took the folder. The more the drove back to Joe's house and saw his Explorer in the driveway. She walked in and Bob ran out, apparently he had been holding it for awhile. He bounced back in and Stephanie didn't see Joe on the sofa. "Joe?" She walked up to the bedroom and saw a lump under the sheets, but no movement, just deep snoring. Using the sensible Stephanie, she went downstairs and decided to watch Ghostbusters before thawing the frozen lasagna. Bob enjoyed the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and she had to admit it made her hungry. Stephanie removed the lasagna from the freezer and popped it in the oven. "I'm such a domesticated goddess!" She said to Bob. "Thank you Bella."
Thirty minutes later the smell of tomato sauce filled the house and Joe stood at the foot of the stairs. "Hey, Cupcake."
"Joe! You're up."
"It was such a long day yesterday. What time is it?"
"Almost seven. How long have you been asleep?"
"Since ten. I assume you saw the news?" Stephanie nodded. "They just keep dying. You would think they would do it naturally, but no, they have to use weapons. I'm starved."
"You weren't home last night were you?"
"No, we got called out on that shooting, but there was one before that too."
After a rather silent meal, Joe excused himself back to bed muttering something about a hotel. Stephanie just nodded and went back to the TV, falling asleep with Bob before going upstairs. The beeping of an alarm woke Stephanie at 7:30. "What's going on, Joe?"
He was already dressed and leaning over her to turn the alarm off. "Got to go to work."
"At 7:30?"
"We decided to sleep in since we were up all night the day before." Giving her a kiss on the forehead and walking to the door.
That was the third time she had heard that word since last night, and knew she wasn't hearing things this time. "We?"
Joe stopped at the doorway. "Yeah, my partner."
"Partner?" She blinked blankly at him. "Since when have you ever had a partner?"
"Since Tuesday."
"Oh?"
"It's not that bad, Cupcake. I thought the same thing but it's actually better than I expected. I'm going to be late. See ya." With that Joe was out the door and gone.
Stephanie sat up in bed, "Wait…Tuesday?"
TBC? Thanks for reading! Hit the little button!
