Chapter 2






"Sleep well?" Adrian twitched his head. "Oh, uh, n-not bad. Sofa's-quite comfortable actually." Sharona glanced over at Adrian and laughed. "You're a bad liar." Adrian's hands hovered toward the wheel. "Just watch the road will ya?" At this point, he took notice of where they were. "Wait a minute, this is, this is Forest! Why are we on Forest, you should be on Hillcrest!" Sharona glanced in the rearview mirror. "We're goin' to my place." Adrian turned to her sharply. "What! But, Sharona I have an appointment! How could you do this!" Sharona glared at her boss. "Adrian picking up a suit from dry-cleaning is not an appointment."

"Watch the road, watch the road!"

"Besides, do you have money on you?" Adrian paused a second, his brows knitting together. "No, I…"

"I thought so, so how do you expect to pay for the dry cleaning? You'll expect me to do it. Well my wallet's at home. So if you want to get your suit, you have to come to my house first." Seeing she'd won the round, Sharona appeased Adrian by returning her gaze fully to the road.

In minutes, the car pulled up to Sharona's house. Inside, Sharona walked towards her dresser to retrieve her wallet. Adrian dodged in front of her to block her path. "Don't just walk in!" Sharona's posture immediately changed to what Adrian silently referred to as 'Adrian, you're driving me nuts pose #1'. "Why the hell not? Adrian, if you want me to pay for your suit, then I need to get my wallet." Adrian's voice took on the stilted speech he effected when dealing with a stubborn Sharona, which was frequent. "If the intrUder, came inside… he may have TOUCHED something." Sharona's arms crossed in front of her chest in a classic 'you're driving me nuts pose #2'. "If someone broke in here, then it would be logical to assume something would have been BROKEN."

"Sharona, just, please, could you give just one moment… please?" Irritated, but consenting, Sharona backed down, putting her hand to her forehead in familiar frustration. Already immersed in his investigation, Adrian used his pen to leaf through paper, open drawers, and move curtains. "When was the last time you used the phone?" Sharona shrugged. "Last night, when you called here."

"Did you wear gloves?" Sharona's jaw dropped. "Did I wear gloves? Why the hell would I wear gloves Adrian? I don't just automatically assume someone is going to break in my home and start taking calls!"

"Maybe we should bag it anyway…" Sharona held up her hand in 'you're driving me nut pose #3'. "No, Adrian, no! We're done. I'm getting my wallet, you're getting your suit, and we're both going home!" Adrian stiffened as Sharona took the phone from his hanky wrapped fingers. "Hey, there could be prints…"

"Yeah, my prints! Now come on!"





Stottlemeyer shook his head. "Great, just what we needed." He was standing near the body of one Ted Muhller, former co-owner of Kruger's department store. At his back, a white news van had just pulled up. "Captain Stottlemeyer, Frank Holbeck, channel 3 news. Could you tell us what happened here!" Stottlemeyer held up his hands as several more reporters began streaming towards him. "Hey, this is a crime scene, I'd appreciate if you'd please step back!" A flashbulb, then another, went off behind him. "Hey, hey! Get back, I said get back! This is a crime scene! The next person to trespass beyond the yellow tape gets charged with interfering with a police investigation as well as lose their press pass!" Loud complaints followed his pronouncement, but the reporters backed off. Assigning a few cops to hold back the press, Stottlemeyer returned to the sheet-covered body on the ground. A couple of officers knelt by the still form. One held up the sheet while the other bagged evidence. "Sir?" Stottlemeyer knelt down. "Yeah, what have ya got?" The officer gestured under the sheet. "It appears to be a steak knife. One stab, knocked him flat." Stottlemeyer's lip twisted. "Obviously." The officer gestured again. "Take a look at the handle." Stottlemeyer lifted the sheet a little higher. Something was carved in the wood of the handle. He blinked, then looked closer. It was a picture of a dove, with an arrow through its heart.





Sharona dropped heavily on the sofa. She'd finally managed to drop Adrian off at his house, in spite of his protestations. Her head ached. In addition, she hadn't eaten all day. Lifting her body from the couch, she slowly made her way to the kitchen. A single look in the fridge confirmed her suspicions… she had no food. Correction, she had no GOOD food. Allowing the heavy door to shut, she turned her attention to he cupboards. "Let's see…. Campbell's Tomato… yish, why did I buy that?" She turned the can to see a dent on the side. Oh yeah, that was one she'd stolen from Adrian. She hadn't even looked at it when she'd retrieved it from his trash. The others weren't much more heartening. Giving up, she grabbed the jar of olives and some crackers and returned to the living room. With her feet propped up on the coffee table (something she'd never let Benjy do) Sharona munched her meager meal. Just as she was getting really comfortable, the phone rang. Sighing deeply, Sharona almost let the machine get it. Then she growled. If she didn't answer, Adrian would panic. Hauling herself upright once more, Sharona grabbed the phone on the third ring. "Hello?" There was silence for a beat, then a soft breath blew into the other end of the line. "Hhhhhhuuummmnnnssssshharoooonaaaahhhh…." Her heart stopped for a second at the drawling voice. "Who is this!"

"Mmmmm…. a friennnnd. A very, ooooold friend, Ssssshhharoooonaaaahhh…." She covered her mouth in sudden fear, a wrenching suspicion filling her. Her own voice dropped to a whisper as she answered. "Kevin?" A gleeful laugh was the only response. "Kevin, God!" Her voice shook. "Ohh baby, I've missed you sooooo much! I wanted to come by and see you the other night! But you weren't home. I waited for you baby! A strange man called for you, you know. He sounded like he knew you realllly welll… are you screwing him? Are you, bitch! I told him he better not call back. And then, when you do come home, you're riding in a fancy car with another man! You're just selling yourself like a whore, aren't ya? Just a goddamn whore!" Sharona slipped to the floor, tears of fright streaming down her face. "I knew you were a whore when I met you baby, god you looked so good on that stage! You didn't mind showing it off for me then, didya baby. Guess you still don't mind!" Sharona dropped the phone. She could still hear Kevin's voice through the speaker. "Hey bitch, I'm talking to you! Pick up the damn phone! Sharona!!" Crying, Sharona struggled to her feet and began backing towards the door. A pair of sandals caught her feet. With a scream, she fell backward, landing hard on her back. Shaking, she clawed her way back up using the wall. Wiping moisture from her eyes, she ran out the door to her car, ignorant of her shoeless feet.




Adrian was pacing again. He was positive he hadn't called the wrong number last night, he couldn't have! Yet a questioning part of his mind was already bringing up instances where he'd been wrong. There were more instances than he liked to admit… A heavy pounding at his door pulled him back to the present. Swiftly he approached the door, swinging it open in mid-knock. "Adrian, thank goodness, you're home!" Adrian stepped back. "Captain Stottlemeyer, what, uh, won't you come in?" Stottlemeyer entered, but didn't relax his posture. "What can I do for you?" The captain sighed heavily. "Adrian, God, I'm not sure how to go about this." Adrian sat suddenly, so quickly that if the chair hadn't been behind him he would have hit the floor. "It's Sharona…" Stottlemeyer looked up sharply. "How… never mind. Yes, but it's probably not what you're thinking."

"She's being accused of the murder of Ted Muhller."

"How in the hell??" Adrian pointed to the television set were reporters clustered around the solemn face of Captain Stottlemeyer. Stottlemeyer strode over and quickly shut off the set. Sighing heavily, he crossed his arms. "Monk, they found one of Sharona's kitchen knives buried to the hilt in the body of Mr. Muhller." At Adrian's look, Stottlemeyer continued. We already dusted the handle, the only prints on it were hers. And yes, before you say anything, I know Sharona couldn't have done this. But as a police officer, I have to pursue it." Adrian stood. "Captain, there's no way Sharona could be the killer! First of all, why would she attack a man she was dating at his own doorstep, with her own kitchen knife!" Stottlemeyer held up his hand. "Sharona was dating this man?" Adrian looked down. "She only went on one date, it doesn't even count as 'dating' if it's just one… that's beside the point! You said the knife was buried to the hilt." Stottlemeyer nodded. "Sharona wouldn't have enough strength to shove a kitchen knife in that deep. In fact, a lot of men would have trouble doing it!" The captain held up his hands. "Adrian, I know, I've already said as much myself!" Sighing, he crossed to the door. "There was something else. A symbol was carved onto the knife handle." Adrian's arms hung at his sides. "What sort of symbol?"

"A bird, a dove, with an arrow through its heart."




Sharona could barely see the road as she sped from her house. Her only thought was escape. Glancing once in her rear-view mirror, she screamed. Kevin was crouched behind her, a cell phone in his hand. "Well, well, my little bird has returned home." Before Sharona could react, he leaned forward, pressing a screwdriver against her throat. "How about we take a little drive baby?"