A/N: Here goes, my first attempt at a story with any type of real plot. My RL is getting hectic right now, so my updates may be sporadic for a while, but just try and hang in there. Thanks for all of the encouragement! XOXOX
The rollers on top of the squad car gave the eerie impression of a strobe light as Danny maneuvered his way through the nighttime traffic. The siren howled to the surrounding traffic to get out of the way. Danny and Sara were en route to their first case as partners; a homicide near 160th and Wayne.
"So, I would have never figured you for a motorcycle chick. What gives, Pez? Old boyfriend turn you on to the crotch rocket?"
Sara gave a little chuckle.
"No. I got my first motorcycle ride from Captain Siri." Danny's head snapped quickly to the side and looked at her with astonishment. "He had this old BMW that he had restored when he was younger. As a teenager I had always bugged him for a ride, but he never would take me. So I made a bet with him about getting into the police academy and he had to pay up by taking me for a ride. After that I was hooked.
He and I went shopping for a used bike when I graduated the academy. I recently test drove this sweet Buell, but gonna need a hefty pay raise and a few years to save up a down payment."
They pulled in behind some parked patrol cars near the potential crime scene. This was a lower middle class neighborhood. Row houses converted to two or three units. A mix of incomes and races. Definite melting pot.
Danny started to lean over toward the glove compartment and lost his balance. His hand landed in the general vicinity of Sara's breast.
"Geez Woo, you could at least buy a girl dinner before trying to cop a feel." Danny turned a girly shade of pink and sat up very quickly.
"Sorry, Pez. I slipped. In the glove compartment are some examining gloves and a small bottle, could you grab it?"
"Sure, sure, Woo." Sara reached in a pulled out several pairs of nitrile gloves, handing half the bunch to Danny and stuffing the other portion in the pocket of her leather jacket. She fished around in the space and found a small vial. Pulling it out she looked for a label.
"Peppermint oil?" She sniffed the bottle.
"Some guys use Vicks Vapor Rub, I prefer peppermint oil. Put a small dap just under your nose and the smell of the DB won't bother you as much."
Doubt was evident in her eyes as she watched him place his finger on the top of the vial, shake it and then dap just above his upper lip. She shrugged her shoulders and followed suit.
Danny then handed her several peppermints. "These might keep you from getting sick. And if you do get sick, they freshen your breath afterwards. And don't say that you're not going to get sick, all the rookies say that and most of them do. I did."
They proceeded up to the open building, and up several flights of stairs to the third of four floors.
" What we have here is a Caucasian male, between 30 and 40. Neighbors found him just before 7:00 pm. No one heard any suspicious sounds, but we'll want to interview all of them again." Danny read from the call in sheet he had grabbed as they left headquarters.
They moved to the far end of the hall, several other cops coming toward them moved to one site to allowed them to pass by. One of the cops clapped Danny on the back and leaned over and spoke into his ear.
"Yeah, your right on that one there Sikolav." Danny replied and both broke out into laughter.
Danny was the first to see the body and took in a deep, slow breath. Oh God. She's going to loose it.
Sara edged her way around several of the investigators and got a glimpse of the corpse. She let out a stifled yelp and backed away using several large steps, running into Sikolav. She turned away from the sight and tried to get her breathing under control. Peppermint air filled her lungs and her stomach rolled over as if she was on a roller coaster.
Damn it Pez, pull your self together. You are not going to get sick and embarrass yourself.
You ARE NOT going to be sick.
You ARE NOT going to be sick.
She popped another peppermint into her mouth and she kept repeating her mantra. As she inhaled sharply, the smell of sticky metal permeated the peppermint haze. Her first smell of bloody death.
She turned around slowly, willing herself to get on with her job. Time seemed to slow down, like a 45 record being played at 33 1/3. Danny looked back at her, not trying to look sympathetic, and loosing the battle sufficiently.
The body was leaning up against the wall and there was red lumpy mush where his face should have been.
But what was the most unusual aspect of the area was that everything was covered with confetti.
Not just colored paper or shiny disks, but the designer confetti that was becoming so popular.
Comprised entirely of shiny, happy, yellow smiley faces.
Danny was taking notes and all Sara could do was stare. Not at the body but the confetti lying around his gray hands.
She felt a hand on her arm and jumped. Danny was pulling her back toward the stairs. "Are you alright?" His mouth formed the words, but she didn't hear anything but static.
He guided her down the steps and to the car. She sat in the car for a few moments and slowly shook her head, trying to clear the cobwebs that had covered her brain.
"What I don't get is how no one heard anything. Who ever did this must have used a large caliber something, to do that kind of damage." There were moving away from the crime scene and she hadn't even noticed he had started the car.
"Hunting rifle," she slurred.
"Hunting rifle?" Danny repeated. Sara seemed to be coming back to the coherent, as she stared out the window.
"Yeah hunting rifle" she nodded as they pulled into the parking area of the precinct.
"And what kind of sicko would throw smiley face confetti around?"
"He was having a party," she stated, and proceeded to throw up along side the stairs leading into the backdoor of the precinct.
Danny held her hair back as she emptied her stomach. When the dry heaves stopped, he handed her the handkerchief from his back pocket.
"Some party."
"Yeah, some party," she shook her head as she attempted to walk as dignified as possible into the precinct doors.