Title: Hurricane Katrina

Disclaimer: Dick Wolf, yada yada yada. I'm just checking Bobby out like a library book.

Characters: Goren, Deakins, Logan, Barek

Chapter 6: Battle of the Brains

Captain Deakins was chatting with Detectives Mike Logan and Carolyn Barek when he noticed Goren and Katayeva get off the elevator. They were engaged in an animated, but apparently friendly, conversation. Deakins caught the word Anastasia several times. Wasn't she the Russian princess who allegedly survived the Bolshevik massacre? Made into movie with Ingrid Bergman? Or was it Grace Kelly? Some blonde… Ah, who knows.

"Well, well," said Logan, "if it ain't the Wizard of Odd and the Russian Amazon."

"OK, Logan, pay up," snickered Barek, as she held out her hand, palm up.

Deakins raised his eyebrows.

"Logan wagered that you'd have to send a bus to get one or both of them at the restaurant, or at the very least that Katayeva would have bailed after spending an hour with Goren," chuckled Barek, as Logan slapped a twenty on her outstretched palm, "Thanks, Mikey."

"Barek bet me that Goren and Katherine the Great here would come back from lunch as buddies."

Detectives Goren and Katayeva approached Deakins and the other two detectives. The Captain made the introductions to Logan and Barek.

"Detective Barek and I already know each other, Captain. We were on the same panel at a criminal justice conference in Chicago a couple of years ago. Good to see you, Caro."

"Hey, Kat, welcome to Major Case. Can I take you to lunch one day next week?"

"Sounds good."

"Detective Goren, how about giving Detective Katayeva the grand tour?" suggested Deakins.

"Uh…sure.."

As Goren and Katayeva walked away from the group, Deakins gave Barek a congratulatory pat on the arm, "Insider information, Barek. Good job," he chuckled, "She gotcha again, Logan. You never learn."

"You know her, Barek? And you didn't tell me? That's cheating, Barek!" hissed Logan.

"I'm taking her out to lunch on your dime, Logan. Never underestimate a woman, or at least not Katayeva and me."

Meanwhile Deakins caught up with Goren and Katayeva. They had just entered one of the conference rooms. A variety of left-over items from assorted cases were still pinned to the bulletin board – copies of photos, documents, maps, sketches, etc. Katayeva walked up to the bulletin board and took down a sheet with odd writing and symbols on it.

"Oooh, somebody using Demotic as a code in one of your cases, Goren?"

"Uh, yes….that case with the rich horsey set, remember, Captain?"

"Yeah….that's when we got a name with no horse. And, how is it you know Demonic, Katayeva?"

"Ah… that would be Demotic, sir, not Demonic."

"Whatever."

"My brother Ilya is an archeologist. When he was a kid he had this stuff tacked up all over the fridge and in his room. In middle school he handed in a week's worth of homework in Demotic, instead of English. The teachers were not amused. My father made all of us kids learn it. One of our many multi-cultural exercises."

Well, they haven't killed each other yet, nor do they look as though they might. Seems friendly. Katayeva is smart as a whip. She and Goren have already managed a couple of intellectual conversations. That's more than most of us can ever do with him.

A secretary interrupted to advise Goren that the Medical Examiner had something for him. He was about to walk out of the conference room when it dawned on him that he now had a partner. He stopped, turned and invited Katayeva to join him. She looked at Deakins.

"Go on down to the M.E.'s with Goren. Good opportunity for you two to examine a body together. We'll chat later."

Goren and Katayeva made their way down to the M.E.'s office. Katayeva was already quite familiar with the Medical Examiner, Elizabeth Rogers, M.D., from her stints in SVU and Vice. She was glad of the chance to observe Goren at work.

"Ah, Detective Katayeva, I heard you were filling in at Major Case. Good to see you again," welcomed Rogers.

Goren was already slipping on his latex gloves as he walked in to the M.E.'s. He nodded to Rogers as he approached the body. He immediately began sniffing, touching, poking, prodding.

Rogers stood with her arms crossed just watching Goren, "He's the only detective I've ever seen that does …..this." she advised waving a hand in Goren's direction.

Katayeva just nodded. Maybe we should all be doing it.

Rogers began her recitation of what preliminary info she had, "The decedent is Sister Mary Agnes O'Toole, O.P., age 67. She has rashes on the insides of both calves just above the ankles. She was being treated by a local dermatologist for eczema. Possible suicide. Waiting for the tox screen and the other tests."

"Why is this Major Case?" inquired Katayeva.

"The good Sister is a cousin of the Archbishop."

"Works for me."

"O.P….it's …it's what order?" asked Goren, directed at no one in particular, as he continued poking and prodding.

"Dominicans," replied Kataveya, "Ordo Praedicatorum in Latin. Translates as order of preachers."

Goren glanced at Katayeva, his eyebrows slightly raised.

"Years of parochial school," added Katayeva, "and it is unlikely that a nun committed suicide. That would be in serious violation of Church law, a mortal sin."

"Suicide rates are higher for people without children than for people with children," observed Goren.

"Do we know for a fact that Sr. Mary Agnes never had children, Dr. Rogers?" inquired Katayeva, "There is a recent phenomenon of widows and widowers joining a religious order after the death of a spouse, regardless of whether or not they had children."

Liz Rogers just leaned back and enjoyed the show. Holy shit, will you look at this? The battle of the brains. They can quote obscure research studies to one another. This is going to get really interesting. Maybe we can sell tickets.