Chapter 5
Disclaimer: I do not own CSI
The couple that stood before him was Catherine Willows and Nick Stokes.
"Why are you so surprised Conrad? Don't we have the right to have relationships?" Catherine said.
"Catherine, you know the rules, you two are in violation of lab policy."
"I'm switching shifts anyway Conrad." Catherine told him. "I need to be at home during the day." She said.
Conrad massaged his temples. "Get me Hodges and Simms!" he said.
Catherine and Nick left Ecklie's office and went to find Hodges and Wendy. They were in their respective labs working on a task.
"Wendy, Ecklie wants to see you." Catherine told her. "You too Hodges"
They looked at each other and walked to Ecklie's office.
"You wanted to see us?" Hodges said.
"What were you two thinking?" he asked.
"Obviously we weren't thinking clearly, but Conrad – um it won't happen again." Hodges said.
Ecklie looked at the younger couple. "Listen. I understand you um are in love but you cannot um do that on lab time. No matter how high your hormones are!"
"We understand." Wendy said.
"Ok. Um David you are needed in the interrogation room. "
Hodges and Wendy left Ecklie's office and Wendy went back to her lab while Hodges headed to the interrogation room.
The cops were interrogating David Phillips who was spilling everything. He was told to tell everything he knew or there could be trouble. David began with his sister – Jessie changing her name and the reasons and then went on to tell about the prank on Hodges.
"Have you any clues who killed her?"
"She worked undercover as a hooker correct?"
"Yes. I just told you that."
"Well she was killed in the line of duty … as a hooker. So maybe someone found out who she was – or that she was a cop?"
"Do you have any leads?"
"The LA coroner is doing the autopsy and have taken some prints and trace from the body but it's still all in progress."
"I'd like to hurt the person who killed her."
"Since you're the next of kin, do you want to see the crime photos?"
Phillips sucked in his breath. "Yes."
The y showed him the gruesome pictures of the crime scene. Apparently Starla was beaten badly and her clothes torn. " Phillips was now close to tears. "Ok Ok enough." He said.
"If we have the person's fingerprints on file – we will find him." Said the cop.
They released the asst. coroner and brought Hodges in and questioned him as to how he knew Starla.
"I first met her um in High school when she was known as Jessie. I was 15 and she was 18. I asked her out on a date – to a movie if memory serves me correct. She flatly turned me down in front of everyone and made it a big deal that I – a 15 year old freshman wanted to date the likes of her, an 18 year old senior. Anyway that year I made things hard for both her and her brother. But then they graduated. 3 years later when I was almost 18 and she was 21, she had obviously changed and was working the streets as Starla. She was also an undercover cop so when I solicited her – I didn't know who she was. Then years later when I was 23 and she was 26 she taught an art class UCLA and I posed nude for her. She remembered me as the kid who solicited her but I didn't remember her.
Fast forward to this year. Starla dies and those cops find the portrait and send it to Phillips who posts it in my lab – all as a payback prank for what I did way back when we were kids."
"Where were you when Starla was killed?"
"Right here in Las Vegas." He replied.
The two cops exchanged looks
"She was killed in L.A. wasn't she?
"She was actually working here in Vegas that night. She went undercover on the strip trying to score some drugs that were on the streets."
Hodges blood ran cold.
"So do you have an alibi for the night she was murdered? Between 3 & 5 am."
Hodges didn't reply as he thought back to that night and where he was.
"Mr. Hodges please answer the question."
"I was here at the lab." He babbled.
"Can anyone verify that?"
"My co-workers."
"They were already questioned. You had stepped out of the lab between 3 & 5 that day and your co-workers can verify that. So where were you?"
David knew that strip joints were going to be the death of him. Truth be told he took a look into the Naughty Kittie for about an hour, then decided that he wasn't in the mood and went to Franks.
"Are you telling us that you went into a strip joint and left after only an hour?" one of the cops asked.
"Yes . I am in love with Wendy Simms, so none of those girls did anything for me."
"I've been married 25 years and I go to the clubs and get a wow from them. Then I go home and get it from my wife. I get the best of both worlds. My wife doesn't know and she is never gonna know." That cop said.
"I am telling you the honest to goodness truth. I was at the Naughty Kittie and left and went to Franks for food, then back to the lab. While at Franks I heard sirens and saw a few emergency vehicles pass by, but I was off the clock so I paid no mind." He said.
"We'll put your name on ice for now, but don't leave the state." The cop told him.
Hodges sighed. He had no clear alibi so he knew he could be in deep trouble.
Hodges knew he had to come clean and soon. He was afraid to tell the LAPD cops because he wanted to talk to Brass first before the LA cops.
"Hodges, what brings you to my office?"
"I just lied to the LAPD Jim. I need to talk to you."
"Is this about the Starla Rogers case?"
"Yes."
"Ok. Spill."
"I was there, but I did not kill her. They are going to find my fingerprints on her and that's because I was trying to save her life. I was on my break and drove down the strip and saw her arguing with some guy. They were in a struggle and at the time I didn't recognize her so when I saw her in the struggle I pulled over…………
"Everything okay here Miss?"
"Everything find, go away." The guy said.
"HELP" she mouthed.
David got out of the vehicle and stood on the other side of the woman.
"You can put the knife down sir, and leave." Hodges told the attacker.
"You need to shut the hell up and get out of here." The guy said.
"I am not leaving until I can see this girl is safe." He replied.
In a blink of an eye the attacker took his knife and drove it into the woman. It was only then when David saw her tattoo on her neck. Starla. The attacker then fled as David called 911. Knowing that he could get caught he stopped the bleeding as much as he could, checked her pulse and see if she was alive – she was already gone, bled out. David then took off when he heard the sirens.
---------present -----------------
"You left the scene?" Brass asked.
"I had no choice. I knew I would come clean at some point, but I wasn't ready right then."
Brass shook his head. "I don't know what to say David… "
"You can tell me that everything will be alright." He said with a smile.
Brass shook his head. "I don't think it works like that."
Brass's cell phone rang.
"Brass."
"This is Jenna from the LVPD, we have fingerprint results from Starla's body."
"Can you send the results to our lab please."
"They are on their way, but I wanted to let you know over the phone too."
"Lay it on me ."
"David Hodges. "
"Any other prints?"
"A few unknowns in the blood where the puncture wound was."
Brass sighed. "Ok. Thank you."
David turned pale as a ghost. "You are in deep doggy do David." He said.