LincolnI call the judge as soon as I have reception. He can’t make it in until the next morning so Shelby Ryan is stuck overnight in county lockup. I walk up to her front door, tip the flower pot on the front porch, and sure enough, there’s her key.We don’t live in the greatest neighborhood. Not that it’s high crime but the small Albuquerque suburb of duplex homes is also not crime free. A loud “Woof” comes from the other side of the door. I left my gun at home in case I’m tempted to shoot the dog. I use the key and push open the door with both arms ready to save my manhood. The interior is cool, stupid woman leaves her air running on high for a dog.One hundred and forty pounds of ugly mutt hits me as soon as I take a step inside. His tongue slathers my face and sure enough his curly haired body begins the writhing motion of a dog trying to increase the size of his pack.The first time I had an intimate encounter with Daisy, he almost took me to the ground during his sexual assault
LincolnMy ringing cell phone jars me awake. I dig it out of my pocket and see it’s Kurtis from the medical examiner’s office. It’s a little after six in the morning.“Just got the tox back on your latest and its positive for ketamine.”“Fuck,” I whisper into my quiet house.“That was my response too. We knew from the wounds that we’re dealing with the same killer and this pretty much confirms it.”“Thanks, Kurtis.”“Sorry, Linc.”I lean back and prop my feet on the coffee table. “So am I, but like you said, we both knew what we were dealing with. I’ll have a sit down with my supervisor today and go from there.”“Let me know if you need something from me.”“Will do.” I yawn before disconnecting.My feet hit the floor and I walk to the kitchen and the coffee maker. I add the prerequisite amounts of water and coffee grounds, add about half as much more of the coffee, flip the switch, and hit the shower. I’m still exhausted but take little time under the cool water. I shave, try to ignor
Lincoln“Stop manhandling me you Mickey Mouse megalomaniac. I can walk unassisted,” Shelby snarls.Where does she come up with this shit? “Not a chance. I’ll see you to the next door and then meet you at the side of the jail where they’ll release you.”“Into your custody? What exactly does that mean?”“It means that I’m responsible for you until the judge releases me of that responsibility. If you break the law, it’s on me. If you think for one moment I’m happy about this shit, you’re mistaken. I have a job to do and a big case to solve.”She stops walking. “Please tell me you’re looking into the madman who’s killing the prostitutes.”This surprises me because I’ve kept a tight lid on the similarities of the two homicides. Now that I’ve connected the cases, the media needs to step in and help get the word out. It’s a tricky situation. I can’t give too much away or I could blow my evidence and give every lunatic out there enough information to produce copycat murders. My supervisor wil
LincolnI park at the curb in front of our unit. “You might not like it but I need your schedule.”Shelby opens her eyes and her head snaps in my direction. “You’re right, I don’t like it,” she grumbles.“Look, I’m working to stop this guy from killing someone else and now I’m saddled with you. You’re a grown woman and you should be able to monitor yourself. But, your uncle sees differently. We’ll make it easy. Take my cell number and text me your whereabouts throughout the day. I couldn’t care less what you do as long as you stay out of trouble, but it’s that or I put handcuffs on you and attach one end to something in your bathroom.”Her laugh tells me she doesn’t believe a word of my threat. “Does that line work on the bad guys you deal with?”I pinch the bridge of my nose in frustration. “What the hell do you want from me, Shelby?” I say wearily. “Please. Meet me halfway.”Her expression changes and my anger dissipates. “Was that so hard? Be nice and I’m more likely to follow your
LincolnShe laughs and ignores my order. “You’re disappointed Daisy’s not appreciating your leg. Heel, Daisy,” she says with another laugh and walks the dog to my couch. “Down.” He lies at her feet like a perfect gentleman.Damn her. I’m too tired to fight and have absolutely no willpower at all when I remove the lid from the warm dish. It smells heavenly. “Sure you don’t want any?” I ask tiredly as I grab a fork and remove the first bite straight from the dish.She shakes her head, watching me. I carry the casserole over to the couch along with my beer. “Sorry, shit,” I say as I sit down and then quickly stand back up. “A drink—beer, water, soda?”“I’m good. Eat. You must be starving and exhausted.”I sit and dig in. “Yes, I’m exhausted,” I manage to get out after three bites. “This is delicious.”“My uncle Pat thinks so too. Of course hell will freeze over before I make it for him again.”“He should have recused himself at the hearing this morning,” I grumble.“I’m sure he will for
LincolnAnother day of nothing. I hit the street and talked to every hooker I came across. There’s fear in their eyes. The local news stations released the story at noon. I hoped it would get the women talking, but they tell me little. I even had a sit-down with a sergeant in vice. The asshole didn’t approve of laying off the hookers for a short time so they wouldn’t be afraid to talk to me. I don’t have sergeant stripes, so all I could do was pass it to my supervisor so he could deal with Sergeant Dickhead’s supervisor.I don’t have a working partner at the moment because of our two-year hiring freeze, so I head to the ME’s office to speak with Kurtis. He has a level head, keeps his mouth shut, and works a lot of high-profile homicides.He’s walking out of the autopsy room when I open the outer door. His bloody gloves go into the hazard bin after he removes his goggles. “Hey, Linc, let me scrub and I’ll meet you in the break room.”“Deal. I’m in need of your spidey senses.” This gain
LincolnI scan my phone contacts looking for a badge bunny. I’m sitting on my couch with my feet kicked up on the coffee table, beer resting on the table within reach. It’s a little after five in the evening and I’ve been home for an hour. This is what my life’s come to. I want a steady relationship and my next door neighbor has me so horny I’m sinking just about as low as I can go. My conviction to settle down and have the two point four children is out the window. I need to get my rocks off.I glance down at a name that catches my attention. I haven’t spoken to Candy in a long time; like her name suggests, she’s usually up for a hot night between the sheets. My finger moves over her number. A steady knock starts on my front door. Shit. I know it’s Shelby even before I check outside.She’s standing with Daisy.I open the door and the full effect of what she’s wearing hits me. Skimpy skin-tight black running shorts and sports bra. The colorful head visor is the only sign of her quirky
LincolnWe decide on dinner first. I need to eat to keep up my stamina. We hit a small Italian place a few miles away. I drive my lifted truck. Shelby’s in a short pink skirt with a white girly blouse, a cowboy hat, and pink cowboy boots. The ever-present scarf is knotted around her neck. How she stands it in this heat is beyond me. I help her step up on the side-runner and admire the flash of pink panties as she adjusts herself in the seat.“I wore them for you,” she says.“Nice to know. Hope you don’t mind if I take them off as soon as we get home.”“A man of action, I like that.”“You’ll like it more later,” I come back with.Our sexual banter continues through dinner and the wood I’m sporting below the table would be embarrassing without the checkered tablecloth hiding it. Even nicer than the sexual overtones of the evening is not thinking about work. As a detective, it’s a rare luxury.The drive home is mostly quiet. I think we’re at our max for verbal foreplay. I turn into my dr