Page 25 of Random in Death

“That asshole. There you go. We’ll call it Stoner’s an Asshole.”

“Truth doesn’t always ring.”

When she grabbed the jacket, he walked out with her.

“I don’t know how to name things.” Or actually own them, either. “You do. You name it.”

“It’s your place.”

“You bought it.”

“Ah well, we’ll think of something. Why don’t you print out what you want on your board? I’ll set it up for you.”

Grateful she didn’t have to think about owning a building, she sat at her command center, opened operations.

She ordered the printouts, and while that worked, started her report.

He set a plate with an egg pocket beside her unit. “Fuel, Lieutenant.”

“Yeah, okay.”

It smelled good. She suspected spinach, but it smelled good.

She ate while she worked. Once she’d completed the report, she opened the murder book.

Between the coffee, the fuel (despite spinach), and the work, she felt fully awake.

She heard Roarke talking to the cat in the little kitchen. The cat, she thought, who’d been dead asleep when they’d left the bedroom.

Obviously, Galahad’s superpowers included scenting food, especially bacon, regardless of the distance involved.

She rose, studied the board. Jenna’s ID shot. Vibrant with youth and possibilities. And the crime scene stills with all that wiped away.

She’d added the two friends, the club owners, Jake and the other band members, Nadine, and all the bits of evidence.

The demo disc, the close-up of the needle mark, the vomit, the scuff marks, the open bathroom window.

Now she added the timeline she’d worked out.

Not much, not yet, but she’d get more.

She thought of a mother’s face turning gray, of a father simply dissolving onto the floor.

She’d get more.

“You should add your description of him,” Roarke said from behind her.

The cat, she thought, made more noise than the former cat burglar.

“Speculation. But… maybe. We’ll see what we find today. I have the morgue, and I want to go through the victim’s bedroom sometime today. I’ll tag the lab to see if Harvo’s on, but it’s Sunday so not likely.”

Sunday, she knew from experience, would be a pain in her ass on a hot day.

“I might want to talk to her two friends again, see if either of them noticed anyone at school, or wherever they hang out otherwise. Definitely need to talk to Feeney. And Jake’s coming in this morning, which I’m betting means Nadine.”

“She’s in love with him. It shows.”

“Yeah.” She let out a breath. “Yeah, it shows, both ways. I just looked at the security feed, the alley door.”

---