Second day of the work week, an hour after sunrise.
The scene could be out of London, somewhere in the early 1800’s: an alley; gray, stone buildings; cobbled street; fog breaking off in early morning sun. The detectives are dressed more like early 1900’s.
“So what do we have this fine morning,” a sleepy and somewhat hungover, mildly disheveled-looking Sgt Detective Herris says as he approaches the three other detectives. His partner, Detective Inspector Dawn Greencrest pulls back a tarp and reveals the naked body of young woman.
Herris, “Well, she’s a looker,” he says as he grins and cocks his head to the side. DI Greencrest, “Was, was a looker, Sergeant.” Herris composes himself and takes a closer look at the body – the young woman appears to be around twenty-five years old, pale-skinned, red-haired, her pale green eyes are open and looking straight up. She is roughly five-feet six-inches tall, weighing approximately one hundred twenty-five pounds. She is very attractive. There does not appear to be any trauma on the front of her body. Her body has been carefully placed so that she in the center of a well-drawn, red square such that her arms and legs have been positioned so they make diagonals with the four corners of the square. There is no blood on her body or anywhere else, accept for possibly the square itself. DI Greencrest, “Did you notice the green discoloration under her finger and toe nails?”
Herris takes the women’s right hand and examines more intensely, then her other hand, then her and feet.
Greencrest, “Ready for the other side?” Herris nods. Greencrest and the youngest detective lift up the body to reveal the backside of the young woman. No signs of trauma are seen on the back of the body. No tattoos, no major scarring, no jewelry, or other identifiable items or markings on the body. Nothing. There’s nothing else under her body except the square. Herris and the other, older detective, nod, Greencrest and the young detective gently set the woman’s body back as they had found her and cover her with the tarp.
Greencrest turns to the oldest detective of the four, sixty-year-old DI Maunch – receding, pale, dirty-blonde hairline, a bit overweight, and red-faced, “I appreciate you letting me know about this.”
“Well, I know this sort of thing is your cup of tea, but don’t appreciate me too much, I want you to take this case off my hands.”
DI Greencrest, a bit of a drawn out, “Why?”
Maunch, “If this was just another case of some prostitute found dead in a back alley we’d cover it. This is not that.”
Greencrest, “No, it is not.”
DS Herris, “How do you know she’s a prostitute?”
The young detective, “Her name’s Pene. She works over at Odelia’s, about two blocks away.”
Maunch, “And there’s a bit more than that.”
Greencrest, “Oh?”
Maunch, “One of her clients, that takes her back to his apartment on a regular basis, is Tom Pardino.”
Greencrest, “Pardino, that name sounds somewhat familiar.”
Herris, “It should, Thomas Pardino, he’s one of ‘the Cousins’.”
Greencrest, “Pardino . . . his sister owns the Sapphire Room.”
Herris, “Yeah, Anne, that’s her. And their older cousin, Mathew Serig, is Gifted, and the regent of rodent eradication,”
Maunch, “They have connections, Dawn. Pretty high up. I’m almost at retirement. I don’t need this kind of trouble. . . and you owe me.”
Greencrest, “I do owe you. Before I agree to this I would like to know just what I’m getting myself into. What do you know about these Cousins?”
Maunch, “The Cousins seemed to just show up out of the blue one day and start working for old Fallon, built up his tavern business, made him rich, he retires and they bought him out. Tom took over and opened up some more “restaurants”, Serig started the rodent killing business, Anne the “night club”. A few years back turns out Serig is Gifted and starts going to the Academy. Never had any trouble with any of them, other than Tom occasionally getting picked up for drunk and disorderly.”
Greencrest, “How occasional?”
Maunch, “Think about five or six times. A couple of those times we found him outside nearly froze. Sometimes he’d stop into the precinct soused and bring us chips and biscuits and whatnot from the taverns. Funny guy. Likes to have a good time. He has a reputation as a gambler and whoremonger, but nothing violent like this.”
Greencrest, “What about the other two?”
Maunch, “There was an incident, an accident with Serig. He had a workshop near Fallon’s and one night there was an explosion. This was a few years ago. Witnesses said there’s all this smoke and some fire, mostly smoke, things are all over the place. He crawls out with bits of glass and metal and wood sticking out of him. He looked like a gods’ damned pin cushion. There was a lot of blood all over him. Said he passed out and looked like he was dead for a minute.”
Greencrest, “What happened?”
Maunch, “Guess he had just started at the Academy, or not long after, and was practicing making some potions. He said ‘e slipped, knocked some beakers over onto a burner and BOOM. Other than that incident, nothing. He’s got the choir boy reputation of the three of ‘em.”
Greencrest, “And Tom’s sister?”
Maunch, “When she was working at Fallon’s she got a reputation for cracking tankards aside guys’ heads if they tried anything funny with her. She’s a uh . . . well-endowed girl. Tough girl. Got pretty good with knives and rapier and doesn’t mind pointing them at a man’s member when she has to.”
Herris, “And Serig might get knighted this New Year’s.”
Maunch, “And that he might.”
Greencrest, “Politics, and a Gifted. Now I know why you’re handing this off to me, Francis.”
Maunch, “So, whattaya say?”
Greencrest pauses for a several seconds, then nods her head, “We’ll take it.”
Maunch, “Gods be praised! ‘Cause I didn’ want touch this one for my pension ten times over.”
Greencrest, grinning and nodding, “Where’s Tom now?”
Maunch, “I sent a couple of men over to Odelia’s and a couple over to Tom’s apartment. It’s only a few blocks from here. And I’ve got a few men looking around the neighborhood for him”
Greencrest, turning to Herris, “Let’s visit Odelia’s,” turning to Maunch, “Can you take a look at Tom’s?”
Maunch nods, “Yeah, we’re already halfway there.” Just as the detectives are about to split up a city constable comes towards Maunch, “Sir, we’ve picked up Pardino and took him to the precinct.”
Maunch, “Good, where was he?”
Constable, “About two blocks away. Hung over.”
Greencrest to Herris, “Looks like we’re going to the station instead.” Greencrest to Maunch, “Herris and I will check out Odelia’s after we chat with Mr. Pardino.”
Maunch, “Thanks, Dawn. Be careful with this one. Remember, be ‘tactful’ with the elites, or you might ruffle their feathers too much.”
Greencrest, “Some of them could use their feathers getting ruffled up a bit.”
Maunch, turning to his partner, “Come on, kid. Let’s get the hell out of here before she changes her mind and we get stuck with the shitshow this case is going be.”
