Free to Kill

by Julie Mellon

  Once on the third floor, she closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm her nerves before opening the door to the hallway. When she opened her eyes, there was a man holding the door open, as if he were attempting to go downstairs. He was, quite simply…stunning. Wearing a charcoal gray suit and royal purple shirt topped off with a lavender tie, his brown eyes were as warm as liquid chocolate. “Excuse me,” the man said, “can I help you find where you’re going?” There was no mistaking the interest in his eyes as they passed from her head to her toes and back.

  “No, thank you. I was just catching my breath.” Katie brushed past him and into the hall, not knowing if her irritation was from his perusal or her own reaction to the stranger. Choosing to believe it was because he had blatantly checked her out was easier than admitting she was attracted to him. Didn’t the men in this building see women every day? She wasn’t something to be stared at, just because she was in the vicinity. With that thought in her head, she made her way to the end of the hall as directed. Luckily the person sitting behind the desk in front of room 311 was a woman. A very pregnant woman; so pregnant that Katie worried that one move would send her into labor. Did women really work that close to delivery? Shaking the thought out of her head, Katie cleared her throat and prepared to present her credentials to the woman.

  The woman looked up and smiled. “It won’t be necessary to pull those out. I’ve been expecting you. Al called up from the desk to let me know you were on you way. Have a seat and I will let Marty - I mean SAC Nelson - know you’re here. Nick - I mean ASAC Perry - will be joinin’ you.” The woman’s voice was sugary sweet and her drawl took some getting used to in order to figure out what she was saying. Katie simply smiled and nodded, wanting to offer assistance as the woman heaved her body out of the chair. “Oh, by the way, I’m Jessie. Jessie Glenn.” With that, she lumbered into room 311 to announce Katie’s arrival.

  Katie could hear the mumble of voices coming from the office and a few seconds later Jessie reemerged and lowered herself back into her chair. Her face was red and she was breathing heavily from even that small amount of exertion. Jessie reached for the phone, dialed a few numbers, and announced Katie’s arrival, presumably to ‘Nick, I mean ASAC Perry’. Katie nearly smiled at the thoughts running through her head, but the groan from Jessie had her looking up in alarm. Jessie sat back and rubbed her extremely distended stomach. “I sure will be glad when this little feller arrives. I am so tired of him dancin’ on my guts.” Continuing as if nothing had been said, Jessie again picked up the phone and dialed a few numbers. She announced Katie’s arrival to yet another person before returning the phone to the cradle. “Your new partner, Michael, will be joining y’all in the meetin’. You sure are lucky to be working with him. He is such a hunk.” She looked at Katie with dreamy eyes.

  Katie sat uncomfortably, not sure how to respond to such a comment. She knew her interpersonal skills weren’t that great, but then again, you didn’t really need interpersonal skills to solve crimes. You just needed intelligence and drive and the ability to interpret body language and evidence. Besides, this woman was very pregnant. Why was she checking out other men? Then again, Katie didn’t know that Michael was another man, perhaps he was the father of Jessie’s baby. Katie was saved from the uncomfortable situation by the arrival of the man she had passed in the stairwell and another man she had never seen before.

  “Um, good luck with, um, everything?” Katie stumbled out to Jessie as she stood to greet the two men.

  “We didn’t get a chance to introduce ourselves before; I’m Michael Powell,” the man from the stairwell said as he stretched out his hand. Michael stood a little over six feet tall with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. His jet-black hair was a longer version of the typical men’s style, and curled slightly around his ears. His eyes were a deep chocolate brown, so dark that you couldn’t distinguish the pupil from the iris, again reminding her of melted chocolate. He gave Katie a smile that normally made women swoon.

  Still confused by the uncomfortable exchange with Jessie, it took Katie a few seconds longer than normal to reach out and shake Michael’s hand. As she reached out, her purse fell from her arm to the floor. She bent down to retrieve it at the same time as Michael causing her head to slam into his. “Sorry,” she mumbled as she grabbed the strap of her purse and stood back up.

  “And I’m Nick Perry,” the second man said, extending his hand. Nick’s hair was in a military buzz cut. It appeared to be blonde and his eyes were a dull green. Nick stood stiff, probably due to years of military training. His every movement seemed calculated and precise. He was the exact opposite of Michael in every way. Even his black suit with a starched white shirt pointed out the differences between the two men.

  Red with embarrassment, Katie reached out and shook his hand a bit overzealously. Nick pulled his hand back and waved her into the office before him and Michael. As she passed Jessie, Katie couldn’t help but notice the other woman’s compressed lips. It took a second for her to register that Jessie’s expression wasn’t from labor pains, but from her effort to not laugh at Katie. As Katie walked by, Jessie picked up a stack of papers from her desk and fanned herself, giving Katie an “I told you so” look with a sly glance back at Michael.

  Giving herself a mental shake, Katie stepped into the office and approached the man at the desk. The sunlight shining in from the window lit his silver hair, making it look like a halo. The expression on his face said he was anything other than an angel.

  “I’m Katie Freeman,” she said in a clear voice as she extended her hand.

  “Nice to meet you. Marty Nelson. Have a seat.” SAC Nelson waved to a round table surrounded by four chairs in the corner, then got up to join the three of them, every move as brisk as his tone. Once everyone was seated, Nelson began by opening Katie’s personnel file. “So you are joining our Field Investigation Unit here at the Criminal Investigative Division. What brings you here from Louisiana?”

  Katie hadn’t been sure what to expect from this first meeting, but an interview question had not even entered her thoughts. She already had the job. She had been told of the transfer by her former SAC in Baton Rouge and packed up her life to move to Tennessee. “Well, I was told I was being transferred. I guess I just thought that was how the Bureau worked. So here I am.” Katie had never been good at interviews, mostly because she didn’t like being the center of attention. She could easily study other people and identify their emotions and motives, but she could never really be comfortable enough around others to relax and just talk. She was much happier when the conversation was about work, not about her.

  The frown on the three faces looking back at her was her first indication that something was wrong. “So, you think the Bureau transferred you here?” Nick Perry asked.

  “Well, yes. I had a nearly 100% closure rate at my last station, so I know my work was up to standards. I guess I just thought the Bureau could use my skills elsewhere.” Katie tried her best not to squirm or break eye contact.

  “How about your partner,” Nelson glanced down at the file, though Katie had a feeling he already knew the information he was looking for, “Grady King?”

  “What about him?”

  “Did the two of you get along?”

  “Well, we worked well together. We had great statistics. Is there something specific you want to know?”

  “Agent Freeman, what I want to know is why your former SAC requested the Bureau transfer you when, up to this point, your work exceeds the standards of other agents in the division?” Nelson’s tone was stern, his gray eyebrows wiggling up and down.

  Katie was taken aback by the information. She hadn’t known that the transfer was the result of her SAC’s request. She sat there for a few minutes with her mouth dropped open as she absorbed the information. “I really don’t know why he requested the transfer. I think if you want the answer to that question, you will have to ask him.”

  “Oh, I did. All he said was that you had
done as much as you could in that district and that you needed the experience in other areas to, and I quote, fully round out your personnel file, end of quote. Seems he had nothing negative to say, but also nothing positive. That to me screams of a problem, Agent. What do you have to say about that?”

  Looking Nelson straight in the eye, her own green eyes flashed fire. Katie worked hard to control her temper as she replied, “I have nothing to say to that. If he felt I had achieved all I was able to achieve in their small district, then I am happy to try a new area. Experience is experience, regardless of where it comes from. I am a hard working agent and will do as good a job here, if not better.” Sitting back in her chair, Katie continued to look each man in the eye.

  Finally, after a few tense moments, ASAC Perry said, “Michael will show you around the building and get you set up in your space. I’m sure you’ll hit the ground running.”

  With that, all three men stood up from the table. Katie quickly followed suit and trailed Michael from the room. Neither of them said a word as they walked down the hall and turned into an office with two desks crammed into it. The desks were butted against each other with the computer monitors facing out, so that each occupant would be looking at the other when seated. The walls were painted institutional beige, but at least there was a small window in the far wall. Michael stepped aside to allow Katie into the office, closing the door behind her. At the sound of the door closing, Katie’s heart and breathing sped up. Get control, Katie. It’s not that small of a room. Despite the internal pep talk, Katie broke out into a sweat. Michael moved around her and took the desk to the right. Quietly, Katie reached back and opened the door a small bit before taking the seat at the other desk. Michael just watched her.

  Sitting down, Katie put her purse in the bottom drawer of the desk, checked the other drawers to see what supplies were there and adjusted the height of the chair. Finally, she looked up to see that Michael still hadn’t taken his eyes off of her. She simply returned his stare. What was it with the guys in this office staring at her?

  “They think you slept with your last partner. That it went bad and you had to be moved,” he said.

  The sentence was uttered quietly and with no inflection of accusation. It was just a statement.

  “I didn’t sleep with my last partner, despite his attempts to change that fact. I am here to do my job. I am not here to find a husband and pop out two-point-five kids. I enjoy investigating and I enjoy the challenge of a new case. Are we going to have a problem?” Katie kept her tone even as she responded, though her heart had dropped to her stomach and she felt sick from the implications. Her reputation was important to her, as she had worked so hard to maintain a professional demeanor. To think that one move by a superior could call that into question was nauseating.

  “No problems here,” Michael replied. “Though I don’t think I said anything about a husband or kids.” His half-smile was an indication that he was joking. Katie reluctantly smiled back.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Michael stood up and headed for the office door. “Let’s introduce you to the rest of the team and show you the lay of the land.” He glanced back to see if Katie was following and proceeded to walk out the door.

  Katie quickly caught up as he turned left and headed down the hall.

  “It’s time for the two o’clock break,” Michael continued. Seeing her confusion, Michael explained: “At two every afternoon, anyone in the building gathers in the break room to go over anything interesting that has happened. We toss around ideas from different cases, help each other out when someone is stumped about where to turn next. Basically, just an informal meeting and shoot-the-shit gathering. If nothing business related is happening, we talk sports or stuff. It’s a great way for you to meet everyone.”

  Katie wasn’t reassured by his easy smile. She bit back the panic at having to walk into a room full of strangers and be the focus of attention. She was much more of a behind-the-scenes person. Luckily when she stepped into the room there were only two other people there.

  “Katie, meet Lucy Boggs and Andy Dillon. They work mostly with cyber crimes. Andy, Lucy, meet Katie.”

  Lucy was at least six feet tall and very large boned. Her red hair was cropped close to her scalp and when she extended her hand her voice was as deep as Michael’s. “Nice to meet you, you new, where’d you come from?” This was all said in one breath and strung together so quickly that Katie had difficulty processing it. The nearly bone-crushing handshake didn’t help matters, either.

  “I just got here today. I came from the Baton Rouge office in Louisiana,” Katie replied, with what she hoped was a small enough pause to not be noticeable.

  Lucy’s booming laughter filled up the entire break room. “Guess I will have to slow my speech for ya. Them folks down there talk r-e-e-e-al slow,” Lucy replied with another booming laugh.

  “Don’t let Lucy run you off. I’m Andy.” As Katie shook his hand she took in his small stature. Standing a few inches shorter than she, Andy had blonde hair and hazel eyes. He could have passed for an eighteen-year-old, but there was a sadness in his eyes that aged him. His presence immediately put Katie at ease.

  Truly smiling for the first time that day, Katie shook his hand and asked what exactly he did for cyber crimes.

  “Oh, Lucy and I look for child pornography and online predators. In fact, it’s about to be our busy time of day. We look forward to the two o’clock break just to get us pumped up for what will be a very disturbing few hours.” Seeing the confusion on Katie’s face, he continued, “School lets out at 2:30 around here. But, as you know, the standard workday doesn’t end until 5:00. That two-and-a-half hour block is when children are left alone with their computers and the Internet, just waiting for mom or dad to get home. Predators know this and they use it. Lucy and I get the pleasure of going online and posing as twelve-year-olds to see what sickos are out there looking for us. “ The last bit was said with obvious distaste, but it went a long way toward explaining the look behind his eyes.

  Lucy spoke up in a sobered voice, “The rest of the day is better. At least we get a break from the slime when we get pulled into one of your cases. It always makes for a better day to catch someone preying on adults.” Michael and Andy snorted out laughs, breaking the heaviness in the room.

  The four of them continued talking for a few moments before Andy and Lucy left to become child victims of online predators. Over the next thirty minutes, several other agents came in and introduced themselves. Michael must have sensed Katie’s insecurity because he never left her to fend for herself. She learned a lot about how the office interrelated and also learned that Michael was not the father of Jessie’s baby. There was an office betting pool going for the delivery date and weight of the baby. Katie didn’t join, she had no idea how to predict delivery dates and even less of an idea about a newborn’s weight.

  Finally at three, they made their way down the corridor with Michael pointing out the copy room, the supply room and the bathrooms before finally returning to their office. This time, he didn’t completely close the door. Katie smiled internally when she noticed the gesture.

  Returning to their seats, Michael slid four folders across his desk and onto hers. “These are four unsolved cold cases. My old partner, Stan, retired last month. These are four of his cases from before I came that he left for me to hopefully complete. Of course, those are the condensed versions. The full files are in the basement storage room, which we will spare you the introduction to as long as humanly possible.”

  Katie was getting used to his easy smile and manner. It would take her a while to loosen up, but at least he wasn’t holding Nelson and Perry’s assumptions over her head.

  “So, where are you from?” Michael asked.

  “Why do you want to know?” The short reply was out of her mouth before Katie could stop it.

  “Well, um, I just thought we could get to know each other a bit, seeing as we’ll be working so closely together. Your ac
cent isn’t from Louisiana, so I am assuming that you didn’t grow up there,” Michael said uncertainly. The frown was back on his face, and he obviously didn’t know what he had said wrong.

  Katie sighed. “You’re right. I didn’t grow up there. I didn’t mean to be so short with you.”

  “Short comes naturally to the vertically challenged,” Michael said, his easy smile returning and causing Katie to roll her eyes. “But you didn’t answer my question. Where is your family?”

  “I don’t have family,” Katie said vaguely.

  “Ok, how can a person not have family?”

  “I never knew my dad and my mom and I parted ways when I left home at eighteen,” Katie said, her tone meant to close the subject.

  “Guess you don’t like to talk about you.” Michael said. “Tell you what, I’m gonna tell you all about me. And maybe each morning, you can tell me one fact about yourself. Then maybe we can get to know each other. I just think it makes our working relationship better if we know how the other operates. I’m an open book. Feel free to ask me anything.”

  Despite her better judgment, Katie was really curious about her new partner. So she decided to play along. “Where did you come from? Where is your family?” Starting by throwing his two questions back at him, Katie smirked and waited to see what he would say.

  “Now, see, is that so hard? Well, I am from the great city of Smyrna. That’s just south of here. I still live there. So do my mom and dad and all seven of my siblings.”

  “You have seven siblings?” Katie’s response was a combination of shock and longing.

  “Yup. Three brothers and four sisters. My parents joke that they should have tried for one more each, then they could have had two starting line-ups. We are all tall and athletic. We all played basketball in high school and a few of us in college too.”

  “Where did you go to college? Were you one of the ones who played in college? What do your siblings do?” Despite herself, Katie couldn’t stop the flow of questions. She was an only child and had lived such a sheltered and secluded life. This family was a foreign concept to her.