mean stable and easy. Most of them knew that, too.
James stepped aside and motioned the other woman forward. "This is Mackenzie Wallace. She found Natasha. She's one of mine—a rookie—came to get an evidence file from upstairs."
Mackenzie nodded, said nothing. She had long straight brown hair that hung in a clean line across her shoulders and a shorter line of bangs that covered the tops of arched brows. Her eyes were a dark brown with flecks of gold. They appeared large against her olive skin. Despite her height, she looked young to Hailey, especially her eyes. Like a child taking in all new sights, most of them terrifying. Hailey wondered if it was because of the body she'd found or if Mackenzie Wallace always looked a bit overwhelmed by the world around her.
Hailey flipped open her notebook. "What time did you find her?"
"Just before three a.m. Maybe two fifty-five."
It was almost eight thirty. "And no one's been out before me?"
"There was someone else," Mackenzie said. "A tall man with blondish gray hair. Nice-looking."
Hailey searched for a match in Homicide but failed. "In uniform?"
She shook her head. "Suit."
"What did he do?"
"Made a few calls on a cell phone and then when the crime scene team came, he left. I never talked to him." She glanced at Linda. "I tried to, but he sort of waved me off."
Hailey couldn't make anything of it. She focused back on the crowd. "Can you hang around a bit? I want to hear more, but I need to check in."
"Sure," Mackenzie said.
"I've already gotten a call from the chief on this," Linda added. "It's going to be ugly. Everyone knew her—she was popular." Linda's lips thinned into a straight line at the word 'popular.' Hailey guessed that was the chief's choice of words to describe Natasha and not hers.
Hailey thought about Natasha. They'd been friends once—sort of. They'd joined the department around the same time. Not in the same academy class, but close. Back then, there weren't many women. Hardly any, actually. Hailey had found a group she liked and tried to get Natasha to hang with the women.
Natasha had mostly passed. Said she preferred male company. Rumor was, Natasha had had plenty of it—from the seniors in the department all the way down to the newly initiated rookies. Married, divorced, single, it hadn't much mattered. And she'd pretty much gotten away with it. Even when she'd been caught in bed with Jamie Vail's husband and Jamie had unloaded her weapon—nine rounds—into the wall behind the bed, Natasha had emerged unscathed. At least until now.
Hailey wasn't one to pass judgment. Life was complicated. People, too. What they wanted or needed, and why, was up to the individual to sort out. What bothered her about Natasha's lifestyle was that made for a long list of suspects in her murder. If the rumors were to be believed, Natasha had split up more marriages than Jamie Vail's and those that had survived her weren't always the best for the experience. That meant a lot of people with a grudge against Devlin. Take those old grudges, add a big party, alcohol and Natasha flitting about, and someone might just have decided that enough was enough.
Hailey ducked under the yellow tape and studied the car where Natasha had been found. She pulled on a pair of small, purple latex gloves and pulled the car door open. Blood on the passenger side seat and headrest. Natasha had been there. A small plastic vase was stuck to the dash. In it, a single, fabric red rose. In the middle console were several lipsticks, a bluetooth ear piece, a tin of Altoid mints. Nothing incriminating. Hailey stepped away to let a CSU tech finish documenting the inside of the car.
Hailey found Sydney Blanchard and waited while she gave directions to one of her techs, a man holding a small handheld vacuum used for sucking up hair and fibers from the scene. When Sydney looked up, she gave Hailey a wide smile.
"Looks like a blow to the head," she said brightly, a short blond curl falling into
James stepped aside and motioned the other woman forward. "This is Mackenzie Wallace. She found Natasha. She's one of mine—a rookie—came to get an evidence file from upstairs."
Mackenzie nodded, said nothing. She had long straight brown hair that hung in a clean line across her shoulders and a shorter line of bangs that covered the tops of arched brows. Her eyes were a dark brown with flecks of gold. They appeared large against her olive skin. Despite her height, she looked young to Hailey, especially her eyes. Like a child taking in all new sights, most of them terrifying. Hailey wondered if it was because of the body she'd found or if Mackenzie Wallace always looked a bit overwhelmed by the world around her.
Hailey flipped open her notebook. "What time did you find her?"
"Just before three a.m. Maybe two fifty-five."
It was almost eight thirty. "And no one's been out before me?"
"There was someone else," Mackenzie said. "A tall man with blondish gray hair. Nice-looking."
Hailey searched for a match in Homicide but failed. "In uniform?"
She shook her head. "Suit."
"What did he do?"
"Made a few calls on a cell phone and then when the crime scene team came, he left. I never talked to him." She glanced at Linda. "I tried to, but he sort of waved me off."
Hailey couldn't make anything of it. She focused back on the crowd. "Can you hang around a bit? I want to hear more, but I need to check in."
"Sure," Mackenzie said.
"I've already gotten a call from the chief on this," Linda added. "It's going to be ugly. Everyone knew her—she was popular." Linda's lips thinned into a straight line at the word 'popular.' Hailey guessed that was the chief's choice of words to describe Natasha and not hers.
Hailey thought about Natasha. They'd been friends once—sort of. They'd joined the department around the same time. Not in the same academy class, but close. Back then, there weren't many women. Hardly any, actually. Hailey had found a group she liked and tried to get Natasha to hang with the women.
Natasha had mostly passed. Said she preferred male company. Rumor was, Natasha had had plenty of it—from the seniors in the department all the way down to the newly initiated rookies. Married, divorced, single, it hadn't much mattered. And she'd pretty much gotten away with it. Even when she'd been caught in bed with Jamie Vail's husband and Jamie had unloaded her weapon—nine rounds—into the wall behind the bed, Natasha had emerged unscathed. At least until now.
Hailey wasn't one to pass judgment. Life was complicated. People, too. What they wanted or needed, and why, was up to the individual to sort out. What bothered her about Natasha's lifestyle was that made for a long list of suspects in her murder. If the rumors were to be believed, Natasha had split up more marriages than Jamie Vail's and those that had survived her weren't always the best for the experience. That meant a lot of people with a grudge against Devlin. Take those old grudges, add a big party, alcohol and Natasha flitting about, and someone might just have decided that enough was enough.
Hailey ducked under the yellow tape and studied the car where Natasha had been found. She pulled on a pair of small, purple latex gloves and pulled the car door open. Blood on the passenger side seat and headrest. Natasha had been there. A small plastic vase was stuck to the dash. In it, a single, fabric red rose. In the middle console were several lipsticks, a bluetooth ear piece, a tin of Altoid mints. Nothing incriminating. Hailey stepped away to let a CSU tech finish documenting the inside of the car.
Hailey found Sydney Blanchard and waited while she gave directions to one of her techs, a man holding a small handheld vacuum used for sucking up hair and fibers from the scene. When Sydney looked up, she gave Hailey a wide smile.
"Looks like a blow to the head," she said brightly, a short blond curl falling into
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