fridge beside a large blue Tupperware container marked CZ. Every shift a new container appeared, sometimes more than one. Who had such an appetite? She would have to ask Officer Chris Zimmerman about that.
She left her off-duty pistol in her locker and changed into her uniform. Tightening her belt with the .45 cal Smith & Wesson around her waist, she emerged from the locker room mentally changed as well. Today she would sneak back out to Dolores Johnson's house and examine the scene again. It didn't matter that everyone else considered it an accident, she knew otherwise, and Dolores deserved better.
She sauntered into the briefing room at ten to seven, chagrined to see Lieutenant Derek Peterson leaning against the sergeant 's desk. Derek had been in plainclothes long enough to appear uncomfortable in the too-tight uniform he now wore. More at home in jeans and golf shirts these days, his belly sagged a few inches over the top of his belt buckle. He adjusted his duty belt self-consciously, sliding his sidearm and lock-blade knife further back.
As a high school football player, he 'd thought highly of himself and so did most of the cheerleaders. Erin never figured out why, but he had butted heads with her since their senior year. A grade ahead of her, he had joined the local PD fresh out of high school and she joined after college. On the number of occasions she had worked with him, she'd learned not to trust him one bit. He made his own rules when it seemed fit, and his inflated sense of entitlement annoyed her.
"Sergeant Berg away on his course?" she queried, skipping the customary greeting. It was no secret that the sergeant had been campaigning for a computer crimes course for years. He 'd finally persuaded the administration to send him to Quantico to 'learn from the big boys' as he put it. He would spearhead a new subsection within the Criminal Investigation Unit specially designated for solving computer-based crimes like child exploitation. Since these crimes had no geographical boundaries, he would liaise with other units across the continent and around the world. A family man with small kids, he was driven more than most cops, and one of the few who wanted to bring the PD's technology into the current decade.
When Sergeant Berg finished his course, he would take Derek 's place and Derek would take the Sergeant's position on Erin's crew. Good for the Criminal Investigation Unit. Bad for Erin. Right now, Derek merely reoriented himself to life in the Patrol Unit.
Derek nodded but did not look up, frowning at a sheaf of papers in his hands. She got the distinct impression that he enjoyed making her wait. He ran a hand through shaggy blond hair and continued reading. She could swear he was sucking in his gut and wondered how long he could hold it.
"Where is the rest of the crew?" Erin sat uneasily at the conference table, the focal point for morning briefings.
"Z-man won 't be in until ten, because he had to take his mom to the doctor. Jake is home sick with probably the same flu as Z's mom, and I sent Ryan and Mark off to an early call. Right now, it's only us here."
"What 's the early call?"
"Mark 's assisting the fire department down at the end of Ash Avenue with a dumpster fire." He paused and looked back at his papers. "Ryan is with him."
"Two guys sent to a dumpster fire?" Erin raised an eyebrow.
"Are you questioning me as your supervisor, Officer Ericsson?" Derek tensed his shoulders in exaggerated surprise.
"Cut the crap Derek." Erin met Derek 's pale green eyes. "Nobody is here for you to impress." Even in high school this had been the only way to deal with him.
He looked at her for a moment and then he snorted. "You always were such a shit. A little firecracker."
She stared back at him. "Do you have anything useful to tell me today or should I go find out for myself?"
He dipped his head and said, "I dunno. I just picked up these papers from dispatch and haven 't had a chance to go through them. I
She left her off-duty pistol in her locker and changed into her uniform. Tightening her belt with the .45 cal Smith & Wesson around her waist, she emerged from the locker room mentally changed as well. Today she would sneak back out to Dolores Johnson's house and examine the scene again. It didn't matter that everyone else considered it an accident, she knew otherwise, and Dolores deserved better.
She sauntered into the briefing room at ten to seven, chagrined to see Lieutenant Derek Peterson leaning against the sergeant 's desk. Derek had been in plainclothes long enough to appear uncomfortable in the too-tight uniform he now wore. More at home in jeans and golf shirts these days, his belly sagged a few inches over the top of his belt buckle. He adjusted his duty belt self-consciously, sliding his sidearm and lock-blade knife further back.
As a high school football player, he 'd thought highly of himself and so did most of the cheerleaders. Erin never figured out why, but he had butted heads with her since their senior year. A grade ahead of her, he had joined the local PD fresh out of high school and she joined after college. On the number of occasions she had worked with him, she'd learned not to trust him one bit. He made his own rules when it seemed fit, and his inflated sense of entitlement annoyed her.
"Sergeant Berg away on his course?" she queried, skipping the customary greeting. It was no secret that the sergeant had been campaigning for a computer crimes course for years. He 'd finally persuaded the administration to send him to Quantico to 'learn from the big boys' as he put it. He would spearhead a new subsection within the Criminal Investigation Unit specially designated for solving computer-based crimes like child exploitation. Since these crimes had no geographical boundaries, he would liaise with other units across the continent and around the world. A family man with small kids, he was driven more than most cops, and one of the few who wanted to bring the PD's technology into the current decade.
When Sergeant Berg finished his course, he would take Derek 's place and Derek would take the Sergeant's position on Erin's crew. Good for the Criminal Investigation Unit. Bad for Erin. Right now, Derek merely reoriented himself to life in the Patrol Unit.
Derek nodded but did not look up, frowning at a sheaf of papers in his hands. She got the distinct impression that he enjoyed making her wait. He ran a hand through shaggy blond hair and continued reading. She could swear he was sucking in his gut and wondered how long he could hold it.
"Where is the rest of the crew?" Erin sat uneasily at the conference table, the focal point for morning briefings.
"Z-man won 't be in until ten, because he had to take his mom to the doctor. Jake is home sick with probably the same flu as Z's mom, and I sent Ryan and Mark off to an early call. Right now, it's only us here."
"What 's the early call?"
"Mark 's assisting the fire department down at the end of Ash Avenue with a dumpster fire." He paused and looked back at his papers. "Ryan is with him."
"Two guys sent to a dumpster fire?" Erin raised an eyebrow.
"Are you questioning me as your supervisor, Officer Ericsson?" Derek tensed his shoulders in exaggerated surprise.
"Cut the crap Derek." Erin met Derek 's pale green eyes. "Nobody is here for you to impress." Even in high school this had been the only way to deal with him.
He looked at her for a moment and then he snorted. "You always were such a shit. A little firecracker."
She stared back at him. "Do you have anything useful to tell me today or should I go find out for myself?"
He dipped his head and said, "I dunno. I just picked up these papers from dispatch and haven 't had a chance to go through them. I
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