Chapter 1 #2
“I suggest you contact your local representative,” Soph drawls.
“Mayor Lawrence, no? I heard he was an approachable kinda guy. Or marry rich. It’s what smart women do.
” She brings tormenting eyes back to me.
“Let me introduce my team, then we can all get on with our work. Also, unless you have any objections, I suggest you allocate the fifteenth floor as your technology hub.”
I mean… I’d like to ask how she knew the fifteenth floor was available, but this is Soph, so… “The fifteenth floor is acceptable.”
“Great.” She steps to the right and gestures to her squad. “Jay Bishop. Kane Bishop. Theo Griffin.”
“Wait!” Doctor Kirk, my youngest, quietest, never-shouts-ever medical examiner, bolts through the huddle of his coworkers and tears a phone from his back pocket. “Theo Griffin? As in,” he waves the device for everyone to see. “Griffin Technologies? The Theo Griffin?”
Curious, everyone looks my way. “I…” I shake my head. “I have no clue.”
“Yes,” Soph murmurs. “The Theo Griffin. Your entire building will operate on Griffin tech once we’re done.”
“Shew,” Patten whistles. “That’s the good stuff right there. If our computers stop freezing and the freezer stops trying to kill us, our contractually promised meal breaks may actually become the norm.”
Oooooh.
Shaking her head, Soph tips her chin along her line of staff. “Preston Danes.”
He waves to confirm he is, in fact, Preston Danes.
“Pres will be your contact after we’re done. You shouldn’t have any issues, since our install will be faultless, but operator error is rife amongst nerds who skipped the computer nerd gene.”
“Pretty sure you’re dissing us right now,” Raquel teases. “Are you dissing us?”
“If you don’t know, then I’m not inclined to confirm.
Pres will be available to you seven days a week—” But she pauses and stares to push her point home.
“Within reason. We’ll leave you with detailed instructions, so if your question is ‘I don’t know how to access Spotify on my shiny new computer’, he’s gonna cut you off and block your number for a while.
But if you need help that a simple turn it off and back on again won’t solve, he’s your guy.
He’ll make time to sit with each of you on Thursday, log you in, run you through the basics, and answer your questions.
Then we’ll clear out and your lives will go back to normal. ”
“But a better normal.” Kirk practically pants for the computer nerds. “A faster, more technologically advanced normal. Mr. Griffin, sir?”
I swear to God, he performs a tiptoe dance right there in front of his idol.
“Can I get your autograph? Please.”
“Oh, geez.” I stride around my desk and shake my head. “No one is getting anyone’s autograph.” I meet Soph’s gaze. “Are we good now?”
“Yeah. I have others in the building already. I’ll introduce them when needed.
” She lifts her chin and orders her team, even without words, to back away.
They have a military-like stiffness. A formation I could swear I’ve only ever seen in old black and white war movies.
Then they’re gone, all except Soph. “I’ll come find you later, Chief. We have much to discuss.”
Spinning on her heels and inadvertently showing off her ballerina skills, she strides to the elevator and ducks under Jay’s arm.
The doors close.
Then they’re gone.
“Do you think they hire based on brains, Chief, or good looks?” Raquel fans her face. “Secondly, do you think they need a toxicologist on staff? Because I’m not saying my coworkers don’t have it, but I’m saying hers do.”
“Oh, shut up.” I circle my desk and whip my top drawer open.
Snatching out my ruler, I plop back onto my chair and cross my legs.
“Don’t lose focus today because of the chaos outside of your autopsy suites.
If Sophia or one of her crew intrudes on what you’re doing, protect your DB first and foremost. What I don’t want to do is explain to a judge in a year or two why a particular case has been compromised by building dust or computer chips or…
” Again, I roll my wrist. “Whatever it is they do. Doctor Patten?”
She swings her focus away from the elevator and back to me. “Yes, Chief?”
“Stop ogling the beautiful people. What arrived overnight? Where are you up to? What still needs to be assigned? Once you’ve told me, you can go home and catch some sleep.”
“Right! Yep.”
It’s entirely possible she’s practicing for her interview with Checkmate, because she snaps her spine straight and salutes me.
“Five new DBs rolled in since shift began last night. Add them to the four left over from day shift, plus the stack from a long, ridiculously hot weekend, and we’re a little backed up.
But we’ve had worse by a long shot. My team pushed through three each overnight, started, and or finished their preliminary reports, and are currently waiting to be dismissed.
We’ve got seven freshies in the fridge not yet allocated.
Quick glance tells me four of them are older folks who succumbed to the heat.
PD’s following them up, since they were unattended deaths, but no one’s looking at them like they’re suspicious.
Fifth DB is real messy… twenty-four-year-old female vic meets city bus. ”
“Accidental or self-inflicted?”
“Cops are leaning toward accidental. Slipped off the curb and,” she claps her hands.
“Splat. One drowning victim. A handful of teens were cooling off at the bay late last night, things got wild. Fortunately-unfortunately, one friend caught the whole incident on his phone. I haven’t seen the footage, but I heard whispers she jumped off the bridge, as teens are apt to do, landed funny, and by the time her buddies caught up to her, it was too late. ”
Aubree’s brows fold into a severe frown. “That’s sad.”
“Mm. And body number seven is a little less certain. I didn’t get a peek at them yet, so I don’t actually know what’s up.”
“Alright.” I wave toward the door. “Goodnight, Doctor Patten.”
“Night!” She bolts like her ass is on fire and shouts for the rest of her crew. “Pack it up! We’re done.”
I bring my attention back to mine. “Does anyone have anything they’d like to discuss, since I was away yesterday? Anything you need from me?”
Raquel’s hand shoots confidently into the air.
“Anything that isn’t gonna take a chunk out of our budget?”
She lowers it again.
“Alright. Kirk, Torres, Flynn, you each take two of Patten’s seven. Catlin?”
“I’m scheduled for court this afternoon, Chief. I’ll be there from lunchtime onwards.”
“Yep. Which means I’m pulling the mystery body out and seeing what I see.”
Aubree glances left. Right. Questioning. Curious. “And me, Chief?”
“You’re with me. Always.” I set my ruler back on my desk.
“If the phones ring, we’ll allocate cases as they come in.
Remember to exercise willpower today and not get caught up in watching the computer nerds doing their thing.
Otherwise…” I tip my chin toward the door and release them without saying the words. “Oh, and Doctor Raquel?”
She makes a whole production of climbing off the sofa, extending her long, grasshopper-like legs and grunting like she’s ninety, and not a spry thirty-something. “Yeah, Chief? What’s up?”
“I’ll find time to come down today so we can do that thing.”
“Sounds dirty.” She strides across my office and drags the door wide. “Y’all! The boss just solicited me for something illicit and inappropriate!”
“Oh, for God’s sake.” I pinch the bridge of my nose. Was it only a few minutes ago that I felt peppy and excited for work? Energized and able to take on the world. “Doctor Raquel?”
“She waited for y’all to leave so she could say those things to me!” she hollers. “I. Am. Scandalized!”
“She’s exhausting.” Aubree drops her not-very-practical military skirted butt into my single visitor’s chair. “What’s on the agenda today besides our mystery body, Boss? You think it might be quiet?”
Just like that, my phone trills with an incoming call that makes her wrinkle her nose. “Yeesh. I think I jinxed us.” She picks it up and grits her teeth. “This is Doctor Emeri speaking.”