~ Lover's Tryst ~
by Larisa



Top 25: Aug. 12, 2002
Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah I know who they remind ya of. These women are all mine! Xepher and Brian are back in this sequel to Body Parts. GRAPHIC VIOLENCE!!!!!! Not as bad as Body Parts but some parts are gross!

Violence: Yep.

Language: Yep.

Sex? Of course there is!

The rest of the story: If you're to young to buy beer, go have a yahoo and come back in a couple years! If you live in a State that outlaws this, then you live around a bunch of pricks.

Thanks to Lesia, Ri, Maggie, Thorie and the WebWarrior. Couldn't have gotten this done without all your help.


Lover's Tryst
By Larisa
Hecate3366@frontiernet.net

Sallano stood next to the grieving woman, her large hand supporting her at the elbow as she led her to the viewing room at the morgue. She hated bringing relatives and other's to this room, there was no telling how the person would react once they saw the deceased. Even though it was a picture on the monitor, some people wanted to look through the window as this woman did. Sallano tapped on the adjoining window and watched as the curtain was pulled back by an unfamiliar figure. The man was young, maybe early twenties. His hair was a chestnut color that reached below his shoulders and hung across his face from a side part. Right off Sallano didn't like him. Turning back to the distraught woman next to her, she asked her if she was ready to identify the deceased. At the nod of her head, Sallano had the young ME pull the sheet back.

"That's my husband!" The woman screamed and fell into Sallano's side sobbing. "He didn't come home last night; I thought he stayed at his office." She went on in hysterical sobs, Sallano was not good with the sensitive chat stuff, and she had no idea what to do with this poor woman.

"Ma'am I need to ask you some questions about your personal life with your husband." She ran a hand across her face and mumbled to herself. "Please take a seat and let me get the ME in here to explain some stuff to you." Leaving the woman in the viewing room, she ran down the hall to the small office where she hoped the Chief ME would be hiding. Rounding the corner near the viewing room, she ran into the young ME.

He shoved her in the chest and gave her an angry look. "You're not supposed to be back here!"

Feral blue eyes drilled into the muddy brown eyes of the man, a low keening growl came to her lips as she lifted a fist before him.

"What in the Hell is going on here?" Was yelled from behind Sallano. "Xe, if you plow his ass into the tile I'll have to do all the work myself." The Chief Medical Examiner said close to her ear. "Now play nice or I'll eat all the lunch I brought myself."

"How about if I just hit him a little?" Sallano growled.

"I'll leave ya the crumbs from the lasagna. Edwards take care of the body in there and then go to lunch."

"What about her, she's not supposed to be back here." He was not about to let the tall woman before him get away with almost knocking him down and embarrassing him.

"Edwards, this is Lt. Xepher Sallano of homicide. She can come back here as often as she likes, now get to work." She rolled her eyes at the egotistical man; she had nothing but problems since he started that morning. "Come on ya big bad cop, lunch is waiting." She hooked her arm through Xe's.

"I don't like him Brian." Xe whispered close to her lover's ear. "Gives me the creeps."

"You said the same thing about me once upon a time."

"You're different, you're my little creepy ME." She placed a kiss on top of Brian's head. "Before we eat lunch would you talk to the dead guy's wife and explain to her how he died."

Green eyes rolled, Brian hated talking to relatives as much as Xe did. "OK, I'll tell her he was a kinky bastard and should have stayed away from rope."

"Ya know baby, maybe they have one of those Sensitive talk books for Dummies. I'll get ya one."

Brian stopped and pushed her lover against the wall and pressed their bodies tightly together. "I know plenty about sensitive talks, for one, I know all I have to do is whisper sensitive little words in your ear and you get all hot and bothered."

"Bri telling me you want to eat me is not a sensitive talk." She picked her lover up and held her at eye level. "And saying something like that to a grieving woman may get you a black-eye and a spot on the couch."

"Soo you're saying that you'll punch me and she'll make me sleep on her couch after we have sex?" She gave Xe a rakish grin. "Never know maybe an older woman can teach me something?"

"Bri I am older and you're impossible." She kissed Bri deeply until they heard a cough come from behind them. "And we're busted." She mumbled against her lover's lips.

"That woman is still in the viewing room." Edward's gave them a dirty look as he walked past them and mumbled something about filthy dykes.

"I really don't like him now."

"Come on studly; let's go talk to that woman."

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"Ma'am I'm Chief Medical Examiner Meadows, Lt. Sallano has asked me to explain some things to you."

"All I want to know is what happened to my husband, he just had a company physical and passed."

Xe took a chair next to the woman and sat down beside her; she took a deep breath and looked to Bri before she started to tell the grieving widow what she knew. "Ma'am, your husband was found in a motel room by a prostitute this morning. What I need to know is did your husband ever ask you to perform any kind of unusual sex acts with him?"

The woman's face paled, her mouth worked a few times before she shook her head no. Both Brian and Xepher sighed; they knew that this was usually the case with older couples. Brian placed her hand on the widows and gave her a small smile.

"Let me explain what happened to your husband, have you ever heard of autoerotic asphyxiation." She continued to explain. "Some people believe that they achieve a better and longer orgasm by ways of strangulation. The only problem is that sometimes it's taken too far and accidental death occurs. I believe that's what happened to your husband." Brian watched as the woman's jaw clenched and anger filled her tear-reddened eyes. "This practice should be performed with a trusted and experienced partner."

"He's dead because he wanted to experience kinky sex with some hooker?" As her anger flared, her voice got louder and shriller. "That stupid bastard! How am I supposed to tell our kids that their father was a pervert?" She got up from the chair and stormed out of the room.

"Well that was another happy customer." Xe sighed and leaned back in her chair.

"Good thing I didn't tell her that I found semen in his rectum huh?"

Xe's eyes widened at the information. "You found what? And here I thought he was alone."

"Nope, I'd say you have someone to look for. I found a huge amount of illegal narcotics in him and Viagra."

"Great! Here I thought I had an easy accidental death case and now it's turned into something else." Tilting her head back, she closed her eyes for a brief minute before connecting with Bri's. "Anything else I should know about this guy, I got to the scene after he was already taken away?"

Brian was now pacing the floor; she knew her lover was going to be one pissed off cop when she found out. "Come on let's talk in my office, too many damn ears around here."

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After the last case they had worked together, Brian had decided to turn the small on-call room into her office. It was larger than the original and she could actually sit behind her desk without feeling as if she was in the hallway. She had also brought in a futon and gotten rid of the small cot that had been there. She felt more comfortable in her area now that Xe had put new locks and deadbolts on the doors. The first problem she had with Edwards was that he wanted a key to her office. She told him that there was no reason what so ever that he would need anything from her office. All pending files would be kept in the small office and both PC units were linked so that he could pull up anything that he would need. He argued with her until she threatened to fire him before he had even been there for a day. His face had turned a bright red, his jaw clenched hard enough that she swore she could hear his teeth cracking. If he insisted on causing her problems over the privacy of her office, she told him to speak to the hospital administrator. Before she could say another word, he was out the door and down the hallway.

An hour later, he was back in the morgue and had not said one word to her about anything. It was fine by her, she hadn't hired him or been asked to speak with him before the hospital administrator had hired him. She was under the impression that she being the Chief ME, it was her place to find assistants and not anyone else's. She found out that morning that it had been taken out of her hands by some pencil pushing dickhead and there was nothing she could do about it. If he caused further problems for her, she would let Xe knock the shit out of him and dump his body out the loading dock door. Closing her office door and locking it, she pulled Xe over to the futon, pushed her backward on to it and then crawled on top of her. Snuggling her face against a warm neck, she sighed and played with the dark locks that fell across the pillow.

"How about we hide here until both our shifts are over with?"

"I could only hope that neither one of us is needed, ya know that will never happen. My luck, Boggs will pound on the door looking for me." She wrapped her arms around Brian and rolled them over so that they were face to face. "Tell me about the dead guy before I fall asleep."

"Now ya have to promise me that you won't get mad." She held pale blue eyes with her own until Xe nodded. "I sent Edwards out to the scene, I told him to wait until the body was released by the officer in charge, which was you."

"I was in charge but Boggs held me up, when I got there the body was gone and only the hooker was there for me to question." She closed her eyes and tried to think of who else was on the scene who could have released the body. "I'll find out who went over my head, now what's with the stiff?"

"Asshole Edwards brought the guy in, he walks up to me with a manila envelope with an evidence sticker on it. I think nothing of it, thinking you sent it over to me. So I opened it and inside was a couple lengths of rope, used condoms, pantyhose, a silk scarf and a pack of Camels."

"Son of a bitch! I'm going to kill someone, who the fuck?" She was stopped by fingers pressing over her lips.

"It gets better; none of the items were in plastic bags. It's all contaminated." She could tell that her lover was ready to go on a rampage. "Baby, I think we have a cover up here. That stiff is some big shot public official going up for election or some bullshit."

"Just fucking great, I have a dead official, a hooker that by chance found him, a pissed off wife and someone screwing with the crime scene and the evidence." She wiggled down towards the foot of the futon so she could bury her face in her lover's breasts. "Hate my job."

"I know baby. Now for the bad news on the stiff, the ropes that were in the envelope were untied so there are no knots to run through the VICAP. But I do know that he had his hands bound behind him because he has rope burns on his lower back and a few marks on his ass from his fingernails. "I don't see it as a kinky sex thing, I think someone killed him."

"But we told the widow that it was most likely accidental death, she's gonna be really pissed when I have to tell her that he was murdered."

"I don't think so; I think she'll take him being murdered easier. She can save face amongst her peers that way. Her saying that he strangled himself getting off will make her the laughing stock of Maryland."

"And me the laughing stock of the precinct." She mumbled and buried her face further in her lover's breasts, what she did then brought a low moan from Brian.

"Keep that up and we'll both be laughing stocks." She pinched Xe on her ass and rolled away from her when she yelped. "Come on I'm hungry for lasagna and garlic bread."

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Boggs was ready to go through the ceiling after Xe told him of the screwed up crime scene. He got on the phone, called the dispatcher, and asked for all the names of the officers who were at the scene. Scribbling them on a piece of paper, he handed it to Xe and asked her if she remembered any of them still being there when she got to the scene.

"Who's this Officer Vance, I've never heard of him before?"

"That's a new guy that just started last month; he transferred in from the West Coast. Said his family is here and his mother's ill or something and that's why he came back home.

"Can you get them all into the conference room and find out who the Hell released the body? If we find him, then maybe we'll know who screwed up the evidence."

"Sure thing, just promise me you won't shot anybody."

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"Edwards get in here NOW!" Brian was fit to be tied; it seemed that every time she turned around something was being screwed up. She had done the preliminary report on the dead city official Davidson and saved it in a file under the man's name. Now when she pulled up the file folder all she found was an empty folder.

"Is there a problem?" Edwards asked from the doorway.

"Where's the preliminary report on Davidson?"

"How am I supposed to know, you're the one who did it not me."

Brian was getting closer to embalming the punk; she had never had any problems before he came along. "It's not in the folder where I put it and I want to know what happened to it and I want to know who gave you the evidence envelope at the crime scene." She noticed the worried look in his eyes. "That evidence is no good, it's all contaminated! How the Hell is Lt Sallano supposed to solve a murder with no evidence?"

Edwards held up his hands. "No one gave it to me; it was lying on the bed next to the body. It had a note on it to give it to you."

Brian rubbed the area between her eyebrows trying to release the pressure of the on coming headache. "Who released the body to you?"

"Some cop that I passed going into the motel, when I turned around he was gone. So I just loaded up and came back here."

"Son of a bitch!" Brian tossed the files she had in her hand onto her desk and waved for Edwards to precede her from the office. "I'm going to the police station and talk to Sallano and Capt. Boggs. Page me if we get anything urgent."

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"I want to know who fucked up my crime scene! Either someone starts talking or I start playing Russian roulette!" She reached for her Glock and stopped when everyone started talking at once. "Hold on you dumbasses! One at a time." She pointed to an officer and told him to go first.

"I didn't go inside; I was keeping bystanders from getting near the scene."

"Anyone else with him?" She asked as she looked around the room. Three hands went up out of the six officer's present. "What about you three, where were you at?"

The new officer raised his hand to get her attention. "I was first on scene, I checked to see if he was alive and then I stood outside to call it in."

"When you checked him was he still tied up?"

"No ma'am, he was just lying there on his back."

"Who released the body to the ME's office?" She watched the officer's look to each other and then everyone shook their heads no. "Just great! I have someone releasing the body and screwing up the evidence and no one did it!" Xe spun on her heel when she heard the door to the conference room slam open and saw Brian struggle to get past an officer.

"Either you let me past or I'll have you tiny nuts in a jar!"

"What the fuck is wrong with everyone today?" Xe walked towards the officer. "You had better let my wife past or she'll make good on her threat." She took Brian's hand in hers and pulled her into the room. "The last time she used one of those plastic sporks, and let me tell ya, it wasn't pretty." She wrapped an arm around a pissed off Brian and kissed her temple. "What brings you to the most screwed up police station in Maryland?"

"I need some tiny dicks to go with my shrunken head collection." She narrowed her eyes and let them travel around the room of pale faced men. "Who's fucking with my office?" She pulled a plastic Spork from her pocket and waved it around. When no one said a word, she raised an eyebrow at Boggs. "Boggs, when I find him and I will! Do you want his head made into a keychain?"

Boggs gulped and nodded his head. "Sure Doc, can always use a new key chain." He waved the frightened officers out of the room and dropped into the nearest chair. "You two should do the interrogations here. In minutes you two would have them confessing to just about anything. Now what is going on here?"

The three of them sat down at the table, Brian told her lover and Boggs the information she had gotten from Edwards and then learned what they had found out in the meeting with the other officers. So far, they had nothing.

"I think that who ever did Davidson in is the one who set the scene up. Now to question everyone in the area and see if they saw someone go into the room at some point." Boggs leaned back in his chair and looked between the two women. "I'll get some uniforms on it as soon as I get back to my office. Now you two get out of here and don't kill or maim anyone on the way out."

Once he was gone, Xe turned to Brian and wiggled her brows at her. "Would we do that?"

"Hell yes! Come on good cop, let's go home."

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Bear had a collection of their clothes in a pile at the end of the couch; she had placed everything to her liking so that she had a nice comfy little bed to lie on. She had just formed this habit as of late and Xe thought it was because she was left alone so much since they were back to work after a short vacation. She had an idea of what would help the poor little dog but she didn't know if Brian would go for it or not. All she could do was ask and see what she'd say; her problem was she was a chicken shit when it came to broaching new subjects. She looked over her shoulder and saw that Brian was heading for their bedroom, now would be her chance to talk it over with Bear. Brian still found it strange that she asked the little dogs advice on something's but she came to realize, that for so long Bear was the only one her lover had to talk to. Xe dropped down onto the couch and lay on her stomach facing Bear, she did her usual baby talk and grinned when Bear started to whine and show her teeth at her.

"I know you feel neglected since we went back to work, and you've been stealing stuff so that we notice you're around." She rested her chin on her folded hands and stared into little brown eyes. "I was thinking that maybe we could get you a baby sister to keep you company. But you'll have ta ask Bri."

"Xe, I think you need some serious mental help." Brian dropped down to lie across her lover's body; she rested her chin on a strong shoulder and whispered in her ear. "If you wanna get another dog why didn't you just say so?"

"Because I'm a chicken shit when it comes to you."

"Only with some things." She reached out with her tongue and traced the edge of Xe's ear. "You are defiantly not a chicken shit in bed and now I know that I'm double jointed." She chuckled at the deep moan rumbling in Xe's throat. "I'm just glad your cast is off, damn thing left more marks on me than your teeth do." Being the evil little seductress that she was, she rolled her hips into Xe's. "We'll talk about another dog after you take me to bed and I ravage you for a good six or seven hours." Rolling off Xe, she took her hand and pulled her off the couch. "Which reminds me, where's my ring? You called me your wife today so you better make good on that." She slapped her blushing lover in the stomach.

Xe had been looking for a ring for her lover, which was one of the reasons she was late getting to the crime scene. She had asked the help of Boggs and his wife. She had a ring design in mind but didn't know of any jewelers who did custom work. Now all she had to do was sneak away and get it taken care of with out Brian knowing about it.

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The rustle of leaves came to no ones attention as the dark dressed figure wove their way through the trees and brush towards the convertible parked at the top of the local look out area. At the top of the mountain, you could pull over to the small area and see out over the Shenandoah River and to the old part of Harpers Ferry. The light from the bell tower of the Catholic Church is a focal point, it's part of the history of the siege of Harpers Ferry during the war-between-the states. It's the only church that survived the war without being damaged beyond repair. There is a ghost story that says that at certain times, a priest can be seen walking towards the side of the church and then disappears through it. No one is for sure but they think at one time that side of the church had a door and was blocked off during the war for added protection. That was not what the couple in the convertible was concerned about that night. Low moans and groans came from the back seat as the couple moved against each other in the age-old dance. Sweat glistened on their bodies from the tendrils of light from full moon hanging overhead. Lost in passion and each other, they never saw or heard the figure step beside the car and aim the spear gun at them. A soft click and a whoosh broke the stillness of the air and then silence.

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The chirp of a cell phone and then the buzz of two pagers went off at almost the same time. A long fingered hand reached out from under tangled sheets and searched the nightstand for the annoying noise. Finding the phone and knocking the pagers to the carpet covered floor a low thick voice growled into the phone.

"Sallano."

"Hey Xepher this is Boggs, get your ass out of bed and get to the junction of RT 65 and 34. We got a weird one for you and Doc. Bring the meat wagon with you."

Xepher rolled into her lover's body, pressed her face into the center of her back, and whimpered. They had just fallen asleep no more than an hour before sunrise. Xe knew it was getting close to that time of the month for her lover, she became insatiable a week before and Xe paid for it by way of no sleep and sore muscles. Now with sandpaper for eyelids and a tender area between her legs, she would have to face the gargoyle Brian became when she didn't have enough sleep. She would be sure and make Boggs pay dearly for it later.

"Bri we have to get up, that was Boggs on the phone."

"Tell him to bite my left ass cheek." She mumbled and then pulled her pillow over her head. "Can't people kill each other later in the day, like at two o'clock in the afternoon?"

"I'll send out a memo to all the murderers later." She nipped the tender flesh before her and felt Brian push her rear back into her. "Later baby when I can do something about it." She rolled out of bed and cringed at the stiffness of her back and legs. She was getting too old to be bent into Gumby like positions. Picking up her clothes from the day before, she pulled her faded Levi's on and then her wrinkled button down shirt. She knew that the minute Brian saw that she wore not T-shirt or bra, she would be all over her about it but she was too tired to look for them or get clean ones from the drawer. Slipping her feet into her tennis shoes, she grabbed the edge of the blanket and sheet and yanked them off her lover.

"Come on baby, I'll take ya to Cindy D's when we're done."

"You're working your way down my hate list." Brian lifted the pillow, opened one bloodshot green eye and held Xe where she stood beside the bed.

"I'll make it up to ya later. We didn't try that new love gel we got the other day." She bent down and gave her a lingering kiss.

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Boggs stood back from the picnic area and lit up a cigar, he would never admit to anyone that the stench of blood and decomposing bodies still turned his stomach after thirty some years on the force. He had made sure that no one not even his own officers got anywhere near the crime scene, he knew that the two women would be in foul moods after being woken at five o'clock in the morning. And there was no way in Hell that he was going to add to their meanness. Especially Brian, she maybe small but she could knock the biggest man down with one punch. Watching the road in the direction that they would be coming from, he hoped that they made it there soon before the area traffic picked up and caused all kinds of trouble. Pulling his cell phone from his pocket, he was about to call them when he heard the siren and then the flashing blue grill lights of Xepher's car. What he didn't expect was for Brian to be the one driving or Xepher covering her eyes as they came to a screeching halt beside his car. From the wide evil grin covering Brian's face, he knew that she had scared the living daylights out of her lover. He couldn't help but laugh when Xepher got out of the car on shaky legs and cast a raised eyebrow at Brian.

"Where'd you learn to drive?"

"That's right! I never told you, I don't have a driver's license." She laughed at the shocked expression on Xe's face. "Guess ya never looked in the glove compartment of the county car huh?"

Xe leaned over the roof of the Crown Victoria. "Knowing you there's probably some forgotten body parts in there."

"Nope just forgotten speeding tickets."

Boggs waved at them and started to walk away. "All right you two, come on so we can get out of here." He had never seen Xepher act the way she did around the Chief Medical Examiner and he thanked anyone who would listen for the day the women had met. Brian brought meaning to his Lt's life and it was something that the tall woman drastically needed.

He stopped just outside of the yellow crime tape and pointed. "A trucker stopping to get some sleep found them. He called it in on his cell phone and waited around so no one would disturb the scene. He's back over in the parking lot sleeping in his rig."

Xe looked around the small park just outside of the Antietam Battlefield. In a couple of hours, the place would be flowing with tourists trying to take a piece of history and make sense of it by walking the trench lines and climbing to the tower that overlooked the surrounding area where one of the civil war battles took place. Her attention was pulled away from the picnic area by a pair of rubber gloves being dangled in front of her pale blue eyes.

"Come on Xe; let's get done so I can spend your paycheck on breakfast."

"You are such a generous lover; I know you'll eat like a pterodactyl!" She held onto Brian's arm as she pulled a booty over one tennis shoe, stepped over the tape and then pulled the other one on.

"Got that right, after last night and this morning, I could eat a whole cow."

"And ten pounds of chocolate." Xe mumbled to herself, she knew all to well that PMS caused chocolate cravings in her lover.

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Brian snorted at the sight before them; she had never seen anything like it before. "Guess the whale hunting expedition didn't quite work out the way they wanted." She touched the tip of the spear that was pinning the two people together.

"Hey Bri, are they still connected in the biblical sense?" Xe was trying her best not to be crude in front of the other officers, since she was promoted to Lt. she tried to tone down her gutter mouth.

Brian looked between the legs of the man and snorted. "Yep, dicks still in the game." She looked up and wiggled her brows. "Not as big as yours but?"

"Brian!" Xe growled from between her clenched teeth.

"Gotcha!" She gave her lover a huge smile and went back to taking notes. "OK, let's bag their hands and feet in case there's some trace evidence. One thing is for sure, they weren't killed here." She pointed to the picnic table and the ground. "Not enough blood for two people, that means someplace there is one huge puddle drying out. And more evidence that we won't get."

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After taking pictures of the couple, Brian pulled the microphone down and touched the pedal on the floor to turn it on; she and the ambulance crew had a Hell of a time getting the couple into the ambulance with the spear sticking out of them. A body bag was out of the question since she wanted them transported as is. All kinds of crude things were running through her mind as she looked at the joined lovers. She cracked a slight grin and looked at Xe.

"Brian you're a sick pup."

"I wasn't gonna say anything; she turned her attention back to the stiffs. Just wondered if he's still hard in there?" A deep chuckle erupted from her as she bent over to get a better look at where the spear had gone in through the man and out through the woman's back. "Autopsy case number 41264, July 21 2002 Frederick town hospital. Chief Medical Examiner Brianna Meadows. Two people, stacked with what appears to be a three-pronged spear entering the males back at the fifth rib, 3 centimeters from the left side of the spine. Entering at approximately a 33-degree angle. The male appears to be in his late twenties to early thirties. No apparent struggle prior to assault. 'Cuz his main brain was the only thing functioning."

"Does anyone ever listen to these tapes?" Xe asked close to her lover's ear.

She looked up from below her brows. "Depends, you know you're getting me wet." She looked down the front of Xe's shirt at the bare breasts clearly on display.

"Ya know you're gonna get it when we get home."

Brian turned her body so that she was facing Xe's side, stepping closer to her; she rubbed her self against a hard thigh. "I hope so, and then I'm going to hide all your underwear." Xe shuddered and stepped back from her horny lover, she didn't know how much more she could take before she either ran screaming from the room or made use of one of the autopsy tables. Her mind changed gears when Brian waved a small hand held saw in the air.

"Can you help me roll them on their sides so I can cut the spearhead off? I want to do the exploratory with the shaft in place."

With the spear cut and the couple now ready to be separated, Brian extracted the penis from inside the female, her bladder released and urine splashed onto Xe's legs and shoes. Jumping back, she gave Brian an evil look.

"I don't get into golden showers." She growled.

Brian pointed to the female. "She really didn't have a choice in the matter." She couldn't help but notice the pale coloring of her lover's face. Pulling her gloves off, she took Xe's hand and led her away from the tables. "You don't look to good, why don't you go tell Mrs. Davidson about what we found and I'll finish up here and meet you at home later."

"Are you sure? I could stay and help if you need me."

"Baby, Edwards will be here in fifteen minutes. I'll put his sorry ass to work."

"How about putting him in a storage drawer?"

"I think that's where he sleeps." She pulled Xe's head down and gave her a kiss that had them both breathing heavy. "I'll see you later, love you Xe." With one last quick kiss, Xe pulled back. "Love you Bri."

"Disgusting!" Edwards said from the doorway before he walked in and started to gown up. "Uncivilized heathens." He stepped back towards the door when low growls came from his boss and the Lt. "Not you two, there's two people in the ER with huge meat hooks through the flesh on their backs. I over heard them saying something about having it done at some night club."

Xe looked to her lover and grinned. "Kinky sex might be a lead on Davidson. Where better to find someone who would be the other part of the autoerotic asphyxia scene." She kissed Brian quickly and ran from the autopsy room.

"Come on Edwards we have a lot of work to do."

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It wasn't hard for Xe to find the couple; they were dressed in leather straps hiding only the essentials, body, face piercings and hair three different colors. She took a seat across from them and held out one of her cards.

"I'm Lt. Xepher Sallano of the homicide division, could you give me some information on the night club you were at last night?"

The young guy looked at her as if she was crazy. "No one was killed there."

"What I need is information on what goes on there, do they have certain rooms with themes, people who are willing to act out sexual fantasies, that kind of thing." She took a deep breath and looked between the two people. "Listen, its research for a case I'm working on."

The female pulled a plastic chip from her pocket and handed it to Xe. "The address is on there." She gave Xe the once over and shook her head. "If you want information you won't get any looking like you do. You have to dress the part."

"Just great." She mumbled to herself. "Bri will love this." She stood, thanked the couple and left for her office. The whole way there, she ran scenarios through her mind as to what happened with Davidson and the new one with the spear. She knew she would have to ask Mrs. Davidson some questions pertaining to the sexual part of their life together and chase down all his friends and employees for the info his wife wouldn't know about. She knew that not everyone's relationship was like her and Brian's, they had no secrets between them and that's how it would always be. Secrets caused problems and mistrust, trust was the main part of a good relationship, with out it you had nothing.

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Xe pulled her car up the long driveway of the widow Davidson, the house was one of those fake Tudor type mansions with the huge crescent shaped driveway, manicured lawn and every flowering what ever that could be stuck into dirt. The only thing missing was the little lawn jockey holding the lantern in his outstretched hand. But knowing the rich assholes of Maryland, they probably had a midget run out at sundown and stand there all night with a lantern blazing in the yard. She climbed from her car and groaned when a sharp pain radiated from her hip and shot into her lower back. Grabbing the afflicted area, she pressed on the pressure point and saw stars form before her eyes. A few minutes passed and so did the pain, she would have Brian work on her hip and back later that night, mostly because it was her fault she hurt that day. She was too old to doing some of the sexual acts they were doing almost every night. Walking up the marble stone walkway to the front door, she looked at the huge knocker and grinned. Taking it by the edge, she beat the hell out of the door with it until some opened the door and glared at her.

"Once would be enough to get my attention, you don't have to destroy my door." Mrs. Davidson said as she blocked the doorway with her immaculately dressed body. "What do you want Lt. Sallano? I'm grieving for my husband and I wish to be left alone."

You really look like you're grieving you bitch. Xe wanted to tell her but held her tongue between her teeth. "It's about your husband ma'am, upon further investigation from the ME. It's been determined that he was murdered." Xe stopped when she saw a light flicker across the woman's eyes. "I need to know if your husband had any enemies."

Mrs. Davidson stepped back from the door and motioned for her to follow, at first sight of the foyer, Xe sucked in a breath. The place was filled with antiques and had more gaudy paintings than she had ever seen.

"We'll talk in my parlor, it's quiet there and the servants won't disturb us."

"Yes ma'am that would be fine." What she was saying to her self was. That you are nothing but a slave owner and you should clean your own fucking house. Taking a seat on a chair that looked like it was made of toothpicks, Xe tried to look comfortable in the dainty uncomfortable thing.

"My husband was a politician, he had many enemies. It would surprise me that he didn't; I can't see anyone hating him that much that they would want him dead."

"People don't need much of a reason to kill someone these days Mrs. Davidson. I need to know any one who your husband was associated with before his murder, a business partner, friend, mistress?" She held back the snort that wanted to escape when the woman's face turned a horrid red, she would swear that the temperature in the room dropped 50 degrees in a matter of seconds.

"My husband was faithful to me, we were happily married and neither one of us strayed from our vows. Now I want you to leave before I call your superior and report you for harassing me during my troubling times."

"Let me ask you one last question and I'll be out of your way. Was your husband bi-sexual? The ME found sperm in his rectum." Xe couldn't help herself, she hated when the uppity rich assholes thought that they were at the top of the food chain and she never passed up a chance at a cheap shot.

"GET OUT!" The angry widow screamed as she swung her arms at Xe's retreating body. "CHARLES THROW HER OUT!" An elderly man in his 60's came shuffling into the room; he took Xe by her upper arm and led her away from the woman who was now throwing a temper tantrum to rival all two year olds.

"You will have to excuse Mrs. Davidson, Officer; she's been under a lot of stress since the Councilman died." He stopped and waited for Xe to step outside the door.

"Charles can I ask you something?" She held out one of her cards to him. "Were they as happy as she said they were?"

The elderly man shook his head and looked over his shoulder. "I can't say anything about that, I need this job. I'm sorry."

"It's OK, if you think of anything that might help me, please call me."

"Yes ma'am, I will." He closed the door quietly and watched as Xe went back out to her car with a slight limp to her gait.

Xe sat behind the wheel of her car and looked up at the huge house, she knew that there was something going on with the widow Davidson and she was going to find out what. The uppity bitch just made her way on to the suspect list.

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Brian was standing in the kitchen bent over at the waist peering inside the refrigerator. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and signaled that her lover was now standing in the doorway watching her. Being her normal evil self, she swung her hips back and forth. Reaching back with a small hand, she ran it down her bare ass and moaned deeply. She peaked under her outstretched arm when she heard a loud thump come from behind her. Snickering under her breath, she closed the door with a pop and walked to where Xe was laying spread out on the floor with her eyes closed tightly. Placing her feet on either side of her lover's hips, she dropped down so that she was sitting on Xe's hips.

"Are ya dead?" She thrust her hips downward and grinned when Xe moaned. A pale blue eye peeked open and looked into mischievous green.

"Give me a minute and I will be." She reached up and pulled Brian down to her waiting lips, for what seemed an eternity, she explored her lover's mouth and tasted the mint of their toothpaste. When they parted, Brian was gasping for air. "Why are you running around naked?"

"Feel?like it." She collapsed on top of Xe and just lay there trying to catch her breath. "I've been thinking about you all day and what I wanna do to you."

"Well, your ideas are going to have to wait a little bit."

Brian lifted her head up from Xe's breast and glared at her. "You are dropping down my list at lightning speed ya know."

"Ohh I'll redeem myself by the end of the night."

"Ohh you sound so sure of yourself Sallano."

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Brian was lying with the top part of her body across the small kitchen table with Xe behind her on her knees. Her hands were gripping the edge of the table until her knuckles showed white from stress. Low rasping moans bounced from where her face was pressed to the tabletop. A deep rumbling growl came from Xe's chest, she pushed her tongue deep inside of her lover and felt her muscles clamp around her tongue. Pressing on her engorged clit with her thumb, she pushed her over the edge with a deep cry of her name. Not one to give her lover a breather, she pulled her tongue out and captured Brian's still twitching clit between her lips and sucked. The vibrating of her cell phone on her hip distracted her for a second, pulling it from her belt; she slid it across the tabletop and continued with what she was doing. The noise was driving Brian to distraction; she grabbed the phone and flipped it open. "OHH GODS YEEESSS!" She screamed as another climax tore through her body.

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Boggs mouth dropped open so that his jaw was touching the top of his desk; he pulled the phone away from his ear and looked at it in confusion. Placing it back to his ear he listened to heavy breathing and then heard a deep moan join in. He felt his face turn a bright red and felt sweat trickle down from his temples. He was about to hang up thinking he had the wrong number when he heard an unmistakable growl he knew to be Xepher come over the phone. He clamped a hand over his mouth and continued to listen.

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Xe stood behind Brian and thrust her hips against her lover's still bent over body, she was so wet and swollen that she knew it wouldn't belong before she lost the battle and crashed into oblivion. Resting her face in the center of Brian's back, she heard her pleas.

"Come for me baby."

Her body started to shudder, muscles tensed and then all Hell broke loose when her climax hit her. She cried out Brian's name against her sweat dampened back and fell with all her weight onto her lover's body. Her eyes flew open when she heard a distant voice coming from the table.

"Baby the phone!"

"Ohh shit Xe I forgot."

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Boggs was gasping for air; he was going to kill both women the next time he saw them, that is if he survived.

"You perverted bitches!" He rasped over the phone and hung up after he heard laughter.

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"Think he's mad?"

"Don't care, let's go to bed."

"Xe I can't walk." She felt her lover's body shake against her with laughter.

"Neither can I, I think I broke something."

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Edwards had come into the morgue three hours before shift to get things done that he felt were important to running the morgue in an efficient way. Hearing the squeak of shoes on the tile floor, he quickly hung the phone up before Brian could overhear his conversation. It was none of her business who he talked to on his phone but he didn't want any problems with her. He needed this job and was willing to ignore the fact that she was nothing but a disgusting dyke in his eyes, and should not be chief of the Medical Examiners office. In time, he would show the hospital that he was more than just an assistant and should be the Chief. He spent long years going to school and studying for just that spot and he would have it no matter what. He would expose Dr. Meadows for what she was. An incompetent Medical Examiner and a pervert. He had already copied all of the files in the small office and had been going over them during his off hours. He would find her mistakes and once he had enough evidence, he would go to the hospital administrator and turn everything in. Shoving the file folders into his briefcase under the desk, he strode from the room and walked with an air of superiority past her in the autopsy room.

"Edwards where's the bodies they brought in the other day?" She looked at his haughtiness and wanted nothing better than to beat the shit out of him. "The ones that had the spear shot through them, where are they?"

"Gone, a funeral home came and got them yesterday after you left." He held back the smirk that was fighting to split his face.

"What? Who the FUCK!" She ran from the autopsy room, unlocked her office and reached for the phone. She had to get those bodies back ASAP, she was nowhere close to releasing them to anybody and besides they were not even identified. She waited until the first click of the phone being answered before she started yelling.

"Sallano get your ass over here now!" She hung up the phone and went in search of the clipboard that would tell her who signed the bodies out and when. She tore the autopsy room apart and then headed for the small office that Edwards was sitting in. "Where the fuck is the sign out log?"

His muddy brown eyes rolled at her. "Where it's supposed to be, by the back door. I left it on the hook after the driver signed for the bodies." With out a word to him, she went back into the autopsy room and searched next to the door. All she found was the clipboard and no sign out sheet.

"Motherfuckinggoodfornothinggoddamnstupidsonofabitchinasshole!" She screamed at the top of her lungs and waited for the echo to stop before her next terrette syndrome outburst.

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Xepher tore up the street towards the hospital; she had the lights going, siren and was screaming out the window like a maniac for the slow driving people to move. "God damn Virginia assholes get off my fucking road, go home and stay there!" She hit the siren button so that it made a whooping noise at the car in front of her. When all the driver did was go slower, she got up to their bumper and started pushing them. Grabbing the microphone and flipping the switch to the PA system. She barked over the loud speaker, "To get the fuck out of her way!" A huge evil snarl came over her face as the driver now scared shitless swerved off the road and stopped along the side. With in five minutes she was whipping her car back behind the hospital and to the morgues bay doors. She no sooner opened the side door than she heard Brian's voice screaming out in her normal 'I won't breath until I'm damn ready way.' The string of curses that came from her lover's mouth and the banging and clanging noise made her grin. "The PMS Gargoyle is pissed." She said to herself before she eased down the hall to stand outside the door and watch Brian mangle a steel bedpan by bashing it on the floor numerous times. She looked over her shoulder at the frightened face of Edwards.

"What did you do to her?" She growled in a deep voice.

"Nothing?she?I'm leaving." He ran down the hall away from all the commotion and the two crazy women. His first stop would be the cafeteria to get two cups of coffee, one for himself the other for the hospital administrator.

Xe walked into the room, bent over, took the pan from Brian's clutching hands and then pulled her against her chest. "Calm done baby I'm here now." She swept Brian up into her arms and carried her to her office, laid her down on the futon; and locked the door before she sat down next to her. "Here take these." She dumped three Midol's into Brian's hand and handed her a bottle of water. She knew that they were no miracle cure for the PMS but every little bit would help her survive the next four or five days. After Brian swallowed the pills, she dropped back onto the pillows and growled.

"They're all on my list! I'm gonna kill every single god damn man who comes within 50 foot of me!"

Xe cringed at the rough voice coming from her sometimes-sweet lover; she was waiting for the Linda Blair set of emotions next. Brian sat up in the bed and got to her knees to be closer to Xe, her dark green eyes burned with flames of insanity. "Give me your gun!"

"Uuuhh aaahh nope can't do it. I left it at home."

"I'm gonna kill Edwards!" She tried to get up from the bed but found herself pinned beneath her lover's heavier body. "Please Xe; just let me kill him a little!" She wrapped her arms around Xe's neck and buried her face in her hair as the sobs tore through her body. Xe held Brian until her emotions calmed and she was able to ease off of her. She knew of women having serious PMS, but Brian was down right scary as Hell when she got it. Her hormones were so screwed up that she could go from complete insanity to a sobbing mess in a matter of seconds.

"Baby are the cramps bad?" That brought a pouting look from Brian and more sobs. Picking her up, she cradled her in her arms and rocked her until she quieted down. "I'll get you one of those heat packs and you?" Her cell phone vibrated against her hip causing a low rumble to come from her throat. "This better be good!"

"Ohh it is Xepher." Boggs said of the phone. "We have the car the couple were killed in; they found it at a junkyard in Harpers Ferry."

"Shit! I'm on my way."

"Hey bring Doc with you to collect evidence. Our CSI crew is out at another scene."

"Uuhhmm Boggs, Bri is?" A low keening growl and crazed green eyes drilled into her. "Coming with me." She closed the phone and gave her lover a bright smile. "Ya know you're sexy ass hell when you look insane."

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Police cruisers crowded the small junk yard and prevented Xe from getting any closer with her car. She swore under her breath and pulled her car up onto a small hill alongside a cruiser. Looking down to her lap, she ran her fingers through Brian's messy hair and sighed. She hated to wake her from her sleep, she knew that she was in pain and only sleep would give her the peace everyone walking the earth needed. She decided to leave her in the car until she saw the car; they may not be able to get any evidence from it if it had been exposed to weather. She eased out from under Brian and headed towards the crime tape that was strewn across the back area of the junk yard. Seeing Boggs standing next to a small ancient man, she walked over and stood just behind her boss to listen.

"So you have no idea how the car got here, none of your men towed it in."

"Nope, asked them already. I think it was brought through the back there and just left." He pointed to an area where the fence was rusted and pushed down into the dirt. The car sat no more than fifteen feet from the opening and well hidden behind an old rusted out panel truck.

"Sir just how did you find the car?" Xe asked and snorted when Boggs jumped, spun around and gave her a look that made her grin at him.

"I was looking for a transmission for a customer, I knew we hade the car back here so's that's how I found it. Didn't think nothin of it until I saw all the blood in the back seat."

"Thanks." She turned to Boggs and motioned with her head to follow. "Is there anything that can be taken as evidence or was the car cleaned?"

"Well, there's some dirt and stuff on the floorboards that can be sent to the labs, maybe we can get some hair or something." He scratched the razor stubble on his chin. "Plates are still on the car so we can trace that to the owner."

"You're telling me that who ever killed the couple stole their belongings but left the plates on the car?"

He grinned at her and shook his head. "Never said criminals were smart. Where's Doc at?"

"Sleeping in the car, she's ahhh?" Xe blushed and lowered her head.

Boggs eyes grew wide. "She's not naked is she?"

"What? Gods nooo, she's got the curse."

"Oh?oohhhh!" Boggs draped an arm over her shoulders and gave her a hug. "Do like I do, lock myself in the garage for a week. It's safer."

"I had to rescue the entire hospital today. On the way here before she fell asleep, she told me that some funeral home came and got the couple that were in that car."

Boggs groaned and rubbed his face. "It gets better; the sign out log sheet is missing, so she has no idea who took the bodies."

"Son of a bitch!" He then turned and yelled over his shoulder to one of the uniforms. "Get a couple of the guys and hit every funeral home in a 25 mile radius of the hospital, we're looking for a couple that were picked up from the morgue yesterday sometime." He started walking towards the car and motioned for Xe to follow. "Take a look and see if you think Doc can find anything."

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Xe took a deep breath and ran her fingers across her lover's cheek. "Bri I need your help." Kneeling down outside of her car, she leaned over Brian and whispered into her ear. "Baby, we have some work to do then we can go home."

"Hate work, hate the world, and hate you."

"I know baby and you can hate me all you want when we get home."

They pulled the equipment that was needed from the trunk of the car and went under the crime tape to start collecting the trace evidence. Xe placed a small shop vac near the rear door of the car and readied the evidence bag inside of it. While Brian worked in the front of the car, she would vacuum the floor and seats of the rear and then switch with her lover. They didn't expect to be able to pick up any fingerprints since the top had been left down and nature had destroyed any oils left behind. An hour later, with Bri's hormones turning her into the exorcist, they decided that they had everything that could be taken from the car. Placing all the evidence bags into one large manila envelope, sealing it and then signing both their names across the sticker covering the flap, Xe placed it with the evidence-collecting box and waited for Brian to finish packing up her stuff.

"Baby I'm going to give this to Boggs and I'll meet you back at the car, OK?"

"OK." She turned with pleading eyes to her tall lover. "I'm hungry; can we stop and get something to eat?"

"Sure baby, anything you want." She leaned forward and softly kissed Brian before going to look for Boggs.

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"Hey Boggs me and Brian are all done and I want to know when I get my raise for being a CSI officer." She handed him the envelope, crossed her arms over her chest and glared into his tired eyes. "Ya know I'm the only cop that does everyone's job, why is that?"

Boggs grinned at her and shrugged his shoulders. "Cuz you're sooo good Xe that's why." He held up a finger and told her to wait a second that he would be right back. She rolled her eyes at him and did as he asked. A few minutes later, he came back into the small office where she stood and handed her a small furless animal.

"What the hell is this?" She held it up and looked into pale blue eyes like her own.

"Your raise, no need to thank me." He clapped her on the shoulder and walked from the office.

"Oohh geez, you are the?ugliest dog I have ever seen in my life!" She went nose to nose with the puppy and grinned. "Bri's gonna love you." She put the tiny little puppy inside her shirt and left with a huge smile on her face.

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When she got into her car, she found Brian stretched out across the seat asleep. Taking the puppy from inside her shirt, she placed it up against Bri's chest and snickered when it curled up against her and yawned before it fell asleep. "I know you're gonna kill me when you wake up." Easing the car down off the small hill, she turned out of the junk yard and headed to the only place she knew that would have enough food to satisfy her lover's appetite. It was a new restaurant in Charlestown called the Spice Garden; they had just about any kind of food that you could have an appetite for and that's where she would get back into her lover's good graces. Pulling her car up close to the front door, she cracked all the windows a good eight inches and set the air conditioner to low. The puppy may not have any hair but the inside of the car would still be too hot for the small thing. Ready to face the Gargoyle, she brushed blonde hair away from Brian's forehead and trailed her fingers across her cheek.

"Baby time to wake up, foods waiting."

"Hate you Xe."

"I know, and you'll hate me even more when you open those ferocious green eyes." She held back a snicker when Brian growled at her. Brian was the only person that she could be sarcastic with and it mean a compliment. Most people cringed when they heard the two of them toss insults at each other. What they didn't know was that it had always been that way between them and if they didn't act that way, then someone was pissed off and walking on eggshells would do nothing to help. 20 lb. of chocolate and slave labor were the only things that worked when Brian was pissed. Covering her ears for the onslaught of road rage language, she squinted her pale blue eyes in readiness for when Brian went off on her about the ugly little puppy sleeping against her chest. Green eyes flickered open and as her usual habit, Brian stretched her back and went to scratch her chest and stomach, but stopped when her hand landed on something warm and funny feeling. She tilted her head up and grinned at the way her lover was watching her with her ears covered. An eyebrow cocked when she noticed that what she was feeling was not part of Xe. A small hand explored the strange thing until a small warm tongue licked her finger.

"Uuhmm Xe what in the hell is this ugly little thing?" She looked down into pale blue eyes and snorted. "Looks like your baby pictures."

"Gee thanks baby, you do wonders for my ego." She couldn't help but smile when Brian lifted the puppy up to look at it.

"Xe it's bald and the ugliest damn thing I've ever seen." She turned pleading green eyes to Xe. "Can we keep it?"

"You can have anything you want." She leaned forward and got a kiss from both Brian and the puppy. "Let's go eat, I'm starving."

"I'm taking Fugly with me." She lifted it up and looked for spare parts. "She's too little to stay out here and where did you get her from?"

"I asked Boggs for a pay raise and that's what he gave me."

"You're cheap labor Xe and this had better not be a replacement for a ring."

"I never said I was getting you a ring, why would I want to make an honest woman of you when I like you kinky, perverted, sex slave material?"

"You better stop while you're ahead there studless; I now have two dogs to keep me warm." She smacked Xe in the stomach as she walked past her into the restaurant.

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An hour later and with numerous empty plates scattered on the table, Xe settled the bill with her Visa card and left a tip of twenty bucks because Brian the Gargoyle had harassed the poor waitresses with her PMS and her appetite. When they had first sat down at the table, Brian asked for a booster seat and got a funny look from the hostess. She went on to say, that their daughter was too small and couldn't reach the table. Xe covered her face and dropped her head to the table.

"Now listen here." Brian narrowed her eyes at the hostess and pointed to Xe. "My wife just happens to be a Lt. in the homicide unit and she has this really big gun. If I don't get a booster seat, I'll take her gun, shoot you and get it my self! And believe me I know where to shoot you because I look at dead people all day!"

During their meal, Fugly sat in between them on the booster seat getting handouts from both women. At first, the other customers were going to throw a fit until Brian growled and threatened to castrate men with her fork. Xe was wondering if they would ever be able to return to the restaurant ever again. On the way home, Brian laid down across the seat with her head on Xe's thigh and Fugly sleeping in the center of her chest. Xe took one look at the bald little puppy and sneered.

"That's my spot you?I can't believe I lost my pillows to a bald puppy." An evil grin split her face; she narrowed her eyes at the snoring puppy. "Just wait until Bear sees you!"

With the new puppy settled in and now the boss over Bear, Xe and Brian fell into bed exhausted from lack of sleep from the night before. Hours later Xe woke to being poked in her stomach and whimpering noises near her ear. Opening one eye, she looked around their dark bedroom and latched onto tear-filled green eyes.

"Xe it hurts." She dropped her face against her lover's neck and cried.

"OK baby, I'll get you some drugs and the heating pad." Xe was whipped when it came to Brian being in pain, she would move heaven and earth to help her. Even if it meant getting up half a dozen times in the middle of the night. After giving her three Midol's and the heating pad, she ended up rubbing her stomach and singing close to her ear before Brian fell back to sleep. Xe would be so thankful when five days were up, then she would have her ornery lover back with out the exorcist personality.


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The sun shone in to the room and directly into Xe's bloodshot eyes, she rolled over looking for Brian and found a cold spot in the bed. A low groan came from her; she knew her lover was up to no good if she was up before her. Crawling from the bed, she crawled through the house on her hands and knees. Listening for noises, she was drawn to the kitchen where she found Brian making breakfast and both dogs sitting on a kitchen chair. She wondered if her lover was cooking for them or the dogs.

"Baby help." She mumbled as she pressed her forehead into Brian's thigh. "My hip hurts." She whined and looked up with pleading eyes.

"We're both falling apart at the seams, ya would think that we're in or 90's." She knelt on the floor beside Xe and pushed her thumb into the pressure point on her lover's hip. She grimaced when Xe let out a howl and crumpled to the floor. "Sorry baby, I know it hurts."

Xe rolled over onto her side and pulled Brian down on top of her, giving her a soft kiss she then asked. "What's for breakfast baby?"

"Warmed up pedigree and scrambled eggs."

"I think I'll pass on the pedigree, how the kids doing?"

"Better than us, I think I need a blood transfusion."

A worried look crossed Xe's face but lingered in her pale blue eyes. "Will you please for me go to the crotch doc?"

"I know what's wrong; I kinda?stopped taking my birth control pills." She shrugged her shoulders and grinned. "Like I needed to worry about getting pregnant. So now my bodies screwing with me."

Relieved, Xe wiggled her dark brows. "Can I brag to the guys that you have to take the pill because I'm a stud?"

"Why not, I brag to the nurses that you're a stud."

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With the phone resting between her cheek and shoulder, Xe called the precinct and arranged for some detectives to go door to door to see if there were any neighbors who would tell what they knew about the Davidson's home life. She had already checked with Boggs about the missing bodies and so far nothing had been found, her next thing to accomplish was to have an officer run checks on any other crimes that matched what the were facing with the speared couple. Her job was quite different now with the promotion, she had an entire office at her beck and call and didn't have to do all the work herself anymore. One thing she needed to do would be to check out the nightclub she had learned about. The only problem would be to convince Brian that she was only going there for information. At first, she thought about taking her along but with her female problems, she didn't want to over stress her. Leaning back against the warm body of her lover who had tried to sneak up on her, she finished her phone call and spun her chair around.

"How ya feeling Bri?"

"Like I want to donate my uterus to science. What are you doing?"

"Being a bossy bitch." She grinned evilly. "I sent out the troops to do all my legwork, tonight I have that nightclub to go to so I can find out if Davidson ever visited the place.

Brian dropped down into her lap and wrapped her arms around her neck. Bringing their foreheads together, she shook her head no.

"Baby I have to, I might find some answers to my questions."

"You're not going anywhere without me."

Closing her eyes, Xe counted to ten. "Bri, you're not feeling good and I don't want you to get any worse by tromping around in a nightclub."

"And if you don't want to sleep outside in your car, you'll take me with you." She bit Xe's chin and growled at her. "You wear the collar I hold the leash."

"Hey that's not fair! I'm taller!"

"I know, that means you get to crawl on the floor." She kissed her quickly and ran from the small office laughing hysterically.

"I am soooo screwed." Xe mumbled to herself. "I wonder if she has any Prozac?"

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"If I had known you were this kinky, I would have wore leather the second time I stepped into the morgue!" Pulling the leather vest every which way to keep her assets from falling out, Xe gave Brian a raised brow. "If my pants get any tighter my lips will turn blue from lack of circulation."

Brian stepped up close in front of her and pressed their bodies close together. "It wouldn't have mattered; it's the chase and run that turns me on." She pressed her breasts into her lover's and ran a hand between her legs.

"Ohhh geez Bri, stop or else!"

"I thought you needed some CPR."

"It's not those lips I was talking about and I will if you keep that up, I can barely breathe." Her breath caught in her throat when Brian captured her lips in a kiss that turned her knees to jelly and had her pulse pounding between her legs.

"Come on Stud, let's get in the club before I loose control and throw you on the hood of the car." She leaned in close and whispered into her lover's ear.

"Ohh Gods stop!" Xe clutched her chest and shivered. "I am on soo much trouble!"

"Damn right you are!"

Brian had gone on a shopping spree during her lunchtime and called in some IOU's to the police department correctional area. What she came up with was nothing short of Xe being the submissive partner to her. Xe wore a tight black leather vest, her motorcycle boots, and skin-tight leather pants tucked inside the tops. A thick leather dog collar around her neck, an inmate's waist belt and a leash attached to the dog collar that Brian held.

"Baby I don't like you wearing that skirt out in public." She jumped back from the rakish grin on her lover's face.

Brian lifted one side of the skirt to show the thin leather G-string she wore underneath. "Why is it too long?"

"Aaahh?no." She moaned and whimpered. "It's gonna kill me."

"Good, I like dead things." She yanked on the leash and pulled a stumbling Xe after her.

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Inside the club, both women let out small gasps at the crowd. Never had they seen such things except on TV and that was nothing compared to this place. People walked around in practically nothing except for maybe a piece of leather strap to conceal private areas. Xe felt better knowing that Brian had on a leather Bikini top, she knew that if she had on any less and if anyone even looked in the area of her lover's breasts, she would send them to the ER. Their eyes scanned to the set of spiral stairs that was across the room. People walked up and down the stairs in all manners of undress, sounds of clinking metal and whipping noises came from another area of the club. Pulling Xe closer, Brian leaned up to her ear and yelled.

"This place is fucking scary!" Xe nodded her head and stepped closer behind Brian. "Let's go talk to the bartender, maybe we can find out what goes on in here besides being a meat market." Xe had to follow behind Brian; she just hoped that she hadn't forgotten the cuff keys in the car.

Pinhead had nothing on the bartender who looked like he had been attacked by a nail gun. Xe looked closer at the top of the man's head and cringed when she saw the pointy horns sprouting through his flesh. She felt Brian jump back into her body and looked to see the man smiling at them, what scared Brian, were the sharp canine fangs hanging over his bottom lip.

"What can I get you two?"

"Uuhhmm?a case of holy water and some stakes?"

"Fresh out." He grinned and shrugged his shoulders

Brian nodded her head and smirked. "OK, two bottles of Killians red." She handed one to Xe and motioned for her to kneel at her side, she ignored the raised eyebrow look and turned back to the bartender. "Is there someone here that can give me some tips on autoerotica?"

"To be honest with you, I don't really know too many of the people that come here, I've only worked here maybe two weeks. You might try asking one of the people upstairs, that's where they have the specialty rooms."

"Thanks, I appreciate your help." Giving the leash a gentle tug, she had Xe rise to her feet and follow behind. She held back a grin when she felt blue eyes burning a hole in her back. Making her way to the stairs, she stopped when she was two steps above Xe. Turning to face her, she ran her fingers across the tops of her breasts and whispered in to her ear. "Love you Xe."

Xe knew she was in trouble; the glimmer in her lover's eyes scared the living Hell out of her. She hoped that no one was there that knew her as a tough ass cop; the way she was now, would kill her reputation quickly.

"Let's go see what we can find out; remember my tall dark love slave, you drop when I stop." She placed her fingers across Xe's lips to stop her from speaking.

They walked up the stairs, looked into each room and flinched. Neither one of them had ever thought of some of the things that were going on in them. One room did look promising to Brian; it gave her some ideas of what she could do to Xe when they got home. They came to the last room and saw two couples in the middle of an autoerotic sex act. Both women shivered as they watched.

"There is no way in Hell that can help." Brian whispered down to Xe who was on her knees at her side. "If someone tried to strangle me I'd go ballistic and kill them."

"Baby you'd have to beat me to it."

They continued to watch until one of the couples was through. When a dark woman came to the door, Brian motioned to her.

"Can I ask you some stupid questions about what you were doing?"

"Sure, better to know how to do it than screw up."

"It's not that I don't know what I'm doing, it's that I'm looking for someone." She pulled a picture of Davidson from inside her skirt and showed it to the woman. "Have you ever seen him here?" The woman looked at the picture and held up a finger, she walked over to the man in the room and showed him the picture.

"You're looking for him?" The man asked.

"Yes and no, I'm trying to find out if he came here and if he came with someone or alone?"

"Used to come in here sometimes with an older woman dressed like Elvira, last time I saw him he was with this short dark haired woman dressed like a catholic school girl."

Xe snickered from beside Brian and received a smack on top of her head for it.

"Catholic school girl? That's different, is there anything else you can tell me about these women?"

"Nope sorry, if I were you I'd forget about them and keep what you have." He winked at her and walked down the stairs.

"Would you put on a plaid skirt for me Xe?"

"Hell NO! I don't do skirts, dresses or any other girlie thing."

"I know one thing you'll do." She gave the leash a tug and led Xe to one of the rooms with chains hanging from the wall. "Up against the wall baby."

"You're not gonna chain me up and run off are you?"

"Depends on if someone better looking comes along."

"WHAT!" Xe yelled and then lowered her voice. "You wouldn't would you?"

"Only one way to find out." She pushed her lover against the wall and cuffed her. "Now that you can't run away or get any phone calls from Boggs. Where's my ring!" She ran her hand up between Xe's legs.

Xe pushed her hips towards her lover and groaned. "I'm?Gods do that again."

"Nope, not unless you give me a ring. You're cut off until then."

Blue eyes grew wide with the information, she stuttered and fought for words but found none. She nodded her head and whimpered. "Love you Bri."

"Ain't gonna work Xe." She wiggled her ring finger in front of her and pinched a nipple. "I get my ring and I'll ring your bell." She walked away leaving Xe struggling against the wall.

"BRIAN! Don't you leave me here!" She yanked and pulled as hard as she could until she turned and put both feet against the wall and pushed off. A loud creaking and then she was lying on the floor looking up into smiling green eyes of a very strange looking woman.

"Guess maybe you should be tied down instead of chained up. Come with me and I'll tie you down for the next week."

"Don't think so she's mine." Brian pushed past the woman and clipped the leash on Xe's collar. "Find your own slave." She pulled a grinning Xe past the woman and all the way down to the bar.

"Thanks baby I could have gotten some." She jumped back when insane green eyes bore into her. "Just kidding baby." She dropped to her knees and buried her face against Bri's breasts.

"Ohh my Gods! A catholic girl!" Brian pointed to the door and caught a glimpse of a woman dressed like a catholic schoolgirl going out the door. Xe jumped to her feet and tried to break through the crowd to catch the woman before she disappeared. Brian ran after her lover and caught up with her as she stood outside.

"Do you see her?"

"Nope, God damn it!" She looked both ways and saw taillights in the distance. "I think she got in that cab."

@@@@@@@@@@@

"What was Lt. Sallano doing at the club?" Mrs. Davidson asked Edwards.

"I don't know all I know is that they were upstairs and asking about your late husband."

"Son of a bitch!" She turned to face Edwards. "Get rid of her bitch, I don't care how but you do it soon or else."

Edwards nodded his head, he knew the bitch would take him down in a heartbeat and there was nothing he could do about it. She had too much on him and if she talked, he would be put away for a long time. He sat silently playing with his pigtails and looking out the window.

@@@@@@@@@@@

Xe rushed through the hallways of the precinct towards Boggs office; he had called her on her cell phone while she was just five minutes away. He had said that he had some information from the Santa Monica Police Department about a couple of unsolved murders in their area. She didn't understand the significance until he said that they were couples that had been killed while in the act and that out of the three murders, two of them had been at a place known as make out points. Rushing past officers, she burst through his door to find him looking at crime scene photos with a jelly donut hanging out of his mouth.

"Here." He mumbled as he slid a folder across his desk to her.

"Lover's Tryst cases?" She read off the label. "Sounds like a movie or something." She scanned the files and when finished looked up at Boggs with a pale face. "They were killed with a whale harpoon."

"Yep, and this is the part that has me a little weirded out. Officer Vance is from the Department that investigated the murders. They haven't had another case since he left and came here."

"And all of a sudden we have a Lover's Tryst case and Vance is in the area." She pinched the bridge of her noise and groaned. "Guess we had better find out where he was when the couple was killed, anything on finding their bodies?"

"Well?uuhhmm, there's this place that seems to have had a problem with their crematorium. This helped us out, since the bodies were found lying outside the back of the building."

"So you're telling me that who ever took the bodies were just going to cremate them without the family's knowledge?" She closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair. "Gods that really sucks. Who found them?"

"Officer Vance." Boggs watched the red crawl up Xe's face. He reached across his desk and grabbed her hand to keep her from going on a rampage. "I have two internal affairs officers investigating him now."

"A lot of good that does since he may have already killed a couple of people." She went on to tell him of her and Brian's findings from the night before. When he asked how she got the information, she dropped her head and told him.

"I would give a months pay to see you with a dog collar on!" He laughed so hard that tears streamed down his face. "You're whipped Xepher, and by a tiny little blonde."

"Shut-up Boggs I am not." She knew damn well that she was but would never admit it to anyone.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Edwards looked into the Brian's office and watched her work on files for a few moments before he walked quietly to the autopsy room and out the side door. Looking for her car, he spotted it sitting towards the end of the building. Pulling a screwdriver from his pocket, he walked over to it and forced the lid to the gas tank open then broke the locking gas cap. Taking a 16oz plastic bottle from his coat pocket, he dumped it into the tank and closed everything up.

"May not be the most professional but it'll have to do." He said to himself before returning to the building.

Brian grabbed her cell phone and grinned at the caller ID read out. "Dead things 'R' Us."

"That's sick baby." Xe replied from the other end.

"OK, how's Queen bitch, can I chain you up?"

Xe's face turned an unhealthy red; she cleared her throat before she spoke. "Baby don't remind me. Can you bring over the files you have on the spear gun couple."

"Sure, what's this about?" She searched her desk, found the file and stuffed it into her backpack.

Xe went on to tell her about the other cases in California and about finding the missing bodies at a crematorium. She also asked her to find out what she could on the lab results so that they could compare them to the ones they had from the other cases.

"I'm on my way, I'll bring everything with me and then we can all sit down and go over them." She hung up her phone, set it on the desk and collected everything she needed before leaving her office. She had just started her car when she remembered leaving her cell phone on her desk. Taking the key for her office, she left her car running and ran back into the building to get her phone. Brushing past Edwards on her way back out, she gave him a quick glance and saw an evil glare in his eye. She was getting closer to the point of firing his ass just because he gave her the creeps. Jumping down the four steps near her car, she reached out a hand to the guardrail and felt an enormous amount of heat blast into her.

The sound of the explosion rattled all the windows on that side of the hospital, employees ran for the doors to see what happened. Debris was still falling from what was left of Brian's car, flames licked at the bent metal and burned from spilled fuel on the pavement. The hiss of the fire extinguishers trying to put out the fire and the yelling of voices to get back never came to the crumpled body dressed in hospital scrubs and a white lab coat. Brian lay against the stairwell with her body slumped at an angle, blood dripped down her face to soak into the collar of her lab coat.

@@@@@@@@@@@

Xe shot up from the chair she was sitting in across from Boggs' desk, grabbing her phone she hit the speed dial to Brian's and received no answer except for a message from an mechanical voice, saying that the number she was trying to reach was no longer working. Her face paled as she looked down at her phone and dialed again.

"Xepher are you OK?" Boggs asked as he got up from his chair and laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Brian?" Was all she said before she ran from his office with Boggs on her heels.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

The fire department pulled up and started extinguishing the flames; it was then that one of the firefighters found Brian. Yelling over the noise of the fire and the sirens, he got the attention of a police officer and one of the hospitals doctors. Easing Brian on to a stretcher, they took her around the building and into the ER. The nurse that accompanied Brian, grabbed a doctor from one of the triage rooms and dragged her with her to the room that the firefighter and officer had just went into. Giving the specifics of the case, she grabbed a plastic covered triage tray as they walked into the room.

"Call X-ray and get them down here with a portable, get the burn unit down here to." The doctor said as she started examining Brian. What she saw made her wince, Brian's one arm had sustained first and second degree burns from wrist to elbow. With further examination, she saw that she had second-degree burns on her leg. She pushed the officer and firefighter from the small cubicle and started cutting Brian's scrubs from her body, low moans alerted the doctor that she was coming around.

"Don't move doctor, you're in the ER and you've been hurt," She placed a hand on Brian's shoulder to hold her down. "Just lay still for me."

Green eyes fluttered open to look at her. "Xepher?call Xepher." She mumbled and then gasped when a burned area was touched.

"Who's Xepher?' The doctor asked as she gently peeled part of the scrubs away from Brian's hip.

"Lt. Sallano?homicide." She groaned as she tried to sit up. "She's gonna be really pissed at me."

"Don't move Doctor, I'll have the officer outside call the Lt for you." Brian lay back on the table and passed out within seconds.

@@@@@@@@@@@2

Boggs screamed like a little girl and gripped the dashboard with white knuckled fingers. "You're gonna kill us both and I need a clean pair of shorts!"

"I have to get to the hospital so just shut-up and hang on!" She took her car up onto the sidewalk, ran along the edge of a building and jumped back down into the busy street. "GETOUTTAMYFUCKINGWAY!" She screamed at a car in front of her. "Don't these people know what a siren is meant for?"

"Jesus Christ Sallano!" Boggs screamed and dropped down in his seat as they jumped the curb and came to a screeching halt outside of the hospital. Fire trucks, Police cars and ambulances blocked her from getting around to where the doors were to the morgue.

"What the Hell happened here?" Boggs asked as he stumbled from the car. "You go find Brian and I'll find out what happened." When he looked back over his shoulder, he saw that he had been talking to himself. Xe was already through the ER doors and running down the hallways looking into each triage room, she ran right into officer Vance.

"She's in the room down the hall Lt. Sallano."

Xe's eyes narrowed as she pushed past him. "Get out of my way!" Barging through the doorway, she ignored the doctor and nurses and went to Brian's side. Brushing the hair from her forehead, she mumbled close to her ear. "I'm here baby, it's all right."

"Hey you can't be in here." The doctor barked and reached a hand towards Xe's arm.

"Get your hand off me!" Xe growled and bared her teeth. "What happened to her?"

"They found her at the back of the building, you'll have to check with the police officer that brought her in. Now get out of here."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Listen lady?" The doctor reached for her again. "I'll call the police and have you taken out of here."

Xe pulled her wallet from her pocket and tossed it to the doctor. "Go ahead, you'll need that so you can spell my name right." The doctor opened the wallet and saw the gold shield and ID with Xe's name in big letters.

"She wanted me to call you but I didn't?"

"I'm here, now help her." Tears formed in her worried blue eyes as she looked at the angry red skin on her lover's arm and leg.

@@@@@@@@@@@

Brian was placed in a private room against her will and Xe's, after she threatened to beat the Hell out of a nurse and doctor, she was given a shot that knocked her out. Xe sat beside the bed until she knew for sure that her lover would sleep for a while. After kissing her forehead, she pulled the sheet up to her chin and left the room to search for the officer who had found Brian. Taking the stairs down to the bottom level, she went out a side door near where the explosion had occurred. What made her blood boil and rage to build up to volcanic proportions was the site of what was left of her lover's car. Striding over to the fire chief and arson inspector, she flipped her wallet open and showed them.

"I want to know what happened."

The inspector held out a 16oz plastic bottle and waved it in front of her nose. "Smell that? That's a mixture of bleach and urea. It was poured into the gas tank of the car, when it was started and the fuel made its way to the engine it blew." He pulled the burned gas cap lid from a bag and showed her where there were pry marks on the metal. "Someone wanted the owner dead." That's all Xe needed to hear, she took off to where Boggs was standing with a couple of officers.

"Boggs someone wanted Brian dead! I want the officer who found her."

"Xepher calm down a minute, Vance found her..."

Xe took one look at the officer next to Boggs, grabbed him by his throat and lifted him off his feet. Before anyone knew what happened, Xe had lifted him above her head, thrown him onto the hood of a police car and started beating him senseless.

"Damn it Xe he didn't do anything!" Boggs jumped on her back and wrestled with her, he was no match for the younger and pissed off woman. It took four fire fighters to drag her off the now badly beaten Vance. She found herself handcuffed and lying with her face being pressed into the wet pavement. "Do I have to take you in or are you going to behave yourself?" Boggs asked from where he was kneeling beside her.

"I want his ass dead!"

"Xe he didn't do it, he was clear across town with his partner when it happened. He's been on duty since 11pm last night." He watched the strong face before him collapse, the sharp angles became slack and tears slid down her face. "I'll let you loose but you stay away from Vance." She felt the cuffs being removed and then hands helping her up. "He's not pressing charges against you and I'm not saying a word about what happened. Now go see Brian before I have to put up with her temper to."

@@@@@@@@@@2

Tears slid down Xe's face at the site of her lover lying in the hospital bed, a white bandage covered the right side of her forehead and one on her cheek below her eye. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she leaned down and pressed her lips gently to Brian's. Her tears fell from her cheek to drip onto her lover's neck causing tired green eyes to flutter open.

"Xe?"

"I'm here baby." She croaked out and buried her face against the warm skin of Brian's neck. Soft sobs tore from her throat as she cried out her relief.

"Xe I don't know what happened."

Xe hugged Brian and tried not to hurt her anymore than she all ready was; lifting her head up, they connected eyes. "Someone tried to kill you; they were hoping that you would be in your car when it exploded."

"Just great and here I thought I'd be able to sue the car company." She ran her fingers through her lover's hair and pulled her head down to her. Kissing her gently, she then deepened it to assure Xe that she was still alive and kicking. "I know you'll find out who did it." She gripped Xe's hand in hers and saw pain in her blue eyes. Looking down at the swollen and bloody hands, she sighed and rolled her eyes at her. "Who'd you beat up?"

"Uuhhmm?I sorta lost it on Officer Vance." She dropped her eyes. "I thought he did it because we were getting close to bringing him in for questioning."

"He wouldn't kill me, he'd go after you." She ran a finger across the bloody knuckles of her lover and smiled. "And you call me a gargoyle." She chuckled at the shocked look on Xe's face. "Didn't think I heard you huh?"

@@@@@@@@@@@@

Mrs. Davidson paced her parlor floor in a rage; she couldn't believe that Edwards had done something so damn stupid as to try to blow the Medical Examiner up in her car, let alone right outside of the hospital. She stopped and pointed a finger at the young sheepish man; the glare in her eyes was enough to singe the skin on his face.

"You stupid little boy, what the fuck were you thinking? Ohh wait that's right you didn't, at least not with your brain!" She threw an expensive vase against the wall and kicked over an ottoman. "Now what the fuck are you going to do, burn down the Hospital or maybe the Police Station?"

"How was I to know that she forgot something and had to run back to her office, if she hadn't, she would have been away from the hospital when the car blew up." He jutted out his weak jaw at her. "I won't fail next time."

"You won't because you're not doing anything." She came to stand within inches of him and jabbed him in his bony chest. "Stay away from them, let me handle Lt. Sallano." She waved a hand at him and walked over to look out the window to the large back yard. "Stupid little twit!" She said to herself as she was trying to come up with a way to get rid of Sallano or at least get her off the case. Picking up the phone, she dialed and waited for the other end to pick up.

"Hello Commissioner, this is Mrs. Davidson the Councilman's widow. I've been having a problem with one of the officer's working my husband's case."

@@@@@@@@@@

Brian held on to Xe's arm for dear life, she had never seen her so enraged as she was right now. The rage seeping from every pore, muscles tensed and straining and the look of pure hatred burning from her silvery blue eyes. If she got loose, the hospital administrator would be the victim of a murderous rampage.

"Where have you been keeping your fucking head?up your ass?" Xe asked in a low dangerous voice.

"I do not appreciate you speaking to me like I'm some criminal off the street." He wiped the nervous sweat from his brow.

"Excuse me!" She bellowed. "You're wrong, I speak to them like they have brains!" She felt Brian wrap one arm around her waist and lean into her body.

"Xe let me handle this?please."

Xe lowered her voice so that only Brian could hear her. "I want his head on a pike!"

"So do I but I don't think we'll get placed in the same prison cell." She rubbed her lover's tight stomach in what she hoped was soothing motions. "I don't know who gave you all that bullshit information, but I think you had better look at it again."

"I don't have to, it's obvious that you are incompetent and not able to perform the job as Chief Medical Examiner for this hospital."

Brian growled and had to be held back by Xe. "You really are clueless aren't you! Look at the fucking dates on the files, I wasn't even working here at the time you stupid son of a bitch!"

The administrator pulled one of the files from the stack and looked at the date on top of the coversheet, he then pulled others out randomly and looked up at Brian. With out a word, he left the hospital room.

Xe sagged back into her lover's body and mumbled under her breath, rolling onto her side, she buried her face between Brian's breasts and screamed.

"Can't we like buy an island out in the south pacific so we can be away from the miniscule brains of the male gender?"

Xe looked up at her lover and grinned. "I'll buy the island if you wear one of those tiny little leather breach cloths and nothing else."

@@@@@@@@@@

The night was humid, dampness hung in the air like a fine mist of rain. The surface of the small parking lot glimmered like diamonds from the reflection of the single security light hanging from the back of the building. Only one vehicle was in the lot of the small 24-hour store, inside sat a man drinking from a bottle of purple MD 20/20. He had just spent the last four dollars from his paycheck for a cheap drunk and nasty hangover. His gaunt face turned to watch rats running around a Dumpster looking for garbage to feed on. What stepped from beside the Dumpster didn't faze him, he saw plenty of homeless in the area fighting the rodents for rotten food, or to go through garbage cans looking for half-filled bottles of anything to drink. Leaning his head against the seat, he closed his bloodshot eyes and drank from his bottle. For the last time. A thwacking sound echoed in the parking lot and then a thump. The man's eyes shot open from the pain in his chest, he looked down to see the feather tip of an arrow lodged in the center of his chest. He tried to lean forward and realized that the arrow had gone completely through his body and pinned him to the seat. He opened his mouth but not a sound came forth except a gurgling noise as he choked on his own blood. Seconds later, sightless eyes starred through the foggy windshield.

A crossbow was placed in the back seat of the car by a glove-covered hand that then produced a pair of side cutters and snipped the broad head off the end of the Crossbow bolt. The victim was pushed over into the passenger seat and then rolled to lie on the floor where he was out of sight. Within a couple of seconds the car pulled from the parking lot and headed out of town, the only sound coming from the car was the low murmur of a police radio.

@@@@@@@@@

Boggs kissed his wife goodbye and ran from the house they had lived in for over 20 years. When they had first been married, they bought the small house, which back then was considered huge with its three bedrooms and one and a half baths. Now the yuppie assholes that took over the area considered it a starter home and something that wasn't worth their time or effort to look at. That was fine by he and his wife, it was paid for and all theirs. Climbing into his car, he headed to the hospital to find Xepher, he had something for her that would haul her ass out of hot water. When he got to the room that Brian was in, he covered his eyes and groaned.

"Damn it you two, ever heard of locking your door or at least closing it!"

Blurry blue eyes peeked open to see a bright red Boggs hovering in the doorway. "Come on Boggs, we were just sleeping." She stretched her back and moaned when a sharp pain jabbed her in her hip and lower back. "Son of a bitch." She mumbled into her sleeping lover's neck. Grabbing her lower back, she eased up in the bed and tried to swing her legs over the edge without screaming. Boggs face took on a look of fatherly concern when he saw the pain that she was in.

"You OK Xe, you look like you're gonna pass out on me." He stepped forward and took her elbow to help her up. "Jesus Xe, I didn't know you hurt this bad."

"Everyday Boggs, every single day." She took a deep breath to chase away the swirling colors in front of her eyes. "Gets better when I start moving around."

"Or after I torture her for a few minutes." A sleepy voice said from behind Xe. "Come on baby, bend over the bed."

"Bri." Xe whined but did as she was told, Boggs cringed when he saw Brian use her thumb and push it deeply into Xe's hip. The paleness of her face told him of excruciating pain she was in. Moments later a sweat covered Xe stood up with more ease.

"What did you do to her Brian?"

"Pressure points, it helps with her sciatica. She really needs to stretch out before going to sleep." She cast a stern look to her lover.

"Like what you do to me doesn't stretch out muscles I never knew I had." She didn't need to look at Boggs to know that his face was bright red. "So Boggs, what brings you here to the Gargoyles torture chamber?"

He ran a hand across his face and jerked a thumb over his shoulder towards the door. "Top secret stuff here, the Queen has a message for you." He looked to see green eyes narrowed at him. "Queen Boggs that is." Xe followed him out into the hall, crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Out with it, what did I do this time?"

"The same thing you always do, fall down on the job." He pulled a small black box from his coat pocket and handed it to her. "My boss said to give you this and if I didn't I'd be sleeping outside with the dog. I do not want to piss off mama."

She opened the box and gave Boggs the biggest smile he had ever seen come across her face. Inside were two matching rings, they were the capital letters of XB joining to make up the circumference of the ring. With the X in silver and the B in gold and an alternating sapphire and emerald stone set in the center of the X.

"Well what do ya think there Xepher?"

Blue eyes twinkled at him, a croaked grin came over her face when she snapped the box closed. "I think you just kept me from having to sleep in my car."

"Hey remember me!" Brian yelled from the room. "I know you two are talking about me!"

"Go on Xe before she kicks your ass." Boggs clapped her on her shoulder, turned and whistled a tune as he walked down the hall. Xe tried to wipe the grin from her face before she went back in to Brian's room, it was impossible.

"You two are up to no good, what have you done now?"

"Ohh I think I just got myself out of the doghouse so to speak." She dropped to her knees beside the bed and took Brian's hand in hers. "I know I've been kinda slow in this department but I have a good reason for it." Placing a kiss on Brian's ring finger, she looked up into questioning green eyes. "We exchanged our vows to each other in private quite a while ago but we never exchanged rings." She placed a finger to Brian's lips to stop her from interrupting. "I had to find just the right rings and to be honest I had to have them made." She pulled the small box out and flipped the lid open, taking the smaller ring out, she slipped it onto Brian's finger and smiled into misty green eyes. "I love you Brian, now, always and forever."

Brian looked down at the ring and tears flowed down her cheeks, she pulled Xe up to meet her lips. What started out as a soft gentle kiss turned into one of complete passion and undying love. When they parted, all either one of them could do was stare into each other's eyes and try to catch their breath.

"Is it OK?" Xe asked hesitantly.

"It's beautiful baby." Brian took the box and slipped the other ring onto her wives finger. "I love you Xepher, now, always and forever." When they pulled apart from another long kiss, they heard sniffling noises at the door.

"You two are giant mushballs." Boggs said while wiping tears from his eyes. "Bad news Xe, we got a freaky one over by the truck stop on RT. 270. From what I've been told, it's gruesome."

"I'm going with you Xe." Brian said as she climbed from the bed, rummaged inside the small closet for her clothes and flashed Boggs when she tossed the flimsy gown on the bed. Xe rolled her eyes at her wife and stepped in front of her to keep Boggs from passing out from seeing her in all her glory.

"You two have no shame!" Boggs spun on his heel and faced the doorway.

"If you've seen one, you've seen them all." Brian mumbled as she pulled a sweatshirt over her head.

"My wife has never looked like either one of you." Boggs groaned and slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Sounds like blackmail material to me. Right Bri?"


@@@@@@@@@


"What in the Hell?" Brian leaned over and tilted her head to the side.

"What I'm trying to figure is how in the Hell." Xe said as she stood behind Brian doing the same funny moves and almost falling on her head when Brian looked back at her.

"Ya have to give the sick fuck credit, he is getting quite inventive."

"Baby this is just plain gross." Xe said as she walked closer to where the two male bodies where being displayed. "EEEWWW! Brian!"

A large tree was used for the display of the two male bodies, one man was suspended upside down against the tree, and the other was right side up. What interested Brian and grossed out Xe was the fact that they had been tied to the tree with their own intestines. A bloody gore pooling on the ground at the one man's feet. Brian snorted and looked to her wife.

"This is definitely not the way we do 69's." Her grin grew larger when Xe's face turned a bright red.

"I swear you two are the most outspoken women I know!" Boggs knew his color matched that of Xe's, he was beginning to wonder if it would be his permanent shade.

Brian pointed to the tree and then to her and Xe. "We have never done anything up against a tree, now the kitchen table is different."

"Oohh geez, remind me to never sit down at your table again." Boggs continued to mumble as he walked away.

"Baby you are going to be the death of me yet." Xe said as she tried to take calming breathes, the picture that had formed in her mind of her and Brian was not something that should be there considering where they were and what was in front of them.

"Let's bag, tag and load." Brian said while pulling baggies from her pocket. She flinched when the tender skin of her forearm brushed against her scrub shirt, she knew that she would catch holy Hell when they found out she had escaped the hospital. She didn't much care, Xe needed her and she would walk through Hades itself to be by her side. Xe saw the pain shot through her wives eyes and laid a hand on her shoulder.

"I'll bag their hands and feet, you go get the ambulance crew up here."

Brian's eyes blazed and then calmed when Xe leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"I know you hurt, you shouldn't be out here in the sun." She kissed Brian's neck and nuzzled against her for a few minutes. "Please baby."

"I'm whipped!" Brian mumbled.

"Makes two of us baby." Brian went to the parking lot to get the ambulance crew ready, she gave them specific instructions on how she wanted the bodies moved and if not done her way, she threatened them with the wraith of Xepher.

Xe gagged when she got close to the bodies, the stench of open guts and stretched intestines was getting to her. What was different about this and being in the autopsy room where there was ventilation, there was no breeze in the 90-degree weather or under the tree, she was sharing with every known insect. "Should have become a manager at McDonalds." Xe looked closely at one of the men and had to turn and run, she made it outside of the crime scene and lost her breakfast. Bent over at the waist, she heaved and shivered.

"Baby you OK?" Brian asked and rubbed her wives back.

"One of them was alive when he was put on the tree?he bit?the other guy's dick off." She heaved again, but nothing came up. Brian pulled a towel from her pocket and wiped Xe's face off and then led her away from the area to a quiet place. She eased her down against a tree, sat down next to her and pulled her head against her chest.

"You know Xe, this world is full of fucking freaks and it's our job to catch them. Some times the hardest thing I do, is to look at what someone will do to another human and I wonder why? Why do they doe such cruel and sick ass things?" She kissed Xe's temple and sighed. "There's no answer, no one knows except those sick fucks and they won't say."

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Flipping the overhead light on and pulling down the microphone, Brian uncovered the bodies of the two men. Taking extreme care, she lifted the head of the man on top and turned his head to the side. Noticing a deep purple bruise running along the area above his left ear, she palpated the area for any sign of fractures. Finding none, she ran her fingers through his short blonde hair for any other injuries. At the crown of his head, she found a small gash and dried blood. Titling the light down, she saw that there were two small gashes with a space in between, what came to mind was the end of a crowbar. Pulling her camera from under the table, she took a couple shots of the wound and then finished the roll off by taking shots of the bodies.

"Edwards! I need some help in here!" She yelled loud enough that the floor above them could hear. She waited ten minutes and then went in search of her assistant. "Where the Hell are you?" She mumbled to herself.

"I fired him." Brian turned to see the hospital administrator coming down the hall towards her. "I called the hospital that he used to work at and found out that he was trying to pull the same thing here as he did there." The older man leaned against the wall across from her, removed his glasses and rubbed his bloodshot eyes. "I owe you an apology, I should have known he was up to something."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I overheard one of the nurses in the lounge talking about him. He was seen coming in the hospital at weird hours and using the terminals upstairs. The next day, the head nurse had to call in the computer company to fix the computers on that floor. What ever Edwards did, he managed to delete half of the records for the ER, Morgue and Pediatrics."

"Son of a bitch!" Brian tilted her head back and closed her eyes. "Are all the files on my computer missing now?"

"No, you computer is on a different server than the other ones, when you moved your office it was easier for the computer technician to run your PC lines to the server that the surgical staff computers are hooked to." He stepped closer and held out his hand to her. "I truly sorry Dr. Meadows, truce?"

She opened her eyes and stared down at his hand. "Under one condition, I get to hire my assistant and the hospital buys me my own coroner vehicle set up to my specs." She watched him fight with the numbers in his head. "Remember, my car was blown up in the parking lot, I was almost killed and I could sue for lack of hospital security." A light flush took over the administrators features, gulping he nodded his head.

"Anything you want, you let my secretary know and she'll get it for you. You pick out the vehicle you want and have the dealership send the bill to my office."

"Thanks, now I have to get back to work." She walked away from him and noticed that he had followed her into the autopsy room. With one look of the man with a severed dick hanging from his mouth, the administrator ran from the room gagging. "Love this job."

After pushing the gurney over to one of the tables, she rolled the top body off and began her autopsy on the other. It would take her most of the day to do both of them since she was now all on her own. Taking a bread knife from the tray of instruments, she started the Rokitansky method and hummed Beethoven's fifth piano concerto under her breath.

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Xe looked at the reports from the fire inspector and then the ones that came back from the fingerprinting department. The inspector had turned in the bottle found at the scene for printing. What they found were numerous prints of one kind and then one partial of another. The first name was Agnes Bancroft, a 70-year-old woman who worked at the hospital in the cafeteria as the cashier. "I can see her being pissed at Brian for the amount of food she would have to ring up." She snorted at the thought of the old woman seeing Brian and running from the room. The other name was an EJ Holmes, numerous felonies, misdemeanors, assault and batteries and couple dozen counts of sexual exhibitionism and indecent exposure . "Ohh great! I'm looking for some fucking pervert who likes to whip out his tiny ass dick and play with it." Dropping her head onto her desk, she let out a low moan. "Hate this job, Burger King is hiring. I could clean fry baskets."

"And miss out on all the fun you have here?" Boggs sat in the chair beside her desk and dropped a folder on top of the already huge pile. "Take a look at that, just came in from California. It's a profile that was done for the Santa Monica police department." She scanned the report and snorted.

"Boggs this doesn't mean anything, we know we have a sick bastard out there."

"That's not what I'm getting at, look closer at the personality of the perp. It's too perfect a fit for Vance, it's almost like the profiler knew Vance ahead of time and wrote a report on him."

"Gotcha, I'll look into it. Right now I have to get over to the morgue and see what Brian came up with." She got up from her chair and was picking up the files she needed when Boggs jumped to his feet and almost knocked her over. "What the?"

"The commissioner just walked into my office!" Boggs had sweat pop out across his forehead. He looked down at his shirt and tie and up to amused blue eyes. "Do they match?"

"Hell no, you need help dressing in the morning or those little animal tags on everything. You know monkey goes with monkey, lion goes with?"

"I got it Xepher, you're no help." He jogged towards his office and came to a screeching halt when the commissioner stepped through the door. Xe could see them talking but couldn't hear a single word. What she did pick up was that Boggs was pointing at her and motioning her to come into his office.

"Ohh shit, this is not good."


When she entered the office, she automatically felt the tension coming off the two men, she looked from one to the other and waited.

"Lt. Sallano, I had a phone call from a Mrs. Davidson." The commissioner said. "She has informed me that you are harassing her."

Xe rolled her eyes and snorted. "You have got to be kidding, I spoke with her for about three minutes before she had me thrown out of her house."

Boggs knew what had gone on with the interview, he couldn't for the life of him understand why the widow had involved the commissioner after almost a week and a half had passed.

"When exactly was the last time you spoke to her?"

"The day after I escorted her to the morgue to identify her husband, I had to inform her that the case was being investigated as a murder. I asked her some personal questions and she got all bent out of shape over it."

"That's not what she told me." He rubbed his jaw with the tips of his fingers and nodded his head. "She told me that you've been sitting outside her house and following her all over town. Not to mention that she thinks you broke into her house and tapped her phone lines."

"Come on John." Boggs shot a look to the commissioner. "The woman is not a suspect and that's not Sallano's style. If we had her under observation, she would never know about it."

"I think she's delusional, I'm more interested in who her husband was meeting at a kinky nightclub." She watched the commissioners eyes widen. "Guess you didn't know about that huh?" She told him about her and Brian going to the area kink club and questioning the bartender and employees about the Councilman.

"You took the Medical Examiner?" He questioned.

"I take her everywhere." She gave him a look of 'don't fuck with my ways.' "She's more than the ME, she's trained in clinical psychology, forensic medicine, criminal sciences and if I don't take her, she will make my life a living Hell."

His mouth dropped open with the massive amount of credentials the ME had. "And why isn't she working for us in Homicide Special Units?" He looked to Boggs for his answer.

"John, she works at the hospital as the Chief Medical Examiner, so in a way she does work for us, well she works for one of us." He looked to Xe and received a nod of her dark head. "She's married to?"

Who? I want his name." The commissioner was getting riled, he wanted the ME on his side. It would look damn good for him come election time, if he could get the murders solved and the ME in his pocket.

Boggs raised an eyebrow, he knew damn well what the commissioner was thinking. He and John had gone to school together and then joined the police department almost at the same time. Where Boggs was for the department and protecting the people, John was for the political world, self-centered and a pain in the ass at times. "Lt. Sallano."

"What! You're kidding right?" He looked between the two of them and sighed when he saw the glimmer in Sallano's eyes. "Damn it to Hell Sallano." He dropped his head in defeat. "Just get that sick bastard off the streets." He left a grinning Boggs in his wake.

"Asshole." Boggs mumbled. "Thought he was going to get Brian in his pocket."

"Fat chance, even I can't do that and I sleep with her."

"Xe I don't want to know anymore than I already do about your sex life."

"I'll tell ya anyway, I'm going to get her and maybe something else when we get home." She wiggled her brows at his red face. "Later Boggs."

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"Ohhh you were a naughty boy weren't you?" Brian handled what would have been a normal liver had it not been pickled from years of alcohol abuse. She was afraid that it would fall to pieces in her hand before she got it into the tray on the scale. She had seen the yellow tint around the deceased eyes and knew right off that he was suffering from a liver condition, jaundice or maybe hepatitis. With further examination, she found no rectal scaring and knew that the man was not a homosexual and neither was the other victim. She had a gut feeling that the men hadn't even known or been in the same area as the other and that it was two different killings placed at the scene to be passed off as something else.

She hoped that Xe would show up so that she could show her what else she had found in an unlikely place. She had in an evidence bag, a blood soaked business card that she could just make out the gold foil of a police shield. She would have the lab see if they could clean it up and be able to make out what else was printed on the card. After dictating the weight of the diseased liver, she placed it inside a plastic bag and put it into the man's body cavity. Taking out her stapler, she closed up the Y incision she had made and closed the area that the killer had done while gutting the victim. What ever he had used to gut the men was a sharp as her own instruments, and the way each man was cut, she had a suspicion that the killer had some medical training or was a hunter.

The bodies had basically been opened so that only the intestines could be drawn out from a small incision in the abdominal cavity. She pictured in her head how the men had been placed against the tree, the man on top was still alive when he was cut open, and she believed that he had come around from being unconscious at the time his intestines were being pulled from his body. That was the reason he had bitten the penis of the other man off. The suffocating is what had killed him though, a far better way to go then slowly and in excruciating pain. In time he would have died when the sunlight dried his intestines out and from the shock that the body had gone through. Brian knew as soon as she had examined the one man that he had been killed in a similar fashion as the other couple, the entry and exit wound in his body were made by an arrow of some sort that much she knew.

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Continued In Part 2



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