Part 3
Stifling a yawn, Sofia made her way down the aisle, blue eyes scanning for her seat number. She sincerely hoped that she wouldn't be trapped next to a little old lady returning home from her annual gambling spree. Or worse, someone snoring the whole flight and drooling over her shoulder. She shuddered. Once had been bad enough. Maybe she'd even be lucky and not have to share her row.
Having found her seat, the tall blonde stowed her hand luggage, after extracting her laptop. As she settled into her seat, sharp blue eyes took in the other commuters on the early morning flight to San Francisco. For a Wednesday, the flight was surprisingly full, though only half the plane was occupied. Sofia's luck held and nobody sat in the seat next to her.
Soon the seatbelt sign pinged on, followed by the voice of the head air hostess, thanking them for flying United Airways and going on to the safety speech. Sofia tuned the voice out as she fastened her seatbelt and settled in for the duration of the trip. Within minutes, the aircraft had taxied to their designated runway and taken off. The moment the seatbelt sign pinged off, Sofia had hers loosened and her laptop powering up.
She had spent the time since leaving Brass' office yesterday afternoon most productively. She had made paper copies of all the reports and files relating to the Tabletop murders, as well as downloading and scanning it all onto her laptop. If need be, she wanted all the information to literally be at her fingertips. The rest of her time had been spent packing, organising with her neighbour to keep an eye on her apartment and refreshing her memory with the finer details of the murders. Which had led to a late dinner and a troubled sleep, hence the tiredness this morning.
She opened up the file containing the info from Brass' notebook and continued on from where she had left off the night before. Deciphering Brass' handwriting was still a mission, even after working with him for years. Her only interruption was a friendly air hostess, entirely too chipper for so early in the morning, offering her a choice of beverages and snacks. The captain's voice, advising them of their arrival in San Francisco and the weather conditions, took her by surprise. The time had passed a lot quicker than expected.
As Sofia prepared for the landing, her thoughts turned to what awaited her at her destination. She didn't know much at all about the latest murders other than the fact that the latest killings matched the MO of their killer. Undoubtedly she would soon learn more.
After the chaos of disembarking, Sofia retrieved her firearm from the sky marshal and headed to baggage claim to fight the crowds for her single piece of baggage. After having won that particular battle, Sofia suddenly realised that she had no idea who was meeting her or, more importantly, what they looked like.
-oOo-
Lindsay checked to see that everything was in order. She'd managed to get a spare desk squeezed in next to her and Jacobi's desks. It made for a bit of a tight fit but rather that than having to yell across several other desks with the usual noise of a busy homicide division.
With one last glance at her watch, Lindsay decided she had just enough time to make it to the airport. She waved to get Jacobi's attention and, pointing to her watch, mimed that she was going. Jacobi, scribbling a note while on the phone, nodded and waved goodbye. He was still busy compiling a list of all the possible links between their two victims, though he hadn't gotten any matches yet.
Lindsay shrugged into her black leather jacket as she headed out to her car. As she was sliding behind the wheel, she realised that she had no idea what Detective Curtis looked like. With a shrug, Lindsay started her car and pulled out into the traffic. How hard could it be to spot a cop in a crowd?
With luck, Lindsay managed to find a spot to park quite close to the terminal she needed to be at. With a quick glance at the time, Lindsay made her way into the terminal with minutes to spare. A check of the board showed that UA1431 was on time and had in fact just landed. Lindsay made her way to a spot that was out of the way of the crowds, yet had a clear view of the baggage claim area and settled down to wait.
Sofia made sure she still had all her belongings, and then headed away from the brawl that was the baggage claim area. Her plan of action was simple. First she would check and see if anyone was obviously looking for her. If she didn't have any luck with that, she'd find herself some coffee and then call the number Brass had given her for Inspector Boxer. With a characteristic swagger, Sofia headed into the main part of the terminal and scanned the crowds.
Suddenly, a tingle raced up her back, causing the fine hairs at the back of her neck to stand on end. The next moment a low, husky voice drawled behind her.
"Detective Curtis."
Lindsay had immediately spotted the detective she was waiting for. Not what she had expected, but she was none the less pleasantly surprised. A striking blonde strode out of the baggage claim area, a laptop bag/rucksack over her left shoulder and pulling a wheeled suitcase with her left hand. She was wearing stonewashed blue jeans, a brown leather jacket over a white collared shirt and brown leather boots, and she wore it well. Lindsay caught a glimpse of a gun and a badge at the tall woman's right hip and couldn't hold back a chuckle. Here was a confident woman who knew who she was and how to handle herself. She watched as bright blue eyes scanned the area before Detective Curtis turned towards the lounge area of the terminal.
Lindsay quickly made her way over to the blond, not wanting to lose her in the crowd. Goosebumps chased up her arms just as she called out to the detective from Las Vegas.
At the sound of her name, Sofia quickly turned around. Making her way towards Sofia was a vision dressed in black from head to toe. Black leather jacket over a black button down shirt, which was tucked into snug black jeans and matching black boots. Sofia's cop brain automatically noted the long, brunette hair framing a strong face dominated by determined brown eyes and the stubborn tilt of her jaw, followed by the gun and badge comfortably resting on her left hip. Here was a woman who didn't take any nonsense from anybody. Sofia stepped forward and held out her hand.
"Inspector Boxer, I presume"
Lindsay shook the proffered hand, smiling in acknowledgement. Chocolate brown eyes met sky blue ones, searching, testing, and finding will and determination to match her own. Her welcoming smile stretched into a grin.
"Call me Lindsay and welcome to San Francisco."
Sofia blinked at the flash of dimples and the warm grin, slightly stunned, before smiling back and giving the warm hand in hers one last squeeze.
"Thanks. And it's Sofia."
"Great! Well, if this is all your stuff, what say you we head out? Oh, unless you'd like to grab a coffee to go. I know just how bad airline coffee can be."
Sofia laughed at that, and then gestured to her gear.
"This is all I brought with me. I got my firearm before I went to get my bag. I figured if I couldn't make my way through the crowd, I could always shoot my way through. And coffee would be great! I swear they just whiffed the coffee beans past cups of warm water and called it coffee."
Lindsay chuckled in agreement and headed towards the closest coffee shop.
After Sofia had grabbed her coffee, Lindsay lead the blond towards her car, having lightened Sofia's load by claiming her wheelie bag.
"So, would you like to settle in first or would you like to head straight into the office?"
"Well, as much as I'd like to jump right in, I'd rather dump the excess stuff. I'd prefer not having to drag it all around with me all day."
"Fair enough. Well, as for accommodation, you have two options. Option one is your basic hotel where we usually book our out of town visitors. It's a fair distance from the precinct though and traffic to and fro is just a nightmare."
Sofia wrinkled her nose at that. She hated dealing with traffic in Las Vegas. The thought of trying to make her way through heavy traffic in a city she did not know really didn't appeal to her.
"And option number two?"
"Option two is you bunk with me. I stay quite close to work and I have a spare room that's empty. As long as you don't mind dogs and sharing a bathroom, you can crash at my place. What do you say?"
This hadn't been the original plan. In fact, it saw very much a spur of the moment offer. But something about the blond just grabbed at Lindsay. And it really was much more convenient this way.
Sofia turned in her seat to get a good look at Lindsay. She watched as the brunette competently weaved her way through the traffic. The offer to stay at Lindsay's house had surprised her. She got the impression that Lindsay was very much a stand-alone type and that this offer was a bit out of character. To be truthful, the San Francisco cop fascinated her for some reason. And she'd really like the chance to get to know her better.
"I'd say I'm gonna go for door number two, if that's alright with you. As a CSI, I had to process way too many hotel rooms and I can honestly say that I'd sleep better in a dumpster. At least with a dumpster, you know exactly what you're sleeping on, you know?"
"Are you saying that you think my place is a dump? You haven't even seen it yet!"
Sofia shot a horrified glance in Lindsay's direction, taking in the scowl pulling dark brows down over brown eyes. Not even 30 minutes in San Francisco and she had already put her foot in it. Way to go, Curtis!
"No, no, no! No, I'm sorry, that's not what I meant. I was just saying …"
Sofia's horrified babbling petered out as Lindsay threw her head back and roared with laughter. It took a couple of minutes, and a few spurts of renewed laughter at the nasty look being levelled at her from her right, but Lindsay eventually wound down and got her breath back with one last hiccupping sigh.
"Oh, man, thanks for that. I haven't had such a good laugh in ages. I think I really needed that. I'm sorry. You just set yourself up so beautifully and I just couldn't resist."
Lindsay favoured her companion with a full on smile, dimples flashing in both cheeks and laughter still lurking in warm, brown eyes.
Sofia's annoyance at being the butt of Lindsay's joke had quickly faded at the joyous sound of the brunette's laughter, though she hid it behind the nasty look she was giving Lindsay. At the genuine smile send her way, her breath caught in her throat. In that one instant, Sofia saw right to the core of Lindsay. She saw past all the masks the stoic cop usually wore and saw the battered innocence, the gentle heart, which kept Lindsay at her job, fighting to bring the monsters to justice.
She sighed softly and, tucking her long, blond hair behind her ear, smiled gently back.
"Laugh it up, Boxer. Next time, though, the jokes gonna be on you."
"We'll see about that! Anyway, we'll swing by my place so you can dump your stuff and meet Sweet Martha and then we'll meet up with my partner back at the Hall."
"The Hall?"
"Yeah, the Hall of Justice. That's where Homicide is based, along with Sex Crimes, Auto Theft, and Robbery. The DA is on the eighth floor and the morgue is next door. Everything you need in one easy stop."
"Convenient. Anyway, it sounds like a plan. I've brought copies of everything we had on our murders. I know Brass sent you the info, but I'm all for rather being safe than sorry. I've also brought my old notebook, as well as Brass'. Between the two, we've got all the bases covered, his from the investigators point of view, mine from the CSI's."
Lindsay shot a quick glance at Sofia, an eyebrow raised in query.
"I didn't catch it before, but you were a CSI? But you're a cop now, right? Why the change?"
"Well, long story short, my mom's a cop, a captain with the LVPD and I've always wanted to be a cop. Just before I qualified for detective, I was transferred over to dayshift CSI. I worked my way up to supervisor until I was shuffled over to graveyard shift, and not as supervisor. I worked there for a while until I had the chance to go for my detectives shield in a nearby town. I made the move, stayed there for about six months before moving back to Vegas when a spot opened up at the LVPD. And I've been there ever since."
"Hm, interesting tale. I'm sure I'll want to hear the long version at some stage. But at least you can bring a different perspective to our cases. And you'll be able to translate all the scientific reports our CSU's send us." The last was said with a grin.
"I live to serve." Came the joking reply.
Shortly afterwards, Lindsay pulled into her driveway and waved her hand at her house.
"Welcome to Casa Boxer. Come meet Martha and pack your stuff away."
With that, Lindsay got out the car, popped the trunk and hauled out Sofia's bag, Sofia quickly following. Lindsay led the way up the wooden steps of the porch and unlocked the front door. Martha quickly came to greet, licking Lindsay's hand before carefully eyeing the newcomer. Sofia slowly walked up to the Border collie, holding her hand out for Martha to sniff. After a thorough examination, Martha obviously decided the tall blond was all right and nuzzled her head under the proffered hand.
After giving the sweet dog a good scratch behind the ears, Sofia looked up and followed Lindsay inside, closing the door behind her.
After giving Sofia a quick tour and pointing out the spare room, Lindsay hustled the blond cop out the door, barely giving her time to grab her rucksack.
On the short drive to the Hall, Lindsay gave Sofia a brief rundown of the San Francisco murders, ending off with the scarcity of evidence left at the scenes.
"I cannot believe that we don't have one solid lead yet. The closest thing to one is the envelope that is delivered to the Registrar on the Monday after each murder was committed. So far, each one has been dropped into the mailbox of a busy local post office. So far he hasn't used the same mailbox. Unfortunately, it's totally impractical to have a police officer posted at each mailbox in the city, waiting for the next delivery. And as horrible as it seems, unless we crack this soon, there will be another delivery."
Lindsay's tone was grim and her grip on the steering wheel was so tight her knuckles were white, showing just how frustrated she was by their lack of progress.
Sofia's eyes were sympathetic, remembering her own frustration four years ago. She reached over and rested her hand on a tense forearm, soft leather warm under her hand.
"I won't tell you to relax, not to worry about it. What I will tell you is that we will do our utmost, dedicate every waking moment, to catching this bastard and putting him away for a very, very long time."
Sofia's quiet voice was steely with determination and conviction, her eyes icy blue as they met frustrated brown. With one last squeeze, Sofia dropped her hand and settled back into her seat.
The next couple of minutes passed in silence as Lindsay contemplated what Sofia had just said. As Lindsay parked in front of the Hall, she took a deep breath and let out a long sigh, slumping down in her seat. She turned her head and met understanding blue eyes.
"Thank you. I know if we can just find one good lead, we'll nail this guy. We just need a direction. So, thanks for the pep talk. Anyway, here we are, your office away from the office for the next little while. Come on, let me show you to your desk."
"Wow, I actually get a desk. Nice."
Lindsay laughed. "I promise, it's nothing fancy. Just somewhere to spread your stuff."
With that, Lindsay got out the car and waited for Sofia to join her. Heading inside, she introduced Sophia to the desk sergeant and fixed her up with a visitor's badge.
"This aught to get you further than that out of town cop badge you've got attached to your belt."
Startled, Sophia looked down. Yes, there it was, her LVPD detective's shield, gleaming proudly in the fluorescent lighting. To Lindsay's amusement, a faint blush crept up from Sophia's collar until her whole face was lightly tinted.
Sophia self-consciously cleared her throat. "I didn't even think about it when I got dressed this morning. It's a part of the routine, you know. I'd feel half naked without my badge and my gun on."
Lindsay smiled and nodded, "I know exactly what you mean. Come on, let me introduce you around and then we can get down to work."
After showing Sophia where everything was and introducing her to everyone in the Homicide division, Lindsay waved Jacobi over and lead them to the conference room she had claimed for the duration of the case.
Inside, two murder boards covered the one wall, one for each victim. On it was a summary of all the information on each victim and related crime scenes. Files and reports were neatly stacked on the table nearby.
"Alright everybody, let's compare the Vegas crime scenes with ours"
And with that, the three homicide cops started sifting through all the information, looking for anything that would send them on the path towards their killer.
Continued...