“On vacation.”

“And your captain let you work alone?”

“Nah, he tried to stick me with some broad that just got her shield and I told him that I was thinking about taking all of the six months of vacation I got accumulated, and he changed his mind.”

“Sounds like gender bias to me, Kirk,” Sanchez said and shook his finger at me as we approached the first of the three bodies.

“Not gender bias, Gene; I don’t have the patience to train no wet-behind-the-ears chick that just got her shield. I’m still training Richards and we’ve been partners for six years.”

“What she look like?”

“Oh, she’s hot. And I hear she was a good cop on the street,” I said and knelt down next to the body. “I just ain’t the guy to get her feet wet with.”

“If you want my opinion, and I notice that you haven’t asked for it, I think you’re the perfect guy to bust her cherry. You’re a good cop, Kirk, and a better detective then most of the guys in that unit.”

I looked at the body and got up. “That’s the same line of shit the captain ran on me. But you see she ain’t here, right?”

“You’re a piece of work this morning,” Sanchez said and laughed.

“It’s early and I haven’t had my coffee yet.” I looked at the other two bodies. “Any ID on this one?” I asked as we walked to the next body.

“Nope. Not on that one either,” Sanchez said as I took a look at the second body and moved on to the third. “Only one with any ID is her.”

I looked at her laying there dead, with the gun still in her hand, and shook my head. “Who was she?”

“Driver’s license says she’s Kenyatta Damson. Got a couple of arrests a few years back for possession with intent. Been off the grind for a while though.”

I looked at Sanchez. “You guys didn’t know about this spot?”

“No, I’m ashamed to say. And from what I’ve gotten from the few that have said something, she controlled the building.”