Lauren (18 page)

"How do you deal with that, Detective Phelps? The men are always drooling over you, and making comments.” Lizzy said.

"The same way you deal with it. I ignore it, and if and when the time arises for me to put them in their place, I do it. Believe me, most of the guys around here are respectful. It's a teasing type of thing,” she explained, as they walked toward the deli.

The sun was bright and hot, as usual. She was thankful there was no humidity today.

"Ever been approached by ... the higher ups?” Lizzy said, cautiously.

Lauren understood her meaning. “Sure have been, darling. Two times, and by the second time, he truly got the message I wasn't interested. Now, look where I am, and well respected, I hope, to boot."

"Oh, yes, ma'am, you are well respected. Everyone has great things to say about you."

"Will you please stop calling me ma'am? Let's stick with Lauren and Lizzy. I know you respect me, so please, call me Lauren, and when we're back inside, you can stick to protocol."

"Yes, ma ... Lauren.” Lopez smiled.

Lauren enjoyed her company, and the conversation.

They ordered their lunch, and sat down by the crowded counter in front of the window, appreciating the short break from the case, until a couple of other detectives came in.

The two guys worked narcotics, and did a bit of undercover work. One was Jose Pina, a very attractive Hispanic cop known for his fabulous acting skills. His partner, Freddie, was Italian, also good looking, and full of the Bronx attitude. The men eyed Lauren and Lizzy, then ordered lunch, and made their way toward them.

"Hey, Detective Phelps. Or, is it Lieutenant now?” Jose said, as he touched Lauren's hip, pretending to move her badge to get a better look at the label. He smiled and winked, using his typical flirtatious body language.

She smiled, laughed, then glanced at Lizzy.

"It's still Detective, Pina."

"Yeah, but third grade, and pretty impressive with your high profile case and all,” he added, as he pulled a stool over toward the counter, making himself at home. He winked at Lizzy.

Then Freddie Firelli did the same thing, pulling a chair out from the closest table.

"You looked fantastic on TV, Phelps. Everyone has been commenting,” Freddie told her.

Lizzy stayed quiet.

"I still think you look better in person. You're gorgeous, but you know that, Phelps, don't you?” Jose told her, and winked, then he took a bite of his cold cut, Hero sandwich.

"Thanks. I appreciate the compliment. So, how has life been treating you two guys? Still working the Celeste case, or do you got that all wrapped up?” Lauren bit into her tuna fish on pita bread.

"Yeah, we wrapped that up a few weeks ago. Thanks again for the help with Mr. Santiago. He was a tough one to crack. I'm telling you, Phelps, looks like your beauty combined with your natural police instincts are a lethal combination. Mmmmm.” Jose looked her body over.

Lauren rolled her eyes. “You're a piece of work, Pina. To think, some sophisticated, classy woman hasn't scooped you up. It's a sin.” Lauren winked at Jose, then took a sip of her ice tea. Lizzy laughed.

Both Jose and Freddie eyed Lizzy, as if wondering who she was, but she didn't seem interested in making any introductions.

"Who's the gnome?” Freddie said sarcastically, as he looked at Lizzy.

Lauren then made the introductions.

Jose starting flirting with Lizzy, and Lauren smirked when Lizzy gave him a feisty bit of Latin attitude. Jose backed off, but then Freddie attempted to make a move.

"Hey, Jose, can you fill me in on some information about Ecstasy? I really don't know that much about it,” Lauren said.

"What do you want to know?"

"Anything you can tell me."

"Well, let's see, there are numerous names on the streets for Ecstasy, starting from Ellie, Clear X, Liquid X, X-Rater, Liquid Dream, Scoop Her, or Get Her To Bed,” he said.

"Then there's Special K, K, OK, KO, Kid Rock, Ket Kat, and Make Her Mine,” Freddie added.

"There's a bunch of names, but no matter what you call it, when this shit gets into your system, you have no control. It's an odorless, colorless liquid that acts on the central nervous system as a depressant/anesthesia. The most common effects are euphoria, amnesia, intoxication, drowsiness, nausea, hallucinations, and severe respiratory depression. Can even cause comas."

"Oh my God, coma? So, how fast does it work?"

"It works really fast, within ten to fifteen minutes after ingestion. The effects last for three to six hours, when taken without alcohol, and thirty-six to seventy-two hours, when mixed with alcohol or other drugs. In very high dosages, a coma can occur within five minutes."

Lauren was even more disgusted with Ben Silver. The rage rose, as she continued to learn about his tactics. “It's clear you said, right? So, it's completely undetected, which means, buy your own drinks and keep the top covered."

"Unfortunately, yes. That's why it's known as the date rape drug. Once a woman is given it, there's no way she can stop a guy from taking what he wants, and more than likely, by the time the stuff wears off, she's unsure if what occurred was real or an illusion,” Freddie said.

"That's why they say if a woman feels that this happened to her, she should immediately go to the hospital, and have a rape kit done, as well as getting tested for date rape drugs. Even though the drug may not be detected in her system, and she may not recall giving consent, she still is considered raped, under the law,” Lizzy added, and both Freddie and Jose agreed.

"I appreciate the info, Jose.” Lauren took a sip of her iced tea.

"So, Phelps, when are you going to give up this whole ‘I ain't ever dating cops’ thing, and let me show you what you're missing?” Jose said, as Lauren and Lizzy got up from their seats.

"If the time ever comes, I'll let you know, Pina. For now, don't waste your breath. We've got to get back to work."

Lauren said goodbye, just as a few other street cops entered the deli. She and Lizzy acknowledged them, then made their way out of the deli and back to the precinct.

"You're good, Lauren, real good. I'd want to knock somebody out right now,” Lopez admitted.

"That wouldn't be the right move. You see, instead, I play nice. Keep them in my pocket, on the side, where I can use them for info, if necessary, and keep them in line. You and I interpreted that conversation completely different than they did. We got some information on Ecstasy, and our killer's personality. They got, ‘We just had lunch with two hot, untouchable female cops.’ That'll keep them on our side, for a while."

"You see what I mean? You are good. I never would have looked at it like that. I had fun, Lauren. Thanks."

"Me too. I have to admit, I'm usually hanging out with a bunch of guys. This is less nauseating.” They both laughed.

"Hey, Phelps, you got great timing. There's a Pam on the phone. Says you've been trying to contact her,” Jack told Lauren. He gave her a curious look, as if he wondered what she was up to.

She told him to connect the call to her desk.

Tom and Eddie entered the crummy apartment, located in a south Bronx neighborhood. The residents who hung out on the streets immediately identified them as cops.

Tom glanced at Eddie. The guy seemed to hold his own, even though he was a suburban detective. Coming to the city, and visiting the slums, wasn't exactly a daily routine for an upstate cop.

"You lost, pig?” the bum leaning against the entranceway said, as they approached.

"Take a walk.” Tom gave the bum an evil look, as he placed his hand on his revolver.

The bum put his hands in the air, then quickly vanished from the doorway.

"Nice neighborhood. I wonder what Silver's ex-roommate is going to look like?” Eddie said, sarcastically. Tom nodded, as if he wondered the same thing.

"This is a pretty shitty apartment building. The guy said he works at a club, near the Village. I heard of the place. It's known for supplying just about anything you're into,” Tom told him, as they made their way up the stairs.

Eddie obviously understood what Tom was talking about, and hoped the old roommate gave them some useful information.

They made it to the third floor, dodging garbage and massive rats along the way.

They were shocked, when the guy's door opened. The ex-roommate was well groomed, handsome, and dressed rather nicely. His whole apartment was immaculate, everything in order, and it didn't fit in with the rest of the complex, or the neighborhood.

"Detectives, please come in.” He acted suave, and rather fake, as if he were playing some kind of role in a play.

"It's Lieutenant McNulty and Lieutenant Tennellie,” McNulty said, emphasizing the ‘Lieutenant’ part. The guy seemed to get the message, and placed his hand over his heart.

Tom noted it was a rather feminine move, and he waited to determine if the ex-roommate was gay.

"Nice place you got here, Brady. Doesn't quite fit in the neighborhood,” McNulty said, as he moved around the apartment, looking for more signs that the kid was gay.

"Yeah, well, I still don't make enough to move uptown, or closer to the Village yet. Hopefully, in the next six months or so, that'll change. My roommate I had, for a few months, just left."

"Relationship troubles?” Eddie said, and McNulty smiled. He liked Eddie's line of questioning.

"How did you know? I'm not quite over him yet. He was special,” Brady said, and Eddie and Tom exchanged looks.

"We're sorry to intrude, Brady, but we were wondering if you could tell us a bit about Ben Silver? He was a roommate of yours for a while, right?"

"He sure was, until he started having a problem with me bringing guys around. The warehouse we rented together, with another guy, Ted, was huge, but Ben was big time homophobic,” Brady told him.

"Then why the hell would he move in with you guys to begin with?” Eddie said.

"It was Ted's idea, and pushing. We needed the extra roommate to help pay the rent. Ted worked with me at the club. He was such a great guy."

"Where's Ted now?” Eddie said.

"Oh, he was killed. Mugged one night, over a year ago. It was so terrible. His throat was slit with a box cutter."

Again, Tom and Eddie made eye contact. They asked Brady a few more questions about Ben, and whether he had any idea where Ben lived now. He gave the residence in Creek Valley that they already knew about.

They thanked him for his time, then headed back out to the car.

"So what do you think? Maybe Ben offed Ted because he knew something?” Eddie said.

"It's a possibility. It could be a coincidence, but as Phelps likes to say, ‘Leave nothing to coincidence.’ We'll check it out, back at the precinct,” Tom said, and they were on their way.

Lauren was still on the phone with Pam, a distant aunt of Ben Silver, when both Eddie and Tom walked into the office.

They smiled at her, then stopped to talk, over by Jack's desk.

She wrote down an address in Mount Vernon, and looked at her watch. She agreed on a time to meet, then hung up the phone.

Eddie and she made eye contact, and exchanged a smile.

"So, anything from the ex-roommate?"

Tom and Eddie began to fill her in.

"Great, another possible victim. This guy is intense. Are you running the case through the system?"

"That's what Jack is about to do, and I'm going to look into it more, as well. What about you?” Tom said.

"I just got off the phone with a distant aunt of Silver's. She lives in Mount Vernon. That's where I'm headed."

"Take Tennellie with you,” Tom said, and she shrugged her shoulders in compliance.

"That okay with you?” she asked Eddie.

"That's fine."

Eddie absorbed everything around him. He felt like he was in a different world, compared to his department. Walking down the hallway toward the elevator, he watched all the constant activity.

Lauren glanced over her shoulder, as they walked single file through the crowd, and past the elevator. She headed through the doorway, to the staircase, as other detectives and officers eyed her, then nodded in acknowledgements and hellos.

Glancing back, Eddie saw the men watching her backside, yet she didn't seem to notice, as she descended the stairs.

He felt the humidity immediately, as they made their way down the four flights of stairs. A stagnant smell consumed the whole building. It was old, and the majority of equipment in the offices upstairs was outdated. Sweat dotted his brow, and the perspiration penetrated through his dress shirt.

"Something wrong with the elevator, or is this how you workout?"

Lauren smiled, then moved closer to the wall with Eddie, as a group of higher ups made their way past them.

Not missing a beat, she tapped his arm. A signal for him to move in front of her. She spoke to him over his shoulder. “You don't want to ever take the elevator. It's slow as shit, and whether you're going up or down, in the summer months, it feels like you're headed toward purgatory."

Eddie glanced over his shoulder at her, giving her a look that said he wasn't sure if he believed her. She raised her eyebrows. A gesture that said, ‘maybe it's true, or maybe not.'

"Go try it out for yourself, if you don't believe me."

Either way, he noticed her tough demeanor, and knew he was dealing with Detective Lauren Phelps. He couldn't help but get turned on, and grow even more attracted to her, when she gave him this attitude.

Exiting the side doorway and the parking lot, the sun blared down on them. It felt as if they entered the Sahara Desert. Taking in the surroundings, he still couldn't get over the parking arrangements. Even when he was out with Tom this morning, he sat in disbelief that no one used individual spots, and basically parked door to door.

They entered the navy blue, unmarked police car. Eddie smelled the semi-fresh scent. A little Hawaiian girl, bikini and all, danced below the rearview mirror. It seemed to be the culprit of the partly pleasant scent. Although, a tinge of something foul also laced the air.