Dammit!” Jason exclaimed as he stomped out Cara Montgomery’s front door. He had made a point of warning Jessie to keep out of the investigation, and she’d gone ahead and poked her nose into it anyway. God, he hated reporters! What kind of woman used her own father’s murder for a story?“It could’ve been worse,” said Dillon, interrupting his inner tirade. Intelligent and wiry as a coat-hanger, he had been Jason’s partner from the time he joined the VSP four years ago.Jason glared at the smaller man. “How?” he demanded.“Well, she is a school teacher. She could’ve sent you to the principal’s office.”Jason ignored his partner’s lame attempt at humor, his brain throbbing with questions. How the hell had Jessie learned about her father’s girlfriend? She had probably lied about searching the house before the police arrived &ndas

I really did have research to do. In examining the governor’s history, I realized he would have gotten away with his crimes if it hadn’t been for a man named Bronson Elroy. Elroy, strangely enough, was the current favorite in the upcoming election for lieutenant governor. Fourteen years ago, he had been working for Virginia Aeronautics, one of the companies with whom the governor had been making illegal deals. He had discovered the corruption and gone to the authorities. Thus, the whole web of lies was swept out from the corners and into the light. He was hailed as a hero and had parlayed his brief time in the spotlight into a political career of his own.I wanted to spend some time studying both the company and Elroy’s life in the years immediately following his departure before I paid him a visit. Sick of staring at my own four walls, I decided to spend some time at the park, where I was always able to “borrow” someone’s Wi-F

Jason stopped in front of the glass door proclaiming the building to be the “Office of the Chief Medical Examiner”. He always needed a moment to prepare before entering this house of the dead. He thought about Jessie and how she had hesitated just a moment before walking past the parlor where her murdered father lay. Had she needed to prepare herself to face death in general, just as he did now, or had it been something more? Had she been preparing herself to face the lifeless shell of the man who had given her life?Dillon reached around him and pushed open the door, apparently not as affected by what went on behind it. Grimacing, Jason stepped inside. The smells hit him immediately – formalin, bleach, antiseptic – smells he associated with death.“You coming?” Dillon called over his shoulder.“Yeah, I’m coming,” he said, following his partner down the long empty hallway. Thankfu

What now?” a churlish voice snapped in my ear, which was pressed against my cellphone.“Geez, Gail. What bug flew up your ass?”“I was right in the middle of flinging a hibiscus at a werewolf.”“You were what?” I couldn’t imagine anyone getting the drop on Gail, but someone must’ve kicked hard enough to damage that stone head of hers.“Flowers and Monsters,” she said, as if that would explain everything.“Why don’t you go lie down for a little bit,” I suggested, now truly concerned. “I’ll call again when you’re feeling better.”“It’s a video game, stupid,” she said, “and I was going in for the kill.”“With hibiscus?”“Werewolves hate hibiscus.”“I’ll take your word for it,&r

Hello officers,” Elroy said with an expansive smile as he ushered Jason and Dillon into his office.“Detectives,” Jason corrected with an edge to his voice. He knew his dislike for the smug bastard was evident, but didn’t really care. He pushed his way past the man, leaving Dillon to follow behind. Elroy, however, gave no indication that he had picked up on the disdain that oozed from Jason’s, thick as molasses.“Please, have a seat,” Elroy said, and damned if the man wasn’t preening at the attention. “I assume this is about that reporter who persecuted me yesterday.”“Persecuted?” Jason echoed. “That’s a rather strong word, don’t you think?”“Not under the circumstances,” he said. “She was wantonly disrespectful.”“Wantonly,” Jason said. “Another interesting word choi