Forbidden (JAY HALSTEAD)

Partner

My first case is going to be hard. It always is anytime there is a child involved. The kid was only six years old.

Michael Smith was found dead in his room at 8 a.m this morning by his mother, Jeannie Smith.

Something feels off about the case but I'm not sure what. As I scope out Michaels bedroom, I see no sign of struggle. The room is neat. There is no mess, not even his toys are out of place. His bed shows he didn't sleep in it which raises many questions. It doesn't seem as if anyone forced their way into this room by any means. The entire thing seems odd.

Michael's body was found laid out on the floor on his back, his hands tucked to his side. There was bruising around his neck that indicates he was strangled.

Ruzek and Burgess are downstairs talking to the parents and Michael's older brother, Will.

"Doesn't seem like we have much to go on here" My new partner, Jay, whispers to me. I look at him and nod in agreement.

"Seems strange if you ask me" I say to him. "Did the father not check on his kid before he went to work this morning?" I ask. Jay shakes his head.

"I'm not sure. Something isn't right" Jay states. We both spend a couple more minutes in Michael's room to make sure we cover everything and don't miss a single detail.

We come up with nothing which is frustrating.

"What the hell happened here?" I ask no one in particular. Mostly speaking my thoughts. Jay sighs and continues to look around the bedroom.

"We're definitely missing something here and we need to determine what."

*

The team and I are all sitting at our desks, looking over all the photos and going over every detail over and over but we keep ending up right where we started.

"The father claims he left for work around 6:30 a.m. Came straight home when he got the call from his wife" Alvin blurts out.

"He didn't check on either one of his sons before he left?" I ask. Al rubs his chin and shakes his head. That fact alone seems weird to me.

"Time of death was around 11 p.m last night. Michael had been dead for roughly 9 hours. The parents didn't hear anything strange neither did the brother" Atwater says.

"Ayla and I didn't notice any sign of forced entry. Everything was spot clean in Michael's room" Jay slams his hands on his desk. "None of this makes sense. What the hell are we looking at here?"

Hank clears his throat. "This kid was killed. Strangled in his own home last night and nobody in that house heard anything?"

"We also spoke to some of the neighbors and they didn't hear or see anything strange last night" Burgess says, referring to her and Ruzek. Ruzek nods his head, his eyes staring into space lost in deep concentration.

"None of this sits right with me" Hank tucks his hands into the front pocket of his jeans. "How is a six year old strangled in his own home and nobody hears a damn thing!?" His voice slightly rises.

A dark idea crosses my mind. What if the offender lives under the same roof and they're making it seem like they found Michael this morning?

"We need to go back and talk to the family again. I have a bad feeling one of them is hiding something" I say.

"You think it was someone in the family and they're trying to make it seem like someone broke into their home and strangled their son?" Ruzek looks to me. "Because I'm thinking the same thing. Hell, I think we all are" he shrugs. "It's the only thing that make sense, we just got to prove it."

"We have to rule out every possibility. Ayla and Jay head back and talk to the Smiths. Al and I need to take care of something, you guys continue to work and let's solve this" Hank looks around to all of us with determination on his face. "We will find out who did this to Michael."

Jay and I look at each other.
"Let's go, partner" Jay says, a shy smile on his lips.