Justice Served

Chapter 2

The ringtone from her phone broke the silence of that dark night. Therewas something different about this night. Although it was very much the sameas the others, starry and black. That night had once been horrifying to her.Every year that night reminded her of her past which she tried so hard to forget.It was 30th of December. 

"Hello?""Agent Benson? There has been a homicide." A manly voice spoke from the otherside of the line. 

"Okay.........and why are you telling me this?" 

"Because you will be investigating it," the man ordered. 

"It is nearly four in the morning." She said in a state of agony. 

"Criminals don‟t have a particular time to commit felony, Benson." 

"You are absolutely correct, sir." 

"The hell I‟m correct. I‟m your boss. I‟m supposed to be correct." 

"Yes sir. On my way." 

 In no more than fifteen minutes Charlotte Benson was ready and in herChevrolet suburban making her way to Woodley road, northwest. CharlotteBenson was an FBI agent in her late-twenties who did her job with heart andsoul but just to do the right thing. She was 5‟6, approximately weighing 150 pounds, had a pinkish-white complexion, shining dark brown hair and brightgrey eyes that were full of hope. She could easily have been an upcoming starletif she had not joined the federal bureau of investigation. Although she was bestat what she did, she had no interest in poking around other people‟s lives,especially dead people‟s lives. 

"Good morning, Benson." The medical examiner and Charlotte‟s friend, NatashaSpringfield, greeted her. 

Natasha was a couple inches shorter than Charlotteand some pounds heavier. She had dark hair, jet black eyes and a complexionthat was just a bit darker than Charlotte‟s. She was in her early-thirties.Natasha was someone Charlotte could rely on in the worst of times. She had abig role in helping Charlotte find peace within herself, although the guilt wasstill there in large proportions. 

"Good? Speak for yourself, Nat. It doesn‟t seem so good to me." 

"Oh come on, Charlotte. Cheer up a little. Look, we have a dead body to playwith." 

"Nat..." Charlotte began, looking for the right words,"......how am I supposedto cheer up with such a bad joke. And you know I don‟t like the dead peoplevery much." 

"Hey! At least I still have some humor left in me. Unlike "somebody" I try toremain calm and happy. Do you know how much courage it takes me to workwith these things?" 

"I wasn‟t the one who put you through this." 

"No, Charlotte, you didn‟t. I challenged myself with it. And at least I can carrymy own baggage. I don‟t regret things I can‟t change. I really don‟t know whyyou have this job. No one has stopped you. You are free to leave." 

"I don‟t want to leave, ok? I just want this guiltiness to stop haunting me." Charlotte was rather angry with herself than anyone else.

"You know what your real problem is? You didn‟t let go of what happened. Youhave to let past stay in the past and not let it destroy your present and yourfuture." 

"I hate to break it to you girls but we have an investigation to conduct." A talland broad man in business suit and an overcoat crossed the yellow crime scenetape with a coffee cup in his hand. 

"Excuse me? Where the hell do you think you‟re going?" Benson questioned theman who she thought to be an intruder. 

"Benson, this is special agent Nicolas Moreau. He has been transferred from theNew Jersey field office. From now on he will be your partner." The specialagent-in-charge, William McCormack, a tall black man in his early fifties,introduced the man proudly.McCormack turned to address Moreau. 

"Agent Moreau, it‟s our great pleasureto have you work with us. Benson is the best at what she does and I hope thatthe two of you, together with your team, make this department proud." 

"I‟ll keep that in mind, sir." Turning to Charlotte, Moreau spoke with a broadsmile. "Shall we?" 

"Shall we‟ what?" 

"Shall we continue with the case?" 

"Oh yes. Sure." 

 Nicolas Moreau was a handsome young agent, couple of years older thanCharlotte. He was fair, 6‟2, weighed 220 pounds but was in good shape. He hadblue hazel eyes, dark hair and a look that said "Don‟t mess with him or you‟llregret it". Most of them did regret when they didn‟t listen to their instincts. Hewas not a by-the-book agent. Moreau was well-known for going out of the wayto solve cases. He had left no case unsolved to date. However, Charlotte wasirritated by his presence.Natasha went on to explain how the victim died. 

"Her throat was slit with asharp bladed knife. The killer wanted it to be instant death." 

"But the duct tape residue says otherwise", Nicolas showed the team the markson the victim‟s face. 

"It shows that she was either kidnapped or interrogated. Either way she wasnot murdered here." 

"Do we have information of her identity?" Charlotte questioned. 

"She was an FBI informant. That is the reason we were called in," Alex Cooper,Charlotte‟s teammate jumped in. 

"Anyway, find the crime scene ASAP. Search her apartment and find what shewas working on. Canvas the area, see if anyone knows something or sawanything strange last night." 

 It was almost dawn when the body was being taken to the morgue forforensics after analysis of the surroundings of the body. As the day came to life,Charlotte showed Nicolas his new office in the FBI headquarters. When thetour came to an end, Cooper, holding three cups of coffee in one hand and abunch of files in the other, came in the conference room. 

"Found our girl‟s identity." Cooper addressed Charlotte, handing her the victim‟sfile. Charlotte studied the file carefully and read the highlighted details outloud. 

"Samara Smith, age 35, clean record with some parking tickets, worked asa realtor, was working as a confidential informant on a mortgage fraud case atthe time of murder. The late Mrs. Smith was a widow with no kids." There weresome pictures of her with her husband and their house. While the trio wasstudying the victim‟s file, George Murphy, another one of Charlotte‟s teammate,came in with new information. 

"We found the crime scene." 

"Then what are we waiting for? Let‟s go."