The glass doors of the three-story building burst open. They were heavy and old, but very nicely maintained, Samantha thought. On the ground floor, police officers from various departments were moving about. Each of them was absorbed in files or phone calls. They didn't have a chance to notice the short brunette who had just entered the building.
Samantha searched Jim Johnson's office. His name and title were written on the wall by the dark door. Samantha took a deep breath and knocked.
"Come in," a deep voice invited her in. She entered and closed the door behind her. "Samantha Green, am I right?" he asked rhetorically. "Jim Johnson," he introduced himself. Samantha held out her hand, Jim took it and gave it a firm squeeze. Samantha returned the firm squeeze, but her tiny hand was lost in his huge palm.
"Margaret has already told me all about you," he didn't let her finish, "since we have a case going on right now, I don't have time to test and vet you. You're going to go work with us and join my team in this investigation. If everything goes smoothly, we will be happy to welcome you as a new colleague. However, you must adapt quickly in order for us to function smoothly." Samantha was so surprised that she couldn't manage to say more than 'I understand'.
It went better than she expected, but she was worried about the effect the tall dark-haired man had on her. He inspired respect in her, she couldn't get a comprehensible sentence out of herself. She silently followed him to the meeting room on the second floor.
Jim opened the door leading to a room with a high ceiling. The east wall was covered by tall windows, which were covered by a heavy curtain. On the back wall was a projector and white board, and next to it was a magnetic board with attached photos. There was a long table in the middle, chairs spread around it. People were already sitting on five of them.
"This is Samantha Green, she's going to be working with us on this case," Jim introduced her to the others. She could feel their eyes on her, looking her over from her feet to the top of her head. She looked young, inexperienced, she knew it. She rubbed the bandage on her wrist and returned a searching look.
"Stephan Gregor," Jim pointed to the man sitting on the left side of the desk, "our most experienced colleague, he has been working in this department for 18 years." The man proudly balanced himself on the chair, he was short and a little self-conscious but had a certain charm of an experienced man. His dark hair was streaked with gray, and his darkened eyes suggested a silent protest against Samantha.
"Katy Storm," Jim continued without interruption, "does public relations." The women looked at each other. They were the exact opposite of each other. While Katy was a tall blonde with beautiful green eyes and a big smile, Samantha was short, brown haired with dark blue eyes and an absent expression.
"Chase Michelson," he glanced to the right side of the table, "a psychologist, provides analysis of the perpetrator and provides emotional support when interviewing those who are involved. The young man smiled and winked at Samantha. His half-length brown hair fell to his shoulders, matching his pale brown eyes very well.
"Mark Tensohn," he introduced the last man to her, "a special agent, experienced in the field and with knowledge of explosives." The man with a darker complexion and charmingly white teeth looked up from the papers on the table and nodded to her in welcome.
"I have to mention our talented data analyst and IT specialist, Amy Lenart," Jim finished his introduction, pointing to a black-haired, plumper woman sitting at a laptop.
"That's all we have for now, let's get down to business. I've printed out the circumstances of the case so far," he handed each of them a bundle of papers. "Study it and start your search, consult with me about everything as usual. Stephan and Katy go to pathology, I've moved them to examine the victim's body as soon as possible. Chase , you are going to help Amy go through all of our victim's phone calls, emails, and social media, look for a potential perpetrator. Mark and Samantha, you go back to the apartment complex and interview the neighbors, Mr. Cooper has already sent us a list of residents," he gave them the list and that was the end of it for him.
Samantha looked at the partner Jim had assigned. Their eyes met. He smiled at her and motioned, "Let's go."
The others also stood up from their chairs and without a word everyone went their separate ways. They took Samantha for granted and didn't deal with her anymore.
Jim Johnson returned to his office, he still had to finish the reports from the two previous cases. He tried to relieve his people of paperwork as much as possible. They had enough work without it.
AUTHOR: Did you imagine the characters as I described them or did you expect a completely different description? Let me know how they would look in your imagination... Which of them is your favorite so far?
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NIGHT STRANGLER
Mystery / ThrillerA young woman was murdered in her apartment at night. The best search team 'ALPHA' was called to investigate the case. However, without member Stacey, they can't keep up like before. Therefore, they are joined by Samantha, who also lost her entire t...
