Comminication Skills

Something Else

It'd been two hours since I described the man to Nell. The face she'd come up with had been surprisingly accurate, but no match had been made yet. The forensic team looking over the barrier that trapped me had come up with nothing. They were as baffled as we were. They had reported that it came down from the top of the alley. Apparently, at a push of a button it would come down and trap whoever was inside.

Sam and Callen were investigating a lead they'd found at the SSgt's apartment. Something about a girlfriend, maybe? I hadn't really been listening when they described it.

Deeks and I were looking over the case files from the other dead Marines and Navy people that had been killed similarly. It was boring, tedious work, but this case had gone nowhere fast. Suddenly Deeks said, "Kens, I got something."

I leaned over towards him. He was sitting at Callen's desk, next to mine. He pointed to a paragraph in the file he was reading, I read it aloud.

"Corporal Jim Smith was allegedly dating Cynthia Rosen. After his death, she went off the grid. We have had no progress in tracking her down." I glanced quizzically at Deeks. "So?"

"Cynthia Rosen? The girl that Sam and Callen are going to talk to- her name is Cindy Ross. She was dating Staff Sergeant Nathan. Don't those names sound similar?" he explained.

My face lit up with understanding. "Of course!" I jumped up from my desk and ran up to Ops.

Nell and Eric were sitting beside each other at computers. "Guys, get me everything you have on Cindy Ross and Cynthia Rosen," I instructed them.

The both got to it silently. I looked up at the big screen. There were different camera angles of the street the alley was on projected up there. None of them directly showed the alley, except for one that only had a limited view of the front corner. Perfect blindspot.

"I got something," Nell said.

"What is it?" I rushed to her side and watched as she pulled up a drivers license on the big screen. It was for Cynthia Rosen. She had long, blonde hair and green eyes. She was gorgeous.

I heard Deeks whistle appreciatively behind me. "Too bad she's the only connection between to murder victims, she is-"

"Don't even go there," I interrupted.

He shut up. Good thing, too, I was ready to punch him again.

"This is Cynthia Rosen. Until six months ago, she didn't exist," Nell told us.

Eric put something up on the big screen. It was another driver's license, for Cindy Ross. She was identical to Cynthia Rosen. "She didn't exist until a year ago, and doesn't exist anymore. I found expired licenses and old credit card receipts, but nothing from after six months ago."

"Wow, she must be really dumb. Who has aliases like that? Cynthia Rosen and Cindy Ross? Seriously?" I shook my head. Amateur.

"She is a blonde," Nell said. She looked at Eric while I looked at Deeks. Both Nell and I snickered while the two boys glared at us in a you-guys-are-acting-like-kids kind of way.

"I'm gonna call Sam and see if he found Cynthia. But I kind of doubt he did." I pulled out my phone, dialing Sam's number.

He answered on the second ring. "What's up, Kensi?" he asked.

"Okay, so, Cynthia Rosen is the same person as Cindy Ross, who dated a different victim before he died. Cynthia just appeared out of thin air six months ago, right after Cindy went off the grid. Did you have any luck finding Cynthia?"

"Nope. House was empty." Sam let out a frustrated sigh. "Can you and Deeks look at the girlfriends of all the other victims?"

"On it," I said. "Talk to you in a bit."