The Rubys

8| t o x i n

Saturday | 2:00 p.m

Detective Tristan Rodriguez was at his desk, just finishing the report for his previous case. The old clock ticking sluggishly on the pale off-white wall read two in the afternoon, the incessant ticktocks lost among the shuffling of paper and the bustling of the crowded office.

The whole Saturday morning had been a hectic and the detective's body yearned for a much needed sleep. He hadn't had a good sleep for nearly a week due to his last case, but it had wrapped up well. The murderer had been arrested and the victim, an aspiring young lawyer fresh out of university, could now rest in peace after his brutal death. All Tristan wanted to do now was to return to his cozy small apartment and not leave his bed for a few days, but that was just wishful thinking, especially with a new case, a high profile one to be exact, shoved up to his already piled up workload.

Tristan leaned his head on the headrest of his leather chair, and closed his eyes, hoping to get at least five minutes of sleep. It wasn't even two minutes in when he was disturbed by a light knock on his wooden desk, hauling him out of his slumber.

Suppressing a groan, he opened his eyes to see his partner, Bethany Morales, standing with a cup of coffee in her hand, a small smile gracing her lips. "I thought you would need some caffeine in your system."

Despite the annoyance, Tristan thanked her with a crack of a smile and took the paper cup politely. Bethany leaned against the desk and peered at the report he had just finished earlier.

One glance at her and no one would guessed that she was a detective. With dirty blond hair that was cut to a short bob and a petite body build, anyone would think she was just a typical woman who could blend easily into a crowd. But Tristan knew better than to underestimate Beth. She had a fist of an iron and a heart tougher than most detectives here in their department. She was assigned to him since she joined the homicide crew and they had made a good team. He had found both a friend and an older sister in her.

"Now that we have wrapped up the Cunningham murder case, what do you think of our new high profile one?" Beth asked curiously. She was both frustrated and happy that they were assigned to an important case that would no doubt attract lots of media coverage.

The hot bitter coffee burned down Tristan's throat. He thought back to what Vivian Alastair, the lady he met back at the mansion, said and an uneasy feeling settled at the pit of his gut. The images of damp red hair and pale skin flashed past his eyes. "I doubt it's suicide. But all we can do right now is wait for the autopsy results."

Beth nodded in agreement. She opened her mouth to comment when the office phone on his desk started ringing, interrupting her. Tristan answered it and immediately, there was an apparent change in his demeanor, especially in the way the drowsiness vanished to reveal a dark glint in his eyes. Beth had always noticed that Tristan's onyx eyes blaze with a certain fire - a fire that could never be extinguished - but right now, they burned to reflect the energy tingling in his body. Ending the call, he looked back at his partner, his dark eyes blazing with excitement.

"The autopsy results are in."