Little Detective

Chapter 1: The Heiress

"Welcome to the force, Detective Barnes," Captain Butler said as he handed me my badge.

I swiped it from his hand and stared at it. After so long of waiting for this moment, it was finally here. I was finally a detective, a homicide detective. I worked so hard to get this promotion. From the street cop I was for the past three years to studying for the tests to become a detective.

"Thank you so much, Captain!" I said breathlessly. "I won't let you down."

"I hope not, Barnes," Captain Butler said. "Now, you are going to be given a partner to show you the ropes. And also because my boss wants all detectives to work in pairs until further notice. So you're partner is going to be a veteran of the force. He's been on this force longer than you've been alive."

"Oh wow!" I said. "He can teach me so much. Can I go meet him? Can you introduce me to him, now?"

"Yeah let's go," Captain Butler said, gesturing towards the door to his office. I exited the door and waited for him to show me the way to go.

Captain Butler left his office after me and lead me over to a very tall, very muscular black man with a shaved head and a grey goatee sitting at a desk. He was reading a newspaper with a mug of coffee besides him. An empty desk sat face to face with his.

"Jones," Captain Butler called out as we approached him. The detective looked up from his paper to see the Captain. His blank face didn't change as he looked looked up at the Captain. He shut his newspaper and set it on his desk.

"Captain," Jones said as he stood up to greet the Captain. "What can I help you with?"

"I'd like you to meet your new partner, Anastasia Barnes. She's brand new to all of this. So show her the ropes. Don't run her out on the first day." Captain gestured to me as he spoke and I waved at my new partner. Jones remained neutral as he looked over at me. The Captain looked back at me and said. "That's your desk. Get yourself settled in before you get a call."

"Thanks, Cap," I said with a smile. He gave me a look that screamed, What did you just call me? I quickly recovered by asking, "Can I call you, Cap? Or I can call you sir, or Captain. I just like Cap. It's short and easy."

"You can call me Cap as long as I'm not yelling at you," Captain Butler said with a laugh. "Don't look like someone pissed in your cereal, Jones. Give the new kid a smile."

And just like that, he walked away. I turned to Jones to give him a smile but he already had the newspaper back in front of his face. I took my seat at my desk and looked around. It was bigger than the last desk I had, since my last desk was my squad car. I would need to get my pictures and décor from my locker to make the desk feel more like mine.

"Why you smilin' like that, Kid?" Jones asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, I didn't notice I was smiling," I said nervously. "I'm Anastasia Barnes. Most people call me Ana or Barnes."

I reached my hand over the desks for him to shake. Instead of taking my hand, he glanced at it with a scowl before picking up his newspaper to return to reading.

"I think I'll stick with Kid. How old are ya?" Jones asked.

"Twenty-four. I graduated the police academy three years ago, top of my class. It's always been my dream to be a detective. So I moved up the ranks as quick as possible," I explained. "And now I'm finally here. What should I call you?"

"Jones."

"What about your first name?"

"Hank, but call me Jones."