The Wicked Ones

2. How to get away with murdering your colleague

Asterin Black pinched the bridge of her nose. It was the only thing she could do to avoid murdering her colleague right here and there. On the seat across from her, Thornhood kept blabbering about how she never would have solved her latest case without his help because he was such a genius.

"Will you ever stop talking ? I cannot concentrate with your incessant jabbering !" she finally snapped after a particularly irritating remark.

Alexander stared at her before he started smirking. "The great and mighty Black distracted ! My my, what a sight I must be."

Oh, how she loathed that smirk, she wanted to wack it straight off his face. Instead she forced herself to continue typing.

Asterin sighed. The case had been quite a fuss and because of that, she taken multiple night shifts to get it over with and was now completely exhausted. Over the edge of her computer, she could see Thronhood still starting at her. "What do you want." she asked dryly, her words more a demand than a question.

"I could finish the report you know. And you could get some coffee, or fix the horror show that is your face."

"And let you turn it in to the captain by yourself, pretending you did everything ? I think not. I am still three solved cases ahead of you, and I intend to keep it that way."

Alexander's smirk widen and his steely grey eyes gleamed with mischief. Despite their cold colour, there was always a spark bringing them alight.

"I helped on the last two including this one, and my cases are bigger so I believe it evens it out."

Asterin snickered. "Most certainly not. I always figure it out before you. And besides, I did the arrests so they are mine."

He hummed before glancing back to the file in front of him, flipping the pages like he was reading a magazine instead of the autopsy of a murdered person.

"What did we say the winner's prize was ?"

"The detective chief inspector promotion, I believe." Asterin replied coolly without looking up from her screen.

Both of them had been wrestling for the job for months and Asterin had no intention whatsoever of losing.

Thornhood looked back up as he turned a page.

"You and I both know that neither of us will abandon the pursue of it no matter the outcome of the bet. Besides, I am sure that we hadn't agreed on a prize, you just invented that."

"Well I suppose it was worth a shot. What do you propose ?"

"You could buy me the same gloves as you, we'd match." he chuckled, passing a hand through his dark hair.

Asterin glared at him. She hated when people commented on the black gloves she always wore to avoid any contact with germs. When Alexander raised his hands in mock surrender Asterin finally focused back on her screen. She was nearly done. "Fine, the winner can decide when he wins."

"When she wins." Asterin corrected and in the corner of her eye she could see him observing her, smiling.

"Maybe she. Probably he. We'll see how it goes." Alexander said leaning back in his chair at the same time as she got up. "Done already ?"

"Some of us happen to work. Efficiently." Asterin uttered sharply while glancing at her watch. She had just the time to deliver her report before meeting Lis for lunch. Without sparing Thornhood another glance she strode towards the exit. "Don't forget to pass by if you need any help or simply want to enjoy the pleasure of my company, Tessi darling."