Tares City

3. TCPD's Finest

"Wilson. What in God's name is the matter with you?!" he growls.

"I think you broke my nose." The man on the floor cries.

He glares at his partner, who's still holding his nose and whining as the adrenaline continues to pump through his veins. 'Well this isn't how I planned to start my day,' he thinks to himself as he stares angrily at the immature twenty-eight-year-old. Shaking his head, he crosses over his friend who's now curled up in the fetal position on his bedroom floor, still muttering complaints. It was at that moment, that he once again regretted giving his partner the spare keys to his house. Calvin Wilson, or Wilson as Dean had become accustomed to calling him, had been his partner for the past four years. At first, he'd hated the juvenile rookie, but he'd quickly proven to be a great partner and an even better friend. Although he remained extremely childish and annoying, he was great at his job. He had an eye for detail and his out-of-the-box thinking led the duo to close some of their more bizarre cases in record time. Calvin Wilson also managed to save Dean's life twice since the two became partners. A fact the detective liked to remind Dean of every so often. Besides being his partner in their work-life, Calvin had become a part of Dean's home life as well.

Sighing, Dean checks the time on his phone and makes his way to the bathroom. "When I get out of the shower, Calvin, you better have a reasonable excuse for why you're in my house trying to get yourself killed," He says as he walks out the door without giving Calvin another glance. After getting dressed, Dean heads downstairs into his kitchen. He finds Calvin at the counter pouring coffee into his travel mug with two slices of French toast on the side. With a hidden smile, he walks up to him and grabs a slice of toast. "This is why I keep you, around man," He said to his partner while gesturing at the toast and coffee.

"Or is it the fact that I'm your only friend?" Calvin replies in a teasing tone earning himself an eye roll. Before Dean could respond, both their phones chime, alerting them to a new notification.

"We have a case. They found a body."

"Let's go."

~

Dean and Calvin wordlessly step out of the car and head towards the crime scene ahead of them. They flash their badges to the officer before ducking under the police tape and approaching the cop in uniform.

"Dean, Calvin. Morning" their colleague, police officer Joe, greets them.

"Morning Joe, what we got?" Calvin inquires gesturing to the scene.

"Jane Doe. The body was found by Jade Summers and her boyfriend Christian Edwards at around twelve last night. However, she only just called it in. Apparently, the boyfriend was buying drugs and didn't want to explain why they were in the alley. He took her phone, she broke up with him and made the call when she reached her parents' house. Still trying to get an ID on her." Joe rattles on as they walk to the body.

"What can you tell us, Roger?" Dean asks the medical examiner hovering over the body when they arrive at his side.

"Well, she'd obviously been in some type of altercation," the examiner begins. "Can't tell you the actual cause of death until I do the autopsy. None of these wounds appear to be fatal. I see many defensive wounds, got blood and skin under her fingernails. I'd say she put up one hell of a fight. Maybe internal bleeding."

"There's nothing around here that suggests a struggle. You think the body was dumped here?" Calvin pipes in as he crouched down to look at the body.

"No, actually," the medical examiner replies, "It looks like she collapsed at this spot."

Dean and Calvin ask Roger a couple more questions before they begin examining the scene. They both turn in different directions, surveying the ground for any evidence. As he walks about the crime scene, the glint of an object catches Dean's attention. He squats down to investigate, immediately recognizing the gadget that caught his eye. Acting as if he was still searching the area, Dean discreetly grabs the item, placing it in his pocket as he stands up. He walks over to Calvin, "Anything out of the ordinary?" he asks conversationally.