Heartless Love

Chapter Two

A sharp, yet heavy exhale escaped Tamara's mouth as she sets down the last box of crime scene evidence. "What's with the panting Lewis?", Bryce asks, as he rests a hip against the table, "You been slacking on the gym?" "No, I'm just huffing at your presents...partner," Tamara replies with a smirk. Bryce just shakes his head as he laughs lightly. Tamara takes a seat at the table and begins to empty out the contents of the first box, which is labeled as Victim #1: Items. She begins to rattle off each item as she sets them down onto the table in front of her, "Shirt, pants, buckle, socks, coat...coat?" Bryce raises an eyebrow at the sudden change of her tone. "Something wrong?", he asks. Tamara looks up from the clothes and responds, "With how hot and humid it's been, don't you find it odd that someone would be having a coat anywhere near them? Much less a wool coat." "Rich people. You know they're weird," Bryce says as he continues to pull items out of the box. "Ah, now this...this is interesting," Bryce announces as he pulls out a flask. Tamara takes one look at the flask, before rushing over to one of the other boxes, which is labeled Victim #1: Reports and Statements. She takes out one of the coroner's reports. After flipping through a few pages, she reaches the autopsy report page. Her eyes dart to the section titled Cause of Death. "I knew it," she says to herself, and catches Bryce's attention again. He again laughs slightly and states, "Cause of death, arsenic poisoning. And before you say that the arsenic was placed in this flask, I must tell you that it's already been tested and is negative for any remnants of arsenic. Furthermore, yes, all three of the victims have been poisoned with arsenic. That would probably also explain why Barlow was wearing coat—a side effect of arsenic poisoning is chills." Tamara throws her head back, before bringing it back down and staring at Bryce. "Well thanks a lot Sherlock. If you knew all this already, then why did you say it was interesting?," she asks sarcastically. "I mean look at it, it's not your average flask," Bryce replies. "Well, is there anything or anyone that could help us find out how the arsenic got into their system?" Tamara asks impatiently. Bryce shrugs his shoulders and goes back to emptying the box of items. "Well then, we've got some digging to do...partner," Tamara says calmly.

"105 Pine Oak Road," Tamara tells Bryce as they enter one of the station's cars. As they buckle up, Bryce asks, "And we are going to visit this woman because?" Tamara turns to him with a serious look and replies, "For the last time, she is the ex-wife of our first victim and the last person to speak to him over the phone. We need to find out what they talked about." Bryce's eyebrows furrow as he questions her statement, "She already made a personal statement stating that they were arguing about missed alimony payments." "Think about it, if you knew were about to be murdered, would you call your ex to talk about alimony?" "What if he didn't know?", Bryce questions in return. Tamara looks back to the windshield and states, "That's what we are going to find out." With that, Bryce puts the car in drive, and heads off.

"I've got this covered," Bryce states confidently as he and Tamara arrive at the address. Tamara twitches her eyebrows as she guides her hand towards the house. Once they are on the porch, Bryce knocks sharply two times on the door. The action reminds Tamara of Detective Hayes and his odd need to have everything be done or organized evenly. "Why do you think Detective Hayes always wants us to knock an even number of times on his door?", she asks Bryce without thinking too much about it. "He's OCD I suppose. Why do you ask?", Bryce inquires. Before Tamara can reply, the door cracks open enough for Tamara and Bryce to see half of a lady's face. Despite the record showing she is only thirty, her baggy eyes and wrinkled skin visually places her more in the age range of a sixty year old. Tamara gathers it is due to smoking, since the smell of burn cocaine leaves rushes through her nose the minute the door was opened. Bryce tilts his head slightly in order to see the her better. "Ms. Barlowe?", he says with an inquisitive tone. The woman scans him before replying gruffly, "Who wants to know?" Bryce straightens his stance and answers, "I'm Detective Gates from the NYPD, and this is my partner, Detective Lewis." The woman quickly looks over Tamara, before focusing her gaze back on Bryce. "I've already spoken with the police and told them all I know," she states. As she begins closing the door, Tamara places her palm on it and pushes to keep the door open. "We believe you still have more information. Now, if you don't want to be accused of withholding information, or even worse, possessing and consuming cocaine, then I suggest you let us in," Tamara says in a calm, yet firm tone. With gruff exhalation, Ms. Barlowe opens the door fully. The smell fills Tamara's nostrils even more, and she quickly scrunches her nose to keep from coughing. They walk through the small home and enter the tiny living room. "Take a seat," Ms. Barlowe says as she lights a cigarette. Once seated, Bryce begins to speak, "So, Ms. Barlowe..." She cuts him off and says, "Call me Rose. I'm sick and tired of hearing that old buzzard's name." Bryce quickly looks over at Tamara, before clearing his throat and continuing, "Rose. As you know, you where the last known person to speak to Mr. Barlowe. Do you remember what you two were talking about?" Ms. Barlowe huffs out a cloud of smoke and replies, "Alimony payments. As I said before, we were arguing about late alimony payments." "This is your final warning Ms. Barlowe. We know you didn't talk about alimony payments, because Mr. Barlowe is the one who made the call to you. I highly doubt that he would call to talk about such a matter if he were about to be killed. So, tell us the truth, or I will get a warrant for your arrest," Tamara states coldly. Ms. Barlowe's lips purse, and she taps her fingers on the armrest of her couch. "Frank was never good with money. That's probably the reason why he was always late to make the alimony payments in the first place. That day, he called to tell me that he had gotten into some trouble. Apparently, it was big trouble considering the fact that he died shortly after," she says, as her eyes drift to the window in remembrance. "Do you have any idea who might have wanted to kill him?", Bryce asks. Ms. Barlowe shakes her head as she replies, "Even when we were married, he was always very secretive about his work. As long as he kept on putting food on the table, I didn't ask questions." Suddenly, Tamara remembers something, "Do you remember if Mr. Barlowe had any tattoos? More specifically, any on his neck?" Ms. Barlowe thinks deeply for a moment, before shaking her head. The anticipation that was running through Tamara fades away as she hears the response. "Now if you two don't mind, I have to go and pick up my son from school," Ms. Barlowe says bluntly. As she and Bryce stand up, Tamara hands Ms. Barlowe her business card and says, "If you think of anything more, please don't hesitate to call me."

"Well, that went well," Bryce states sarcastically. Tamara side-eyes him as she replies, "We got the information we needed." "Just...loosen up sometimes Lewis. We only live once," Bryce says in a tone that suggests he is not joking. He then, pulls out of the driveway and heads back to the station.