Tuesday Tales From the Word PUSH

Wow! December 1^st! What a year this has been! Here’s hoping this finds you well and holding your own against the pandemic.

Tuesday Tales is a weekly blog that invites you into the writing process of several gifted authors. It’s a real pleasure to be part of this group. Today’s 400 word post goes with the word PUSH. I’m continuing with The White Dahlia.

The best time to drive in New York City was in the early morning, before the roads filled with commuters eager to get to work. Soon the Lincoln Tunnel and the various bridges into Manhattan would be bumper to bumper. If the car was air conditioned, the driver might just hang onto his or her cool; if it wasn’t, then look out. Road rage would be alive and well in the Big Apple.

Pulling into the precincts underground parking, Beth put the car in the first empty space she found and handed the keys to the officer on duty.

“I suggest you have it thoroughly cleaned inside. I’ve been too close to a rotting cadaver.”

The man made a face, implying the car wasn’t the only thing that stunk.

“Understood, Sergeant,” he said. “That aroma tends to hang around for a while. Saw a corpse flower in bloom once. Enough said.”

Beth nodded, stepped into the waiting elevator, and pushed the floor indicator. As soon as the doors opened, she hurried to the ladies’ locker room and showered, lathering her hair and her body three times until she was sure the stench had been washed away. She brushed her teeth and rinsed her mouth with most of the tiny bottle of mouthwash she kept in her locker.

Twenty minutes later, wet hair slicked back and tied with an elastic, dressed in clean undergarments and the track suit and runners she kept in her locker for emergencies, her clothing and heels stuffed into a large plastic bag, Beth took the elevator up to her floor. The bullpen was deserted—had none of the others made it back yet? Stopping to grab a bottle of water from the fridge in the breakroom, she half-emptied it in one gulp before heading into the office she shared with Harris and booted up her laptop.

As concisely and accurately as she could, she filled out the incident report, describing the crime scene and adding a note about Big-mouth Carmichael and Jack Ogden, praying he’d missed his deadline. Finished, she sent a copy to Lieutenant Harris, recommending that Major Crimes take over the investigation, citing the potential for this to be only one in a series of deaths. She also stressed the links she’d found between Rachel and Rebecca. Was that poor girl number five?

That’s it. Stay safe and don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.