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The beauty of being short was that guys didn’t usually noticetheard never changed unless they saw me handle Still, apart from Chance, I tended to attract Lone Gun different about me, more than the retrofunky exterior, and if I per quest to prove the existence of the paranormal

The joke was on them; I was the paranormal

I concluded ue, I thought with ashayou like?" His sured he’d be talking with Chance for at least five ot around to " I shovedabout a purchase down the line?"

Despite feeling like an ass, I grinned "Now, that’d be illegal, unless ere in the zona, wouldn’t it? Otherwise I’d ask for rates"

He extended a hand "Jesse Saldana I’ator with the Capers unit"

I was faainst Persons unit, whose purview ranged fro persons "Corine Solo it out for him C-O-R-I-N-E, rhymes with Doreen You want to write it down? And here’s my cell number

That would never happen, of course I lacked the chutzpah to pull off such a maneuver Plus, I was pretty sure it would be bad forht in front of ave hiht hand We shook; I felt an odd shock, as if we’d sparked static off each other I alo I still don’t like touching strangers Though I know it doesn’t work that way, I can’t quite ridpeople like I do objects, and I can’t i more objectionable or invasive

Chance stepped in then "You said we could look at my mother’s purse?"

Nobody else would’ve noticed, but hiselse, I’d succeeded in pissing hiood detective didn’t see

"Well," Saldana said "Let’s take a walk to my office and talk about that"

Uh-oh That sounded like ere about to get played Chance didn’t look happy

He led us down a long hallway painted in the bile green reserved for governh, as the whole building looked pretty new Saldana shared an office with another investigator, it seemed At least there was another desk, laden with euy wasn’t around After he shut the door, he invited us to sit, which we did, and offered us coffee, which we declined I felt vaguely disappointed because I hadn’t seen a single doughnut box What a gyp

"Here’s the thing," he began, and I felt Chance tense besidefor forensic evidence, and afterward, my lieutenant will kick my ass if I let you couess, when they talked on the phone No surprise there; nobody in authority ever wants me to handle

I forestalled Chance’s eruption "Where did you find it?"

Saldana s to be reasonable Man, he was cute "Behind souard saw it and called it in" Over a lost purse? I don’t think so He hesitated, eyes on Chance "There was so to see what the lab turns up"

The silence hurt me because I kne Chance must feel, and I didn’t want to be here with him Not now

Finally he said, "She’s A-positive St Joseph’s in Tao They should have her file" It was just so to fill the silence while we all thought about a delicate Korean woman beaten until her blood stained a ce to pour hi to do with his hands So he doctored it with powdered creaht like uy had to be ready to evict us from his office, but he radiated unruffled patience I illing to bet he was the good cop, every ti dude with a buzz cut and a bad attitude

"How long will the purse be at the lab?" Chance’s fingers curled around the metal arms of his chair, and I half expected to see it ers, but his knuckles just turned white

"A couple of days, ator answered in a neutral tone

I’m sure Saldana knee didn’t mean to take no for an answer; he just wanted his ass covered ent behind his back