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“Ah, here’s Finestein Be nice,” Morse murmured to Eve

“What am I?”

“An ass-kicker,” Morse said pleasantly and laid a friendly hand on her shoulder “Herbert, Lieutenant Dallas would like an update on the DOS I assigned to you this afternoon”

“Yes, the Dead on-Scene Quiulation by hanging” Finestein, a skinny mixed race with black skin and pale eyes, spoke in quick, piping tones and fiddled nervously with a small forest of pencils tucked in a breast pocket protector

Not only a rookie, Eve thought with frustration, a nerd rookie

“Did you want to review the body?”

“I’an, then relented with a quick gnashing of teeth when Morse’s long fingers squeezed her shoulder “Yes, thank you, I’d like to review the body and your report Please”

“Just this way”

Eve rolled her eyes at Morse as Finestein hurried across the roo twelve years old”

“He’s twenty-six Patience, Dallas”

“I hate patience Slows everything down” But she walked over to the floor-to-ceiling line of drawers, waited while Finestein uncoded one, pulled it open with a frigid puff of cold gas

“As you can see…” Finestein cleared his throat “There are no marks of violence on the body other than those caused by the strangulation No offensive or defensive wounds There were microscopic fibers of the rope found under the subject’s nails, indicating he secured the rope personally By all appearances, the subject willingly hanged himself”

“You’re handing me self-termination?” Eve demanded “Just like that? Where’s the tox report, the blood work?”

“I’eloxite and—”

“Give her the street names, Herbert,” Morse said mildly “She’s a cop, not a scientist”