Chapter 1: The Murder of Luke's Grandmother

The sound of breaking glass echoed through the small apartment. Luke jolted awake, his hand instinctively reaching for his gun as he sat up in bed. He listened intently for any other noises, but the apartment was silent. He got up, putting on his robe and quietly made his way to the living room.

As he rounded the corner, Luke's heart dropped. His grandmother, who he had lived with for years, lay on the ground in front of the shattered window. Blood pooled around her head and her eyes were closed. Luke ran to her side, his hands shaking as he felt for a pulse. It was too late. She was gone.

Luke sat there for what felt like an eternity, holding his grandmother's hand as he tried to come to grips with what had just happened. He couldn't believe that someone had broken into their home and killed his grandmother. He felt a surge of anger, a burning desire for justice that he knew would consume him.

As the morning light began to filter through the window, Luke knew what he had to do. He got up, grabbed his phone, and called his partner, Stella. She answered on the third ring, her voice groggy from sleep.

"Luke? What's going on?" she asked.

"Stella, my grandmother's been murdered. I need you to come over here now."

There was a pause on the other end of the line, and then Stella said, "I'll be there in 10 minutes."

True to her word, Stella arrived at the apartment 10 minutes later, dressed in her usual business attire. She was a short woman with dark hair and piercing green eyes, and she moved with a confidence that Luke had always admired.

"Luke, what happened?" she asked as she stepped into the living room.

Luke told her everything he knew, recounting the sound of breaking glass and his discovery of his grandmother's body. Stella listened intently, her eyes narrowing as he spoke.

"We need to call this in and get some backup here," she said finally. "This isn't something we can handle alone."

Luke nodded, knowing she was right. They called the police, and soon the apartment was crawling with officers, detectives, and forensics experts. Luke and Stella stepped back, watching as the scene was processed.

As the morning wore on, Luke's anger grew. He watched as his colleagues on the police force fumbled around, making mistakes and ignoring important clues. He felt like they were treating the case as just another murder, not realizing that it was his grandmother who had been killed.

Luke couldn't take it anymore. He stormed out of the apartment, feeling a sense of disgust and frustration that he had never felt before. He knew that he had to find his grandmother's killer, and he couldn't do it working with the people who were supposed to be his colleagues.

As he walked down the street, Luke felt like a man on a mission. He would find the person who had killed his grandmother, no matter what it took. And he knew that he would need Stella's help to do it. She was his only friend on the police force, and the only person he could trust.

But as he thought about their partnership, Luke realized that he was beginning to feel something more for Stella. He had always admired her, but now he was starting to see her in a new light. He pushed the thought aside, knowing that he had more important things to worry about at the moment.