Chapter 2

Spinelli followed Shannon to her office, unable to peel his eyes from her shapely legs. His nostrils narrowed, sucking in every ounce of the sweet scent that lingered in the air behind her. She gestured for him to take a seat in a chair opposite her desk. Her phone rang and she picked up the receiver as she sat down. As she spoke on the telephone, he scanned her small office memorizing every detail like detectives tend to do. He couldn't help but notice how just a touch of feminine warmth accented the professional décor. His eyes shifted from the photo of an older couple, perhaps in their early seventies, to a photo of three little red-headed boys. He wondered if the boys belonged to her. He glanced at her left hand, no ring.

Shannon hung up the phone receiver. "I'm sorry about that, Detective Spinelli," she said as she thumbed through the mounds of neatly organized stacks of case files on her desk, "here it is...the Washington file."

Spinelli watched as she flipped the file open and lost herself in the information for a brief moment. She blew out a sigh and looked up at him. He could easily see the sadness flood her big green eyes. Shannon cleared her throat. "The authorities picked up Gilbert Washington early this morning as a result of a domestic abuse call."

"What happened? What did he do?" he asked as he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Apparently the neighbor placed the 911 call when he heard Gilbert and his wife, Charmane, arguing. A loud thud followed the arguing. The neighbor assumed the cause of the thud was Gilbert throwing Charmane against the wall. As it turned out the neighbor was right. Unfortunately, the kids witnessed the entire exchange."

Shannon shook her head. "We've offered Charmane assistance for herself and her children but she refuses to leave Gilbert. As a result, today we will be removing the children from the home and placing them in foster care."

"Why does she refuse to leave him?"

"Scared perhaps." Shannon sighed and shook her head. "And he's probably her crack supplier."

"Is Gilbert still in lockup?"

"Yes, so it would probably be a good idea to head over there and remove the children before he's released."

"I'll get my unmarked and meet you up front," Spinelli replied as he sprang to his feet and headed for the door. Before his third step hit the floor he heard Shannon call his name. He turned to find her standing behind her desk holding up a set of keys.

He cocked his head to the side. "What?"

"We'll take one of the vehicles assigned to Social Services. They're fully equipped with car seats for matters such as these," Shannon said as she handed the keys to him. "You can drive so I can review the file some more."

"Car seats? How many children are we talking about here?"

"Three. The oldest, Lesha is seven, Darius is three and Christina is nine months old."

Spinelli followed Shannon to the parking lot.

She pointed at a dark green Dodge minivan. "That's the one."

He shifted his eyes from the minivan to Shannon and then back to the van. "That, we're taking that?" No red lights, no sirens, no excitement. Life as he knew it was slipping away from him.

"Perhaps you could just get in and drive, and forget the comments," Shannon said as she climbed in through the passenger door.

Spinelli got in on the driver's side and started the engine. He adjusted the seat to accommodate his long legs, then the mirrors. Once he finished altering everything, he glanced over at Shannon.

"What?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I'm just wondering how I got here. Yesterday I was a homicide detective and today I'm driving a minivan that smells like sweaty socks."

"I'm sorry you're not pleased with your assignment but we need to get going if we are going to remove the children before Gilbert makes bail."

Spinelli put the minivan in drive and headed toward the Washington home located just north of downtown, on Cherry Street. He knew that area could mean trouble. His senses moved into "full alert" mode.

As he drove, Shannon explained the procedure for removing the children. She would do all the talking and he would stand in the background as an authority figure to help keep the peace during the process.

Spinelli parked in front of the Washington's apartment building. Shannon reached for the door handle but immediately halted when Spinelli wrapped his hand around the upper part of her left arm. "Wait a second," he said as he scanned the area.

The neighborhood left a lot to be desired. The old multi-story apartment buildings screamed for repair. The most up-to-date gang signs cluttered the apartment's exterior and clusters of homeless people paraded about the sidewalk picking through the litter sprawled about the area as they pushed their belongings in wheeled carts. At least on this particular day, the sunlight lit up the street making it easy for Spinelli to see and assess his surroundings. Just the opposite of the last time he visited this neighborhood when darkness filled the street making it difficult to find his enemies. If it weren't for the stench of death penetrating the night air he may never have located and apprehended Magoo and Slapshot, two hoods responsible for the deaths of four members of their rival gang.

When Spinelli deemed the area secure, he gave Shannon the okay to exit the minivan. He caught a glimpse of her eye roll. "Hey, I'm just making sure it's secure for your own good," he growled.

Spinelli followed Shannon into the apartment building and up three flights of rickety stairs, gripping the handrail more firmly with each passing step. Stale dry air swept through the narrow corridor, stinging his lungs with each breath he took. The floor felt spongy under his feet and the hallway lights cut in and out, as they pleased. The intense aroma of decaying mice made his eyes water. He absently patted them with the sleeve of his jacket.

Shannon knocked on the Washington's apartment door. A young girl answered. Spinelli studied her. He figured she must be Lesha, the oldest of the children.

"Mama, Ms. O'Hara's here," Lesha yelled over her shoulder.

"No school today?" Shannon asked as she stepped through the doorway.

"Daddy told Mama that we couldn't go anywhere until he gets back," Lesha innocently replied.

Charmane rounded the corner from the hallway and stepped into the living room. When she glanced toward Shannon, she started to smile until she noticed Spinelli standing in the doorway. The woman threw her hand over her heart and the black and blue eyes she sported immediately swelled with tears.

Well, I guess she knows why we're here...Christ, Spinelli thought.