Page 41 of Quasim III: King Inferno

“Perfect… I’m by the hotdog cart on the left… I have a red coat on, you cannot miss me.” She quickly ended the call, and I slammed the receiver down.

I was so caught off guard that I didn’t know what to say or do because she pulled a me on me. Showed up to my job, knowing that I couldn’t deny her.

“Everything all good?”

“No… we need to meet with someone.” I was going to drag the rookie, hoping that it would deter her, and throw her off as well.

She shrugged. “Any excuse to get the hell out of this office.”

Snatching my wallet and phone up, I came around my desk. “Me and Detective Hill are taking an early lunch.”

“Bring me something back!” one of the other detectives hollered, and I ignored him as we got onto the elevator.

As we exited the building, Detective Hill took a personal call. Since we were technically on a lunch break, I ignored her. “What are they saying about Beaky Smalls?” I looked over at her and rolled my eyes. “Just keep me updated, Syn.” She ended the call as we rounded the corner.

“Everything all good?”

“Yeah. My sister’s bird hasn’t been feeling good… we’re worried about him.”

I nodded my head, not giving any more attention to her stupid ass bird. When I looked up, DA Fern was standing at the hot dog stand with her hair flawlessly hanging down her back, a red wool coat that touched the tips of her heels, and she was smiling while accepting a hotdog from the vendor.

“Detective Parker, how are you?”

She didn’t extend her hand to greet me, just looking me up and down. I had to admit, I looked rough today, and I hadn’t had the chance to get my roots done, so I knew my grays were visible.

“How are you, DA Fern?” I greeted back, shoving my hands into my black puffer coat, all of a sudden feeling under dressed.

Here she stood in front of me with a floor-length red wool coat, heels as high as the sky, and a pair of high-waisted, wide-legged trousers that fell perfectly over her heel. Her hair was perfectly brushed and fell flawlessly down her shoulders, and her makeup complimented the entire outfit, including the red stiletto nails.

“I’m doing well. This is my new partner, Irie Hill,” I quickly introduced her to Irie, who reached her hand out.

She extended hers and shook it. “I am a very big fan of you, Mrs. Fern… you give girls like me hope… you inspire Black women everywhere with the way you carry yourself and the no nonsense energy you have for crime.”

I discreetly rolled my eyes as Irie drooled over this bitch like she was God’s gift to the justice system. “Alright, Hill, no need to drool over Mrs. Fern.”

“Seriously. Between you and Judge Case… God, I love seeing our women in power… calling the shots,” she continued and I discreetly shoved her ass.

She stared at me with this intense look that made me uncomfortable, causing me to look away first. “Shall we walk?”

I watched as she led the way, and we followed behind her. How she walked these cracked Brooklyn sidewalks in those heelswith ease was beyond me. Holding her hotdog, a purse in one hand, and files tucked into her arms, she maneuvered the shitty sidewalk until we crossed into the park.

When she busted out in a light sprint to make it across the street before the light changed, I was extremely impressed. I wore heels just like the next woman, but she wore them like an art. As if this was her Olympics and she had practiced to perfectly maneuver in them.

“Quieter here… the city has been crazy. How have your caseloads been?” She took a bite out of her hotdog and looked over at me and Irie, as we all walked down the trail towards the small lake.

“Cases are overloaded… now that the Red Hook killer has reemerged. The amount of calls and reports we have been getting has been a lot. We have women that have actually gone out on a date with this man.”

“Any sketches or positive ID’s?”

“None that we can release to the public. They’re not concrete enough for the public to see. His description changes from woman to woman. Some say he’s dark-skinned, while others say he’s brown-skinned… some mention he was driving an expensive car when he picked them up.” Detective Hill continued to run her damn mouth on our case.

“Hopefully, some of those leads check out. The district attorney’s office is with you guys a hundred percent as you try to solve this… my heart hurts for that journalist that was found.”

“Such a tragedy.” I muttered.

She paused our walk and turned to look at me. “I know that I’m the district attorney in Manhattan, however, since he has left a body in Manhattan, and this has generated nationwide attention, I want to make sure we are all working together on this.”

“Very understandable. We’ve had the DA in Queens come visit us as well… I think we all want the same thing. For that sick fuck to be found.” Detective Hill continued on with running her mouth.

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