Page 3 of Forever

"Special Agent Cross?" A uniformed officer approached her, snapping her out of her thoughts. "I'm Officer Ramirez. I'll be assisting you with the case."

"Thank you, Officer," Morgan replied, extending a hand. As they shook, she looked around, trying to spot Derik among the sea of law enforcement personnel.

"Is my partner already inside?" she asked, hoping to get a sense of where he was without betraying her true feelings about working with him.

"Special Agent Greene? Yeah, he arrived a few minutes before you did," Ramirez said, pointing toward a cluster of officers near one of the large tanks. "He's been coordinating with the staff and local authorities."

"Great," Morgan muttered, her jaw tightening. She knew she'd have to play nice with Derik for the time being, but that didn't mean she had to like it. "Let's go," she said, forcing herself to focus on the task at hand. As they walked toward the tank, she steeled herself for what she was about to encounter. It was never easy to face the aftermath of a killer's actions, but she couldn't let her emotions cloud her judgment. There was a murderer on the loose, and she would do whatever it took to bring them to justice.

Morgan scanned the bustling scene around her, squinting against the bright sunlight that reflected off the water in the nearby tanks. Her gaze flicked from face to face, searching for any sign of Derik among the uniformed officers and frantic park employees. A knot of tension formed in her stomach as she tried to suppress her resentment toward him. She needed answers about her past, and he was the only one who could give them to her, and yet he'd refused. As far as Morgan was concerned, Derik had been involved in framing her. She just didn't know the extent.

Morgan noted a group of employees talking to some officers up ahead. She nodded at Ramirez, signaling she intended to stop here first. She held up her FBI badge as she approached, and the group looked at her. One girl in particular appeared very torn up--her big, tear-filled eyes landed right on Morgan, and her nametag read 'Chrissy.'

"These are some of the staff who made the call," Ramirez explained.

"You're Chrissy?" Morgan said, acknowledging her with a nod. "You're part of the staff here?"

"Yes, ma'am," Chrissy replied nervously. "I... I was working the dolphin exhibit when it happened."

"And what exactly happened?" Morgan asked, folding her arms across her chest and fixing her attention on the young woman. Inwardly, she couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy for her; it was clear that she was shaken up by whatever had happened.

"Um, well," Chrissy began, fidgeting with her hands. "We were just starting our routine performance with the dolphins when the crowd suddenly started screaming. At first, I thought maybe someone had gotten hurt or there was a fight or something, but then I saw what they were all looking at." She swallowed hard, her eyes filling with tears. "There was a body floating in the water, right next to the tank."

Morgan's jaw tightened as she absorbed Chrissy's words. Another innocent life taken, another killer on the loose. As much as she wanted to ignore her own personal feelings about Derik, she knew she couldn't let this case slip through her fingers.

"Alright," Morgan said, trying to keep her voice steady. "What exactly did they see?"

Chrissy opened her mouth to respond, but before she could get a word out, Derik jogged over, slightly out of breath. "Cross!" he called out, waving a hand to catch her attention. "Derik Greene, FBI," he announced, showing his badge to Chrissy and the others. "I'm Special Agent Cross's partner."

Morgan clenched her jaw and forced herself to keep her focus on Chrissy, refusing to acknowledge Derik. Her heart pounded in her chest, a mix of anger and trepidation coursing through her veins. How could he just come up to her like nothing had happened? Morgan couldn't stand the sight of him.

"Please, continue," she urged Chrissy, pointedly ignoring Derik as he took a place beside her.

"Right," Chrissy nodded, swallowing nervously. "It'd probably be best if I just showed you."

She led them toward the exhibit where the incident had taken place, her hands trembling. Officer Ramirez trailed behind.

As they walked, Morgan's mind raced with questions. What had happened here? Who had been found, and why? She could feel Derik's gaze on the side of her face, his eyes boring into hers as if trying to decipher her thoughts. It made her skin crawl, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of looking back at him.

Chrissy led them through the winding pathways of the marine park, her footsteps echoing against the concrete. As they approached the dolphin tank, Morgan's heart clenched at the sight of a woman's body floating lifelessly in the water, her hair fanned out like a dark halo around her head. Officers milled about, taking photographs and preparing to remove the body.

"Jesus," Derik muttered under his breath, his face pale as he stared down into the tank.

Morgan swallowed hard, forcing her emotions to take a back seat as she focused on gathering information. "This was how she found?" she asked Chrissy, her voice steady despite the gruesome scene before her.

"During our routine performance this morning. The crowd started screaming when they saw... her," Chrissy replied, her voice wavering slightly as she gestured toward the tank. "No one knows how she got there."

Morgan noticed that the woman's hands were tied behind her back, and a heavy weight was secured around her ankles, anchoring her to the bottom of the tank by a rope.

"Definitely not an accident or suicide," Morgan murmured, her eyes narrowing as she assessed the situation. "Looks like we've got a new killer on our hands."

"Damn it," Derik muttered, his jaw clenched as he studied the woman's features. "What kind of monster would do something like this?"

"Someone who wants to send a message," Morgan mused, her mind already working through possible scenarios and motives. She glanced over at Derik, noticing the way he kept stealing glances at her as if searching for a reaction. It only fueled her determination to keep her focus on the task at hand and not let him see any sign of weakness.

"Chrissy," Morgan said, her voice firm and authoritative. "Is your manager in today?"

"Uh, yes, he's in his office," Chrissy replied hesitantly, glancing between Morgan and Derik.

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