Crime in the Club (The Bound Detective) by Ashley Thompson Page B

me a partner like him to work with?” she asked.
    “T his case involves something that you’re familiar with.  I thought you would be the perfect partner for him considering your track record with the area,” Thomas replied.
    Jane looked at the man like he had just grown three heads.  It didn’t make any sense at all why her familiarity meant that she had to be the equivalent of an adult babysitter for this man.
    “Why do I need to babysit him , though?  I mean I can totally handle it myself, right?”
    “You could , Jane, but that’s not the point.  The point of this is I want you to learn how to work together with people and try to really understand them.  You’re a great person and I’m happy to have you as part of my team, but I want to hone your teamwork skills right now,” Thomas explained.
    “What the hell does ‘teamwork’ have to do with this?  I’ve been fine working on my own and I don’t need a person to bring me down,” Jane said.
    “ Like I said though, it’s a skill I want to hone.  I’m going to have you be his partner for this, and I’m not going to take any other answer.  Is that clear?” Thomas sacked.  He was serious, too, and when Jane looked at him, she knew that there was no arguing.
    “Fine,” Jane said.  She crossed her legs and arms against each other, looking at Thomas with a wary eye.  She was not happy about this at all, and frankly, she felt more insulted than anything.
    “Good.  I’m glad you’re at least somewhat willing to work together for this case.  Now onto the details.  There were a couple of kidnappings and some murders all in the red light district area.  Apparently, it’s all centered on a BDSM club that you might be familiar with.  I know that you’re perfect for this job, but it might be too easy for you.  I was going to have Franklin work on it all on his own, but he is pretty new so I thought why don’t we get this one out of the way and I’ll have you two work together.  That’s the plan for this one.  You’re supposed to investigate the area and try to find suspects.  I have the list of all the people murdered in that area in the last three to four weeks.  Look over it and try to see if you can deduce anything from that.  When you’re ready, you can go check out the club.  I have tickets for you two for later tonight so you can get in there and try to investigate around and talk to some of the patrons,” Thomas explained.
    “Sounds good to me,” Jane replied.  She didn’t mind an easy case occasionally, but still the idea of having to work with this guy deeply insulted her and she could feel her pride ripping to shreds when she thought about it.
    “Good.  I’m glad we’re on the same page.  Here is the file of the victims.  I suggest you take a look at them and try to find a connection to all of this.  I’m going to talk to Franklin a little bit more about everything and what it all entails, but you’re dismissed if you have no further questions,’ Thomas said.
    “I think that’s fine with me,” Jane said.
    “ Good.  By the way, here is Franklin’s number.  You can put it in your phone to call him when you need him,” he said.  Thomas gave Jane a small card and she almost wanted to tear it up in front of him.  Jane was not keen at all about working together with this man at all, and she would rather eat dirt at this point than do that.
    “ Thanks,” Jane said coldly as she pocketed the card.  Thomas smiled and Franklin flashed a grin at her, which was received with a death stare.  Jane wasn’t in the mood for this man’s shit, and Jane certainly wasn’t going to have it now.  Jane walked out and Franklin continued to stare at her, and Jane almost wanted to yell at him for looking at her so much.  It was somewhat creepy, and Jane wasn’t comfortable with working with a partner period.  She was a loner, and that was how she operated
    Jane walked to the elevator and looked behind her gain.