Secrets

I Love You

Dean's smile seemed like a permanent fixture on his face as he flashed his badge at the guard outside the crime scene and ducked under the tape.

"You know, if I would have known it was going to take you an hour, I would have got my own damn coffee!" Ben snapped as Dean approached him with his usual order.

"Sorry princess, won't happen again," Dean joked.

Ben shook his head as he practically inhaled the caffeine.

"So, who's our vic?" Dean asked while slipping on his latex gloves and taking a peek under the white sheet.

"Alyson Jones, 38, witch, a nurse at the same hospital as Megan works at," Ben began then pointed off to the side, "husband is over there. He's in shock. Patrol said he came out for his morning jog and found her."

"Shit," Dean mumbled feeling his good mood immediately dissipate. He stood up and looked at Ben, "wasn't that guy from yesterday an intern at the hospital?"

"Yeah," Ben nodded.

"I guess I understand your attitude now," Dean stripped his gloves off and walked with his friend to the victim's husband. He was situated on the tailgate of an ambulance. "Mr. Jones, I'm detective McGuiere this is my partner detective Ballias, we're sorry about your loss. Are you feeling up to answering a few questions for us?"

The pale man nodded his head lightly.

"Could you tell us what happened?" prompted Ben kindly.

"I, I was," Evert Jones closed his eyes briefly taking a deep breath, "Alyson works the night shifts at the emergency room. They sometimes last for ten to seventeen hours depending on the night. So, when I woke up this morning and she wasn't lying next to me, I didn't think anything of it."

Ben nodded his head knowing the feeling of waking up without his wife when she worked at night.

"So, I started my normal routine," he continued, "breakfast, stretch, lace up my shoes. Usually, I get the kids up and their day started but they're at my mom's this weekend. I decided to take my run early, figured I'd get back about the time Aly got in and I'd make her some food or something ya know. Spend a bit of us time together till she passed out from exhaustion. But when I opened the door, I... she was."

"Did your wife have any enemies, Mr. Jones?" Dean asked. The man just shook his head while his shoulders shook with sobs. "Has she mentioned anyone following her or making treats to her?"

"You know what the last thing I said to my wife was?" he sniffled, "don't forget to pick up orange juice again on your way home, orange juice! I don't even remember the last time I told her I loved her."

Dean and Ben watched as the man in front of them shattered. Ben swallowed the lump in his throat and waved for a paramedic to come take over.

Dean grabbed a few business cards out of his wallet and handed them to Mr. Jones, "if you need anything, think of anything or just need a sober ride, give us a call."

The two detectives turned away from the grieving husband with somber expressions, "that was rough."

Ben nodded his head and threw his finished coffee cup into a recycling bin, "meet you back at the office?"

"Yeah," Dean sighed pulling out his phone to send a text while walking to his truck.

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Her heels clicked softly against the tile floor as she quickly made her way into the conference room.

"Good afternoon gentleman," she nodded politely, placing her briefcase on the floor next to the chair she was expected to sit and leaned over to shake each one of their hands.