Chapter 3

As Grace looked towards the reception area she noticed the Chief of Police. "Wow, I have never seen him in person before,"she thought. He looked more handsome that he did on the television and he smelled wonderful. Why is it that she always is able to figure out what a person is like by the way that they smell? She wasn't sure, but it had never let her down before. She straightened her back and instinctively brushed her hair off of her forehead, as she walked closer to the Chief.

"Hello, Chief Roberts, I am Grace Winters private investigator. How may I help you today?"

"I know who you are Ms. Winters, which is why I am here today. I am here to ask for you assistance in the case that we have at hand. I am sure that you are aware of the case that we are currently working on?"

"I believe so. Is it the El Diablo case?"

"Yes. Now I know that you don't normally work on large cases and that this would be a first for both our department and yourself, but I think that once you hear what I have to say you will understand the importance of this collaboration."


"That is understandable Grace, may I call you Grace?" he asked. She nodded. "As you will see as I explain what is needed from you, you are going to be a very valuable part of this investigation. There are not many people in the media that know who you are. No offence..."

"None taken," she said with a smile. Was that a twinkle in his eye that she saw when he called her Grace? "Stop that," she told herself, "you need to be listening to what he is saying and wondering how you can help him and not be worried about what he is thinking."

"The main reason that I am here today is because we want to know, or rather I would like to know if you would be willing to be part of the task force that I am putting together to catch this 'El Diablo' character that is terrorizing our city. I can guarantee you only one this with this case, Grace, and that is that it will not be easy. There will lots of long hours that will be put in and it will take lots of patience. Is this something that you would be willing to do?"

This really took her breath away. She was being asked by the Chief of Police to work hand in hand with him to try to catch this serial killer. It exhilarated her to think that this man knew who she was and was willing to go out of his way to ask her to be part of a bigger plan. How could she say no? But if she said yes would she be able to keep food on the table without being able to take on the needs of her clients. Now granted, currently she did not have a case that she was working on so this would be perfect, but she was still struggling with it. She knew that there was a possibility that if she turned this down today, she may never get another chance.

The look on the Chief's face made her realize that he was expecting an answer. "Umm, I would love to do this, however I am not sure if I will be able to," she said. "If it is about money, Grace, the Commissioner would be more than willing to pay your regular fee for your time." "Wow," she thought, "he seemed to know what I was thinking." How could she turn this down, it was guaranteed work and she would not have to worry about who was going to walk through the door on any given day. " The only thing that I am worried about is my secretary, Amalia, she would not have anything to do while I am working for you."

Oh don't worry about that," Chief Roberts stated, "we will find her some work to do. As long as you can continue to pay her, we would be more than happy to give her some clerical work to do downtown. You need to realize that this will not be easy on either of you because you will be in unfamiliar territory, but I do believe that it could be the step in the right direction for both of you."

"Then, Chief Roberts, I would have to say that I would be honored to be part of the task force to bring 'El Diablo' to justice. I understand that it will not be easy, but I know that I will not let you down. I will do my best to make you not regret asking me to be part of this team."

"By the way Grace, you are more than welcome to call me Jason," stated the Chief. "I will be in contact with you in the next couple of days to let you know what will be your role on this team." With that, Chief Roberts, Jason, walked out the door leaving Grace staring after him.

Grace could not believe her fortune. She had always wanted to do some police work, but was too afraid to go downtown and take the tests that would be required of her. She did like working alone, but this was going to afford her the opportunity to see what it would be like to work with the police on a very large case. She couldn't wait to get started. First she had to finish up the loose ends on the case that she had just completed, but that should not take her more than a few hours over the next couple of days. She hoped that she would be able to get it competed by the time Jason came back to talk to her about the role that she was going to play.">