Bold Strokes

Chapter 1

Chapter 1Doctor Maura Dunne, forensic examiner with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, pulled her honey blonde hair into a ponytail before pulling on medical gloves and gently unzipping the black bag laid out on the table before her. This particular case had been brought to the FBI’s attention after suspicions it was the work of a serial killer. Three similar deaths with similar MOs had taken place in the past nine months. The young woman on the table before her had been stabbed numerous times, specifically in the area of the heart, and as always, Maura felt an incredible sadness followed by steely determination that the person who had done this would be brought to justice.

Three hours later she completed the Y incision in the young woman’s chest and carefully covered her with a sheet before retreating to her office to complete her report.

“Hey, Maur. Have you learned anything yet?

Agent Melissa Russo, Maura’s best friend, poked her head into the office. Maura shook her head.

“I won’t know anything really until the tox report comes back, Mel, you know that.”

Russo rolled her eyes.

“Any guesses?”

She held up her hands in surrender as Maura raised an eyebrow and started to speak.

“I know, I know, you don’t like guessing. Is there anything you can glean from the autopsy, anything?”

Russo at thirty-nine-years of age had a lithe, muscular figure and piercing blue eyes that bored into the faces of the perpetrators she interviewed. She was tall, about 5’11, and while her thick, black hair usually flowed free, everything else about her was by the book. Gray slacks, white button-up shirt, and the steel-toed boots she wore whether she was sipping drinks at the bar or chasing down a perp. She was a regular at the local CrossFit gym and had the physique to prove it. She and Maura had joined the bureau at the same time fifteen years ago, and there wasn’t much that went on with one that the other wasn’t immediately in the know about.

Russo had an edge. Her mother had found a lump in her breast when Melissa was four, and died six months later, leaving Jack Russo with his young daughter and her three older brothers. Jack never remarried, and Melissa, early on showing an aptitude to blend into her surroundings, became one of the boys: playing baseball and soccer and following her brothers into law enforcement. Mel still had dinner with her father every Sunday, and Maura was often in attendance. Jack was ruggedly handsome with a full head of silver hair and fun-loving attitude but had a classic Italian temper. A trait inherited by his daughter.

Maura was raised by two loving parents, heart surgeons who, while not always able to make it to her Christmas concerts and school plays, raised an incredibly smart girl who was always found with her nose stuffed in a book. Jeffrey and Charlene Dunne encouraged Maura in all her ventures but had high concerns when the bureau came calling. Those concerns had lessened somewhat over the years as Maura worked hard to earn the title of senior forensic examiner.

Where Mel was dark with her night black hair and Italian complexion, Maura was a deep blonde with striking hazel eyes that looked afire when she was angry. When not in scrubs, Maura would wear the latest in burgeoning fashion, hugging the curves she maintained carefully through Pilates and yoga, and she always had the manicures and makeup to match. While coming from vastly different backgrounds, Maura and Melissa complemented each other perfectly as friends and colleagues, much to the amazement and amusement of their counterparts. Maura gave a resigned sigh crossing her arms, and tapping her long fingers and nude shellacked nails on her wrist.

“There are twelve separate stab wounds, including cuts, but I’m not ready to confirm that as cause of death as there’s also bruising on the neck, which could signify some sort of ligature. Everything else will just have to wait until the labs are done. Izzie’s on it.

“Great, thanks, Maur. Wanna grab a beer at Charlie’s after work?”

Charlie’s was Mel’s favorite watering hole. The place she could unwind after hard cases. While it wasn’t exactly Maura’s cup of tea, she’d come to consider the place a home away from home, if only because it was her best friend’s home away from home.

“I would, but I’ve got a gallery opening to attend. Remember my friend Marcelle Marceau?”

Russo nodded.

“The French divorcee?”

Dunne smiled.

“Yes, it’s her adopted daughter’s work. I’ve never seen it personally, but she seems to be taking the art world by storm, according to the Internet. And I haven’t seen Marcelle in ages since she moved back to Paris. Would you like to join me?”

“Hmm. drinks at Charlie’s or a gallery opening, what’s a girl to do?”

Maura smiled, knowing for Melissa to accompany her, she just had to use the right incentive.

“Alright, if you insist.” Maura sighed, looking at her friend through the corner of her eye. “Too bad you’ll miss out on the open bar.”

Her best friend’s dark eyebrows shot up and she grinned.

“Open bar? I’m in.”