Chapter 1

  Maxwell Stillwater felt groggy. His ears felt underwater and there was a drumming in his temples. His eyes were closed tightly and he wished for nothing more than to roll over and sleep the day away. It had been years since he had felt like this, he should not have gone out drinking.

  He had tried to talk his way out of it but his colleagues would not take no for an answer. Ad men. They were always looking for a reason to go drinking and whoring. Maxwell did have reason to celebrate, he had just secured the biggest ad client in the New York State. Despite his weak protests he went out.

  The pounding in his temples began to have words. At first they were muffled and incoherent before finally becoming clear. “This is the Police, we are coming in!”

  Proving to be good on their word the door smashed open, sending splinters and paint chips across the linoleum flooring. Maxwell in his shock fell out of bed, landing hard on his shoulder. He let out a howl of pain as he was surrounded by half a dozen police officers.

  “Sarge, you'd better come and see this.” One of the officers said to the grizzly faced Sargent, who was clearly the man in charge. “Oh Christ!” The Sargent exclaimed as he walked to the opposite side of the bed. “Get that lump of shit off the floor.” Maxwell felt two sets of hands reach under his armpits and haul him off the ground. For the first time since waking up he finally began to see everything in focus. Around him the shapes and colors of the studio apartment began to come into view. They all felt foreign, his brain could find no memory of every being in this place before.

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  It was in this moment of clarity and focus that he realized that he was naked, completely and utterly stark naked. Maxwell did not sleep naked, so why was he naked in a place he did not know?

  Turning his attention in the direction of the Sargent he saw even more surprising than his nakedness was the shape of a woman in the bed with him. The sheet and quilt cut a diagonal across her body. Her back was exposed from shoulder to arch with blonde curls water falling down to her shoulders. He did not know this woman that he had just shared a bed with.

  “Officer, I would like an explanation.” The last vestiges of sleep leaving his voice in croaks and scratches of dryness.

  “I don't believe that you are the one who should be asking questions. How about we start with who you are before we get into why you are laying in bed naked as the day you were born with a dead body?” The Sargent's gruff voice more on edge now that he had seen the corpse of the blonde woman.

  Maxwell's legs buckled, the only thing that kept him upright were the cops behind him. “Dead body? What the devil!” His eyes finally focused enough that he could see the splatter of blood on the white cotton pillowcase she had her head resting on. A pit began to develop in his stomach as he felt uneasy.

  “Now I will ask you again, what is your name?” The Sargent's tone more angry with each letter.

  “Maxwell Stillwater.” It flew from his mouth like a bat out of hell.

  “Get him to the station house. Perkins go call and see if you can get the detectives out here.” The Sargent commanded the moment as two officers holding Maxwell began walking him out of the room. Suddenly being jerked back to his feet mixing with the news that he had been sleeping next to a dead body caused Maxwell to bend over at the waist and vomit. A green river of bile flowed out from his mouth and cascaded on the linoleum flooring. “Fuck!” shouted the two officers in tandem. “Get fucking moving!” They began to drag his semi limp body outside to a waiting squad car.