– So, they were smoking in here.
“Slobs!” thought Aleksey.
Someone was washing dishes; the sound of running water could be heard. He tossed the folder onto a chair and sat down. He heard footsteps. A woman of about 30 came around the corner. A beautiful brunette, hair slicked back, expressive eyes, full lips. A pleasant smile.
– Are you Aleksey? – the stranger asked. – I’m Katya, your new colleague. Everyone’s gone, and Sergey Leonidovich asked me to stay and feed you.
– Feed me – he said, somewhat pensively and sadly, looking at the new employee. Then he stood up. – Katya, I need to do one thing quickly. Will you sit with me?
She spread her hands to the sides.
– You’re so persuasive.
He hesitated. In the office, Aleksey pulled a bag from the desk with the label "Evidence for your new case" and took out one bullet, placing it next to the one he found in the forest.
"Same! Twins! I'll wait for the experts, of course," he thought. Then he locked the office and returned to Katya.
– Are you tired? – she sat down beside him. He nodded, indicating he was.
– Have a drink with me – Aleksey turned to her.
– With pleasure – she agreed – Let me take care of you. She grabbed a plate and served two kinds of salads.
– Thank you – he brightened up. – I’ve been sitting here without lunch.
– What, really?! – Katya sat across from him, folding her hands on her lap, watching as he devoured the plate’s contents.
– If you keep looking at me like that…
She realized she was making him uncomfortable and picked up her own plate.
"I’ll join you."
Aleksei poured cognac into the glasses.
"To getting acquainted!" he raised his glass.
"To getting acquainted," Katya echoed.
"How were you received?" Aleksei asked.
"Quite well, good guys. We already spoke with your father… Filatov is… no comments."
"Yeah… something like that," Aleksei replied. "So why did you transfer?"
"Family reasons. I’d rather not talk about it."
Aleksei nodded in agreement.
"And it's closer to home here. At my previous job, it took a long time to commute, but here, it’s just two trolleybus stops away."
"Shall I walk you home?" Aleksei asked.
"That would be nice," she smiled, then asked, "And what about you? How’s work? You’re home late."
"It’s better to finish everything and not worry. I’ve done all I wanted, so now I’m calm. The area’s quiet, though the city’s been getting noisy lately. Well, work’s still there, but not like before, when… it feels like we used to sleep here. Did you hear about Goryainov getting whacked around here? It was a big event for the neighborhood, such an honor," he added with sarcasm.
"I heard, Filatov filled me in… Lyosha, and what about him? He seems like a nice man… but alone."
Aleksei raised his eyebrows, "I don’t know, I think maybe his time just passed, so he's alone. Or his time hasn’t come yet… These are big philosophical questions, and only God knows the answers. As for us… we just talk, complain about life, and
"…and nothing more."
"Fair enough," Katya smiled.
"I’ll have a quick bite and help you with the dishes."
"Lyosha, that’s a woman’s job… don’t make a fuss."
But arguing was pointless; he helped wash the dishes and then walked the lady home.
"Why didn’t you show up yesterday? It was great! Katya is quite a catch," Filatov called as Aleksei was driving.
"Lyonya, I’m still sleeping," Aleksei answered.
