Rebecca pushed the door to her cramped little apartment close with the heel of her boot, the slam of the heavy rectangle of plywood and steel echoing down the corridor, failing to wake the junkie passed out in the doorway of the fire exit.  She'd wondered, like she did every time she passed him, if this had been his last fix.  Every time she made the stairs she expected to find him staring ceilingward, the light faded from his eyes.  But still he prevailed.  Perhaps he was the lucky one, making his escape into a world of dreams that she could only imagine.<br/><br/>At the sound of the door, a rat scurried from under her coffee brown sofa and into the open vent of the air conditioning system, long fallen into disuse.  Summers here were brutal.  At least the heat worked sometimes.  She sighed.  Being an officer didn't pay nearly enough, considering what risks she took.  The one perk, at least on her latest assignment, was that she'd been given a budget of sorts.<em>We need you to look the part, Officer Evans</em>the captain had told her.  And so she had taken herself shopping for the first time in what felt like forever.  Walking to her bedroom, she put her bags down beside the neatly made bed and laid out the latest in club wear on the covers.<br/><br/>A shower first and then she’d change.  The plan was to do a little recognizance tonight.  Undercover, of course.  At 25 she could still pass for young enough to be out looking for a good time and perhaps a little more.  Go in, make  a few friends, ask the right questions… that was her goal for the night.  If luck was on her side, she would crack this assignment.  Do a good enough job, the captain had hinted, and there might even be a promotion in it…<br/><br/>http://fairygothmother.co.uk/ba-01.htm  <-- Rebecca Evans<br/><br/>She stood in front of the mirror, admiring herself.  This would do nicely.  She turned, one, twice, taking delight in her new dress, smiling at her reflection.  This would be a nice break from the usual cases.  Nothing wrong with having a little fun with it.  Picking up her phone, she called a cab.  It wasn’t long before she was on her way…<br/>