Author : Polar McCoy

The bystanders cheered and applauded as Officer Jimenez holstered his weapon. They patted him in the back and said things like, “Great work,” and “Now that’s one less of them we have to worry about.”

“Damn, Jimmy,” Jimenez’s partner, Goldberg, said. “That’s like the third one you got this week! You must be goin’ for a record or somethin’.”

“Come on, grab her feet,” Jimenez instructed.

“Why don’t we just leave her there?” asked Goldberg.

“Can’t. It’s almost rush hour. There’s gonna be a lot of foot traffic around here. She’ll be in the way.”

“Yeah, right,” Goldberg said, picking up the woman’s feet. “Where’re we puttin’ her?”

“Dumpster in the alley.”

“Hey, don’t forget her purse.”

Jimenez picked up the Gucci handbag and slung it over his shoulder as he picked up the woman by her wrists.

“I betcha she’s a Prima,” Goldberg said. “Primas never want to show their status cards.”

“Well, if they would, then this wouldn’t happen as much,” Jimenez said.

“She looks like a Prima.”

“How can you look like a Prima? Alphas don’t look any different from Primas. That’s why we have status cards.”

“I can just tell.”

“You know who else said that?” Jimenez asked.

“Who?”

“You hear of Valentino from the two-seven?”

“No.”

“He got booted off the force a while back because he thought he could tell them apart.”

“So what happened?” Goldberg asked.

“He ended up shooting nine Alphas thinking they were Primas.”

“Jesus. Here, pick up your end. She’s slipping.”

Jimenez rested the woman’s bulleted head on his knee for a second as he gripped her wrists more firmly.

“The only reason he didn’t get arrested was cause those types of shootings were justifiable back then.”

“What changed?”

“Too many of those types of shootings. Just as many Alphas were getting killed as Primas. So they introduced status cards.”

“They should just tattoo ‘Prima’ to their foreheads,” Goldberg said.

“Not a bad idea. Here we go.”

They were at the dumpster. With one good heave they tossed the woman’s body in. Her head thudded against the side. Jimenez tossed the purse too, but missed. It fell to the ground, spilling its contents. He picked it all up.

“Katherine McKenna,” he read off the license. “Says she lives in the Presidio.”

“Should we notify the family?” Goldberg asked.

Jimenez flipped through Katherine’s wallet.

“Don’t have to,” he said. “Status card says she’s a Prima.”