Nora was sitting at her desk, replaying the night before in every glorious detail, when Kowalski stopped in front of her.

“Alvarez wants you.”

She looked up. “Now?”

“Yep. You and Shields.”

“What’s up?” she asked.

“Don’t ask me,” Kowalski said. “I’m just the messenger.”

She got up and headed for Alvarez’s office. Walking past Braden’s desk took her back to their moment on the beach, the feel of his hands holding her face like it was something precious, his lips every bit as intoxicating as she’d imagined they would be, his body hard and…

“You know what this is about?”

She looked up to find Mike walking next to her and forced herself to tamp down the flush spreading through her body at the memory of the man who had dominated her thoughts since they parted at her door twelve hours before.

“Not a clue,” she said. “You?”

“Nope.”

They reached Alvarez’s door at the same time. Shields waited as she passed through the doorway.

“Murphy, Shields, shut the door.” Alvarez stood behind his desk, the L.A. skyline smudged with smog through the window behind him.

Mike closed the door.

“Sit,” Alvarez commanded.

He was slender and calculating, not at all her type, but it was disconcerting to see him in what looked like a custom suit after years of seeing him in jeans and Tac gear. Nora had to admit that he looked sharp.

They sat in the chairs across from his desk.

“I have a new case for you,” he said.

“What about Kalashnik?” Nora asked.

He waved off the question. “It’s in the tank after yesterday.”

“It’s not salvageable?” she asked. “I mean, I know it didn’t go down the way it was supposed to, but we still have the customs records and — ”

He held up a hand to stop her. “It’s done. For now at least.”

She nodded, breathing through her frustration. It’s not like it was the first time a case had been sidelined.

“What’s up?” Shields asked.

“We’ve got a string of crimes in San Diego County,” he said, pulling a file from his desk. “Mostly thefts, a few B-and-Es, couple cyber attacks that look related.”

“Shouldn’t that go to the San Diego field office?” Nora asked.

“They’re understaffed,” Alvarez said. “And a couple of the crimes were just over the line in our territory. It was kicked over the fence to us.”

“Still doesn’t sound like our jurisdiction,” Nora said. Thefts and break-ins were usually the dominion of local police, and Cyber Crimes had its own unit.

“You’ll understand when you look at the file,” Alvarez said, “but the short version is that the crimes are purposeful and highly coordinated.”

“Aren’t all crimes purposeful?” Mike asked.

Alvarez scowled at him. “Don’t be a smartass.”

Nora cringed. Alvarez had only recently been promoted to SAC. Of course, he’d outranked them before that, but not enough to make it weird. Now it was a little weird. Alvarez was obviously looking to prove himself. Challenging his authority was the wrong move. Then again, it wouldn’t be the first time Mike’s ego was a detriment.

“The file will clear things up,” Alvarez said. “We need to find out who these guys are and what they’re doing. It was all fun and games until last month when a guard was shot at the First National in San Diego. He survived, but they’re getting a little big for their britches, pulling some crazy shit.”

“Like what?” Nora asked, taking the file as he held it out.

“Like ditching a getaway car for a new one while in motion.”

“Wait a minute,” Mike said. “They got into a new getaway car while the old one was moving? What did they do with the first one?”

“Let it run off the road,” Alvarez said. “Up a curb and into a Jiffy Lube.”

“Didn’t we get a plate on the new car?” Nora asked. “If law enforcement was in pursuit at the time — ?”

“It wasn’t,” Alvarez said. “Witnesses saw it. The car had no plates, which means they probably ditched that one later, too.”

“If no one was in pursuit, why bother with the stunt?” Mike asked. “Might as well just pull into a quiet alley and switch cars.”

“Because they’re crazy,” Alvarez said. “They’ve pulled all kinds of shit — led a pursuit with the Coast Guard off Huntington and disappeared with dive gear, even base jumped off One America after they robbed a nearby jewelry store and were chased onto the roof.”

The folder in Nora’s hands suddenly felt heavier. One America Plaza was the tallest building in San Diego, but it wasn’t tall by base jumping standards. Anyone who took that chance was no stunt hobbyist.

“Take a look at the file,” Alvarez continued. “Let me know what you think. We need to move fast. They used to make a hit every six months or so. It’s been more often lately. Something’s accelerating their timeline.”

Nora stood. “Will we have a team?”

“I don’t know yet,” Alvarez said. “I’m inclined to keep this one close to the vest for awhile, see where it leads. We can leave it open for discussion once you’ve reviewed everything.”

“Will do,” Mike said, standing and heading for the door.

Alvarez’s voice caught her as she was leaving. “Murphy.”

She turned around. “Yeah?”

“Let me know if you run into any problems on this one,” Alvarez said.

“Sure.”

She closed the door behind her, stepped out into the noisy bullpen where Mike was waiting.

“Not what I expected,” she said as they made their way around the desks.

“Ditto,” Mike said. “They sound like a bunch of assholes.”

Nora laughed. “Because they’re criminals? Or because they’re showy about it?”

“Both.” Mike stopped at her desk. “Want to work through lunch? Share the file?”

“Sure,” she said.

“Cool. El Tapatio?”

It was foolish, but she didn’t want to share Mexican food with Mike. She was still bathing in the glow of her night at Rosa’s with Braden. The glow of everything that had happened afterward.

“Can we do Mario’s instead?” Italian sounded good anyway.

“You got it,” Mike said. “Your usual?”

Her usual was Fettuccini Alfredo. It was good. A little bland, but comforting in its sameness.

But she suddenly didn’t want sameness. Things were changing, the ground shifting under her feet like the notoriously temperamental tectonic plates under California. The change was every bit as scary as she’d imagined change would be, but what she hadn’t counted on was the euphoria that accompanied it. The feeling of possibility that had opened up inside her when Braden’s lips touched hers.

Maybe change was underrated.

She looked up at Mike. “You know what? Surprise me. I’m in the mood for something different.”

He raised an eyebrow, a grin lighting his face. “Different is good. I’ll order now.”

“Great,” she said. “I’ll see you in the conference room. I’m going to pull a map and start marking the locations in San Diego County that have been hit.”