The Scene of the Crime

Sometimes the law does more harm than good

The hole in the glass was surprisingly small for a smash-and-grab job, probably because the proprietor had gotten a feeling that something was up and gotten his weapon ready in time. The would-be robber lay on the floor by the boutique shelves, unconscious, but obviously stable; the store owner was outside in a patrol car.

"Don't touch anything," Jenkins snapped. Detective Omar pulled his hand back from the iPhone 17. "This is a crime scene, not a shopping spree."

Omar nodded and turned to walk toward the front of the store. Still looking at the fancy new phone, he tripped on the unconscious crook sprawled on the floor, losing his balance. His arms pinwheeled wildly as he fought to stay upright. Losing, he fell forward and tried to break his fall by grabbing the shelf holding Bluetooth speakers. All he accomplished was launching several speakers into the air when the shelf teeter-tottered under his hand. As he hit the ground, he heard shattering glass—the speakers had catapulted high in the air, landing directly on the already-damaged display case.

Jenkins watched the whole thing in slow motion. It was like a cartoon! He thanked his luck that they had already had CSI in to take pictures. He guessed the proprietor was lucky, too: the insurance adjuster would notch the recompense up a bit more.

Senior Detective Jenkins and his junior partner walked to the car in silence and got in. Omar opened his mouth to apologize, but Jenkins cut him off.

"I don't wanna hear it!", he said, making a curt gesture.

Omar shrunk in the seat a little and reached over to turn the radio on. Jenkins finally let his emotions boil over. "Ohhhhh no—I wanna get back to the station in one piece, Junior! Don't! Touch! Anything!"

NOTES: ▼

Word Count: 300
Submitted for "Daily Flash Fiction Challenge" 
Prompt: Use the phrase "Dopn't touch anything"