Bella Lourdes is a detective with the San Fernando Police Department. She works in the Crimes Against Persons unit under the supervision of Capt. Trevino. In 2010 or 2011 a number of police positions were eliminated, but Lourdes was retained. She was at that time one of only two detectives in the department. Starting in June 2016, Harry Bosch came to work for the department as an unpaid Reserve Officer. He assisted Lourdes with a number of investigations, including the Screen Cutter serial rapist.
In the most recent rape attempt, the intended victim had escaped unharmed. Lourdes went to the city's public works shop to borrow a metal detector, not knowing that the actual rapist worked there. He abducted her, took her to his home, then raped her and hid her in an underground bunker beneath his garage. She was badly injured, and it was clear that he intended to kill her at a later time. She was rescued by Bosch and another SFPD officer. Afterwards she told Bosch that she was not sure whether she wanted to return to police work.
She did return to work, and in 2017 she was lead investigator in the double murders at La Familia Farmacia. She led a team consisting of Oscar Luzon, Danny Sisto and Harry Bosch.
In her private life, she is in a relationship with a woman known only as Taryn and she has a 3 year old son.