Fake Fan Fiction ❯ Loves Company ❯ Crime (and Bar) Scenes ( Chapter 5 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Kita and Subu-chan 
Anime/Manga: Fake Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Romance / Police / Mystery | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 03.30.2007 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.7K | Visits: 435 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Fake Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Romance / Police / Mystery | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 03.30.2007 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.7K | Visits: 435 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter Five-Crime (and Bar) Scenes
A/N- Sorry it took so very long to update this one, loyal readers (all two of them). Akita, that wasn’t nice. Anyway, a lot’s been happening here and needless to say we got more than a little behind. They finally hired more folks at the office, so Akita’s been getting home at something resembling a decent hour (If you call ten at night a decent hour). Forgive her, please, she hasn’t had sleep or chocolate recently. Catti, thanks for the reminders that our loyal fans are armed and dangerous and impatient. Hana-the bar scene is for you. It was the only part of the chapter already mostly written when you posted “Moments Like This.” So, you can see what a wonderful job you did with Kellie.
When Drake and JJ arrived at the scene, Berkley Rose was already waiting for them, a grim expression on his face as the wind whipped his long coat around his legs. JJ shivered as he climbed out of Drake’s car and hunched deeper into his jacket. Born and raised in southern LA, he had next to no tolerance for New York’s colder clime.
Drake sighed and draped his battered brown leather trenchcoat over JJ’s thinner shoulders. JJ offered him a warm smile and huddled gratefully into it as they hurried across the parking garage to where Rose waited. “I know you’re sick, Parker,” He greeted them perfunctorily. “But as the lead investigators on this particular case, I needed you here.”
Drake nodded his understanding, glad that the cold wind hid the burning of his cheeks. “What do we know?”
“Somehow, don’t ask me how, four girls managed to sneak out from under the noses of three men trained in surveillance and decided to cut school.” His scathing tone showed what he thought of that occurrence. “We’ve called the school and managed to identify the girls who snuck out with Miss Richmond. You already know about one, Marty’s girl, and the others were I.D.ed as Sarah Brigmont and Mei Lin Roberts, both friends of Richmond.” Rose scowled at the forensics team that had swarmed the sleek little Jaguar. “They’ve been missing since one and then a mall security sweep discovered the car abandoned here with blood on the seats about an hour ago.”
Drake glanced at JJ and together they headed for the car. Years of practice at dissecting crime scenes allowed Drake to stay neatly out of the way of the forensic examiners while still getting a good look at the interior of the car. Blood had dried to a sticky fan pattern on the dash and console. “Looks like he took the driver by surprise, either knocked her out or killed her outright.”
JJ leaned in and added his own assessment. “He probably had a gun and threatened the rest of them with it.” He pointed to a smear of blood on the center console that spread over to the side of the passengers seat. “It looks like he shoved the driver over and got behind the wheel himself.”
Drake glanced back over his shoulder at Rose. “Do we have surveillance from the mall? The parking garage elevators, maybe? That should tell us whether the girls were actually at the mall or if this is just the place he abandoned the car.”
Rose nodded, his scowl lightening a little. “There’s a camera in the parking garage elevator and at the main entrance from street level. I’ve got men securing the recordings as we speak.”
Drake scowled thoughtfully. “I hate asking this, but does Marty know yet?”
Rose looked grimmer than he had when they first arrived. “Unfortunately, yes. He’s understandably upset.” From the tone of the commissioner’s voice, Drake knew that was the understatement of the year. Marty was doubtless ready to strangle their killer with his bare hands. “As of today, he’s been removed from this investigation.”
Drake understood the need for that precaution, but doubted Marty cared right now. “You might want to keep a weather eye on him, sir. Marty knows the rules, but this just got personal. I think we all know that his family is the most important thing in his life.” Beside him, JJ was nodding agreement. Despite the grimness of the situation, Drake found himself unable to look at JJ’s face without turning red, so he glanced away quickly. Better to concentrate on what had just become very, very personal to one of their friends, rather than on this new, unexpected shift in his world.
JJ glanced over at him and offered a wan little smile that made his heart thump painfully. JJ hated being helpless even more than Drake did. It almost bordered on an obsession. After they had garnered all the information they were likely to from this crime scene, they walked back to Drake’s car; Drake unconsciously shifting to keep his body between JJ and the worst of the cold winds that whistled through the parking garage.
JJ noticed the maneuver and smiled to himself. While he would hesitate to actually call them lovers, it was clear that Drake was instinctively acting the part. When they got in the car, JJ turned a glowing smile on his partner. “Thanks for the loan of the coat, Drake.”
Drake shrugged but the tips of his ears flushed red with embarrassment. “No big deal. How many years you been here and you’re still not used to the cold? I’d think you knew better than to go anywhere with nothing but that thin jacket.”
JJ impulsively scooted over and slipped his arms around Drake’s waist. He felt Drake stiffen before consciously forcing himself to relax and drape an arm around JJ’s shoulder’s in return. What had been a normal gesture had suddenly developed whole new layers of meaning. JJ sighed and broke the tension with a lighthearted chuckle. “Much as I’d like to stay right here for the rest of the night, we have another scene to visit.”
Drake nodded, obviously relieved, and removed his arm from around JJ to start the car. JJ surprised him with a stolen kiss before smugly moving back to his own seat. Drake was just too adorable when he blushed like that.
“Right.” Drake scowled as he negotiated his way out of the parking garage. He pulled a cigarette from the pack on the dash and lit it with soft growl. “I don’t like this, JJ. Our killer’s upping the stakes. First few victims were month apart, then a month, then weeks and now, barely days. This doesn’t feel right. It’s like the whole thing’s planned out and we’re just groping in the dark.”
“Groping in the dark can be fun too.” JJ offered with a wink to show Drake he was kidding. “But seriously, you’re right. This has felt off since Rose handed this one to us.” JJ frowned and chewed absently on his lower lips as he thought. “He’s been careful. No slip-ups but the rune found at the last scene. It’s like he’s playing us.”
Drake had to drag his eyes away from the sight of that pink lip being caught between white teeth and force himself to concentrate on the road. So wasn’t the time for this! “I don’t like being played. What about a slip-up? I kinda had other things on my mind.”
JJ had to laugh. “The dead girl was holding a rune made of the finger bone of a previous victim, or what Jim thinks is one. He’s got the bone for analysis. I think that might have been a real slip on our killer’s part.” JJ frowned thoughtfully. “Ryo-sempai and I looked up the meanings of the runes that he cut into the last victim.”
Drake tilted his head as he listened to JJ rattle off the meanings of the runes. It took the entire drive to the second scene and Drake stopped the car as JJ detailed the theory that the runes were a deliberate attempt to influence the results of the predictions. Drake shook his head. “Don’t know, JJ. I don’t hold much with things like that. Could be.”
JJ shrugged. “This all came out of a paper I wrote back in college. It’s all guesswork and speculation anyhow.”
Drake nodded agreement and slipped out of the car. “It’s something, JJ. Don’t doubt yourself so much.” JJ followed him into the warehouse where the body had been discovered. Drake blessed the weather for turning colder as he caught the first hint of corruption. They passed a rookie who was pale as a sheet. Drake clapped him on the shoulder. “Go outside and get some air, kid, before you pass out.”
The rookie’s eyes were almost crossed with the effort not to lose the contents of his stomach. “But…”
“Go.”
With relief, the kid bolted for the open door. Drake sighed and immediately wished he hadn’t. His stomach lurched it’s own protest and reminder that he hadn’t eaten since yesterday morning. Bile burned in the back of his throat. He jumped when a pack of spearmint gum was thrust under his nose. “Here.”
He glanced back at JJ, who grinned around a piece of his own. “Something one of my instructors at the academy taught me. She trained with forensics before becoming an instructor. Don’t chew it. Just hold it in your cheek. It should help block out the smell and keep you from blowing chunks like the rookie.” He cocked a thumb over his shoulder where the younger man had fled.
Drake chuckled wryly as he accepted the stick of gum. “I think I would have liked that instructor.” He popped the gum in his cheek and proceeded into the depths of the warehouse. It helped, but he still had to rein in the nausea as they found a group of forensics investigators. Jim waved at them from where he crouched by the body. “Hey, guys.”
JJ returned the wave as Drake studied the body sprawled on the concrete floor, at the foot of one of the massive girders that supported the second story of the structure. Jim nodded at him as he moved over so Drake could kneel too. “You noticed too?”
Drake swallowed harshly. “Yeah. She was chained to the girder before she died. He must have cut her loose after he killed her.” Though the body lay crumpled over its own folded legs, the pool of congealed blood and viscera proved she had met the same fate as Merrick, Branson and many others. “Damn, I want this guy stopped. You heard the news yet, Jim?”
Jim looked up. “What news? I’ve been here since I got the call. What happened?”
Drake told Jim about the disappearance of Richmond’s daughter while JJ used a pen to turn over one of the corpse’s flaccid arms. Even through the clotted black blood, he could see that this girl's arms were decorated with more runes. “Jim, when you autopsy, get us clean photos of the cuts on her arms. I want to see if they match the incisions on the Merrick girl.”
“Copy that. So you think our boy got to Richmond and her friends?”
“Fraid so. I’m worried about Marty. We all live with the knowledge that our next day on the job might be our last, but we never think of something like this happening to our families.” Drake said grimly.
“No kidding. Shit, I hope we find this guy before he adds a cop’s daughter and a DA’s daughter to his list of victims.” Jim rose to his feet with a grimace. “We have the results on this one to you by this time tomorrow. Sooner if I pull an all-nighter.”
As they walked back to the car, past the pale and shaking rookie, Drake frowned thoughtfully. “Okay, so now it’s pretty obvious that our killer has a beef with Richmond, but what connection to our victims did Richmond have? Or was it just random girls the approximate age of his daughter? Was there any other linking factor?”
JJ remained silent and let Drake talk. After years of being partnered with the other man, he knew Drake occasionally would talk out a deduction process. Like a dog with a bone, he would gnaw and gnaw until he had gotten every last bit of information that he could and begin to piece it together. JJ knew to stay quiet and offer noncommittal sounds as Drake dissected everything they knew. Sometimes he’d come up with something none of the others had never even connected to the case.
JJ leaned back in his seat as Drake stared into the darkening sky, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. “No. There has to be a connection. We’re just not seeing it. Or looking hard enough. There’s something we’re missing. I know it.” He started the car and headed back the way they had come.
JJ blinked in surprise as Drake passed the turn that would have taken them to his place and then the one that would have led to JJ’s apartment. “Drake? Where are we going?”
“Back to the station.” Drake replied shortly. “I want to do some digging.”
“Now?” JJ resisted the urge to whine. “We’re off duty.”
Drake barely spared him a glance. “We may not have much time. If he’s already started his sick games on those girls, tomorrow may be too late.”
Ten minutes later had them back at the station with Drake at his computer matching information on all of their current victims and JJ fetching first coffee and then files from the archives. A sleepy-eyed Hinata finally gave JJ the key and excused herself. “I’m going home and getting some sleep. You should try it sometimes, I’ve heard it’s wonderful thing. Make sure you lock up sometime before I come on for my shift tomorrow. Got it?”
JJ offered her a sheepish grin and trotted back to their office with the stack of files. He wasn’t sure what Drake was looking for, but he’d had JJ pull all files for the past six years in which Richmond had played prosecuting attorney.
Drake was engrossed in something on the computer when he arrived, so JJ set the files down with a thump. “More coffee?” Drake made an ambiguous sound and JJ scowled down at him, annoyance finally getting the upper hand. This was getting ridiculous. “Doughnuts? Chinese? Old newspaper clippings? A blowjob?”
Drake’s head snapped up so fast JJ could hear the vertebrae pop. His cheeks flamed red and he seemed to be at a loss for words, mouth gaping open like a fish out of water.
JJ resisted the urge to smile triumphantly. “Should I take that as a yes?” He perched a hip on the corner of Drake’s desk and offered him a smugly seductive look.
“J-JJ…” Drake seemed to be having trouble breathing.
JJ thumped him playfully on the forehead. “Relax, you lunk. I was just kidding.”
Drake managed a frown. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to get you to clue me in.” JJ sighed. “As much as I’m used to the sudden bursts of inspiration, I don’t like being left out or ignored. Tell me what you’re looking for and maybe I can help.”
Drake looked down, the high color in his cheeks easing. “Just a hunch. Somehow all of these victims have to be related, but I don’t know how. Settlesand is a runaway, Burkes worked at a convenience store and goes to a public high school over in Queens. Pierce dropped out and worked in a tattoo parlor over on Ninth. Rimes finished high school a year early and was just being accepted to MIT. Branson just transferred back into the same school Ryo’s kid goes to. She lived in Arizona with her grandmother for the past three years before her mother regained custody. Merrick went to the same Catholic school as Tiffany Richmond. None of the earlier victims seem to have any link either. It seems random but there has to be a connection.”
JJ leaned back and picked up a file at random from the pile he had retrieved. “So what have you come up with so far?” He flipped open the file and began to scan the pages. Richmond had put away a small-time jewel thief who was preying on little old ladies. The man was still serving his sentence upstate. He set that file down and picked up another.
“Jack all!” Drake grumped. “So far I can’t find a single connection.” JJ put down the file about the arsonist Richmond had gotten a conviction on and picked up another. “But I got one of those hunches. Y’know?”
JJ did know. He’d learned to trust Drake’s hunches a long time ago. But sometime Drake tried too hard and wound up getting so tangled in the struggle that he forgot just what he’d thought of. JJ sighed and stuffed the remainder of the files in his old briefcase. “C’mon. Save those files and grab your laptop. We need to get out of here for a while.”
Drake scowled at him but JJ just reached around him and saved the file Drake had been reading. “Move it, Parker.”
When Drake remained obstinately sitting, JJ reached down and grabbed his collar, dragging him into a quick kiss. Drake tensed before slowly relaxing into the kiss. JJ pulled back and tapped him on the nose. “You need to get out of here. We’re off duty, so we can work on this someplace else.”
Drake nodded, still flushed. He shoved his laptop in the battered leather case and picked up the scattered papers he’d been looking at, shoving them into the side pocket. JJ Handed Drake his briefcase with an impish smile. “Here. Meet me at the car. I have to lock up the archives.”
Ten minutes later, they were in JJ’s car and on the way to one of Drake’s favorite watering spots. The Dis Patch Bar was run by a former dispatcher and a favorite haunt of most of the 27th. Drake was particularly fond of the owner, Kellie. She had a soft spot for him too, taking him under her wing when he was still just a wet behind the ears rookie.
The bar was quiet when they arrived, it being a little early for the major shift change at the precinct. A couple of guys from traffic waved a friendly greeting before returning to the game of pool they had started. Drake and JJ settled into a booth by the end of the bar with a pitcher of draft pulled for them by Danni, Kellie’s current pet project.
Drake had busted Danni for soliciting a month ago. She was relatively new at turning tricks, having just come into New York from her small Mississippi hometown. Drake had tossed her in a holding cell with a handful of hardened prostitutes for a couple of hours. When he came back for her, she was nearly in tears. Drake had taken her to the bar in a effort to get her to go back home, but after a crying jag followed by the confession that her father had broken her nose twice and her wrist once, he’d been left floundering when Kellie had stepped in. “You old enough to serve drinks, Kiddo?”
After an affirmative, Kellie had grinned at Drake. “Leave her to me. Since Dave went off to follow his dreams, I’ve been short a server.”
Drake had to admit; Kellie had done wonders with the sullen, frightened girl. Danni grinned at him as she hurried to take another pitcher of draft to the small group at one of the pool tables.
“She looks better, doesn’t she?” A warm, amused voice spoke from behind him and Drake rose to his feet to engulf the lean woman in a bear hug.
Kellie rapped him on the back of the head. “Off, you. What brings you here at such a late hour? Or is it early? Which shift are you on this week?” She dropped down on the end on the bench and grinned at JJ. “Hey, boyo, are you ever going to tell me what bottle you got that hair color from?”
JJ flushed. Since the first time Drake had brought him here, Kellie had promptly taken to him, teasing him about his oddly-colored mane. “How many times do I have to tell you it’s natural?”
“Probably a billion or so. I’ve never seen that color in nature.” Kellie grinned at him and dropped a bowl of salted macadamia nuts in front of him. JJ had a weakness for them and she knew it, making sure she had a ready supply whenever he accompanied Drake to the bar, which was more often than not lately. “So what brings you and a pile of files to my doorstep tonight?”
Drake sighed. “We’re having a little trouble with a case.”
“Mmm, the same one that had Dee and Randy in here earlier? Must be one heck of a mess to get all of you this twisted up.”
“That’s the understatement of the year.” JJ snorted as he popped a handful of nuts into his mouth.
Kellie regarded the pile of files on her burnished table and rose with a sigh. “Well, I’ll leave you to it then. Call me if you need anything.”
She strode back to the bar, pausing to give the stuttering old jukebox a swift kick in the side. It groaned and promptly began playing “Goodbye Earl.”
Drake chuckled at her and flipped open his laptop. JJ shook his head at Drake and began to sort the stack of file into something resembling order. An hour and two beers later, they were still no closer to figuring out what the connection was. Drake let JJ pore over the files on his laptop, while he tackled the stack of papers.
Kellie sauntered back over as JJ headed for the bathroom in the back. “You could be a little less obvious about staring at his ass, my dear.”
Drake jumped a foot and turned to face her. “Wha…?”
Kellie offered him a motherly grin. “Did you think you could hide it from me? I’ve known you for how many years now?” She chided as she tugged gently on a lock of his hair. “Anymore, he’s the only one you come in here with.” She chuckled. “I haven’t seen you in her with a woman since you broke up with that last one… I forget her name… but the one with the penchant for low-cut dresses and cheating at pool.”
Drake flushed. He had been angry with JJ then and full of jealousy that he had refused to admit to. Jillena had offered the perfect distraction and for a time, she’d kept him distracted with her whirlwind personality and random bouts of lovemaking (She liked to sneak up on him and pounce, no matter where they were). But when she’d broken it off, she had smiled sadly and kissed him one last time. “There’s someone between us, and you know who it is. I can’t compete.” Her sultry eyes had darkened. “I hope they realize how lucky they are to have your heart.”
Drake had been heart-broken, but the truth of what she had said had shaken him more than her leaving.
Kellie sat next to him with a smile, startling him out of the memories. “And, lets face it, do you think I couldn’t recognize the signs after seeing Dee and Randy in here all the time? You’ve got it bad.”
Drake lowered his head. He’d forgotten just how good Kellie was at seeing right through him. “You… how long have you known?”
She regarded him solemnly, though her green eyes danced with suppressed laughter. “That you’ve cared for him more than just as a partner? Years now. That you’ve finally realized it? Only very recently.”
Drake’s attempt to formulate a reply was cut short by JJ’s return from the bathroom. He looked quizzically at Kellie sitting next to Drake.
She grinned at JJ. “I just came to see if you two needed a refill.”
JJ glanced at the nearly empty pitcher sitting amidst the scattered files. “Ugh. No thanks. I’ve about had my fill of lukewarm beer tonight. How bout a glass of white wine instead?”
Drake stifled a sigh, even as he was glad for the interruption. He’d been about to ask for more beer. “Make it two.” He’d never cared for white wine (too dry) but had learned to tolerate it for JJ’s sake. The smile he got from JJ every time he ordered a glass too was more than worth it.
The smile he got, but he was also gifted with a raised eyebrow from Kellie and a look that clearly asked, ‘Oh, and are we developing a palate for wine now?’ But she just smiled and went to get their drinks.
She returned promptly and JJ began to shift files to make room for the glasses. Drake lifted the empty pitcher and mugs and warned JJ, “Don’t mix those in with the rest. Everything in that pile is a case where the perp is still in prison, or dead.”
JJ paused and frowned at the small stack of files. “Is that all of them?”
“Others are out on bail or skipped out on parole.” Drake said as he rose from his seat to hand Danni the empties. “Of that pile, Galloti, Morris and Owens are still safely behind bars. Treig died before his court date of an embolism, Hayle died in a prison riot, and Selas committed suicide. So those six are out of the running to be our killer.”
But JJ had frozen in place and turned slowly to stare at Drake, blue eyes wide. “Say those last three again?”
A/N- Ouch! Stop throwing things, Akita. That wasn’t a cliffhanger. You’ll know when it’s a cliffhanger. Anybody figure out what JJ did? Anybody? Don’t ask Akita. She doesn’t have a clue. Next chapter won’t be too much longer. Promise.
A/N- Sorry it took so very long to update this one, loyal readers (all two of them). Akita, that wasn’t nice. Anyway, a lot’s been happening here and needless to say we got more than a little behind. They finally hired more folks at the office, so Akita’s been getting home at something resembling a decent hour (If you call ten at night a decent hour). Forgive her, please, she hasn’t had sleep or chocolate recently. Catti, thanks for the reminders that our loyal fans are armed and dangerous and impatient. Hana-the bar scene is for you. It was the only part of the chapter already mostly written when you posted “Moments Like This.” So, you can see what a wonderful job you did with Kellie.
When Drake and JJ arrived at the scene, Berkley Rose was already waiting for them, a grim expression on his face as the wind whipped his long coat around his legs. JJ shivered as he climbed out of Drake’s car and hunched deeper into his jacket. Born and raised in southern LA, he had next to no tolerance for New York’s colder clime.
Drake sighed and draped his battered brown leather trenchcoat over JJ’s thinner shoulders. JJ offered him a warm smile and huddled gratefully into it as they hurried across the parking garage to where Rose waited. “I know you’re sick, Parker,” He greeted them perfunctorily. “But as the lead investigators on this particular case, I needed you here.”
Drake nodded his understanding, glad that the cold wind hid the burning of his cheeks. “What do we know?”
“Somehow, don’t ask me how, four girls managed to sneak out from under the noses of three men trained in surveillance and decided to cut school.” His scathing tone showed what he thought of that occurrence. “We’ve called the school and managed to identify the girls who snuck out with Miss Richmond. You already know about one, Marty’s girl, and the others were I.D.ed as Sarah Brigmont and Mei Lin Roberts, both friends of Richmond.” Rose scowled at the forensics team that had swarmed the sleek little Jaguar. “They’ve been missing since one and then a mall security sweep discovered the car abandoned here with blood on the seats about an hour ago.”
Drake glanced at JJ and together they headed for the car. Years of practice at dissecting crime scenes allowed Drake to stay neatly out of the way of the forensic examiners while still getting a good look at the interior of the car. Blood had dried to a sticky fan pattern on the dash and console. “Looks like he took the driver by surprise, either knocked her out or killed her outright.”
JJ leaned in and added his own assessment. “He probably had a gun and threatened the rest of them with it.” He pointed to a smear of blood on the center console that spread over to the side of the passengers seat. “It looks like he shoved the driver over and got behind the wheel himself.”
Drake glanced back over his shoulder at Rose. “Do we have surveillance from the mall? The parking garage elevators, maybe? That should tell us whether the girls were actually at the mall or if this is just the place he abandoned the car.”
Rose nodded, his scowl lightening a little. “There’s a camera in the parking garage elevator and at the main entrance from street level. I’ve got men securing the recordings as we speak.”
Drake scowled thoughtfully. “I hate asking this, but does Marty know yet?”
Rose looked grimmer than he had when they first arrived. “Unfortunately, yes. He’s understandably upset.” From the tone of the commissioner’s voice, Drake knew that was the understatement of the year. Marty was doubtless ready to strangle their killer with his bare hands. “As of today, he’s been removed from this investigation.”
Drake understood the need for that precaution, but doubted Marty cared right now. “You might want to keep a weather eye on him, sir. Marty knows the rules, but this just got personal. I think we all know that his family is the most important thing in his life.” Beside him, JJ was nodding agreement. Despite the grimness of the situation, Drake found himself unable to look at JJ’s face without turning red, so he glanced away quickly. Better to concentrate on what had just become very, very personal to one of their friends, rather than on this new, unexpected shift in his world.
JJ glanced over at him and offered a wan little smile that made his heart thump painfully. JJ hated being helpless even more than Drake did. It almost bordered on an obsession. After they had garnered all the information they were likely to from this crime scene, they walked back to Drake’s car; Drake unconsciously shifting to keep his body between JJ and the worst of the cold winds that whistled through the parking garage.
JJ noticed the maneuver and smiled to himself. While he would hesitate to actually call them lovers, it was clear that Drake was instinctively acting the part. When they got in the car, JJ turned a glowing smile on his partner. “Thanks for the loan of the coat, Drake.”
Drake shrugged but the tips of his ears flushed red with embarrassment. “No big deal. How many years you been here and you’re still not used to the cold? I’d think you knew better than to go anywhere with nothing but that thin jacket.”
JJ impulsively scooted over and slipped his arms around Drake’s waist. He felt Drake stiffen before consciously forcing himself to relax and drape an arm around JJ’s shoulder’s in return. What had been a normal gesture had suddenly developed whole new layers of meaning. JJ sighed and broke the tension with a lighthearted chuckle. “Much as I’d like to stay right here for the rest of the night, we have another scene to visit.”
Drake nodded, obviously relieved, and removed his arm from around JJ to start the car. JJ surprised him with a stolen kiss before smugly moving back to his own seat. Drake was just too adorable when he blushed like that.
“Right.” Drake scowled as he negotiated his way out of the parking garage. He pulled a cigarette from the pack on the dash and lit it with soft growl. “I don’t like this, JJ. Our killer’s upping the stakes. First few victims were month apart, then a month, then weeks and now, barely days. This doesn’t feel right. It’s like the whole thing’s planned out and we’re just groping in the dark.”
“Groping in the dark can be fun too.” JJ offered with a wink to show Drake he was kidding. “But seriously, you’re right. This has felt off since Rose handed this one to us.” JJ frowned and chewed absently on his lower lips as he thought. “He’s been careful. No slip-ups but the rune found at the last scene. It’s like he’s playing us.”
Drake had to drag his eyes away from the sight of that pink lip being caught between white teeth and force himself to concentrate on the road. So wasn’t the time for this! “I don’t like being played. What about a slip-up? I kinda had other things on my mind.”
JJ had to laugh. “The dead girl was holding a rune made of the finger bone of a previous victim, or what Jim thinks is one. He’s got the bone for analysis. I think that might have been a real slip on our killer’s part.” JJ frowned thoughtfully. “Ryo-sempai and I looked up the meanings of the runes that he cut into the last victim.”
Drake tilted his head as he listened to JJ rattle off the meanings of the runes. It took the entire drive to the second scene and Drake stopped the car as JJ detailed the theory that the runes were a deliberate attempt to influence the results of the predictions. Drake shook his head. “Don’t know, JJ. I don’t hold much with things like that. Could be.”
JJ shrugged. “This all came out of a paper I wrote back in college. It’s all guesswork and speculation anyhow.”
Drake nodded agreement and slipped out of the car. “It’s something, JJ. Don’t doubt yourself so much.” JJ followed him into the warehouse where the body had been discovered. Drake blessed the weather for turning colder as he caught the first hint of corruption. They passed a rookie who was pale as a sheet. Drake clapped him on the shoulder. “Go outside and get some air, kid, before you pass out.”
The rookie’s eyes were almost crossed with the effort not to lose the contents of his stomach. “But…”
“Go.”
With relief, the kid bolted for the open door. Drake sighed and immediately wished he hadn’t. His stomach lurched it’s own protest and reminder that he hadn’t eaten since yesterday morning. Bile burned in the back of his throat. He jumped when a pack of spearmint gum was thrust under his nose. “Here.”
He glanced back at JJ, who grinned around a piece of his own. “Something one of my instructors at the academy taught me. She trained with forensics before becoming an instructor. Don’t chew it. Just hold it in your cheek. It should help block out the smell and keep you from blowing chunks like the rookie.” He cocked a thumb over his shoulder where the younger man had fled.
Drake chuckled wryly as he accepted the stick of gum. “I think I would have liked that instructor.” He popped the gum in his cheek and proceeded into the depths of the warehouse. It helped, but he still had to rein in the nausea as they found a group of forensics investigators. Jim waved at them from where he crouched by the body. “Hey, guys.”
JJ returned the wave as Drake studied the body sprawled on the concrete floor, at the foot of one of the massive girders that supported the second story of the structure. Jim nodded at him as he moved over so Drake could kneel too. “You noticed too?”
Drake swallowed harshly. “Yeah. She was chained to the girder before she died. He must have cut her loose after he killed her.” Though the body lay crumpled over its own folded legs, the pool of congealed blood and viscera proved she had met the same fate as Merrick, Branson and many others. “Damn, I want this guy stopped. You heard the news yet, Jim?”
Jim looked up. “What news? I’ve been here since I got the call. What happened?”
Drake told Jim about the disappearance of Richmond’s daughter while JJ used a pen to turn over one of the corpse’s flaccid arms. Even through the clotted black blood, he could see that this girl's arms were decorated with more runes. “Jim, when you autopsy, get us clean photos of the cuts on her arms. I want to see if they match the incisions on the Merrick girl.”
“Copy that. So you think our boy got to Richmond and her friends?”
“Fraid so. I’m worried about Marty. We all live with the knowledge that our next day on the job might be our last, but we never think of something like this happening to our families.” Drake said grimly.
“No kidding. Shit, I hope we find this guy before he adds a cop’s daughter and a DA’s daughter to his list of victims.” Jim rose to his feet with a grimace. “We have the results on this one to you by this time tomorrow. Sooner if I pull an all-nighter.”
As they walked back to the car, past the pale and shaking rookie, Drake frowned thoughtfully. “Okay, so now it’s pretty obvious that our killer has a beef with Richmond, but what connection to our victims did Richmond have? Or was it just random girls the approximate age of his daughter? Was there any other linking factor?”
JJ remained silent and let Drake talk. After years of being partnered with the other man, he knew Drake occasionally would talk out a deduction process. Like a dog with a bone, he would gnaw and gnaw until he had gotten every last bit of information that he could and begin to piece it together. JJ knew to stay quiet and offer noncommittal sounds as Drake dissected everything they knew. Sometimes he’d come up with something none of the others had never even connected to the case.
JJ leaned back in his seat as Drake stared into the darkening sky, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. “No. There has to be a connection. We’re just not seeing it. Or looking hard enough. There’s something we’re missing. I know it.” He started the car and headed back the way they had come.
JJ blinked in surprise as Drake passed the turn that would have taken them to his place and then the one that would have led to JJ’s apartment. “Drake? Where are we going?”
“Back to the station.” Drake replied shortly. “I want to do some digging.”
“Now?” JJ resisted the urge to whine. “We’re off duty.”
Drake barely spared him a glance. “We may not have much time. If he’s already started his sick games on those girls, tomorrow may be too late.”
Ten minutes later had them back at the station with Drake at his computer matching information on all of their current victims and JJ fetching first coffee and then files from the archives. A sleepy-eyed Hinata finally gave JJ the key and excused herself. “I’m going home and getting some sleep. You should try it sometimes, I’ve heard it’s wonderful thing. Make sure you lock up sometime before I come on for my shift tomorrow. Got it?”
JJ offered her a sheepish grin and trotted back to their office with the stack of files. He wasn’t sure what Drake was looking for, but he’d had JJ pull all files for the past six years in which Richmond had played prosecuting attorney.
Drake was engrossed in something on the computer when he arrived, so JJ set the files down with a thump. “More coffee?” Drake made an ambiguous sound and JJ scowled down at him, annoyance finally getting the upper hand. This was getting ridiculous. “Doughnuts? Chinese? Old newspaper clippings? A blowjob?”
Drake’s head snapped up so fast JJ could hear the vertebrae pop. His cheeks flamed red and he seemed to be at a loss for words, mouth gaping open like a fish out of water.
JJ resisted the urge to smile triumphantly. “Should I take that as a yes?” He perched a hip on the corner of Drake’s desk and offered him a smugly seductive look.
“J-JJ…” Drake seemed to be having trouble breathing.
JJ thumped him playfully on the forehead. “Relax, you lunk. I was just kidding.”
Drake managed a frown. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to get you to clue me in.” JJ sighed. “As much as I’m used to the sudden bursts of inspiration, I don’t like being left out or ignored. Tell me what you’re looking for and maybe I can help.”
Drake looked down, the high color in his cheeks easing. “Just a hunch. Somehow all of these victims have to be related, but I don’t know how. Settlesand is a runaway, Burkes worked at a convenience store and goes to a public high school over in Queens. Pierce dropped out and worked in a tattoo parlor over on Ninth. Rimes finished high school a year early and was just being accepted to MIT. Branson just transferred back into the same school Ryo’s kid goes to. She lived in Arizona with her grandmother for the past three years before her mother regained custody. Merrick went to the same Catholic school as Tiffany Richmond. None of the earlier victims seem to have any link either. It seems random but there has to be a connection.”
JJ leaned back and picked up a file at random from the pile he had retrieved. “So what have you come up with so far?” He flipped open the file and began to scan the pages. Richmond had put away a small-time jewel thief who was preying on little old ladies. The man was still serving his sentence upstate. He set that file down and picked up another.
“Jack all!” Drake grumped. “So far I can’t find a single connection.” JJ put down the file about the arsonist Richmond had gotten a conviction on and picked up another. “But I got one of those hunches. Y’know?”
JJ did know. He’d learned to trust Drake’s hunches a long time ago. But sometime Drake tried too hard and wound up getting so tangled in the struggle that he forgot just what he’d thought of. JJ sighed and stuffed the remainder of the files in his old briefcase. “C’mon. Save those files and grab your laptop. We need to get out of here for a while.”
Drake scowled at him but JJ just reached around him and saved the file Drake had been reading. “Move it, Parker.”
When Drake remained obstinately sitting, JJ reached down and grabbed his collar, dragging him into a quick kiss. Drake tensed before slowly relaxing into the kiss. JJ pulled back and tapped him on the nose. “You need to get out of here. We’re off duty, so we can work on this someplace else.”
Drake nodded, still flushed. He shoved his laptop in the battered leather case and picked up the scattered papers he’d been looking at, shoving them into the side pocket. JJ Handed Drake his briefcase with an impish smile. “Here. Meet me at the car. I have to lock up the archives.”
Ten minutes later, they were in JJ’s car and on the way to one of Drake’s favorite watering spots. The Dis Patch Bar was run by a former dispatcher and a favorite haunt of most of the 27th. Drake was particularly fond of the owner, Kellie. She had a soft spot for him too, taking him under her wing when he was still just a wet behind the ears rookie.
The bar was quiet when they arrived, it being a little early for the major shift change at the precinct. A couple of guys from traffic waved a friendly greeting before returning to the game of pool they had started. Drake and JJ settled into a booth by the end of the bar with a pitcher of draft pulled for them by Danni, Kellie’s current pet project.
Drake had busted Danni for soliciting a month ago. She was relatively new at turning tricks, having just come into New York from her small Mississippi hometown. Drake had tossed her in a holding cell with a handful of hardened prostitutes for a couple of hours. When he came back for her, she was nearly in tears. Drake had taken her to the bar in a effort to get her to go back home, but after a crying jag followed by the confession that her father had broken her nose twice and her wrist once, he’d been left floundering when Kellie had stepped in. “You old enough to serve drinks, Kiddo?”
After an affirmative, Kellie had grinned at Drake. “Leave her to me. Since Dave went off to follow his dreams, I’ve been short a server.”
Drake had to admit; Kellie had done wonders with the sullen, frightened girl. Danni grinned at him as she hurried to take another pitcher of draft to the small group at one of the pool tables.
“She looks better, doesn’t she?” A warm, amused voice spoke from behind him and Drake rose to his feet to engulf the lean woman in a bear hug.
Kellie rapped him on the back of the head. “Off, you. What brings you here at such a late hour? Or is it early? Which shift are you on this week?” She dropped down on the end on the bench and grinned at JJ. “Hey, boyo, are you ever going to tell me what bottle you got that hair color from?”
JJ flushed. Since the first time Drake had brought him here, Kellie had promptly taken to him, teasing him about his oddly-colored mane. “How many times do I have to tell you it’s natural?”
“Probably a billion or so. I’ve never seen that color in nature.” Kellie grinned at him and dropped a bowl of salted macadamia nuts in front of him. JJ had a weakness for them and she knew it, making sure she had a ready supply whenever he accompanied Drake to the bar, which was more often than not lately. “So what brings you and a pile of files to my doorstep tonight?”
Drake sighed. “We’re having a little trouble with a case.”
“Mmm, the same one that had Dee and Randy in here earlier? Must be one heck of a mess to get all of you this twisted up.”
“That’s the understatement of the year.” JJ snorted as he popped a handful of nuts into his mouth.
Kellie regarded the pile of files on her burnished table and rose with a sigh. “Well, I’ll leave you to it then. Call me if you need anything.”
She strode back to the bar, pausing to give the stuttering old jukebox a swift kick in the side. It groaned and promptly began playing “Goodbye Earl.”
Drake chuckled at her and flipped open his laptop. JJ shook his head at Drake and began to sort the stack of file into something resembling order. An hour and two beers later, they were still no closer to figuring out what the connection was. Drake let JJ pore over the files on his laptop, while he tackled the stack of papers.
Kellie sauntered back over as JJ headed for the bathroom in the back. “You could be a little less obvious about staring at his ass, my dear.”
Drake jumped a foot and turned to face her. “Wha…?”
Kellie offered him a motherly grin. “Did you think you could hide it from me? I’ve known you for how many years now?” She chided as she tugged gently on a lock of his hair. “Anymore, he’s the only one you come in here with.” She chuckled. “I haven’t seen you in her with a woman since you broke up with that last one… I forget her name… but the one with the penchant for low-cut dresses and cheating at pool.”
Drake flushed. He had been angry with JJ then and full of jealousy that he had refused to admit to. Jillena had offered the perfect distraction and for a time, she’d kept him distracted with her whirlwind personality and random bouts of lovemaking (She liked to sneak up on him and pounce, no matter where they were). But when she’d broken it off, she had smiled sadly and kissed him one last time. “There’s someone between us, and you know who it is. I can’t compete.” Her sultry eyes had darkened. “I hope they realize how lucky they are to have your heart.”
Drake had been heart-broken, but the truth of what she had said had shaken him more than her leaving.
Kellie sat next to him with a smile, startling him out of the memories. “And, lets face it, do you think I couldn’t recognize the signs after seeing Dee and Randy in here all the time? You’ve got it bad.”
Drake lowered his head. He’d forgotten just how good Kellie was at seeing right through him. “You… how long have you known?”
She regarded him solemnly, though her green eyes danced with suppressed laughter. “That you’ve cared for him more than just as a partner? Years now. That you’ve finally realized it? Only very recently.”
Drake’s attempt to formulate a reply was cut short by JJ’s return from the bathroom. He looked quizzically at Kellie sitting next to Drake.
She grinned at JJ. “I just came to see if you two needed a refill.”
JJ glanced at the nearly empty pitcher sitting amidst the scattered files. “Ugh. No thanks. I’ve about had my fill of lukewarm beer tonight. How bout a glass of white wine instead?”
Drake stifled a sigh, even as he was glad for the interruption. He’d been about to ask for more beer. “Make it two.” He’d never cared for white wine (too dry) but had learned to tolerate it for JJ’s sake. The smile he got from JJ every time he ordered a glass too was more than worth it.
The smile he got, but he was also gifted with a raised eyebrow from Kellie and a look that clearly asked, ‘Oh, and are we developing a palate for wine now?’ But she just smiled and went to get their drinks.
She returned promptly and JJ began to shift files to make room for the glasses. Drake lifted the empty pitcher and mugs and warned JJ, “Don’t mix those in with the rest. Everything in that pile is a case where the perp is still in prison, or dead.”
JJ paused and frowned at the small stack of files. “Is that all of them?”
“Others are out on bail or skipped out on parole.” Drake said as he rose from his seat to hand Danni the empties. “Of that pile, Galloti, Morris and Owens are still safely behind bars. Treig died before his court date of an embolism, Hayle died in a prison riot, and Selas committed suicide. So those six are out of the running to be our killer.”
But JJ had frozen in place and turned slowly to stare at Drake, blue eyes wide. “Say those last three again?”
A/N- Ouch! Stop throwing things, Akita. That wasn’t a cliffhanger. You’ll know when it’s a cliffhanger. Anybody figure out what JJ did? Anybody? Don’t ask Akita. She doesn’t have a clue. Next chapter won’t be too much longer. Promise.