Snippet #2597760

As promised, by Friday morning Kat finished creating a properly convincing paper trail for one Joanne Harper, out of state college student from Hicksville Virginia, complete with Driver's licence, Student ID, and two credit cards. Now she just had to finish dressing for the part. She's taken the liberty of pilfering through Arey's closet for something a little more "grown up" to wear. Somehow she didn't think a Batman T and a pair of red chucks was going to sell the whole ‘eighteen and country’ look she was going for here. The casual floral print dress and complimenting pink cardigan were seriously not her style, but hey, method acting, she suffered for her craft. The rounded black wedge heels added a little height too, and with some softly curled hair and skillfully applied make-up, Kat was confident she could pass for a young eighteen. Now she just needed to go find her ride.

Kat didn't think Tim had class on Friday mornings, so she went looking for him to bum a ride to the police station, as that would seriously suck taking the bus, which was her plan B.

Tim laid on his bed, showered and dressed. He was tired but not willing to sleep. He had gotten up when Arey left for the morning, had breakfast and showered but now he didn't have the motivation to do much of anything.

The knock on his door made him frown and hop up.

He opened the door and stood there for a moment, stunned into silence. "Uh....hi Kat. That is...well...nice dress."

Tim's cheeks turned red and he looked down as he realized he was staring at her.

"Yeah, figures you'd like it." Kat replied with a good natured eye roll. It was Arey's dress after all, of course Tim thought it was nice. To Kat it just felt like a costume. "I'm incognito toots, wanna be my ride to the station?" She asked with a grin. "I'm also going by the name Joanne Harper for the day, hapless country bumpkin and consummate damsel in distress!" Kat declared dramatically in a vaguely southern accent.

"Hey now. It isn't that I like it per say, just more that it is a different look for you. Not bad just...different. Damsel in distress? That will test your acting talents." Tim chuckled.

"Are you saying I don't look pretty?" Kat asked putting on a hurt tone as she got into character. "Well gosh, I spent so much time trying to make myself presentable for those nice officers, and now I just don't know about any of this." She continued, looking down at her shoes in concern, while one of her hands reached up nervously to play with her hair.

Tim stepped forward. He knew she was playing but it pulled at him that Kat might think that he felt that way. "No I don't mean you aren't pretty, you are pretty. I just meant..."

He put an arm around her and hugged her tightly. Something about the way she looked down and played with her hair made Tim want to hold her close. He forgot that she was fifteen, that she was acting. "Hey.." He whispered and hugged her a little tighter. "You look very pretty, you are always pretty though. I was more saying the style of dress was different, not your normal but it isn't bad."

Maybe it was because Kat was in character, or just the fact that it was Tim, but the hug and attention made her blush as she hugged Tim back. Kat didn't blush, or at least she never used to until Tim showed up. God the torch she was holding for this guy could rival the frigging Statue of Liberty's, which was seriously unhealthy considering he had a girlfriend and was all hung up on stupid details like age differences. Kat totally needed to get laid, or at least make out with someone, because repressed teenage hormones sucked and were making her grumpy.

"Well, guess we won't have to worry about my acting now huh?" Kat replied with a wink and a smile, settling back into the easy banter. "Think I can pass for a young eighteen in this getup?"

Tim looked down and smiled. "You will do fine and yes, young eighteen. I believe that." He forced himself to take a step away from her.

"So ride to the police station? I can do that. Let me just grab my wallet and we can head out." Turning he moved back into his room, pulled on a hoodie and slipped a few things into his pockets.

"Let's go." Tim smiled as he led the way to the garage.

"Good." Kat replied satisfied. "I'm gonna need to if I wanna pull off this whole frightened college girl ruse. " Kat waited for Tim to grab his things before following him into the garage.

"Do you wanna go in with me, or stay outside and be the getaway driver?" Kat asked Tim once they'd both gotten into the car. For the most part, Kat thought David was a cool guy. He was one of them, and showed her mad tech skills the respect they deserved. At the same time though, Kat hadn't talked to him since they'd cooked up this plan, and he'd had over a day now away from them to convince himself everything he'd seen was due to drugs again, and try to keep her luscious underaged ass in lock up. It was a possibility that made her a little antsy.

"I will go in with you." Tim said as the car came to life and he pulled out of the garage. "Might be better for you to have someone to help back up your story or at least keep you from possibly tripping yourself up. The cops can ask a lot of questions. Being a whole law school student I might be able to help you if it seems like they aren't listening or whatever." In truth he didn't like the idea of Kat doing this alone. Not because it was dangerous but because it meant she had to navigate all the lies alone and it felt like a lot to put on one person.

"Ok." Kat agreed easily with his point. Having back up for the story would be good, but Tim would have to fit into the story somewhere too.

"What's our relationship then? You're a college guy sacrificing your Friday morning to sit with me in a dank police station, they'll want to know why." Kat asked. "You'll have to use your own identity though, since I didn't have time to make you a convincing alias." Kat reminded, which would rule out the blood relative role.

"Can't I just be me, law student and maybe you came into work to ask for legal advice about this guy?" Tim offered as he drove.

"That's not a bad idea." Kat agreed. "But you're in some of those pictures with me too. That's going to point to at least a prior acquaintance. School friends maybe?" Kat reasoned back.


"Sounds good. Makes sense. Wait what is your name supposed to be again? I want to make sure I don't trip up." Tim chuckled and gave Kat a sheepish smile.

"Joanne Harper, a.k.a. delicate Virginia flower majoring in child psychology." Kat recited back with an answering smile. "How do we know each other, class, club, job?" Kat asked, running through basic details a cop might ask about, even casually. "We're going to go in asking for David, but just in case we should have our ducks in a row." Kat explained as they approached the station.

"Well we could have met in some classes. Law and psyche have some overlap. That work?"

"Yeah, good, that'll work for now." Kat nodded in agreement as they pulled up to the station. She tried to get into character once they got out of the car, one hand fiddling with her dress nervously as the other shakily gripped the now greatly edited stalker file filled with threatening pictures of her and friends. Overall, she was projecting a sense of anxiety that hopefully coupled with her hapless damsel in distress attire, would have every cop in the station falling over themselves to find this guy.

Kat walked closely beside Tim as they entered the station, seeming to take comfort in the silent support he provided as they approached the front desk.

"Can I help you with something Miss?" A bored looking officer behind the desk asked, his eyes flicking up with vague interest from his paperwork. He looked more tired than anything else, which meant he was probably getting ready to come off shift.

"I'm umm...I'm looking for Detective Velazquez." Kat began almost timidly. "My friend Carmen told me to ask for him if I was ever in trouble." She explained.

"Velazquez? Honey, Detective Velazquez works homicide, so unless there's a dead body involved, I'm not sure what he could help you with." The officer, his name tag reading Mahoney, said in confusion. "If you're having problems with something I can help you file a report though, then we can see who we'll need to contact, ok?" Officer Mahoney backtracked apologetically at the sight of Kat's moistening doey eyes.

"Here, let's get you a seat alright. Do you want some coffee or something? The stuff here's nothing gourmet, but it'll warm you up." Officer Mahoney asked jumping out of his seat. "Hey O'Keefe! Grab me some of those blank report files would ya!" He called toward the back.

Tim was silent, letting Kat play the scared young woman. She was doing a great job. The officer at the desk was jumping up to help her. He walked with Kat as the officer led her to a seat.

"You are great doing Joanne. Just tell him everything you told me okay?" He put a hand on Kat's shoulder.

“Ok.” Kat nodded, nervously pulling the selected photos out of her purse to show the two police officers. “I’ve had this weird feeling that someone has been watching me for a while now, but I thought I was just being stupid or paranoid y’know.” Kat began to explain shakily.

“But then the other day, I found these in an envelope outside my door…” Kat cut off tearfully. “Some of the things he says here...I’m just really scared…” She confessed, handing the pictures over to Officer Mahoney.

Officer O’Keefe appeared, forms in hand. He looked over his fellow officers shoulder and frowned. “What’s in the envelope?”

I can’t wait to add that hair to my collection...Maybe I’ll let your boyfriend watch? Holy shit, what a nut bag! Officer Mahoney thought in horror as he flipped through some of the picture. Most had comments, and some of them were pretty explicit about their intentions. He tilted his hands a bit so his partner could get a better look at the photos. “I think we’re gonna need to fill out that paperwork O’Keefe. Maybe get one of the detectives down here too.” He said gravely.

O’Keefe nodded. He was reading the comments on the pictures as Mahoney flipped through them. His stomach knotted. “Right, others….”

He turned and practically ran to find help. O’Keefe darted around desks and made his way to where David Valezquez’s desk was. “Detective?”

David turned as O’Keefe addressed him, “Yeah. What can I do for you O’Keefe? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

O’Keefe shook his head. “Not a ghost but...well the case you are working? The stalker? We might have another for you.”

“Another vic? I haven’t heard anything on the scanner. Is the coroner already there?” David stood and gathered his kit as if getting ready to go. He suspected this was Kat’s play but needed it to look real.

‘Ugh well...she is alive. Here and with pictures. I think you need to come see.” O’Keefe urged.

David frowned, “Well, not my typical area but sure. If you think there’s something related then I’ll check it out.” He followed O’Keefe back to Mahoney’s desk. He saw Tim and Kat, though Kat looked considerably different, sitting in front of the desk. He kept a straight face to hide any recognition, even going so far as to eye Tim suspiciously just to keep him on his toes.

“Hello, I’m detective Velazquez. But you can call me Dave. Officer O’Keefe here wanted me to check out what you brought in here. Can you give me the rundown of what it is that made you want to visit your friendly boys in blue?” David flashed a friendly but neutral smile at Kat and sat down on the corner of Mahoney’s desk.

Tim gave Kat’s shoulder a squeeze. “See they are taking you seriously. Just tell him.”

Kat looked up nervously at David, blushing as if embarrassed by the whole situation, but too afraid to not seek help. Quietly she pushed over the folder full of pictures and began fiddling with her hair. “I think someone’s been following me around. At first it was just a bad feeling, like when you can’t remember if you’d turned the stove off, or when you get this sense that someone’s talking about you across the room at a party. I thought I was just being stupid, or maybe I was just making too much of it, but then the other day these showed up on my doorstep, and I think maybe I need a restraining order? I don’t even know who this guy is, but he’s been taking pictures of me...and the things he wrote in there…” Kat broke off with tears forming in her eyes, looking to all the world as if she were fighting off a panic attack.

David put on his best ‘concerned’ face and picked up the folder, “Well, a restraining order will be hard to serve on someone with no name. So, we’ll need to try and find out who this person is before we can do that. Let me take a look at these and see what...” He faded off. He didn’t have to act all that shocked to see these again. No matter how many times he looked they still creeped him out. Knowing that this was likely the man he had been hunting for some time now made it all that easier to put concern with a touch of anger into his voice, “Ugh. Yeah, I can see why you’d be upset. Okay, Mahoney, O’Keefe, we need to try and get as many details as we can about where these pictures were taken and where these messages were sent from.”

He turned back to Kat and Tim, “Neither of you know anyone who would play a prank on you like this, right? Anybody who you’ve met recently that might have been rubbed the wrong way? Any odd encounters while hanging out, at school, at work, anything like that?”

Tim shook his head. “Not that I know of but this seems really personal.”

“I can’t really think of anyone.” Kat said shaking her head. “But most of these pictures are from campus, so maybe he’s a guy from one of my classes?”

David nodded, “Okay, a fellow student. Someone who’s taken some sort of personal interest in you. Someone who likes old fashioned cameras. We’ll likely need to get some data from camera shops and online sellers. O’Keefe, get the DA on getting us some warrants, okay?”

O’Keefe nodded and headed off to a nearby desk to make the phone call. It took time and he looked intense in his discussions.

“We got warrants on the way. What do you want Detective in terms of manpower?”

“Let’s start looking into Polaroids. Where to get film, that kind of thing. We want to get a list of shops and start asking questions about regular purchasers. If we have to deal with an online shop then we want public terminals in and around the university. There’ll be a fair amount of hunting this down, but it might just give us a lead, finally.”

He turned back to Kat and Tim, “I can work with the university security to try and get them to ramp up patrols, or looking for people with cameras on campus. They might get lucky and nab someone with a Polaroid. I can’t quite offer protective surveillance yet. But we can try and sweep by more often. If you see anything suspicious, call us right away. I’ll come down and check it out personally, if I have to.”

Tim nodded. “What do we do in the meantime? Someone is following her. What if he chooses not to just watch when you aren’t around?”

David frowned. He hated this part the most about the limitations of being a cop, “Try and stay with groups of friends. Make sure you keep your doors locked. Don’t put yourself in situations where you might be cornered. And always have my number easily ready to dial. Short of giving you a full time escort, which I couldn’t do anyway, that’s the best advice I can give.”

Tim nodded. “Maybe you should stay with me, Joanne.”

“Oh, um, sure. I’m mean if you’re offerin’ that is, I do think I’d feel safer if you were around.” Kat blushed in a performance that wasn’t a hundred percent acting.

“I would prefer knowing you were safe and he said to stay in groups.” He smiled down at Kat.

Tim looked over at David. “Detective should I give you my number so you know how to get a hold of us? I would really like to help. I am studying to be a lawyer. I want to make sure that nothing happens that this creep can use to get off scott free once you catch him.”

David suppressed a wince. Too many cooks in the kitchen. However, he knew Tim was just trying to help, “Your number is great. Don’t try to do too much. I appreciate your concern, but we do need to do our due diligence here. We’re pretty good at making sure perps don’t get off scott free.”

Tim nodded, looked appropriately skeptical and then looked at Kat. “We should go.”
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Deirdre rolled over and snuggled into Arin's chest.

"Why am I awake?" Her voice was muffled, her mouth against his skin. "Too tired...sun is evil..."

“Sun means more bike. Never disparage the sun. It goes away soon enough in the winter. Then no more rides. Then you’ll have to walk. So, you sure the sun is evil?” Arin chuckled and ran a hand through her hair.

“Mmm. Rides...okay the sun isn’t totally evil.” She snuggled in closer to him. “Are we going for a ride this morning? We aren’t part of the plan. Can we take off maybe? I will buy breakfast. Tips were good last night.”

“I don’t see why not.” Arin stretched as she cuddled into him, “Not surprised your tips were good. You’re certainly bringing in the guys. I might have to turn up my charm or we’ll get too many guys in and scare the girls away again.” He winked.

“Scare the girls? No boys make girls come and flirt and dance…” Deirdre looked up at Arin. “I don’t mind you being charming and if it means better tips all around then even better. Maybe one day I can go on a vacation. Or maybe we could…” She looked down at his chest and hugged him shyly.

“Well, we’ve managed to establish a relatively comfortable bar for women. Shane and I don’t harass them and we don’t like it when other guys do and we tend to discourage those types from coming back. We’ll just have to be extra careful that jerks don’t come in thinking the new hot server is fair game.” He put his arms around her, “I’d love to travel with you. Once we get some down time.”

She settled into his arms. “I noticed from the first time in there that you guys don’t tolerate creeps.”

Deirdre thought back to that night and her talking to Shane, getting the one man kicked out. How close she had been to talking to Arin and how she had ended up in the bathroom with Tim and Kat. She shivered and buried her head against Arin. “I would love to travel with you too.”

She shifted against him, raising her head up. “So I invited you to breakfast…you never answered me.”

“Well, I’ll admit my answer wasn’t as clear as it could have been, but I did answer. I’ll further specify my I don’t see why not answer to, yes, let’s do that. Better?” He grinned.

Deirdre laughed and kissed him lightly. “Let’s do that.”

She climbed out of bed. “I will go shower and get dressed. See you in 20?”

“Or sooner. No promises.” He raised his eyebrows suggestively and watched her appreciatively as she moved around the room.

Deirdre laughed. “Going to come sneak into my room then?” She pulled on her pants from the previous night.

“I have to shower too, you know. But sneak? You make it sound illicit. Would I not be welcome?” He smiled, laying back in bed while watching her dress.

“Well yes…” Deirdre blushed. “You would be welcome. I mean if you wanted to...I just meant I was going to my room. My clothes are there.” She faced him fully. “I well-I think showering with you would be a rather nice thing.” Her blush grew.

“Well, go get your clothes. Come back here for the shower, if you’d like. I may or may not already have it started. You’ll just have to wait to find out.” He winked.

Deirdre bit her lower lip. Showering with him would be taking things further than they had before. “Okay. I’ll be right back.” Her cheeks flushed as she turned and left the room. Her heart pounded in her chest. She was excited and nervous.

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Kat had felt compelled to change into something especially juvenile once they’d arrived back from the station; pigtails, high tops, the works. She felt like herself again. Kat also felt kind of isolated as well. Arin and Deirdre had been pretty inseparable lately as it was, but today especially, and Kat had been surprised she’d managed to get Tim to leave Arey alone for as long as he had. After the stalker pictures had shown up, they’d both seemed joined at the hip. Hanging around the love birds just made her feel like a fifth wheel, and a training one at that. Vivienne was still gone too, though at least she’d sent word about why. The witch friend she’d gone to visit in New Mexico had apparently shown up dead, and she was there now helping with the funeral arrangements and putting her estate in order. Viv had promised she’d be back by tomorrow night.

Arin and D were both working at Galaxy for the night, and with Arey and Tim going there to hang out with their friends, Kat decided it was time for some personal time, video games, cheap pizza, flashing neon lights, everything that screamed irresponsible teenager. So the arcade it was. She’d left before the others with a wave and a promise to text around ten to check in, intent on engaging in some perfectly age appropriate and non-murder related fun. Hell maybe she’d even run into that cute guy from last time at the arcade again.

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Deirdre was in a great mood. Her day had started with butterflies and blushes. Now she was at work and she couldn’t help the occasional smile at Arin behind the bar.

She moved easily through the crowd scooping up empty glasses from tables as she went. The place was busy as expected for a Friday night. The music was good and all was right in the world it seemed.

Deirdre approached a table. “So you guys what can I bring you or do you want to go see Arin?” She smiled at Tim and Arey.

“Ummm...I’ll try the Jamaican Sunset thanks.” Arey smiled back as she put down the drink menu and turned toward her friend. “How has work been so far tonight? Have you all been very busy?”

Deirdre smiled and sat down, “Always busy but I love it. I get to be surrounded by music and people but I also get to be a spectator. Place is super busy tonight though. Fridays are busy but something really drew people in tonight.” She shrugged.

“Yeah, it is a little more crowded than I remember.” Arey agreed. “Maybe word has just gotten out that Galaxy has the best bar scene near campus.” She offered. “How has everything else been? I feel like the lot of us haven’t gotten together to just have fun like this in ages.” Arey asked.

Deirdre grinned. “Things are really, really good.” She couldn’t help but look at the bar, at Arin. “It has been a while. What about you? Besides this whole...mess. Are things good?” She now glanced at Tim then back to Arey.

“Yeah,” Arey replied softly, hand holding onto Tim’s. “Things have been good.” She agreed.

Deirdre smiled. Tim looked over as if clueing into the conversation for the first time. “What is good? Us? Oh yeah, us...is good.” He kissed Arey’s hand.

“And a beer please.”

Deirdre nodded. “I guess I should get back to work.” She stood slowly.

Tim looked at Arey, “Want to attempt dancing with me?”

“Well with a pitch like that, how can I say no?” Arey replied with a smile, taking his arm as they headed out onto the dance floor.

Deirdre headed back to the bar. She smiled at Arin as she moved behind and she shyly glanced away. “Busy night.”

Tim looked concerned. “Be gentle. I don’t exactly have good experiences on dance floors!”

The music was loud, the bass making everything feel like it was vibrating. He took Arey by the hips and tried to find the beat.

“I’m always gentle.” Arey replied with a smile, arms encircling his neck as his hands moved to her hips. She wasn’t afraid to lead from behind a bit either, as Tim’s sense of rhythm wasn’t the most on beat.

Tim smiled shaking his head, “And if I said you didn’t have to be?” His hand gripped her backside.

“Ah well, then I’d say we needed to find ourselves somewhere a little more private.” Arey whispered into his ear, leaning her chest forward into his before nipping lightly at his ear.

Tim felt the heat rise in his cheeks, grateful for the dark room and neon lights that hid it. “You are quite the tease.” His other hand joined its mate on her backside, pulling her against him. He didn’t even care about the music anymore.

“It’s not teasing if I follow through.” Arey replied, moving her lips lower to lavish attention to his collarbone.

“Geez Arey.” Tim inhaled, trying to catch his breath. He pulled her in tighter, as tightly as he could. “So how long till we can leave? Everyone else is pretty much here...batcave is sort of empty…”

“True.” Arey agreed, planting one last kiss on Tim’s neck before looking up at him. “We should probably tell Deirdre and Arin first before we bolt though. Don’t want them to worry.”

Tim looked down at her, holding her still for a moment. “Are you serious? Arey I was teasing I don’t want you to think you have-”

He pulled her away from the main part of the floor. “Do you really want to go back, just us?” He couldn’t bring himself to say more fearing he was pressuring her.

“It doesn’t have to be right now, but later tonight, after we finish visiting with everyone...yeah, just you and me.” Arey replied, eyes half lidded. She really liked Tim, he was kind and made her feel safe, and was the first boy she’d even thought about going this far with, and she felt ready for the next step, where ever that would take them.

Tim inhaled slowly. He felt a little like he had won the lottery. “Alright, later. Let’s go dance.”

With new found energy Tim pulled her back on the dance floor and back into his arms. He smiled like a fool.

Arey was happy to dance with Tim for the next half an hour, both of them seeming to have found a new enthusiasm. After a while though, Arey led them back toward the table to finish their drinks and catch their breath. “I think you’re definitely getting better at this.” Arey replied with a smile.

“Thanks, I think something just really-inspired me tonight.” Tim took a drink of his beer. It was times like this he was happy to have bartenders and waitresses as friends.

“You on the other hand are fantastic as always.” He leaned over and kissed her. “I have to hit the john. Be right back so please don’t go off with a guy who can actually dance, okay?” Tim laughed and slipped out of his seat.

“Ooh, someone’s aiming for brownie points tonight.” Arey smiled, kissing Tim back. “I’ll do my best, but don’t keep me lonely too long.” She replied.

Tim walked off to the bathroom. He wasn’t gone that long and soon was sitting beside her again. “So about those brownie points, do I get to turn them in for prizes?”

“They wouldn’t be much good as brownie points if you didn’t.” Arey mused lightly. “What did you have in mind?”

Tim leaned in, grinning. “Do I have enough points to get you as a prize?” He knew it was cheesy and would likely make her laugh but that was fine by him. He made his point.

“Well I guess you’ll find out tonight now won’t you.” Arey returned the grin, leaning in to meet him with her lips. Her movement was halted though by the sound of both their phones buzzing.

Slightly put off by the interruption, Arey thought about ignoring the text, but decided to check it just in case it was important. Pulling out her phone, she checked who the message was from. “Mine’s from Kat.” Arey informed her boyfriend, unlocking the phone to check the message.
She frowned as she glanced at the short message. “Let’s play…?” She read aloud in confusion. The two words were accompanied by a smiley face, all of which didn’t really read like Kat. There was an accompanying voice file with the text and she brought the phone to her ear as she opened the file. What she heard made her blood run cold. Muffled screaming and pounding, like someone was trying to fight their way out of a box. “Better hurry. Not sure how long Joanne is gonna last in here.” A voice drawled cheerfully before the voice file ended. The phone nearly slipped out of Arey’s hand.

As Arey was checking her phone Tim did the same with his. He paled at the voicemail. His eyes flashed to Arey. “Kat!” He was up from the table, grabbing Arey and pulling her to the door.

Arin frowned as his phone buzzed. Everyone he knew was already here, who would be messaging him now? His frown deepened as he saw Kat’s number. He turned to Deirdre who was gathering more drinks, “Trouble. Kat knows not to text me while working.”

He listened to the message with half his attention, the other half was waving down Shane. The sounds of Kat struggling only hardened his resolve. With an icy coldness that didn’t often surface he told Shane he was calling in a few favours, “I know it’s busy tonight. If anyone complains too much give them a drink out of my check. But I need to leave.”

Shane was surprised by his friend’s sudden change in mood but he knew it would be serious if he was calling in all the favours, “You know I’ll cover. We’ll manage. Besides, I’ll get to flirt with all the girls now. They won’t be distracted by you.”

Arin almost managed to chuckle, “Go for it.” He vaulted the bar, calling over his shoulder, “Coming D?”

Deirdre had a tray full of glasses. Her phone had buzzed in her pocket but she couldn’t get it. She looked at Arin. “Kat?” She looked around. “Ugh…” She shoved the tray lightly towards Shane. “Sorry but….”

Shane nodded. “Go.”

Deirdre inhaled and tried to push her way through the crowd towards Arin. “Yes, if it is serious I-” She bumped into a few people. “Arin!” She rushed forward to grab his arm. “What is going on?”

“Someone has Kat. Though... someone... Let’s find Arey and Tim.” Arin pushed through the crowd scanning for the other couple.

Tim was at the door. “We have to go. I’ll call Arin on the way. No time to get him.” He grumbled and looked over towards the bar knowing the man wasn’t far. “Fuck.” He pulled out his phone and dialed. “Pick up man…”

Arin felt his phone buzz again as he caught sight of Tim raising his phone to his ear. He stepped behind Tim, “Ring, ring Neo.”

Tim looked at Arin. “Kat.” He held up his phone. “I got-we got..” He motioned toward Arey.

Deirdre was a bit confused. “Someone has Kat?”

“Yeah. Got that too.” Arin nodded to Tim. “Any thoughts on where this is? Should we be calling David to trace down her phone?”

Tim nodded. “He called her Joanne. That was the name we gave to the cops. Bastard knows everything. How?”

He was angry. More so than he had ever been. “He is playing with us and I have no idea where she is!”

Arin nodded again, “If we find her, we find him. Two reasons to move on this.” Arin was focusing his anger. It sharpened his thinking. This might be the biggest break they had on Mordred and if he thought he could use Kat as leverage he’d find out there was a big payback coming.

Arin looked to Arey, “Any idea where she is? What’s your take on next steps here?”

Arey’s thoughts were whirling, trying to focus on what they knew. “We need to call David.” Arey agreed. “They might be able to trace her phone, but more importantly we need to find out who the cops talked to. He called her Joanne, so he knows about the alias. That could mean he was one of the people they interviewed this afternoon, or even...that he’s a cop himself.” She thought out loud.

Arin nodded, “Tim, hang up. You can stop calling me now. Get on with Dave. Let’s get mobile. I have my bike, so I’ll be fast to get wherever. But you all... Taxi’s? You’ll be playing catch up. Anyone know how to hotwire a car? We’ll have to find an older model.”

Deirdre stood there waiting for something to do. She still hadn’t checked her phone and now she wasn’t sure she wanted to. She looked at Arin. “Do you want me to go with you?” The way he said you all she figured he was going to go alone.

Arin nodded, “Sure. You can hang on well enough when I’m full speed. Better to have some back up rather than be by myself.”

Deirdre nodded. She really didn’t want him going alone but she also wouldn’t force the issue.

Tim was jarred from the conversation, from his thoughts on where Kat might be by Arin’s comment that he needed to hang up. He looked at his phone, hit the hang up and shook his head. “Sorry. I’ll call David.”

He hit the man’s contact and let the phone ring. He was thinking about the other two cops from the station. Had one of them been Mordred? Had he been that close and they didn’t know? His hand gripped the phone until it was white knuckled.

“Detective Velazquez.” David’s voice sounded tired. He hadn’t been asleep yet, but he certainly wasn’t in on duty form. He had had a couple of glasses of wine and was relaxing for the night.

“He has Kat. He knew about her alias. We have to find her.” Tim practically barked into the phone when David answered.

Deirdre frowned and yanked the phone from Tim’s hand. “David? It is Deirdre. We need a favour. He, your killer, he has Kat. We need a trace on her phone.”

David snapped to attention when he recognized Tim’s voice. He was about to ask questions when Deirdre came on the line. Suddenly more calm and focused, his voice became authoritative, “Okay. I’m on it. Who should I be in contact with on your side?”

Deirdre inhaled and briefly looked at the group. “Arey. And if she doesn’t answer then me.”

“Done.” He hung up abruptly and started dialing his contacts in the force. Not only did he want to get Kat back but here was his big break in the case. This bastard finally revealed himself and he wasn’t going to waste time finding him.

Deirdre handed Tim’s phone back to him. “He will contact you Arey once he knows more.”

Tim stared at Deirdre. He was so close to yelling at her yet he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He shoved his phone into his pocket.

“Ok, let’s think. Where was Kat last? She went out tonight right? Where did she go? Maybe someone there saw something we can use.” Arey suggested while pacing, trying to stay focused on the task at hand. She was beyond worried for Kat, but she needed to force it down, like she did nerves before a big game, otherwise she wasn’t going to be able to function in any way useful.

Arin nodded, “Right. She likes her pizza places. Arcades. Malls. She’d love to hang out at bars but only risks her fake ids for something special.” Arin tried to recall the common places Kat would hang out. He knew a few of them but didn’t assume to know them all. “Tim, you hung with her last. What was her mood? Was she looking to chill out or was she excited and looking to vent?”

Tim looked confused. “I-I don’t know. She seemed fine.” He looked at the group.

Deirdre nodded. “What about the arcade place we picked up at before? Remember?”

Tim looked sad, “Yeah when she was pissed off at me...but she wasn’t mad this time.”

“But there was a boy there…” Deirdre reminded them gently.

“Arcade.” Arey agreed with a nod. “It’s our best lead right now until we hear back from David. Should we split up? Arin, You’ve got the bike, maybe you and Deirdre check out the Arcade, Tim and I will meet up with David to run down the suspect pool from the station?” She suggested.

Arin frowned, “Splitting up does seem to be required, even if it doesn’t seem like the best idea. Alright. D, wanna play a game with me?”

Tim looked at Arin. “What?” The text had said let’s play and Tim was glaring at Arin. “This a joke to you? Kat is in trouble.”

Deirdre stepped in front of Tim. “Not a joke.” She didn’t get the reasoning behind the outburst but now was not the time for it.

“We need to find Kat, not make jokes about games.” Tim spat out.

“Tim, calm down.” Arey said gently placing a hand reassuringly on his shoulder. Besides Arin, she knew Tim was probably the closest with Kat, but picking a fight with Arin wasn’t going to help things.

Arin shook his head, “Tim, if you think I’m making light, you haven’t been paying attention.” He understood why Tim was short fused at the moment but just didn’t care enough to try and defuse. “We have better things to do. Let’s go D.”

Deirdre looked at Arey, “Give me a call if you hear anything.” She followed Arin.

Tim was angry but not at Arin, just the whole situation. “Let’s get to David.” He took Arey’s hand.