Archive of Our Own

Captain Kris Dreemurr of the Hometown Police Department gazed impassively out the window of their unmarked car. They watched as a heavy mist passed over the vehicle in a drizzle, coating the glass in countless water droplets. Kris rolled a butterscotch-flavored lollipop slowly across their tongue as they tried to focus through the lens of a single drop of water. Things seemed so much simpler in this little world. 

After immersing themselves in the world of forensic science, Kris had come to appreciate the details. In each drop, a miniscule star blazed, reflecting its own tiny universe containing an image of the building they were surveilling. Though similar, each drop was as unique as a fingerprint, containing its own slight imperfections, deviations, and so much more not visible to the naked eye. There was always something deeper to find.

“Yo. Dreemuur. You still spacin’ out? Oughta roll down the window if you wanna try making contact with your buddies orbiting the planet.” A low voice grumbled from the seat next to them.

Detective Susanne “Susie” Roberts flashed her razor-sharp teeth as she grinned at her own joke. Her maw suddenly opened wide as she tore into a large wet ball of grease and meat that bore fleeting (not to mention dubious) resemblance to the cheeseburger the food cart had advertised. Despite its grotesque appearance, the large dragon monster apparently had no qualms with devouring it.

“We tend to put evidence on a pedestal, don’t we?” Kris mumbled, shifting their view slightly between droplets along the window. “Perhaps we’re drawn to it, like a moth to flame. So eager to make sense of the senseless. Confident that whatever truth we find will clarify our fears and lack of understanding. And yet, evidence can lie as easily as any person. A staged play, where the actor’s only goal is misdirection. And so, every lie hides a truth waiting to be found. Is it somewhere in the shaky testimony, or the staged blood splatter? Sometimes I wonder if there’s any real truth left in this world.”

Susie’s eyes narrowed as she stopped chewing to shoot her Captain a withering look. “Gotta say, sure is a shame your folks never enrolled you in any English classes.” She paused to swallow a mouthful of wet meat. “Maybe then you’d actually speak a language anyone could understand.”

Kris nodded slowly, as if actually giving her words some real thought. “Only language I’ve ever mastered is listening.”

The Detective let out a slow, mournful sigh. “You’re a pain in my ass, Dreemurr. I really musta pissed the Chief off somethin’ bad if being stuck in a car with a freak like you is my first assignment.” Susie shifted in her cramped seat to look past Kris and the window the human was so focused on. “Was about to say we could always send you back to school but, uh… yeesh.”

Hometown High School loomed above the mist like the skeletal remains of some forgotten beast. Kris had parked the car just across from the building in the darkest part of an already gloomy street, giving them a wide view of the large chain link fence that now bordered the forgotten three-story educational facility. Since its abrupt closing, decay had seemingly spread forth through the once vibrant section of the downtown area of the city, infecting the nearby streets into becoming just as desolate and unkempt. Only the distant glow of blinking neon lights from seedy establishments gave this area any comfort.

“Honestly, I had you pegged for being home-schooled. Can’t imagine a freak like you going to a place like this without getting shoved into, like, every single locker.” Susie chuckled.

“My academics didn’t last long here. I was only just settling in the year after my brother graduated when word got out the whole place was unfit for teaching.” Kris replied tonelessly. “Structurally unsound, they called it. Spent the rest of my formative high school education in various windowless boxes while administrators argued over the costs of rebuilding. Guess they finally figured it cost too much to demolish the place down and start over… or maybe the Angel’d save them the trouble and knock it all down in some sort of divine intervention. Now it’s just the butt of a joke no one ever cared to laugh at.”

The dragon monster Detective tilted her head slightly while looking out the window. “So… what, now it’s like crime lord central or something?”

“In a city like this, even the forgotten and condemned have its uses. An ominous dungeon for rebellious youth looking to stake a claim. A sanctuary from the harsh world outside to find rest, or simply ride out the effects of your chosen drug in peace. Perhaps a place like this is necessary, even if we want to pretend it doesn’t exist.”

Susie gave Kris a dubious look, before tapping a claw against her chin. “Sounds kinda like the restroom at the ICE-E’s where I grew up. Wouldn’t call half of what went on in there ‘necessary’, though.”

Kris peered intently through another cloud of mist. “Regardless, we were given a tip that something is going down here tonight. The Chief thinks the intel is reliable.. Enough to send us, anyway. Might even be related to one or all of the four groups that’s been giving the department trouble for months.”

“Oh, right. What did those dumbasses call themselves again?”

“The Royal Flush. When the bosses aren’t warring or trying to stab each other in the back, that is.”

“What a load of shit.” Susie snorted. “If each boss is supposed to be a “King”, shouldn’t they be like… Four of a Kind?”

Kris slowly withdrew the lollipop from their mouth. “Maybe you’ll get a chance to tell them that.” The Captain indicated out the window with their lollipop. Susie followed it just in time to see a figure, cloaked in shadow, slip past a torn section of the fence and hurry into the building, avoiding the flickering street lamp’s glow.

Susie’s face transformed instantly, gleaming teeth showing wide as her eyes blazed with anticipation. “Hell yeah. ‘Bout time.” She crumpled up the soggy burger wrapper and tossed it behind her into the back seat, earning a wry look from her Captain.

As the pair slowly trudged toward the derelict school, Kris pulled their trench coat tight around them, feeling the weight of their snub-nose revolver pressing in under their arm from their shoulder holster. They disliked having to carry it at all, but a few close calls over the course of their career had been the best teacher that being prepared for anything could very well mean the difference between life and death.

They glanced up at Susie, who was stretching her arms as she walked. No coat for the Detective, as she preferred the simplicity of a white buttoned-up dress shirt, sleeves rolled up to showcase her impressive muscles. One hand came down to rest as she gripped a leather suspender on her chest, as the other adjusted the holster on her back that held a pump-action shotgun. Other than her short but untamed side bangs and a chaotic shaggy ponytail, she made no real effort to hide the scarring that crept upward along the right side of her back, up onto her shoulder and neck, to what had once been an ear. 

As egregious as the wound was, Kris found an unexplainable tragic beauty about it. The vibrant scars that traced their way around the dull purple of her hardened scales looked like a raging wildfire frozen in time. Kris had learned it was due to an injury sustained during her time in the military, and had left her completely dependent on a cochlear implant in her left ear. Other than that, she had shot down any attempt to discuss her past, and had made it clear she wasn’t interested in preferential treatment or “pity parties”. Still, Kris had already begun the effort of discreetly standing to her left whenever possible, on the chance it might prove more accommodating. They did so now, slightly inclining their head in the Detective’s direction as they spoke.

“I’m sure you haven’t forgotten protocol for dealing with the various possibilities of what we’re walking into, Detective Rober–.”

“Susie.” The Detective grunted irritably as she cut in.

Kris paused before continuing. “We might be walking into the barrel of a gun just as easily as a rusty spoon or spray-can bottle.”

“I’m aware of the risks. Don’t need a damn lecture.” Susie interjected again.

“It’s more than just risk – not for us, anyway. Regardless of what notions civilians may have of this profession… whether we’re all scum or not – the burden is on us to be better. Even if they think the worst of us, that won’t justify pulling a weapon on–”

Susie rounded quickly on the human. “Let’s get one thing crystal.” She hissed icily, jabbing Kris in the chest with a single claw none too gently. “You may be my superior, but don’t think for a second that applies to anything other than your stupid rank – which I’m betting the Chief gave you as some sorta pity offering. You so much as THINK to tell me how to do MY job, and you can relive your school days in that pile of rubble on your own. I’m not a goddamn child, Dreemurr. Remember that if you feel the urge to take up babysitting.”

The dragon monster loomed large over the shorter human, her amber eyes flashing with defiance as she bared her sharp teeth in a cocky grin. “And if you think I’m insubordinatin’, feel free to put me in my place… been awhile since I rocked your shit in boot camp, so just gimme a reason, “Captain”. You know I’d be happy to oblige.”

Kris looked down at her claw with the slightest hint of a frown, then turned upward to meet her gaze. They knew she could easily match her words, given their history in the academy’s training courses that she had always referred to as “boot camp”. When Kris finally spoke, their voice was low, but carried a firmness that was surprisingly undiluted by any volatile emotion.

“Truthfully, I asked the Chief to have you partner with me for this assignment precisely because of the way you do your job, Detective. You’ve got good sense and aptitude, and I’m all too aware of your proficiency in hostile encounters. However what I do need, is your affirmation that during these aforementioned encounters that I have a partner who won’t be questioning every call I  make. I hope I’m correct in assuming this won’t be an issue?”

Though her expression was hard to read, it was clear that this was not the response Susie had expected. She seemed to deflate slightly, before brushing past Kris and sauntering toward the school’s main door.

“Whatever…” Kris heard her rumble. “Sooner we get this over with, sooner you can handle all our paperwork.”

Without another word between them, they entered the remains of Hometown High.

If the outside of the school looked like skeletal remains, its interior was more akin to rotting innards. Debris was strewn throughout the halls, with broken lights and wiring hanging out of various spots along the ceiling like gutted intestines. Most of the lockers that lined the hall were either bashed in or filled with unidentified sludge emitting horrid smells.

Kris nearly bumped into Susie as they entered the hall after her. Apparently her defiant demeanor and eagerness to do things her own way had quickly dissipated when confronted with a foreboding hall wreathed in darkness.

“Ugh… figures it’d be dark as hell in here.” She grumbled. Kris noticed she began to paw at something in her breast pocket. They had seen glimpses of the contents before: an incredibly worn and crumpled cigarette pack that was always empty of contents. Kris had overheard Susie explaining to Lieutenant Holiday that while she had quit smoking after her injury, she still held onto the last pack. Perhaps it was a reminder, or just something to take the edge off when the urges crept up. Seeing her now, the Captain surmised that Susie seemed to be trying to steady her nerves as she fidgeted with the tattered object.

Kris neatly sidestepped the larger monster and clicked on a small flashlight they held in one hand, illuminating the ground before them. They were careful not to raise the light too high, lest anyone else in the building see the sweeping beams.

“So, all of this about how you remember it?” Susie grunted as they slowly advanced down the hall, doing their best to avoid stumbling over garbage or stepping in pools of unidentified liquid.

Kris looked slowly up and down the area they were advancing through, surveying the broken lockers, wrecked chairs, and other objects that had no business being in a school. After a moment, they flicked the stick of their butterscotch lollipop onto an overflowing trash bin, and pointed at the wall.

“That one’s new.”

Susie nodded approvingly at the expletives spray-painted across the wall as they continued their cautious march. Beyond the occasional soft scuffling and scratching in the walls, no other sound was heard as they neared the end of the hallway. As Kris came to the intersection, they carefully moved to lean around the corner, slowly fanning their light from left to right. Confident nothing was waiting for them, Kris rounded the corner with Susie following close behind, repeatedly glancing down the other hall to cover their rear.

Suddenly, Kris stiffened as they turned to face one of the classroom doors. Susie, noticing the abrupt change in the Captain’s posture, slowly raised an arm behind her to put one hand on the grip of her weapon. Before she could draw her firearm, Kris strode through the open door. The dragon monster hurried in behind them, scanning the corners of the room for any threat. There were none. Aside from a few broken chairs and desks, and one very dusty table, the room was quite vacant, although apparent water damage has caused one corner of the ceiling to sag quite wildly.

She watched curiously as the human slowly approached an old board at the front of the classroom. It was covered in a thick layer of dust (among other odd substances) and yet it did not stop Kris from approaching it. Carefully, they reached upward and wiped a layer of dust off the corner of the board. Susie moved up from behind to observe, and let out a low whistle upon reading what Kris had uncovered: “Mrs. Dreemurr”.

“Heh, ain’t that something? Guess that had to make you the teacher’s pet, huh?” Susie grinned.

She began to lean on the table as she spoke, but the unexpected weight caused it to slide noisily to the side. They both looked down in unison to see the back of a forgotten picture frame now uncovered, coated in dust and grime. Kris began to bend down, but was beaten to the punch by Susie, who snatched it up and turned her back quickly before Kris could try to reclaim it. Using the light Kris was shining at her, she wiped away the dirt on the front of the frame and inspected it closely. In it, a small human grinned brightly, surrounded by a family of smiling goat monsters.

“Holy shit, it’s you!” Susie nearly shouted. “You look…” 

Words trailed off as her grin faded. She noticed the small horned headband the human child was wearing in the photo. Looking at everyone in the photo, Susie realized it wasn’t the differences that spoke loudest. It was love and unity. She understood at once that the monsters in this photo never saw the tiny figure between them as anything other than a part of their family. 

“...Heh, like a pretty happy family with all those goofy ass smiles.” She finished, and turned to see Kris give a slow expressionless nod. “Bet your mother was an alright teach, huh?

Kris suddenly turned around, hiding their face from her view. “It’s what I’ve been told. I think… she would have liked to have you as a student.”

Susie nearly staggered backward, sputtering. “W-what? Me!? The hell is that supposed to mean  anyway?” But Kris was already walking back toward the door.

“Nothing. Just a feeling, is all.”

Susie placed the portrait on top of the table and started to turn back as well, before stopping near the board. She knelt down and found something else that had lain forgotten on the dust-covered floor. Putting a long stick of unbroken chalk between her teeth, she muttered, “Heh, no one to put me in detention this time.”

As they moved back into the hall, Susie hissed to get her Captain’s attention.

“Hey, you feel that? It’s like… a soft rumble.” She muttered. She put her hand to a relatively clean part of the wall and gazed intently upward. Kris had read in her file that while her hearing may have been impaired, the Detective still carried a keen ability to sense vibrations.

“It’s a steady rhythm. Most likely a machine… but there’s no power here, so it must be…”

“A generator.” Kris finished “Someone’s home. I remember the nearest stairs were this way.”

The pair continued to wind their way through garbage and assorted refuse until they found a stairwell leading up. Kris found it odd that the way up to the third floor was blocked by a makeshift barricade of splintered tables and tangled chairs. Thankfully, the second floor hallway seemed to be covered in less filth than the floor below, though disrepair and damage was still evident everywhere, as even a few walls had caved in, offering glimpses into empty spaces that had once been classrooms. Kris led the way toward the hall’s intersection, but as they drew close their flashlight sputtered and faded out, sending the pair into an inky darkness.

“Damn.” Kris muttered. “Stick close, we should be near whatever it is you heard.”

Straining to see, Kris tried to make sense of the murky shadows in front of them. A miniscule amount of ambient light from outside was filtering in through some of the classroom doorways, but only gave just enough to give Kris the vague sense they were nearing the intersection. The human crept forward, pressing their back to the wall and carefully sliding around the corner. It was then that they noticed a small faint light at the end of the next hall, which Kris remembered was a decently-sized auditorium.

“This is it. Be ready.” Kris murmured. After a moment, they spoke again. “Detective? …Susie?”

But there was no response.

Kris smacked their flashlight a few times, which sputtered to life, flickering madly. They quickly panned around from the hallway’s intersection. Susie was nowhere in sight. They frowned, and debated moving back the way they came, before glancing back at the light from the auditorium. Kris could swear there was movement. Had Susie somehow moved ahead? Or was it someone else? Before they could focus their flashlight, it sputtered out again, casting the area into darkness once more. Somehow, it felt more oppressive than ever. Knowing they wouldn’t make much headway stumbling in the dark looking for their partner, Kris resolved to find head toward the light in the distance. Even if the Detective was still back there in the dark, she’d be most likely to be drawn to the light as well.

The first thing Captain Kris Dreemurr noticed was the cold. It was as if they had stumbled into a frozen meat locker, and yet, such a thing shouldn’t have been possible on a warm autumn night–  especially in a large enclosed room like this. Large motes of dust swirled and fell through the air like endless snowflakes, dirtied by the foulness of decay that permeated the building. The motes and specks shimmered in the light provided by a pair of humming floodlights hooked up to a generator. The Captain’s eyes narrowed as they spotted three crumpled bodies that lay between the lights.

‘Tonight is certainly becoming more interesting.’ Kris thought to themselves.

Before taking another step into the room, Kris paused to fully take in the scene. While not as ransacked and filthy as the lower level, the auditorium showed clear signs of its previous visitors after the building had officially shut down. Several crusted sleeping bags and tarps had been stashed in one corner of the room, surrounded by moldy food and used needles. The state of these contents indicated the owners had long since departed. Broken furniture littered the area, though a few tables still stood, as did a few rows of raised benches that students would have been seated in during announcements or rallies.

A strange display near the middle of the room drew Kris’s eyes. A large light fixture had fallen from the high ceiling above, dangling just a few feet above the benches from strands of wiring that seemed likely to give out at any moment. Out of the lopsided fixture, Kris noticed curiously large shards of glass sticking out at odd angles from the broken light source, giving them the strange sensation they were looking at someone’s haphazard art installation, rather than a school fallen into disrepair. The glass itself seemed darker than usual from where they stood. Something about the whole scene felt wrong to Kris, in a way they couldn’t quite explain.

Opposite the benches, a large wall was covered from end to end with various forms of graffiti. Indecipherable text clashed with strange drawings and overlapping murals. The usual content was present: stylized tags and signatures, characters with exaggerated features… and also unnerving looking caricatures of monsters with smiles that seemed too wide and too inviting– and eyes that seemed to follow the human. Kris approached warily, their own eyes scanning the room for any signs that someone might be lying in wait. No one emerged: not interlopers, nor even their missing partner, Susie. And yet, they couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching. Waiting for Kris to make the first move.

Stepping lightly across the room, Kris made their way to the scene of the crime. The scent of blood was fresh in the air. Surely, these murders had taken place quite recently. Illuminated by the floodlights, the bodies appeared positioned like the twisted end to a very sick stage play, the actors having taken their final bow. No applause to greet their performance, and instead of flowers given as tokens of appreciation, these three had only earned a bullet apiece to the backs of their heads. 

With what little remained of their visages, Kris was able to identify them as three of the gang leaders rumored to have been meeting here tonight. Kris placed the back of their hand against dead flesh and frowned. The Captain was no coroner, but they had studied how fast most human and monster bodies cool after death. This one was already becoming cool to the touch. The figure they had followed into the building… there was no way they could have been outpaced so quickly, executing these mob bosses and then vanishing before Kris got here. The murders had to have taken place earlier, but if that was the case, how did these victims enter the building without being seen? Where was the killer? Were they working with whoever was last to enter? Someone had gone to great lengths to send a message, but something nagged at Kris. Something they couldn’t yet place.

“Is this what I was meant to see?” Kris muttered to themselves. “No… this presentation hides another purpose.” 

Kris pulled out another butterscotch lollipop from their pocket and let it sit on their tongue as they contemplated. Moving slowly and methodically, they continued to maneuver around the scene, and before long noticed small shards of glass embedded in the backs of the victims. The human tapped the end of their lollipop thoughtfully. Had they been thrown through a window prior to their death? Not likely. Another explanation was needed. 

It was then that a small glimmer caught their eye. One of the victims held something in their hand. A circular shard of glass, held so tightly that it had sliced into the palms of their hand. The floodlights seemed to dim as they approached the object… or was it Kris’ imagination? Something about the shard called out to them. Like a siren’s call, the allure pulled at them with subtle whispers. They knew proper procedure in securing a crime scene, and yet something pulled at them almost unconsciously. Something about it was important. More important than these dead gangsters. Possibly the most important thing Kris had ever encountered in their life. They needed to know why. Kris knelt down and carefully retrieved the object, gently wiping a trace of blood from its surface. It seemed… off. Though transparent, there seemed to be an odd smokey residue within the glass, as if shadows danced and darted within it. Holding it up under the glare of the flood-lamp they looked through the glass. Something about what they saw on the other side of the glass didn’t feel right. When they raised it up to eye-level, they saw something they did not expect.

Susie, the dragon monster, was approaching. She was covered in blood and ash, and a fire seemed to blaze around her. Her eyes burned bright with malice and hate, as her teeth grew larger and larger, her fangs bared in a wicked and terrifying sneer.

Kris nearly stumbled backward, the glass practically flying from their grasp as they let out a shocked gasp. Their butterscotch sweet fell from their mouth to the ground, forgotten. And yet the instant the glass left their immediate vision, the image of Susie changed. No longer stalking forward on a warpath, the bemused looking Detective sauntered forward with her head cocked to the side.

“First time seeing a body, Dreemurr? Here I thought I was supposed to be the rookie, gotta say I didn’t expect you to be such a wuss…”

“N-no, it’s not that.” Kris replied quickly, steadying themselves. “Just thought I saw… something else.” 

They swiftly pocketed the glass before Susie reached them. Kris still wasn’t sure what they had really seen. Had it just been their imagination? A strange, cold feeling in their gut told them it wasn’t, and Kris knew they would need to keep this to themselves until they understood more. They could already see the incredulous, patronizing look that Dr. Berdly Bunting would give them if they approached the force’s Lead Forensic Scientist with a “weird shadowy glass that makes you hallucinate”.

“Where were you? I distinctly remember telling you to stick close.” Kris asked as Susie finished crossing the room to stand with the Captain and look down at the three bodies.

“Got kinda turned around I guess. Wait– Don’t tell me you were worried, Dreemurr?” She gave Kris a quick glance and snickered.

“Only in your ability to follow directions, Detective.” Kris replied evenly.

“Look, dumbass, it wasn’t my fault!” Susie shot back in annoyance. “When your stupid flashlight crapped out I was trying to find you in the dark, and then I saw a light. Figured that was you… but it wasn’t.”

“You saw someone else?”

“Met, actually. It was… just a kid.” Susie shuffled awkwardly. “Based on what they told me, I get the feeling their father is one of the gang leaders, but they don’t really seem to understand what kind of messed up shit their old man is responsible for…” She paused to look back at the corpses. “You don’t really think he…”

Kris shook their head softly. “These bodies have been here at least a few hours. If we assume your acquaintance is the one we saw entering the building, they wouldn’t have had time to get all the way up here, perform the killings, and then slip past me to run into you.”

Susie let out a soft sigh of relief. “Ah… yeah. Honestly not sure if his father being among the dead or the living is better for him. Seemed a little too goofy and innocent to be mixed up in all this, y’know? Reminded me of some of the kids back at my old orphanage…” Susie seemed to realize what she was saying and abruptly stopped.

“Sounds like you’ve made a friend. Don’t suppose you’d want to introduce me?” Kris responded wryly, arching an eyebrow as they looked over the Detective’s shoulder.

“Uh yeah, he uh… may have given me the slip. N-not on purpose!” Susie stammered. “I think he’s just the overeager type, but I’m worried he might accidentally tip someone off. We should go find him.”

“In due time, Detective. I’d like your thoughts on what happened here, first.” Kris replied firmly.

Susie opened her mouth to argue, but then thought better of it. She peered at the three bodies, and scratched at her neck slowly. Kris noticed her rubbing her arms to stave off a chill. It seemed they were not alone in sensing this strange temperature drop.

“Looks like your average execution, right? Back of the head, point blank. Burn marks on the entry wounds. See it all the time in those movies…” Susie murmured.

“Careful, Detective. Those scenes in movies are deliberately crafted so that you forget it’s all an act. Don’t think about what they want you to see. What do YOU see in all of this?”

“Ugh, hell is that supposed to mean?” She grunted. “Okay, fine. Three gang bosses lying dead in an old school and…” She looked around as if suddenly realizing something. “Big shots like these’d have muscle, yeah? But there’s no signs of a larger struggle, no other bodies. Not even any signs of being overwhelmed. They just… knelt down and died.”

“And what does that tell you?” Kris prompted encouragingly.

“Whoever did this was someone that caught them totally off guard, right? The fourth gang leader?” Susie knelt down, inspecting ornate lapels on each of the body's immaculate pinstripe suits. “I read up on what racket each of these groups were in on. Heart… These bastards specialized in human trafficking and prostitution. Clubs over here ran extortion and racketeering. Diamond group was all about drug smuggling and distribution. And our missing Spade… Their deal was money laundering and gambling rings, right?  So… ol’ Spades did this? To control it all himself? That’s quite a power play.”

“We know that the gangs fought with each other often.” Kris mused. “No doubt they were always worried of being double-crossed. So one leader staging an upset of this scale would be hard to pull off alone.”

Susie pulled out her empty cigarette pack and began absently turning it over in her hand. “Alone… you’d think these guys would’a had their muscle with them, or even people waiting outside. Aside from that kid, there’s been no signs these leaders had been overpowered or even dragged over here.”

Kris carefully tilted one of the faces of the victims upward. Below, a grievous cut had been made along their throat.

“Why an execution bullet if you’ve already slit their throat?” Kris asked.

“The bullets were fired… afterward?” Susie replied quizzically.

“No doubt an autopsy will confirm the bullet wounds were made post-mortem. So where does that leave us?”

“So, someone else was here.” Susie growled. “A hired professional… or someone bigger?”

Kris looked slowly around the room. The whole thing had been set up for a purpose, and they were starting to realize the message may have been meant for more than just a warning to other gangs looking to muscle in. Something bothered Kris about the floodlights in particular. To make the effort of lighting up the scene – as if it was made for an investigator like Kris… One light was pointed directly at the scene of the crime… but the other was not. Kris followed the direction of the beam. It was pointing toward the broken light fixture that dangled toward the back of the room. They crossed the auditorium, drawing closer to the shards of glass that hung by small wire threads.

“Kris?” Susie hissed.

The glass shards looked… wrong. They appeared dark red in color, as though they had been dipped in the blood of the nearby victims. They didn’t appear clouded with shadows like the one Kris had found in the victim’s hand, but there was definitely more to this hanging glass. Slowly, they moved around to the other side, while still peering at the glass. Suddenly Kris’ eyes went wide, their breath caught in their throat.

Illuminated through unknown means, pieces of the graffiti and murals along the wall behind the bodies now blazed hotly, shining bright through the lens of this strange glass. Fragments of letters, once part of indecipherable signatures and tags, now seemed to erupt everywhere. Piecing together the letters, Kris spotted phrases that weren’t visible before.

“THEY WILL SEE HEAVEN’S CALL”

“THEY WILL FEEL HELL’S ROARING”

“THEY WILL FIND HER”

But the words were nothing compared to the eyes. They were everywhere. In every crevice and corner, in various sizes, and seemingly invisible to the naked eye. Only through the odd lense of this stained glass were they revealed. Stranger still, they were all drawn the same: Almond shaped, with lines inscribed both above and below to give the images a cross-like shape, accentuated by a large dot for the pupil in the middle.

It was as if Kris had walked from the waking world straight into a nightmare. An old, familiar hell where those eyes had been waiting for Kris. They had tried so hard to push that memory from their minds. So many years ago, in that stygian place. The eyes were everywhere, etched into every surface. Unblinking. Even when they had finally clawed their way out of the horror,  something of great importance had been left behind. No trace remained, no evidence to be found. So great was the wound that Kris had left the police force after that day, and had only recently returned at the request of Chief Ralsei. Fate it seemed, had been waiting quite patiently to torment the human again.

“Uh… Kris? You good?” Susie asked hesitantly, walking up to stand on the other side of the glass and peering cautiously at her Captain. “You look like someone walked over your grave.”

“A toll booth might be erected, for how trodden it has become.” Kris mumbled as they tried to bring themselves back from the brink. As their vision spun, color seemed to depart from the world, leaving the human trapped in a world of gray blurs. Blurs that could never fully be washed away. “This room is foul with ill intent.” Kris continued to gasp as they placed their hands on their knees, “Are we to be witness to the next act of some grand ruinous plot?”

Susie crumpled the cigarette pack in her hand anxiously before returning it to her breast pocket. “You got all that from this weird glass? The hell is going on here?”

She swiftly sidestepped around to the human, placing a firm set of powerful claws on their arm. It was as if her simple action had cleansed some unseen curse. The world that Kris saw began to steady, and come into focus. Color blossomed, washing over the dragon’s purple scales like a vibrant cascade. Kris’ mind had quieted once more.

“...I’m okay now.” Kris finally spoke after taking a deep breath.

“That’s great for you, but I’m not!” Susie barked, her expression floating somewhere between worry and annoyance. “You were saying all that weird stuff, looked like you were about to collapse!” She turned and gazed through the glass as Kris had. The effect was nowhere near as traumatizing, but it was clear to see the dragon felt uneasy. “What’s this weird junk supposed to mean, anyhow? I thought we were here to stop some crimelords.”

“I’m afraid the petty gangland squabbles on display are only masking something far more dire. What that is… I cannot yet say.” Kris replied quietly.

Susie seemed about to explode until she noticed the expression on the human’s face. They were still shaken, and likely still fighting the residual anxiety of whatever battle had recently raged within them. She took a deep breath of her own, and leaned down to look the human square in the face.

“Look. I get you’re serious about… whatever this all is. You asked me to follow your lead? Fine. But I’m not here just to get shut out like a clueless rookie. Once we’re finished here… I expect some damn answers.”

Kris met her gaze. Those amber eyes were filled with so many wonders. Concern. Curiosity. Agitation. But there was also a promise in there. She had decided to place her trust in the human, and Kris felt their stomach drop as they considered the risks of such a statement.

“I… will try.” Kris said at last with a wince. “You’ll have to forgive my hesitation on this, and when the time comes, I’ll request you not contact the asylum. They may be eager for my next visit, but it is a feeling I do not share.”

This earned a raised eyebrow from the dragon monster. “That bad, huh? Arright, I’ll keep my trap shut long if the situation calls for it… and I get some damn answers.” She straightened up and began walking back toward the crime scene. When she turned, she gazed back through the tinted glass.

“Just don’t leave me in the dark, okay? I’m counting on you.”

Kris nodded slowly in response. Susie unexpectedly cocked her head slightly, looking through the darkened glass past her partner. “What’s that behind you?”

Kris whirled, but saw nothing. They slowly maneuvered around to stand next to Susie, looking at the wall opposite the one filled with the strange messages and symbols. Through the lens of the red glass, something glimmered faintly. Kris cautiously advanced to the wall and found what they were looking for. A long black knife protruded from the wall, which blended in almost perfectly. A name for this weapon suddenly appeared within their mind. “Wakizashi”. Kris frowned, struggling to recall how they knew this. The memory came at once: Mayor Holiday, showing off her private collection on display at the museum. A weapon for an assassin, wasn’t it?

“Holiday Ninja Style”. Kris remembered Noelle’s words, as she had been eagerly dreaming of taking part in an undercover operation. Kris had, of course, pointed out that she stuck out like Christmas lights in July, earning a swift whack on the head from a rolled up case file. But was all this a coincidence, or something deeper at work? Kris returned their attention to the dagger. From around the blade dangled a single rosary. It was made of jet black beads, ending in a silver engraving of three triangles, with a winged circle just above it. Just below the rosary and knife, in faintly legible writing, Kris saw words.

So wept the fallen star, making rivers with its tears. From the bitter water, did it grow.

Without thinking, Kris’s hand immediately went to the pocket that held the strange glass. Was it related? They weren’t entirely sure, but something about those words made them think of the strange object in their pocket.

“Strange glass. Stained glass. Heaven. Rosary…. Church?” Kris muttered to themselves. They didn’t like where any of this was going. “We need to move.” They said louder to Susie, who was still standing by the stained glass. “If whoever assisted the fourth gang leader is still in the building, we need to find them both.”

Kris turned away from the blade, and stopped. The hanging glass was now a short distance away, and the dull red-colored glass looked different when illuminated by the floodlight. No longer an assortment of fragments hung on wires in random directions, the glass fragments now seemed to shape perfectly in front of the graffiti-covered wall. They almost seemed to extend from the center on either side of the broken light fixture… like crimson leaves from a peculiar tree. Kris felt even colder. Everything about this investigation was getting way too personal. They needed answers… but would they be able to survive the price yet to pay?

Kris led the way through the other doors of the auditorium, as Susie followed close behind. Their mind swirled as they tried to make sense of the scene they had just investigated. Was someone messing with them specifically? Did they somehow know Kris Dreemurr would be called to investigate this tipoff? Or was it just some sort of cosmic coincidence that these strange markings and words would be on display for the one person who had tried so hard to forget about them? Ralsei, the Chief of Police has specifically assigned this case to Kris, just after making a personal and impassioned request that they return to the force. They were one of the few people who had some small inkling of what trauma Kris had gone through. Was it possible that he–

Kris felt their foot step through the air where stairs should have been. They had been so preoccupied with their own thoughts, they had failed to notice part of the stairwell simply wasn’t there anymore. In the instant they felt gravity begin to claim them, a large hand locked onto their wrist. With a move that felt almost practiced, Susie yanked Kris backward, spinning them around her as she did, and using her other hand to guide the human’s back into the wall. The larger dragon loomed over Kris, lightly pressing in with her frame until their faces almost touched.

“The hell was that, Dreemurr?” Susie hissed. “Coulda killed yourself if I hadn’t…” Her voice trailed off. Kris noticed something else had replaced the brusque hostility that was so apparent as they approached the school not too long ago. Since Kris had exposed their wounded soul in front of Susie, something had subtly changed. The dim light of the stairwell caught the concern that flashed through her amber eyes. This close to the human, they seemed to give off their own glow. Even her movements, though swift and powerful, had been precise in the strength she controlled to avoid slamming Kris into the wall, cushioning the impact with her other hand. Looking into her eyes, Kris realized they had been left at a loss for words.

A moment passed, and the reality of their proximity finally seemed to hit Susie like a mallet to the head. She suddenly stiffened and took a step to the side, turning her face away.

“I uh… I know you got your head in the clouds but yeesh, try to remember you can’t step in them too.” She muttered.

“...Thanks.” Kris mumbled back, feeling as if they had just run a mile. They cautiously looked over where the missing section of the stairway was. Below, the ground floor was now filled with wreckage and debris. The amount of sharp rebar sticking upward quickly clarified just how close their brush with death really was.

“So… we jumpin’?” Susie asked, indicating the far wall across from the gap where the stairwell resumed. It was a lengthy leap, but not altogether impossible… if the rest of the structure held. Kris looked upward toward the third floor. Perhaps it was their imagination, but they swore they saw some sort of light move across the doorway.

“Ordinarily I’d advise caution, but in this case…” Kris began, only to see a purple blur move past them. With a surprising amount of agility Kris had seen on display before during their training, Susie leapt across the gap, sailing through the air to land with a thud on the far steps. Not a moment had passed before a dull cracking noise echoed out in response. Susie quickly rolled forward to press herself against the far wall as more sections of the stairwell crumbled. Large chunks of concrete fell down to clatter below on the ground floor.

“...Shit.” Susie grunted after the dust settled, revealing a much larger gap between her and Kris. She looked back at Kris questioningly, her hand half raised to prepare to grab them if they followed next.

“Too far for comfort. Trying to climb from below will take too long. I think I might know another route… hopefully less hazardous than this.” Kris mused.

“You sure?” Susie asked.

“I’ll be fine. Go up without me, just stay low, stay quiet, and if you find anyone, do not engage.” Kris explained. “I’ll meet up with you as quickly as I can. With luck, they heard the noise and might move to head back down, and we’ll be able to cut them off on both sides.”

Before Susie could voice any concerns, Kris had vanished.

Moving as quietly as her body allowed, Susie inched open the door to the third floor. She was relieved to see the area was not as dark as the lower levels. From the looks of things, several walls and other sections of this floor had already been in the process of being torn down before the building was fully abandoned. Large tarps and other plastic canvas had been placed over rooms and broken walls, allowing the neon city lights to filter in.

As she crept through the abandoned rooms, her mind struggled to steady itself. Her thoughts kept circling back to the kid she had encountered. Lance, he called himself. Had to be no older than 12 or so, and wearing an odd, pointed hoodie with a spade emblazoned on the front. And yet despite his youth, Susie marveled at how his wisdom and jovial nature had intersected. Lance had seemed entirely unafraid upon meeting the understandably on edge Detective. At first, the dragon monster had been willing to chalk it up to the boy’s naivete, but she soon realized that Lance had the measure of her from the instant they met. Despite her best attempts to appear stern and brimming with intimidating authority, simply regarded her as one might deal with a gruff older sister who was trying to act in charge after parents had left her in charge of the house.

Trying to interrogate the strange kid had gone nowhere fast, and Lance seemed to be completely oblivious to his own father’s work, or even that he was wandering around a condemned school building. To Lance, it was all a game, and Susie was just a cool new player that had joined. Ever since the incident that had maimed her, the Detective quickly became used to how most people – kids especially – would gawk or recoil at her scars. Lance, however, had only one immediate takeaway: Susie was cool. She had not expected that in the slightest. Of course, this now worried her all the more that her new friend was the son of a gang leader who may very well have just executed three people tonight, and that Lance had presumably scampered off to go find his old man.

“The hell kinda asshole brings their kid to a place like this?” Susie grunted softly to herself as she scanned the nearby hallway.

As if in response, she heard a low muttering float down the hall toward her. The words were indistinct, and she couldn’t tell if there were two people conversing, or merely one person talking aloud. She slowed her steps to a crawl as she inched along the hall, one hand smoothly drawing the Winchester pump-action from her shoulder holster.

Nearing an open door, Susie slowly angled her head toward the opening. The abandoned room was lined with overturned tables, and large sections of the exterior wall had been torn down, covered now with tarp that rippled softly in the breeze. Her eyes were drawn to another knocked down wall that led to an adjoining room. She could feel the presence of someone standing just beyond her vision. Almost at a crawl, Susie maneuvered around the tables to stay out of sight as she neared the opening in the wall. Her grip tightened around her weapon as she mentally prepared herself for anything.

“Pops?”

Susie winced. Anything but that.

“Who were you talking to, Pops?” Lance called out. Susie heard him scamper through the room’s main door. Through a small gap in the tables, she could see him move toward a large opening in the far wall. Tarp had been torn away to reveal the blinking lights of distant neon signs, bathing the room in alternating colors. A large figure stood at the opening, gazing out at the city.

“I told you not to follow, boy.” The figure rumbled. “The matters that have been attended to here does not concern you.”

Susie moved to the nearest wall, sliding along slowly until she could carefully peer in on the two. The figure had turned with its back to her, looking down at the child.

“You always say that! But what if I’m concerned about how much you tell me things don’t concern me! And waiting at home with your work friends gets so boring, I don’t think they like me very much…” Lance pouted.

“This is no place for a child. There are no friends for you here.”

“Not true, parental figure!” Lance quickly shot back. “I’ll have you know I already made a new friend tonight! Her name is Susie, and she’s really cool!”

Inwardly, Susie groaned. The less this guy knew about police snooping around the building, the better. Perhaps if she was lucky, he’d chalk it up to Lance playing games. The crime boss must have given his son a look that said as much, because Lance quickly continued.

“No foolin’, pops! She showed me her cool badge and everything! Said she was on a top secret mission!”

“Her…badge?” Lance’s father rumbled ominously.

Susie felt her stomach drop. Things were steadily deteriorating from bad to worse, and Kris was still nowhere in sight.

“You know what I have told you about those people. They are the enemy.” He continued. “They will lie to you. They will intimidate you. Threaten you… and kill you, if they think they can get away with it. Yet here I find you’ve allowed one to infest this place with its presence…”

“T-that’s not true! She’s not… like that!” Lance protested.

The dragon felt her grip tighten on her weapon. To be so cruel to his own child… This guy was pissing her off. Her knee ground into the floor, turning stray pebbles into dust. The floor tile gave off the smallest groans of protest.

Suddenly, Lance seemed to brighten. “See, there she is! You’ll see!” He exclaimed, pointing in her direction.

Shit.

Realizing there was no backing out now, Susie slowly moved toward the opening in the wall. She did her best to appear relaxed and aloof, but inwardly every muscle in her body had tensed.

“Hey Lance, buddy.” She said with a fixed smile. “How ‘bout you come over here for a sec? Your old man and I have some things we gotta talk about…”

The youngster grinned in response and waved cheerily. Before he could take a step, a large hand came down to rest on his shoulder.

“You see how they deceive? To lure you in with false promises. Scum.” Lance’s father rumbled.

“Look, I’m just tryin’ to keep things civil.” Susie replied disarmingly. “We can all behave, right? No need to get the kid involved.”

“Spades” the crimeboss stepped from the shadows, hauling his son with him as he did. He was heavyset, and tall even by Susie’s standards. He wore a large pinstripe suit that seemed to be custom-tailored, with small spades embroidered across the suit, and a pointed hood sewn in that mirrored his son’s, hiding much of his face in shadow.

“I don’t think you’re in any position to make demands of me, flatfoot.” Spades growled.

“P-pops! Leggo, you’re hurting me!” Lance exclaimed, trying to grab at his fathers’ hand that sunk into the boy’s shoulder like a vice.

Susie stiffened, but did not raise her weapon. She would not point a gun in Lance’s direction, even as a bluff. “Let him go.” She growled back.

“You presume to care more about my son than I? Don’t make me laugh. But… if you really care that much, why don’t you drop your weapon like a good gumshoe?”

Susie bristled, baring her teeth. “Why don’t you go to hell?”

In response, the gang leader lifted up Lance by his shoulder, ignoring the cries of protest. “Would you care to see what the effects of a three-story fall do to a body?”

With a growl, Susie slowly set down her shotgun on the floor. When she saw that Spades remained motionless, she gave the weapon a soft kick to send it skidding a few feet away.

“Obedient in the end… not that it will help you.” With a swift motion, Spades released his grip on Lance and quickly pulled out a pistol aimed straight at the Detective. Susie could only stare back as he slowly advanced, her claws balled into fists.

“You wanted to talk… but you’re not the one I was waiting to talk with. You haven’t the slightest idea what you’ve stepped into, do you?” Spades face broke into a wide grin. “Don’t look away, boy. I want you to see what happens to those who try to interfere with our work.”

Before Susie could brace herself, a piece of debris flew through the air, hitting the large crime boss in his shoulder.

“W-What!? You little–” Spades roared, spinning around to look at their rebellious son.

Susie instinctively went into a crouch. She knew she was too far out of range to do anything. In a second he would pivot back and pull the trigger… but she had to try. Then she saw the dark blurred shadow racing from the doorway. It closed the distance at an incredible speed, even as the gang leader’s gun began to swivel back in her direction. The figure collided with Spades, wrapping their arm around the bigger foe’s outstretched hand and forcing it down.

“Kris!?” Susie yelped.

Two shots rang out as bullets bounced off the floor, and Spades struggled to push the human away. Despite being twice as big, the large crime boss seemed to be having trouble prying the smaller figure off him.

“Lance, get down and stay behind cover.” Susie yelled. Another shot rang out, and she could see Spades starting to curl his free hand into a fist. Without another thought, she raced forward, and with a roar of fury launched her own fist straight into the villain’s face.

As his head snapped backwards, Susie began to grin in triumph. Her grin promptly vanished as the large foe slowly tilted his head forward to face her, seemingly unfazed.

“Not bad… for a pup.” Spades snorted. Before Susie could ready another attack, she felt his boot connect with her stomach. 

The impact nearly sent Susie flying, causing her to tumble backward with a grunt of pain. With the wind knocked from her lungs, the dragon monster struggled to right herself. She needed to get back in there and help Kris… or find her weapon. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a large cracking noise coming from directly under her. Susie’s arms shot out wide just as the ground gave way, threatening to swallow her whole. She scrabbled for purchase, digging her claws into the broken tiles as her body weight betrayed her, threatening to sink her through the floor. Her arm muscles bulged as she focused entirely on her upper body strength to pull herself back up, but even with her strength she was still barely holding on. Looking up, she felt a cold dread. Spades had managed to pin Kris against a large table, and was slowly pulling his arm back up to take aim at Susie, who was completely exposed.

Suddenly, Kris wriggled upward, and swung their hand down, landing a chop on their assailant’s wrist. The gun fell from Spades’ hand as he grunted in surprise, but was already using the newly freed hand to reach for the human’s throat. The ground rumbled and groaned once more, as more of the floor below them began to buckle and tilt. Kris used the distraction to lift up their feet, and pushed off from the desk with all the strength they could muster. Neither could keep their balance in the crumbling room, but Kris seemed to be using it to their advantage. Before the crime boss could find his footing, Kris spun themselves around the bigger foe, letting momentum pull them both wildly toward the far wall, where tarp had been hastily plastered over a few flimsy boards that served as a poor excuse for an exterior wall.

Susie saw at once where this was heading. She tried to call out, to tell Kris to let go, but her grip faltered, nearly sending her through the hole in the floor. As she watched helplessly, the two combatants slammed into what was once a wall. The sounds of splintering wood and tearing sheets could be heard, and then the two disappeared from view.

Kris groaned. The vision blurred as they faded in and out of consciousness. Their shoulder screamed with pain, but at least they were still alive. Judging by the cold wet metal they felt on their back, and the ladder above them, they must have landed on a fire escape on the school’s exterior. The mist that shrouded the building earlier had condensed into a light and scattered rain, with tiny droplets hitting their face like miniscule cold pinpricks.

As their eyes struggled to focus, a large shadow slowly loomed up in front of them. Despite its heaving and panting, the dark figure elicited a wide and unsettling grin. Lit only by alternating neon glows of yellow and pink from a large sign behind the figure, it seemed as though Kris had encountered a vision from their nightmares.

“You…” The looming form of Spades breathed. “You’ve seen it, haven’t you? I can see it in your eyes.”

Kris struggled to rise, but they felt as if all their muscles were refusing to obey. The pain from their shoulder was searing, making it hard to concentrate on the threat that loomed in front of them.

“Not everyone is privileged enough to look behind the curtain, are they?” Spades continued. “Everyone else, always so focused on their pathetic little lives. Convinced they’ve mastered their own fate… but they never see their own insignificance. Everyone in this repugnant city is ignorant, and in the end that ignorance will consume them all. But we… we will rise from its desolation. Don’t you agree? Don’t you feel that hunger? A yearning for a freedom beyond this suffocating prison?”

Kris could only glare back at their assailant. How did this two-bit gangster get involved with something so… fantastical? That they seemed to know about the strange symbols, the words… perhaps even the glass? There was no doubt whoever they were working with had promised them greatness. Perhaps these delusions of grandeur had included the entirety of Hometown. Was this mysterious benefactor truly reaching out to Kris as well? They wanted the truth… but they would find it on their own terms.

“Hmm… you can’t even say? Then, if you wish to remain in darkness, I am more than happy to oblige.” As Spade spoke, he pulled something from the back of his belt. It was a short handaxe, its leaf-bladed shape bore an uncanny resemblance to the spade-shaped button on his lapel. The weapon flashed in the night as neon lights sparkled off its polished sheen.

“Perhaps I’ll leave you with one last secret.” Spades said, raising the axe high. “Quiet people–”

BLAM!

The railing behind Spades lit up with a shower of sparks. Both of them froze, then slowly looked up. Above them, where a large gaping hole in the building had marked their abrupt exit, Susie stood with her chest heaving, and her shotgun aimed straight at the gangster.

“Drop your weapon. And step the hell away from my partner...” She growled. Her eyes gleamed as the neon lights reflected on them, giving off the impression her baleful gaze would immolate anyone who opposed her. “Or I swear, I’ll deal you out myself.” She finished, emphasizing her words by racking another round in her pump action firearm.

As the criminal gazed upward at the new threat, Kris made their move. Ignoring the pain that radiated across their body, Kris swiftly reached under their arm, pulling out their snub-nose revolver and aimed it upward, capitalizing on their adversary’s distracted state.

“You heard the good detective.” Kris said slowly.

Spades turned to glare coldly back at the human. With an almost exaggerated display, he extended his arm to the side, slowly kneeling down to place his weapon aside. As Kris staggered to their feet, their eyes met once more.

“Fah.” Spades grunted irritably. “This changes nothing.”

“Who are you working with?” Kris asked coldly.

“Your life will be claimed all the same.” Spades grinned wickedly. “When the Knight descends upon Hometown, only ruin will follow.”

Susie sat against the hood of Kris’ car, watching a patrol car depart with a culprit in tow. Another car from social services had also recently departed with Lance, but not before Susie had personally vowed to stay in close contact with the surprisingly upbeat youngster. She sighed heavily, scratching at her neck as Kris got off the dispatch radio and walked up to her.

“Forensics will be here soon, I’m sure they’ll need a lot of time to go over the scene and… everything else in there.” Kris said as they stretched their shoulder out with a wince.

“You sure you don’t want me to take a look at that?” Susie remarked, tilting her head slightly. Kris merely shook their head.

“Heh, serves you right I guess, dumbass.” She chuckled. “You just had to play the hero with a deathwish and jump out a goddamn window.”

“Not my finest moment, huh?” Kris grinned ruefully.

“Well, you stopped that bastard from putting a bullet in my hide so… guess you were arright.” Susie muttered.

“Wouldn’t be a very good partner if I let that happen, would I?” Kris replied.

They exchanged glances for a moment before Susie finally looked away, still unable to hide the sincere smile on her face.

“S-so…” She stammered, eager to change the subject, “Whad’ja think of my ‘dealing you out’ line? Pretty badass, yeah?”

“Undoubtedly.” Kris nodded sagely. “You stay up all night coming up with that one?”

“Nah, it came to me when we were looking over the crime scene and–” Her eyes suddenly snapped back to the human. “Oh piss off! You are such a pain in my ass, Dreemurr!” She roared with laughter as she gave Kris a good-natured punch in the shoulder.

Kris sucked in air through their teeth, trying their best not to wince as they slowly slid onto the side of the car.

“Oops… my bad.” She chuckled.

They sat in silence for a long moment, dwelling on the events of the night. It had been a harrowing experience for both of them, and one that neither would soon forget. Kris could see Susie absentmindedly pawing at her breast pocket.

“I can’t believe that bastard. To treat his own kid like a disposable pawn… He better hope he spends a long time behind bars where he’ll be safe from me.”

“Not before we have a long chat with him, I’m afraid.” Kris replied. “I’m not sure what he knows, but it’s more than your average deadbeat thug.”

“About… all that stuff, you mean?” Susie’s eyes narrowed.

“Possibly. We’re going to have to tread carefully with this. And even more carefully with whatever intel we get.”

“Starting to get the feeling I’m not gonna like whatever all this is leading to. The hell have you gotten me into, anyway?” Susie huffed, her hand starting to wander toward her breast pocket.

“Still time to walk back what you said earlier, Detective.” Kris said quietly. “About wanting answers. I can always go it alone…”

“Pfft.” Susie snorted. “We both know you’re hopeless without me. And I ain’t scared, just…” Susie trailed off absently, pulling her cigarette pack out. She stiffened as her claws brushed against something in the pack that should not have been there. She looked down, and gently withdrew a stick from the pack. At the other end of the stick was a small butterscotch candy.

She regarded it for a moment, mystified. Then her eyes gave a sidelong look at her partner, who was watching her innocently.

“I find it helps, sometimes. For... uh... oral fixations, as they say. B-but it calms my nerves, helps me focus!” Kris stammered, failing to keep their composure.

“Smooth. Real smooth. But I guess I ain’t one to turn down a free snack.” Susie placed the lollipop on her tongue. Resisting the urge to bite down immediately and render it into pieces with her fangs, she let it rest, allowing the sweet flavor to drip across her taste buds. It did feel a bit calming.

“So then, you ready to spill the beans?”

Kris looked thoughtful for a moment. “Forensics will probably have this place locked down for awhile... You hungry? I happen to know a nice quiet little diner that serves some amazing pie. Not likely to be overheard, either.

A noise emanated from somewhere behind Susie, a distinct kind of noise that could only be described as a thick stubby tail repeatedly smacking against the hood of a car. She quickly jumped to her feet.

“Damn, can’t remember the last time I had pie. Arright, Kris, I’m game.”

“Happy to hear it, Susie.”