Andrea peeked in the window and saw first the animal skins hanging around the room. It took her a moment to realize that the parts on the table were small enough they were animal parts, not human parts. Only once she was able to make sense of the grotesque could she move on to notice a man talking to Bob. Her first impression of him was a average-height, box of a man. He looked like he'd been using steroids for years and she didn't think he'd need drugs to enhance his strength further, but from the look on his face, she had no doubt he was using.

Bob looked in her direction and the man ripped one of the skins off the line, throwing it at Bob and heading for the Detective who thankfully was able to duck away at the last moment.  There was an unintelligible shout in Bob's voice, but the other man did not raise his voice as he responded.

Andrea had no doubt they knew she was out there and there was no point in staying outside the door. From outside a vacuum sealed door she couldn't provide Bob any help, from inside she could.

Andrea pushed down the handle, noting that the lock was broken which explained how all of this had been staged in the bio lab. She shoved the door open with her shoulder as she clicked the safety off the pistol Bob had given her. Once inside she leveled the gun at the large man. He and Bob appeared to be in some kind of standoff.

"Put your hands up and back away from the table. I don't want to hurt you, I just want to know where they women are who disappeared, but I will not hesitate to shoot." She said, loudly enough to get it to carry through the room.  She had never shot a man, but she had settled on the fact that she might need to and come to terms with it. She didn't want to kill him, so she planned to shoot for his lower half if she needed to. The man's thighs were so thick they looked just as wide as a regular guy's torso.

Trapp clapped his hands together as Andrea stormed in and paced a little behind the table. Even owing his amusement to the man being high, Bob thought he was taking too much amusement from the whole situation. And then it occurred to him. The women. He watched Trapp quietly as the other man leaned on the table and leered at Andrea,

"I just want to bury myself with you in a lil hotel with some drinks and candy but shit in one hand, wish in the other. You know which fills up quicker. Actually, I'll settle for this. What's it like having power over half the world, excludin the sodoms and neuters. I got a theory that even the most good lookin man don't know what it feels like to have that kinda power. Women can take it or leave it and that's so twisted. I'll have to settle for taking your shots and shrugging the pain off while I wring your neck or we can stay friends and you let me walk out. I will kill one of you before going into the dirt tonight, if it come to it."

Bob threw the staff at Trapp who swatted it away confused. In that time, Bob had drawn his service revolver with blistering speed and had it trained on Trapp, "You're being real rude, Trapp. I'm starting to think Potter's Field is looking real nice for you. And you know why I'm confident about burying you? Cause you don't know shit about the girls. Want to know why I bring that up? Because I realized you don't know where they are. And that means you're worthless to me. You are wasting our time being junkie trash. You want to walk out of here, it's in bracelets."

Trapp licked his lips, showing nervousness for the first time. It's not as if he's a rhinoceros. Two guns was one too many. He really would have to just shrug off and kill one of them with certain death. Or...

"You hurt my feelings. I'm not gonna be buried like a no namer. I got kin. They'd claim me and bury me proper. I'll start over. Miss, I apologize for my behavior. But Bob, you don't really, truly know I don't know where they are."

Bob took off the mask and took a breath. At this point, with the door open, he figured he'd take his chances with recirculated air. He sidled until he was slightly ahead and to the left of Andrea, obstructing Trapp but not Andrea, his gun still levelled to Trapp's chest. Trapp got angry and knocked over jars. Bob shifted his arms to indicate no more shenanigans but Trapp had a Zippo in his hand. The smell of formaldehyde and antiseptic became menacing. There was an edge to Trapp's voice.

"I wasn't being, what do you call it. Hypodermic is needles. I'm not telling you tall tales. Mr. Red. Is. A. Monster. And your killer is probably one too. I'd rather burn right now. You member the towers? That guy who jumped? Had to choose which way to die. Burning is horrible. I've seen Red do worse cause he ain't human, litrlly. You stepped into Hell tonight."

Bob took it in, "My friend and I leave this room, you lose the leverage of burning us all and you own a lab. Congratulations. You light this place on fire to try and escape, I will wait outside the room and I will shoot you. You have gained nothing and I will have to explain you to a beleaguered police force. You are a headache, Trapp. I don't care about your drug fueled fantasies and I'm sick of you thinking you have any options. Where do we find this Red?"

Trapp sounded frantic, "I wish I'd never met him. I wish he were a fantasy. Red knows something about your guy though. You need Red and I want to leave with what I came for. Just let me go!"

He swept the table and all the meticulous organs went splatter on the soaked ground. Bob tossed handcuffs on the table.

"Guess we're going to be bosom buddies for a little while then cause unless Red has the girls, you haven't really helped me. We're gonna take a drive until you've metabolized this drug and then you go cold. This little drive along costs you information about the scene. I want what it was like before you staged it. I want you to set a meet with Red. You do that and that leads somewhere, maybe you get a deal with the DA."

Trapp's bug eyes were red, and his mouth was covered in spittle. The drug didn't seem to be effective at the moment and it was making him erratic. His glib nature eroded to one of suppurating need and he felt like the name he'd adapted. Trapped. He picked up the handcuffs and spun them on his finger.

"You know what? I think Red thought you'd kill me or kill myself somehow tonight. Like I'm any kind of threat. Or maybe I'm your new clue. But you're right. I don't know anything. You talk about me getting clean like it's just taking a shower. Why don't you stop drinking then cold turkey."

Bob didn't even bother to respond. He just waited for Trapp to cuff himself and he did, followed by slumping onto a stool.

Trapp spoke dully, "Red had a workstation. He was given all those items, the tongues. I don't know when that happened. I went to the theater afterwards and hung everything up. I was high. I wrote the message, thought it was funny. Red said to keep writing them. He was in your apartment, law lady. Said he wanted to catch your smell. Says you can see two worlds with your eyes. Is that true?"

Trapp stood up and walked to Bob, showed his cuffed hands. Bob asked if he was going to get pricked or anything if he did a search. Trapp said he wouldn't. Trapp had eight dollars, a cell phone, a train pass and the bricks he'd come for of the drugs. No ID. No wallet. The Zippo was there though. Bob bagged everything up with a collection bag and shoved Trapp to the door.

"Sit against the wall, head between your knees while I confer with colleagues about our next course of action. We'll get you a doughnut and some coffee, try to help your transition off this drug. You're gonna be held off site. I'll make sure of that. I want no chances of anything happening to you."

The words didn't register to Trapp beyond complying. Bob knelt down and cuffed Trapp by the ankles while assessing the scene.

He turned to Andrea, "I want to chew you out for not staying with my niece but you gave us a bloodless surrender. And you saved me more than likely from a savage beating so there's that too. Thank you. Next time though, you have to choose? Choose Vicky."

Andrea felt her stomach clench in disgust and a little fear as Trapp threatened her sexually, but it only served to strengthen her resolve on shooting him if he made a move toward her. At least the threats made her self defense claim solid. But Miller stepped up and Andrea could start to see the strength that had made him such a good Detective when he was younger.  He seemed to have an answer to everything Trapp said and he was able to conclude things that Andrea would have had no idea about. How had he known Trapp knew nothing about the missing women?

She knew when to keep quiet and she did so, letting then men go back and forth, trying to absorb everything that was said. Trapp really seemed to be hallucinating, what with his comments about this Red-person not being human. Red certainly sounded like a real psychotic. Wanted to catch her scent? That was something men with tendencies to stalk were depicted as having. And stalkers were known to be obsessive and have a high potential for violence. But apparently he was only the middle man?

Andrea only relaxed once Trapp was in handcuffs. Only then did she put the safety back on Miller's gun and tuck it back on her waistband.

She didn't answer Trapp's question about seeing two worlds. She didn't know what he meant and set it up to his delusions from drugs. She was used to getting lots of strange questions and teasing about her eyes. It happened growing up, but still now she'd get comments- usually from women who were acting like jealous hens or men who felt as though she had rejected them in some way. She was used to not responding, letting the comments roll off her back.

When Miller came to her she was happy to step further toward the door, get away from the smells and rest her eyes on the more pleasant view of his face, even if her was angry with her.

"I'm sure Vicky is fine, unless Lenny decided to get handsy. Even then, I'm sure she'd knee him between the legs and leave him whimpering on the floor.  She found the drug is Cocaine laced with a lot of things that make it pretty deadly to the average person and would cause that in others." She gestured in Trapp's direction. "So now we take him and go after this Mr. Red? Are we going to report all this to someone?" She gestured toward the biolab. She knew reporting it would lead to waiting for other police, doing official reports, and taking time, which she didn't want to do, but she didn't see how they could just walk away.  Could they leave it until someone found the labs in the morning and called 911?  She glanced at the door, the only thing she had touched with her fingers and made a note to wipe any parts that would have prints on them.

Bob shook his head, "We're not going to report it. Lenny is going to report back having heard strange sounds outside the biolab to campus security. Campus security will either promptly report it to the district or they will get real territorial and try to hold onto the scene. There's always one wannabe that is trying to get on the force. We luck out with him being our campus guy and that'll buy us some precious time. Time to search the Price apartment and set up this meet. I want more details from Trapp and he's gonna talk while we search, multitask. Thing that is hinky to me off the top--who is this drug for? It's not super unusual to have hallucinations but why make a Coke derivative with hallucinations in the mix when there's PCP. If we'd been dealing with that, there would be a very real possibility you would have seen me without a face. He'd have ripped it off. This guy Red wants controllable violence maybe?

At the scene, I couldn't figure out how all the evidence fit inside the cats. I didn't know to look for it but their stomachs looked seamless. Our Red is patient to sew them back up like that but suffers his own weird shit. He's been drinking the blood of these animals. I don't like that he's met Yorkshire either. Red would have shown up earlier on our radar if he'd been exsanguinating people. He's probably helping Yorkshire out of an eagerness to work his way to people. Yorkshire should be very protective though of his girls so that clock shouldn't change. We just have to get Red off the street first before they get too chummy or clash values."

Trapp turned on his side, "I need air. It's too hot in here. Gonna throw up."

Bob worked at the cuffs on his ankles and groaned as he hauled Trapp up.

"You got the story down, right? Feed it to Lenny. I'll deal with this."

The gun was pressed to the base of Trapp's spine. They walked wordlessly but Trapp was groaning at times until they reached an exit and Trapp took a deep breath.

"Don't even try to run. That was your first thought. Up against the wall, sit."

Trapp slid down seated. "Heart beating too fast. Something...this batch."

Bob clenched his fist. Why would Red think Bob would kill you, Trapp. He wouldn't. He just gave you a dirty high. He hit Trapp with the butt of the gun. Trapp vomited from the pain.

"The fu..the fuck you do that for?"

"Your heart is like a sewage plant. I need that toxicity out somehow. Blood goes out. No epinephrine in the event it stopped. Vomiting was a stroke of luck. It's what I call Informal Medicine."

Trapp was sweating hard. "Coulda warned me. Nose is broke."

"Why did he take the earring?"

Trapp was exasperated, "What earring, man? You shittin a shitter? You like riddles?"

"Red took a cat's eye earring from the apartment and left a brick of your favorite drug at my friend's place. He basically set you up tonight. What made you think you weren't expendable?"

"Yeah, just rub in that I'm nothin. Look, Red got it weird strong for the blue/brown eyes. He said he needed help getting close to her. I wasn't thinking about anything but his good good. That first time was God sent. I would have destroyed you if he hadn't stabbed me in the back."

"You were the clue. And the messenger. I guess setting a meet won't be so hard."

"Daylight hitting soon. You have to wait a night. Never seen him in the daytime."

"You really believe he isn't human. I thought you'd be smart enough to know one thing, Trapp. Only monsters are us."

"You're very wrong, Detective Miller."

Bob leveled the gun in the direction of the voice.

"Color me impressed. You might have shot me."

The voice was like silk and titanium at the same time and it had impossibly moved further right in the copse of trees.

"You shy, Mr. Red? This is your party. Come out and let's have a talk."

"I'm not that interested in you, Miller. I want Ms. Juneau. Do give her this message. It's why I've inconvenienced myself in coming out here. Her sister is intact. You have a tongue that's been injected with some of her blood but that's your Yorkshire killer trying to maintain "integrity." We came to an arrangement. To a point. And before you ask, no I don't know where the girls are. Not anymore. And I regrettably could not persuade the individual to give the younger Juneau to me for safe keeping. Adamant, your Yorkshire."

Bob looked and looked but he couldn't see Red. "You went to great lengths to preserve Yorkshire's sex. And or gender. People use em interchangeably now. It's confusing for an old man. Yorkshire have that issue too?"

"I'm impressed you noticed. Not enough to give the game away though. Professional courtesy. Tell Andrea for me that I would appreciate if she wore that backless champagne dress from the Judiciary Review last summer. It's most becoming. While you're at it, bring your darling niece as well. I'd like her opinion on my creation, a different sort of peer to peer."

"Yeah, that's not happening. Vicky isn't coming anywhere near you."

Bob didn't see him come from the trees. That's because he'd somehow positioned himself above Bob, standing on the roof of the building. He seemed to appear like a mist behind Bob and pressed him with great force against the wall. It took one shake to relieve Bob of the gun. Red whispered in Bob's ear, "You seem to think you're in a position to set terms. I'm disabusing you of that notion now. There are more things in heaven and earth than dreamt of in your philosophies. I believe that's how it goes. I am the defiance of your prosaic grim world, Miller. And I am a prosaic terror in a world full of them. Still, we play the parts we are given. Which is why I'm going to let you live. You thought if you could just catch or kill Yorkshire that you would set the world right. Or maybe just 'I got mine.' By all means, try. I believe Yorkshire will prevail. Your haphazard, by the nails detecting pales to that monstrosity. But maybe you'll prove me wrong. Here, a gift of repentance."

Red let go of the back of Bob's neck and Bob slumped to the ground in a daze. In one hand was his gun and in the other, he could barely recognize the earring.

"Pairs should be reunited. I'd like Ms. Juneau to wear the newly reunited earrings. Mr. Miller, this is a courtesy. I rather hope you save the sister. But I am a fan of Yorkshire. It's all very exciting. Now, I should attend to Trapp before I go."

Trapp was petrified. He hadn't moved the entire time. He managed to find his voice, "I did what you wanted. And I didn't say a word about nothin. Don't kill me."

Red was walking with deliberate slowness. He felt something on his ankle. It was Bob.

"Really...for him? Fine. I'm too generous for my own good. I just thought better he be dead than escaped. I'm fairly certain you will pass out. Don't blame me if he runs. Goodnight."

Bob didn't see Red leave but Trapp saw him vanish and he was just gumming the air, uncomprehending, "H--how? Why?"

Bob dragged himself up the wall and unsteadily kept the gun on Trapp, "You're under arrest. In my custody. Do you understand your rights?"

Trapp nodded dumbly. Bob nodded and sat on the stair. He sent a group text to Andrea and Vicky, "We're outside."

Bob looked up at the sky. Hanging with prescience was a blood moon. What did that say about tomorrow?

Andrea nodded in agreement with Miller and stepped over to wipe her prints from the Bio lab door before she left. "I know I don't have to say it, but be careful with him. He's unpredictable." Andrea told Miller about Trapp. "We'll be out in a second."

Andrea went back to the chem lab to find Vicky.  "Hey, The Detective's ok." she said as she walked to the table to pull the straps of her bag over her shoulder. She waved Vicky over and lowered her voice for Vicky's ears only.

"Bob wants Lenny to spin a story of hearing weird noises and call campus security. No mention of us being here. Do you think you can convince him to do that? I have eighty dollars on me, not sure if you need a bribe or if that'd be a useful amount."

She let Vicky do her best working her contacts and only stepped in if the woman needed help. Trapp going off about her having power over men had made her feel self conscious about pressing it right now.  Instead she took the time to wipe the table, door and any other surfaces she and Bob had touched, using a disposable cleaning wipe she found on a side table.

When they were done in there she led Vicky out the door, past the bio lab.  "I would suggest NOT looking. The animal skins are disgusting." she told Vicky.  "I found your uncle in a standoff with a very weird man, probably a steroid user, definitely a drug user. He didn't know anything about the women, but the cats are the doing of some guy he just called Mr. Red.  Miller got him in handcuffs and they went outside to wait for us. It was actually very impressive.  No blows were exchanged."

Her phone chimed and she checked it.  "I have the keys. I guess they are waiting for us."

She came to the exit door and took another wipe out of her bag to wipe that handle as well as they went out the door.  That's when she saw Miller sitting on the stair, something about the slope of his shoulders  indicated he wasn't just resting while he waited.

The first thing Bob noticed since it was at eye level was the outline of a portion of his flask pressed against the interior of Andrea's purse. He wanted it but realized it would just come straight back up. He pushed himself up and made way for them to come down, "My favorite ladies. So, Lester good with the plan?"

He coughed into his hand and saw it was bloody sputum. He clenched his hand before wiping it inside his coat pocket. There was a beat before Trapp became hysterical,

"Fuck your Gary Cooper act, Miller. You're not gonna tell them. I will. Red was here and it was bad. He--"

Bob gave Trapp a withering look and the cuffed man angrily went quiet. Bob unfolded a handkerchief and offered up the earring to Andrea, his tone trying to be inscrutable but there was a hint of fear, "You have an admirer, Andrea. And I am forced to say he did what I believed was impossible. Your sister is unharmed. One of those tongues is going to come up Jane Doe or maybe ding as your sister but...Red has insisted she is well. And I believe him. He wants you to---"

His face went sour and Trapp finished with irritation.

"Red wants to meet you girls tomorrow. Formal wear for you, law girl. Champagne dress, backless. Those earrings. Suppose the rest is up to you. Just turn it on and maybe we'll all get through this. Be agreeable."

Bob went to Trapp in a rage and smacked him across the face. Trapp opened his mouth, which was a mistake. The revolver in Bob's hand now resided halfway in Trapp, who was making panicked noises. Bob was panting. He spit on Trapp. It was more blood.

"Shut your filthy mouth. I swear, give me the reason I want, Trapp."

Trapp looked to the women pleading.

"I have a secret, Trapp. Ready? I'm not a nice man. I enjoy when I have the badge and hurt people like you. It's my reward for protecting people like them. So I mean it. Give me a reason."

He took the gun out of Trapp's mouth and Trapp quivered, but not because of Bob. "He's going to kill us all. And you know now. He ain't human, Miller. Why'd you stop him from killing me if you're just gonna let him do it tomorrow?"

Bob sneered, "He has medical training and martial training. I wouldn't be surprised if he served. He got the drop on me. He didn't vanish in a cloud of bats. He didn't breathe fire. I don't want to hear any more!"

Bob's entire body was trembling with useless adrenaline. He put the gun away in his holster and wobbled to the wall. He couldn't understand. But he did. This was fear.

Hearing the news that Bob was OK brought an intense amount of relief to Vicky's demeanor. Her entire body visibly relaxed for just a moment.

She looked over at Lenny, who in the meantime had been balancing a pencil and other things on his nose, chin, and forehead. There was a cold mug of coffee. He was listening, though, and when Andrea mentioned the plan he put his thumb up. Vicky turned back and explained: "It's all covered by the one favor. I owe him a drink and probably some food. It's the local economy, you might say." She shrugged. "It's basically sacrosanct."

When Andrea described the guy, she got a bit more edgy. "Yeah, I sure hope he isn't on this cocktail. Someone on this stuff wouldn't think anything of their own life--a full magazine of rounds wouldn't stop them unless it killed them, cold, on the spot. Have you ever seen someone try to take down a guy on PCP? This is a whole lot worse." She thought that, if this guy had any connection to the drugs, he was probably between fixes at the moment--or else either him or Bob would be dead by now.

On their way out, Vicky spotted the emergency fire ax close to the other lab. <Coral>"I've seen a few animal carcasses, by the way--I'm in the sciences, after all."

Vicky found herself on edge again when they met with Bob (and, unfortunately, Trapp). She didn't like the look of this guy, and she didn't precisely like seeing this side of Bob, either.

When Vicky mentioned PCP Andrea looked back over her shoulder.  "I haven't witnessed that.  If that's what it's like then Trapp, the man from the lab, must not be high at the moment.  Well, he's on something, but not that.  Though he did boast that he could take all the bullets in my gun and still strangle me." She shivered at the thought of the threat.  "I am very glad that your Uncle was there to handle the negotiation and surrender."

Andrea walked down the stairs at the exit and answered Bob about Lenny.  "Yes.  He will make the call in a little while.  Vicky has some good friends in the science lab."  She watched Bob move with concern, he looked more tired than ever, and it didn't appear to just be the late hour.  She took a breath to say something when Trapp started up with is rant.  Andrea was literally shocked into silence as the two men vied to tell the story of what had happened and argued and fought about what was going to happen and what danger they might be in.

It was all over in a flash and Andrea was left holding her earring and staring between Miller and Trapp, both upset and trembling.  Both men left quaking by a man named Mr. Red.

Andrea slipped the earring in her bag as she walked quietly over to Miller.  He felt one warm hand on the small of his back and saw the other offering him a bottle as he leaned, facing the wall.  For a moment he thought it might be alcohol, but then saw more clearly that it was a designer re-usable water bottle with a feminine blue design.  "Did he hurt you?  Your neck?" Andrea reached up and gently tugged aside the collar of his jacket to show the vivid red marks there which were quickly turning into bruises.  She frowned, angry.  "This was Mr. Red?  I'm sorry, since apparently he is after me." She put the water bottle in Bob's hand, if he didn't take it himself.  "Sip it."

Andrea turned and surveyed the little group of people there, Trapp, handcuffed and kneeling, blood on his face from the hit and the spit; Miller, blood on his lips somehow seething and scared at the same time; Vicky, a young woman capable yet caught in unexpected crosshairs and left completely on edge by two violent men.  "Okay.  So the terrorist comes on the scene and is making demands.  But Mr. Red is not the guy, or woman, or group who has the girls and has my sister, right?  So we table him until tomorrow night when I decide if I am going to go meet him and if I am going to cater to his demands."  Andrea's disgusted look was the closest thing Bob had ever seen to contempt on her face.  "In the meantime, we still have Eileen's home to search for clues and before that we all need coffee and electrolytes and then we all need rest."  She looked at Trapp.

"Are we bringing Trapp with us, Detective? If so, I might have to require a seat protector and a bucket, just in case.  And you should probably sit with him in back to make sure he doesn't try anything."

He startled for a moment and then his body relaxed as he registered who it was behind him and took the water gratefully, waving his hand dismissively at Andrea's apology, "This is nothing. He just...it's like I said. He caught me unaware. I'll be fine. He asked for you but I think he played up being prurient to make me angry. It may have worked better than I thought."

The water was cooling and her hand was relaxing. He started to feel self conscious and the adrenaline was steering uncomfortably elsewhere. It had been too long since he'd felt tenderness aside from maintaining a relationship when he was UC years ago. He offered Andrea a tight smile before peeling away from the wall and then with more reluctance than he cared to admit, he stepped away from Andrea and started to pace, drinking water with reflections flitting in his mind. He looked to Vicky and walked over, kneeling down and gently taking one of her hands between his, "I am...I am so sorry you saw me like that."

Trapp audibly chuffed at the apology to Vicky, "Man puts a gun in my mouth for talking some damn sense, smacks me in the nose with the butt of same gun and offers not one word. Ah got feelings too, Miller."

Bob was feeling the anger growing. Trapp was acting familiar in a way that pissed him off considering Trapp had just told Andrea to proposition herself to Red. He let go of Vicky's hand and turned to Trapp, staring at him as he answered Andrea.

"Yeah we're taking him with us. He owes me and I intend to collect. Every scrap of information in his head, every dealing he's had with Red and how they operated--you are not meeting him alone or unprepared, Andrea. He wanted Vicky there too to antagonize me. It worked. I'll be better. But our routines are shot for all intents and purposes until Red is dealt with."

He had Trapp lean forward, who resisted at first until he realized he was being administered water.

"Thanks. I'm sorry, lawyer lady. Don't suppose you suffer from anything that gets you Xanax or somethin. As wonderful as bleeding from my nose worked to stop a heart attack, as in not at all to my liking, I could do with it. Tylenol PM'll do in a pinch I guess but only cause of lights out. And considerin I am looking at death's door, I don't think acetaminophen and diphenhydramine are gonna cut it."

Bob stopped giving him water and gave the bottle back to Andrea, "There's a greasy spoon near here. Short stack and coffee black for 5 bucks. Carbs should slow us down some and coffee for equilibrium. Then yeah, Eileen's place."

Victoria was losing track of things--more was going on than she could understand. So she asked a question when Bob came to apologize to her. "Just who the hell is Red, anyways? What's his interest in this case?"

As soon as Trapp started to speak, though? She shot back at him: "How about you shut the hell up, you creep?" She looked almost like she was about to hit him in the mouth for a second before turning back to Bob, brows still furrowed a bit. "It's alright. I'm just...not used to it."

"Yeah, I know the place. It's good--a lot of the students head there for greasy late-night food during exams. If the coffee's just gone on, it'll be the ideal time to show up. Let's hurry up with it so we can get to Eileen's place."

Andrea knew that Miller had no intention of sending her to meet with Mr. Red alone and she hadn't been planning on it either. Nor did she intend to dress as requested. In her mind, to do that would give Red the upper hand. It would communicate "I am yours to instruct and I will cater to your demands." She wouldn't do that. Years of practice had taught her the messages one could send with clothing and the strength she could give herself by dressing correctly. She would use that to her every advantage and she would not jump into his trap so eagerly. But she didn't need to get into that right now.

She accepted the water bottle back after Bob had used it to give to Trapp with a look of distaste. As subtly as possible she used another alcohol wipe to cleanse the drinking rim before replacing it in her bag and shaking her head at Tripp.  "Extra strength Tylenol is all I carry." she told him. She couldn't remember the last time she had taken pain killers herself, but the DA occasionally got bad headaches and what kind of assistant would she be if she wasn't prepared for that?

With Vicky's assistance to get a garbage bag and a bucket from the science building Andrea prepared a spot for Tripp in her car. She handed Miller a small packet of facial cleansing wipes before getting in the car. "Not much you can do about his shirt, buy we will draw less attention if you get the blood off of both of your faces." she said in a soft voice. "Wouldn't want to ruin the effect of those blue eyes on the diner waitress." she winked at him and slid into the driver's seat, placing the borrowed gun inside the center console where it wouldn't dig into her back as she drove.

Andrea was quiet on the way to the diner, taking Vicky's directions there. She was concentrating on driving and staying awake. She was used to waking at this hour, but after 6 hours of sleep, not pulling an all-nighter. At the diner she slid into a booth, making sure Miller and Tripp were on one side, she and Vicky the other. She ordered an egg white omelette, with spinach and mushroom, an English muffin and black coffee.  Apparently the lack of sleep did not provide an excuse for splurging on pancakes with lots of syrup in Andrea's book.

Bob shook his head to Vicky, accompanying his answer, "He's a violent passerby. I think they found each other, Yorkshire and Red, muddying the waters. Red seems as though he's responsible for the animals. The elaborate presentation brought us here though. That was probably just his version of showmanship."

He was concerned for the snap in Vicky's tone, not that Trapp didn't deserve that but for the untold story of how much this night is in her skin. Maybe Jesse did right keeping them apart.

Trapp winced but said nothing as Bob wiped at the blood already threatening to dry on Trapp's face with alcohol wipes. After he administered that, he cleaned at his own hands and face. Andrea had left him a little wordless and a flush at the thought of flirting. The last time he'd flirted as Bob Miller and not a UC as necessary? The towers were still standing. Lot of oil needed to make those gears turn again and make him a candidate for the mutual song and dance of courting. He took a look in the car mirror ostensibly checking for blood but he paid attention to his own eyes. They were sharper than usual, the color less faded in the blue. It was as if the case we're bringing him to life.

Bob knew he would run off what he ate so he went at a stack and a half of pancakes with gusto along with some crispy bacon and a sunny side egg, betraying the unsaid black coffee rule of the diner with some cream and sugar. He traced the air with his fork, his words a little muffled before he swallowed a bite,

"So, we have two cases here and the point of divergence is tonight. They were linked when Red made contact with Yorkshire and volunteered to shepherd the evidence into his own crime. They split when Red went mask off and asked us to come see him, saying he wasn't Yorkshire. Why believe that? Both of them share a desire for attribution. In Red's case, he couldn't help but make it known we've mostly been dancing to his tune. He needs Andrea for something and I think it's safe to say, despite the clothing appeal, it's more about who she knows. So why does Red need the DA. Give me something and you'll get more than take out pie and coffee for dinner, Trapp.

Trapp was encumbered with Miller's coat covering his lap like a big folded blanket. He was in a sour mood.

"You think I know what that psycho wants? Look, I'mma set this straight. I had a good job once. Anyone wanna guess? Animal Control. That's how Red and I met. It was a chance meeting or so I thought. I "caught" him trying to steal from a kennel. But he knew I was born on the crooked mile. Money and drugs. I had tunnel vision, Miller. I thought his peculiar diet was like a pregnant lady's or somethin. He just had cravings or maybe his body wanted more iron, that uhh, that anemia thing."

This excited mounting panic in Trapp, "But we all know it's worse than that. He ain't hu---"

Bob stuffed a piece of bacon in Trapp's mouth and shook his head, "Well now you know you were played. I want facts, Trapp. I want motive. I want answers."

Trapp chewed on his gag, "Night doesn't care what you want, Miller. That's why it's night. It's dark and hides things. The night don't care."

Andrea set down her fork and pushed her empty plate away.  She refilled her coffee cup with the carafe the waitress had brought after being asked for the third refill and then wrapped her hands around the cup.  Her slender fingers twined with each other around the cream ceramic and the light pink polish on her manicured nails caught the light of harsh fluorescents hanging from the diner ceiling.

"You really think he's after the DA?"  she shrugged.  "I don't know what he thinks he can get out of me.  I am only her personal assistant.  Wouldn't he be better off trying to go after one of the ADAs if that is his reason?"

Bob stuffed the Bacon in Trapp's mouth, effectively cutting off his rant, but Andrea was left with a question.  "So, this Mr. Red, he drinks the blood of the animals that he is killing?  Why the skinning and organs and the elaborate scenes?  Why did he tell you to do all that?" she looked at Bob.  "And what exactly did he say to you about my sister?  If he's not Yorkshire, how does he know that she is ok?  What did he say about her tongue?"

Trapp wasn't occupied with food or anything. He just stared and blinked for a moment before registering Andrea's questions. "He wanted attention like Miller said. Nobody cares about random dead animals. They go missing more than you think. Hell, my supervisor called the cops about it before I met Red. Calls were ignored. And the scenes weren't just for us. Things changed when he met Yorkshire. It was like Red wanted to be this fuckin monster afterwards. 'Fore that, he almost seemed sick like unwell."

Bob looked at his plate and picked up a piece of bacon contemplatively, "Red met Yorkshire and there was an understanding. It's my inference because you work for the DA that Red asked for clemency for your sister. Yorkshire picked up another woman and we'll likely never know who the stand in is because of how Red suggested he throw us off. The underworld has a way of connecting unsavory characters because they hide in the same types of places. He wouldn't do that without wanting something from you in return and I doubt his sexual intimations are the real motivation. If I wanted the DA for something, I would tap you first too Andrea. You have her schedule at her fingertips and a very subtle direct line. You don't take advantage of it, which is why you're valued in the office amongst other things. When you become a lawyer, I know you'll be good. If you have political aspirations, the DA would back you. I don't know why Red knows you're the person to touch on though. An ADA would, on the face of it, seem more of a useful target. This isn't any old hard lean. Red needs something big. He seems to only work alone though, given that Trapp has been his go to person and I think even Trapp would agree there are more useful people than ones with addictions if he had a big plan in mind that needs retained muscle."

Bob let the stiff bacon drop back onto the plate, "What Red gave us by coming out tonight takes away from what we thought we knew about Yorkshire. Except...the women were moved. How can they be moved without drawing attention..."

There was fatigue there as the last of the adrenaline was wearing off and it brought Bob to a polar extreme where his thoughts were coming slower. Trapp didn't even take offense at Bob's remark.

"I was planning to leave, get some land in the middle part of the country, try to tend to some animals. You always need money though and it's always too late. I don't want to die."

Andrea sipped from her coffee mug and slumped just a little in her chair.  She looked at the small chain watch on her wrist, seeming to note the time

"So we are no closer to finding Yorkshire than we were when we were at the theater.  The stuff in my apartment was all Mr. Red.  Maybe he could get us a little closer, but we don't even know exactly where and when we are supposed to meet him, do we?  We need to go to Elaine's home and see if there is any clue there.  You said that she was catatonic, Detective?  So when, if, she was taken it was likely from whatever home she was in.  Does she have twenty-four hour caretakers or family or is she in a care facility?  If we don't find anything there will you call or go in and find out if there was anything at the other homes?"  She covered her mouth for a suppressed yawn.

"I will need to call my office soon and take a personal day. And I should call my parents, they may already be awake." Andrea glanced toward the window where the night was showing signs of giving way to dawn.

As a pretty girl, growing up in troubled times, Andrea had had cause to think about kidnapping, being moved or taken places against her will, the necessity not to approach strangers or take candy or gifts from strange men in vans.  It didn't seem like it would be that difficult to move 7 women who had already been captured.  After all, trafficking was a very real crime and those women and girls were often moved surreptitiously.  The traffickers apparently didn't find it that hard or it wouldn't be so prevalent and easy to get away with. "As to moving six or seven women, it wouldn't be too hard in a van, especially if they are unconscious or drugged and you have a garage on either end."  she didn't mention the ease with which one could probably move the same number of corpses all piled up.  "Unless you were thinking it would be difficult for a different reason?"

Vicky didn't say too much at the diner--she ordered food, a real meal, and chowed down. Being a student in sciences, she was more used to jumping from something gross or even grizzly than your average bear. As a result, jumping straight over to food from all the things they'd just been subjected to was hardly a bigger stretch than normal.

She hated Trapp, however, and kept giving him stink-eye as she ate.

She commented eventually: "So, maybe this Red guy isn't our guy. But he still wants to be involved. He wants to be a part of the case. And he's the type of guy who...drinks raw cat blood, or whatever." She scratched her chin for a second, dabbed some grease at the corner of her mouth. "That all sounds pretty dangerous anyways, right? So I don't think we can ignore him, either. If he wants to be in the middle of things, he might already be related to the case."

There wasn't anywhere for Trapp to go so he just took the baleful glare in silence. He got the impression any response to the young woman would drag Bob out of his quiet mood and rile him up.

"I imagine he will contact Trapp's phone with the meet details tomorrow night. The where will be somewhere he controls. Where do you hole up, Trapp? Where will he take us?"

Trapp shifted uncomfortably, "It was a warehouse with a freezer. I don't know where exactly but the air smelled salty so I imagine by the docks. He'd put a mask over my head and I know he doubled back to certain places from the way light came through the fibers. I don't know what else to tell you. I wasn't taking notes when I went in the warehouse few times I did."

Bob wanted to push further but he weighed it against making a scene and decided to just nod to Trapp.

"Eileen. She has twenty four hour care in her own home. The family maintains the home. They send me a card every year, asking for more information in the nicest way possible. They want closure. I just blanked on the transportation Yorkshire would use to move them. Whether it's difficult or not. But he has at least two locations under his control. Red can tell us about one if he wanted."

It was a little funny for Bob seeing his niece eat but it didn't reflect in his voice, "Red made contact with Yorkshire. Once upon a time, I would have been able to wrangle precincts to chase whoever might have breathed the same air. Not the same now. That contact alone makes Red valuable and yeah, that guy's own proclivities makes him someone who probably should be picked up."

Bob tried to wrangle what they had to do in brief, "So, Eileen should tell us about Yorkshire for sure if I'm right with something. That he's going to close the first circle of murders or attempt it soon. Red wants something from Andrea. We should have safe passage but given how many warehouses there are by the dock, can we find him before the meet is called and is it worth it to try? I'm not a big fan of giving Red the control he has currently but there's no choice short of trying to meet him on our terms."

Andrea nodded. "Agreed, when were done here we should go look into Eileen's residence and see what's there." As she listened to Bob really about trying to find Red her mouth turned down at the sides. When he was done she shook her head. "Trying to search all the warehouses and other possible buildings by the ocean is useless if we don't have any way to narrow it down. That activity could take weeks with many more people than we have, and I'm guessing you won't want to split up to do it. I think we would be better off getting a few hours of rest and continuing to follow up and clues we have on Yorkshire."

Andrea took a book-wallet from her bag and put money on the table to cover her portion of the bill and a generous tip.  "I'll be back."  She got up to go to the restroom and when she came back out she had freshened up, redone her hair and makeup and did not look like she's been awake for over 24 hours.

Andrea caught Bob's eye and motioned that she'd be a little longer and used an empty booth to spread out a planner and take pictures. She was quick typing something up on her phonw then re-reading, editing and sending. Then she put it all away, dialed a number and lifted her phone to her ear. Andrea turned to the window to look out as she waited. The soft light of dawn illuminated her features and caught the glint of gold at her throat.

"Good morning, Mom.  Yes, it's unusual to call this early. I figured you'd be up to make breakfast for the boys. No, I'm ok. It's... It's Kat, she's missing. Since yesterday night. Yes, the police are looking, they have their best detectives on it." Andrea paused as she listened to her mom and she was speaking quietly, but her side of the conversation could be just heard if one was paying attention. "No! I mean, you should stay at home. There's nothing you can do right now and I don't have a place for you to stay, I'm not even at home, just in case. No, I'm fine. It's just a precaution. I'm staying with a detective. He's a he, mom. He's taking my safety very seriously. Attractive?" Andrea glanced over at the table where the others were sitting and then looked back out the window. "Yes, sure, but I haven't really been thinking about that. It's really not the first thing on my mind. Yes, you're right, it rarely is. Yes, I know you worry about me. Right now I am more worried about Kat. I will let you know as soon as I find out anything more. Yes, she's a strong girl, I am sure we'll find her and it'll be ok. I love you. I'll call you soon."

Andrea stowed everything away in her bag again and came back to the table. "I emailed HR and my boss that I am not going to be in today. Are we ready to go?"
This message was last edited by the player at 13:49, Sun 21 Nov 2021.

Vicky left a pretty damn good tip--she knew some of the people who took on shifts here, she wasn't about to go around giving bad tips here.

She was still nursing some coffee as they were finishing up their chat.

"I guess you're probably going to want to meet Red without us, then?" She thought on that for a good second. "If you're seeing this guy alone, just be careful. It doesn't do any good if you end up hurt or put yourself into some kind of bad situation."

Later on, as Andrea came back to the table, she thought about making arrangements. She decided not to.

Bob took a sip of coffee and shook his head, "I only know to look for Yorkshire for sure right now. Red has thrown this curveball that can't be reckoned with until they're disentangled from one another. Red has to have less leverage in order to make it actionable to not go by his demands. I don't want either of you there but there may not be a choice."

The words were increasingly bitter in his mouth and he looked to Vicky with a peculiar mix of concern and a hint of desperation, "He wanted you there. I told him like hell and that precipitated his---contrariness. He wants your opinion on the drug or that's the pretense. As an uncle, I don't want you there. As a cop, I wouldn't have you there. As a strained detective, I'm in great conflict of those who are still out there and their safety. If you want to go back to school, I'm in full support. If you come with us, I'll do everything I can to keep the focus off you. I don't have a clear answer."

He fished out something proportional to Vicky's tip and laid it on the table, turning his attention to Andrea. "Yes, we should head to the Price residence and hope for something we can follow independent of Red. I'd like to be able to ignore his first 'invitation' and rattle his cage a little."

"Ok. Let's go." Andrea did one last check that the tab was fully covered, smiled at the evidence that they were all good tippers and headed out the front of the diner to her car. She opened the trunk and dug around for a black leather jacket which she slipped on before skipping into the driver's seat and waiting for the others to get in.

"You're the navigator, Detective." She told Bob once he'd settled Tripp and gotten in behind her.  She turned her eyes to him in the rear view mirror, waiting for the first set of directions.

Andrea was a competent enough driver and she stayed calm despite the annoyances of beginning rush hour traffic.

 you find various things youve found over the night coalese into you being ready to look again at the scene where the corpses were found.

You know now beyond doubt something drank the life out of them.

Bob was kneeling and looking at where the corpses had been. When the coroner had reported that the bodies had been forcibly drained based on the tension in the musculature and not just drained, he was thrown for a loop. It was already strange that there had been scant blood to be found. He wanted to chalk it up to a rabid animal but Animal Control, insofar as they have expertise, said there was no kind of animal they knew that would leave the bodies.

He was forced to the conclusion that this was a "someone" doing these things. None of the pet owners had reported any kind of animus toward their animals at any point or noticed anyone suspicious following them. The only thing in common was the attacks were only occurring at night.

News reports were already cautioning people to keep their pets in their homes and to try to get to their homes as early as possible. He didn't want to wait for the attacks to escalate to people. His sergeant wasn't compelled to offer much in the way of assistance.

He might as well have thrown chicken bones on the ground and tried to augur them for insight. The frustration was taken out on a bottle in his coat. As he gathered the coat about him to keep more chill at bay, he heard the clicking of heels on the pavement.

There was a familiar cadence to them but he was ambivalent about turning to face her. If it was her, would she demand answers? If she did, what could he say? He was standing there holding the short straw of giving a damn about cats and dogs, about something that bumps in the night. He hastily put away the flask and looked intently on, pretending he was beyond notice.

The sound of the heels stopped a respectful distance from the Detective and Andrea shifted her bag higher on her shoulder.

"Well, Detective, see anything new in the light of day?" The dark of night was indeed lightening to a rosey hue on the horizon, the beauty of which was, of course, blocked out by the grimy walls rising from an even grimier street.  The deep shadowing of the corners however was becoming a dark grey and details continued to coalesce out of the inky black that may have smothered them earlier.

Andrea looked fragile somehow, the bones if her face pushing against her skin as though her skin was tissue and she might tear. But the look in her eyes was hard and strong providing a counter point to her exterior.

Bob grit his teeth. This wasn't an unreasonable question. He squinted his eyes and realized there was more to the area than previously thought. New in the light of day, indeed. He pulled out a penlight and it dispelled that much more of the darkness clinging to the alley corner. It was very easy for forensics to have missed this discarded item in the bedlam of press crowding in and ascribing wild theories to the perpetrator, now perhaps not so wild.

He knelt down and sifted away superfluous leaves and dirt until resting in plain sight was a silver bracelet. Not real silver and not really a bracelet. Something better.

"Turns out sunshine is more than disinfectant. Yes, Ms. Juneau. I did indeed find something. A medical bracelet. Depending on the severity of the condition, it should be easy to narrow down who it belongs to."

He stood up with a little creak in his knees and hoped his junior associate wouldn't notice. It was a foolish bit of pride but when Ms. Juneau had joined the DA's office, he found himself a little more interested in the position of liasion he found himself holding. It wasn't primarily about her looks. Being honest, there was something in her looks though. Her eyes had a way of drawing everyone to her and they had an insistence that made one want to bear their soul. Bob had misplaced that relic but she made him feel resonance. If he had vocalized this, it would make him more the old fool than he felt.

She made him remember the days when the job felt doable. That justice will prevail on the scales. She'd bought him a nice gift of whiskey despite expressing what seemed genuine concern for the habit. Everyone else had taken out numbers on when he would kick it. All of this added to his clearing his throat and presuming as professional a tone as he could, "Of course, there is the tiny matter of HIPPA laws that will make asking the hospital a real pain in the ass. I don't suppose you can help an old timer out with the red tape?I find the tears of bureaucrats much more palatable than blue haired women mourning Mittens. And there is an ever present danger with this person loose. Yes, person. Animals have been ruled out."

Without ceremony and some annoyance, he realized he had to retrieve the bracelet for processing and the snap of the gloves was sharper than usual. He bent down and runner's knee gave a yelp. He wanted to tell Andrea don't get old, it's for the birds. The bracelet was bagged and he got back up swiftly to try and maintain some appearance of vitality. The car trilled as he unlocked the doors from the alley.

"Shall we go to the hospital then? Maybe if I'm lucky, I will catch my niece there. Have I ever told you about her?"

He opened the car door for her and waited before entering and off they went.