A/N: Obviously this is still a work in progress, and will definitely be much longer than my first fic (probably 10+ chapters, we'll see how it goes). I'll make sure to update the chapters regularly. Enjoy!
Disclaimer- I do not own Psych.
Out of Sight, Out of Psych?
Chapter One: An Unwelcome Visit
"Shawn, I don't care what you say, we are NOT doing that! Don't act like I've forgotten what happened before!"
Shawn Spencer spread his palms in exasperation. "Gus, please, are you still hung up on that? It was over twenty years ago! We are now much smarter, much more experienced, and our physical coordination has made incredible strides, especially once we got past that whole awkward puberty thing!"
"I do NOT care Shawn! No matter what you say, I am never, ever, driving a go-kart blindfolded ever again!" Gus crossed his arms and snapped his head away, refusing to make eye contact with his best friend as they continued to stroll down the sidewalk.
"Gus, please, let's think this through for a minute. First of all, your birthday is next week, and since you've already ruled out the Mexican border and base jumping, this is the only remotely exciting thing left that we could do. Secondly, I distinctly remember you screaming about how much fun you were having before that little crash..."
"Little crash!?" Gus snapped his head back around. "Shawn, I collided head on with the side rail! I nearly flipped the kart!"
"Oh Gus, don't be such a twitchy tortoise. It was just three broken fingers!"
"More than that Shawn! I dislocated two toes and got a major contusion in my elbow!"
Shawn sighed and took another bite from the box of chicken dumplings the two of them were taking back to the Psych office. It had been several weeks since their fake psychic detective agency had got any cases, so the past few days Shawn and Gus had fallen into a routine of running out to various sandwich shops, taco stands, and Chinese restaurants for extended lunches. The walk there was usually peppered with arguments about where they were going to eat, and the walk back filled with disputes about some other inane topic. Today, the squabble of choice was over Gus' impending birthday celebration.
"Ya know what Gus? If you want to just shoot down my awesome ideas like so many clay pigeons, fine. You can spend your birthday staying in and watching your special director's cut of the fourth Bring It On movie."
Gus shot him a sideways glare while rummaging through his lo mein with a pair of chopsticks. "You know Shawn, maybe instead of heckling my taste in movies, you should be focusing on our income. We haven't had a case in almost a month. If you don't go find us a case, we're going to have to cut back on our budget."
"Cut back on the budget? But Gus, everything we have is essential!"
"Our plasma screen HD television is essential?"
Shawn gasped and brought a hand to his chest. "Gus! How dare you question the necessity of our TV! What would we watch America's Next Top Model on?"
The bickering continued between the two business partners all the way back to their base of operations. The squat little building was, as Shawn called it, "the place where all the magic happens." Gus referred to it as "the mysterious black hole in my bank account." However, as they approached the Psych office, they noticed something unusual. There were several police cars out front, and by squinting his eyes, Shawn could discern a few uniformed figures mulling around inside the police station.
Gus turned quickly, his eyes wide. "Shawn, what did you do?"
"Oh, Gus, are you serious? I mean really, your knee-jerk reaction is to ask me what I did? Maybe I haven't done anything, how about that?"
"Oh, you're right Shawn. Our place is crawling with cops because they're just dropping in to say hello!"
"And why not? I tend to think we're very popular people."
Gus stared right at Shawn with an unblinking, piercing gaze. Shawn stared right back, trying not to break a sweat or even twitch. "Shawn. What. Did. You. Do."
Shawn glanced off into into the distance, casually scratching the back of his neck. "Okay, well, let's just say that I might have left a little present in Lassie's desk."
"A present? What kind of present? Like a pineapple?"
"No, like...like something you might find in the barn across from the pineapples farm. Something a little more, shall we say, odorous?"
Gus gaped at him. "SHAWN!"
"Oh come on Gus, there's no way they could trace it back to me."
"Who else would have the nerve to leave manure in Lassiter's desk!?"
Shawn paused and shrugged. "Well, now he has fertilizer. So now he can grow his own pineapples! It's a win-win!"
Gus looked flabbergasted. "Okay, well, let's just get out of here, maybe they haven't seen..."
"SPENCER!"
Gus and Shawn looked up to see Lassiter framed in the doorway to the office. "Should we run?" Shawn whispered under his breath.
"Shawn, we can't run from the police! We work for the police!"
Lassiter stepped down and looked from Gus to Shawn. The duo smiled weakly, trying to look innocent. As the detective pulled off his sunglasses, Shawn was expecting to see Lassiter's typical eyes of fury. But to his surprise, he saw a much softer look. One of...concern?
"You boys better come inside."
Shawn and Gus exchanged quick glances and then followed Lassiter into the building. Their headquarters now contained several police officers poking around the room, looking for...something. Juliet was standing in a corner, and bit her lip a little as Shawn and Gus walked in. The same look of concern Lassiter had worn was now painted across her face.
And in the middle of all the commotion stood the Santa Barbara Interim Police Chief, Karen Vick. Shawn tried to mask his surprise. If the chief needed his services, she would call the office, or have Juliet call. She had never dropped by in person before.
The chief stepped forward, her lips pressed tightly together. She glanced down quickly at the ground before looking back up at Shawn and Gus. "Mr. Spencer, I'm afraid I have some...regrettable news."
Shawn felt a strange, nervous feeling creeping up his spine from the way Vick looked at him. He tried to think of a witty remark, but all that managed to escape his mouth was a meek "What?"
Vick frowned and took a deep breath. "Mr. Spencer, it's your father..."
Dad? Shawn thought with a slight shudder.
"He's gone missing...and we have reason to believe he was kidnapped."
To be continued...
