"So when do we get him, Marigold?" A small man rubbed his hands together excitedly.

"In time." A voice boomed from one corner of the darkened room. A tall figure stood in the corner, facing the wall. His back was illuminated by a single lightbulb in the centre of the room. He turned his head to the side and looked at the smaller man. The smaller man was only about 5'2 in height and was very round. He wore a bowler hat, underneath which was a tuft of greying hair. He wore a uniform from a fast food restaurant under a beige trench coat. "Murdering a detective takes planning and patience, Lou."

"Why this Taylor guy again?" Lou removed his hat and scratched his balding head.

"Because!" Marigold slammed his fists on the table in front of him and his face was lit up. Dark brown eyes glared at Lou. "I have my reasons."

"Ok." Lou cocked his head in confusion.

"Just go and do what I said."

"Yes Marigold." Lou scurried out of the room and shut the door tight behind him. Marigold stood upright and ran his hands through his dark blonde hair.

"Because, my friend. He took the life of one I love, so I'm going to take his." He pulled the chord hanging from the lightbulb and he was plunged into complete darkness.

"Because, because. Stupid Marigold, thinks he can tell me what to do. I don't even know what the guy looks like." Lou muttered as he walked down the sidewalk. He pulled a piece of paper out of his left pocket. An address was scribbled onto it. "I'll show him."

"Hey!" Lou rammed into a man wearing a long coat. He didn't even look up, but kept walking and muttering.

"Apology accepted." Mac stated sarcastically and continued on his way, unaware of the man's future connection to him.

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Luke Marigold had a great life, that was up until five years ago when his little brother, Marc, got involved with the wrong crowd. Marc started to shoplift and do drugs. Before long, he was beating on his brothers door for money for a fix. Reluctantly, Luke gave him the money each time. Luke was a top lawyer and was working on an assault case when his brother's name popped up. He spent that whole night in his office searching for files with any reference to his brother. By morning, he had found Marc's name on two assault charges and three breaking and entering. A couple of days later ,Luke went ot the old apartment building that his brother lived in, only, he couldn't get in. Yellow crime scene tape surrounded the building.

"What happened?" Luke asked the woman beside him in the crowd.

"I heard on that there radio that this is another one o' them shootin's." The woman smelt faintly of vodka.

"Apparently, the police arrived to search the area for drugs and these three kids started shooting." A younger man on a bicycle told him.

"Was anyone injured?" Luke was worried. He knew his brither was stupid, but was he that stupid?

"Yeah. Two of the kids were shot down by Detective...Mac Taylor I think. One is dead, the other is critical." The young man cycled away. Luke pushed through the crowd and ducked under the tape.

"Oi. You can't do that." The officer grabbed him by the arm and pushed him back under the tape again.

"Fine then. Please tell me who was killed." Luke was hoping that another boy was killed, but deep down, he knew the name would be...

"Marc Marigold." Luke fell to his knees. He knelt for a few minutes and then hauled himself up. He returned to his empty apartment and collapsed onto the large couch. He sighed and picked up the phone.

"Mum...? It's Luke, I have some bad news."

The next few weeks were a fast blur which only slowed down when it came to the day of the funeral. Friends and Family stood around the plot as the coffin was lowered into the ground. One by one, the mourners left, leaving only Luke and his Mum. They stood looking at the headstone. A woman walked up behind them.

"Come on Martha." The woman led the sobbing woman away. Luke stood alone once more. A lone tear rolled down his face as he knelt infront of the headstone. He traced his fingers over the letters as he read aloud.

"Marc Daniel Marigold, beloved son and brother. June 1983- April 2002."

From that day on, life took a turn for the worse. Luke was so grief stricken that he lost his job and apartment. He could only afford a shabby apartment which smelt of old cat pee. He managed to get a job at a local fast food restaurant, which definetly failed in comparison to his old job. If he wasn't working, he would sit at home, reading the newspaper. One day he read an article about a crime downtown and saw a picture of a detective Mac Taylor. The name was a painful reminder of his brother. From that day he vowed revenge on the man who had killed his brother and, in effect, destroyed his life. Luke spent all of his free time gathering pictures and information on his target. The day of his 30th birthday came and went and he continued to collect information. One day when Luke was sitting in his armchair, looking out of the window he noticed a familiar face. Mac was entering a diner with a curly-haired woman. Luke grabbed the camera off the camera beside him and snapped a few pictures. He sat waiting for almost an hour until they walked out again. He took a few more pictures and watched as the woman answered her phone. She hung up the phone, gave Mac a peck on the cheek and ran off.

Luke started to take pictures of Mac Taylor and stalked him. He developed the pictures at his apartment and learned about Mac's life. By now the date was March 2007. Luke had learned all about the detective, his friends, where he lived and most importantly, his daily routines.

"The time has come." Luke called upon his colleague, Lou, for help with his "idea". Lou agreed, after all, Luke Marigold could be very intimidating. So began the hunt on Mac Taylor's life.

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Lou walked back into the old aparment, carrying a paper bag. He knocked on the door.

"Marigold? it's me." The door opened and Lou walked into the darkness. The door closed and Lou turned to face Luke. "Marigold, we need to talk."

"Did you get the stuff?"

"Yes, but.." Lou backed off as Luke walked towards him. Luke snatched the bag away from him. "I want to know why you won't let me do anything."

"Are you wondering why I won't let you go and kill him?" Lou nodded his head. Luke sat at the table and reached into the bag. "Fine then, here."

Luke placed some items on the table. Lou walked forward to see them in the dim light. There was a bottle of Arsenic, a gun, a knife and a photo of Mac. "Here."

"What are these for?" Lou looked at the photo.

"I am giving you 2 weeks to try and kill him with these objects and when you fail, you will stick to my plan." Luke leant back in his chair.

"And if I succeed?"

"You run from the law?"

Lou thought about it. "Fine." The two men shook hands and Lou placed the items back in the bag. He walked to the door and opened it.

"Two weeks." Luke reminded him.

"I know Marigold."

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I hope you like this first chapter. I am halfway through the second one so look out for it.

Please review.