"I'm not terrified of you," Zelda says as they step onto the front stoop of the townhouse. Ike gives her a bored look that somehow conveys disbelief and she sighs. "You obviously have no social skills but that's common with-"
"Drug addicts? Geniuses?" He poses both to her, as if letting her pick as he locks the door. "I am both Doctor."
"Well," she takes a steadying breath as they start down the steps, her eyes falling to a police cruiser waiting by the curb, "I can help you with the addiction, that's part of why I'm here."
"Yes and the other is to make sure I don't kill myself," he says it so nonchalantly, an eavesdropper would think they were discussing the weather.
"I don't think anyone wants that," Zelda sighs and he looks at her for a moment.
"You won't be able to stand me, I can promise you that now," he sounds so honest and true, and if Zelda isn't mistaken there's a touch of sadness hidden beneath his tone.
"Who's with you now Freak?" the officer standing beside the cruiser says with a chuckle and Ike's fingers twitch at his sides.
"Officer Roy this is Doctor Zelda Nohansen," he indicates Zelda as he opens the back door, "she's my sister's newest attempt at a sobriety coach and a caretaker for me."
"You're stuck with him?" Roy scratches his red hair with a hand and shakes his head. "I'm sorry to hear that Doc."
"Yes yes, can we get going?" Ike sighs as he climbs in. "Come along Doctor." It's an odd command and Zelda sits beside him, Officer Roy getting the door before she can. They sit side by side, him in the middle with a blank look on his face.
"Are you okay?" Zelda asks and he holds up one finger in a silencing motion. She watches his eyes move as if he's reading an invisible document before him, the sight odd and slightly disturbing. Officer Roy hops in his seat and puts the cruiser in gear, Ike still doing his thing. He tilts the mirror and chuckles.
"He does that," he comments and Zelda looks to the officer. "I don't know what the hell he thinks that-"
"Your pedestrian ramblings are irritating," Ike snaps and goes back to his invisible reading. Roy chuckles and keeps on driving. The ride quickly falls into an awkward silence, one Zelda is scared to break. They hit a bump in the road and Roy mutters a curse, pulling Ike out of his reverie. "Your girlfriend's pregnant," it's a statement and Roy whirls to look at him, shock in his eyes.
"How'd you... you know what? I'm not going to ask, I won't be able to wrap my mind around it," he shakes his head and focuses back on the road. A beat more of silence passes and he sighs. "How'd you know?"
"Simple, you're far less insulting than usual to me, and I know that has nothing to do with the dear Doctor's presence. You have dark circles, your pristine uniform is wrinkled. I have met your girlfriend she wouldn't let you leave looking like this. You slept at the precinct last night because she told you she was pregnant and you don't know how to handle the situation."
"Fuck I hate you Freak," Roy growls and then the car descends into silence again. Zelda taps her fingers against her leg, stealing glances at Ike every so often. He's definitely a strange one, a person that she has no idea how to handle, but some part of that excites her. He's different and maybe that's not such a bad thing.
"I understand that you took this job for the housing opportunity," Ike says softly to her after a moment and she snaps her head to focus on him in shock. "If you'd rather, I can pay for you to have your own place, you can collect checks from my sister, and I can continue to be alone."
"I'm supposed to keep an eye on you, nice try," she says and he blinks at her. "What makes you think I-"
"You're dressed in a soft pink shirt but the rest of your pantsuit is quite masculine in cut. I believe pink is not a normal color in your wardrobe and a prying and oppressive force made you wear it. I deduce that that force has to be a parental figure, obviously your mother, because if you were living with a man that chose your clothing you would most assuredly not still be in the car with me because you would wish to get away from what you would wrongly assume is yet another dominating man." His eyes never leave hers as they talk and she fights the urge to shudder once more until he looks away again. "Are you really so committed to staying?" he asks after a moment and she nods, knowing somehow that he can see her in his periphery. "Why?"
"I hate living with my parents again," she admits and sighs heavily. "Also, you're weird but interesting."
"Weird?" he turns to her, eyes searching hers. "What makes me so weird?"
"Do you really have to ask that Freak?" Roy chimes in and Ike shuts his eyes. Once more the car falls into silence.
XxX
They make it to the police station, not a single person saying a word to them as they cross through several doors that claim in bright red letters that authorized personnel are only allowed past them. Soon they make it to a door with the words "Morgue" printed on them and he shoves them open. "Talk to me Sam," he commands and Zelda shivers in the chilly room as a blonde woman in a lab coat steps into view from an office.
"Male, forty-one, found DOA when officers knocked on the door," she says, eyes not moving from the clipboard in her hands. "Waiting on the toxicology, but my preliminary guess is that he died of natural causes-"
"Wrong," Ike says as he snatches the clipboard and the blonde sighs.
"Aren't I always?" she says and looks to Zelda. She's beautiful, that much is obvious, and her eyes narrow at Zelda. "Who're you?"
"Doctor Nohansen," Ike answers for her as he goes to the wall lined with silver doors. He pulls one open and Zelda puts a hand over her mouth at the sight of the dead body on the slab. Ike holds out a hand and Sam immediately puts a pair of gloves on the outstretched palm, eyes sizing up Zelda.
"You're his new sobriety coach huh?" she asks and Zelda nods. "Good, maybe you can teach him some manners while you're stuck with him." Zelda can't answer her, she's too busy being oddly disgusted and yet intrigued by the way Ike slides the gloves on and begins turning the man's head. Ike lowers his face to the skin behind the man's ear and stands up straight a second later.
"Injection sight right at the seam of the ear and skull."
"No shit?" Sam moves over to him and Ike shows her. "Fuck, how did I miss that?" she asks herself and Ike gives her a look. "Oh shut up," she slaps his arm and he looks to Zelda.
"Murder," he says and Sam sighs.
"Fine, I'll call the captain." She goes to her office and Ike is still staring at Zelda.
"What?" she finally demands and he points to the body.
"Come look," he commands and she snorts.
"No thanks," she shakes her head and he sighs.
"Look," he says again and she crosses her arms.
"I'm fine."
"You're a doctor, you had to cut open cadavers in medical school, there's no difference," he states and she opens her mouth only to shut it slowly. With a groan she moves to the body and he tilts the head, pushing the ear forward so she can see the tiny mark.
"Yeah that's a needle puncture," she says and he nods.
"This is the fifth body in a month to have this exact mark in the same place," he says and her eyes widen.
"So... serial killer?" she asks and he tilts his head.
"Perhaps... either that or needles are revolting against their human oppressors," he says and she lets out a disbelieving laugh.
"Is that your idea of a joke?" she asks and his mouth twitches momentarily. "So now what?" she asks and he pulls the gloves from his hands, the snapping of the material loud in the silent morgue.
"Now we go to the crime scene and find what they missed," he says and she nods.
"Anything to get out of here."
XxX
A thirty minute car ride in absolute silence sets Zelda's nerves on edge. By the time they reach the deceased's apartment her leg is bouncing up and down spastically. "Please stop," Ike says beside her and she looks to him, trying to hide that him speaking startled her. "It's quite distracting."
"Sorry," she mumbles and he goes back to staring at nothing, eyes looking like they're scanning something she can't see. "What are you doing?"
"I am attempting to go over the previous case files," he says and she lets out a laugh.
"You have them memorized?"
"Yes," he says and she looks at him, her disbelief apparent on her face.
"How?" she asks and he turns his head back to her.
"Think of my mind like a massive manor, a castle if you will. I remember everything. Photographic memory is a common term associated with this, I read something once and then file it away until it becomes necessary."
"Oh," she says, at a loss for what else to say.
"Indeed," he says and goes back to staring at nothing.
XxX
"Someone lived here?" Zelda asks in horror as they step into the squalid conditions of the studio apartment.
"And died here," Ike offers as he moves through the ankle high trash, eyes going over everything. "What do you see?" he asks and she scoffs.
"Honestly? Trash, I'm pretty sure that's a jar of urine," she points to a jar containing a yellow liquid by the one ratty recliner in the room.
"That's a safe assumption," Ike says as he steps around it. "Signs of paranoia," he says after a moment. "All of these food containers are from places that give you food quickly but won't deliver."
"So he didn't want people to know where he lived," Zelda remarks and Ike snaps his fingers. "So... was someone looking for him?" Ike freezes, eyes on a certain pile of trash.
"Clippings from the first four victims..." he mutters, eyes moving on. "He knew them, knew someone got them, was going to get to him..." he looks to Zelda, eyes demanding and angry. "What's missing?" he demands and she shrugs.
"I don't know," she says and he stalks to her, eyes focused on her.
"What's missing?" he demands again and she shrugs more emphatically.
"I don't know."
"WHAT'S MISSING?" he shouts and she cringes.
"I DON'T FUCKING KNOW IKE!" she snaps and shouts back, watching him not even flinch.
"That's it," he whispers after a moment, hand fumbling into his pocket for his phone. He pulls it up, dials quickly, and puts it to his ear. "Captain," he says quickly, "I'm at victim number five's apartment... shut up and listen dammit. Any connection to the past victims? I don't care if they took the same subway I... a clinic? Where?" he listens and grabs Zelda's arm, pulling her from the trashed apartment back into the hallway. "I'll be there in ten, bring a warrant. No, just the paper I know a judge doesn't have the time to sign it!" he shoves the phone back into his pocket and keeps his grip on Zelda's arm as they move to the stairs.
XxX
They make it to the clinic, all of Zelda's questions going unanswered as they barge through the doors, a gruff and unshaven man meeting them as they do. "Ike," his voice is rough and Ike sighs, "what's going on?"
"How do you not know?" Ike demands and the man runs a hand down his face.
"Just tell me," he sighs.
"They all came here, a free clinic, for flu shots, and someone here is our killer," he turns his attention to the young brunette behind the counter and the other man turns his eyes to Zelda.
"Hello," he holds out a hand, "I'm Captain Snake, I see you're Ike's-"
"Introductions later," Ike hisses as he moves to the desk, Zelda vaguely alarmed by the charming smile on Ike's face as he approaches the woman. "Good afternoon my dear," he says and she gives him a shy smile as she subtly fixes her hair. "Have you had any disgruntled employees lately?" he asks and she blinks at him.
"I'm sorry?" she asks and he leans on the desk, getting a little closer than necessary.
"Any disgruntled employees?" he asks and she shakes her head.
"No?" she answers and he sighs.
"Any patients that were former doctors or nurses?"
"I'm sorry but that's confidential-"
"I'm with the police department," he snaps his fingers and Snake holds up the folded paper, "I have a warrant now-"
"We have a guy that comes in regularly," she answers, voice dropping to a low whisper, "he was a doctor but his license was revoked a few years back."
"Why?" Ike asks and the woman twirls her hair nervously.
"Malpractice suits," she whispers and he nods.
"Is he here now?" Ike asks and she nods her head to the tiny hallway with shut doors lining the walls.
"Exam room B," she answers. "I don't like him but we don't turn anyone away so," she shrugs and he nods.
"Does he ever look at the patient papers?" he asks and she shakes her head.
"I caught him looking once or twice," she admits and Ike looks to the captain.
"I believe you have someone to question," he offers and with a nod the captain moves to comply. "Thank you so much," he turns to the nurse and flashes her that smile again, making a blush dust her dimpled cheeks.
"Anytime," she says and Ike turns back to Zelda.
"Are you hungry?" he asks and she scoffs.
"What?"
XXX
A quick case for him to show off, because that's what we love with our Sherlock-esque men am I right? Lemme know what you think! Shout out to my awesome review leavers for my first chapter: Helios. , concisponci, FireEmblemNerd0909, and CowTits the Udderly Glorious (No typo that time!) Much love, Leigh
