CHAPTER 4

As promised, I'm back with chapter 4. The mystery unfolds now, and you all get to see Drake in his new element: detective work. Drake also takes an unexpected trip in this chapter, so there's a spoiler for you all. Heheh. I hope you are enjoying the latest volume of Drake's story thus far. It gets even better, trust me. Please review, everypony.

Agent Shackleford was waiting on the park bench by an old willow tree by the time Dashie and I got to the park. Sitting on the bench, looking around from behind his sunglasses, Shackleford looked every bit like some secret agent awaiting another spy to come give him information. I wondered if this was some kind of image he tried to play up, something he thought make him look tougher or more mysterious than the by-the-book, straight-laced lawpony he really was. When he saw us approaching, the ever-serious EBI special agent stood and faced us. I nodded in greeting to him.

"Shackleford." I said.

"Liuetenant Drake...detective Dash." He greeted.

"So where were your agents attacked?" I queried, wanting to get this over with as soon as practicable.

"Hm. Right...follow me, detectives." Shackleford replied, walking to the nearby street. "We're going to have to travel a bit. That fine with you two?"

"You know me, I love to travel." I quipped cynically.

"I've arranged transportation. Shouldn't be more than three hours to the scene."

"Which direction?" I asked.

"South...southwest, I suppose, why?

"They were taking the diamonds to Canterlot?" I pressed. Shackleford paused, averting his eyes a moment.

"We had orders...lieutenant." He finally replied. "We were to secretly move the diamonds to EBI headquarters in Canterlot instead of taking them to our field office in Manehattan."

"Secretly?" I repeated. "Didn't seem like it was that big of a secret." I thought for a moment. "Wait...by any chance, did you have agents traveling to the Manehattan office while the diamonds were being taken to Canterlot?"

"Yes, why?" He asked in an annoyed tone. "Myself and six of my agents, along with the two prisoners went back to the field office. We had four Manehattan Police officers with us. The six agents transporting the diamonds..."

"Were they given the diamonds...secretly?" I asked. He glanced at me quizzically. "You know, could anypony have seen the agents take the diamonds?"

"No, negative." Shackleford responded immediately. "We were careful to make the transfer surreptitious as possible. On our way back to the field office, we still had possession of the attache case, which we had filled with rocks in secret. The diamonds were placed in two grocery sacks and stored in a pair of saddlebags one of the agents carried."

"They all carry saddlebags on their trip?" I questioned.

"Yes."

"Uh-huh..." I mused. "Were any of the other saddlebags stolen?"

"No..."

"No personal possessions stolen? Wallets, money, that kind of thing?"

"No."

"Hm." I voiced. A drawn coach pulled up, a Black Maria pulled by four police ponies.

"What are you thinking, Drake?" He asked.

"You don't want to know what I'm thinking, Rusty." I replied. We climbed into the wagon, and were soon on our way.

Agent Shackleford attempted several times to get me to speak about the case as we traveled to the scene of the crime. I refused. I had information, but with what information I had, I couldn't really draw a conclusion. I would have to see more. I looked forward to getting to the scene where the agents had been waylaid, not because I was happy it had happened, but only because I knew there would be physical evidence...prints, blood trails, maybe even scraps of fabric or a weapon, something that could put me on the right trail. There wasn't much difference between wilderness tracking and detective work, except for the quarry. Just look for sign, and predict your game's next move.

After nearly three hours of riding in the uncomfortable police wagon, the team stopped the vehicle, and the three of us climbed out. We were on a deserted stretch of road about five miles distant from the city of Canterlot. The first thing I did was take a careful look around at the landscape. The length of road we were on was a dirt pathway, not a major thoroughfare. Good job, Shackleford. It wouldn't look suspicious at all for a bunch of EBI agents to be road tripping down a rural road for no reason. Shoulda used the main road. That's what I would have done. Just beyond where we stood, there were two slight rises on either side of the road, where the trail had been worn down over the years.

"I'm taking it the agents were bushwhacked right up there..." I pointed up between the two small hills on either side of the road. I had a slight tinge, an unconscious jerk that came with a fleeting memory of a mountain pass...of Buffalo attacking from the high ground...of a cavalry battle...I shook it off.

"Yes. They were...um...found in that gap, lieutenant." Shackleford replied. I looked at Dashie, and nodded for her to follow me as I moved toward the spot where the EBI agents had been ambushed by their unknown enemy. I felt each step, took in each stone and tree as I moved into the position. I halted in between the two hills and looked around again. Plenty of hiding spots. The perfect place for an ambush. I would have picked this ground too. I had picked ground just like this before. I looked down at the ground. Not much to see in the road. That's the problem with crime scenes on a dirt road, they tend to get messed up too quickly. Shoulda closed it down. No sense in complaining about it now though.

"Drake?" Dash asked. I moved off to the right side of the road, and stared at shallow prints in the soft soil.

"Hm...look at this, Dashie." I whispered, motioning to the hoofprints. I moved up the road a bit, and found two more distinct sets. "They came into this small pass. Right about here, the agents met with a larger, stronger force."

"What makes you say that?" Dash asked, not questioning my ability, but as she said, out of wanting to learn how I read dirt and rocks the way I could.

"These ponies were EBI agents." I stated. They were half-expecting an attack, and they were probably well armed. The enemy hit hard and fast. They set up a perfect trap, and sprung it like experts. No other bodies. Either the attackers didn't lose a single pony, or they carried off their casualties."

"They were good." Dash commented. I scoffed.

"Yep. Too good. That's what has me worried." I said. "Some extortion, this is looking more like a damned military operation." I halted my marefriend, and walked to the top of the small rise. Just on the other side of the top were trees and large rocks. I walked behind and around the cover, keeping my eyes to the ground. Sure enough, I found a spot behind a large elm tree where the earth had been lightly churned up, sign that somepony had stood behind this tree for some time...waiting. About twenty feet away, behind a boulder was another area of disturbed ground, where another body had lain in wait. On the boulder were several deep scratches. I ran my hoof over the marks. They were somewhat fresh, no doubt inflicted by the same pony who had sat behind the rock. The scratches had been gouged by some very sharp instrument, probably a large knife.

"You were here a while, weren't you?" I whispered. "Got a little bored? Played around with your favorite knife..." I walked down the reverse side of the hill, where I found five more spots where ponies had been sitting for some time. I quickly totted back over the rise, across the road, and up the other hill, where I found more of the same, spots where ponies had been waiting on the EBI agents to arrive, six of them, in fact. I made my way back to the road, where Shackleford was waiting beside Dash.

"What have you found?" Shackleford asked. "I...assume you found something..."

"I found where two ticks got into a fistfight a week ago, and uncovered a secret underground ant racing syndicate." I remarked with a sly grin. Shackleford growled in irritation. "Yes, Agent Shackleford...I found what you were looking for."

"What happened to my ponies, lieutenant?" He asked seriously.

"They were ambushed by a well-armed and well disciplined group of ponies, at least twelve, probably more. They knew exactly what your agents were carrying, and knew what direction they would be coming from hours in advance, Rusty. They waited on your agents, set up a perfect ambush."

"But...how?!" Shackleford cried out. "Nopony even knew about the diamonds! Nopony but me...the agents transporting them and...and..."

"Somepony knew." I stated. "Somepony knew, and they killed your agents and got the diamonds."

"You think somepony saw us hand off the diamonds?" Shackleford asked. "Or somepony talked?"

"Those diamonds are worth millions." I replied. "Everypony has their price."

"All of my agents on the detail were killed." Shackleford reminded me.

"I know this." I said.

"Lieutenant Drake..." The EBI agent said. "Find who killed my agents."

"I plan on it." I answered gravely. "I gotta go to Canterlot. You're gonna get me into the Headquarters of the EBI, and find out who gave you orders to bring the diamonds there." He was giving me a suspicious look. "Just trust me on this one, Rusty. You know I'm always right all the time. I have to find out why it was so important that the diamonds were brought to Canterlot. I'm beginning to think it has to do with more than their value in bits. If I can figure that out, then I can find out why these guys wanted them so badly."

"I do this under protest, Drake." Shackleford replied. "I just want you to know that."

"Noted."

"Alright, back to the Maria." He sighed. With that, we climbed back into the police wagon, and began to make our way to Canterlot.

I admit that I had reservations about returning to Canterlot. The last time I had been to the city was after the incident at Fort Mesquite. Before that, I had left the city soon after my dad had died. Every time I went to this city, it was because something bad had just happened, or something bad was going to happen. We rode through the west gate of Canterlot, and I sighed.

"What's wrong?" Dashie asked, putting a hoof on my shoulder. I glanced back at my marefriend, then back out at the city.

"I hate this damned place." I muttered.

"You...you grew up here though, right?" She asked. I looked over and met eyes with Shackleford a moment, then down at the floorboard.

"Exactly."

So Drake is back in Canterlot, following a lead. And the blood diamond case is deeper than anypony thought. What will happen next? Will Drake find the ponies responsible? And how will he deal with being in Canterlot and facing elements of his past? I will attempt to get one more chapter up tonight. If I cannot, it will be tomorrow. I want to get to chapter 8 as soon as possible, that is the big chapter for this one, so hopefully you'll be seeing a flurry of new chapters in the next couple days. So until next time everypony, thanks for reading!