"What have you just thought of?"

"Aaron Grey…" Harry replied thoughtfully. "I just remembered something about him. He helped to pass the law decriminalising homosexuality. That must be it. That must be the lead."

"I guess you're right, Princess."

There was a moment of stillness as they mutually regretted the interruption to their date; each half-considered waiting, but the idea was never really a serious option. They needed to get back to SI10.

"I'll pay," Dempsey said as he stood up and plucked his coat off the back of his chair in one movement.

Harry watched him as she pulled on her coat, then together they hurried out of the restaurant.

-:-

Spikings was not impressed to see that it had taken his team almost two hours to get from the crime scene to the office, a journey of only 20 minutes at the most. However, the looks on their faces were enough to tell him to postpone his chastisement; it was after expressions like that that the bodies tended to start piling up.

"Sir, we think we have the link between Aaron and Hall," Harry announced without preamble as they entered his office.

His eyebrows raised, and Harry realised that they were due for a telling-off, and he was restraining himself only through a great effort of will. "Oh? Do enlighten me," he said in a clipped tone.

"The teacher who's just been killed had a picture of himself kissing his boyfriend in his wallet and Harry says Grey passed some law makin' it not illegal to be gay; we reckon some psycho has a problem with gay people."

The eyebrows did not lower; they were not out of trouble yet. "I presume this has something to do with the fact that you are so late. Though perhaps I should be grateful that you have turned up at all."

Harry judged it best to ignore his disapproval for the time being. "We need someone who can get the word out to be careful. We don't want someone else getting hurt while a killer's at large."

Spikings nodded. "I'll arrange it. Well, while you two have been off gallivanting" - this was said in a sterner tone - "the boys in the lab have been hard at work analysing the paint sprayed at Mr Grey's house. Their report contains a large list of words that don't exist and apparently that means it's a kind of spray paint called "Mean Streak", manufactured in America."

Their boss glanced at his watch. "It's too late now, but first thing in the morning I want you to at the school this teacher worked at."

"Sure thing, chief," Dempsey agreed, and rolled his eyes at Harry. As if we ain't thought of that already, the look seemed to say.

-:-:-

Sorry these chapters are so short, but there's nothing else to say!