"So, whadaya think?" Lt. Cooper asked Sykes as he watched the corner Rusty had just turned.

"Naive, for starters," Sykes replied, crossing her arms and leaning against the empty desk behind her. "Cocky, self-assured, convinced he knows our life better than he really does, won't listen to anyone unless he's pushed to the wall, thinks this will be a cake walk, and he's libel to do something really stupid."

"So why are we even doing this?"

Sykes sighed. "Because if we don't work with him now, he's going to do it himself and get killed in the process."

"Nothing says he won't get killed doing this."

"I know, but it's our best option. My team has been over those letters a thousand times. They've tried to work this from every angle. We've run out of options and the best way we have to catch the creep writing those letters is to dangle the bait."

Cooper's mouth formed a line. He didn't like the situation one bit. "Captain Raydor is a hard ass. I'm surprised she's agreed to this."

"It's with reluctance, I assure you."

"Is she going to be on my tail?"

Amy nodded, "I would go with that. Rusty is more than just a case to her. You must realize that."

Cooper sighed again, "Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of. Dealing with moms is something I try to avoid at all costs. This one packs a gun and knows how to use it."

"Just do yourself a favour and don't call her 'Rusty's mom' in her hearing."

"That's who she is though, right?"

Shrugging, Amy replied "Legally no, but none of us are fooled. If they want to keep up the pretense, we can't try to change that. Especially right now."

"Okay, so I've got to treat the Captain as both an officer and a mom. Great."

"In this instance, Cooper, I'd treat her like the Queen of the Universe. She usually gets what she wants anyway, but in this case Captain Raydor is going to be more fierce than anyone else you've dealt with before. Just... just walk carefully."

Cooper laughed, "You guys handle her, don't you."

"Let's just say, when it comes to the Captain, there are certain 'no fly zones' we try to stay clear of."

"That's funny," he continued to chuckle, "'no fly zones'. I'll have to remember that one. Alright, what do you think we should do? You're the expert on this kid."

"Hardly," Amy scoffed.

"From what I hear, he's been hanging around here for almost two years. You've got to know this kid better than I do, so tell me. What do you think will make this work."

"Well... I think we need to light him up."

Cooper changed his stance and gave his full attention to Amy. He crossed his arms and stroked his goatee. "Huh... light him up how?"

"This kid thinks he knows the streets and he knows bad guys. He doesn't have a clue. Sure he was on the streets for a few months, doing things most kids his age shouldn't even know about, but he didn't come close to the really bad guys. He thinks he's smarter than everyone he meets. He thinks he's a tough guy..."

Cooper snorted.

Amy continued after rolling her eyes, "He thinks he's a tough guy and that he can defend himself if he needs to."

"So basically the kid is so smart he's stupid."

"Exactly."

"Alright. Where is his weak spot? What will make him cry?"

"His mother, definitely his mother."

"The Captain?"

Amy nodded, "Her too, but his biological mother still has a lot of hold over him. He'd do anything to help her if he could."

"So we can use his mother to push all his buttons. You think he'd see through that?"

"Not of a second. He over thinks things, and in the process misses the obvious. He'll never see us coming. I would bet a year's salary that he will be scoping the parameter for a few days, trying to figure out who's who, and tipping the perp off in the process."

"That's not unusual. Most people in his situation don't really believe we've got this covered. It's an act of faith."

"Yeah, well this kid doesn't have faith in anyone but himself, the Captain, and this department, in that order."

"I got that. He really thought you'd be around him," Cooper shook his head, "like whoever was writing those letters hasn't already figured out who he spends his time with."

"Like I said, the kid thinks he's smarter than everyone else, which makes him an easy mark."

"Yup... okay, getting back to his mother, where is she?"

Amy shrugged, "We have no idea. The Captain found her last year and she was supposed to come get Rusty, but she never showed."

"That bites," Cooper recoiled at the thought of Rusty's continual abandonment by his mother.

"Yeah, tell me about it. But after that little nugget of reality sunk in, he became less obnoxious to the Captain and started to make the best of it."

"So, he can be taught."

"After slapping him around for awhile, yeah, he can get the picture."

"Okay Sykes, let's go for the jugular. I'll get one of my guys on it and use the mother angle. We'll spice it up with insider knowledge, make him think everything is compromised right from the get go."

Amy nodded, "Sounds good. I'll polish it off by pulling a gun on him from his back seat. He still doesn't check the car when he gets in."

"Bring a fresh pair of underwear for the boy."

"Nay," Any scoffed, "let him sit in his own shit for awhile."