Together, the two of them made their way to the castle.
"Thanks for coming along, Matt," Elisa said as they entered the express elevator to the upper levels.
"Hey, no problem," Matt said with a shrug. "You'd do the same for me."
"Yeah, well," Elisa said, brushing her hair over her shoulder, "Don't tell anyone."
"They'd never believe me," Matt muttered.
The elevator's alert sounded, signaling their arrival and the two of them exited near the Great Hall.
"I called ahead," Elisa said. "They'll be in the Hall, waiting."
They entered the hall, and were greeted by seven gargoyles and one human.
The human, Skyler, a combination of nanny and housekeeper for Elisa and her family, was also dating Brooklyn. It had been decided quite a while ago, that anything affecting the clan also involved Skyler.
Especially after it was found that she had retained a good amount of magic from her mysterious parentage. Having another ally to the clan around who was also a magic user was a gift in more ways than one.
"Hey guys," Elisa greeted. "How did your night go?"
"Broke up a mugging," Lexington said.
"We helped a few officers catch some kids who were out for a joy ride," Broadway said, motioning to include Angela.
"So...Same stuff, different night," Brooklyn said with a shrug.
Skyler playfully bumped his shoulder.
"So what's up, Elisa?" Broadway asked.
Elisa bit the corner of her lip, trying desperately to figure out just where to start.
Matt watched her struggle for a minute before taking the reins.
"Sit down," He whispered to Elisa and nudging her toward a chair.
Elisa gave him a look, but sat down.
"Ok, guys." Matt began. "I'm going to let you in on a few recent developments." Without mentioning exactly who he was talking about, referring only to a "friend", he laid out the facts. The deliveries, the cards, the appearance of the flowers at both work and home.
Angela was frowning. "How awful," she said. "How can we help her?"
"Glad you asked," Matt said, "First, we would need someone to keep an extra eye out for her, just in case this situation gets serious."
"But it might not," Elisa put in. "It could just be a guy with a crush that has gotten out of hand."
"Yeah, and we have both seen possible results of that," Matt challenged.
Elisa ran her hands through her hair in agitation. "Yeah."
Goliath glanced at his wife. Something was not right, and he had a bad feeling about what it was. "Who is your friend?" Golaith asked Matt.
"Uh," Matt stuttered.
"It's me," Elisa blurted out.
Almost simultaneously, the group turned to look at her.
Elisa rubbed a hand across her forehead. "It has been a long day, guys."
Goliath growled deep in his chest as he brought his arm out to bring her securely to his side. "Why did you not tell me?" He asked her softly.
"Because before you went to sleep for the day, there had only been one delivery," Elisa said, tired. "It seemed innocent enough, and I thought I knew who it was from."
"Who?" Goliath asked.
"Jason," Elisa admitted, feeling the involuntary jerk of his arm. She reached a hand up and patted the arm. "He got out a while ago, and reached out. I know your feelings towards the Hunters, believe me. But Jason is not his siblings. He's not Jon."
Goliath's eyes briefly luminesced at the mention of Jon. The youngest of the Hunter siblings, Jon had been responsible for the origins of the anti-gargoyle group, The Quarrymen. He had also attacked the clan a few times, and had managed to capture, kidnap and hold Elisa as ammunition against the clan. The final time had resulted in Elisa being injured and separated from everyone for almost six months with a gunshot wound and amnesia.
Goliath had been listening to Elisa through the communicator when she'd been shot, and even though it had been over seven years, he would never forget the sound. Nor would he forget the months of hell that had followed.
The thought of her having anything to do with the Hunters again did not sit well with him.
"I know, big Guy," Elisa said quietly. She turned under his arm, and wound her arms around his chest, though whether it was for his comfort or hers, she didn't know.
"What can we do?" Goliath asked. "I will not have Elisa in danger."
Matt nodded. "I knew that you would feel that way. In truth, we don't know that this will become something bigger than it is."
"But it could," Skyler pointed out.
"Yes, it could," Elisa finally admitted.
"Captain Chavez is aware of the situation," Matt assured them. "There is 24 hour security at Elisa's building, and it has been made known that there are no deliveries to be made to her door. Everything is being stopped at the front desk."
"We're going back through the last week," Elisa said, "And trying to figure out where I could have run into someone like this." Elisa took a step back from Goliath so that she could pace and think. "The first flowers came with a note that said it was good to see me again." Elisa was in her element now, and was talking her way through everything in a way that she hadn't been able to before. She chalked it up to being amongst her friends and family. "That means that I met them sometime before Monday, but not more than a week before that."
"Why not more than a week?" Skyler asked, watching Elisa in detective mode with fascination.
"Because this took some planning," Elisa said, "But not so much that it would take more than a week." She sent Skyler a look, "Please tell me that made sense."
"I think so," Skyler said softly. "Arranging for flower deliveries, filling out cards, finding out where to deliver them… that all takes time, but not a long time of planning."
"Thank you," Elisa said with a sigh.
"You're learning to speak Elisa," Matt said, impressed. "It took me a while."
"Thanks!" Skyler said with a grin.
"Okay, guys," Brooklyn said. "Let's get back on track here."
"In all honesty," Matt said, "It might have already started escalating."
"What do you mean?" Goliath asked in that slow, careful way of his that hinted that his patience was about at its end.
"Hold on there, Big Guy," Elisa urged. "We're almost done." Elisa stopped her pacing. "You all know how I have started wearing my wedding ring around my neck?" She waited for the others to register that. "I think that whoever this is, initially believed that I was single. Somehow," Elisa said slowly, "This person came to the conclusion that I was dating someone, and it seemed to…" Elisa looked at Matt for help.
"It made him angry," Matt said. "He sounded angry."
"That's as good a word as any," Elisa said. She reached in her pocket and finally withdrew the notes. "You can see it here." She laid out the notes.
"This is the first one, here," Elisa pointed to it. She continued down the timeline, but stopped. "I'm missing one," She searched the pocket again, but came up empty. Frustrated when she couldn't find it, she threw her hands up in frustration. "It was just more of the same. Then, tonight, I got this one," She picked up the larger card.
A silence fell over the group as they took in the entirety of the situation.
"Soooo," Brooklyn said, looking to the two detectives. "You guys have a plan, right?"
"Travis and I talked about it," Matt said, ignoring Elisa's sharp look, "And we think we have an idea…"
-{- -{- -{- -{- -{- -{-
"No." Elisa said harshly.
"Elisa," Matt groaned.
"No," Elisa said again. "Not only no, but hell no."
Matt sighed. "I knew you were going to hate the idea, which is why I didn't tell you sooner."
"I can go undercover," Elisa insisted. "I can work any sting operation you give me, but I will not spend days or weeks away from my son. Let alone my nights away from my husband and the rest of the clan. And getting a fake 'boyfriend'," Elisa made the air quotes with her fingers, "To hang around at night."
"We could ask Jason," Matt said, and flinched at the heated gazes from both Elisa and Goliath. "Or not."
"It's not a bad idea," Skyler said slowly, but hurried to add, "Not the Jason thing, I swear. This person knows you work overnights, so you going nowhere during the day won't be out of the ordinary. If things get too intense, I can always bring Liam here and we can stay at the castle. But at night, maybe we could find one of your fellow undercover detectives willing to play the part until we find out who's doing this."
"This isn't an official investigation," Elisa pointed out. "If we go that route, whoever did it would have to be doing it out of the kindness of their heart." Looking at the blank faces around her she clarified. "They wouldn't be getting paid for it."
"Oh," Skyler said. "Yeah, that won't work."
Goliath growled softly. "But it would keep you safe," he ran a hand through her hair. "I do not want you in danger again when I can not be with you."
Elisa put her hands behind her neck and rolled her head from side to side in an effort to loosen the muscles there.
"We'll figure it out. It's not like it has to happen right this minute." She said.
"In the meantime, there's one thing you need to do," Matt said softly.
Elisa blinked at him for a moment. "Crap," she said. "My ring."
"We can't let this get out of hand before we're ready," Matt pointed out. "Just in case."
Elisa groaned. "You're right. I know you're right." Elisa reached behind her neck and undid the clasp of the chain holding her wedding ring. She reconnected the chain, held it in her hand for a moment, then she reluctantly handed it to Goliath. "Keep this safe for me," She asked softly.
"I will," Goliath said, tucking it into the side pouch on his belt.
"This still might resolve itself somehow," Elisa said. "All this may not even be needed."
"If nothing happens tomorrow," Matt suggested, "We'll revisit this. For tonight, though, we'll finish our shift like normal."
"Alright," Elisa said with a sigh. "Goliath, I…"
"I know," He said, lowering his face to hers. He touched his cheek to hers, and whispered, "But if this will keep you safe, I must insist. I almost lost you once. I can not lose you again." He raised his face and gazed in her eyes. "I would not survive that."
Elisa gave him a watery smile, "I love you, Big Guy."
"As I love you," He said. He touched his brow ridge to her forehead and rested there for just a moment. He finally raised his head again. "Now go. We will be nearby, should you need us."
