Chapter Three

Members of the Balamb crime division swarmed the docks. The entire harbor was closed off with yellow tape, with investigators searching every cranny for the tiniest of clues. The police even had divers hunting the nearby ocean floor for anything useful. On the other side of the tape, Quistis interrogated a frail elderly fisherman known only as Landers.

"It was the craziest thing," Landers complained. "I wake up yesterday morning and my sail's gone! Just like that! I have to buy a new one for 300 gil. Three hundred! Where am I gonna get that kind of money?"

"Mr. Landers, you didn't happen to see anybody suspicious lurking around your boat two nights ago, did you?" Quistis asked, trying in vain to calm the old man down.

"No, I didn't see nobody, and I didn't see nothin'," the fisherman replied rudely. "I docked my boat and went home at seven o'clock on the dot. Been doing that for thirteen years. And one day, I wake up, and my sail's gone!" Landers shook his head. "Damn crooks makin' it harder and harder for us honest folk to make a livin'."

Quistis thanked the man and rejoined her partner. "Did you find out anything?" she asked tiredly.

"Nope," Aries replied. "Nobody was around the docks that late. Balamb's a small harbor. It closes at seven."

Quistis let out a sigh and wrapped her coat tighter around her. "How are we doing on that blood stain?"

The other shrugged. "Let's ask."

Aries stepped over the yellow crime tape with Quistis following him. "Hey, Miriam!" he yelled. "Where are we with that blood?"

Miriam Greenstone, the medical examiner, stood from her kneeling position and presented a test tube with a cotton swab in it. "I think it's a positive match," she reported. "There was definitely GF-type magic in the blood. We'll take it back to the lab to confirm that it actually belonged to the victim."

Aries and Quistis both breathed a sigh of relief at this confirmation. Then, suddenly, another breakthrough.

"We found something!" one of the divers yelled after emerging from the water.

Without hesitation, the two detectives made their way towards the edge of pier, where the diver had climbed.

"Look at this," he said and held up a sopping wet katana, with a splash of crimson on its blade.

"The murder weapon," Quistis whispered, rather redundantly.

"Bag it," ordered Aries.

"No, wait!" Quistis carefully took the weapon in her gloved hands. She examined it closely, taking her time to feel the simple ridged hilt and the sharply curved blade. "I recognize this. It was a model in the last issue of Weapons Monthly."

"So whoever used it didn't buy it too long ago," Aries concluded.

"And it's available at only a few weapon shops in select cities," informed Quistis. "Balamb was one of them."

**

Rocky and Quistis walked briskly side by side down the sidewalk. Aries was talking, like always.

"Basically, the perp sneaks up on the victim and stabs her in the back," Aries reviewed, "steals a sail, wraps up the body, and throws the weapon into the ocean." The man frowned. "So why didn't he throw the body into the water too?"

"Something that big, a fisherman would've found it in no time," Quistis speculated. "But an abandoned alley, who knows? If it weren't for those kids doing their school project, it could've been days, or even weeks, before the body was discovered."

They both stopped in front of a tidy little building. "Here's the weapons shop," Quistis declared and pushed open the door. "Let's hope we find something good."

The inside of the shop was neat and had a mom-and-pop feel to it. Shelves of steel pipes, screws, and various odds and ends lined the store from wall to wall. Had it not been for the signs that proclaimed such graphic things as "kill two with one shot!" and "customized to slice through flesh!", the store would've been almost…quaint.

The golden-haired SeeD strolled up to the empty counter and rang the bell twice. The back door creaked open, and portly middle-aged gentleman ambled his way to the front.

"Can I help you?" said the proprietor politely.

"I'm working for the Balamb police," Quistis explained. "And I'm wondering if anybody came in here to buy a Model L-32 katana."

"A Model L-32?" the proprietor said. "Not many people buy katanas anymore, you know. Everyone wants a gun these days. But yes, somebody did purchase an L-32 from me a couple of days ago. Strange man. Paid with cash and refused a receipt."

"Do you think you could describe this person?"

The portly man chuckled. "Of course I can describe him. He only comes in here every day. Let's see now…tall, around 6'2, in his fifties or sixties, sort of frail-looking, gray salt-and-pepper hair. Calls himself Madison. He's homeless, I think. Kind of delusional. He hangs around the train station."

Quistis grinned. "Thank you so much. If we brought down a sketch artist, do you think you could help make a picture?"

"No problem."

**

Balamb Train Station

May 21, 12:50 PM

Quistis never liked silence. It gave her too much time to think. And that never ended well.

The SeeD gazed out the passenger window of the squad car parked across the street from the train station. Several street bums gathered at the front steps leading to the entrance. Quistis kept a close eye on them, but at the same time, wracked her head for some conversation starters.

"So how long have you been doing this job?" she finally spoke.

Aries grunted from the seat next to her. "I've been a cop for twenty-five years. Been out of uniform for fifteen."

"Does your family like having a cop around?"

The detective grunted again. "What family?"

Amusedly Quistis looked at her partner from the corner of her eye. "So you're not married then?"

"Nope. You offering?"

Quistis rolled her eyes, but smiled.

"This line of work messes with your mind," Aries continued. "Even if I did have a family, what would I say to my kids every day? 'Well, honey, today I arrested a man who raped and killed his own daughter. Pass the potatoes.' I never met a woman who could deal with it, you know, unless I married another cop. But I can't afford to piss off a woman with a gun."

Quistis laughed softly. "Yes, it's the exact same thing with SeeD's," she agreed. "You can't risk dating somebody else with the same baggage as you…though sometimes I hope that there's still somebody out there who gets it. But…" Her voice quieted.

"Hope's a bitch," Aries concluded.

After some more silence, Detective Aries nodded out the window. "That looks like our guy, doesn't it?"

The other glanced out the window. Sure enough, a new bum had arrived on the scene, hobbling over to join the others. Quistis quickly looked down at the sketch she held in her hands. "That's definitely him."

Immediately Aries and Quistis climbed out of the car and walked cautiously across the street. As he approached their target, Aries called out, "Madison! We need to talk to you!"

The one called Madison slowly turned around. His already pale skin turned whiter when he saw the two detectives coming towards him. Then, without warning he dashed up the steps and into the train station.

"I hate it when they run," grumbled Aries as he and his partner gave chase.

Sprinting into the station, Aries and Quistis pushed and shoved past crowds of people. Aries thought he may have knocked someone down, but he didn't care. While he kept his eye at the fleeing figure of Madison, he followed his target to the ticket stiles. Quistis jumped over the stiles with ease, but the older Aries took a little longer to clamber over.

"Keep going after him!" Aries ordered Quistis. "He's heading for the back exit! I'll cut him off at the other side!"

Quistis heard the instructions loud and clear and ran ahead without her partner. Trailing Madison by several yards, she pumped her legs harder, gaining speed as she ran. They whizzed past the train platforms and darted by the gift shop.

For an old man, he can run pretty fast, Quistis thought, breathing heavily.

The old bum had turned the corner and was headed for a small, glass door that was the back exit of the Balamb Train Station. Quistis felt a bit of panic when she saw the door. If Madison was able to escape out that exit, she would lose him definitely in the crowd outside. The SeeD forced her legs to move faster.

From her peripheral vision, Quistis saw the glass door swing open, and Rocky Aries rushed in, his handgun pointed directly at Madison.

"Police! Stop right there!" Aries bellowed.

Madison halted abruptly. His hesitation was just enough time for Quistis to catch up and tackle the old man to the ground.

"Madison, we're going to take you down to the station. I'd cooperate if I were you," Aries said as his partner pulled the suspect off the ground, forcing his hands behind his back.

With the help of Aries, the blonde SeeD dragged Madison out of the train station, amidst a gaggle of astonished spectators.