AN: Deepest apologies to all American Police officers who will, no doubt, be cringing at the procedural errors and illegal actions by our hero's. I have no excuse apart from the fact I am British and the only source of information I have used are the myriad of American Police TV programmes I have watched over the years – hell I still think that Zebra 3 is a perfectly reasonable call sign XD – with love – the author.

PS – If anyone knows of any substance that works like I said the potassium does here I would be interested and may even go to the trouble of changing the story :D

Detective Jim Ellison was currently and unusually in a state of complete relaxation. He was comfortably settled in his favourite corner of the sofa, a chilled beer in one hand and a bowl of savoury snacks at the side of him, waiting for the Jags game to start on TV.

Sadly the coverage was delayed by a slightly extended weather report. Jim wasn't sure why 'extensive rain' was worth an extra five minutes, after all who wouldn't expect extensive rain in a Cascade October?

He even had his apartment to himself tonight. As much as he valued Sandburg and all that he had done for him and, as much as he admitted that he was more of a brother to him than his own had been, there were times when Jim still needed his own space without having to adjust for someone else. It was one of the many things he and Carolyn could never agree on.

Blair was currently at the university paying back some favours and catching up on some marking and office time and Jim wasn't expecting him back until well after 9pm.

So it came as a complete surprise when he heard the distinctive 'thunk' of Blair's car door and the beat of his guide's heart growing closer. Checking his watch Jim wondered what on earth brought Sandburg home a good two hours earlier than he expected.

Blair breezed in looking a little disgruntled but none the worse for wear. 'Man' he complained, 'Can you believe it, all this rain has backed up the drains at the Hall and started flooding the basement. I've just spent the last two hours hauling stuff out of storage and up into spare offices. Bang goes my office time and I've had to bring all the marking home with me.'

'I didn't think it was that wet, no more so than usual, why the sudden problem Chief?'

'You got me Jim I think they are going to get the custodians on it in the morning. Right now I just need a hot drink before I hide in my room to finish up.'

'Anything I can do to help?'

'Nah man, it's cool, you enjoy the game, if I'm lucky I might finish in time to watch the final quarter.'

The next day didn't so much as dawn as emerge, grudgingly, from the night. The sky was heavy with nothing in the way of a cloud break to let the dawn through. The rain hadn't stopped but transformed itself into a persistent drizzle. Blair had taken himself off to the university muttering about poor put upon TA's who would, no doubt, be required to do some more heavy lifting; while Jim looked forward, for once, to sitting at his desk catching up with paper work.

Life wasn't prepared to be kind to the detective, however, and just after 8am he received the usual summons from his boss. 'Ellison, my office.'

Wondering at what had got under Simon's skin now; Jim opened the office door and simply responded, 'Sir.'

'Get yourself down to the University pronto, a DB has been found in the drains beaten to a pulp. Homicide offered it to us as it was found under Hargrove Hall and they knew we, and when I say we I mean you, would be sticking our noses in it.'

'On it Captain, any ID yet?'

'Not yet Jim, it doesn't sound like the body was in a state to ID' Simon remarked sombrely.

Pulling into the parking area adjacent to Hargrove Hall Jim saw a crowd of students gathered to the right of the building. Campus security was on the scene keeping everyone back from a taped off area between the Hall and a grassed area where he could see forensics just setting up.

Blair was stood with security, along with some other TA's Jim recognised, trying to persuade the youngsters to go to their lectures. Jim smiled to himself, like that was going to happen.

'Cascade PD' called Jim, 'Make a space.'

The students pulled back to give him room to reach the tape and pass under.

'Jim, thank goodness it's you. I wondered who they would send.'

'Give me two minutes to catch up Chief and then I'll be with you.'

With that the detective approached Suzanne to find out what they knew so far.

'Quiet enough for you?'

'You're a funny man Jim, I take it you have been assigned?'

'Must be my lucky day, what do we have?'

'Not much so far. There was a back up in the drains last night so they sent the custodians in first thing this morning to find out why. They couldn't find any blockage under the hall so they came to this first manhole cover to check the next section. Opening it they found the cause of the back up was a body wedged in the intersection. It's not nice Jim and the poor sod that looked in first just lost his stomach on top of it. I'm glad I'm not the one who has to check it over and pull it out.'

'The joys of being the detective on the case.'

Jim looked down the manhole and decided to grab his coveralls out of his pickup.

'Be right back.' He told Suzanne and the forensics team.

Walking back he saw that Blair was still waiting patiently for him to let him know what was happening. 'You wait here Chief, it's even more unpleasant than usual. No need for you to deal with that right now.'

Grabbing a bag he kept for the messier jobs Jim pulled on a set of disposable coveralls before making his way back to the crime scene. He heard one of the campus security whisper to his colleague, 'It must be bad if the detective on the case won't go in without a onesie.'

Ignoring the comment Jim turned down his sense of smell and climbed partway down into the manhole.

The way the body was laying was odd. There were no marks on the manhole walls to suggest that the body had been dropped in that way and it was too narrow for it not to have left some evidence to its passing. The walls were uniform in their grime coating, so how had the body ended up where it was?

The remains certainly looked like they had been severely beaten but there was a fair amount of decay so it was hard to say for sure. He tried reaching down to find some id but it was too far below the bottom rung for him to reach. All Ellison could see was that the body was caught up on a large branch that was wedged in the drain and the water was forcing its way passed. Hell they were probably loosing evidence every second it was down here. Making up his mind that removal was the main priority Jim made his way back up to the surface.

'Get some quick pictures of the body in situ, then get it up here ASAP the water is washing over it like a rinse cycle.'

Instructions given, Jim stripped off the overalls he had worn, bagged and marked them as evidence just to be safe and handed them to the forensics team.

Walking over to Suzanne he began building a picture of what was known and what he would need to work on. 'I couldn't reach far enough to see if there was any ID on the body and what little I could determine wont help much as far as a description is concerned but do you have any students or staff reported missing?'

'At this time of year we usually have anything between 10 to 20 officially missing on our books, and another 10 to 20 just – well absent I suppose. Come by the office later and by then I'll have the official reports and my own personal list of 'I wonder where they are' ready for you.

'Thanks Suzanne that will give me a starting place at least.'

'You think it's a student then?'

'Honestly I couldn't tell if it was either male of female never mind age but when in doubt start with the obvious.'

'Hell I knew it was bad but …'

'Also, is there a map of the underground drains and culverts? It would help if I could picture the street map so to speak.'

'Yes we have one back at the office; I'll go grab a copy and bring it back for you.'

'Thanks again Suzanne we really will have to stop meeting like this.'

The head of campus security barked a humourless laugh, 'You said it Jim, you said it.'

There was precious little Jim could do now until the body was cleared and he could check the hole again so, in the mean time, he made his way back to Blair to keep his promise about bringing him up to date.

'Chief, I need to wait till forensics have cleared the remains how about we grab a coffee?'

'I wish I could Jim but all these kids need to be kept back and out of the way, they don't need to accidently see anything.'

'It'll be fine Sandburg, forensics are just about to put a scene tent up – nobody here is going to be able to see a thing.'

There was an audible 'awww' and a palpable sense of disappointment that made Jim smile as the expectant students, robbed of their chance to be horrified, began to disperse back to where they should have been.

Blair rolled his eyes at the macabre fascination young people had with death and smiled at his partner. 'Who's buying?'

'My treat Chief I'll even spot you a doughnut.'

Sat together in one of the window seats at the coffee shop just over the road from Hargrove Hall Jim gave Blair the relevant information that he had to date, which, he admitted, wasn't much at all.

'Man I am so glad that I didn't have to deal with it.' In a much quieter tone which wouldn't pass beyond their table. 'How were your senses Jim, any problems?'

'Not a one Chief, it was a bonus being able to turn my sense of smell down, but there really wasn't much to sense right then, that's why I need to go back down after they clear the body away and finish checking.'

'I'll come with you Jim, there will be a lot of filtering you will need to do and you don't want to spike or zone while you are down there on your own.'

'I appreciate that Chief, thanks'

'Hey, what's a guide for if not to climb around inside smelly, dark, damp and dangerous drains?' He said cheerfully.

Jim just smiled at the madness of his best friend.

While they were finishing up their drinks Suzanne returned with the copy of the plans for the culverts and sewage pipes as promised. 'It's right on a junction Jim,' she commented, 'two outflow pipes meet with a larger, and much older, covered stream. Without actually going down to check, that pleasure I will leave with you, I would guess that the body began further up the covered stream. Neither of those outflow pipes is large enough for a body to fit, at least not according to these blueprints.'

'Thanks again, these will be a great help when the forensics team have finished up. You wouldn't happen to have any waders that Sandburg and I can borrow do you?'

Suzanne laughed 'Not me but the biology department might, I'll give them a call for you, it's the least I can do in the circumstances.' With a huge grin on her face she gave them a cheeky wave and went back to her patrol car.

Ten minutes later a smiling TA from the biology department dropped off a pair of waders for them both, 'Compliments of the Head of Security' he said, 'Just bring them back when you've finished sewer diving.' Then he too left with a massive grin.

Less than an hour later they were both kitted up and heading down the manhole flashlights ready in their pockets. Jim, going first, reached the final rung and saw that the water level had dropped considerably but there was still enough water in the system to sweep them off their feet if they weren't careful.

'Watch this final step Chief, don't just jump, lower yourself by hand as far as you can and I'll steady you.'

Jim matched his own actions to the instructions he had passed but even with his height advantage it was still difficult to hold his balance in the current and found his feet unsteady on the slimy culvert surface.

Blair had an even bigger problem but Jim was ready to make sure he was safe.

'Getting back up's going to be interesting.' Commented the younger man.

'Don't worry about it, I'll give you a boost Sandburg.'

'Hardy har har and, to quote my favourite Star Wars movie, what an interesting smell you have discovered, l'eu de toilet water' if I'm not mistaken.'

'I wouldn't know Chief I've got my sense of smell turned way down.'

'That's right mock us common mortals why don't you. I can't see much of anything without my flashlight, what have you got; anything?'

'Nothing much, though it's obvious that the body came down the main culvert, Suzanne was right about the two sewer pipes being too small, plus there are drag marks further up the covered stream bed. Let's see if we can find where the body got into the culvert.'

Working slowly up the pipe they followed the tell tale signs of something bulky sliding over the walls. Every now and then the detective stopped and bagged material that had caught on the old brickwork but there was little other evidence that had been left behind by the flood water.

'Damn it all, I'll lay odds that there is a bunch of evidence downstream, probably more than half way to the harbour by now,'

'I don't know Jim, the university has its own sewage treatment plant, maybe something will turn up there.'

'We will have to hope, though any DNA evidence will be far too corrupted to use.'

They passed three more sewer pipes joining the main culvert and two more manhole entrances before finding what they were looking for. The laddered manhole above them had evidence of something large passing down it. Jim was careful to collect the material that was in danger of being lost before attempting to call the forensics team.

'No surprise, there's no signal. According to the map this should be manhole 16, we'll go back to the last entrance we passed and I'll boost you up. Once you get back on the surface let them know where I'll be and I'll wait at the bottom of the hole till they get there.'

'Okay man but be careful.'

Blair returned less than 10 minutes later with the forensics team. They set to work on the manhole while Jim exited the system the same way his partner had.

The manhole in question was situated in the middle of a large area of grass to the side of one of the original gothic style buildings of the University complete with stained glass windows and a dramatic stone entrance stairway. 'Linguistics and classical languages' Blair stated, 'plus one of the older libraries that still holds some of the original charters of the college; great place to get some serious studying done, not many undergrads go in there.'

Jim carefully scanned the area around the entrance to the culvert but found nothing that would help them. Given the state of the body it could have been weeks since it was dropped in and the chances of anything still been on the scene was remote to say the least.

Even so he instructed the forensics team to tape off a large area around the hole at least until he had some idea of a time of death.

Everything that could be done at the scene completed they made their way down to the on site sewage farm. Jim had never been to this section of the University before and hadn't realised just how large a complex it was. 'State of the art, man; a lot of the students are into environmental conservation and many of the science faculties have projects running here too.' Blair led Jim into the main offices and introduced him to the manager of the site.

'David, hi, this is Detective Ellison from Cascade PD, Jim this is Dr David Harrison, this guy has a PHD in human waste recycling! That is so awesome.'

'Doctor, I can't even begin to think of anything to follow that introduction.'

'David or Dave is fine detective and to be honest I am grateful that there was no snappy come back, it is an occupational hazard in my line of work. Now how can I help Cascade's finest?'

'I imagine you have been informed of the reason for the flooding under Hargrove Hall Dave; Blair tells me that you might be able to help me discover if any of the evidence washed down the system.'

'The body in the culvert has been quite the talking point around the campus as you can imagine and I anticipated that the investigation might result in a visit here. I placed the system onto a full screening as soon as I heard but anything that went through before that is likely to have been processed already. I'm sorry the system is very efficient I doubt that anything will remain that could be of any use after that.'

'What about non-biological matter, metallic objects and the like?'

'The system sorts natural waste from – well lets just call it non-biodegradable – but even that is processed to some degree; metals sorted into magnetic and other, plastics are burnt on site, and the rest is transported to the barges for an offshore dump after being heat treated to ensure the removal of any products that might harm the ecosystem.'

'And the metals?'

'Sent to a recycling plant in Olympia. I'm really sorry detective, if any evidence went through before I turned on the pre-filters it has gone.'

'Well that can't be helped now but if you could show us what you have managed to collect I will be grateful.'

'By all means; Blair, detective if you will follow me. Oh, just a word of errm well preparation I suppose, I've kind of got used to it over the years, but the smell is really rather overpowering if you are not ready for it. It's a shame that humans can't turn off their sense of smell.'

Blair turned and scowled at his friend while Jim just smiled sweetly back at him. 'Laugh it up big guy laugh it up.' Blair whispered knowing full well the detective would hear him.

It wasn't a pleasant job, by any means, and there was an awful lot of non-human waste to sort through; rather more than Jim had imagined, but in the end they managed to rescue three wallets, two miss-matched shoes and a large number of odd items that Jim collected just on the off chance they might have belonged to the victim. It was bizarrely fascinating to discover what strange items ended up in the sewage system – though the number of sex toys was alarming.

Thanking Dr Harrison for his assistance and being reassured that he would keep the filter on for another few days to be on the safe side, Jim and Blair made their way back to the forensics lab with their additional finds.

The look on the scientists' faces and the none too subtle comments about body odours sent both Jim and his observer into the station showers and to their lockers for a change of clothing.

'Why didn't you say something man? Claire and Sarah will never go out with me again after this.'

'It wasn't deliberate Chief, I just never turned my nose back up again; and going out with both Claire and Sarah will get you into more grief than just a few smells. What were you thinking Chief?'

'Hey! I don't go out with them at the same time, that's bad karma man; I never two time, I just one at a time all the time.' Blair replied with a grin. With that last comment the detective turned his back on his friend and grinned to himself, the kid always seemed to get himself into hot water with the ladies yet they kept coming back for more, Jim blamed the patented Blair 'puppy bounce', for some reason they just couldn't resist trying to house train him.

Refreshed they returned to Major Crimes to report what little they knew back to Simon.

It was the next day before Jim started to get results back from the lab and mid-morning before Dan called him down to autopsy.

'Sorry for the delay Jim but there was a whole lot of prep work that needed to be done before I could even get started on the full autopsy.'

'That's okay Dan, I understand. What do you have for me?'

'Unidentified, white, male, aged between 35 and 65; evidence of a very old appendix scar probably done while he was still very young – perhaps in his teens – and signs of some kind of long term chronic problem with his thyroid. Not sure what is going on there will have to do some more tests on it. Time of death is a problem; the culvert was cold enough to slow decomposition but the water and moisture has added problems to the timing. Strangely there is little evidence of rodent feeding which I can't explain. A body in the sewer system as long as this one obviously has been is usually well gnawed but I can only find a few teeth marks. It's a broad one I'm afraid – no less than two weeks no more than two months. Cause of death is currently undetermined too though I've got a lot of samples that I am awaiting results on, they may tell us a lot more.'

'Any chance of a dental id or do I need to cross my fingers for a DNA match?'

'Cross your fingers Jim, there was too much damage to the jaw for dental id and a facial reconstruction will be even more guess work than usual, he was just too battered, and before you ask it was all post-mortem, though there is a nasty dent in his skull that was probably at the time of death and a likely cause of death. No chance of a weapon match though, like I said just too much post-mortem damage.'

'Damn, it just keeps getting better and better. Still I have a few things I can be working on. Thanks Dan and give me a call if any of those tests show up anything interesting.'

'Will do Jim.'

Working through a few of his other cases and interviewing a reluctant witness to a racially motivated assault took Jim through into the afternoon when he had an appointment to see Suzanne back at the University. Even as he approached her office, Jim could hear his guide chatting to the office girl inside.

'Sandburg, I thought you had lessons all afternoon?'

'I did but my last one got taken over by the head of anthropology, I think he wanted an excuse to get out of his office.'

Suzanne laughed, 'Oh you better believe it Blair, his ex-wife rang to make an appointment with him. His secretary was told to tell her that he was busy in lectures all day.'

'Besides,' Blair continued, 'I figured I could help you sort through the missing reports, save Suzanne having to fax them over later.'

'That would be a great help actually Chief, we have very little to go on for an id I am just hoping it is someone from the Campus so we have a place to start.'

As it happened there were only two missing reports, both official and unofficial, that fit the description of the body. Most of the reports were for undergrads still in their late teens and early twenties; the two that fit were for a grounds-man who didn't return to work after a long weekend off, and an associate professor who didn't return to his work after an extended period of sick leave.

Jim took copies of the reports and a few other contact details Suzanne suggested before he and Blair returned to the precinct.

After a couple of phone calls the grounds-man was fairly easy to track down. His wife had been hesitant at first but when they pointed out that they were investigating a murder and that any information they were given was confidential if it didn't relate to the case, the wife informed them that her husband had gone on a weekend to Canada with his friends, they had got into some sort of trouble and the police there, given that it was a US citizen were reluctant to grant bail. She hadn't wanted to inform the University as she was afraid that he would loose his job on top of everything else. A quick call to the Toronto police confirmed her story and his detention.

'One down, one more to go Chief, I don't know whether to hope that he is safe and well or not. If he is accounted for I'm not sure where to continue our investigation.'

'I hear you Jim; you'd think that, even on an open campus, it wouldn't be hard to find an identity for this guy. Still, even if the professor is missing, it doesn't mean that the body is his.'

'True but right now it's all we have to work on. Do you know this Professor James at all?'

'Only from a distance at a couple of meetings; he's in the applied physics department. Never had any reason to get to know any of them, most of the anthropology department's contacts are with the chemistry and biology departments where we have more overlap, physics not so much.'

After receiving no reply from any of the contact numbers on the file, and being informed that his secretary was currently on leave, Jim and Blair grabbed their coats for a drive out to his home address. Maybe the neighbours could help further.

Pulling in at the last known address of the missing man they found a neat average ranch style house in a middle class residential area. Approaching the door they saw that the mail hadn't been collected recently and was beginning to overflow the box. There was no reply to continued knocking and quick check round the house only confirmed what they both knew, there was no one in the house. Nor could they see in any of the windows as all the curtains and blinds had been closed.

Trying the neighbours was a little more helpful. The neighbours on either side had been friendly with the Professor and told them a little more than they currently knew. Yes he had been ill for a number of weeks and had informed them that he was going away to his cabin in Cascade Forest for some recuperation, no they couldn't be sure when exactly – maybe a month or so – and no they hadn't seen him come back. They had started to worry when his mail had started to gather but they didn't like to interfere.

The investigation over the next few days was frustratingly slow. They obtained a warrant to search the Professor's home address but there was nothing obviously out of place though it was fairly clear that some clothes were missing and there was no car in the garage. The fridge was empty of perishables, internal doors closed and the video recorder set to tape a couple of programmes; all the sort of things you would expect when a person packed to leave for a short while.

Mostly it was dead ends; no contacts apart from colleagues at the university and in the broader scientific community and no address for his cabin in the forest. Even the focus of his research was bland with, as his head of department remarked, no obvious current applications, certainly nothing worth killing for. One issue of note was that the Post Office confirmed that he had put a hold on his mail for three weeks and that they had resumed delivery only nine days previously. Wherever the Professor had gone he had intended to return.

Many phone calls later all Jim had was a bunch of nothing. No one knew the address of his cabin or how long he had planned to be away. His doctor refused to release any information about his illness on the grounds that there was no evidence, as yet, that the body was his patient; and no one could think of any reason why anyone would want to hurt the Professor. All Jim could do was wait for a DNA match on the body with hair recovered from the house; once he had confirmation of identity he could progress further as proof of identity would open up the detectives right to more information.

The only interesting piece of information was given to him by Dan; the tests he had done on the DB's thyroid had shown tissue damage usually only found in people living in areas of high background radiation. While Cascade was slightly higher than normal due to the large amount of granite in the area this was indicative of someone who lived near a poorly shielded nuclear reactor or had worked in a clock factory at the turn of the century when they habitually used radium on the dials.

That got Jim thinking about the case he and Sandburg had dealt with only a few weeks ago. He wondered if the professor had become mixed up with the Russian mafia or the North Koreans and made a note to check what exactly was the nature of his research and did it involve radioactive isotopes?

Back at the flat that evening Jim relaxed with a book while Blair prepared chicken for an Italian dish he had wanted to try. Unusually he was not keeping up a one sided conversation with himself and the silence was beginning to permeate Jim's consciousness. A quiet Blair was a worrying prospect.

Finally unable to let this unusual state of affairs go, Jim set aside his book and focused his attention on his flat mate.

'Penny for them Blair.'

'Huh! What was that Jim?'

'I said, penny for them. What is going through that active mind of yours?'

'Oh, nothing important really, it's just so sad you know. Professor James was a long term member of the faculty here, a highly educated man with contacts around the world but no actual friends it seems, no one to really care when he went missing, no one whose life has been adversely affected by his loss. Just makes you think you know.'

Jim didn't like to think truth be told, because what Blair was saying hit a little too close to home. There but for the grace of God and a certain grad-student were the life and times of a once lone wolf known as Detective Ellison. Before Sandburg had bounced into his life both complicating it and soothing it at the same time, Jim doubted that anyone would have mourned his passing; Simon perhaps for a short time but more as a colleague than a true friend.

'I guess that's what happens when you focus too much on your work and forget to enjoy the finer things; a warning to us all I think.'

'Yeah man, you're right. We should have the team around this weekend, just because, what do you say big guy?'

Jim smiled at his friend, 'You do the inviting Chief and I'll get the food. We should include Rhoda and Darryl as well.'

Blair grinned back and started to hum to himself. Blair was buzzing, there was noise in the apartment and the universe had righted itself again. Satisfied Jim returned to his reading.

The next day the lab confirmed a DNA match, the body was now officially identified as Professor James, opening up Ellison's avenues of enquiry and narrowing his focus.

The professor's doctor was now forthcoming with his information. Paul Arthur James, 63years old, had been a relatively healthy man up until 6 months ago. He came in complaining of tiredness, aching joints and a loss of appetite. He had provided blood and urine samples and had undergone a number of scans, none of which was conclusive. The blood samples had shown deterioration in a number of hormones regulated by the thyroid but there were no other indicators of a standard thyroid condition. He had prescribed a number of medications which were really only treating the symptoms as a cause eluded him.

'The coroner reported damage to his thyroid consistent with long term low level radiation exposure, does that throw any light onto your diagnosis doctor?'

'Radiation! Good grief, I never even considered the possibility. Professor James didn't work in that field, where could he possibly have been exposed? That would explain the presented symptoms but I would have expected other indicators if radiation was involved.'

The doctor rapidly checked back over his notes. 'No I didn't miss anything; there is nothing in his results and scans that would have indicated any kind of radiological cause. I am at a loss to explain it detective. I will send all my records to your coroner's office if that will help.'

'Thank you that will be a great help I'm sure. We have spoken to Professor James' neighbours who informed us of his intention to take a break and spend some time in a cabin, unfortunately we have not been able to locate it, I wondered if you might have any ideas as to where it was or how we might find it?'

'You're in luck detective, we were awaiting some results from some tests and he asked if I might post them on to him, he gave me the address where he was planning to be.' The doctor handed over a slip of paper with an address in the Cascade forest. 'I believe this is what you are looking for.'

Returning to the station Jim mulled over the information he had so far and planned out how to fill in the blank spaces. How had the professor been exposed to radiation? Had that anything to do with his death? How did he end up in the sewers at the college when he, apparently, had every intention of spending time miles away in the forest? Where was his car? Why had he been killed and dumped? The more Jim thought the more frustrated he became he still didn't have means, motive or anything resembling a suspect. Time to lay things out for Simon, he was not going to be pleased with his lack of progress; hell he wasn't pleased with his lack of progress. Homicide would be thrilled that they had managed to pass this off to Major Crimes.

Dropping off the medical reports with Dan only took a couple of minutes before he was obliged to give Simon the good news. Knocking at his Captain's door he could smell Simon's latest coffee blend and hoped there might be a cup for him.

'Jim, come in, what have you got for me?'

The detective started with some minor good news first in an attempt to soften the final blow. 'The Patterson and Hardy cases are all wrapped up and passed to the DA, I'm still waiting for Colorado to send me the statement from Chief Grey Hawk before I can bring in Hunter but that shouldn't be long now and Megan has a CI that claims she has some information that will help with the aborted kidnapping of Miss Starsong.'

'Good, good, now tell me the bad news that is making you stand at parade rest, you only do that when there is some bad news Jim, spill it.'

'Professor James, the body in the culvert.'

'Oh hell I knew that would come back and bite us.'

Jim laid out the information he had and all the information he didn't have. 'I'm hoping that Dan might put something together with the doctor's notes but for now all I have to go on is a missing car and the cabin in the forest. I'd like permission to check it out myself, with Sandburg, see if I can find something that will help.'

Simon leaned back in his chair, 'You don't feel that the locals will be able to cut it?'

'To be honest Sir, I just don't know, I just don't have anything else to try and, well, maybe I could find something that they wouldn't.'

'Alright I will sanction the journey, it will take you all day, will Sandburg be able to spend that amount of time on it?'

Jim smirked, 'I think so Sir, his head of department is trying to dodge is ex-wife and so is muscling in on the lectures. I'll give him a call right away.'

It was indeed as easy as Jim had expected, more so because they knew Blair was helping to investigate the death of one of their own; so with a clear conscience both men packed for an overnight stay at the rangers lodge nearest their destination.

The journey up was relaxed as both men unwound from the stimulus of the city. The case was never far from their conversation however.

'I'm telling you Jim, as far as I can tell, the only people that Professor James seemed to have any kind of contact with were his TA's, his secretary and the students he was mentoring for their post grad courses. He even ate in his office, bringing in a packed lunch every day. The man was the poster boy for 'introverts united.'

'It has to be someone who knew him Chief. If it was just some random killing, a botched robbery or some other half assed plan, they wouldn't have gone to the trouble of hiding the body and taking the Professor's car. That in itself shows that they at least knew which car he drove. Plus I keep coming back to the question of why he was found on the campus when he should have been miles away at his cabin.'

'Yeah, I hear you man, random doesn't fit. So who did this mild mannered, quiet, introverted, professor piss off enough that they wanted to kill him? It'd be like killing Mr Rogers for crying out loud.'

'Wash your mouth out Junior; no one goes after Mr Neighbourhood on my watch.'

Blair laughed, 'Precisely my point big guy, precisely my point.'

They arrived very late at the ranger's lodge and went straight to bed ready for an early start the next morning.

The early beginning didn't help them much. It was obvious, even as they approached the cabin, that no one had been near it in months. 'Blair, he never made it here, I'm certain.'

'You got anything at all Jim?'

Jim stretched out each of his senses in turn, trusting his guide to keep him from losing himself in the input. 'All there is to show that anyone had ever been here is the lingering scent of smoke from the chimney but that is so faint, even for me, that it has to be at least half a year old, even older.'

They searched the exterior of the cabin before seeking to gain entry. The warrant that Jim had obtained allowed entry by force but, as it turned out, that wasn't necessary. Jim's eyesight picked out a concrete false stone from the natural ones surrounding it and they found a key in the base.

Inside the cabin was neat and comfortable looking. It wasn't a place to 'rough it' but a haven with soft furnishings, a more than serviceable kitchen area, a book shelf that Blair was drooling over and two bedrooms. One of the bedrooms was fitted out as an office with its own computer and a small filing draw in the corner. They took the computer and all the paperwork they could find, left the warrant execution notification behind and secured the cabin leaving the key where they found it.

'Well that was a wash out.'

'Not at all Einstein; we now know for sure that he never made it to the cabin so it gives us a much clearer time or at least date of death.'

'Riiiight, he must have been killed the day that he was planning to leave. Okay I see where you are going with that, but what else Jim?'

'I am really hoping that this computer and paperwork will give me some leads, certainly his office at the university had absolutely nothing of any note in it at all. Hopefully there might be a little bit more personal information in his office at the cabin.'

They managed to return to the city in time to log the evidence and hand the computer over to the techs before they left for the day. Taking the rest of the paperwork up to their desks for sorting they sat down and began the painstaking task of trying to work out what was useful and what was irrelevant.

The sorting took them both a couple of hours but in the end resulted in three workable piles. – Personal - very small but including the test results which indicated raised levels of potassium in the professor's body. Blair pointed out that potassium was actually slightly radioactive and that might have some bearing on his illness. – Routine - bills and little else of any use simply confirming the professor's last visit to the cabin to be nine months previously. – Work related - a very large pile of complex equations and notated drawings that meant nothing to either of them.

'I know next to nothing about physics Jim, but this looks like some very high end research here, we should get someone in his department to go over it.'

'Right with you Chief, it'll have to wait till Monday now and by then the techs might have pulled something off his computer as well; time to make tracks and get something to eat.'

'I could eat, fancy take out?'

'My turn tonight how's Thai sound?'

'Works for me big guy.'

Monday brought Jim back into the fray refreshed and with clear leads to follow. He got into work early to clear some paper work, check over Chief Grey Hawk's statement which gave him clear grounds to arrest and interview Patrick Hunter, and organise a warrant to search the premises of a certain 'super fan' who, according to Megan's informant, had designs on his idol Miss Starsong.

Two more investigations had ended up on his desk over the weekend but they were still awaiting details from uniform so he put them to one side.

He was now clear to focus his mind on Professor James' murder. Having a likely date of death meant he could narrow down his efforts to locate the professor's car. It was a grind but after two hours ringing round various garages, impound lots and scrap merchants Jim found the professors late model Chevrolet in a privately run impound lot in the south of the city. Making arrangements for the car to be collected by the police department for forensic examination and asking for the impound report to be faxed to him Jim felt on a roll.

The fax showed that the car had been picked up on a side street miles from the university. It had obviously been driven there in an attempt to put anyone checking on the professor off the track. Sadly there were no cameras near the side street but Jim made a note to check traffic cams on the most likely routes from Rainier.

Jackpot! Three of the cameras showed the professor's car driving away from Rainier in the early hours of the morning the night that he disappeared. Two of them even showed the driver. Jim carefully focused his vision not wanting to zone without Blair to pull him back out. Yes he could distinguish facial features now he just needed the physical evidence to back up what he knew was there. 'Can you send these over to the lab please. Ask them to focus in on the driver, see if we can get a clearer picture.'

Dan called from autopsy with the confirmation of the results of the scan that he and Blair had found at the cabin. Yes there were excessive amounts of potassium in the body, but not enough to register unless you were specifically looking for it, more than that the potassium itself was K259 a slightly more radioactive isotope of the element and not usually found in nature. Dan had been able, now that he knew what he was looking for, to determine that it had been ingested probably over a long period of time.

'Would it have been fatal Dan?'

'That's the odd thing Jim, not in these doses, at least not by the potassium itself. Eventually it would have led to heart tissue damage and a higher likelihood of cancer but even that wouldn't be much higher. No, the only effect that this would have had would for the professor to have felt tired and likely to have had headaches and other similar physical symptoms.'

'Just what he went to the doctor with in fact.'

'Exactly so. Whoever did this, and yes my report will show that it would have to be a deliberate pre-meditated act, was not trying to kill the professor just make him feel increasingly unwell.'

'Thanks Dan, not sure what it means yet but it does give me some pointers.'

'Glad I could help Jim, I confess this one has had me puzzled from the get go.'

Jim laughed, 'me too but I think I am starting to see my way through the fog at last.'

Just before lunch Jim received the report from the computer techs that he had been waiting for. Once again there was a small amount of unimportant personal stuff, even less routine bits and pieces but a large amount of very complex scientific work that even the commuter techs couldn't make head nor tail of. One of the techs sent him a brief note 'As far as we can tell this work was emailed to himself from his office at the university on the evening that you say he disappeared. I took physics as a minor at Caltech and so know enough to know that this is seriously high end research. What little I do understand seems to relate to electrical storage but this is way beyond your Duracell battery level. This guy is talking about quantum storage whatever the hell that is and that is as much as I can say, Good luck with this one Jim.'

Jim sat back and thought for a few minutes before making an appointment to see the head of the physics department the next day.

The rest of his day was given over to two successful arrests and the paperwork generated by them. Jim was glad to see Blair as he bounced in just after 4pm. 'Grab a seat chief and start typing while I bring you up to date on the professor.'

The next day Jim was shown into the office of Professor Ahmed the current head of the applied physics department and Professor James' boss. It was a well appointed room with a pleasant view over one of the university's park areas. The contrast between this work space and Blair's cubby hole couldn't have been greater.

'Please have a seat detective. I have asked Janet my secretary to bring us some coffee while we discuss this research that you have found.'

Jim took a seat in a high backed chair nearest the desk and handed over copies of the work that he and Blair had found at the cabin. Professor Ahmed began reading through the notes as Jim enjoyed the coffee he had been given and silently monitored the man before him; he was obviously curious and interested but, what was interesting to the detective was, the more he read the more focused and excited he became.

'This, this is outstanding research, my goodness Paul why didn't you tell me?'

'Is this the research you said had no real value outside of academia?'

'No, not at all, this is, how can I put it, this is more like Paul's hobby. I've known Paul for many years at this faculty and at others, and for as long as I have known him he had been working on the problem of electrical storage in his spare time.'

'Can you explain that in layman's terms please Professor?'

'Sorry, yes of course. One of the problems of electricity as a power source is that you need to use it as you generate it. It is possible to store in a battery form but that is highly inefficient and not very cost effective. I think Paul first became fascinated with the problem back in the days of the Apollo programme and he has been working on it ever since. This work here, well if it could be actually harnessed, this would revolutionise electrical storage in ways that well … detective this work is Nobel prize level. It could change the world and certainly our burgeoning energy and climate crisis' due to our carbon based energy technologies.'

'This is valuable information then?'

'This is priceless information detective. You think he was killed for this? Who would do such a thing?'

'Any number of people I'm afraid Professor, who would know about this research?'

'Well a few of us knew that he had an interest in this field but I don't know of anyone who knew just how far he had got with it, certainly I had no idea and he would talk to me about it more than anyone else I think. Paul was a very private man detective.'

'Perhaps he wanted to sell his research; maybe he contacted a private company about his ideas?'

'Not Paul, absolutely not; the man was truly altruistic and not one to care about making money. He would be more inclined to put the information into open forums to benefit humanity as a whole not just a few rich businesses.'

'What about the 'publish or die' rule that seems to be a major factor in higher education establishments, could he have sent this to one of the science communities publishers?'

Professor Ahmed looked doubtful and slowly shook his head. 'I wouldn't think so detective. Like I said this was Paul's hobby he didn't view it as work he would be more likely to bring it to me as a conversation piece and I can assure you that he didn't.'

Jim had been carefully monitoring the Professor's heart beat throughout their conversation and was confident that he was telling the truth. This information was new to him, he was excited by it certainly but he was telling the truth when he said he hadn't seen it before.

'Who would have control of his intellectual property in event of his death Professor?'

'I have no idea detective. Paul had no relatives that I was aware of, I don't even know if he left a will at all, but this, this research must not be lost; please detective if you have any influence over what happens to it I beg you, for the sake of all humanity, do not let this information be lost.'

'It is really that Important?'

'Yes Detective Ellison it really is that important.'

'When I looked round his office before I had no idea what I might be looking for, could I trouble you to come with me to his office to make sure I haven't missed anything relating to this research?'

'Of course detective I would be happy to.'

With that both men made their way through the physics faculty to Professor James' office. On their approach Jim became aware of someone moving around in what should have been a sealed room.

'There is someone inside, wait here professor.' Jim drew his service firearm and approached with caution. The door was slightly ajar so he wasted no time but made an entry seeking out the intruder. 'Police officer, stand where you are and let me see your hands.'

The young man in question had his back to the door and was holding several files. He placed them slowly on the desk in front of him and straightened up. 'Please I'm Joseph Clarke, Professor James' secretary, please don't shoot.'

Ellison approached carefully and did a brief pat down of the young man before turning him round to face him. When he did Jim realised that he was looking into the face of the man who had driven Professor James' car away on the night of his disappearance.

Unable to use that evidence yet Jim was obliged to follow a subtler path. 'Professor Ahmed, can I ask you to confirm that this man is who he says he is?' The professor looked around the door and breathed out. 'Yes that is Mr Clarke; he's been away on leave for a couple of weeks. Mr Clarke why are you in Professor James' office, surely you have been informed what has happened?'

'Yes sir, of course, that's why I came in. I wanted to be sure that there was nothing missing. I didn't think that it would be a problem.'

Jim holstered his weapon and decided to use the secretary's apparent willingness to help to his own advantage. 'Well that was very public spirited of you Mr Clarke but not to be encouraged. However now that you are here perhaps you can help Professor Ahmed and myself and then, if you wouldn't mind, it would be very helpful if you could join me down at the station so that I can take a statement and get some background information.'

'Of course, I'm happy to help in anyway.' The young man's heart beat was frantic but slowly settling, it seemed that he was relieved to be playing an innocent bystander and was unaware that he had just made it to the top of Jim's suspect list.

The search of the professor's office revealed nothing extra and all three men left before locking the door behind them. 'I must ask you to give me your key Mr Clarke, it is still an active scene in an ongoing investigation and I wouldn't want there to be any suggestion of tampering later on.'

The secretary handed over his copy of the office key without hesitation which suggested to the detective that he had nothing in the office to hide so why had he risked so much by going in there in the first place?

'Could I give you a lift to the station Mr Clarke?'

'Thank you detective but that is fine, I'll take my own car if I may then I can come back to work without bothering you later.'

Wishing he could arrest him on suspicion on the spot but knowing he would be unable to explain his actions in court Jim simply nodded and they made arrangements for the secretary to come in to the station later on that afternoon.

Jim went straight to Suzanne's office and caught her just before she left for lunch. 'Jim, how's the investigation going?'

'It's going Suze that's about all I can say right now. You keep personnel details of faculty staff here right?'

'Yes, nothing detailed, basic stuff, name, address, date of birth, next of kin, you know, in case of emergency.'

'Can you let me have a look at the file on Mr Joseph Clarke, James' secretary?'

'Sure Jim; all the staff sign a waver giving us permission to pass details on to the emergency services.' She pulled up a computer record, 'Here you go.'

Jim took details, thanked Suzanne then made is way straight back to the precinct to do some in depth digging on Mr Joseph Clarke BSc.

Ellison was disappointed to find that neither the forensic report on the car nor the blow ups of the traffic cams had made it back to his desk. It left him with a crisis of professionalism about his approach to his main suspect. He took his concerns straight to Simon.

'So Jim, this kid is definitely the one in the picture but you can't officially question him about that because you don't actually have the necessary evidence yet, have I got that about right?'

'Yes sir. I know he's got something to do with the professor's death but I can't challenge him on it yet, it just wouldn't stand up in court.'

'All you can do Jim is take a witness statement and treat him just like any other innocent bystander. Remember innocent until proven guilty Jim, and sentinel senses aside you have nothing on this kid.'

'I know Simon, but what if he rabbits? As far as I can tell he has nothing keeping him here in Cascade.'

'It sucks Jim, I know, but until you officially get that information there is nothing you or I can do. Have you rung forensics and the photo lab to see if they can hurry it up?'

'Forensics was a blow out – the car had been wiped down before it had been towed and all the evidence they lifted from it traces straight back to the towing company. About the only thing of use they could tell me was that the car had not been hot wired and that it had been locked up when it was left; obviously the person who drove it, the secretary, used the key, probably without realising the implications of that. The photo lab is backed up because they are still processing all of the photographic and video information from that car chase last Friday but they've promised me that I am next on their list.'

'Well that's that then. Tell you what I'll ask Joel to take the young man's statement. He'll do his 'father figure' thing, get the kid to relax and you can monitor from outside. That way we have less chance of spooking him, give him a false sense of security, get him to let down his guard before you go in and arrest him later.'

'Okay, thanks Simon; if anyone can get the kid to let down his guard it's Joel.'

After briefing Joel on just what he needed covering in Clarke's statement Jim gathered all the information he had on the case and began to put it into order. He now had a good idea of when the professor died and his hobby was a very likely motive but he was missing the details, details he couldn't get until he had an official reason to question his suspect. The delay was frustrating and all he could do was grit his teeth and wait.

It was at this point that Blair entered the bull pen.

'Oh, oh, Ellison is gritting his teeth again, everyone duck.' H and Rafe both sniggered at their desks while Jim just glared at his partner. Blair grinned at him, totally unrepentant, 'What's the problem big guy and can I help?'

Jim gestured with his chin to the break room and they both made their way through to stand by the drinks machine.

The detective briefly outlined his problem to his guide and Blair patted his arm in sympathy. 'Man I get it Jim, I really do; this is one of the reasons I need to get my research accepted; maybe then the courts will accept sentinel abilities in evidence. You're sure that this Clarke guy is responsible?'

'I'm sure that he was the one driving the professor's car and I know that he is hiding something, I just don't know what. That's why it's so frustrating, if I could just interview him, put some pressure on; I know I could get to the bottom of it.'

'Patience my man, you'll get there, and when you do at least you'll know that it will all stand up in court.'

Forty minutes later, stood in the observation area, Jim could only admire Joel's ability to put people, even suspects, at ease. He hadn't even put pen to paper and Clarke was talking to him like he was his favourite uncle.

'Yeah I was studying nuclear physics at Norwich University in England, was going for my higher degrees to work in the nuclear power industry. I knew that there were people who were firmly against it but they didn't realise the impact that our carbon based technology was having. I thought that nuclear power was the only solution.'

'So what happened? Why are you here working for Professor Clarke?'

'Chernobyl happened. It came as a shock to us all, you know. I mean we knew that the reactors in the Eastern block were poorly designed but it still shouldn't have happened. If you were to write a plot with that many bad decisions; deliberate ignoring of protocol; switching off of fail-safes; and making politically motivated decisions rather than scientific ones; well no one would buy it, they would claim it was too far fetched. But it happened and I realised then that no matter how well you build and design something, there will always be some idiot that presses the button that says 'Do Not Press' you know.'

'So you went looking for another interest and that brought you to Professor Clarke?'

'Not at first, it was Rainier's alternative energy programme that brought me back to the States but I have all these loans to pay off so I needed to take time out to earn some money first, that's when I saw the secretarial post advertised and I jumped at the chance. I could work here and still attend some open lectures.'

That's when Joel started getting down to detail; Clarke had worked for the professor for a little over a year; didn't mix with him socially; thought he was a great boss; knew what car he drove and where he kept his keys; made him his tea, tea not coffee, the way that he liked and did all the usual secretarial things.

Joel's next question set Clarke's heart racing and Jim knew that he was onto a winner. 'So I understand that Professor James started to have health problems a few months ago, what can you tell us about that?' The kid did some waffling about how the professor started having headaches and took some time off but his body language and physical responses all told a much bigger story.

When Joel asked about the night that the professor disappeared Jim had to turn down his senses to avoid overloading on input; Clarke's system went into overdrive; his heart rate went through the roof, his capillaries opened and the pupils in his eyes shrank to pinpoints and then fully dilated.

'Careful Jim, don't you zone on me now, what are you picking up?'

'He's guilty as hell Chief; his systems are so stressed right now he would be setting off alarms in hospital.'

'Damn! He really seemed like he cared for the guy as well. You can just never tell can you? Well the rest of us can't anyway.'

Joel finished writing up the statement, gave it to Clarke to read and sign and then escorted him out of the station thanking him for taking the time to come in and help with the investigation.

When Joel returned to the bull pen and handed over the statement he smiled at Jim and said, 'You're onto something there Jim, I don't know what, but that kid was lying through his teeth and was as jumpy as a rabbit at a foxes tea party.'

'Thanks Captain I owe you one.'

'Wow Jim,' whispered an impressed Sandburg, 'maybe you're not the only one with sentinel senses round here.'

Jim laughed quietly at his guide, 'No Blair, Joel is just a really excellent detective.'

Two frustrating days passed with Jim having to wait for the evidence he needed to take his investigation to the next stage. He picked up the two cases he had been left over the weekend and a follow up request from the assistant DA for a cold case that was being reopened.

He took out his frustrations in the weight training area of his local gym and in long evening runs from his apartment; even so it came as a relief when the report from the photo lab finally ended up on his desk. Warrant in hand Jim and Blair went to Clarke's home address to make the arrest.

The arrest itself was almost anti-climatic; Clarke came quietly, listened to his rights and when confronted with the traffic cam photograph actually started to cry.

'I didn't mean for any of this to happen, it was just such a stupid accident, that wonderful man, a genius, the work he was doing, my God it's all gone, all lost and it's all my fault.'

Jim and Blair were both taken aback by how broken the professor's secretary seemed to be; Blair fetched him some water while Jim felt obliged to remind him of his rights.

'No I want to tell you, I've been going mad just waiting for you to come and arrest me, I knew you would sooner or later.' He laughed a short desperate laugh, 'If you hadn't come for me soon I would have come and given myself up, I couldn't live with it you see, what I've done, what the world has lost. You have no idea!'

'Let's start with the poisoning Mr Clarke, was it you who was administering the Potassium 259 to the professor?'

'Yes, that was me; I was putting a small amount each day into his tea. Not much, nothing dangerous, just enough to make him feel unwell and take some time off.'

'Why on earth would you do that?'

'It was his work, don't you understand, no how could you. After I had worked for him for a few months he began to ask me to type up some notes on some research he was doing, he felt bad asking me because it was just some stuff he was doing in his spare time. Hell he told me he would pay me from his own pocket to cover the time. When I saw the work he was doing, when I realised the potential; my God I was blown away. I kept telling him how important it was, the difference it could make in the power generating industry. He was quite embarrassed by my praise bless him.'

'So go on, why poison him, what was the point of it?'

'He was such an honest man, totally honourable, wouldn't work on his, little hobby he called it, in the university's time. I kept begging him to take a sabbatical or at least a vacation but he wouldn't hear of it so I figured if I made him feel a little under the weather he would take some well deserved time off and work on his personal project.'

'Where did you get the Potassium from?'

'Oh that's easy there is always a ton of the stuff hanging around the nuclear research labs they use it for calibration and test runs. I only needed a tiny amount I knew they wouldn't miss it.'

'And you put it in his tea?'

'Just a fraction, once a day, like I said I didn't want to hurt him, just get him to take some time off; and it worked and every time he was off he would come back with some more of his research for me to type up. It was great, he was really making headway.'

'So what happened? Why did you kill him?'

'That last day I was so happy for him, he was actually going to go off for a long break, I think his doctor had insisted or something. We were going over his lecture notes, sorting out who would cover for him, that sort of thing. We worked late because he didn't want to leave anything for anyone else to worry about. Then I needed to photocopy some work for him, it would be the last job before we finished and he could go off to his cabin. Trouble was the copier on our floor had jammed and was off so I decided to run over to the Linguistics building because no one is ever in there and I was sure that the copier would be free.'

Clarke took a deep shuddering breath. 'I don't know what happened he must have been looking for something in my desk or putting something away, anyway he found the syringe and vile of potassium in my draw and must have put two and two together. When I came out of the Linguistics building he was coming up the steps towards me. He was so angry he actually started to shake me by the arms. I tried to explain, calm him down but. I'm not sure what happened next, I lost my hold on all the papers I was carrying, they scattered around us on the steps, I took a step back, he followed me but he must have stepped on some of the papers because the next thing I knew we were both falling down the steps and when I picked myself up at the bottom.'

Now the young man broke down again, 'I don't believe it, I don't believe it, how could this happen.'

Jim stopped the interview to allow Clarke to gather himself again. After ten minutes Jim began his questions again.

'Mr Clarke, if this was an accident as you say, why didn't you call for help?'

'I don't know, I was panicking; I could see that he was dead, the way his eyes were just staring it was awful, but all I could think of was that everyone would think I had done it on purpose especially when they found out about the potassium; that's when I saw the grate cover and just threw everything in, the papers, the syringe and then the professor. He got stuck, I had to stamp on him to get the lid back on again, I stamped on him – what kind of person can do that?'

'Then what did you do?'

'I checked round as best I could even got a watering can from the ground keepers office to rinse the steps down and then went back to the physics building. That's when I saw the professor's car and I thought to myself; well everyone thinks he is going away so if I move the car they won't know that he's missing. I got his spare keys and drove it to the other side of town. Took me ages to walk back again but by the time that I had I had calmed down a bit and just sat at my desk wondering how everything could have gone to hell so quickly.'

'The other day when I found you in his office, what were you doing there? You must have realised you were taking a chance?'

'I had to try and find his work. That's what I've been doing since, well since it happened. It can't be all lost it just can't be. You have to find it detective.'

Jim continued to ask clarifying questions to tie up any loose ends before finishing and escorting the broken young man down to the holding cells for the night.

Both Jim and Blair were very subdued as they completed the paperwork for the case and took it through to Simon for his approval.

'Well done Jim, another case closed, and not an easy one either; so why are you both looking like someone has pissed in your wheaties?'

'I'm just glad I'm not the DA who has to make the call on this one Simon and I really hope that the kid gets himself a good defence attorney.'

'Sympathy for the accused Jim, that's not like you.'

'This case was just too weird from the word go, I'd call it a comedy of errors but it just isn't that funny.'

Jim explained the details of the case to Simon as they all sat round drinking his latest batch of coffee.

'It's like he was saying to Joel,' said Blair, 'There is always someone who will press the button labelled 'do not press' or the older but perhaps more appropriate 'the path to hell is paved with good intentions.' This kid was paving a highway to hell and never gave it a moments thought. That's the trouble with those of us who live in our ivory towers in academia; we can become so focused on the research that we loose sight of the bigger human picture.'

For some reason Jim gave a shudder as he felt like someone had just walked over his grave.