2 years later...

Frank walked into The Nest, holding his cup of coffee. He lifted it up to his mouth as he walked through the door, and placed it onto the table as Jake and Monica came over.

"Mornin' Frank," said Jake.

"Good morning," he replied as he shuffled through some papers.

"What's on the agenda for today?" wondered Monica as Alex and Cody walked into the room.

"Nothing really. Right now, we've got nothing too special to do until we're called," Frank replied as he put the folders back on the table. "Though the police have asked us to help them with a double murder case that hasn't really gone anywhere since it started."

"Really? Darn. I was hoping to do something interesting today," Cody said with a smile on his face.

"I don't know what you're so happy about," Frank told him.

"What? What'd I say?" replied Cody, shrugging his shoulders.

Alex laughed.

"I don't know about you Cody," she told him, laughter still in her voice.

"What? You're the ones who have to work with me everyday!" he replied, holding out his arms.

"So Frank, how long has this case been going on?" asked Monica.

Frank looked at the papers in his hands. "Just over two years. They found the bodies in an alleyway. There were no clues, no witnesses, no leads. They were hoping we could shed some light on this."

"You have got to be kidding, Frank! What makes them think we can do anything about it if they haven't found anything for two whole years?" Jake asked him, almost yelling out the question.

"I never kid, you know that. We will find out something that might help them. Besides, what else have we got to do at the moment? Not much. This is better than nothing, even if we do no better than them," Frank replied.

He headed towards the door, not even noticing the others hadn't followed him yet. The four looked at each other before following him, with a sigh.

"He has got to be the most stubborn man I've ever met. He thinks he can do the impossible," mumbled Cody.

"And what makes him think we can even put a dent in this unsolved case? If it's gone on for two years and those guys haven't found no hide nor hair of a clue, what makes him think we will?" wondered Monica as they followed the man.

"It'll probably be unsolved for a long time," Jake muttered.

"Try forever," Cody told him quietly.

00000

Michelle cautiously walked home from school, heading towards her home. She was walking very slowly; she didn't like her foster home one bit. She soon came in sight of the house and sighed.

"Why does my life have to be like this?" she asked herself before walking in through the door.

"Michelle, where have you been? You've got chores to do and then we've got to get supper. After that, you're doing your homework," came an angry voice.

"Yes, Amelia," she replied, hardly trying to disguise the lack of enthusiasm.

"You know, you've got a lot of guts for a 14-year-old. I've never seen anyone quite like you. No wonder you've never been adopted, with an attitude like that," Amelia told her, crossing her arms.

Michelle rolled her eyes before heading to her room. She threw her bookbag on the bed and plopped down on it. Looking up at the ceiling, she sighed. "Why does my life have to be like this?" she asked herself. "Maybe if I get everything done tonight, I'll be able to go out to do some shopping."

She climbed off the bed and hurried out to do her chores.

00000

Later that evening, after all the chores were done and supper was eaten, Michelle turned to Amelia. "Amelia, may I got out tonight?" she asked.

"No, you can't. It's a school night. You've got homework to do," the woman immediately replied.

"It's Friday night!" Michelle told her, not believing what she was hearing.

The two began a staring contest. Michelle softly growled, as did Amelia, neither giving to the other. It was Amelia who finally gave an exasperated sigh, lifting her arms and rolling her eyes.

"Fine, go then!" Amelia finally said.

The teen smiled as grabbed her jacket and hurried out the door. She headed down the street, hands in her pocket.

"What to do today?" she said to herself with a smile.

00000

Frank left the police station, walking out to his car. He and the others were going back to The Nest to finish things up for the weekend. The others came out behind him.

"See Frank? We're not going to find anything. Even if it is only the first day, we still didn't get anywhere," Jake told him.

"It's only our first day on the job. That's why we haven't found anything yet," Frank replied as he pulled out his keys.

Monica looked down the street from side to side. Her gaze came to a teenager walking her way towards them. She didn't think much of her until she walked right through the group. She bumped into Frank, forcing him to stumble a bit.

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't mean for that to happen. I just lost my balance there for a second," the teen told him.

"It's okay. Just don't let it happen again," he replied, eyeing her carefully.

She waved and walked away from them as Frank went for his keys in his pocket, only to find that his wallet wasn't there. "What the...?" he started. "My wallet is gone!"

"Well, when did you have it last?" asked Cody.

"In the building. Wait a minute..." Frank said.

"That kid!" Alex said, realizing what he was about to say.

"She must have it. Let's go after her and get it back!" Jake told them.

TBC...