A/N Notes: I've got nothing to say at the moment, So let's just jump right into the story.
Enjoy...
Juan's POV
After Chief King elaborated on today's crime scene, Jones and I went to the scene of the crime where a Russian Mob Leader, Anton Levin, was found dead in his restaurant.
Upon our arrival, we find him sitting against the railing with several odd wounds all over his body. Even his scalp shows the inflicted wound.
"Ugh, what a mess..." Jones commented, "And Levin has been reduced into a pulp! The killer probably had some serious grudges toward him,"
"Indeed," I agreed, "Was there a robbery at this restaurant?"
"I checked the register, and found nothing inside," Jones said,
"Then we've got some work ahead of us then," I declared and looked around the restaurant,
Eventually, I find something underneath a chair and proceeded to pick it up. It was a phone with a smashed-up screen.
I pressed the power button once, and it turns on with a screen that requires a passcode to unlock.
"Whatdya find, Partner?" Jones asked,
"A smashed phone, and it probably belongs to our victim here," I assumed, "And since it's locked, I'm going to have to try figuring out the passcode,"
I proceeded to put the phone inside a small bag, and then I turn to Jones, "Is our victim getting hauled out?"
"Yep, and hopefully, Nathan could find some answers regarding those wounds he sustained," Jones said,
"Then let's head back to the station," I declared, and we did just that.
Upon our arrival, I worked on the phone that was found at the crime scene and unlocked the code before sending it to Alex for examination.
After we waited, The results came in and we first approached Nathan regarding our victim's cause of death.
"So, Nathan. What do you know about our victim's cause of death?" I questioned,
"Not much, I estimated that your victim has sustained 36 oddly shaped wounds," Nathan said, "But judging from the angle of these wounds, I've deduced that your killer is at least 6 feet tall. But that's not all that I found,"
"What else is there?" Jones questioned,
"Your victim died fighting his killer and I found skin cells underneath his fingers. Those the sample is useless, but it proves that your killer has a set of scratches on him," Nathan added,
"Well, that makes it easier for us to identify our killer," Jones said, "By the way, Juan. I was once told that Levin had a son, Mikhail. I think we should let him know about his father's death, what do you think?"
"We'll do that after we've checked on Alex since we get a lead on this case with that phone I unlocked," I said,
We then went to Alex, and he turns to us as soon as we came to him, "I take it you want to know what I found on the phone?"
"Something good?" I assumed,
"Yep! In fact," Alex grabs the phone and shows one photo to us, "It may interest you,"
Alex shows the photo and Jones and I widen our eyes at the photo, "What the... That's a picture of Tony Marconi?! And who's that man he's speaking to?"
"No idea... I couldn't find the guy in our database," Alex said,
"Don't worry, I'm sure Marconi will be more than happy to tell us about his friend. Time to pay him a courtesy visit," Jones declared,
"But let's talk to Mikhail first, Family comes first before potential mob bosses," I said,
"Oh, right," Jones agreed, and we took the cruiser to get there,
Mikhail's Apartment
Upon our arrival, we find Mikhail approaching him.
"Mikhail Levin?" I presumed,
"Yeah? And who might you be?" Mikhail questioned,
"My name is Juan Martinez and this is my partner, David Jones," I said, "And we regret to inform you that your father was found dead..."
"What?! AH! Good riddance! This Сволоче sure didn't see that coming!" Mikhail said rather happy than sad, (Translation: Сволоче means Bastard)
"Wow... You're a cold one for sure!" Jones said with suspicion,
"My father and I didn't get along. He never considered me worthy of anything. I bet that old bastard regrets not having me by his side, now," Mikhail said with anger,
"Any idea who could have killed him?" Jones questioned,
"Not a clue. But you'd better find his killer before I do," Mikhail said, "Even if I hated him, he still was my father, and his death can't stay unavenged!"
With that, Mikhail leaves as he had other things to do while Jones and I conversed with one another, "That was weird, right?"
"Indeed," I agreed, "But had some suspicion that it turns out like this,"
"Tell me about it, and this guy would have probably been more affected by a puppy's death than his father's!" Jones said, "How about we take a look around his place and see what we can find,"
As we let ourselves into Mikhail's apartment, we searched around and I ended up finding some torn box on the floor,
Jones goes to my side and looks down at the pieces of carbon on the floor, "It looks like someone tried hard to make this unrecognizable..."
"Let's take it back to the station. But before that, we'd better visit Marconi," I said, "But this time, I'm driving,"
Blue Flamingo
We arrived at Marconi's establishment and entered without issue.
Once we went further in, Marconi noticed our arrival from the counter and a smirk appeared on his face as we approached him, "Well, if it isn't the rising duo of the force. What do you want now?"
"You shouldn't smile, it makes you all wrinkly," Jones commented, then pulls out a printed photo from the phone, "Now, who's the guy with you in this picture?"
"What the..." Marconi muttered, then he grits his teeth at us, "I don't remember, so now you can take it and shove it,"
With that, Jones and I left as an argument with him won't do any good to us.
Once we were outside, Jones grunted in anger, "What a son of a bitch!"
"Easy, Jones. I get you're serious, but don't take it too far," I said,
"But I know him better than he thinks, and he clearly didn't expect us to have this picture," Jones said, "I'm SURE he's got something to do with Levin's death,"
"But we won't know unless we have the evidence to prove he's involved," I pointed out, "Ease down a bit and let's head back to the station,"
With that, Jones and I went back to the station. Upon our arrival, we made quick work on restoring the item found at Mikhail's apartment and discovered that it was a box for a pregnancy test.
"A pregnancy test box?" Jones noted, "Mikhail didn't mention having a girlfriend,"
"Well, there's only one way to find out," I said, and went to Mikhail's apartment to confront him once more,
Mikhail's Apartment
After we arrived, Mikhail was there and we approached him.
"Mikhail, I have a question. Do you happen to have a girlfriend?" I questioned,
"Yeah, I've got a girlfriend, Eva. Not that it is any of your beeswax," Mikhail answered, "She just came back from work if you want to bother her too,"
"We will. What about these scratches on your chest?" Jones questioned,
"That's Eva's Job... I like it rough!" Mikhail claimed with a smirk on his face,
With that, we went to Mikhail's girlfriend, Eva Coleman.
"Eva, I presume?" I questioned,
"Yes?" Eva replied,
"Have you heard that Mikhail's Father is dead?" I inquired,
"Anton is dead?" Eva questioned rather shaken at this information,
"Indeed, I take it you knew him well?" Jones inquired,
"What? No... We met only once before Mikhail and he stopped seeing each other," Eva said, "Anton was a little extravagant, but... nice,"
I took notice of her tone and assumed that she was hiding something from us. But I kept the thought to myself while Jones had to open his opinion, "Yeah... I bet he was, for a mobster. I'm sure he would have been the 'perfect' grandfather... You're expecting, right?"
Eva didn't take this comment too kindly, "That's none of your concern! So if you're done being nosy, I've got to go,"
Eva then leaves and so did we as we head back to the station and reevaluated the case. But along the way, Jones had to start a conversation with me.
"That was an interesting reaction, don't you think?" Jones inquired,
"I agree, Mikhail doesn't care squat about our victim while his girlfriend says otherwise," I added, "There must be something that she isn't telling us,"
"Also, did you see those scratches she's trying to hide with that scarf? It wouldn't surprise me if Mikhail was hitting her," Jones said,
After that, we both went back into the cruiser and drove back to the station,
Police Station
"Well, Juan, the identity and motives of Anton's killer are still a mystery," Jones said, "Even if we know Marconi is somehow involved, it's not much of a lead,"
"If only we know someone who could provide some information," I said,
"Hey guys," Ramirez greeted as he was passing by,
"Hey, Ramirez," Jones and I greeted,
"I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. But maybe I do know someone who might be able to help," Ramirez said,
"And who would that be?" I questioned,
"Bart Williams," Ramirez revealed, "He's been dealing close to your crime scene these days. He might know something,"
"Oh, come on Ramirez... Bart is a pain in the ass. Every time I see this, I come closer to losing it and whacking him," Jones said,
"But we don't have a lot of opinions, So we might as well see him," I said,
With that, Jones and I make our way to Bart Williams' location after I gave Ramirez a quick 'thank you' for the tip.
Oaksville
We arrived at the location, and Bart Williams was ever-present in the area.
"Mr. Williams?" I called out,
"Ah, hello. Officers," Bart greeted, "What can I help you with today?"
"Information," I said, and showed him the printed picture, "Do you know who is the man talking to Marconi is?"
"Him? He's one of Levin's henchmen," Bart revealed,
"You don't know his name, of course..." Jones presumed, "Since you hang around here, did you see anything the night of the murder?"
"Maybe I did... I guess you could 'refresh' my memory..." Bart said rather playfully,
"Bart, your ass is about to get a fresh memory of my foot. So cut the crap already!" Jones said,
"Jones... Can you not?" I demanded, then turned to Bart, "But that aside, I want you to tell us what you know,"
"Well, since you ask nicely. Specifically no, but I did see someone dropping some stuff into the sewers outside the restaurant before running away," Bart informed,
"Good enough," I said, then practically dragged Jones back to the cruiser and drove our way to the sewers.
Sewers
We arrived just outside the sewer drains and opened the gate.
"I swear, if that punk sent us off-track he's going to get it," Jones swore as he stares at the sewers,
"Either way, It's our only shot at finding something noteworthy for this case," I said,
"You go first, I've got your back," Jones insisted,
As we make our way down the sewers, the smell was quite unbearable and we had to cover our noses with our arms.
"Ugh, this smell is horrible. Let's go find something before this mess makes me sick," Jones said, and we both pulled out some flashlights,
After an hour of searching, I find two items on the ground. The first was a black wallet, and the other was a gold watch that glimmered from my flashlight.
"What'd you find there, partner?" Jones questioned,
"A golden watch, and a soggy wallet," I said, then covered my nose with my free hand as the wallet had a putrid stench, "And the latter smells awful, to be honest,"
"That I can agree with," Jones said,
I soon opened the wallet and found whatever was left of his ID inside the wallet, "Looks like this belongs to our victim, alright? And I can assume that the golden watch belongs to our victim as well,"
"Let's take these back to the station, and see what we can find in them," Jones declared,
"But before that, I could use a shower... I smell horrible and I don't want the girls to know I've been in the sewers..." I commented, then we gratefully left the sewers,
Police Station
After we arrived at the station, The first thing I needed was a shower as I hate to stink up the police department.
Once I'd put on a new set of clothes, I started with the golden watch. Upon close examination, I found a few strands of black hair and immediately sent them to Grace for analysis.
As for the wallet, I dumped the contents onto a table and found an invoice with a signature inside.
"It's an invoice," I said as I showed Jones the paper,
"And it's issued to the Blue Flamingo," Jones said as he looked into the paper, then his eyes widen at the name of the establishment "Wait, that's Marconi's club! There's also a signature on it, but the ink is worn out. Let's show this to Marconi, I'm curious to hear what he has to say about it,"
"I got a bad feeling about this," I muttered and went to Marconi once more,
Blue Flamingo
We came back to the club once more, and we approached Marconi.
"Marconi, We found an invoice issued to your club in Levin's wallet, and I doubt HE signed it," Jones suspected,
"Oh no, you got me..." Marconi said sarcastically,
"Enough with the drama, Mr. Marconi," I demanded, "Just give us the information of this invoice already,"
"If you insist, Little Juan," Marconi complied, "I've done some business with the Russians, big deal. Now I'm gonna start thinking you two really like me if you keep coming to see me for no reason..."
"Ok, cut the crap 'Mario'!" Jones yelled, while I seemingly held Jones back before he goes face to face with Marconi, "We want to know whose signature this is!"
"If you want to know so badly, Try finding it out yourselves," Marconi smugly stated,
"That we will," I said, then turned to Jones, "Come on, Jones,"
As I escorted Jones of the club, I took a quick glance at Marconi and saw him smirk with his arms crossed against each other.
Though I dismiss this as I focused on calming Jones down before it attracts unwanted attention to the customers and staff of the Blue Flamingo.
"You should really calm your nerves there, Jones," I advised, "That attitude of yours makes me think you want to rip somebody's head off,"
Jones sighs at this, then pinch the bridge of his nose, "Yeah, you're right. It's just that I can't believe the nerve of that guy,"
"There's no point in complaining about it," I said while shaking my head a couple of times, "How about we send this invoice to Alex and see if he could figure something out? We might as well check on Grace and see what she found from that watch,"
We then left the club and went back to the station
Police Station
After we sent the invoice to Alex, we went to Grace after she had finished examining the strand of hair on the watch.
"What'd you find from the sample we sent you, Grace?" I questioned,
"Upon close examination, I can tell you that the sample you found belongs to an African-American woman," Grace concluded,
"That can't be a coincidence," Jones said, "I'm sure this is Eva Coleman's hair,"
"If that's the case, she must have been in close contact with the victim to get her hair stuck in his watch," Grace added,
"Then we'd better talk to her after Alex finishes with the invoice," I declared,
We then went to Alex, and he had already expected our arrival, "Hey guys! I expected you two to come,"
"You've got the results of the signature, Alex?" Jones questioned,
"Yep, The signature in question matches a certain Dimitri Balanchine," Alex said, "Although, there's a bit of liquid on the paper. So I had Grace take a good look at the paper, and she told me that it was covered with traces of Hand Sanitizer,"
"Hand sanitizer? Then that means our guy here's been trying to keep his hands clean," I remarked,
"That's right," Alex said,
"In any case, we'd better talk to him after we talk to Eva about his connection with Anton," Jones declared, "Cause I have a feeling that she has something to do with this case,"
We then left the station and made our way to Mikhail's Apartment.
Mikhail's Apartment
With Mikhail gone, Eva was in his apartment and we'd already approached her.
"Mrs. Coleman," I called out, and she turns to me," I think it's time for you to be honest with us because we found Anton's Golden Watch in the sewers, and also contains strands of your hair,"
Eva was concerned at first, but fully admits her secret to us as she sighs once, "Fine, Anton and I were having... An affair. And his child is the one I'm expecting,"
"Anything else you would like to add?" Jones questioned,
"I told him the day he died, but Mikhail doesn't know any of this," Eva said, then tears started forming from the corner of her eyes, "I planned to leave him for Anton, but now..."
"There's no need for you to continue, Mrs. Coleman. We know the rest," I said, "For that, we will be leaving you alone..."
Jones and I then calmly left Eva in the room. As soon as we were outside the apartment building, a conversation began between us, "This case is really getting sordid, Don't you think, partner..."
"Indeed, but let's talk about that later," I said, "We still got Dimitri to talk to,"
"Right, and let's not talk to Mikhail though," Jones advised, "I doubt we'll get anything from him,"
With that, we returned to the station and called for Ramirez to bring in Dimitri for interrogation.
Police Station
Jones and I went to the interrogation room, and Dimitri was ever present as he noticed our arrival.
"Dimitri Balanchine?" I inquired,
"Yes, officers," Dimitri replied,
"We'd like to ask you a few questions regarding your involvement with, Tony Marconi," I stated while showing the picture of the two, "Care to give an explanation?"
"If you insist," Dimitri said, "Marconi is a client like any other, So what of it?"
"Right..." Jones remarked with suspicion, "And I'm sure your former boss wasn't so happy to know you were doing business with his competitor,"
"Talking about business, that's none of yours, Officers," Dimitri commented,
"One last thing... What are those scratches on your cheek?" Jones questioned,
"I cut myself shaving. Now, feel free to waste someone else's time," Dimitri said,
After Dimitri walked out of the interrogation room as usual. Jones couldn't help himself but pound his fists against the table.
"That's just it!" Jones shouted, "These mobsters are getting on my nerves!"
"Calm down, Jones," I demanded, "Yelling your problems at the top of your lungs isn't going to do any good for us and for this case,"
Jones sighs once and rubbed his temples, "You're right. You're right... I'm calming down now,"
"Good," I said, "Now let's go to the crime scene. If we get a closer look, we might be able to find something,"
Crime Scene
We arrived at the crime scene and searched the place more thoroughly than on our last visit. But as I look over the tables, I spotted two particular objects.
One was a bloody napkin, and another was a small worn-out ledger. I pulled out a small evidence bag and a pair of gloves, and carefully placed the bloody napkin inside.
Then opened the ledger and noticed the entries were coded.
"Great," I muttered,
"What is it, partner?" Jones questioned as he goes to my side,
"The entries in this ledger are coded. I can't understand at least one of them," I said,
"We should send this to Alex, He might dig some secrets in it," Jones suggested,
"Right," I said, "And as for the bloody napkin I found, I might find something as we wait for the results from Alex's findings,"
Police Station
After sending the ledger to Alex, I collected a blood sample from the bloody napkin and sent the sample to Grace.
Once the results were in, the first thing we wanted to know was about the bloody napkin.
"So, Grace. I can assume that the napkin has our victim's blood?" I questioned,
"Good insight. Not only does the blood on this napkin belong to your victim," Grace reported, "But it also contains traces of hand sanitizer, The murderer must have used some to wipe his hands!"
"Great... Just about everyone in town uses this product," Jones commented,
Then we went to Alex, who was ready to provide the results of the ledger.
"I take it you found something?" I questioned,
"After some time and a few headaches. I've managed to crack the ledger's code," Alex said while rubbing his forehead a couple of times, "It's a list of orders and deliveries made by Levin's restaurant. It looks like someone forged some of the ledger entries to cover up irregular transactions. What's more, the fake entries written is the same as the one on the invoice,"
"I knew it! Dimitri was scheming with Marconi against Levin, who found out," Jones said, "Let's go put that under Marconi's nose and see where it goes,"
"You go to the car, I'll be right with you in a minute," I said,
Jones leaves while I stayed behind and sighed to myself while pinching the bridge of my nose.
"What am I going to do with him..." I muttered,
"Something in your mind, Juan?" Alex questioned,
"I know for a fact that Jones can do his job right. But the main problem is that he literally takes his job too seriously," I said, "And let's not forget that temper of his,"
"He's always serious about his job," Alex said,
"Either way, I'm going to have to be by his side at all times," I said, "Can't have him doing something he might regret,"
"I agree," Alex added,
"Also, I'm treating you with something nice for those headaches with that ledger you examined," I said, then pulled out a coupon to him, "Take this, it's a coupon I got for a 50% discount on a game store you liked to go some times,"
"Woah, Really?" Alex said as he takes the coupon, "How'd you get it?"
"I have my ways," I replied with a smirk,
"Ah, Also good luck on the case," Alex said after pocketing the
With that, I rejoined Jones on the cruiser and made our way to the Blue Flamingo.
Blue Flamingo
We make our way into the club, and Marconi once again is seen by the counter.
"Marconi," I called out,
"Oh, it's you two," Marconi said, "What is it this time?"
"We found a ledger regarding your dealings with Dimitri, one of Levin's henchmen," Jones said,
"That book doesn't prove anything, Detectives," Marconi said with a calm tone,
"It does consider that the entries written are between you and Dimitri," Jones noted, "And I'm sure Anton didn't like it,"
"Russian Vodka and caviar at a 'fair' price for my club," Marconi revealed, "Nothing illegal in that. What Anton thought about it was Dimitri's concern,"
"Right..." Jones said sarcastically, "Because you would never even think about disposing of a reluctant business partner..."
"Don't be a smartass!" Marconi yelled while I groaned at Jones' sarcasm, "You'll never have anything against me, and you know it!"
"And I knew this was going to happen," I interjected, "So, how about Jones and I leave you alone before things get a bit personal..."
I practically dragged Jones out of the club while Marconi watched us go with arms crossed together and a pissed attitude.
Once we were outside, I begin with a simple conversation, "What the hell, Jones? I know you love to put this guy in bars. But that is not how you handle things,"
"I know. I know. It's just that I can't stand the guy, that's all," Jones said, "What's worse, I could smell that foul scent of his disinfectant from his hands,"
"I've noticed," I added, and kept this info in mind, "And let's not forget about his scars,"
"Yeah, I noticed that too," Jones remarked, "And I don't think he got that just by shaving himself wrong,"
"Don't get too confident, Jones. Otherwise, you'll get a hearing from the Chief sooner than later," I reminded,
"Yeah, I know, but let's not get him off the hook just yet," Jones said, "Who knows, we might have something that may link all the way up to him,"
I sighed at this enthusiasm, but I didn't mind either way since there was no convicting my partner of his personal goal. Especially when a small part of me wants Marconi in bars...
But I put that aside, and we drove back to the police station.
Police Station
I was sitting at my desk still pondering the case since things were a bit complicated as of late...
Such as the affair between the Victim and his son's girlfriend, the deals between the Victim's Henchman and Supposed Rival, and the attitude of the son. Yet, no motive as to why one of them would kill him.
The evidence in mind was still not enough and we have yet to find the murder weapon. If nothing turns up, it leads to further complications...
Before I could think about the case more, Jones comes in and places a cup of coffee on the table.
I took notice, and accepts it, "Thanks,"
"Your welcome," Jones replied with a smile,
After I took a sip, I placed the coffee on my desk and proceeded with a discussion.
"I take it, you're still thinking about the case?" Jones presumed,
"Lucky guess," I replied, "And the only problem about it is finding our murder weapon,"
"Either way, we did some progress," Jones pointed out as he took a sip of his coffee, "Though we may know that Marconi and Dimitri have possible motives to kill Levin. Mikhail is starting to have a good reason for it as well,"
"But we still need some more proof before we point our fingers toward the killer," I remarked,
"In that case, why don't we head to Mikhail's place and get a closer look," Jones suggested, "Hopefully, we'll be able to find something there,"
"I sometimes hate to disturb people in their homes," I glanced at the wall clock and then back at the Jones, "But it's our only chance to find something for this case,"
"I'll drive," Jones said,
With that, we both left the police station and headed toward Mikhail's place.
Mikhail's Apartment
Upon our arrival, we were fortunate enough to arrive with Mikhail and Eva out of their homes.
However, the door was locked since no one would be around in the house for a while.
"Locked," I remarked,
"Step back, partner. I've got this," Jones said, pulling out a small kit from his pocket, and revealing a set of lockpicks for him to use,
He then proceeded in picking the lock while I looked around and stood guard in case someone saw us and misunderstood the situation.
A few minutes in, Jones had successfully picked the lock and opened the door to the apartment.
"Didn't know you had a knack for picking locks," I remarked,
"It tends to help one way or another," Jones added,
We then entered the apartment block and searched around without making a mess of things.
Sometime later, I found what appears to be some sort of crossed-out card on the floor and proceeded to pick it up.
"Whaddya find?" Jones asked,
"It's a card, but it probably contains a phone number since it's been crossed out," I told, "Probably Mikhail's doing,"
I then showed the card to Jones, "Hmm... Think you can salvage anything from this card?"
"I'll try," I said, "But what did you find?"
"Well, I did spot some hand sanitizer from the room. It ain't much help except for the fact that we know both Mikhail and Eva use Hand Sanitizer," Jones said,
"Then we'd better get going," I suggested,
With that, we went back to the station with the old card in hand.
Police Station
After making quick work of the card, I salvaged what appears to be a phone number and sent it to Alex for analysis.
In the meantime, Jones and I decided to talk to Dimitri as he was waiting at the interrogation room.
Upon our arrival, that's where the interrogation starts.
"Ah, officers," Dimitri greeted, "And what do I owe you the pleasure in today's meeting?"
"Cut the modesty, Dimitri," Jones warned, "What's important is that we had a little chat with your friend Marconi. Apparently, he sold you out so fast we could hardly keep up!"
Dimitri merely chuckled at this information, and crosses his arms together, "Did you seriously think I'd fall for that? Marconi knows better than that,"
"Whatever you say, we know of your deal with him. Anton was an obstacle you had to get rid of,"
"Did I want his position? Yes. Did his death make my day? Definitely," Dimitri openly admitted, "But such bloodshed? I'm more subtle when I 'operate', and I'm definitely not stupid enough to leave a trail,"
Jones and I had the same expression in our eyes. We frowned at Dimitri's motives, though I maintained a calm composure since what he says is true,"
"Will that be all, officers? For I have other important matters to attend to," Dimitri said,
With that, the interrogation had come to an end and Jones showed his feelings as soon as Dimitri was gone, "Damn this psychopath! Too smart for us, huh?"
"Easy, Jones," I advised,
Jones huffs out before raising his hands in the process, "All right, I'm calm. But I am ready to take another dip at the sewers just to prove him wrong,"
"If you say so," I advised, "But we'd better get to Alex and see what he has for us with that phone number,"
"Right, let's do that," Jones agreed and walked his way toward the lab while remaining behind for a moment
'I just hope that the smell of sewage doesn't rub off on me...' I muttered to myself, and followed Jones to the lab,
Upon arrival, Alex had already finished with the phone number.
"Well?" I asked, "What did you find for us, Alex?"
"You aren't going to believe this, but the phone number you gave to me links directly to Bart Williams," Alex revealed,
"WHAT?!" Jones exclaimed in utter fury, "Sneaky little bastard. This time I'm kicking his ass! Juan, let's forget about the sewers for a while and go see him. You drive!"
"Sure, whatever you say," I insisted,
Jones stomps off while I, yet again, remained behind as I sighed at Jones' temper. Alex took notice of my reaction, "You alright?"
"In a way, but I am a bit glad to forget about the sewers for a while," I said,
"You don't like sewers, don't you?" Alex presumed,
"The smell alone is something I detest, " I remarked,
"Well, good luck with your investigation," Then Alex grins at me, "Also, I want to thank you for the coupon, If it weren't for that coupon. I wouldn't have been able to get that game I wanted,"
"No problem," I said, then walked out of the lab,
Oaksville
After we'd arrived at the alleyway, I fully expected Jones to stomp his way toward Bart.
I wasn't surprised as he angrily left the cruiser and stomped his way toward Bart, who was idly by the alleyway. I, on the other hand, followed behind him in case he goes somehow ballistic toward Bart.
"Bart!" Jones angrily called out, and Bart nervously turns to him, "We found your phone number at Mikhail's! I swear, THIS is the last time you ever lie to me,"
"Wow, easy now! Mikhail is one of my best clients, I wasn't going to tell on him like that!" Bart reasoned as he was sweating,
"I don't give a crap! You speak now or I'm ending your business once and for all!" Jones threatens,
"Jones," I called out, and he turns to see me with an expression saying 'Can you not?' before sighing as he pinched the bridge of his nose,
Then I walked to his side, and put my hands into my pocket, "But Jones' temper aside, It's best to tell us what you know, Bart. Before things get complicated on your end,"
"Fine, since I don't have much of a choice," Bart admitted, "Mikhail just called me the other day. Apparently, he was freaking out about his girlfriend's affair and needed a fix to relax. That's all I know,"
"So Eva was wrong, Mikhail did know," I muttered,
"And with this info in mind, he won't be able to deny it. We should go talk to him," Jones stated, "As for you, Bart. I'll let you off the hook since you've been so cooperative today,"
With that, Jones and I left Bart alone and relieved and we drove to Mikhail's apartment.
Mikhail's Apartment
Once we found Mikhail standing outside, he had already approached him...
"Mr. Levin," I called out,
Mikhail turns to us and showed a frown since he grew somewhat irritable by our presence.
"We'd like to ask you about your girlfriend's affair with your Father," I stated, "Don't try to deny it since we've learned about this affair ourselves,"
"So you want to truth? Fine! She cheated on me with my own father!" Mikhail angrily admitted, "He even got her pregnant! How would you react if it happened to you?!"
"That, I'll never know," I coldy admitted, "But I'd be mad enough to do something I'd regret..."
"You bet I was at first! But it wasn't her fault," Mikhail agreed, "My father was a sick bastard, he made her do this! Be sure I'd gladly thank the guy that took him out!"
With that kind of conversation, Jones and I left the apartment and headed to the sewers for an immediate search.
Sewers
Once again, we had to cover our noses as we searched the sewer tunnel once more.
In the midst of our search though, we ended up finding two separate items that didn't look too ordinary in a sewer.
The first was some sort of meat tenderizer and the other was a golden chain. Of course, we had to wear some gloves and held our breaths due to the items being a bit contaminated by the smell of sewage.
"Looks like we've found our murder weapon," I commented, then raised the bag containing the golden chain, "And this one was something that stood out of this place,"
"We'd better head back and see to it that there's a sample that we can obtain from these items," Jones declared,
With that, we quickly left the sewer tunnel with the items in tow and headed back into the station.
Police Station
Upon our arrival, we sent the Meat Tenderizer straight to Nathan's capable hands while I salvage a blood sample from the golden chain and passed it to Grace for immediate examination.
As we waited, Jones and I took the liberty of heading into the shower rooms and cleaning ourselves up from the smell of sewage.
After that, we were clear of the sewer's smell, wore some extra clothing, and made our way back to the lab for the results of the items.
The first is Nathan's report on the Meat Tenderizer.
"Well? Did you find anything?" I asked,
"Sadly, the sewage water washed away off any fingerprints or usable sample from this meat tenderizer," Nathan stated, "But the good news is, it matches Anton's wounds perfectly,"
"Then that settles it, we've found our murder weapon," I concluded, and took note of this information,
With that, we went to Grace for the results of the blood sample.
"Ah, good timing," Grace commented, "I've just finished analyzing the blood sample you collected from that golden chain, and it matches with your victim. However, the chain's diameter is too small for Levin's neck,"
"Which means that our killer owns this chain," Jones presumed, while I took notice of this "It must have been ripped off during our fight..."
After these results, Jones and I left the lab afterward.
"We almost have everything, but we just need one last piece before we can make an arrest," I said,
"But the problem is that we don't know where to look for the last pieces of the puzzle," Jones remarked, "And going back out there isn't going to do us any favors,"
As both of us are clouded with our thoughts, Ramirez soon arrives to us and provides a piece of information to us both, "Hey guys, I hope you don't mind. But I may have something that could help,"
"What is it, Ramirez?" I inquired,
"Some Levin's neighbor called the night of the murder to complain about a fight," Ramirez revealed, then shows a CD containing said complaint, "We could analyze the record, you know like they do on TV!"
"Are you kidding?! You had this from the beginning and only tell us now?!" Jones exclaimed with surprise, and I stood there completely surprised as well,
"It was an old woman yelling about a commies' invasion! And you told me not to bother you with crazy stuff..." Ramirez commented,
"If that's the case, anything you hear or collect that proves useful. Let us know," I declared as I took the recording off of Ramirez's hands, "Other than that, thank you,"
"N-No problem, I'm just glad to be of help. That's all," Ramirez said with a smile,
And with this recording on hand, Jones and I went straight to Alex, and the latter proceeded to work the recording of the night of the murder.
Sometime later, we came back with the results of Alex's findings.
"Hey, you two, both of you owe me a round on this one! I've cleaned the record and isolated two voices in the background, as well as fighting sounds,"
"And what'd you find?" I inquired,
"Well, both people on that tape were speaking Russian. Considering this happened right before Anton was killed..." Alex revealed,
"So our killer speaks Russian. Guess that brings the last piece of our case, Juan," Jones happily concluded, "And the only people who speak Russian is Mikhail and Dimitri,"
"Now we just need to bring our killer in," I said, then the evidence in mind points to one certain suspect, "And this time, you'll drive, Jones,"
With this information in mind, Jones and I left the police station and made the arrest of Anton Levin's murderer.
His own son, Mikhail Levin...
Mikhail's Apartment
As soon as we arrived, we went to his door and I was the one who knocked on the door while Jones stands ready.
Once the door opens, Mikhail stands right before us.
"Mikhail Levin," I named, and pulled out a pair of handcuffs at him, "You are under arrest for the murder of your own father, Anton Levin,"
"What are you talking about? Why would I kill him?" Mikhail denied with an irritable look on his face,
"Well, your motive would be the affair between your father and your girlfriend," I elaborated, "The fight you had with him had been recorded during the night of the murder, and certain items and samples were found revolving after your fight. Such as hand sanitizer from a napkin that you used to clean your father's blood off your hands, a golden chain containing pints of your father's blood, and those scratches you received after he died fighting,"
"I guess it's not the kind of competition you expected from him, right?" Jones remarked while I applied the handcuffs on him,
"'White Bear' my ass! My father was a pig! It wasn't enough for him to disown me, he had to make Eva his bitch!" Mikhail yelled in an outburst,
"All you've got to worry about now is not to be your prison mate's bitch!" Jones jokingly said,
"That's close to the line, Jones," I remarked, "But regardless, you are under arrest,"
As I read his rights, Jones and I escorted him into the back of the cruiser and took him in for booking.
What followed was his trial for his father's murder...
In Court...
"Now that all elements have been reviewed, does the defense have anything to say?" Judge Hall questioned,
"That swine can't touch my girl anymore where he is now, nothing else matters," Mikhail openly stated,
"I loved him, you sick bastard! He was a real man, not a whiny kid like you!" Eva said as she wept for Anton,
"WHAT?! How can you say that?! You are a...!" Mikhail was about to shout,
But they were silenced as soon as Judge Hall intervened with a pound of her gavel, "SILENCE, both of you! You clearly have no regrets for what you've done Mr. Levin,"
"This Court thereby sentences you to 23 years in prison for the murder of Anton Levin," Judge Hall declared, "Officers, take this man away! Court is adjourned!"
With one last pound of the Judge's gavel, the baliffs takes Mikhail out of his chair and sent to prison.
Outside of the Courthouse
"That was... weird, don't you think, Juan?" Jones commented, "I really thought we would get Marconi this time..."
As we walked down the steps, we momentarily stopped as Dimitri was standing at the end of the steps with a satisfied look on his face, "'Bravo' Officers! You did a great job here, and a big favor to me..."
"Save your praises, Mr. Balanchine," I stated, "The case may be close, but we will keep an eye on you,"
"Sure. You both do that," Dimitri stated, then leaves by car,
Jones sighs once Dimitri's car was out of sight, "Hey, Juan. How about we go out for a while and get ourselves a beer. I could really use a drink,"
"If you say so," I replied, as I put this case behind me...
The Following Day...
Jones and I were called to the Chief's office and expected praises for a case. And that, we did as he rises from his chair.
"A job well done, you two. Especially you, Juan" Samuel praised,
"Thank you, Sir," I replied with a salute,
"However, a cop's work is never done! You should make sure there is nothing else you can do for your former suspects and witnesses," Samuel reminded, "Also, we've had several complaints about Levin's restaurant since Dimitri Balanchine took it over. You should check on that!"
"Understood, sir!" Jones and I responded,
"You're both dismissed," Samuel said,
The first person in mind was Mikhail's ex, Eva Coleman.
Apartment
We arrived at the apartment, and Jones was the one who would knock on the door.
When Eva opens, she was somewhat surprised to see us there.
"What can I do for you, officers? I thought the case was over," Eva presumed,
"It is, we're merely here to check on you if you don't mind," Jones assured,
"Well, feel free to come in," Eva insisted as she opened the door for them,
Jones and I stepped into the house and went to the living room. Though I couldn't help but notice some luggage being packed with Eva's clothes and other essential things,
"Are you packing to leave, Mrs. Coleman?" I inquired,
"Why yes I am," Eva said, as she sat down, "I plan on leaving after Mikhail went to prison for Anton's murder. But I do have one problem,"
"And what would that be," Jones inquired,
"While I was packing, I was in the middle of looking for Anton's chain bracelet," Eva explained, "I couldn't find it and assumed that Mikhail hid it somewhere I can't find it,"
"If it's not too much trouble, we'll find it for you," I offered,
"Thank you, it'd mean a lot to me," Eva said,
With that, Jones and I proceeded in searching the living room for any potential hiding spots. Before long, I soon find a closed safe and brought it to the cupboard.
"A locked safe," Jones remarked, then turns to Eva as soon as she returned to the room, "Do you happen to know the combination of this safe?"
"I wish I could, but Mikhail's the only one to know about this safe," Eva said,
"Don't worry, I'm quite a professional at this kind of word," I assured, then proceeded to work on the safe,
A couple of minutes later, I managed to unlock the safe and I ended up finding a lot of stuff consisting of money and other stuff that Mikhail hauled within.
Thus, I took the luxury of pulling everything out of the safe, placed it on the table, and I soon found the bracelet as I grabbed it out of the safe last, and showed to Eva, "Here you go,"
"Thank you so much, Officers. Surely, Anton's son would at least have a token of his father," Eva wholeheartedly thanked, "I don't even know how to repay you,"
"Don't worry, Mrs. Coleman. Performing our duty is reward enough," Jones said with a beaming smile,
Eva thinks for a moment, then an idea struck her, "Oh, I know!"
Eva temporarily leaves the room, then comes back a few moments later, "Since Mikhail isn't going to need this. I'd like you to have it,"
Eva hands a brooch to me, and I recognized that this was a Russian Brooch due to the pattern and the famous Russian cathedral at the center.
I accepted this gift as I put in my shirt pocket, said our goodbyes to Eva, and went out to aid a certain informant in Oaksville.
Oaksville
Jones and I soon arrived at the same alleyway where Bart Williams waits somewhat concerned. But he approaches us as soon as he spots us.
"Ah, Officers. Thank god you're here! Something bad happened, I really need your help," Bart said,
"Geez, call down... What's the matter?" Jones questioned,
"Some guys roughed me up pretty bad outside the comic book shop," Bart explained, "They even threw my Ripper Jade action figure into the sewers! And since you two know those sewers well enough... I figured you could help me get it back?"
"The sewers? Why would you want us to go there for this action figure of yours?" I questioned, "And don't take this personally, I had to take a shower twice just to get rid of that smell,"
"Yeah, why would you want us to go there for a stupid doll?" Jones followed
"It's a collector's ACTION FIGURE," Bart clarified, mostly directed to Jones, "But look, if you help me, I'll give you a hot piece of information that will make it worth your while,"
Jones and I looked at each other for a moment, then we both reluctantly agreed since this is also part of our duty as police officers.
"Fine, we'll go and get this Action Figure," I stated,
"Great, and I'll be here waiting for it," Bart said,
With that, Jones and I made our way back to the sewers, and the smell was worse compared to our last visit.
"I can't believe we're doing this..." Jones muttered, "This kid is killing me! This information had better be worth the trouble,"
"I hate to admit it, but I've got to agree," I added, "But let's stop complaining, and start searching. The faster we find his Action Figure, the faster we'll leave this sewer,"
Jones agreed to my state and we both started searching the sewers. In a couple of minutes, I soon found the Action Figure in question, but it was in pieces since it was likely broken by Bart's ruffians.
"I've found Bart's action figure," I said out loud to Jones, "But I'm afraid that it didn't survive the fall down here,"
"Then how about we head back in the station and have this thing fixed there," Jones declared, "The smell of this sewer is killing me,"
"You don't have to tell me twice," I added, then we both hastily left the sewers,
Police Station
After our arrival, we had to take a shower to clean ourselves from the smell. Then, I proceeded in fixing the Action figure, piece by piece.
Once the pieces of the figure were fixed, I've decided to send the Action Figure straight to Alex for analysis in case there's something important behind this action figure.
In the meantime, Jones and I had to tend to Dimitri's problem as we drove our way to the restaurant that he now owns...
Restaurant
We soon arrived at the restaurant, and we end up finding Dimitri attending the front desk of the restaurant.
"We meet again, Balanchine! We've had serious food poisoning complaints," Jones remarked, "You're gonna get it this time!"
"Is this not the Health Inspectors' job? What a petty task for such 'brilliant' cops..." Dimitri rudely remarked,
"We'll do whatever it takes to shut down your business, Balanchine!" Jones swore,
"Hey! We're here to investigate. Not close down people's businesses," I reminded, then I turned to the smugged Dimitri, "But if this problem becomes a serious matter. You know what follows,"
"Whatever you say, officers," Dimitri said as he didn't mind us at all,
Jones and I searched around the dining tables and we soon found a plate filled with leftovers.
After collecting a sample, we head back to the police station and have Grace do a complete analysis towards the sample.
By the time they both finished, Grace was the first person we approached.
"Well, Grace? What did you find?" I asked,
"The food samples you've collected? Well, they're clean!" Grace reported,
"Dammit! I can't believe this obnoxious douchebag is getting out of trouble again!" Jones cursed,
"Uh... Jones... Should you not just be happy people won't get sick after eating there?" Grace asked in confusion,
"I expected him not to," I remarked, "But I, on the other hand, am glad to know that this isn't a serious problem. Let's go and see Alex about this Action FIgure, Bart was so concerned about,"
As we left, we soon approached Alex who had already noticed of our arrival.
"Anything on that action figure, Alex?" I asked,
"I have indeed..." Alex dramatically replied,
"And...?" Jones inquired,
"It's freaking AWESOME! I checked the serial number, and it turns out to be a very limited edition! No wonder Bart is crazy about it!" Alex explained with great enthusiasm,
I chuckled at the response, "Figures... But that aside, we'd better give this back to him after we've finished things up with Dimitri,"
As we take the doll off of Alex's hands, we make our way out of the lab. But as we get to the cruiser, Jones muttered, "Nerds... Nerds everywhere..."
"Oh, don't be like that," I teased, as we left the station,
Restaurant
As soon as we arrived, Dimitri has there as he expecting an outcome as if he presumed.
"Well, Officers?" Dimitri inquired,
"We found nothing suspicious," Jones coldly admitted, "BUt you won't be so lucky next time,"
Dimitri merely scoffed at Jones' comment, "Don't be a sore loser, Jones. I'm sure your partner at least will appreciate a fine meal, won't you, Detective Juan?"
"After all this work, I guess it wouldn't hurt as long as the food tastes okay," I said,
"Of course, and it's on the house," Dimitri said, "For everything you've done so far,"
After being provided with a short meal from Dimitri, Jones and I left the restaurant and made our way to Bart next.
Oaksville
We soon arrived at the alleyway, and found Bart still feeling a bit concerned about his Action Figure.
"Bart!" I called out, and he turns to me, "We've found your Action Figure. Now let's hope this info of yours is reliable,"
"Really?! Thank you SO much! There is not even a scratch on it!" Bart said, and pulls the action figure into his bag, "And a deal is a deal! So here is what I heard: there is a lot of tension between Salvador Cordero, the Vipers leader, and his second Ash Bison,"
The name Ash Bison is enough to make me remember the guy from my first case...
"Cordero wants his gang to wage an open war on the Skulls, but Ash is opposed to it. You should keep a close eye on them," Bart stated, "Cause if they go through with this, there'll be a lot of problems in the future,"
"We'll keep that in mind," Jones said,
Bart soon departs with his action figure while Jones and I remained as we conversed with one another.
"The Skulls and Vipers waging war... If it escalates, there'll be a lot of trouble," I muttered,
"But look at the bright side, with this information. I'm sure we'll keep these gang scum on a short leash!" Jones assured,
"That I can agree on..." I stated,
A Couple of Hours Later (3rd POV)
At the Blue Flamingo, Tony Marconi continues today's services of the bar without issue.
But soon enough, he gets an unusual guest at his counter.
"Marconi," Tony turns to the voice, and he was a bit surprised to see Juan alone,
"You here on police business? If not, I ain't talking," Marconi remarked,
"Not exactly," Juan clarified, and placed some money on the counter, "I'm here as a regular..."
Marconi scoffed, but he wasn't one to refuse a customer, "What would like?"
"The usual," Juan replied,
Marconi goes to grab whiskey from the counter, provided a shot glass to Juan, and poured a full glass of it.
Juan takes then a glass, and slowly drinks it all before setting the glass on the counter.
"Just as I remembered..." Juan remarked, and gestured the glass for another shot,
In the midst of a refill, Marconi converses with him, "I'll be honest with you, kid. I never thought of you as much of a drinker before. Yet here you are, drinking your sorrows away,"
"These drinks aren't for sorrows," Juan remarked, as he drinks his second shot, "My sorrows are directed to work, and that's final,"
"Then why drink?" Marconi asked,
Juan holds the glass for a prolonged period, then glances at his gloved arm of his and sighed at the mere sight of it.
Especially when he recalls the cause behind it...
"Another," I stated,
"Very well, but I'm sure you'll tell me some other time," Marconi said, and pours one last refill on Juan's glass,
By that time, Juan pays the drink upfront, and leaves without issue.
Though curiosity still remains in Marconi's mind...