Episode 2: Turnabout Sisters

Episode 2–1: Setbacks

Sept 5. 11:57 AM. Fey and Co. Law Offices.

The office building was bustling as Pam walked up the stairs. A man in a green suit loudly talked on the phone, almost knocking her over in his rush, while another squat man ducked under her arm. In one hand she held coffee from the police department, carefully keeping the cup out of harms way as people pushed past her. In the other she held a bag from Mee's and Moe's Noodle Shop. She pushed herself up against the wall, waiting until the lunch crowd thinned before continuing her walk up the steps.

It was hard to process that it had only been a little over a month since she'd moved to L.A. Her workload was starting to pick up at the station. She'd already taken on two major cases. Goodman was letting her do more and more things on her own. Even though it was small things like handling Otto's autopsy reports, she appreciated the gesture. They'd even given Pam her own evidence locker, though currently it sat empty.

Pam couldn't help but be a bit sad that her time with Goodman was coming to a close. He'd told her that she would be partnered with Gumshoe soon, to better assess her skills at homicides. She could already feel that headache coming on.

Once the crowd was gone, it was easy to find the law office. Pam let herself in, surprised to see her brother scribbling something in a notebook. He looked up when she sat the food bag down in front of him.

"Here's your food delivery," she said, holding out a hand. "Now where's my tip, baby brother?"

"Not your baby brother," Phoenix said in a sing-song voice. He dug into the bag and pulled out the to-go box with a happy sigh. "But thanks for this. I haven't been able to go out much. The Chief's really buckling down on this case of hers." Pam leaned on the counter.

"Has she told you what this case is about yet? I feel that's pretty important, what with you being her understudy and all."

"Not a thing." Her brother sighed, moving the noodles around with his chopsticks. He had faint dark circles under his eyes. Pam had noticed her brother's weird behavior. He came home later and later every night, and considering he didn't have much of a night life, it wasn't hard to guess that Mia might be to blame. "But I think this will all end pretty soon. She's calmed down a lot, so she must have found some pretty good evidence for whatever she's looking into. Still, I've barely had enough time to go to the bathroom…"

Pam watched him slowly eat. It looked like every muscle in his body was struggling to work. She frowned, glancing at the office in the back.

"Well, why don't you go ahead now? I can watch the desk for a few minutes."

But he was already shaking his head. "No, I couldn't. What if she needs help?"

"I am more than qualified to pull folders off a shelf," she said, rolling her eyes. Pam walked around the desk, pulling her brother up and shoving him toward the door. "Just go. I'll stick around here. I'll even answer the phone if I need too. You need a break."

Phoenix smiled, running a hand over his neck. "Thanks, Pam. I owe you one."

"What you owe me is gas money, but we can talk about that later. Get." And get he did, all but running out of the room with a sudden burst of energy. Pam smirked at the sight, sitting down in her brother's chair, and taking a sip of her coffee. She spun around in the chair a bit, humming under her breath. A quick meeting with Goodman about her progress that month was just enough to wake her up. It looked like today was going to be quite boring. Pam could go for a bit of boring.

She looked at the notebook on the table. It looked like her brother had been writing down a copy of Mia's own notes. The woman had neat handwriting, so Phoenix must have been making a copy to put on file. Pam's gaze glanced over her brother's scrawl. 'Potential witnesses: Rush Houre, Heidi Heel, Dianna Might, Meg—Pam shot out of the chair. She grabbed the notebook, barely managing to set her coffee down.

"Megan Ehrars?!" Pam managed to wheeze the name out. It felt like the breath had gotten knocked out of her lungs. What was Megan doing on Phoenix's list, or more specifically, Mia's list? Was she going to be a witness in Mia's case? Pam flipped through the notebook, but the rest of the pages were blank. Only the first few had been written on, and none of them made mention of Kent's emergency contact. Pam skimmed through Mia's notes, but there was nothing more on Megan. But, all the same, Pam's only clue was on Mia's list. She must know something!

She took two giant steps toward Mia's office, hand poised to knock on the door. I'll just have to ask the source. She reeled back her hand, only to stop when her brother came back.

"Pam, no!" He ran over, grabbing her hand with a shake of his head. Putting a finger to his lips, he dragged her over to his desk. "Don't disturb her," he whispered. "She's been in a pretrial meeting since I got here. We can't interrupt her under any circumstances. Hey, that's mine!" Shocked, Pam didn't have time to jerk the book away. Phoenix grabbed his notebook and slammed it shut, eyebrows furrowed. "Why were you looking at Mia's notes?"

"I was…interested? In the case?" Pam stared at her brother's notebook, the name Megan Ehrars swimming around in her head. "I just was curious about…the um…the names looked familiar. To…a case I'm working on?"

"If you are working on a case with these names—" he waved the book around, "—then you certainly shouldn't be looking at a defense attorney's notes. Don't you work for the prosecution?"

"Well, yeah, I mean…" Pam took a deep breath, clearing her thoughts. It had been so long since she had seen any sort of clue into Kent's case. For it to just pop up out of the blue was unnerving. Pam was sure if she could just ask Mia, she could get more information on Megan. Maybe even an address. "Sorry, let me start over. No, I'm not working on whatever case Mia is looking into. I just wanted to ask her a question about one of the names on there. I thought maybe I knew one of them in New York."

The lie wasn't amazing, but her brother seemed to buy it. He hummed under his breath, taking back his seat to slurp on more noodles. "Well, you'll still have to wait until Mia is out of her meeting."

"And when will that be?" Pam wasn't sure how much longer she could wait. Her brother shrugged.

"Sometime around 9. She asked if I wanted to go get dinner with her and her sister. I'm sure she'd be happy to tell you whatever you wanted to know then."

Pam bit her tongue, keeping back a wave of curses. It's fine, she told herself, trying and failing to curb her impatience. I can wait until then. I need to calm myself down before I blab something about Kent. Maybe some waiting will do me good.

"I guess I can wait until then," she muttered, getting her coffee off the desk. The heat of it burned her tongue. "Not sure what I'll do in the meantime though. I have the rest of the day off."

"Hey, I know!" Phoenix sucked up a noodle, smiling. "After I get off work, we can catch a movie! There's a new one coming out. What was it called again? The Bright Knight or something?"

"A movie about a superhero dressed up in white spandex fighting crime in the middle of the day?" Pam watched Phoenix eat, shaking her head as a stray noodle fell to the floor. "That's your idea of a good time?"

"Well, do you have a better idea?"

"Unfortunately, no." Pam finished her drink and threw the cup in the trash. "But you're paying for the tickets. I can already hear my paycheck weeping…I don't have the money to spend."

Sweat trailed down her brother's face. "And you think I do? The things I do for family…"

They talked a bit more before Pam left her brother to work. She took the elevator this time, hoping the crowd wouldn't be back from lunch just yet. She let her head rest on the wall as it slowly took her to the bottom floor. At least things were starting to look up. She was back on good terms with Goodman, her job was starting to look livelier, and she had a possible lead on Kent's case. In the silence of the elevator, she allowed herself a smile.

Maybe things were finally turning around.

Sept 5. 9:08 PM. Fey and Co. Law Offices.

"Come on Pam, we're late!" Phoenix was walking fast down the hallway toward the law office. Pam was having to jog to keep up with his larger steps.

"How was I supposed to know the traffic would be that bad?"

"The traffic is always bad here. Don't worry though. Mia wouldn't have left without us. Probably. Ah, here we are." Her brother tried the handle, opening it with ease. They entered a dark room. Moonlight streamed from the nearby window. A small sliver of light glowed from under Mia's office door. It was dead silent. Pam felt a cold air blow through the room. She rubbed her arm, willing the goosebumps to disappear.

"Can't believe we're late," Phoenix muttered, not as on-edge as his sister. "No lights on. She couldn't have already gone home, could she?"

"I doubt that." Pam placed a hand on her gun, concealed underneath her black jacket. She didn't like the look of this place in the dark. She liked it even less when she smelled a familiar iron-like scent. "Not if she was going out with her sister like you said. Stay here while I—"

"Wait a minute." Her brother sniffed, eyes growing wide in barely veiled panic. "What's that smell…? It smells like…blood? Mia?"

"Phee, wait!" She reached out her hand, but her brother had already run off toward the door. Pam cursed, drawing her gun and running after him.

The only light in the office came from the moon. The entire place was in disarray. A red notebook lay overturned on the desk, and a potted plant was on the floor. The office chair had been tossed aside, and glass littered the floor from a lamp. All this slowly led to Mia, who was by the window. A line of red ran down her face, slowly dripping to the floor. Beside her sat a small figure. Dark black hair ran down the girl's back. She wore strange purple clothes. She was crying, no, weeping, hands hovering around Mia's body.

Phoenix froze, staring at Mia in horror. "It was blood," he muttered, taking jerking steps forward. Pam put a hand on his arm, stopping him as the girl continued to cry. "M-Mia…Chief…"

"Phoenix, look at me." Pam forced her brother to look away from Mia, putting her gun back in it's holster once she deemed the area to be safe of any threat. "Listen, I need you to look at me. You need to do exactly what I say."

"Chief…that's…that's her, that's Mia…!" His voice was slowly growing more and more panicked. Pam pinched him on his arm, hard. "Gah! Pam, what—"

"Take this," she ordered, handing him her phone. "You need to call the LAPD, right now. Tell them that Detective Wright is asking for immediate backup."

"But…but—"

"That's an order!" Pam pushed him out the door, watching as he shakily opened the phone and dialed the police. She pushed down her pity for her brother, and her fear for Mia. This wasn't the time for sibling comfort. It was time for a detective. She turned to the girl, who had finally looked up from Mia. She was shaking; her eyes were glassy with tears. Pam approached her slowly, noting the Thinker statue on the floor, tinged with red.

"My name is Detective Wright," she started, hands up. She did her best to remind herself that this was a frightened girl, trying to push aside the thought that she could be a murderer. "Can you tell me what your name is?"

"I'm…I'm…" The girl blinked heavily, let out a sigh, and fell forward. Pam only just managed to leap forward and catch the girl in her arms. She leaned her back, cradling her. The girl didn't seem to have any blood on her. There were no marks on her skin, and her hands were flawless. She was light, so it was easy for Pam to lift her up and take her to the outside couch. She set her down as Phoenix shut the phone.

"I called them. They said they would be here soon. Here." He jerkily pushed the phone into her peripheral vision. She took it back without looking at him, doing her best to make sure the girl was comfortable. She heard her brother groan. Pam looked as he stumbled back into the room. "Chief…Mia…you can't be…"

"Phee…Phoenix, hey, look." She grabbed his arm, but he jerked it away from her, glaring. Pam withdrew her hand, shocked. Her brother wasn't crying, wasn't lost to grief. He was angry. Determined. "You should wait out here," she tried to say, "with the girl—"

"No. Mia was my friend, my mentor. I need…I need to see what happened to her. Either stay out here or help me, I don't care." Without another word he marched into the room, leaving Pam alone with the unconscious girl. She blinked a few times, reigning in her frustration. He's lashing out because of the shock. It's not his fault. It would be best to put our minds together to try and figure out what happened. Giving the sleeping girl one last glance, she entered the room. Phoenix was crouched next to his mentor, touching her neck in search for a pulse. From the look on his face, he didn't find one.

"She's still warm…" He went to touch her hand, but Pam stopped him.

"Don't. If she has any evidence on her hands, you could disturb it." Pam was trying to keep her tone compassionate; she really was. But she was also looking at a dead body, of someone she knew, no less. Seeing Mia like this was dragging up very bad memories. She locked down, keeping her emotions far away. "If she's warm, that means the murder just took place, probably a few minutes ago. The blood is still fresh."

"It's hard seeing her like this," Phoenix admitted. "She always seemed so…unstoppable. Argh, clues! We need to find clues!"

"Don't look at her as Mia. Right now, this is just a cadaver. Separate the person from the body." Pam looked at the Thinker on the floor. The bottom was coated in Mia's blood. "She was struck on the head by a blunt object, that statue."

"It's actually a clock." Phoenix cleared his throat. "Larry gave it to her as a gift after my first trial. It's heavy, so…she probably died instantly, right?"

"That's how it is most times. Geez, there's a lot of glass here…"

"Must have come from that light stand. That's new. I don't remember seeing that in here before…" Phoenix took a handkerchief out of his suit pocket, picking up pieces and examining them.

"Hey, quit it! You are disturbing evidence!" Pam tried to knock the glass out of his hand, but her brother's arms were too long. His grey eyes looked from her to the glass.

"Do you really think the police will let me close to this office later? Better to be safe than sorry." He produced a small plastic bag from one of his pockets, depositing the glass inside. "If it's needed later, I'll happily present it as evidence."

Pam couldn't say she was entirely happy with Phoenix screwing with the scene of the crime, but it couldn't be helped. Other than their looks, the twins also shared the annoying quality of sticking their noses into places they didn't belong. Pam looked back to the body, noticing something next to Mia's right hand. She grabbed Phoenix's handkerchief, pulling the paper from the floor.

"What in the…Maya?" Pam flipped the paper over. "It's a receipt, dated yesterday for a light stand. Why would she hold on to this?"

"Look! There's blood on Mia's finger!" True enough, the victim's finger was tinged with blood. Her brother looked as if he wanted to take his mentor's hand, but he managed to stop himself. "Could Mia have written that?"

"No way. Mia was hit on the head with considerable force. If I did the same to you, you would barely be able to think straight, let alone write legibly. Look at these letters. They are straight, easy to read. It would have taken an immense amount of concentration to do that when you were beaten to death." Pam placed the paper back next to Mia's hand.

"O-oh, yes, that would make sense." Phoenix grabbed her hand, squeezing it hard enough to make Pam wince. She didn't say anything. "Sorry, I'm just…this…it's crazy."

"I know. I understand how you feel." Why did it have to be Phoenix? Why did the lot fall on her brother? Pam got up, slowly helping her brother do the same. "Come on, we need to wait for the police. We shouldn't disturb the scene more than we already have."

"Yeah, okay. Wait a minute." He pulled away from her, looking at the landline phone. "Hey, why are the screws out of the phone? It looks like it was taken apart."

"Huh. Good eye, Phee." Pam's eyes narrowed. It was hard to see in the dark, but screws were littered across the table. "Could it have been Mia? But why? No, she would have no reason to do that…" Pam tugged on her stray hair, muttering, "Perhaps it was the murderer…?"

A high pitch scream tore the twin's attention from the phone. Outside the window, directly across from the office, a woman with bright pink hair was watching them. In her hand was a phone. "Police!" she cried. "Police, come quick! Help, help!"

"Great," Pam growled, striding over to the window. She put her hands inside her sleeves, carefully stepping around Mia's body. It wasn't easy getting the window open without the use of her fingers, but Pam finally managed it. With the window now open, she was free to flash her badge at the woman in pink. "The police are already here," she yelled. The woman's eyes grew wide. Now that she was closer, Pam could see the ugly pink night clothes she was wearing. "My name is Detective Wright! Remain where you are and don't move." She closed the window and walked back to her brother, dragging him back to the front desk.

"Now we get to deal with some crazy lady later," she growled. "No doubt she'll cause us trouble."

"Sorry to interrupt your rant, but where's the girl?" Phoenix gestured to the couch, now empty.

"I put her right there!" Pam shouted, feeling a pressure in her head. She tore a hand through her hair, taking out her bun in one swoop. "I knew one of us should have stayed behind to watch her! What if she ran away?"

"Um…I'm right here."

Pam turned on her heel. Neither of them had noticed the young girl behind them. She had stopped crying, holding her hands in front of her. She stood in the moonbeam, making her outlandish clothing stand out even more. She wore a bead necklace ending in a strange symbol or gemstone. Bangs almost hid her dark brown eyes.

"Gah!" Phoenix jumped backwards. Once he calmed down, he said, "Um, sorry, who are you?" The girl shuffled on her feet, looking from one Wright to the other. Phoenix held out a hand with a nervous smile. "It's okay, I work here. And this is my sister. We're here to help."

"…Maya." The girl coughed, saying her name louder. "Maya Fey."

The name on the receipt…Pam laid a hand on the girl's shoulder. One, to make sure she wasn't going to fall over again, and two, because she didn't want the girl to run off. Phoenix looked back toward the office.

"Maya…that's the name on the receipt! Hang on!" He ran back inside, returning with the receipt in hand. Thankfully he was still using the handkerchief to hold it. "Before Mia died, she wrote a message in her own blood." He showed it to Maya, who squirmed at the site of it. "She wrote it here."

"T-t-that's my name! W…why would she right my name?

"Fantastic job, Phoenix," Pam spat. "Go put that back. You are making things worse. Maya," Pam dropped to a knee. "Listen, everything is okay. My name is Pamola. Just tell me what happened."

"I…I was coming to meet my sister for dinner." Maya sniffed, rubbing her eyes with her shirt sleeve. "She said to meet her at nine, but I was a minute or two late. When I came inside, I saw her there." The girl's lip trembled. "Sis…"

"Hey, hey, don't cry. Dang it, Phee, get me some tissues." Pam could here sirens in the distance. On one hand, it was good that the police were arriving so soon. On the other, Pam knew that things would get a lot harder soon. If Goodman showed up, Pam might have a few minutes to ask Maya questions. If it was any other officer, who knows what could happen? Pam handed Maya the tissues, mind spinning for the right questions to ask. "Did you see anyone leave when you entered the office complex?"

"No. There was no one else."

"Why didn't you call the police when you saw your sister lying there?"

"I was…in shock. She was fine when I talked to her this morning, and then she wasn't." Maya looked up, jerking herself out of Pam's grasp. "I…I wouldn't hurt her! She's my sister!"

"I…" Pam looked up to Phoenix, but he seemed just as lost. "I…believe you." Did she though? Really, the evidence seemed stacked against Maya. Pam stood as the sirens came closer. She could hear the tires screeching to a halt outside. Seconds later, footsteps pounded outside the door. Pam held her breath, hoping to see Goodman's white jacket. Yet the patented Wright Luck had long since vanished. The detective to open the door was none other than Dick Gumshoe.

"Freeze, police!" Gumshoe had a hand on his gun, but he didn't draw it. His eyes lit on her first. He was smiling. In the middle of a crime scene, he was smiling. Pam shook her head as the giant lumbered over. "Detective Wright! Got your call, pal!"

"Sir, glad you're here." Pam held back every insult she had ever wanted to say to the man. Now wasn't the time. She motioned to the door in the back, trying to keep Maya behind her. "There's been a murder. The scene hasn't been disturbed, so—"

"Who are you?" Phoenix interrupted, arms crossed. He was doing his best to look intimidating, but next to Gumshoe, he just looked like a little kid. Gumshoe tightened his tie.

"The name's Detective Dick Gumshoe. We are responding to two calls, the first being Detective Wright, and the other being from the building just over there." He pointed out the window toward the fancy hotel. "We're here to investigate. Now I don't want anyone moving an inch. Not even you, Detective Wright. Have to do my job, after all."

"Sure." Pam said, teeth grinding together. "Whatever you say, sir." Gumshoe went inside the office, followed by a dozen lackeys. Pam prayed that he wouldn't screw up the crime scene too much. Once the room was clear of people, Maya crept out from behind Pam's back.

"Thanks," the strange girl said.

"Don't thank me yet. I'm sure they'll notice you soon. Gumshoe has a tendency to only see the evidence he wants, or so I've been told." Before she'd even finished her sentence, they heard the man shout from the other room.

"WHOOOOOOOOAH!" He came running out, the receipt in hand. Pam watched, horrified, as he waved the evidence in front of them, no glove covering his hand.

"Detective Gumshoe!" She snapped. He backed up, not prepared for the ice in her tone. She pointed a finger in the man's face, not an easy feat considering how tall he was. "Where are your gloves? At least use the corner of your shirt if you have nothing else! You are contaminating evidence!"

"R-right, sorry sir." Gumshoe blinked a few times. "Hey, wait a minute, I'm the senior officer here, pal! I'll be giving the orders!"

"I don't care if you're the president," she spat back. "Put on some gloves or so help me I will make a complaint to the Chief Prosecutor's office!"

Finally, the man had the gall to be ashamed. He got some gloves from another officer, putting them on before retrieving the evidence. He cleared his throat, hoping to pick up where he left off. Pam stood back, eyes narrowed and arms crossed.

"Anyway, does this word 'Maya' mean anything to you, pal?"

"Um." Maya stepped forward. "That's my name—"

"WHAAAT?!"

"Detective Gumshoe, please," Pam covered her ears, glaring at the older man. "Lower your voice to that befitting of a police officer."

"Sorry, pal, but the victim wrote this here note in her own blood." Gumshoe handed the receipt to a labby, who quickly put it in a bag and carried it away. "With her dying breath, she wrote down her killer's name!" Maya shuddered, her face as white as a ghost.

"Killer…? But I'm not—"

"Case closed! You're coming down to the precinct, ma'am! In fact, you all will. Everyone here is a potential murder suspect!"

"Gumshoe, this is insane!" Pam held out her badge, still in her pocket from that morning. "Are you forgetting that I am also a detective? My word should count just as much as yours, and I say you are making an arrest too quickly! No doubt the prosecutor in charge—" Gumshoe cut her off with a laugh.

"No way am I falling for your tricks, pal! Detective Goodman already warned us about that temper of yours. No, my word is law right now, and I say that everyone is going down to the station. Er, no hard feelings, of course."

Right, no hard feelings, she thought bitterly. Maya was led away in cuffs while Pam and Phoenix were able to walk to the cars with some degree of dignity. The whole ride, Pam was fuming, too angry to even put her hair up again. Phoenix's leg didn't stop bouncing all the way back to the precinct. Pam was busy thinking up of the best way to torture Gumshoe when he spoke.

"Pam, you…" Phoenix licked his lips, ran a hand through his hair. "You don't think it was Maya, do you?"

"I don't know. Maybe, but if so, why stick around? Why not get rid of the note on the receipt? Why leave the murder weapon?" Pam let her head lean against the window. The back of a cruiser…she never thought she would be stuck here of all places. "There are too many 'whys' for me to give a good answer. Yes, sloppy murders happen. It's possible but…it's too close to call, I guess."

"Will you get put on the case?"

With Gumshoe? Fat chance. Still, she had to try. She would talk to Gant as soon as she got out of questioning, she decided, even if she had to go to his house and ask him in person. If he wouldn't help, she could always try Goodman. Pam had noticed how he looked the other way while she asked Mia to help out with Isha's case. If that didn't work either…well, Pam wasn't sure what she would do. She had left her brother without an answer for too long, so now she shrugged. Phoenix sighed, looking out his own window.

"I can't believe it. Mia…she's really dead, isn't she?"

"I'm sorry, Phee. I really am." She reached over, grabbed his hand. He gave it a weak squeeze. Pam felt like she was back in grade school, comforting her too-kind brother on the playground after he'd been bullied. "I'll do whatever it takes to find who did this, I swear."

Phoenix laughed. It was a hollow sound that made Pam's heart stop. He didn't sound normal, not like the sunny brother she knew him to be. "I know you will. You've never broken a promise before, have you?"

Pam's other hand curled into a fist in her lap. Mia's body flashed in her mind's eye. It was replaced by Kent's, a bullet hole through the chest. Both had been so strong and taken too soon. Pam closed her eyes, willing away the scent of blood.

Sorry, Kentbé. The stars twinkled outside the car window. Looks like you'll have to wait just a little bit longer. She had more pressing matters to worry about. It was a long ride back to the station. She spent that time carefully going over every part of the murder scene, every part of Mia that she could remember. She had a feeling that this case was going to be one she fought tooth and nail for.

Whatever it takes. The thought kept her awake, kept the fire in her going. I'll do whatever it takes. Her luck might have run out, but Pam was ready to go off pure adrenaline alone. An arrest had been made. Tomorrow, the clock would start. Maya would be put on trial, and if Gumshoe was in charge of the investigation, that meant only one person could be prosecutor. Pam would have her work cut out for her. 4 days, if she was lucky. That's all the time she had to prove herself. To Gumshoe. To Gant. To herself. Pamola was not about to fail now.

A timer started in her head. The countdown had begun. Pam tugged on a strand of hair, lips set in a determined line.

Let the games begin.