This chapter is bad! *throws confetti*

Jim sat in the isolated cell. It had re-enforced glass windows and heavy steel walls. All things considered, Jim wagered that he could probably break out, if things came to that.

But it would all be fine. Once the police came in, they'd have a little chat and he'd explain that everything was safe. Then, the rock guy would confirm that the heartstone was not theirs. And he would be on his way.

Easy, right?

Psh, if only.

Jim tapped on the glass, getting the attention of an officer watching him.

He opened the little food slot. "What is it, Lake?"

Jim looked at his badge. "Hey Dave, I've been up all night, so I'm going to lay down and take a nap. Just holler if you need me."

The officer raised a brow and shrugged.

The isolation chamber was rarely used here, since it was so small and lacked any furniture or services. So Jim had no choice but to curl up into a ball and lay on the floor, still in his underwear.

A few moments passed before a blanket fell through the slot and the lights went out in the cell.

Dave looked in the window with a little smile.

Merlin, Claire, and human baby NotEnrique strolled into the police department. The receptionist, and two other men waiting, noticed them immediately.

"Can I help you folks?"

"Um," Claire spoke up. "You guys arrested my boyfriend, and took our truck…"

"Is he the one with the—" she put two fingers on her head, representing horns.

"Yeah, that's Jim."

"You'll have to wait a bit then. They've put him in isolation."

"What! Why? Do he do something!?"

"No no, he's been on very good behavior. It's just because of the—" she gestured with her fingers again.

Claire nodded heavily, accepting that she was powerless. All there was left to do was wait.

"Do you think that means they've…figured him out?" NotEnrique asked, quietly.

Claire shrugged. "I don't know how they wouldn't. I'm pretty sure they check everyone throughly when they come in. No doubt they tried and failed to remove his 'costume'."

"So what do we do?"

"We…trust Jim." Though she said it, Claire wasn't sure she believed herself.

"Excuse me," one of the men spoke up. "I couldn't help both overhear…is your boyfriend the one in here for the theft of my stone?" He was a tall man, very skinny, looked a little like Strickler.

"It's all a big misunderstanding!" Claire assured, "we found that stone on our own!"

He held up his hands, in a pacifying way. "You look like a very smart and reasonable young lady. Maybe we could have a word?"

Claire nodded following him into a secluded corner. If he tried anything, NotEnrique was still in her arms playing innocent.

"I'm Bill Miller, the executive director of Harrisburg Mineral Museum."

"Claire Nunez." She nodded in return.

"Look, we both know that rock of yours is not my calcite that was stolen."

Claire let out a deep sigh of relief.

"But, my stone is still missing, and I need a replacement. Whatever that stone is, I'm willing to pay a lot to get it. I can tell it's no mere quartz. I'd be willing to appraise it for you, too."

"It's not for sale," she said with a polite smile.

"I'll give you a thousand dollars."

"I'm sorry, like I said—"

"Two thousand? Three?"

"No." Claire said firmly, frightening herself. "We need that stone, and nothing you can do will make me give it up."

The man smirked, narrowing his eyes. "Oh, is that so? Well, if you won't take money…" He leaned in closer, until he was almost whispering in her ear. "If you don't give me that stone, I will tell the police it's my calcite, and your little boy toy will go to prison."

Jim was awakened by the door opening and the light flicking on.

"Jim Lake?"

Jim groaned as he sat up. "That's me."

A huge man stood in the doorway, a black uniform perfectly in place, with all sorts of pins and badges on it. He was African American, and had the most serious, intimidating look Jim had ever seen. "They call me Chief Stalwart, the Unshakable." Then he tiled his head slightly. "But you can call me Bob."

Jim could only nod in understanding. Since his transformation, Jim had become more and more aware of human's emotions in a physical sense. They smelled differently when they were happy verses when they were sad. In the medical bay, he could smell the fear of the policemen and the nurse as they came to the conclusion that he wasn't a human.

But this man…no, he reeked of pure, raw, adrenaline. This was a man who spat in the face of fear.

This man had seen some shit.

Then Jim realized, with a gulp, that the fear he was smelling was his own.

He pulled the door shut behind him, and took a seat on the floor, like Jim. "So, Mr. Lake. You're the reason I had to come in on my day off."

Jim opened him mouth to protest or apologize, but Bob continued. "It's alright, you didn't know. You couldn't possibly have known. Unlike me, I know everything."

And with those dark, mysterious eyes, Jim didn't doubt that he did.

"I know that you were brought into custody at 6:30 this morning for the possession of a large stone called calcite that is believed to have been stolen from the Harrisburg Mineral Museum. I know that you believe that you, your girlfriend, and your grandfather found this 'Heartstone' in a cavern in New Jersey. Your truck was also taken into police custody and thoroughly cleaned. You have no car insurance, but there was a paper dated two days ago signed by a Mr. Darrell Berkenshire that registered the car in your name. Also in the car was a strange statue, that the other officers were unable to move or identify, some think it might also be stolen merchandise, but we have no evidence to support this. I also know that your urine sample showed too much blood, iron, and crystals in your body for a human, and that you basically peed straight battery acid!" The chief threw down the file on the floor. "These are the facts."

Jim kind of just stared at the man, who kept staring on back. His ears drooped in submission.

"But I can see with my own eyes that some of these 'facts' are false." He flipped open the file, and pulled out a card.

"This is your license, correct?"

"Yes sir," Jim nodded.

"Then how come your face doesn't match?"

Jim swallowed, hating this feeling of being backed into a corner. He was supposed to keep troll-kind safe and secret, but because of him, they were exposed more now than ever. It was one thing when it was a little old man in New Jersey who could give less than two shits, but this? A police chief?

"So what's it going to be Mr. Lake? Are you going to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

Jim thought through his options. He could probably take the man in a fight. If he could take on Angor and Gunmar, this would be a walk in the park…but that wasn't an ideal route to go down. Jim could only look away, needing time to think.

Bob crossed his arms, "I'm not going to let you out of this cell until I determine what you are, and if you pose any threat to mankind in anyway. Then, we can talk about the stone."

Jim looked to him, and nodded. "My name is James Lake Jr., my mother is Dr. Barbara Lake. That—" He pointed to the license, "is what I looked like only a month ago."

The chief rolled his shoulders, making himself more comfortable. "Go on."

"About a year ago…I found this amulet," he tapped the item on his chest. "And it gave me armor. I was told I was given this title of 'Trollhunter' and that I would be protecting man and troll kind from evil trolls and goblins." Jim watched the man for any reaction, but his face remained completely stoic.

"The worst of the worst, was Gunmar. He was an evil troll that wanted to destroy mankind. And for months, we trained to stop him…but in the end, I had to take this half-troll form to stop him…I don't think I would have been strong enough as a human."

"And so you stopped him?" Bob finally asked.

"Yeah…but it sucked." He gestured to the wound on his chest. He hadn't mentioned anything about Morgana or Angor Rot, but he'd never know.

The chief frowned heavily. "I want to see this armor."

Jim nodded, figuring he would. "I can't take off the amulet, in case you were wondering." Jim stood, and exhaled. "For the glory of Merlin…"

The room glowed in a wash of blue, one that the guards outside could see. They all came to the window and stared at the creature within.

Jim stood, clad in his armor, and kept his hands at his sides. His sword was strapped to his back, but he showed no move for it.

Bob also stood. "Alright, I believe you. As if the whole…" He gestured to his appearance, "held any doubt."

Jim relaxed, and his armor melted away. "So you'll let me go?"

The man smirked. "You're still being held for theft."

Jim groaned. "Please! I'm telling you, we're not the culprits!"

Bob crossed his arms, somewhat doubtful.

"Look," began Jim. "Trolls need a stone like that, it's called the Heartstone."

"So you said."

"Right! We had one like that back home, but Gunmar destroyed it! We travelled all the way to New Jersey from California, on foot, to get it! Please, you have to believe me!"

Bob nodded, and made for the door. "I'm going to talk to our rock guy. Just for proof."

Jim reached out, "wait!"

"First you want to get out of here as soon as possible, now you want me to wait?"

"Please," Jim begged. "Don't tell anyone about what I just told you. I…supposed to be keeping trolls a secret from humans…but I keep messing up."

Bob nodded heavily. "You're like a chief of your people then."

"Hmm?"

"The chief knows everything, and has to make the right decisions on what to do to protect his team."

"I don't know everything," Jim shrugged.

"Give it time, son. You will."

"If you don't give me that stone, I will tell the police it's my calcite, and your little boy toy will go to prison."

Claire was a smart and reasonable girl. That's why she didn't slap the jerk in the face in a room full of police officers. But ohhh how she wanted too.

"I'll give you another chance to accept payment. It wouldn't do for a girl your age to be a single mother, now would it?"

She barely even realized he was making a threat about NotEnrique, who would probably be laughing about later. She just stared in shock. Blackmail. Were there no decent people left in this world.

"Come on, what do you say?"

Claire didn't reply. Instead, she muttered a word under her breath. It came naturally, without thought, without hesitation. "Oducni."

"What? Did you—" Suddenly, the man froze, his breathing becoming labored as he held his chest. "My…heart…"

Claire shook out of her trance. "He's having a heart attack!" She shouted to the officers.

Instantly, people were upon him, getting him down to the floor and going to retrieve the defibrillator.

Bill protested weakly. "D-don't! I have…ngh…a pacemaker!"

Claire eyes widened as she realized what she had done. She whispered again, "Incudo."

The man in pain slowly stopped struggling, relaxing on the ground as his chest rose and fell.

"Are you okay, sir? An ambulance is on the way."

Bill only minutely nodded. Then he looked at Claire. "I…forget I said anything." He closed his eyes for a moment, just trying to breathe.

A huge man came out from the back office.

"Gentlemen, what's going on here?" He demanded.

"Chief! Sir!" an officer called. "This man had a minor heart attack. We've called an ambulance."

"Good." The chief knelt next to Bill. "Are you Bill Miller?"

"Yes…" he returned, softly. "I checked the stone, it's not ours."

"Well, that's good for Jim then. But we'll keep looking for the right stone." Then he shook his head, "Though at the moment, I'm more concerned for your well-being."

Bill shook his head. "It wasn't really that bad…it just winded me."

Just then, a new development came through the door. Two teens, cuffed, and looking mad as hell.

"Chief Stalwart," the officer in charge said. "I caught these two trying to unload a big yellow stone into their back yard. It matches the description of the stolen stone."

One kid started yelling. "OH now everyone cares about the calcite! Where were you guys when we reported the same theft a year ago!?"

Bob was quick to stand and take heavy steps to the teens.

Merlin sat in amusement, enjoying the free coffee in the waiting room.

"I'm sorry son, I must have misheard you." The chief said, his voice dangerously firm.

The boy didn't back down. "We found that calcite in our woods! It was growing in a cave! Dad had it on display and everything! A real nice tourist trap! Then his stuffed shirt came and asked to purchase it, and dad said no deal. The next day, someone had swiped it! We reported it and everything, but no one took us seriously!"

Bob scowled, "by any chance do you remember the name of the man that offered to buy the stone?"

"Uh…it was Bob? Or Bill?"

"I'm pretty sure it was Bill. Bill Dill? Something that rhymed."

"Bill…Miller?"

"That's it!" The two boys shouted in unison.

The chief sighed. "All I wanted was a day off. Now I gotta deal with trolls and theft of rocks."

It was evening when Jim was escorted out of his little cell and back into the waiting room where Claire and Merlin sat.

"Well, there goes a day." He shrugged.

Claire leapt from her chair and threw her arms around him. "I'm so glad you're alright!"

"I'm fine, Claire, I'm fine." He assured, giving her a brief kiss. "Man, what a weird coincidence."

"Well, I suppose the chances of this happening again on the way home are astronomical." Merlin provided.

"Don't jinx us, beardy."

Merlin scoffed. "I have a counter spell for any hex we might endure. Now, I'm famished, I do think we should return to that…McDonald's place?"

"Sounds fine to me." Claire admitted, also starving

"Mr. Lake." A strong voice spoke, halting him in his tracks. He turned to see Chief Stalwart, a handful of officers, and the nurse standing at attention. "On behalf of the Harrisburg Police Department, we all swear to keep your secrets with us to the grave."

Jim managed a small smile. "Thank you, I appreciate it."

Jim opened the door to the truck and was immediately greeted by the most angry troll he had ever seen.

"YOU LEFT ME IN THE SUN!" Blinky shouted. "I NEARLY DIED!"

"But you didn't," Merlin returned. "Now, I believe I get to sit up front this time."

"Noooooo!" Cried Blinky.