Out of Time
Disclaimer: I own nothing
A/N:
Chapter 5 (Seeking the Detectives)
Jade's father didn't normally like for her to stay the night with Beck since the two were dating; it didn't help the man knew they were sexually active. Still, this was an occasion where she wanted to help keep an eye on Mr. Oliver and neither one of the couple exactly felt safe after Andre's impromptu visit.
So the next morning, they made their way to Keith's bedroom after having gotten breakfast ready. Beck had cooked up a ham and cheese omelet with bell peppers and onions, drizzled ketchup over it and added a bit of hot sauce. With that, Jade made the coffee with an extra shot of expresso just like Keith liked, although she wasn't sure the man's stomach was going to hold down anything.
"Thank you," Keith mumbled while sitting upright against the headboard. The bedsheets were pulled up to his waist and his arms were draped loosely at his sides. The man was coated in a sticky sweat and looked pale as snow.
During the night they wanted to take him to the hospital, but he refused. Whatever was troubling him, they wanted to get find out; and Beck tried his best not to be overly upset.
Taking a seat in a nearby chair, Beck folded his arms across his waist and breathed in. "So what was all that about last night, Pop?" Keith sipped on the coffee, keeping his eyes closed and appearing to breathe in the steam. "You looked like something out of a horror flick. You spent like it was your last night on earth too." Beck's mouth flatlined and he narrowed his eyes. "Out of my card."
"I'm sorry." Keith lowered the mug and looked towards the omelet in consideration. "I don't remember much after I saw your friend working there. He was talking to one of the girls and then she brought me a drink."
Jade whistled slowly and Beck's gaze turned towards her. "That so doesn't sound good." Keith groaned, his hand moving towards his stomach and then his forehead. The man leaned his head back and grit his teeth. "Still feeling the effects?"
"I feel like shit." The man shuddered and his eyes opened partially. "I remember the room spinning last night. Drink after drink, eventually I noticed your friend watching me. Next thing I know, some of the girls there were all over me." He shuddered once again, his body trembling as though the AC were on full blast.
Beck chortled. "Sounds like you had more excitement last night than I did." Jade's cheeks burned and she considered walking over to smack Beck for the timing of his statement. "Kind of glad Andre brought you home."
"I don't know, he didn't seem to expect you were here. If I remember when we got here, I told him you should be home and that's when he called just to make sure or something." Keith groaned once more. "I remember feeling happy about that." Beck raised an eyebrow and Jade felt a sudden chill.
Mulling over his words, she was faced with the grim thought that Keith wasn't supposed to survive the night. "It sounds like you were drugged," she remarked with a grim tone. Keith rubbed his right eye with the heel of his palm. Jade met Beck's gaze and a somber sensation came over her. "Did Andre? Could he?"
"I'd like to know why," Beck muttered, "I can't help thinking Andre's too young to be a bouncer, so what was he doing at some sex pit we've never heard of?" Not only that, but why would the man target Mr. Oliver? Certainly if something happened, much of their time and focus would be on that and not on anything else.
"A distraction, but from what?"
"What are you two talking about over there?" Keith let out a belch followed by a long groan. "God I feel worse than I did when that dog got me." The man set the omelet plate to his side and sank down on the bed a bit. "Is everything okay?" Beck nodded slowly while Jade bit her lip. She wanted to warn the man, but at the same time, she didn't want to worry him.
"Everything's fine," Beck replied, "Just be careful out there." He paused momentarily before wagging a finger. "And no more sex clubs." Keith turned sideways on his pillow, his hands firmly clenching his blanket.
"Believe me, I'm never going to one of those places again…maybe never going to a business party, or party of any sort, ever again either."
"Probably for the best, Pop. I would hate to see something happen to you, though I can't imagine what you might've risked picking up from that place." Keith's eyes shot open and he jumped from the bed, holding his mouth as he ran to the restroom.
Within an hour the pair were making their way to the office of Detective Gary Malone, a decision Jade simply couldn't talk Beck out of. The night before, they tried to call the police and report that someone may have drugged Mr. Oliver; but the police wrote them off. If their suspicions were correct, it had something to do with David; and likely David was the reason Gary separated himself from the police department.
When they entered the building, they saw a typical lobby with brown carpeting and a grey desk. There was a woman present at the desk, her eyes lifted above her thin-rimmed glasses. "May I help you?"
"We were looking for Detective Malone's office," Beck replied. The woman's thin lips curved to a smile and she pointed to the left, where a long hallway was.
"Just down the hallway, last door on the right. Do you have an appointment?"
"We do not."
"Let me call ahead." The woman picked up the phone receiver on the desk and proceeded to dial a number. They waited for a moment. "Yes, there are two people here to see you." The lady nodded a few times before hanging up. "Go on ahead, he's not expecting any appointments for a bit."
"Thank you." They hurried down the hall and came up to a brown door with Gary's nameplate on the top. Jade curled her arm around Beck's and looked up to him as he took a deep breath and slowly gripped the brass doorknob. "Here goes."
He pushed open the door and they entered with a slow, careful pace. Gary was at his large cherry brown desk in the center of the room, it had a computer in the center and several folders and sheets of paper scattered on top. His hands were folded before his face, his middle knuckle just tucked under the tip of his nose.
Sam was present at another, smaller desk along the left wall. Her grey swivel chair turned towards them and her brow furrowed upon seeing the pair.
Gary sighed heavily and turned his head towards Sam, his index finger flicked outwards to the couple. "See, this is why I need to know when and why you're doing fieldwork. I told you it was only a matter of time before they showed up." Sam crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "Also sharing pertinent information, hunch or not, is dangerous for all parties involved."
"I want two things actually," Beck started, his tone calm and quiet. "I wanted to ask for an internship because my father just blew a chunk of our money." Gary's eyebrow rose and his eyes flicked over, his mouth opening slightly. "I think I can help anyway."
"No," Gary replied, "You're not even out of high school yet."
"I'm eighteen."
"I have an intern already, and she is close to obtaining her bachelor's degree."
Sam raised her shoulders. "We could always use a file clerk." Gary shut his eyes and Beck smirked. "I mean look at all the folders." Sam put her hand to her chest. "Plus, I'll bear responsibility for them since I messed up. It'll be a good way to watch and make sure they don't go dealing with the Vegas and putting themselves in danger."
Gary moved his hand to his forehead, groaning softly. "Okay, seeing as how they already know some details of this particular case." He dropped his hand to the desk, bumping it into a folder. His gaze drifted to the paperwork with a grunt. "I do need to organize all these papers, I can consider a file clerk; but we will have to discuss strict confidentiality rules."
"Thank you." Beck flashed a smile that faded in a second. "I do have one other thing. Remember I said my dad blew all our money…" Gary leaned back slowly. "I think he might've been targeted, I think Andre had something to do with it." Sam grimaced and bowed her head. "I don't know why or even what, but last night Andre brought Dad home and he was completely messed up."
Gary and Sam both grabbed pens and started to write in a notebook. "Messed up how?"
"He was in a drunken stupor, stumbling over everything, his eyes were bloodshot and pupils dilated. He's never one to indulge in alcohol-or even nightclubs. I tried to call the police, but they wouldn't do anything. They said he was just having a bender and needed to sleep it off."
"Yeah the police department won't act," Gary muttered, "Sorry to say it. This town has climbed a mountainous peak of corruption." Jade's heart sank and she shook her head as disbelief and doubt swelled around her. "Every corner of this town is corrupt, even the damn education department is corrupt, hiring highly unqualified teachers for unknown purposes."
"Really?"
"Yep," Sam replied casually, "Like that Erwin Sikowitz." Gary breathed in deep. The couple dropped their jaws and their eyes grew wide. "Criminal history of drug trafficking and laundering charges, but for some reason the education department has let him in."
"You cannot be serious," Jade quipped. Her tone was rising and she felt the sweat forming at her brow. "Mr. Sikowitz? H-He's not a bad guy." Her shirt became tangled between her trembling fingers and she took a shaky step forward. "He's our favorite teacher."
"I have unfortunate news for you, usually the crazy hyper teacher you see in movies is not so endearing in real life." Tears welled up in Jade's eyes and she quickly wiped them away. "But as for your father, Beck, where did he end up going last night that he encountered Mr. Harris?"
"Some weird nightclub his boss was throwing a business party at. 'Cha Cha Girls', I think." His nose scrunched and he crossed his arms. "It's somewhere downtown but we've never seen it."
"Alright…" Sam placed her notebook on her lap and set the pen on top of it. "I think I've seen that name in reports somewhere." She looked to her mentor. "Detective?" Gary leaned sideways along his desk, his right elbow rested on the surface of it.
"Yes, it's a seedy underground nightclub that's been reported to the LAPD a couple of times." The man chuckled softly and closed his eyes. "I'm sorry Beck, I see why they brushed you off. The police departments have always been under strict orders since the first time that nightclub popped up on their radar, to look the other way."
Enraged, Beck lurched forward, his voice rising in volume. "Why? Why would they just ignore it?" Gary remained unflinching and guided his hand to the two leather chairs in front of his desk. "Have a seat you two, since I'm going to be hiring you to help organize my folders…there are a few things we will need to go over first."
The couple sat down, nodding to Gary. Sam hurried over with some documents she pulled from one of the desk drawers. She set them down in front of them. "Confidentiality statements, you will have to sign."
"I know I still have yours on file somewhere," Gary said with a smirk towards Sam. The blonde bowed her head and growled slightly. The man turned to Jade and Beck. "But please, for the love of god and my own sanity; if you feel compelled to tell your friends or family members about a case because you think their lives are in danger-talk to me first. I don't have the resources to continually hire people and swear them to confidentiality."
So the pair have made contact with Gary and Sam, and it looks like we're going to see the beginning of this rabbit hole. Gary's apparently hiring both of them as file clerks, under Sam's supervision. Their scope is limited, so we'll see how well they're able to stay within that.
