Gavin busted through the DPD's doors with a concerned Richard following from behind. Several officers stopped to watch the infuriated brunette make his way to the back of the station where the holding cells were.
"Remember," RK900 motioned with a hand, "We don't know if he's truly the one we're looking for," he continued to shadow his partner with hurried footsteps, "Just keep that in mind when we see him, alright?"
"He's the killer," Gavin snarled, "I fucking know it's him," he glared at the machine, "Only he'd be able to murder and dismember androids just for the hell of it."
Richard drew his brows together as he observed his distressed colleague. He was more worried about Gavin's emotional health than the investigation itself. "Would you like me to interrogate Travis?" the android asked in a caring tone.
"He's mine," the detective growled as they both approached the hallway leading to the holding cells.
Gavin opened the metal door with one powerful push and stomped in.
Tina and Chris turned their heads to meet the seething brunette's stare. Tina got up from her seat, "Gavin?" she asked while slowly approaching the detective, "Are you alright?" concern rattled her cadence.
"Where's Travis?" the brunette hissed.
"What happened?" Chris interjected from behind Officer Chen.
"It's him," Gavin's voice trembled, "He's the one Richard and I have been after for the past two fucking months," he crinkled his nose.
Bewilderment spread across both Chris and Tina's features. They then turned to Richard for confirmation.
"We have reason to speculate that Travis is our suspect of interest," the machine started, "But we can't conclude for certain that he's the killer."
"I'll beat it out of him," Gavin stated, hatred evident in tone, "I'll make him admit it," he furrowed his brows. The detective glanced at Tina, "Now tell me where he is," he demanded.
Tina's gaze shifted from the unstable brunette to the reserved android. "You're going in with him, right?" Officer Chen asked Richard.
RK900 placed a hand on his partner's shoulder then nodded, "Yes."
Tina looked at Chris before letting out a sigh, "He's in the last cell, down the hall." She then made eye contact with Gavin, "As much as I'd love to, I can't turn off the cameras. Not while Fowler's in the building," she warned the detective, "You got it?"
"I don't care," Gavin bitterly expressed before proceeding to tromp down the hall. The detective went on to peer into each cell as he searched for a familiar face.
Chris tilted his head to gaze at the android. "Hey," he motioned with his chin, "Do me and Tina a favor," he lowered his voice, "Please look after him."
Richard's eyes rounded, a bit startled by Officer Miller's request.
"He's a good guy who's gone through hell and back," the cop continued, "You seem to really care about him. Please just make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, okay?"
RK900 took a moment to answer. "I will do my best, officer," he promised with a determined cadence.
"There you are, you cunt!" Gavin slammed his hands against the reinforced glass. "Not so tough now, huh?" he teased with a chuckle.
Richard quickly caught up to his raging counterpart, his gaze drifting from Gavin to the taller man restrained to the table by handcuffs.
"Well, well, well," Travis smirked, "If it ain't my number one fans," he laughed, "Come back for some more fun, Gavy?"
"Fuck you!" Gavin barked, "You disgusting disgrace of a human being!" he shouted, baring teeth, "I know what you've done."
"Huh?" Travis cocked a brow, "What're you talking about?" he tilted his head to the side in confusion.
The brunette snickered while shaking his head. "Don't worry," he leered at the taller man, "I'll jog your memory for you," he placed his hand on the scanner next to the cell.
The scanner analyzed Gavin's palm and recognized his prints. The glass door unlocked with a small sound and in came the detective and android.
"You mind tellin' me what exactly I did?" Travis raised his upper lip.
The detective slammed his hands on the table, "You're a filthy," he leaned in, "Fucking," he eyed the man, "Killer."
Travis blinked a few times trying to understand what the brunette was referring to. "Is this about the little game I played with you at the apartment?" he smiled, "Look, that was just a joke," he dismissed, "Something to scare you with. I wouldn't kill you," he lowered his lids. "You're too delectable to kill. It'd be a waste," he slid his tongue over his teeth.
"Watch yourself," Richard warned from behind the brunette.
"Oh," Travis glanced at the machine, "Almost forgot you were here," he shook his head, "Always ruining the fun."
"Enough!" Gavin yelled. "Tell me why you murdered those androids," he dug his nails into his palms, "You killed Garrett at the Eden Club today, didn't you? You killed him at 5:51 PM, right before coming to my place, you sick fuck!"
"Androids?" Travis shook his head, "What androids? And who's Garret?" he shrugged.
The detective shut his eyes and let out a frustrated sigh. He then decked the cuffed man across the face, eliciting a pained groan from the ex-cop. "You're trying my patience," the brunette cautioned, "Now tell me why you killed them."
"Heh," Travis spat out blood, "I see you're feeling better. No more fever?"
"Shut up!" the brunette retorted.
"Listen," the taller man exhaled, "You saying I supposedly killed some android at 5:51? I got to your apartment around 6:10. That gives me less than twenty minutes to get to your place. You do realize that's almost impossible right?"
"It's not impossible," Gavin rejected, "Now tell me your motive, jackass."
The ex-cop sniggered in rebellion, "Since when did you grow a pair?"
"I suggest you answer his question," Richard intervened, "Unless you want me to get angry again," he glared at the man.
Travis stared at the intimidating android, nervousness gleaming in his eyes. "I honestly don't know what you guys are talking about," he leaned into his chair. "If it's about the two robots at the Eden Club from a couple years back, you should know I didn't kill 'em," he sighed.
"Stop dicking around, idiot," the brunette gnashed his teeth. "I'm talking about Garrett," he pressed a finger into the table, "Odette," he inched closer, "Raymond and the others." The detective pulled away, "Ring a fucking bell?"
"Who?" Travis asked in a puzzled manner.
"Oh for fucks sake," Gavin brought a hand to the bridge of his nose, "Okay, listen to me," he gestured, "I think I've been generous with you—far too generous considering what you've put me through—so here's what's gonna happen," he sat down on the table, "You're either gonna confess that you murdered these androids or I'm gonna break every single bone in your body, are we clear?"
Travis let out a hearty chuckle, "Oh that's good," he nodded in delight, "That's very good! How long did you rehearse that line?"
"Maybe you'd prefer if I were the one to incapacitate you," RK900 suggested from the corner of the room.
Travis' expression changed to a grim one. It was clear that he was in fact very afraid of Richard and what the machine was capable of doing. "Look," he repositioned himself in his seat, "I'm completely lost. I legit have no clue what you two are going on abo—"
Gavin grabbed the man by the collar, "There was a badge on the tape!" he violently shook Travis, "I know you were at the Eden Club before you came to my place! I know it's you!" his voice strained.
"What fucking badge?!" the ex-cop shouted in a frightened tone.
"Your DPD badge, motherfucker," the brunette threw Travis back into his seat.
"I don't have a badge!" the taller man grunted as he hit the chair. "Newsflash pretty boy, a discharged cop ain't allowed to keep his gun and badge," he went on to explain.
"No," Gavin shook his head, "I know you did it."
Richard kicked off the wall and slowly approached the detective from behind as he listened to Travis.
"Whatever you think I did, I didn't do it," Travis denied, "Why do you think I tried to take your revolver and badge off of you?" he asked the puzzled brunette. "I didn't have my shit so I tried stealing it off of you! How could I have had a badge on me before coming to your place?" he lifted his shoulders.
The detective glared at the restrained man for a moment before reaching for his intercom. "Tina?" Gavin asked through the walkie talkie.
"Hm? You guys okay in there?" Officer Chen responded.
"Yeah, we're fine. Got a question for you though," the brunette continued to gaze at Travis who was breathing heavily.
"What's up?" Tina asked in a curious manner.
"When you guys detained Travis, what did he have on him?"
"Hm," she took a moment to think, "Not much besides his wallet."
Gavin retracted his head in disbelief, "He didn't have his badge?"
"Um, no, his badge was confiscated before he headed to prison. No discharged officer's allowed to carry a badge or weapon. I thought you knew that," Tina clarified.
The detective remained quiet for a second.
"Is everything okay?" she asked through the com.
"Uh," he brought a hand to pinch the skin between his brows, "Yeah, yeah, everything's fine. Thanks," he ended the transmission.
Richard looked at the detective with a worried expression. "It's not him," he broke the silence, "I just calculated how long it would take him to reach your apartment from the club and it would have taken much longer than twenty minutes given traffic at the time."
"You're damn right!" Travis shouted.
RK900 shut his eyes as he reached his limit. He walked over to the ex-cop and grabbed him by the hair then proceeded to slam his head onto the metal table.
Travis let out a scream as he smeared his face into the table to cope with the stinging pain. "My fucking nose! You broke my fucking nose you—"
"One more word out of you and your nose will be the least of your worries," the machine threatened, LED emanating a menacing red hue.
The ex-cop's lower lip began to tremble as he whined in his seat.
Richard approached his partner who was silent. "Are you alright, Gavin?" he asked as his LED reverted to a soft yellow.
"I was so sure it was him," the brunette whispered, "I…" he arched his brows, "I wanted it to be him."
"I know," RK900 grazed his partner's hand, "But we still have a significant lead now that we know our culprit is a DPD officer."
Gavin remained mute as he glanced at the ground.
"Hey," Richard tilted the detective's chin towards him, "The night is young," he smiled with tender eyes, "I'll be with you every step of the investigation."
"Ugh," Travis groaned, "Pathetic," he shook his head.
Richard turned towards the ex-cop with a sympathetic expression. "You know," he started, "I truly do pity you," he stated in a hushed tone, "You're only jealous because you know you'll never be able to care for someone like this."
Travis' eyes rounded in shock, "H-huh?"
"You think you're an enigma? That you're mysterious and frightening? Goodness, nothing could be further from the truth," the android sighed, "You're incredibly easy to read. You're angry that you'll never experience love…you're upset that an android is able to but you can't."
Gavin stared at his colleague with parted lips, startled by what the machine expressed. He then turned to see an even more emotionally compromised Travis.
"You don't know me," the ex-cop stated in a shaky tone.
"I don't have to. There are so many of you out there and you're all one and the same," Richard concluded. He then glanced at Gavin, "Come, let's continue our work," he smirked before guiding a bewildered detective out of the holding cell.
After explaining what happened to Tina and Chris, the pair exited the holding cell area and continued their way to Gavin's workstation. Both remained quiet as they walked side-by-side.
"I'm not gonna lie, that was incredible," Gavin sniffled, "I'd never seen Travis make such a pitiful face."
Richard looked to the brunette, "Your nose is stuffy. Are the effects of the medicine waning?" he rubbed Gavin's back.
"I think so," the detective yawned, "Plus, I'm really tired so that's probably not helping," he stretched.
"Maybe some rest would be beneficial?" the android raised a brow.
"No, no, I'm fine. Anyways, that's not the point," the brunette dismissed, "I just wanted to say thanks," he expressed with red cheeks, "Thanks for…for everything honestly."
Richard lowered his lids as his thirium pump began working at a faster pace. "You don't have to thank me, detective," the machine smiled warmly, "I love being around you," he interlaced his fingers with the officer's, "And I want to protect you given the opportunity."
Blush spread like wildfire across Gavin's features as he felt the android's fingers wrap around his. "Damn it," he averted his partner's gaze, "People are staring at us."
"I don't mind," Richard smirked gleefully.
"Alright," Gavin plopped into his seat, "Time to narrow down our list," he cracked his fingers before scooting closer to the terminal. "Tell me what we got, Rich," he motioned to his partner.
Richard leaned against the desk, "We know we're looking for a tall, hefty, white male," the android began, "Unemployed and—now—an officer from the Detroit Police Department. We also confirmed that the culprit is between the age range of 39 to 56," he tilted his head.
"Mhm, mhm," the brunette typed in the information into DPD's database, "We're finally gonna have a clear list to reference now," Gavin smiled. "Okay, and search," he pressed the Enter key.
The computer took a moment to generate a list of officers that matched the description of the suspect. Only Travis' headshot came up.
"What?" the brunette drew his brows together, "Ack, he can't be the only one that matches this description. It's impossible," he shook his head.
RK900 knit his brows together as he too was puzzled by the search results. He pondered to himself, thinking silently as his partner redid the search over and over again, tweaking minor things.
"What the fuck," Gavin placed a hand on his forehead, "This doesn't make any fucking sense," he coughed into his forearm.
Richard's eyes snapped open. "Wait," he pressed closer to the terminal.
"What? What're you doing?" the detective scooted to the side.
The android changed the unemployed tag to retired then pressed the Enter key.
The computer generated a group of some six men, most of which the pair didn't recognize. All but one.
Richard retracted his head, concerned by the search results. He then glanced at the detective whose gaze was fixed to the screen. "Gavin," the android placed a hand on his partner's shoulder preparing for the worst.
"What?" he turned to look at the machine. "Just because his name is here doesn't mean it's him. There are five more names here," he pointed to the terminal in desperation.
Three of those men moved out of Michigan over five years ago," he gestured to the monitor, "Those two Lieutenants passed away last year," he tightened his grip. "I'm sorry but—"
"N-no," Gavin looked to the ground, "That's…that's not possible," he began to quiver. "Not John," he let out a shaky breath, "Not him. It can't be."
"He matches the description," Richard arched his brows, "Everything from the physical appearance to the well-established hatred for androids."
Gavin withdrew into himself, devastation rocking his core. "I—I…" tears welled in his eyes.
The android shut his eyes, the detective's pained tone shattering Richard's heart. "Come," the machine slowly got up from his leaning position, "You've had enough to deal with for the night," he aided the brunette up to his feet, "I'm taking you home."