Chapter three

"Daad, DAD!"

Drake, who had been dozing on the settee, leapt up with a cry and a half formed Quack Fu block before calming down enough to realise that the only danger was the possibility of a perforated eardrum due to Gosalyn's shriek.

"Whoa Gos, calm down," he shook his head to clear the ringing from it. "What's the matter?"

Gos stood there by the door, making a visible effort of calming her breathing down to normal levels.

"Dad, you know I asked you yesterday whether you had ever been followed."

"Gos, you told me nothing was the matter," Drake exploded.

"Well I didn't think anything was the matter," Gosalyn replied in defence. "But today"- her voice shook a little - "today I think I was being followed." She waited for the inevitable eruption of parental panic and concern. It wasn't long in coming.

"Gos are you all right? Are you hurt anywhere? Did you see who it was? Come and sit down, what a shock for you. Why didn't you tell me before? From now on I'm escorting you home missy."

"Gee Dad, I'm fine, it was some guy in dressed in black, this is the first time that I've been sure that I've been followed and I DON'T NEED AN ESCORT!"

"Gos, you've just told me that you were followed from school; from now on I'm going to pick you up in the car. End of discussion."

Gosalyn sighed; it had been a little nerve wracking when she realised for sure that she was being followed and it had led her to panic a bit, but now she was irritated and wanted payback. It would be a bit hard to achieve that with her father breathing down her neck.

"What can you tell me about the man that was following you? The smallest detail could be helpful in capturing the perpetrator of this dastardly deed."

"Well, I didn't see his face but as I've already told you, he was dressed all in black and he had a black motorbike. Oh, he had white feathers as well. Actually he was rather small; roughly your height."

Drake began to pace up and down the room, muttering to himself the facts Gosalyn had given him. He finally stopped and looked down into Gosalyn's face.

"Hmm, sounds like a most shifty fellow to me. Tomorrow I'll keep my eyes peeled for the man in black and if I see him I'll soon teach him not to follow my daughter home," he gestured dramatically into the air.

"Very heroic Dad," smirked Gosalyn, unimpressed by her father's theatrics.

A faint pink flush suffused Drake's cheeks and he sat down sheepishly on one of the blue chairs that led to Darkwing Tower on Audoban Bay Bridge. Gosalyn sat down in the chair next to him and Drake reached over to the statuette of Basil the Great Mouse Detective and pressed down to send him and his daughter shooting under the city to his secret headquarters.

"The first thing to do," started Darkwing as soon as he arrived and after a quick change into his costume, "is to find out if anyone else has reported being followed by a person answering to a similar description as the person you described to me. That way I can find out if this outrageous incident is isolated to you or if it is part of a wider pattern that I need to look into.

"We need to look into it you mean. The Quiverwing Quack will also be investigating this foul crime."

"Gos, it could be dangerous. I don't want you involved on this case. We don't know what psycho could be doing this."

"I already am involved. I was the one being stalked remember? Besides, I've helped you capture Negaduck haven't I? Who's more psychologically disturbed than him? If I survived that I can survive kicking the stuffing out of the guy that's been following me."

Darkwing looked up from where he was busily checking St Canard's police records on his computer. "Gosalyn I hardly think we can compare the behaviour of a madman in a mask to that of the man following you. A villain such as Negaduck is more likely to try and blow you up; it wouldn't be the first time that he's tried it. He's hardly likely to follow you around first. Plus, Negaduck has never tried to rape you. Men follow pretty females for one reason only. Finally, if anyone is going to knock the stuffing out of this guy it's going to be me." With this rejoinder he nodded and turned back to the computer.

Gosalyn stared at him. She'd had a vague feeling of being followed for a while now. She could have sworn that she had seen a pair of baby blue eyes staring at her through a bush yesterday – the same colour eyes as her Dad. The height of the person she'd caught a glimpse of seemed about right too and the colour of the feathers was certainly the same. Looking at the evidence she realised that she had reasonable grounds to suppose that it was Negaduck who was following her. If she was right however, she couldn't understand what Negaduck was trying to achieve, apart from giving her the creeps. Darkwing was right in saying that Neg's normal modus operandi usually involved gunpowder and some form of explosion. Patience was not a word in his vocabulary, so what was he waiting for? Gosalyn groaned, this speculation was leading her nowhere and she was beginning to get a headache.

"Hiya DW, I didn't hear yeh come in, heh, heh, guess I must've fallen asleep." Darkwing and Gosalyn turned to see Launchpad in the Thunderquack poking his head out of the cockpit. "Hey, have we got a new case DW?"

"Oh, hi Launchpad, have you finished checking the air vents on the Thunderquack yet?"

"Sure thing DW, so what about that case?"

Darkwing paused for a split instant before replying shortly.

"Gos is being followed."

"What? Whoa Gosalyn, are you alright?"

"I'm fine Launchpad," Gosalyn groaned, "Dad's just being overprotective, as usual."

"I am not being overprotective Gosalyn, you could have been hurt, you still could be if we don't stop this person and put them away. I don't know what I'd do if anything should happen to you.

"Right, I can't find anything in the files so tomorrow you will not go anywhere without either Launchpad or myself to accompany you. Launchpad will take you to school and I will pick you up afterwards. Both of us will keep our eyes open for any suspicious men creeping about. Okay Gosalyn?"

"Okay Dad."

"Good."

I finally managed to get a chapter out which is a decent length. As always your reviews and comments are much appreciated.