Welcome back. This part of the story is divided into two posts. I wanted to keep the lenght of the posts uniform but I've been training myself to write more for future stories and the short story I keep telling myself I'll submit for publication by the end of the summer. Once I started I couldn't stop. My beta is still off and enjoying summer so, as with last week, maybe a couple of wrinkles. Tried to weed them out but grammar, not my thing. Enjoy and review.
Disclaimer: Balkoth does not own the Teen Titans. Balkoth is borrowing them. Balkoth does own Of Gumshoes and Moonlighters.
The Club Part I
BANG
BANG
BANG
"Dude, if you don't stop doing that you're gonna drive everyone in the building crazy," Garfield half-heartedly tried to stop Richard from his usual 'I messed up' ritual. Garfield was playing solitaire, a habit of his when he was thinking. Richard's method was a little less constructive. That's saying something since Garfield was only playing solitaire.
BANG
Richard didn't hear Garfield or didn't care. Either way, he was still slamming his head rhythmically onto his desk.
"Dick," another slam on the table, "stop beating yourself up over this." Richard lifted his head enough to look at Garfield. Even through the reflective blue sunglasses that Richard usually wore, it was obvious that he was mustering up the most venomous glare in his arsenal.
"Why," Richard hissed through clenched teeth, "would I not want to beat myself up over this?" His voice slowly started to rise as Richard continued; "I made the wrong call, Gar, and the guy we were looking for got away."
"So? We'll get him next time."
"There might not have been a next time!" Richard exploded. He didn't remember standing up but he was on his feet, hands slammed on the desk, daring his partner to try and calm him down.
"You know what your problem is, Dick?" Garfield didn't pause for a response; it wasn't really a question. "You think too much. Let's stop playing the game of what-if for just one second."
"He could have made his move today but he didn't," Garfield said. "We'll get him next time. You made a mistake. So what? If I impounded my head every time I made a mistake, you would need a new partner." Garfield smiled lightly as he laughed at his own brand of humor.
"Gar," Richard's temper ebbed a little. Garfield was one of the few people alive that could talk him down from where ever he went once things started going downhill. "Ander's could have been raped today because of me."
"You know Dick, I never thought of it that way." Garfield tilted his chair back until he was balanced on two wooden legs. Propping his own feet on his desk, Garfield put a finger to his chin and started tapping insistently. Richard mirrored the nervous habit by starting to pace in tight circles in time with the rhythm that Garfield had set. "Maybe," Garfield whispered after a few seconds, "maybe," this time a little louder. Finally, Garfield's voice reached its normal volume. "Maybe you should just toss yourself out the window. I mean, really, you're such a horrible human being Dick. How could you make such an amateur mistake?"
Garfield had stopped tapping his chin and was now addressing Richard in a tone that conveyed the feeling of oh, you poor thing. Richard didn't appreciate that, at least not enough to overlook it. Richard stopped his pacing just long enough to sweep the legs out from under Garfield's chair. He was pacing again before Garfield had even hit the floor.
With a crash, Garfield toppled backward and slammed onto the floor. "So," he said while trying to hear himself over the sudden ringing in his ears, "you in a better mood?"
Richard didn't respond but a slight curve started to creep up his narrow lips. Richard didn't let his change in demeanor show openly. Garfield had made him feel better, that was true, but this kind of slip wasn't something to take lightly. Not like Garfield would ever agree with him about that.
"Now then," Garfield finally hoisted himself off of the floor, a spider trailing off of his sleeve, "how about we go have some fun?" As he said this Garfield used his index finger to sever the line of spider silk and lower the flailing animal to the office floor. Garfield had a big thing with animals. Even insects and snakes he treated as if they were people. Richard had owned a flyswatter for a week after meeting Garfield. It had only lasted a week. The flyswatter had never been replaced.
"What did you have in mind?" As much as Richard might have been disappointed with the way things had turned out today he was also interested in hitting the town. Usually, Richard stayed in the office while Garfield built up information networks and dug up the best nighttime hangouts. Garfield was the better of the two when it came to dealing with people, after all. They had been in Jump for a while and there was no doubt that Garfield had already memorized a list of the best places to go for a drink or a dance at all hours.
"Well, I was thinking we could hit a nice little club that I was fortunate enough to happen upon the night before last."
"Gar?"
"Yeah Dick?"
"If we're going out anywhere tonight and be seen with each other, you need to lose the Scottish accent."
"Shows what you know," Garfield whined; though fortunately he started sounding like the big city investigator that he really was, "the ladies love the accents. It makes them think that you're exotic, mysterious."
"Delusional?" Richard offered casually.
"Cute Dick. It's a wonder you haven't found a steady girlfriend." The acid dripping off of Garfield's words was hard to ignore. The floor might as well have been deteriorating.
"I haven't gotten a girlfriend because," at this point Garfield added his own voice to the well-known recitation; "I've figured out where my priorities lie."
Garfield kept going after Richard stopped. "Your priorities are eating you alive, man. We are going to a club, I'm not letting you take any work, and you are going to get so drunk that in the morning you'll feel like your brain was sucked out your nose with a vacuum."
Richard shook his head firmly. "We have work tomorrow. I am not going to get wasted over one disappointment only to face another one the next day."
"That's the spirit! See? You've already gotten your edge back. Now," Garfield opened the door and waved his arm in a circle out of the office, "let's go."
The big city lights flashed red, green, blue, and every shade of neon known to man as the blue convertible snailed through late night traffic. "So, Gar, what type of club are we talking about here?" Richard was driving. Garfield had tried for the keys but hadn't gotten them. Thank goodness.
"Oh, you mean Big Moe's?"
"If that's where you're giving me directions to, then, yes."
"Big Moe's has got everything you could possibly want from a nightclub."
"A little detail would be nice." Richard pointed out while putting pressure on the gas now that the light had changed.
"Right." Garfield cocked his head to the side and started running his palm over the base of his neck. "Let's see, Moe's has got a huge bar selection. It's a popular hangout for the college students from Jump City University." Garfield jabbed his finger to the street Richard was about to pass, "Turn here. There's a DJ on Friday and Saturday nights and a few more exclusive things in the back."
"How do you mean?"
"Come on Dick, you're an investigator aren't you? The place is named Big Moe's!"
"So? A name doesn't mean anything, Gar." Richard said, annoyed at the condescension coming from his partner.
"In this case it does. Place is owned by a guy named Mortimer," Garfield said.
"Well, thanks for clearing that up for me. It's small wonder that you're an investigator." Richard was just as good with poisonous sarcasm as his partner was.
"I'm an investigator because your people skills suck. For all of your observation talents and magic abilities you can't form an information network. That's why I have a job. That, and you like me too much to get rid of me."
"Get to the point Garfield."
Garfield ignored the growled out use of his full name as best as he could. "Moe's has some gambling and some prostitution in the back rooms. It's a perfectly respectable business front for most people but, if you know where to look, you can get into a high-stakes poker game with some of the more powerful individuals in Jump City and surrounding areas."
"Tell me you didn't lose the money we saved to pay for your traffic tickets on a high-stakes poker game against crime lords."
"There were some businessmen there too," Garfield offered helpfully. "'Sides, I lost on purpose to get on their good side."
"Planning for future cases already Gar? How uncharacteristically intelligent of you." The Ander's case wasn't likely to require sources inside the more shady businesses in the city.
"I'm going to pretend that I didn't here that." Garfield huffed while crossing his olive arms across his chest. There was a tense pause until Garfield smirked. "You just missed the turn."
Next Update: Wednesday, July 19, 2006