Well, this didn't turn out quite as poorly as I gave it credit for. At least that's what my beta said. To be honest, I had to fight to write this. "Of Gumshoes and Moonlighters" is a very enjoyable tale to write (and hopefully to read). That said, writer's block hits hard and when least expected. I had entire scenes plotted out in my head. Dialog that I felt would be absolutely perfect in later posts. I have the ending right up here :taps temple with forefinger:. Having everything worked out to the last detail, knowing exactly what the last paragraph of our story would be, I had no clue how I was to satisfactoraly connect the dots. Once I finished this post I hit the ground running and didn't look back. What I'm saying is "enjoy" and I'll see you next week. If this wasn't as good as usual, I really do apologize profusely. Next week, I feel, will really make up for any short comings in this one. And don't worry those of you I managed to scare with all this talk about the end. We will still be in business until sometime early to mid November. After that, who knows?

Disclaimer: Balkoth does not have ownership of the Teen Titans. I am borrowing their characters for a bit.

The House

Mr. Miguel Rodriguez-Herrera
requests the honor of your presence
at the warming of his abode
on Wednesday, the twenty-fourth of January
two thousand and two
at six thirty in the afternoon
137 Hooper Street
Jump City, California 94162

Richard refolded the powder blue paper and slipped it into his pocket. Richard and Garfield were meeting back up at the office before heading over to Miguel's new home. Earlier that day, Richard had solved a kidnapping case that the police had been having a hard time with. Police Chief Gregory Skinner and he had one of their nice heart-to-heart chats afterward. The boy, Bradley Shawn, had faked his own kidnapping with the help of his friends to get under his parent's skin.

Richard didn't know what Garfield had done all day but it was about time for him to show up. This was the big case, the trickiest thing that they had worked on for some time now. And Garfield was late. Surprise. This afternoon and later tonight was when it would be easiest for The Raven to strike. Richard checked his hip to make sure that his gun was firmly attached and well concealed. It was a comfort for Richard to know that he was armed. The psychological profile that Garfield had pulled on The Raven didn't suggest that she would be armed with anything lethal. Still, a small comfort was always welcome.

Rachel didn't think much of the habit. Rachel was against guns simply on principle and had tried to get Richard to stop carrying one all the time. That hadn't worked out very well. It had been three days before Christmas though Rachel refused to acknowledge the holiday. Richard knew that Rachel's mom had died in a car crash. He suspected that her resistance to a religiously affiliated holiday stemmed somewhere from that event. It wasn't unheard of for people to either embrace or reject a religion after such a life-altering event.

ooooo

Richard grinned half-heartedly as he accepted the colorfully wrapped box. It was a simple wrapping job but great care had been taken with it. The gleaming blue paper was even and none of the tape was visible.

Richard, Garfield, Miguel, and Rachel had all gathered together toward the end of December to celebrate. Three of them were Christians so while it was never called a Christmas celebration it was one by everything but a technicality. While there were warm smiles all around, the air between Rachel and Richard was crisper, more polite, than usual. Only days earlier, they had gotten into a fight, not exactly their first but definitely their most heated. While Garfield had forced an apology out of Richard for being so stupid within twenty-four hours, there was still a clipped feeling to all of their interactions.

Garfield and Miguel had taken to mock wrestling, completely unaware that they were in a room where one wrong word could start a world war. The sparkling paper fell off to reveal a red cardboard box that looked like it could be used to hold jewelry.

Richard looked up at Rachel and words traveled directly from mind to mind. Richard's smile became more genuine as he inclined his head in a slight bow. Rachel had made a very powerful point, this time without shouting. Richard placed the red box of blanks on the floor. "Now," he said, opening the box and taking out some of the mock projectiles. Then he slid the loaded clip out of his gun and replaced the live ammunition. "Where's my real present?"

ooooo

That had been a magical moment. Relationships are formed and maintain by compromise. Without doing anything, Rachel had communicated with Richard in a way that left both slightly happy. "I don't like that you carry a weapon but I can't stop you. But, if you carry it around loaded, you'll make a mistake and someone will get hurt." Richard had learned well that day. He had put live ammo back in the gun the next day but had not fired the weapon since.

Richard shook his sleeve out of the way so that he could check his watch for the seventh time in just as many minutes. He was going to kill Garfield if he didn't show up soon! As if he had read Richard's mind, Garfield flung open the door and collapsed against the doorframe breathing heavily.

"I'm… not… late," Garfield managed to choke out the three words around his body's desperate attempt to get oxygen. Garfield looked like he's just run a marathon and it occurred to Richard that his partner had run up the stairs instead of using the elevator; Garfield thought Richard would leave without him and had wanted to catch him on the stairs.

Richard nodded. "True," he said while walking out the door, "but you almost were."

As Richard walked away he heard Garfield call after him. "Come on! I just got here; give me half a second to make sure I don't get hypoxemic respiratory failure!"

Richard's lips curved upward on instinct. There was no harm in making sure that Garfield's body had enough air. He waited exactly half a second before continuing down the hall and entering the stairwell. Richard wasn't overly concerned about Garfield being able to catch up. Garfield would just take the elevator and meet Richard at the bottom.

The walk down the stairs was uneventful, as was the drive out to Miguel's new home. Once they got there, Richard and Garfield started to have a very eventful evening. Miguel had not vouched for a huge house. The Hispanic teen would never be caught dead being that wasteful with finances. Because of that, his house was not very big. To hear Miguel say it, he was just one person and didn't need a home big enough to shelter twenty. Of course, that was a view that many of the more affluent individuals in Jump City did not agree with.

Reporters for magazines and newspapers were swarming all over the place. Most were simply doing human-interest stories, but the end result was a media turnout that was bigger than Richard was comfortable with for something that wasn't that big a deal. As Richard drove up, Garfield sitting next to him eating a bag of Cheetos that had been in the glove compartment too long to be count as food anymore, he silently cursed his luck. Miguel's desire to keep things small was supposed to make it harder for strangers to show up today. It seemed to have done just the opposite.

The lawn was only just being to take root and grow on its own through the dirt and clay strewn earth after construction. The house was a light green with a dark brown door, blending well into the many trees Miguel had refused to cut down. On the second floor, just outside what Richard knew to be Miguel's bedroom, was a rough stone balcony that overlooked the city lights that were just beginning to flicker to life below.

Richard parked the car and Garfield and he got out. No one paid them much attention. There were too many people here, both invited and not, for special notice to be given to individuals. Garfield started shifting his gaze over the terrain, looking for one specific person. He didn't find who he was looking for and Garfield gradually wandered off.

Richard felt a twinge of annoyance start to prickle at the base of his skull as Garfield exited his peripheral vision. They were here on a job; they weren't here to socialize! Richard darted his eyes around the ground, looking for any woman who didn't seem to fit in. In the sea of people, he didn't think he'd have much luck. Richard continued to look until his gaze passed over a woman dressed in blue.

He smiled as he recognized Rachel. She was working her way toward the house, obviously hoping for a smaller crowd inside, and Richard moved to follow her. Richard reprimanded himself as with every step he took. He'd been so bothered by Garfield's lack of focus and here he was doing the same thing.

Richard saw Rachel enter the house and he bounded up the stairs once he reached them. Inside was truly magical. Rachel had done a terrific job in constructing the house so that two-story building felt much larger, so much more open. Light flowed freely from fixtures in the ceiling and windows and small pockets of space that Miguel had used to put up different works of art. Even if the building itself was small, it was designed with the open air of a mansion.

Richard couldn't see Rachel. The fact of the matter was that there were just as many people inside the building as outside it. If only they knew how much harm they were doing. Richard still couldn't find Rachel. In the end, he decided that was for the best. After all, Richard was on a job. He needed to catch The Raven, whoever she was, and bring her to justice.

Richard fought his way through the people who were mindlessly meandering around the place. Why they were there was anybody's guess. Miguel hadn't invited this many people but there were too many people here who shouldn't be. Richard had thought about calling the police and getting them to disperse the extra bodies but hadn't for two reasons. One of them was that Gregory Skinner was not likely to be in the mood to do Richard any favors. The second, and most important, was that Richard did not, under any circumstance, want to scare off The Raven. She needed to come here tonight and she needed to be caught.

Richard finally managed to reach the stairs. The short spiral shot up at one corner of the house and went to the second floor. The richly polished wood and lavish red carpet that covered all but the outmost inch or two of every stair hadn't been used very much yet. It looked like most of the people had been content to stay outside or on the bottom floor – there were only a few soft impressions in the carpet as opposed to the reckless pounding by dozens of heavy feet.

Richard walked up the stairs with a growing sense of dread descending on him. Richard wasn't sure why but there was a tangible evilness to the air. Richard started for where Miguel had hidden the artifact as soon as possible. There was no way that a person could find it easily. They'd have to look for a long time.

Richard walked into Miguel's room and went past the large painting on the wall opposite Miguel's bed. There was a wall safe behind it but Richard knew that it was empty. The artifact was hidden somewhere else.

Richard strode over to the bathroom and entered. The spotlessness of the place made his eyes hurt. What this bathroom needed was a few towels strewn across the floor or a trashcan that obviously needed to be emptied. Richard crossed to the toilet and picked up the tank lid. Underneath the dull red float that bobbed up and down as the toilet was in use sat a Tupperware box containing a stone hand with pointed nails. The last piece of The Raven's puzzle. She hadn't been here yet. Richard sighed as he put the tank lid back on.

Back on the ground floor, Garfield had just helped himself to a beer from out of the fridge. Technically, he wasn't allowed to but what Richard didn't know wouldn't kill either of them. Garfield caught a glimpse of Rachel leaving the house in a rush. His interest was peaked at that. Had Richard done something stupid – again? Garfield put down his half-finished beer and followed Rachel. Richard could keep guard over an old statue without help. Garfield thought that Rachel deserved precedence.

Next Update: Wednesday, October 11, 2006