Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Beauty and the Beast. I'm just borrowing. Only the story is mine.

Note: Previously, in "Something Worth Fighting For," Vincent comes to the precinct to see Catherine and tells her about the murder of their old friend, Alex Salter.

Hey, guys! I thought long and hard about this next installment. Finally, I came up with an idea that just may work. No spoilers.

Later that Day…

Vincent returned to his house boat with a look of determination on his face. He was looking forward to seeing Gabe behind bars for the rest of his natural life, and the best part was he wasn't going to solving Alex's murder alone. He turned the key in the door and when he walked in, he saw J.T. sitting at the table, a bottle of beer in his hand.

"J.T.? How the hell did you get in here?"

"You gave me an extra key."

Vincent mentally kicked himself for forgetting such a detail. He gave his friend a quizzical look. "What are you doing here? Don't you have a class right now?"

"Normally, I would be at school, but I played hooky," said J.T. "There was a faculty meeting today and I didn't want to go, so I called in sick."

Vincent didn't reply, just shook his head and grabbed a bottle from the refrigerator, joining his friend at the table. J.T. noticed how quiet Vincent was and decided to get to the bottom of it.

"You're awfully quiet over there, big guy. Care to tell me what's wrong?"

Again, Vincent didn't reply, just opened the beer in his hand and chugged it. He knew he couldn't keep this from J.T., especially not when he was like a brother to him. Finally, he sighed and decided to not keep the other man in suspense.

"I went to the precinct to see Catherine."

"Really?" said J.T. "About time you got up the courage to face her after nearly a decade." He saw that Vincent wasn't smiling. "I take it this wasn't a social visit?"

"No, it wasn't," said Vincent. "I went to see because I need her help. You remember Alex Salter, right? The girl we were friends with back in the day? Well, she was murdered last night. I knew if anyone could help me solve it and bring the killer to justice, it would be Catherine."

J.T. blinked. "Shit, that's terrible. Who the hell would be cruel enough to kill Alex?"

"I'll tell you who," said Vincent. "She told me she was dating a guy she was scared of. Get this, it was none other than our ADA, Gabe Lowen."

"Cat's boss?"

"The very same," said Vincent. "And I don't have to tell you that he didn't take her breaking up with him very well. In fact, he accused her of being in love with me."

"Bullshit," said J.T. "How could that be true when you're clearly in love with Cat?"

"I really don't know, but the guy got jealous of me because we're close," said Vincent. "I'm also not going to let that scumbag get away with what he's done. Catherine said she's going to do everything in her power to arrest him."

"I have as much faith in her as you do, man," said J.T. "Though, it might be a conflict of interest, since the guy is also her boss. Hell, they might not let her work the case because it's personal for her."

"Catherine isn't one to be deterred from anything," said Vincent. "In the time I've known her, she's never backed down from something once she's set her mind on it." He got an idea. "J.T., you're an expert in technology. You can hack into the street cameras and use them to track Gabe."

"You want me to track the ADA using the street cam? Vincent, I could get caught. If I get caught, I could kiss my shot at tenure good-bye."

"Don't do it for me, do it for Alex," said Vincent. "She'd want you to help bring her killer to justice, regardless of the risk." He smirked. "Plus, you might have a shot of getting a date with Catherine's partner, Tess. I know you can't stop talking about her."

"Don't you do that, Vincent," said J.T. "Don't use my crush on Tess to blackmail me into helping you in your quest."

"Blackmail you?" said Vincent. "J.T., you wound me. I would never blackmail my best friend."

J.T. gave him a quizzical look. "Why do I have a hard time believing you?" He sighed. "All right, fine, I'll hack into the damn cameras. I might get in deep shit for it, but I'm only doing it because it'll help avenge Alex." He ran a hand through his hair. "Of all the people from the old neighborhood I chose to be friends with, I had to pick the reckless Vincent Keller."

Vincent laughed at his remark. He wasn't entirely wrong about him being reckless. He always did things without thinking them through, even when they were younger. In fact, it was the prerequisite for being a Keller.

125th Precinct – That Same Moment…

Catherine walked down to the morgue, ignoring her pounding heart the whole time. She wanted to avenge her friend, while at the same time, she couldn't help but wonder if this was all a joke, that this was some other Alex Salter who was murdered. But, Vincent wasn't one to lie about something as serious as murder.

"Ah, Catherine, just the person I was looking for."

She was brought back to reality by the accented voice belonging to Evan Marks, the medical examiner. "Did you find anything out of the ordinary while you were examining the body?"

"Nothing, really," he said. "According to the coroner's report, Miss Salter was the picture of health. She was also a respected doctor at New York General. It's hard to believe she would wind up being murdered the way she did."

"I agree with you on that," said Catherine. "Alex was one of my dearest friends. One of the last times I saw her were at the memorial for Vincent's brothers and then at my mom's funeral nine years ago." She sighed. "She had this dream to travel the world and heal the sick. Now that dream has been shattered."

Evan nodded. "Are you sure you want to take this case, Cat? This is personal for you, considering your relationship to the victim."

"I don't give a shit if it's personal," said Catherine. "I can't just let my best friend's death go unsolved. I owe it to Alex to bring her killer to justice." She sighed again. "Besides, I won't be alone. I'll have Tess and Vincent helping me."

Evan nodded. "I know, but I worry about you."

"I don't need you to worry about me, Evan," said Catherine. "I'm a big girl. I've handled a lot tougher cases than this in the past and came out relatively unscathed." She shook her head. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been so harsh."

"Given the circumstances, you have every right to be harsh," said Evan. "Your best friend has been violently cut down in her prime, and you want to do whatever it takes to avenge her." He sighed. "Does Vincent have any idea who killed her?"

"Yes. Gabe Lowen, who was Alex's boyfriend. I know, I was shocked when Vincent told me, but she was dating him. Their relationship was in the paper because he's a high profile public figure. And I know he'll deny it when I confront him, but I'm prepared for just about anything."

Note: I know this isn't exactly a long update, but I wasn't sure if the idea I had for it sounded better in my head or not. Anyway, enjoy what I've given you.

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