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Natara Williams
It takes at least fifteen minutes for Melanie and Nathan to return. The first thing I notice as they enter is how pale Melanie seem; and for the first time I can see bags under her eyes, indicating that she hasn't been sleeping well. There's a faint scratch on her cheek that I'm sure wasn't there before. Could Nathan have punished her for becoming flustered? Is he manipulating her? I push this thought away almost as soon as it comes, seeing as I have nothing to back up this theory. What motivation would either of them have to kill their friends? That is, assuming they weren't lying about their relationship with the victims.
Melanie clears her throat loudly as she makes her way back, opening up the file again as if nothing's happened. "Now then…where were we?" she says, her voice devoid of the stutter it had just moments before.
"I was just asking you how you know both the victims" I say, even though this is only partially true. Nathan shoots me a sharp look, clearly knowing this isn't exactly what I asked earlier, but doesn't say anything.
"Oh yeah, that's right" Melanie says, clearing her throat again. "Like I said, Frank Coleridge and I grew up together. As for the other victim, Dane Sunderland, Nate and I only met last year. He was a transfer".
"Have you noticed anyone unusual hanging around the area recently?" I ask.
"I think we would have noticed that" Nathan responds, his tone harsh "We aren't stupid after all".
Melanie turns and fixes him with a deep glare and he goes quiet. "Do you think our precinct is being targeted?" she asks.
"We can't be sure, but if I were you I'd be cautious for now on" I answer. I glance behind me to Mal, wondering why he's been quiet for the past few minutes, and see that he and Nathan are staring each other down; hate in their gazes. I can't tell if it's because of what I said, or because something about Nathan just rubbed him the wrong way; but either way it might be for the best. There's something they're not telling us, and I think it would be best if he didn't act all buddy-buddy with Nathan.
"If you don't mind" Melanie says, oblivious to the tension in the air "We'd like to see the crime scene you were at this morning with our own eyes; maybe go deeper in the woods?".
"No problem. It's not far from here; we can go right now if you'd like" I say.
"Before we go…I'd like a private word" Nathan says, nodding to Melanie. His voice startles me a little, since he was in complete silence for several minutes.
"Of course" I say, and once again Nathan and Melanie head back outside. As soon as they clear the doorway to outside I weave my way through the bullpen, Mal's voice calling after me.
"What are you doing?" he hisses.
I don't answer, but turn around and motion to him not to follow. I need to know what's going on with these two; there's something just not right about Melanie.
I'm careful to open and close the door quietly, and silently make my way to the parking lot. As I reach the corner of the building I can hear urgent whispering; and I pull myself against the wall to listen. With the sounds of traffic I can only make out part of their conversation; but I don't dare get closer. It's very likely they're right around the corner.
"…Get help…" I hear Nathan's deep voice whisper. I silently curse the noisy cars and people just across the street.
"…Fine, as long as they don't figure it out…".
"…won't know anything".
"…But they both saw…"
This time Nathan's voice is perfectly clear, as if he knows I'm back here and wants me to hear every word. "By the time they even start to suspect anything we'll be rid of them. Then we can take care of Dane ourselves…".
The smart thing to do would be to stay and hear the rest of the conversation; to make sure I'm not taking everything out of context. But hearing this every one of my muscles tense, and I start to cautiously slide myself away from them. Am I right? Are they really hiding something; and is it anything to do with the recent disappearances? Sure, by 'Take care of Dane' they could have meant to find him…but what do them mean 'Get rid of them'? Is 'them' us? I don't see who else it could be…and if that's the case I'm almost certain it means they're going to try and kill Mal and I.
I badly want to tell Mal about what I heard, but I can't. By the time I made it back to him I barely had a chance to catch my breath before Nathan and Melanie were back; and soon after we all piled in Mal's car to get back to Golden Gate Park. I keep trying to find a way to give him the message, maybe communicate it to him with my eyes; but he's too focused on driving. My only hope is for us to pair up and go in separate groups, Mal with Nathan and myself with Melanie; so the two won't be able to give each other any signals. Melanie seems like she would be the one to talk first; and if I can make her think that I trust her she might let something slip. That way, should she let anything slip, I can easily take her out and go after Mal and Nathan.
I'm still finalizing my plan when Mal parks, and all four of us climbed out of the car.
"We should split up, that way we can cover more ground" I suggest as we make our way over to the yellow tape. Nathan edges closer to Melanie, so then I add "How about me and Melanie, Nathan and Mal? After all, Mal and I know the area better, we don't want you two getting lost". Beside me Mal opens his mouth to protest, perhaps state in no way does he know the woods, but I give him a sharp look to silence him. His eyes bore into me, asking a thousand questions at once.
"Fine with me" Melanie says surprisingly fast. Nathan looks like he wants to protest; but Melanie shoots him a glance much like the one I just gave Mal. They stare at each other for a moment; until Melanie breaks the silence and walks closer to me. "Guess we'll go right then" she says, nodding to the trees.
Without another word we separate and head in, but before the trees become too thick I get one last look at Mal. I silently wish him safety with my eyes; but he doesn't even notice.
At first I can hear Nathan and Mal's footsteps; but after a few minutes the trees seem to swallow them up, leaving no sound except for me and Melanie's footsteps.
"I'm sorry if Nate seems like a jerk" Melanie says very suddenly. "He's really a nice guy; he's just been having a rough few years. He could lose his job".
"Oh yeah?" I say, mainly to keep her taking "What did he do?".
"It's the same thing that brought him here" Melanie answers "About three years ago he was sent out to somewhere in New Mexico. He was tracking down this kid who killed three of his classmates. When they finally tracked him down he was armed; but Nate refused to shoot him. The kid was only thirteen".
"So he was sent here" I say. Although Melanie's in front of me and all I see is the back of her head; she nods.
"The only thing we had going on in Brisbane was a string of robberies; but they sent him out here as a kind of punishment". I can't help the slight smile that comes as I think of the day I met Mal. The way he said I was here on 'Crap Detail'. "Anyways, since then this kid killed eight little girls. They want to take Nate's badge away".
"That's terrible" I comment, really having nothing else to say but refusing to let the conversation die.
"I know; and now with all this business with Frank and Dane…it's just too hard on him. I love him to death, but…".
I stop in my tracks. "What did you just say?". Did I hear her correctly? Partners don't say that. Partner don't date, they don't fall in love with each other; and they don't say they love each other. I learned that the hard way.
Melanie turns to me, and for the first time I can see a small engagement ring on her finger. "Why does everyone react that way?" she asks, her voice rising. Seeing my questioning look, she adds "Yes, I'm engaged to Nathan. But I want to know why everyone thinks there's something wrong with that!". Without another word she turns on heel, walking a little faster than before. I have her right where I want her; she's properly worked up now. All I need to do is to keep her talking about Nathan. Still, a question presses at the back of my mind, and I don't see the harm in asking.
"How'd you…you know…make it work? You're partners, aren't things…complicated?".
"What do you mean? I love Nate, and he loves me back. There's nothing complicated about it". She pauses for a second. "Oh…don't tell me…" she whips around, a triumphant smile on her face. "You're in love with that Mal guy…aren't you?".
"No, of course not" I say quickly. "Mal's my best friend and my partner; nothing more".
"Sure, whatever you say" she says sarcastically, forcibly reminding me of Mal.
"I mean it!" I argue "I'm already engaged to someone else!".
"Shut up!" Melanie hisses suddenly, and at first I think she's joking. She freezes. "Did you hear that?" she whispers. I shake my head. "Wait here". I want to protest and follow her, but I can't risk it. There's still a chance that she's done nothing wrong and she genuinely hears something.
Like a ghost, she treads over the leafy floor without making a sound. I see her silently draw her gun, turning to the left into a thicket of trees and bushes. She's fairly far away at this point, but I still silently draw my gun also. For a second, she turns to me, pressing one finger to her lips. Then she walks right into the trees, disappearing in the foliage.
"Melanie?" I call quietly, but in a voice that carries enough that she would hear. No response. Slowly, I make my way down to the place where she disappeared. Some bushes have been trampled and smashed to the ground, but other than that there's nothing else there.
"Melanie?" I call again. No response. I creep silently into the trees, seeing no sign of her.
Then it hits me. Melanie must have ditched me; she's going after Mal and Nathan. With both of them working together; they'd be more than a match for Mal.
Without even giving it a second thought, I find myself crashing through the trees, desperate to find them before it's too late.
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