Chapter Three: Bang Bang

FBI Headquarter,

Washington, D.C.,

Ballistics,

3th January 2012, 06:42 a.m.

Winter had finally laid it claws around Washington D.C. The cold breeze had announced it yesterday and finally, snow covered the streets and buildings in white curtains.

Lauren hung up her black coat and rubbed her hands to avoid the tingly feeling, caused by the temperature change.

Just as she sat down and turned on the computer, the door was opened.

"Good morning", a calm, male voice said.

She turned her head and, seeing Special Agent Garland in the office, stood up.

"Good morning, sir", she replied.

She had met him only once before, for probably two minutes, as he had introduced himself to her.

He was the perfect image of a FBI guy. Tall, vigilante and always hold back.

"So, you made it through the snow", he said.

"The snow-clearing service is fast."

He nodded his head slightly. "Have you already adapted to the work here?"

"Yes. The technology is really… overwhelming. Compared to the police'."

"Well, being a police officer is a very hard job, but compared to our work, it's rather relaxing. You'll see that, soon", Garland said with a patronizing smile.

Lauren successfully fought the wish to frown at him. He had never been a cop, that was for sure.

"But coming to the reason I visited…" he said and held up the file in his right hand.

"Your first case", he continued. "The Chicago sniper."

He laid the file on her desk. "This case has absolute priority. Everything else can wait and will wait. I expect you to read the file carefully. The smallest detail may be important. And whenever there is work for the ballistics, I expect it to be done immediately. No matter what hour. No matter if you had other plans."

"Of course, sir", Lauren replied.

"Since you've been a cop, you surely know how important it is we catch that bastard. We cannot allow such guys to run around and shoot at us. That would be like calling out anarchy."

"Yes, sir", she said.

Wow. Now he's clearly over the top, she thought to herself.

"The profiler on this case is Agent Jayden. I believe you met him yesterday", Garland said matter-of-factly.

"Yes."

"And let him fail the test shootings."

Lauren raised an eyebrow in surprise. "How can you know that? I didn't send the test results."

The edge of his lips turned into a small smile. "Nothing in my section happens without my knowing."

"Well, if you came to order me to give him a new appointment, it's unnecessary. I already did."

"Ah. No. No. I know that, as well. But, speaking about it… I know how police officers work. How… familiar their relationships with their partners are. You need to know that the FBI regards this as inefficient. We do not pay attention to personal likes or dislikes. We build a team considering skills and expect nothing but productive cooperation. From everyone. Are we clear on that?"

She looked at him; his stern, grey eyes focused on her and realized suddenly that she started to dislike him.

"Yes, sir."

She was rewarded with another one of his strange, half smiles, then he walked out of her office.

Lauren sighed and shook her head. She had applied for the FBI because she had needed a change of climate. Yet, she hadn't expected it to turn out arctic. Compared to this fellow, agent Jayden really appeared charming. She turned back to the computer and wanted to sit down, as the door to her office opened again. For a second, she was sure it was Garland with another warm welcome to the FBI order, but as she looked over her shoulder, she saw Jayden coming in.

"Hi", he said simply.

She looked at her watch. 6.58 a.m. "You're too early", she replied.

"Oh. Shall I go out again and come back in two minutes?" he asked ironically.

Smartass, she thought immediately, though she admitted her line hadn't been a perfect start in the day.

"No. You weren't the first and surely won't be the last to interrupt my work today. Let's get over with it."

Ten minutes later, Jayden took off the ear protection. "Did I pass?"

"Yes. Congratulations", she said absent-minded. "But promise me to try and be a little more careful with the gun. It's expensive."

She raised her eyes, awaiting a stupid comment from him, but he clearly hadn't listened. He put the gun in his holster, a small smile on his lips. For a second, he looked younger, more his age, but the smile vanished in an instant.

"Thank you", he said seriously. "For making the exception. I mean, you didn't have to, after yesterday…"

Lauren waved her hand. "It's fine. After all, I'm pretty sure someone would have ordered me to let you repeat it. They want you badly. Still, I'd be delighted if you would not tell anybody. I don't want the other agents to think I favor some people."

"No. No. I won't. Though I can guarantee you, nobody will ever think you favor me."

"Wow. So you're just famous outside the building, are you?"

Jayden didn't reply. Together, they walked back to her office and his eyes fell on the folder on her desk.

"A case?" he asked.

"Your case", she replied. "The Chicago sniper."

He looked at her for a second. "And? What do you think about him?"

"Nothing", Lauren said calmly.

Puzzled, he stood silent.

"Special Agent Garland gave me the file half an hour ago. I had no chance to read it till now", she explained.

"I see. I'm going to talk to the last victim's colleagues today."

She grinned wryly. "Well, they'll surely be happy about it."

He shrugged his shoulders. "Their happiness is none of my business. All I want is to catch the killer."

Lauren rolled her eyes. "God, you FBI agents really know how to push it over the edge, do you?"

"You're an agent, too", he reminded her.

"Yes, but I was a cop one day. I know how they feel."

"Really? So, how do they feel?"

"Frustrated. Angry. One of them has been shot. They want to catch the bastard desperately. But they are not allowed to. Instead, they need to justify their behavior to someone in a suit who treats them like inferior creatures. How would you feel in such a situation?"

"Well, thanks for the advice. I'll keep it in mind", he said and left the office.

"Yeah. For sure", Lauren muttered sarcastically, then sat down and opened the file.

Washington police department,

9th precinct,

Washington, D.C.,

3th January 2012, 08:52 a.m.

Norman Jayden had come to the conclusion that the police liked to make him wait. Whenever he entered a police station, a secretary told him to take place somewhere until the Lieutenant or Captain was ready to talk to him.

And of course, today was not an exception. Today, he was waiting for Captain Arnold Suther, who seemed to believe that answering a call of the press was more important than talking to the ones investigating the case.

Jayden fought the impulse to go for a little ARI time. He needed to minimize the time he spent with it, using it only to work. But it was just so compelling. Instead of just sitting here and returning the glances the officers shot him; he could just take it out of his pocket and lock the normal world out.

Just as the temptation won him over, the door to the captain's office opened and Suther came out. He was a tall, bully man with grey hair and piercing blue eyes.

"You wanted to talk to me?" he asked, his voice clean and military.

Jayden stood up. "Yes, sir."

The man nodded and walked back into his office, the agent following him.

"Sit down", Suther said shortly. "I don't have much time, so, make it quick."

Oh great. Now that's a really promising start.

"Captain Suther, I'm agent Jayden…"

"From the FBI, yeah. Spare me the introduction. I know who you are. Though I don't know what you're doing here. We sent all our reports to the FBI. There's nothing more anyone could tell you."

"Yes, I have read the reports. And they were really… detailed", he said, trying to sound likeable.

My god. Agent Teason would surely be proud of me, he thought ironically.

"But something's weird about it", he continued.

"Weird? It's not weird; it's a god damn disgrace! Officer Cooper was a good cop. He did not deserve to be attacked without a warning by a fucking coward", Suther stated angrily.

"Yes, of course not", Jayden said, trying to stay calm and reasonable, but the man's open anger clearly repelled him. "But don't you think it is strange that he was murdered on the same day he got the case?"

"Well, obviously the bastard has been watching us, probably for days."

"Or maybe, he might have been informed."

Suther narrowed him. "Are you saying that there's a mole in my precinct, agent Jayden?" His voice was dangerously low.

"I'm just including all possibilities", he replied quietly.

"I know everyone working in this precinct, agent Jayden. I know their strengths, I know their weaknesses. I call everyone in once a year for a personal conversation. Every cop here is a loyal defender of the law. Every secretary here is quiet and trustworthy. Your suspicion is unjustified and arrogant and I take it as an insult, not only against the police itself, but against me in personal."

"I'm sorry you see it that way", Jayden said calmly. "But nevertheless, I will talk to everyone who knew Officer Cooper got the case."

"You talked to me. I think that is enough", Captain Suther said and stood up. "Now excuse me. I promised Officer Cooper's young widow to meet her this morning."

And he walked out of the door.

Jayden swore silently, then followed him on step.

"You need to tell me who else knew about it, Captain."

"Oh, really? What if I don't? You come back with a court order?" Suther asked back sarcastically.

"I don't need a court order. You know that, in this case, you must cooperate with the FBI."

Suther grinned wryly. "Cooperation. Don't make me laugh. This is a dictatorship. But even if I told you who was informed, you'd still have come in vain. They are both on sick leave, because Cooper's death was such a shock to them." He looked at Jayden. "So, you're still convinced they are involved in this?"

"Who are they?" Jayden asked, without answering the question.

Suther laughed shortly. "There's really no loyalty in the FBI, is there? Miss Kate Fender. She was Cooper's typist. And Officer Carlos Campillo. They were best friends. They talked about everything."

They walked out of the entrance and Suther stopped, turning at him. "Now that you got what you wanted, get out of my precinct. And believe me, if I hear you bother my people, I'll get you for it. FBI or not, you're not fooling me around. Understood?"

Jayden looked at him, unable to control the anger any longer. He just wanted to reply in the same attacking tone, as the shot fell. Both men turned their gazes towards the street, where the officer standing only meters away from them, smoking a cigarette, sank down to the pavement.

Immediately, Suther and Jayden knelt down. A woman's scream blasted through the air as they drew their guns, looking around hastily, trying to find the shooter. Cars stopped on the street, people ran bewildered in any direction, waiting for another shot. But there was none.

The captain hurried over to the officer, Jayden right after him. The bullet had hit him directly in the head and his glassy eyes starred at the grey sky without seeing.

Washington police department,

9th precinct,

Washington, D.C.,

3th January 2012, 11:04 a.m.

Lauren parked her car a little away from the yellow police line and the already waiting reporters. God, how she hated them. They were like rats storming a buffet.

She got out of the car and tried to make her way through them unnoticed. Luckily, they were fighting with each other for the best picture and didn't pay much attention to their surroundings. She showed her badge to the police officer before the police line and went through. The dead officer had already been covered with the usual white shroud. She knelt down and lifted it carefully, so the reporters couldn't use the moment to take a picture. The bullet had entered his head right between his eyes. Impressive. She raised her head to scan the buildings further away, as she heard a sharp voice say:

"I don't give a fuck if this is my division or not! Another one of my men is dead! How much damage can we do, searching for a fitting rooftop 800 meters away?"

"This is a FBI case! You will not mingle with the investigation!" she could hear the reply from a familiar voice. She shook her head and sighed. Obviously, her advices weren't worth paying attention to. Lauren stood up and walked over to Jayden and the captain of the station. Both were so busy shouting at each other that she had a quick look at the captain's badge. Suther. Well, he looked firm and old-school. And according to his anger heated face, he was very short to explode.

"This conversation is over! I'm sending my men now!" Suther said angrily.
"Do that! It will cost you your badge", Jayden replied.

"I think it is a good idea. The more men we got, the sooner we will find the shooting point", Lauren said calmly.

Both men fell silent. But while Captain Suther stared at her, baffled by her agreement, Jayden shot her a deadly glance.

"Well, I'm glad the FBI sent at least one person with common sense", he said. "Whoever you are."

Lauren fetched her badge and showed it to him. "Teason. Ballistics", she said calmly.

He raised an eyebrow doubtfully, but made no comment about it. "So, can I send my men now?"

"No", Jayden said immediately.

"Yes", Lauren said.

Suther looked at them. "Well, I suppose this is more a matter of the ballistics, so I'll stick with the yes." And he dashed off, yelling orders as he did.

"What the hell are you doing?" Jayden said angrily. "His men will trample all over the place and destroy all the clues!"

"I clearly doubt that", Lauren replied calmly.

"Damn it! I'll make you responsible if we miss evidence just because you love the police so much!"

"You know why I'm fine with that?" she asked.

"No. Maybe because you don't seem to care for anything?" he asked angrily.

"No. Because I know the distance he used is limited to no more than 500 meters."

"Have you even bothered to read the case file?" Jayden asked, his voice loathing.

"Yes."

"Well, then you might remember that the "Chicago sniper" always shot from distances above 800 meters!"

Lauren looked at him. "For how long do you live here, Jayden?"

"What the hell does this matter?"

"Do you know what the difference is between Washington and most of other US cities?" she asked sweetly.

He groaned with frustration. "God, just say it!"

"There are no multi-story buildings. I think, if I remember it right, no building in this city is higher than 160 feet. About 20 floors. So, to assure he was shooting under equal conditions, he will have reduced the distance to balance it with the height of the building."

"And you're sure about this?"

"Don't question my skills and I won't question yours", she relied calmly.

Norman looked at her, then nodded his head. "Alright. So, we're looking for a high building 500 meters away. Great. That doesn't really limit the choice."

"We're looking for an empty building. New built or currently renovated."

He looked at her thoughtfully. "I think there was an office building up the road which had a sale sign on the front. It could fit the distance."

"I'm ready when you are", Lauren replied.

"I am. There's nothing to gain here anymore."

"Fine. I'll get my car. Be ready to drive up", she said.

Ten minutes later, Norman parked his car right in front of the office building. He looked in the rear view mirror, seeing Lauren parking her car behind his. A black mustang with beige leather seats. He would have bet she would drive something more… modern, though the car looked very neat and quite fashionable.

He got out of his car and waited while she opened her trunk and took out a briefcase.

"What's in there?" he asked as she caught up to him.

"A rifle. What else?" she replied calmly and looked up the building. "Yes, this could fit."

"There's someone at the reception. Let's give it a try."

Lauren nodded and followed him. The guy on the reception was pretty young, around his early twenties. He held a book in his hands. Advanced mathematics.

As he heard their footsteps, he looked up.

"Welcome", he said with a rather bored expression in his voice. "How can I help you?"

Jayden fetched his badge. "I'm agent Jayden from the FBI and this is agent Teason. We'd like to ask you some questions."

"Has this something to do with the police officer who has been shot this morning? I got out on the street immediately after I heard the sirens. Man, that's crazy."

"Is there anybody in the building except you?" Norman asked.

"No. No. I'm the only one around here. It's a student job. The renovation was finished two weeks ago, except for some minor details and the owning company searched for someone caring for the reception and give info flyers to prospective customers."

"And do many people come in here?"

"No. No. One a day. Maybe two. But usually in the afternoon. I never had any customer in the morning."

"Did you leave the reception this morning except for the one time you dashed out on the streets?"

The man shrugged his shoulders. "Sure. Bought me a coffee. And a newspaper. Around eight." Suddenly, he seemed to understand. "Wait – you think he shot from here?"

"It's a possibility."
"Oh shit. I'm done for it if that's true."

Jayden could see how Lauren rolled her eyes. "Well, we need to take a look around. How do we get on the rooftop?"

"You can ride the elevators to the 18th floor. At the right end of the corridor is a fire exit, it leads up to the roof top. You really think…"

"Any cameras installed?"

The student shook his head. "No. That's one of the minor details that haven't been finished."

"Thanks", Jayden said and stepped back, heading for the elevator.

As they got in, Lauren said: "No cameras, a student not paying attention – I guess we're on the right track."

"This was perfectly planned", Jayden agreed. "The only question is: why."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if Captain Suther hasn't been lying to me, there's no connection between the death of Officer Cooper and Officer Livingston. They had nothing common. Cooper was in heroin dealings; Livingston was working on a project for young drug addicts. No private or working relationship. They hardly knew each other. Livingston just moved here from Pennsylvania."

"Heroine dealings and young drug addicts. A working connection is really unlikely. Cooper was a tough cookie, Livingston was taking it easy. That's a large abyss at a vice department", Lauren said.

Jayden raised an eyebrow. "Are you speaking out of experience?"

"Now don't tell me you haven't used your fancy glasses to analyze me", Lauren said as the elevator held. They stepped out.

"You know about them?" Jayden asked while they made their way to the rooftop.

"There was a short presentation about it on the academy. The FBI seems thrilled about it."

"It's… useful", he agreed hesitatingly. "Though sadly, the personal files of other FBI agents are locked. Even if I analyzed a fingerprint of you, I'd know no more than I'd know by looking at your badge."

"Now that's a relief", she said and opened the door of the fire exit.

"So, you've been a vice cop?"

"Some time ago."

"Any other departments?"

She smiled slightly, then opened the door to the roof.

Both had a quick look over it, then Lauren said: "Well, now that's really a good place for a sniper."

"If you don't mind, I'd like to search for clues before you move around", he said, awaiting an argument. But she shook her head.

"Fine by me. I need to get the rifle ready anyway."

She laid the briefcase on the floor and took the rifle out, while he put on the ARI and searched the rooftop for evidence. But there was nothing. No fingerprints. No remnants.

Frustrated, he walked back to her. "Nothing. Like on the other crime scenes."

She looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. "You know, you look a little bit like Neo with these glasses, do you?"

He took them off and put them in his pocket. "Yeah. Call me The One from now on."

"I don't think we're already close enough for pet names", she replied fast.

Jayden frowned at her while she lifted the rifle. He should take a picture for Charlie. He would probably print it as a poster and stick it in his locker. Women with guns seemed strangely attracting to him.

"What kind of model is this?" he asked.

"M40. The model for Marines and S.W.A.T", she replied and walked over the rooftop, searching for the balustrade with the right angle. Finally, she knelt down and adjusted the rifle.

"Yes. He shot from here", she said.

Jayden walked over and knelt down beneath her, looking over her shoulder. "You're sure about it?"

"Of course I'm sure", Lauren replied and laid down the rifle. "This guy is really, really good. He's been trained, probably in the Marine Corps or a foreign military service. He used the flag on the police building to calculate the wind."

"If only the cameras were already installed. Then we would have at least one clue."

"Maybe the bullet analysis will tell us something", she said and stood up, walking back to the briefcase, putting the rifle back in it.

"You're done?" Jayden asked.

"Yes. Let's go back."

Silently, they rode the elevator down. The student looked up at them, obviously eager to know whether he was in trouble or not, but none of them cared telling him. They just walked out and Lauren packed the briefcase back in her trunk. She closed it and fetched her cigarettes out of her coat pocket.

"You're smoking?" Jayden asked, sounding surprised.

"You want one?" she asked back, holding the package out to him. "You look like you could need it."

He shook his head. "I never smoked."

"Never? Not even in your wild phase at high school?"

"I didn't have a wild phase at high school", he said evadingly.

She raised an eyebrow, her lips curling into an amused grin. In the same moment, his cell phone rang.

He looked at the display. Jamie calling.

Without hesitation, he shut it down like always. A call from her was the last thing he needed now.

"Being famous has its disadvantages, doesn't it?" she asked.

"Sorry?"

She pointed at the phone. "Like unpleasant admirers."

"It's not what you think", he said reserved.

"No, of course not."

Norman raised his hands defensively. "Listen..."

"God, Jayden, I was just joking. It's not like I mattered." She shook her head. "Anyway, as soon as I analyzed the bullet, I'll give you a call."

"Yeah. If I'm still in charge", he replied, focusing his eyes on the street.

"Why wouldn't you be?" Lauren asked surprised.

"Maybe because a police officer was shot right under my eyes?"

"Holy Christ. The killer is a sniper. How should you have hindered it? Shoot him with your Beretta over 500 meters? No way."

"Hmh", he said, not sounding convinced.

"You know, I'm the ballistic expert. Try and start trusting my statements." And she threw the cigarette on the street.

"That's ten dollars if a police officer catches you", he reminded her.

"Thanks for the advice", she replied and opened her car. "If you care for an advice as well, I'd watch my back if I were you."

Norman looked at her. "Why?"

"Come on. You said it yourself. Officer Livingston had no connection to the other victim. He didn't have a connection to the case. This was clearly a warning shot, Jayden. Telling everybody mingling in to stay out of the killer's way."

"Well, you can order me a bullet-proof vest, can't you?"

She frowned at him and opened the driver's door, sitting down. "Yes. Great idea, considering this sniper shot all his victims in the head."

A/N: I'm not going to pretend I know how snipers work. Since this is a fan fiction, I'm not going to do as much as research as I do with my original fiction. I must confess, I basically fell over the information about limited heights of buildings in Washington, as I was looking up the salary of agents and possible living areas. So, I apologize if my description of the shooting sucks. I really tried to keep it logically.

Besides, I just realized that this piece of fan fiction is getting rather long, considering all the notes I already took on the storyline. If I keep on, of course.