Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

"We're going to go find this Dylan fellow, aren't we?" Ben asked tiredly as they made their way back to the main building.

"If you think I'm just going to give up you don't know me very well, Benjamin Riker."

"I think we should find him as soon as possible," Honey spoke up.

Ben gasped elaborately, "Es-tu, Honey? My sweet, sweet cousin, what has she done to you?"

Laughing, Honey shoved him, causing him to stumble into Trixie on his other side – who was surprised to find herself blushing as she disentangled herself.

"So," Ben cleared his throat, he seemed a little unsettled himself, "when are we going to do this?"

Trixie grinned mischievously, "There's no time like the present."

"What—"

"Wait right here," Trixie told them before dashing off.

"Trixie!"

"I'll be right back."

"Dan," Trixie found her roommate in Jim's office, "I need- are you doing work? I thought this was supposed to be your vacation."

Dan gave her a chagrined smile, "It is but… what can I say once a cop, always a cop."

Trixie walked around so that she was leaning on the desk, beside Dan, "What are you working on. I wouldn't think they'd send you anything from New York out here."

"Well," Dan had the decency to blush, "You see, since I knew the land the police here asked me to do some work on the Waltman case."

Trixie pursed her lips at this news.

"But it's just paper work. I'm not doing a thing dangerous."

She thought for a moment about pointing out how unfair it was that he could work on the case but she couldn't, but in the end she decided against it. Creating an argument with Dan would work against her goal.

"I need the car. Do you have the keys?" she figured, since Dan had driven them here, and their car had stayed in pretty much the same spot since, he had kept the keys on himself. She certainly did not have them.

Dan's bashful look at being caught working on a case he had told her to stay out of, turned into one of suspicion. Trixie held her breath; he certainly wouldn't give her the keys if he knew the truth. He was as much against her 'snooping' right now, as Jim was.

Men, honestly, the pair were hypocrites.

"What do you need it for?"

Trixie began to fiddle with a pen on the table, "Honey and I need to get some things in town."

It scared Trixie a little at how easily the lie came off her tongue, but in the end being a detective was like poker. She had to bluff some to get what she needed. Dan had every right to call her bluff.

She just hoped he didn't.

"Why can't Jim just get it for you next time he's in town? I heard him say he was going back soon."

"Honey and I just want to get out for a while, is that such a problem?" Trixie threw her hands up in mock-offence, then an idea came to her, "and besides, the things we need to get… Jim or any man really, wouldn't be comfortable getting them."

At that, Dan didn't push it any further. Giving her one last look, he sighed and admitted that they were in his room.

Thanking him, Trixie jumped off the desk in such a rush that she knocked one of the several framed photographs off of it.

As she bent to pick it up, she froze.

It wasn't just a family photo, or perhaps another one of the Bob-Whites, like she had thought.

Her heart twisted painfully, and she had to bat her eyes several time to keep back tears.

It was one of her and Jim, from her graduation. She remembered taking that photo; she remembered how happy, excited… content she had felt. She assumed they had both felt.

They had been so naive.

They had never seen all of this coming.

"Trixie?" she jumped and stepped quickly over the photograph. She wanted nothing to do with it. She turned at the door and dared Dan to comment on it, to say anything. Finally his shoulders sag and he sighed, "Be careful."

Trixie smiled, "I will."

"So, Belden, what's the plan here?"

Trixie checked her blind spot to change lanes before responding, "Get to town, find Marks… and from there, I don't know."

Ben sitting in the middle of the back seat, and leaning forward so that his head was between Honey and Trixie snorted, and shook his head, a bemused smile upon his face.

"That is always your plan isn't it? No plan?"

"I think that Trixie's plans are simple brilliant," Honey defended her friend, giving her cousin a glare.

Ben put up both his hands defensively, "Hey, I never said there was a problem with it; I was merely confirming that that was they way her brain worked. I need to find out the formula for this genius."

Trixie shook her head ruefully as the car started rolling past the first signs of town.

"Does anyone know where the hardware store would be?" Trixie asked as the stopped at a red light.

Honey shook her head – a hardware store wasn't something she would know about, even if she had been to town before.

"It's not that big of a place," Ben said, "As far as I know there is only the one."

Trixie followed his directions until they were parked in front of the store she remembered stopping at the last time she had come into the town with Ben and Jim.

Briefly she wondered if Dylan had been there last time. She couldn't remember anyone that had stood out, seemed suspicious, but she should know by now that not every criminal looks like one. In fact more don't than do.

Just as Honey was about to go through the door it came crashing open with a ding. The woman's long brown hair was creating a veil around her face, but Trixie was sure from the hunch of her shoulders and quick pace that she was rather distressed.

"Excuse me," kind-hearted Honey said, reaching out to rest a hand on her arm, "Are you al—"

The woman whirled on Honey, her eyes widening and face going deathly pale for a moment before her eyes seemed to focus on something else, and her gaze then moved to Ben and rested on Trixie.

"You!" Her eye's flared with recognition and some other strong emotion – Pain, anger, fear? "You knew didn't you? Didn't you!"

"Angela—" Trixie started to say but stopped as the woman dove forward grabbed some of Trixie's shirt and pulled her closer.

"Tell me what you know! Why were you—?"

Trixie was quite relieved when suddenly Angela was thrust away from herself and Ben, of all people, was placed firmly between the two.

"We're sorry for whatever is upsetting you, but I'm only going to tell you once – keep your hands to yourself," Ben's tone, although fundamentally calm, held a hard undertone, that was quite obviously a threat.

Trixie blinked from her knew position behind him, stunned at the sudden display of … Protectiveness? What did Ben feel he had to protect? And why did she like that he did?
But as the shock of the act wore off – and her own confusion – her brain started to piece together exactly what Angela had just said.

"You," Trixie said, pausing a moment to rest a warning hand on Ben's arm and step in front of him once more, "You found out about Jane, didn't you?"

Angela blinked at her for a few moments then the emotion, which ever one it had been, drained away from her face and she seemed to sag slightly.

"I just—the police just—it's a small town—her body," she sobbed slightly at the end.

Trixie nodded, "And when you saw me, you remembered the other day when—"

"Yes, I just got so –" Angela in her excitement started to shuffle forward, and in an instant, Ben was there glaring her back in place.

Once more Trixie flashed him a startled look, but she was more surprised by the soft tingling feeling it created in her stomach.

"I'm sorry we lied to you," Trixie apologized once everything had calmed once more, "But at the time we weren't sure that – well you know. I –we, thought would be unkind to… if it turned out we were wrong."

Angela nodded slowly, "That's perfectly reasonable, I am so sorry I lashed out at you. It's just I always hoped that… and now," her voice squeaked and she had to take a deep calming breath before continuing, "The police haven't told you anything, have they? About who could have-" she couldn't continue.

Trixie waited for her to get a hold of herself, before she told her that she knew nothing more than she had last time.

"We're sorry for your loss," Honey said after a moment.

"Thank you," she murmured, "you know, you look a bit like her. When I first saw you…"

She trailed off, and shook her head before making an excuse and leaving.

"I don't like her," Ben claimed as soon as she was out of ear shot.

"She just lost her best friend!" Trixie defended, "How do you expect her to react?"

"Its no excuse for assaulting you."

"Assault!" Trixie laughed, "She wrinkled my shirt a bit Ben – nothing else." She had chose to forget how unnerved she had been when it had all been happening.

"Let's go talk to Dylan," Honey interrupted suddenly, cutting the odd tension that was beginning to surround the other two.

Trixie gave Ben one last long stare before nodding her head.

The bell above the door jingled as it was opened. Trixie turned to ask where they should look first but Ben was already pointing towards the back checkout where there was a worker – a young man with red, brown hair combed and greased back into a complicated swirl. He was scrawny and sullen, looking very out of place in the neat hardware store and bright red apron that was his uniform.

"Excuse me," Trixie walked up to him, "We're looking for Dylan Marks, do you know–"

"I know what you want, and you're not getting it."

Trixie blinked at him, stunned at his quick bitter tone. She had to bite back the automatic snark that it brought up in her. A fleeting image of Dan when he had first come to Sleepyside popped into her head.

"Hey buddy," Ben set his hands down hard on the counter, "watch your tone."

Dylan, for that was obviously who this boy was, glared at him, "This is my place; I'll speak as I wish – especially to no good snoops like you."

Again Trixie bit back her irritation. She was always going on about how she was an adult, now she was going to prove it. Besides, she had completely botched the case with Dan because she let his attitude get to her.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Trixie tried to blink innocently at him.

"You don't do you?" Dylan sneered, "You're in here to try to make me say that I killed her because that's what that candyassed tool Colter said. But I don't gotta tell you nuttin'. You ain't the fuzz."

"Thomas didn't say anything of the kind."

Dylan snorted, "Yeah right – it always got to him that his girlfriend liked me better; he didn't even know her."

"And you did?"

"Yes – she was special, different. Not like everyone thought, more like me. I thought that we would—" Dylan stopped suddenly, his face hardening again, "Hey, don't you go trying to trick stuff outta me! Get out of my store! Out!"

Trixie hesitated a moment. Dylan had been opening up, she had been getting somewhere – somewhere she desperately wanted to be. But she also knew how to recognize a lost cause. Dylan didn't want to talk.

But why? What was he trying to hide?

Nodding her head, she pushed herself away from the counter, "Sorry to have bothered you; thank you for your time."

"Do you think he did it?" Honey asked as they came out of a restaurant later that day. They had decided to spend the afternoon in town and grab dinner there. "He was certainly acting odd."
"Dylan definitely didn't want to talk to us," Trixie agreed looking at a green car coming up in her review mirror, "But that doesn't necessarily mean he did it – we know the type Honey. Young, angry, out to prove something, remember Dan?"

"I don't like him," Ben commented sullenly from the back seat.

Trixie looked at him, and the green car, in the mirror, "Did you like anyone today?"

Ben perked up instantly, giving her his usual cheeky smile.

"I always like you."

Blushing Trixie decided to ignore his jest, and focus on the road. The green car was getting closer to them.

"So you think Dylan's innocent Trix?" Honey asked, giving her cousin an odd look.

"I honestly don't know," Trixie mused, flicking her eyes to the mirror again. She didn't like how close, or how fast the green car was coming up to them, "I don't know why he would do it. Thomas had motive, Jane seemed to have been leaving him for Dylan. If that's the case, then why would—"

Her words were lost in the yell of surprise and squeal of tires as the green car came up suddenly and fast.

In a panic, Trixie jerked hard on the wheel, to get out of the way as it passed too close to her vehicle.

The car jolted suddenly as the green one clipped them.

Before any of the passengers could even register that, the car was skidding and spinning out of control.

Right towards the ditch!

A/n: I am so sorry for taking do long to update. I got really busy this week, and was sort of not feeling, but here it is now, and I hope you enjoyed! As always, please review. As you know, I always love to hear what you think :)