"Dear Ms. Dawes,

I'm sorry we couldn't meet in person. After what you did to my comrade, I would've liked sharing a pint with you. Sadly, times have become difficult for my cause. The presence of Inspector Chester Campbell has kept me well away from Birmingham. But, news has reached me of the butcher you accuse me of being. I'd be glad to tell you that I've been out of town for the past month and a half, well before these murders began.

Whatever Lizzie told you is true and I regret it every day. Yet, that does not make me a killer. If you need a lead, I suggest digging into someone else. Inspector Campbell perhaps?

Sincerely,

Malacki Byrne.'

Jane couldn't simply take his word for it. Though, it did sound convincing enough. If Malacki truthfully had been away when the murders began, then he couldn't be Copycat. She'd send a letter to Freddie for more. Putting the letter with the rest of the files, she stood up and walked to the window. Vivian would be arriving in a few hours. She hadn't received any word from Tommy on where he placed Kelly Chapman. The wait made her uneasy. She might not like the man, but he wasn't the kind to go back on a deal. Looking below, she noticed an auburn haired woman walking towards the pub. Jane beamed. She knew Vivian wouldn't be happy. Jane knew she didn't like leaving James with her mother. This was important. She needed her.

"Vivian," Jane smiled as Vivian entered the pub downstairs. "You're finally here! Just like the old days."

"I hate you," Vivian grumbled. "I have a son, Jane. He needs his mother at home. I have to take care of him on my own now that Jim is gone. I can't leave him with my mother all the time. I have a job too. A job I almost lost today because I told Mr. Spector that I was leaving on another trip. I can't drop everything in my life whenever you call on me. Not everyone has all the time in the world for foolish things like this."

Jane saw her tense shoulders and angry eyes. "She lectured you, didn't she?"

Vivian sighed heavily, taking off her hat. "Yes," she said. "You should've seen her face when I told her I was leaving again. She shook her head and said I couldn't be a proper mother if I kept running off. She said being his grandmother didn't make her a go-to nanny."

"You could've brought him with you."

"Oh, so he can gawk at a dead body?"

"No," she said, "Harry would've watched him. Right, Harry?"

"Um, sure," Harry said, wiping down the bar top.

"See?"

"Jane," she said, "A tavern is no place for a child."

"Why? He'll end up visiting them later when he's older."

"Jane…"

Jane moved her weight to one side and said, "Look, I'm sorry, Viv. There was no one else I could call. It'll only take a moment or two. Then you can go home to James."

Vivian then noticed it, "You've been fighting again. Who did you fight this time?"

"Some man named Maguire," she said. "I went there for answers and got rudeness instead, okay?"

"Ugh, Jane, you're impossible."

"But you still came…"

They looked at each other. Jane couldn't have been happier to see a familiar face; particularly Vivian's face. "I did," Vivian said. She searched around the room, "Where's this body of yours?"

"Dunno," she answered.

"What do you mean you don't know? Did you lose it?"

"It's a funny story actually," she winced.

The two of them sat down and Jane told her the story over whiskey and cigarettes. Vivian didn't believe half the things Jane told her. She commented on Campbell's interception and Tommy's reluctance. She guessed Jane didn't like either of them. Jane only nodded. She'd never met two men so unconcerned with murder. One moment, Tommy admits to suggesting her to the Sergeant. The next moment, he's halfheartedly agreeing to get her Kelly Chapman. Campbell's constant snipes certainly didn't help either. Jane wished they'd cooperate a little bit more before Copycat killed again.

"It seems to have been a while since his last kill," Vivian noted. "Maybe he's done."

"No," Jane shook her head. "If he plans to follow The Ripper's pattern, he'll kill two more women. The last one will be fully annihilated." She let out another puff of cigarette smoke.

"Then he'll go into hiding afterward," Vivian finished her drink. "He'll disappear."

"I have to find him before then," she said.

"You plan to take this killer down all by yourself?"

"It seems I have to. I hoped I'd be receiving some kind of help, but this community doesn't seem interested. The only help I have is a communist on the run and the barman."

"And Arnold hasn't reached out?"

Jane scoffed, "My brother interested in the deaths of prostitutes? Never. No, Arnold won't come. He only does if it concerns the government."

"If you asked-"

"-I said he won't come-"

"-Jane, your brother might be a bit pompous, but he does care about-"

"-Shut it-"

"-You only dislike him because he's smarter than you-"

"-Vivian!"

"Oh fine! Have it your way then," Vivian said. "Let's go visit this Shelby character so I can go home."

"You don't have to, Miss," Harry then said. "His brother is coming this way."

The third Shelby brother entered. Younger than Arthur and Tommy, she remembered him from the gambling den. He'd been writing away numbers on a chalkboard, which he also did today. She spotted the chalk dust on his jacket and hands. It didn't matter how much one might wipe their hands, chalk always leaves a layer until washed off. John didn't seem to know this. She watched him approach them, broken matchstick hanging from his mouth.

"You must be John," she smiled, putting out her cigarette.

"I am," he nodded, "And you're Jane." His eyes fell on Vivian. He paused for a second, taking out the matchstick and straightening up.

"I'm Vivian," Vivian said, holding out her hand.

John shook it, a bit stunned by her. Jane hoped what was happening wasn't happening. She rolled her eyes and said, "Your brother sent you then?"

"He did," John said. He peeled his eyes away from Vivian, and said, "He says he has what you asked for. He's waiting for you at the docks."

She supposed the docks could hold a body. She hoped he kept her on the ice at least. "Perfect," she said, "I'll get my coat."

When she returned, she found John and Vivian by the table. They both laughed at a joke John just told, and appeared stiff around one another. Jane spotted Vivian toying with the clasp of her handbag. She occasionally looked away so she didn't stare too intently. Jane sighed. It's been four years since her husband's death. Vivian would've found someone at some point. People like Vivian needed companionship and distractions. Jane couldn't stand either of those things. She hated being with one person and distractions led to mistakes.

Jane never met a man she could stand for more than a night.

LINE

The docks were cold and breezy. John and Vivian lagged behind her the whole way there. She heard bits of conversation and soft laughter. She pretended she couldn't hear them. Jane wouldn't interrupt them or stand in Vivian's way. She tried keeping her own thoughts from her mind as they came into the docks. Kelly Chapman was on ice somewhere in the docks, waiting for examination. Jane wasn't sure what they'd find if they found anything. She'd hoped the mortician did as requested. If he wiped the body already, then anything of value is gone. She'd arrived early enough for them to hold off preparing her.

Small structures, piers, and long boats along the side of the canal, there was an area lit by lanterns. She spotted a pale figure standing with his back to them. The usual cloud of smoke told her who it was. She hadn't expected Tommy to be waiting for her. This sort of thing seemed beneath him.

"Business taking the night off?" she asked, coming to the threshold of light.

He turned around. He threw down his cigarette and said, "I wanted to make sure you got what you wanted."

"How kind of you," she said. She walked closer to him. Tommy's eyes looked over her shoulder.

"Is that your doctor?"

"Yes," she nodded. She turned around to Vivian, "Viv?"

Vivian stopped talking to John, seeming a bit annoyed. "Yes?" She came over to them, medical bag on her arm.

"This is Tommy Shelby," Jane said. "He generously agreed to bring us Kelly Chapman."

"Nice to meet you," Vivian said. Her eyes scanned him, and then she glanced over at Jane. "So, you're the one that hired her?"

"I am," he answered.

"Well, you're not the first gangster who's hired her," Vivian said. "Who was the last one? That Jewish fellow? He called you about stolen bread or something like that?"

"It was rum," Jane corrected, "And he ended up killing the man when we caught him." She turned to Tommy, "Where is she?"

"Stable, " he said, nodding to the building near them. "I had them put her on ice. She won't last much longer, so whatever you two have to do, do it now."

"It's all business with you two, isn't it?" Vivian asked, leaving them for the stable.

Yes. Ye, it was all business. The four of them entered the stable that Tommy used for storage. She guessed he'd stolen most of the items. She couldn't imagine someone of Tommy's standing owning four motorbikes. "I suppose the policemen on your payroll know about these?" she tapped one of the motorbikes.

"They're paid to pretend they don't," he said.

"Campbell hasn't stormed it yet? I thought he'd be tearing all your hiding spots apart," she said.

"He doesn't know about it."

"Well not now," she told him.

"Are you planning to tell him?"

"No."

"Then why are you asking?"

"Curiosity," she answered.

"Curiosity killed the cat, you know."

"But satisfaction brought it back," she finished. She examined one of the bikes. "I never liked these. I prefer cars and trains."

"Bikes are too dangerous for you?" He sounded amused. She hated it.

"No," she said. "I just don't like them."

"Jane got into an accident once," Vivian said, reaching the trunk in one of the stalls. "She was riding with her cousin and he lost balance. She skidded onto the road. She scraped and broke her arm."

"Maybe you should try it again," Tommy suggested. "You might like it a second time around."

"I'm fine, thanks," Jane said.

She came to the last stall where a bald-headed man lit a lantern. Kelly Chapman lay in a trunk filled to the brim with melting ice. The nude blonde lay flat as a board, her skin already discolored into a blue-purple color all over. Different from the slender girl in the photographs, her corpse already began bloating. Dried fluids caked at the corners of her mouth and eyes. Jane guessed it'd been two weeks since Kelly died. The mortician did her the kindness of sewing her torso shut.

Vivian coughed, "I can certainly say there isn't much point in opening her. The uterus and kidney were missing, you said?"

"Yes," Jane said.

Vivian put her bag beside the trunk. John stayed closest to her, a bit disgusted himself. "What do you plan to find from this?" John asked, "I don't think she'd have anything on her."

"She might," Vivian said, pulling on a pair of gloves. She looked down at Kelly for a moment and then said to Jane, "They should have called you in sooner. Perhaps then we could've had something."

"I know," Jane sighed. "That's what I said. Please don't tell me there's nothing."

"Oh, there is," Vivian said, "I just have to find it."

"Do you two do this often?" Tommy asked.

"More often than I care to say," Vivian replied. "Except when Jane calls me, the body is still fresh." Vivian felt tenderly around the abdomen and groin. Jane watched her shake her head every time her hands moved. Reaching back up to the chest, she stopped. Her fingers pressed harder into the skin. "Hello, hello, hello," she whispered.

"Viv?"

"There's something in here."

"You mean he missed something?" said Tommy.

"He did," Vivian said. "It could've gone in deep and rose to the surface during bloatedness." She grabbed a scalpel from her bag, "But it's small. Your doctor wouldn't have seen it right away."

"Especially if he was drunk," Jane said.

"He's not used to the grotesque," Tommy excused. "Most of the corpses he gets are bullet holes to the head."

"And you'd know how they got there, wouldn't you?"

"Perhaps," he said. "I'm not the only one around here who carries a pistol."

"No, your bodies would end up in the canal."

They looked at each other. His eyes surveyed her face as Campbell's had done. They weren't filled with lust or even flirtation. He was uneasy. She guessed few people called him out so blatantly. She wasn't scared of him and he didn't know what to do.

"So, you're a doctor then?" John asked Vivian as she carefully slid the scalpel into the stitching.

"Sort of," Vivan answered. "I'm a secretary, but my father was a doctor. I learned some things from him."

"You're too smart to be a secretary."

"I tell her that all the time," Jane said. "She doesn't listen to me."

"Not now, Jane," Vivian warned.

She took out a pair of tweezers and dug into the gap. Jane felt Tommy's eyes on her even though he'd looked away. She felt warm all over. "What is it?"

"I'm getting there…" Vivian moved the tweezers this way and that. She finally removed the object inside. "Five-pence? What the…?" She showed them all the bloody coin between the tips, "It's five-pence."

"What?" Jane came closer and observed it in Vivian's hand.

"You think he dropped it?" John said. "I can't see why he'd leave it in there."

"No," she shook her head, "He doesn't do things absentmindedly. He left this here on purpose."

"He thinks women are cheap," Tommy said behind her.

"Sorry?"

"You said he hates women, right?" he asked. "He hates them so that's why he removes parts of them?"

"It's a theory."

"Kelly was quite popular among men. She was young, pretty and willing to do whatever her customers liked. I heard she charged a bit more than the others. Putting that coin inside her says that he thinks she's cheap. He thinks she's not worth more than five-pence because she's had so many customers."

"Did the other girls charge as much?" Jane asked him.

"Not that I know of," he said.

Jane and he shared a glance. She then said, "I'll take that into consideration. Viv, store that. We can study this later on. What else?"

Vivian looked at Kelly's hands. "Flesh," she said, "Under the fingernails. There's no point scraping it out."

"Why?" John asked.

"It's already deteriorating. The only clue I can gather is that Kelly tried defending herself," she told her. "See here and here?" she pointed to the cuts and scrapes on Kelly's arms, "She put up a fight before he grabbed her."

"He came at her forwards," Jane said. "The other victims didn't have defensive wounds."

Vivian peeked at her eyes and nostrils, "Cocaine."

"Cocaine?"

"She snorted cocaine beforehand," she said. "The little tearing is still there. I'm going to take a stab and guess she wasn't a frequent user. The injuries set after she'd died. Did the report say anything about a bloody nose?"

"No, and they probably wouldn't."

"Damn," Vivian cursed. "She snorted it too hard or her nose was dry, and it made her bleed."

"The bloody nose distracted her."

"And he took his chance to cut her throat."

"Where would she get cocaine?" she asked Tommy.

"Not from anyone around here," he said. "People here don't have that sort of thing unless they get it from a chemist."

"Or they already have the means of buying it," Jane said. "He lures them in with the promise of drugs and then kills them when they're not looking. Lizzie told me she'd taken some from Mary-Anne, and it made her ill."

"So it's not cocaine?" John asked.

"No. It's something else. Cocaine makes the taker more alert. This slows them down. He uses it to control them."

"But he doesn't have to," Vivian said, "He already has them with money. He uses it to subdue them when he's about to kill them. Kelly fought back because she hadn't taken as much."

"He needs to hear them scream, you said," Tommy added. "Wouldn't drugging them have the opposite effect?"

"They don't have to pass out," she said. "They only need a small bump. They're still alive when he kills them. He just needs them limp."

"Opium."

She looked at him questionably. "He uses opium," Tommy said. "They sell it in powder form in Chinatown. It's more expensive than the regular kind."

"They're passed out by the time he's halfway through," Jane added.

"It seems a bit convoluted," Vivian said. "He doesn't need the drug. He can just walk off with them."

"There's something about him that puts them off," she said. "He might have a disfigurement or handicap? He might be too old?"

"My money's on disfigurement," Vivian told her.

"And since when does a whore get to be picky?" Jane asked herself. "He might feel like women look down on him because of it. Maybe he's had women who were less than interested in having him. A woman might've even have scorned him at some point and he can't let it go."

"So he's showing them that they're the ugly ones," Tommy came up beside her. "It's why he takes the best parts of them and cuts up their bodies. He barely focuses on the face."

"He thinks their bodies are what people notice instead of their faces," Jane said. "To him, it's the only part that matters."

"His disfigurement might be on him," John chimed in. "It might be why he doesn't do their faces. Like maybe he's missing an arm or scarred up or something."

"Maybe…"

Jane couldn't look away from him. She never expected anything other than apathy and even annoyance. She guessed he might be trying to move things along. Yet, he could have left them with John. Tommy didn't need to be there. Instead, he stayed. He actually gave his thoughts and inputs. He might not be as disinterested as he seemed.