The three men approached them. Franziska remembered all of them. Michael Levertington, the owner of the Labanter clubs and a very wealthy entrepreneur of questionable integrity. His assistant, Oliver Lackie, the foolish man who could barely understand what was going on around him and, of course, Howard Hotshot, the annoying shyster lawyer for whom Franziska had developed vitriolic hate ever since meeting him.

"I see we are just in time to avert a disaster." said Hotshot. "You should be grateful that I'm here to save you from further embarrassment, Ms. von Karma."

"You…" she said, trying to hold back her anger. "Why are you here? There is no business for you here!"

"I beg to differ." said Hotshot. "My client has every reason to be here. Don't you, Mr. Levertington?"

"Indeed. You see, the warden here, Bandin, is a good friend of mine. As soon as I heard the terrible tragedy that befell his place is work, I ran here to help him through it. And I also brought my trusty lawyer with me, to make sure everything would go smoothly around here."

"And that is what I plan to ensure." said Hotshot.

"M…Michael!" said Chains. "I…I am so happy you are here. I don't know what to do! Your presence here makes me feel safer!"

"it shouldn't!" said Franziska. "After all, this man is not to be trusted!"

"W…what do you mean?" asked Chains.

"It seems Ms. von Karma has not changed her opinion about my client." said Hotshot. "Quite a shame, if you consider how cooperative he has been with you in the past."

"Are you honestly trying to play the innocent dove?" asked Franziska. "Because I am not buying that for a second! Your client is dirty! And so are you!"

"No, he's not!" said Oliver. "He took a bath yesterday!"

"Quite, you ignorant fool" she said and pulled out her whip.

"You are not going to use that dreadful item against us, are you?" said Levertington.

"I will if you keep interfering with my investigation!"

"She won't, don't be afraid." said Hotshot."

"And what makes you so confident?" asked Franziska.

"Because if that whip of yours so much as touches our shoes, I will take a case of battery in court against you. I always win this kind of cases. Compensation usually reaches four digits or more. And if you don't carry that much money with you, I'll have to sent the bill to your friends at Interpol. How will your superiors feel if they see how expensive your methods are turning out to be for them?"

Franziska hesitated, then put her whip away. She didn't want to give that man leverage against her.

"Now then, I must ask you to vacate the premises!" said Franziska. "This is a crime scene and you are disrupting the investigation. I was just about to make an arrest!"

"Quite wrongfully I might add." said Hotshot. "Mr. Vigil may not be an innocent lamb here, but he certainly didn't kill anyone."

"How can you know that?" asked Franziska.

"I have my ways. Unlike other people I won't mention, I tend to investigate a lot before making any judgments."

Franziska felt that insult.

"And why, may I ask, do you care about this prison guard?" asked Simon. "It seems you really want him to stay out of prison."

"All I'm doing is ensuring no blame falls upon the prison staff." said Hotshot. "Especially if they are innocent."

"That's right!" said Levertington. "My friend is in charge of this place. It would look really bad for him if a member of his staff was arrested for such a heinous crime. We are here to make sure that won't happen."

"Thank you so much!" said Chains. "I need the support right now!"

"Do you have proof of Mr. Vigil's innocence?" asked Franziska. "If not, get lost! Your word has no meaning here!"

"I am aware." said Hotshot. "Which is why I have the proof in my hands."

"W...what?!" Franziska was shocked.

Vigil also seemed surprised.

"H…how could you…"

"Relax, Mr. Vigil." said Hotshot. "As long I am here, you are safe. Mr. Vigil has an airtight alibi for last night!"

"If he has an alibi, why didn't he say it?" asked Simon.

"You see, his actions, which prove him innocent of the murder mind you, were a bit against protocol. But I don't think that's important right now."

"Stop speaking in riddles! What do you mean?"

"Last night, Mr. Vigil was in a restaurant at the center of town. He was having dinner with his wife."

"He…what?!" said Franziska.

"Mr. Vigil?" asked Hotshot. "Are you ready to come clean?"

"Y…yes. Sorry. You see, me and my wife had made reservations at that classy restaurant. We had been waiting for that date for a long time. But…at the last minute, I go thrown in for the night shift. I didn't want to miss the date, so…I asked Patrick if we could switch sifts. He would take last night and I would take his shift this morning. He agreed, so we…unofficially switch places."

"You…" said Franziska. "No…it's can't be…"

"It is!" said Hotshot. "If you want to blame anyone, find Mr. Sentinel. Mr. Vigil has nothing to answer for!"

"Vigil…why didn't you tell me?!" asked Chains. "I would have arranged it myself! I could have given you the night off like that! If you hand= told me, we could have avoided all this!"

"S…sorry, sir. I just…I thought…"

"Not so fast!" said Franziska. "And how do we know this is not just another bluff? Do you have actual proof?!"

"I said I do." said Hotshot. "And, unlike a certain someone, I am not all wind."

That comment hurt Franziska more than the previous one.

Hotshot pulled out a receipt.

"And what is that?" asked Franziska.

"This is the receipt for their visit at the restaurant last night. The date and time is listed here. Take a look."

Simon took the receipt in his hands.

"He's right. It all checks out."

"No…No!" shouted Franziska. She grabbed the receipt and looked it over. She kept searching for something. She wasn't sure what she was looking for. Anything that could prove that receipt was forged. But It seemed genuine. Franziska felt like she wanted to scream with all her strength.

"W…where did you find that?" asked Vigil.

"At the restaurant." said Hotshot. "I was a priori familiar with Mr. Vigil's misconduct. So I made sure to drop by the restaurant and procure their receipt. It was easy, as they paid with a credit card. And as I see now, I was correct."

"How did you know?" asked Chains.

"Howards knows everything." said Levertington. "It's his job. He truly is an ace lawyer."

"You flatter me, sir. I just investigate all possible leads as any lawyer should."

"Congratulations, Mr. Hotshot." said Chains "You are amazing!"

"Thank you, sir."

"Th…this is some kind of…trick!" said Franziska. "A deception!"

"I see you still don't believe this." said Hotshot. "Just head over to that restaurant. There are cameras there. I'm sure one of the caught our guard and his wife in their romantic dinner."

"You…" said Franziska. "You…."

"Just face it!" said Levertington. "Your accusation against Mr. Vigil doesn't hold up! You made a mistake! Get over it!"

"So, can I leave?" asked Vigil.

"You can." said Hotshot. "After all, Ms von Karma is not planning to accuse you anymore. Are you?"

Franziska was furious. She pulled out her whip. She started looking around, as if she was searching for a target to take her fury out on. Everyone took a few steps back. But she eventually choose το lash out against the wall. She struck it with her whip and gave it a few kicks. Everyone just looked at her. That lasted a few minutes. By the time she was done, she was breathing heavily and sweating. No one dared to say a word, except for Hotshot, who had a self-satisfied grin on his face.

"I guess my work here is done."

"Indeed." said Levertington. "We can get going now."

"You are leaving already?" asked Chains.

"No, not yet." said Levertington. "Now's a chance to have a good talk with you. It's been too long, hasn't it?"

"It has. Too long. However, there are a few matters I need to deal with first. Can you go wait in my office? I'll meet you there when I'm done."

"Gladly. Come on, guys."

Levertington left, accompanied by Hotshot and Oliver. Chains was about to leave too, but Simon stopped him.

"Excuse me, but I have something to ask of you."

"Yes, what is it?"

"That other guard, Patrick Sentinel…where is he? if he was supposed to be standing guard here, he might have seen something."

"You know…it's strange, but…I haven't seen him."

"You haven't seen him?"

"No. He was supposed to show up around this time, but…no one has heard from him or seen him."

"So you don't know where he is?"

"No, I don't."

"Okay. Can you at least guide us to the workshop. We need to ascertain whether the rope came from there."

"I'm afraid I don't have the time. But Bill can take you there. Bill?"

The deputy ware, how had been standing nearby all that time, approached.

"Bill, can you take the two of them to the workshop for me?"

He nodded.

"Thank you."

Simon meanwhile approached Franziska. She was leaning on the wall, fighting to hold back her tears.

"Ms. von Karma, are you okay?"

"N…no!" she said. "I…I messed up!"

"Don't take it so hard. All people mess up every now and then."

"Not like this!" she said. "I got absorbed by my overzealousness to solve the case! I almost arrested an innocent man! This would have been avoided if I had given him a chance to explain himself. If I…if I had listened to you."

Simon didn't say anything.

"You may be a rookie, but you have much more self-control than I ever will. I know logic is all that matters here, but…my determination always tramps over my logic. I just can't get rid of that habit of mine! And because of that, I gave that scumbag of a lawyer a reason to humiliate me! How could I have allowed this?!"

Simon hesitated. He then put his hands on her shoulder. To his surprise, she didn't react.

"Franziska…" he said. "You made a mistake. You did act foolishly. But that doesn't matter. One mistake alone doesn't mean you are not competent. You are very competent. Every person on this planet messes up. But that's not what defines us. What defines is how we will find the strength to get back up and keep trying. That's how it always goes. Life throws curveballs at you. But what happens next is your choice. You can either let the curveballs crush or you can learn from them and take than knowledge and get back into the fight. You are not the type of person who yields after just one loss. I don't want to believe that. You are strong. That lawyer may have gotten one strike against you, but the game I still in. Until the final whistle, the game is not finished! And you can still make a comeback."

"A pep talk?! Really?!" thought Franziska. Does he think something like that can cheer me up? How…wait…why do I feel…better? Did…did he talk actually help me? How could this…"

He turned to face him.

"Thank you for your support, prosecutor Blackquill. I appreciate it. And I apologize for the way I spoke to you earlier."

"Apology accepted. Now what?"

"Right now, there are more leads we need to pursue, aren't there?"

That's when Toughy cleared his throat to remind them of his presence.

"Oh, that's right." said Simon. "This man will lead us to the workshop. "Are you ready, Mr. Toughy."

Toughy opened his mouth. Franziska was waiting to see what his voices was sounded like. She expected it to be deep, raspy, maybe with some kind of tough accent.

"Come on. It's this way."

"She was completely taken aback. His voice was high-pitched, friendly and warm. She had never seen someone's voice and appearance contrast so much.

"Um…yes, let's go." she said.

Toughy guided then through the prison. Eventually, they reached the workshop. One man was there, wearing a uniform and an apron. He was holding a chisel and a hammer.

"Here we are." said Toughy. The workshop."

"So this is where they make their arts and crafts." thought Franziska. She had a look around. There were a bunch of tables covered in materials, wearing tools and dust. She noticed the room only had one window, which was open at that moment.

"Not a bad place." she thought.

"That man over there is Ham Chisel, the one in charge of overseeing the crafts of all the prisoners. Ham, come here."

The man approached them.

"Hello, how may I help you?"

"Are you the one in charge of this place?" asked Simon.

"You could say that. I look over the inmates as they make their works of art. You'd be surprised at how good many of them are at this."

"That's not what matters." said Franziska. "We've heard it's possible to get rope in here."

"Well…it is." he said. "We use rope for some crafts, but…"

"One Inmate was murdered!" said Franziska. "And a rope was used to kill him, did you know that?!"

"I…I heard."

"Did the rope come from here?!"

"I…I don't think so." said Chisel. "We count all the materials to make sure none of them are smuggled from in here."

"Are you sure?'

"Y…yes, I am."

"Then testify about that matter."

"O…okay, if you wish."

Witness testimony

Where the rope came from

I'm telling you, the rope couldn't have come from here.

We are very careful with the materials. We make sure none of them are taken beyond that door.

And I doubt any inmates would risk getting solitary confinement.

The rope must have come from outside Maybe from a visitor.

"I see. So that is your theory?" asked Franziska.

"O…of course. It makes the most sense, doesn't it?"

"Ms .von Karma." said Simon. "I think something feels off here."

"I know. I see it too. But we don't know what it means yet. I say we let it play out and see what comes of it."

"I agree. This is bound to lead somewhere."

"So, are we done?" asked Chisel.

"Not yet." said Franziska. "I need to cross-examine you testimony."

"Cross…examine?"

"it means she will ask you a few clarifying questions about what you just said." said Simon. "It's just procedure, don't worry."

"Um…sure. If you say so."

Cross-examination

Where the rope came from

I'm telling you, the rope couldn't have come from here.

We are very careful with the materials. We make sure none of them are taken beyond that door.

Hold it: "How careful are you about it?"

"Quite. We conduct body searches of every inmate before they are allowed to leave. We put them in the line and have them be searched one after the other. I doubt we would miss anything, let alone a whole rope."

"I see. Carry on."

And I doubt any inmates would risk getting solitary confinement.

The rope must have come from outside Maybe from a visitor.

Objection

"I'm sorry, Mr. Chisel, but your claim is impossible."

"W…why is that?"

"It's because of what Mr. Chains, the prison's warden has testified."

"Th…the warden?"

"He has stated all visitors are search for any dangerous material upon entering. The rope couldn't have come from outside!"

"A…aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" he dropped the chisel and the hammer from his hands. The hammer landed on his foot.

"Owwwwwwwwwww!"

"So, it seems the rope came from in here." said Simon. "You insist the rope couldn't possibly have been smuggled from in here?"

"I…I don't know! We are very careful! How would…"

"I think this calls for another testimony." said Simon.

"Indeed. Testify in more detail about the security measures in here."

"O…okay. I…I'll see what I can do."

Witness testimony

Security measures in the workshop

I don't believe it's possible for anyone to take materials out of here.

Like I said, we search all inmates before they go through the door.

The door is the only way out, so I don't think it's possible for anyone to pull that off.

"Hmmm. He seems pretty sure." thought Franziska. "And I don't think he's lying. But still…I see one, small window of doubt. And I need to question it."

"A…are you ready?" asked Chisel.

"I am. Let's get started."

Cross-examination

Security measures in the workshop

I don't believe it's possible for anyone to take materials out of here.

Like I said, we search all inmates before they go through the door.

The door is the only way out, so I don't think it's possible for anyone to pull that off.

Objection

"Mr. Chisel, I don't know about you…" said Franziska. "But I see another window of opportunity here."

"A…another window?"

"Yes. Quite literally in fact."

She pointed to the open window.

"That window is open. And as I can see, it leads to the courtyard. Somebody, theoretically speaking, could have thrown something, like a rope, from out that window and collected it afterwards."

"Good point!" said Simon. "Isn't that possible?'

"I'm sorry to ruin it for you…" said Chisel. "but not, it's not possible."

"W…what?!"

"Why?"

"You see, the inmates aren't the only ones here. There are always two or three guards keeping watch over them."

"S…security guards?"

"Yes. And one of them is always positioned next to that window, to make sure no one is standing outside. He would have noticed if anyone threw something out of that window."

"S…seriously?" asked Simon, who also appeared shocked.

"There goes our only window!" said Franziska. "We are officially out of ideas as to where that rope came from!"

"Wait…" said Simon. "If there are guards in here…couldn't they have taken the rope?"

"No. They also leave after the inmates are gone. I am the last person to leave. I count all the supplies and make sure everything is in place."

"Dammit!" Simon swore under his teeth. Franziska was the only one who heard it.

"So, what happens now?" she asked. Do we…"

"We are not giving up!" said Simon. "There is still hope!"

"Hope? For what?!"

"The rope is not the only thing that we need to account for."

"What else requires our attention?"

"What about witnesses?"

"Witnesses?"

"This is a prison, remember? There were many more inmates in that wing. Maybe one of them saw something….anything!"

"That's actually a good idea." said Franziska. "Now that I think about it…the cell directly across that of Mr. Waterloo was empty. There was no inmate inside it!"

"That's doesn't mean it's not occupied. Maybe the inmate is just currently away. You know, courtyarding."

"Possibly. But how can we find out?"

"I can help you." said Toughy.

"Oh! I had forgotten he was here." thought Franziska.

"How can you help us?" asked Simon.

"There is a list of all the cells and the inmates in them. I can find out if anyone is staying the cell across Mr. Waterloo's by looking at the list."

"Then let's do that!" said Franziska.

"Follow me." he said.

He turned to leave. The others tired to follow him, but Chisel's voice stopped them.

"Wait…"

"What is it?" asked Simon, "Did you forget something?"

"Actually…there is something I didn't mention."

"Didn't mention?"

" I wanted to avoid it, but…I think I ought to tell you."

"Out with it, fool!" said Franziska. "What is it?"

"You see…there was one time when…I thought some rope was missing."

"Wait…what?!" said Franziska.

"Not today or yesterday. That happened two or three days ago. After the inmates and the guards left, I counted the materials.

"And?"

"I thought some rope was missing."

"Why didn't you report it, you utter fool?!" asked Franziska. "We could have found the one who did it by now!"

"I… might have been wrong! All the inmates were searched. No one was carrying anything. I was watching the guards the whole time. None of them even touched the materials. I thought I might have just been mistaken, maybe I counted wrong."

"You should have told us earlier!" said Franziska. "This is very vital!"

He gave him a strike of her whip.

"S…sorry! I'm so sorry! I know I messed up! Please forgive me!"

"I say we let it go!" said Simon.

"What?! This is a major blunder! He should be punished!"

"And if he is, the victim will come back?! It's too late to cry over spilt milk. We just have to find the truth and get the true culprit. That's all we can hope to affect."

Franziska thought about it. She then lowered her whip.

"I see your point. And I concede. Now then, we need to get going.

"Thank you for your help, Mr. Chisel." said Simon. "But now we have work to do."

I see that." said Chisel. "Mr. Toughy…he is such a nice man, isn't he?"

"He really is." said Simon. "But his appearance suggests otherwise."

"I know. He seems scary, but he is softer than a teddy bear."

"The inmates must be pretty scared of him." said Franziska.

"Actually not." said Chisel. "They have all seen his true, softer side. They know he is not to be feared."

"How would they know?"

"Well…he even comes here."

"Here?"

"Yes. He loves making crafts. He participates in the program. He has made many nice works of art. But his behavior here has made all inmates realize he is very nice and not at all threatening."

"I see."

Right then, Toughy leaned in through the entrance.

"Um…excuse me. Are you coming?"

"Oh…oh ,yes!" said Franziska ."Please excuse us. We just got…wrapped up in a conversation."

"Yes, that's right." said Simon. "Wrapped up. But now, it's time to get back to business. You said something about a list. Where is it?"

"I…I'll guide you to it. Follow me."

They followed him, eager to find out what would happen next.

"I hope that list provides us with some useful information." thought Franziska. "Otherwise…we are out of leads. This is truly our last chance!"

To be continued