"The probability of a certain set of circumstances coming together in a meaningful (or tragic) way is so low that it simply cannot be considered mere coincidence."
– V.C. King
As Santana quickly finishes getting ready, she heads down to the lobby of the hotel to clear her head. That moment in the bathroom with Brittany was just way too intense for her to think straight. Opting for some sweet relief from some much needed coffee, Santana walks over to the guest area where the continental breakfast is still being served.
"Sup partner," Puck says as he sidles up next to the Latina.
"Hey," she quickly says, not even bothering to look the man.
"Where's Blondie at?"
"How would I know? I'm not Brittany's keeper..." Santana harshly states.
"Whoa... what crawled up your ass?" Puck asks, slightly caught off guard by his partner's short temperament. When he doesn't receive a response, he takes a second to look over his partner's features. "Yo, Santana... what's up? Talk to the Puckasaurus."
Santana immediately stops mixing the creamer into her coffee and just looks at the Jewish man. "I thought we talked about that name."
"You're right... my apologies," Noah states. "Seriously though, what's going on?"
"I'm not sure yet..." Santana says as she finishes making her coffee and an extra one. She then moves over to the omelet station. "I think I had a moment with Brittany."
"What kind of moment?" Puck inquires as the two of them sit down.
"That's the part I'm not sure about," the Latina says. "And I definitely don't want to discuss it right now."
"That's cool... I understand," Puckerman states. "But, if you do feel like talking about it later... I'm here."
"I know... thanks Noah," she sincerely says. "I will say this though... the way she was looking at me made me feel like she was finally seeing me, not just her friend or co-worker."
Before Puck has a chance to respond, the blonde in question suddenly appears.
"Hey Noah," the liaison greets the man. "Hey San... you didn't tell me you were leaving."
"Sorry... I figured you were in the shower and I didn't want to disturb you; plus... I had to get my caffeine fix," Santana replies. "I got you these though..." she says as she gestures towards the cup of coffee, bagel, and banana she had collected along with her omelet.
"Thanks, San..." Brittany shyly replies as she takes sip of her coffee. "Mmm... just the way I like it."
As Puck observes this cute, but awkward moment between his two friends, he can't help but feel like he's witnessing what should be a private moment.
"Puck, my man..." Hudson says as gives the other man a fist bump.
"Thank God!" Noah mumbles out, silently thanking the Heavens for this interruption. "What's up Finn?"
"Morning ladies," Finn says as he addresses the other two people sitting at the table.
"Morning Finn," both women say in unison. "Where are the other guys?" Brittany questions.
"I think Schue is on the phone with Lt. Beiste," Hudson begins, "... and I'm pretty sure Artie is telling the chef the origin of where omelets come from."
"That sounds about right," Puck chuckles out.
After Schue finishes his phone call, he meets up with the rest of the team to go over the game plan for the day.
"Good morning guys," he begins. "I just spoke to Lt. Beiste and she advised that the autopsy report is ready. Lopez and Puckerman, go meet with the M.E. and see what they've found."
"Yes sir," Santana says as she rises from the table.
"Hudson and Abrams... I'd like for you two to make contact with Ms. Berry's last known co-workers and any close friends that may be able to shed some light."
"Actually, sir... if possible, I'd like to follow-up on a possible lead," Dr. Abrams interjects.
"What lead would that be?" Schue questions.
"Well… I was just thinking about how within a short time span, the male and female leads of the same Broadway show had to be replaced due to some unforeseeable event," Dr. Abrams explains. "I'd like to speak with Jake Puckerman - no relation - and see if he could offer any insights."
"Alright... Abrams, go to the precinct and pull the record of the incident that Mr. Puckerman described. Also, check if there have been any similar incidents around the same area," Schue instructs. "If you find something that might be relevant to our case, have Mr. Puckerman come down to the station," he continues. "Brittany... touch bases with Fabray and see if she's found anything that can link our third victim. I'll be in the field with Hudson."
Once everyone is clear on their assignments, they split up and make their way towards their designated SUVs. Brittany steals one last glance at Santana before she and Abrams head in the opposite direction towards the precinct.
"Hey Brittany, are you okay?" Abrams asks, voicing his concern. "You've been really quiet this morning."
"Yeah, I'm fine Artie..." the blonde assures. "I just have a lot on my mind."
"Often I find that when I have an abundance of things on my mind, I like to do a crossword puzzle or find a nice brain teaser to occupy my mind with," Artie suggests. Brittany just stares at him with her mouth agape. "Or not... I was just trying to give you some options."
"Yeah... thanks?" the liaison half questions, half states.
As Santana and Puck arrive at the medical examiner's office, they exchange pleasantries before getting down to business.
"Dr. Chase, can you tell us what the cause of death was?" Agent Puckerman asks.
"Ms. Jones died from asphyxiation caused by smoke inhalation," she replies.
"Son of a bitch!" Santana says under her breath. "So... she was alive when her body was set on fire?"
"I'm afraid so," the doctor sadly confirms.
"Is there anything else you can tell us?" Puck inquires.
"Ms. Jones had high levels of ketamine in her system," Dr. Chase states.
"Ketamine... isn't that like a horse tranquilizer or something?" Santana ponders.
"Yes... many veterinarians used it in their practices as an anesthetic," the doctor informs. "On the street, it's known as 'Special K' and has been used as a date rape drug in the past."
"Doc... how would someone go about getting this drug?" Agent Puckerman asks.
"Outside of being a pharmaceutical company that manufactures it or having a prescription for it, the only other option would be to steal it."
"Okay, thanks for your help," Puck says as he heads towards the door. "I'm gonna call Quinn and see if this info helps narrow down our search."
As Puck exits the room, Santana stays behind, just staring blankly at Mercedes' lifeless body.
"Agent Lopez... are you alright?" Dr. Chase asks.
"I've been doing this for 6, maybe 7 years now..." Santana begins to say in a very monotone voice. "Somehow... it never ceases to amazes me how cruel and evil human beings can be to each other."
"I don't know how you do it, like the aftermath… dealing with the families and such," the doctor says. "Does it ever get any easier?"
"Sadly, no... if anything, you just find a way to cope by becoming cynical or completely desensitizing yourself to the point that you don't feel anything at all."
"Hey, Santana... Schue wants us to check out another location," Puck states as he re-enters the room.
"Okay," the Latina simply replies. "Thanks again doc."
Meanwhile, back at the precinct...
"Hey Artie... did you find out anything interesting about the mugging?" Brittany ponders.
"Actually, yes..." Abrams begins. "After reviewing the case file, I found that the 'mugging' wasn't actually a 'mugging' at all."
"What do you mean?"
"Nothing was actually taken from Jake," the genius further explains. "According to the report, right after Jake left the bar, he was attacked from behind. No witnesses and no other similar incidents in area."
"That's weird..." the liaison says. "If nothing was taken, then that would mean that the attack on Jake was intentional."
"It seems that way," Artie obliges. "I'm gonna have Jake come in for a follow-up."
"Okay, that sounds good," Brittany states. "Quinn still hasn't found a link to the third vic. Hopefully the guys have had better luck in the field."
After a brief telephone conversation, Jake Puckerman arrives at the police station to meet with Dr. Abrams.
"Thanks for coming by on such short notice," Artie says as both men take a seat in one of the interview rooms. "I hope you don't mind my partner, Agent Pierce, joining us."
"Not at all," he says acknowledging the blonde. "Besides... it's not like I can really do anything else," Jake solemnly says as he gestures towards the cast covering his right ankle. "I'm not really sure how much help I can be though. Like I said before, I worked with Tina only briefly before she died. I only knew Rachel in passing and I didn't know the other girl at all."
"No, I'm clear on that Mr. Puckerman," Artie clarifies. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you more about how you received that broken ankle."
"There's not really much to tell," Jake begins. "Some asshole jumped me from behind and set my career back for who knows how long after I get this stupid cast off."
"At any point during the attack, did the suspect say anything or did they have a distinct smell about them?" Brittany questions.
"No... I just felt the rage that they had," Jake says. "The guy hit me in the back of the head with something hard... like a rock or something. After I fell to the ground, he went straight to my ankle until I yelled out in pain."
"Can you think of anyone who would want to hurt you?" Artie asks.
"I mean... Broadway is very competitive. You barely have time to have a life," Jake sadly says. "I'm sure there are a lot of guys that would love to see me fall, but I can't think of anyone that would have the balls to stoop this low though."
Taking into account what Jake just said and how his facial expression changed slightly while speaking about 'barely having a life', Brittany begins to wonder about some things.
"Has being an up and coming Broadway star ever affected your personal life?" Brittany questions.
Jake silently laughs to himself. "Yeah... it has actually," he answers. "You would think dating someone in the biz would make it easier, but I guess some people prefer to have lots of fame and absolutely no life."
"So... your ex is in the biz?"
"Yeah... I believe Dr. Abrams and that other guy met her yesterday," Jake supplies. "Marley Rose... she's the star of the show."
"Interesting..." Brittany says. "And who replaced you?"
"Ryder Lynn, which is kind of ironic," Jake says in disbelief. As Artie and Brittany both look at him with questioning eyes, he further elaborates. "The kid can sing, but he can't dance for shit. Plus, he's like totally obsessed with Marley."
As the two FBI agents exchange a quick look, Artie dismisses the young dancer.
"Well... I think that's all we need for right now," Dr. Abrams states as he stands from the table. "Thanks again for coming in Mr. Puckerman."
As Jake exits the interview room, the boy genius and the liaison share a thought.
"If this Ryder guy is really 'obsessed' like Jake said, I wonder how far he would go to get the girl he's crazy about," Artie thinks aloud.
"Far enough to cripple said girl's ex-boyfriend/male lead of the play?" Brittany questions. "Or maybe even kill for her? I don't believe in coincidences."
"I'm gonna go update Schue," Dr. Abrams informs as he exits the room.
Brittany remains seated as she pulls out her cell phone and hits a number on her speed dial.
"My blonde beauty... I love you to death, but like I told you nearly an hour ago, I haven't found a connection... yet," Fabray says as she answers the phone.
"No, Quinn... I wasn't calling about that," the blonde giggles out. "We might actually have a lead."
"Ooh... now I'm intrigued," Fabray responds. "Hit me."
"Find out everything you can on a Ryder Lynn and a Marley Rose," Brittany supplies.
"Alrighty, will do. I'll give you a shout when I'm done," the tech analyst announces. "Fabray out!"
"Quinn... wait," Brittany says as she gets up to close the door to have more privacy. "Can I talk to you about something?"
"Yeah, of course... what's up?"
"You remember how you were giving me a hard time about Santana before we left for New York?" Brittany asks.
"Yeah... why? Did something happen?" Quinn eagerly inquires.
"A lot, actually..."
"Ooh... spill!"
"Before we got to the bar, Santana kinda told me that she was interested in me..." Brittany hesitantly states.
"Kinda… interested… what?!" Fabray says in shock. "Are you serious?!"
"Yes... and I've been kinda freakin' out about it ever since," the blonde elaborates. "It just totally caught me off guard, ya know?"
"I can understand that," Quinn sympathizes. "How do you feel about this new revelation?"
"Honestly, I don't really know..." Brittany answers. "I had no idea she felt that way. No one's ever been so upfront and just put themselves out there like that for me."
"Well... Santana is definitely one of a kind."
"Yeah, she is…" the blonde agrees. "And well, there was this morning..."
"I'm listening."
"This morning we were in the bathroom and—"
"Wait... why were you both in the bathroom?" Quinn questions.
"It's a long story; basically I barged in, unaware that she was already in there... without a shirt on," Brittany explains.
"This story just keeps getting juicier by the minute," the tech analyst suggestively states.
"Anyways... I kinda surprised Santana, which inadvertently made her burn herself," the blonde further details. "And... I don't know... I just felt the need to touch her... and not like in a sexual way," she adds in, knowing that her friend's head was probably heading straight towards the gutter.
"What happened next?"
"Well... after I managed to stop staring at her chest - don't ask - Santana abruptly left. I just... I'm so confused Quinn..."
"I know sweetie..." Quinn softly says. "Maybe you just need to talk to Santana."
"I know, but I can't right now..." Brittany replies. "I need to stay focused on this case; so does she."
"You're right. But B... promise me that you will talk to her soon?"
Brittany pauses for a moment. "I promise."
"Good girl," the tech says. "I gotta go. I'll let you guys know once I get something back."
"Okay… thanks Q," Brittany replies as she hangs up the phone and places her head against the cool metal of the table, trying to process the endless thoughts running through her head. "Maybe I should've just gone into sales like my mom wanted me too," she thinks to herself.
Author's Note:
Hey guys! Here's the next installment. Sorry for the limited Brittana interaction, but this chapter was more of a filler to move the story along. Hopefully the next chapter will make up for it. Thanks again for reading!
-Kris