Nick shoved open the oval office's door and spotted Cindy seated behind her desk. Her waterfall braid warned him that her earlier nonchalance was long gone; she was in pure president mode. Still, she managed a fleeting smile as she said, "You got here fast."

Nick wiped sweat from his brow and answered, "You did say it was important." He quickly slipped out of his leather trench coat and draped it over one of the empty chairs in front of Cindy's desk. He rested his arms on the furniture and leaned towards his friend. "Fill me in."

Cindy slid a thin manila folder towards him. "Twelve lunches have been stolen this week," Cindy explained as Nick scooped up the file. "Four victims got so hungry they had to see Nurse Holt for low blood sugar. The most recent was one of my Secret Service agents. He had a seizure, Nick."

Nick closed his eyes and shook his head in disgust.

Cindy went on, "The hall monitors have been on the case since Tuesday morning. Bennett and Yen reviewed everything they found and just sent me this summary."

Nick opened the folder and flipped through the sparse pages inside. "This doesn't seem like much."

"It's not. They did a great job of investigating the victims and found out there's no clear link like there was with the Black Atom's targets. But they didn't uncover a single clue regarding the thief."

"How is that possible? What about fingerprints, witness statements, security camera footage?"

"They looked for all those things. There just wasn't anything to find."

"That doesn't make sense. Aashna used an invisibility spray and we still caught her in less than a day. How could a lunch thief be evading everyone for a week?"

"I have no idea," Cindy admitted. "Which means whoever is doing this is either a genius or has connections I'm terrified to imagine. That's why I need H.A.L.L.P.A.S.S.'s help."

Nick's face fell. "Normally we'd jump on this. But everyone's already on other assignments. Neutron made his rules clear. When there's only one agent on duty, they just log calls and file reports. We don't head out in the field."

"I know," Cindy sighed. "I was hoping that Ethan and Butch would be back by now."

Nick shook his head. "From what they told me, it's going to take them all day to help Ms. Wolf sign her lease."

Across Retroville, a studio apartment was filled with more dismay than usual. A weary middle-aged woman sporting a pink dress shirt and white slacks sat behind a tiny kitchen table. She made sure to cast a venomous glare at each member of the trio seated across from her. Her last target was the bald woman squinting at the lease in her hands.

"What the hell is a security deposit?" Ms. Wolf roared out while scratching her itchy scalp. A blizzard of dandruff lazily drifted towards the landlord's coffee. "And why is it so much money?"

Ethan gently tugged the contract from Ms. Wolf's grasp. "The deposit is standard, ma'am. It's to protect the landlord in case you damage anything." Ethan cocked his head as he studied the document, then faced the woman across the table. "Although it's usually one month's rent, not a month and a half."

The landlord shrugged. "With more atypical tenants, I feel the need for extra insurance."

Ms. Wolf threw up her hands and growled, "You're just like those priggish lunch ladies. You all think I'm a loser just because I squatted in a classroom for four months and got kicked out for causing one lousy lice outbreak. Well guess what? Maybe if you all weren't such jackasses you wouldn't have had gravy poured down your throats by a disbarred idiot savant's army!"

"What?"

Ethan cleared his throat and drew his teacher's gaze. "Don't worry, ma'am. A responsible landlord," he shot the woman a loaded stare, "will always put security deposits in a high-yield savings account. As long as you don't cause any damages, you'll leave this place with more money than you started with. Isn't that right?"

The landlord grumbled, "I suppose so."

"Good," Ethan smiled. He pulled a laptop and portable printer out of his backpack. As he powered on the devices he explained, "Then I'll just retype the lease with that added in."

Ms. Wolf asked, "What if she lies and says I broke something when I didn't?"

Butch sneered and admired both of his fists. "That's where Lefty and Righty come in. They're your security deposit's security deposit."

The landlord finally asked, "I'm sorry, are these your children?"

Ms. Wolf immediately vomited all over the kitchen table. As the landlord desperately yanked her coffee away, Ms. Wolf gasped, "That's disgusting!"

Ethan smiled and said, "It's good you vomited before we signed the lease. Now we'll need a professional cleaner to take care of the place before you move in."

The landlord stared daggers at Ethan as he pounded away on his keyboard.

Cindy asked, "What about Jimmy and Aashna?"

Nick shook his head. "They're still up in the attic catching that ghost."

The attic lights flickered as Aashna's body twitched with a frightening lack of coordination. Drool poured from her mouth, her hands clawed at the air, and she spoke in unintelligible tongues.

With exhausted indifference, Jimmy plucked a vial of holy water from his kit belt. He poured a healthy stream over his right palm, then slapped Aashna across the face.

Aashna immediately fell still as the lights stopped flickering. She panted a few times, then groaned. "Did I get possessed again?"

"Yes!" Jimmy answered.

"Dang it. Oh well, fifth time's the charm!" Before Jimmy could stop her, Aashna turned to an open air vent dripping with green goo. A quick leap sent her belly sliding into an unseen abyss.

Cindy leaned back in her chair and admitted, "I know Jimmy made H.A.L.L.P.A.S.S.'s rules for a reason. So I hate to ask, but could you break them and solve this for me?"

Nick immediately answered, "Sure."

Cindy cocked her head. "Really?"

"Duh," Nick said. "They're rules to a middle school club. You think I care about them more than you?"

Cindy swallowed hard and rubbed her cheeks as Nick pretended not to notice her blushing. "Well, I really appreciate it."

"No problem," Nick sheepishly offered. "But…"

Don't.

That single word blaring in his skull shattered every hope that was building in his chest. He closed his eyes and argued against himself. This isn't the same as last week. It's just me asking a friend for help.

Nick convinced himself this was mostly true. "It's going to be hard to solve this alone. It would be easier with a partner. Say…someone I already know will always have my back?"

Cindy looked away and closed her eyes. Her lips twitched into a half-smile as she whispered, "It would be like Canterbury. Like the Crusade."

"You've already got the hair down," Nick offered. "And I'm sure I could find a hauberk somewhere."

Cindy opened her eyes, and her face fell as she spotted the pile of work on her desk. "I'd love nothing more than to solve this with you. But there's too much on my plate today."

Nick tried to hide his disappointment. "I get it."

"But I don't bring this stuff home with me. So how about a drink at the Spittoon after final bell?"

Nick grimaced at the thought of facing Ike and quickly hid his disdain. "What about the Candy Bar instead? I could use a malt."

Nick kept his expression neutral as Cindy studied him. Eventually she shrugged and said, "You are doing me a favor, so it's your call."

"Then consider this thief caught." Nick slipped on his trench coat and made sure the golden hall pass hanging around his neck was clearly visible. "I'll let you know if I find anything."

"Just be careful," Cindy warned. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

"So do I," Nick agreed. "But we've survived worse."

Nick skimmed through more of the thief's file as he hustled down the corridors. It only took a moment for him to slam the folder shut.

Cindy was right. There's really nothing to go on, he silently grumbled while tucking the folder in one of his trench coat's interior pockets. How the heck am I going to solve this case without a single clue?

Nick made a final turn and halted in front of the site of the last crime. Haymaker's locker was closed and covered by a crisscross of yellow tape. "First rule of H.A.L.L.P.A.S.S., check the scene yourself," Nick whispered while unholstering a pair of diamond-tipped scissors from his kit belt. He sliced through the tape with ease and got to work.

Like all of R.M.S.'s lockers, Trigger's was secured by a built-in dial. He twisted the device to the three numbers that Bennett's file had contained, then opened the door. Nick pulled a flashlight from his belt and inspected the locking mechanism.

No warping or nearby dents. He peered at the keyhole underneath the dial. No scuffing or damage, which means it wasn't picked. Nick rubbed his chin and mumbled, "They either knew the combination or had the master key."

Next he swiveled the light inside. The hall monitor's file had included a list of everything Haymaker stored in his locker. It all seemed present except for the missing protein bars. Nick unclipped a special blacklight Neutron had supplied and clicked it on. He swept it over the locker's interior, but nothing glowed green. "Cindy was right. No fingerprints."

As Nick peeked his head inside and made sure he wasn't missing anything, he spotted a folded piece of paper taped to one corner of the locker.

Nick plucked it free and opened it. Inside was a brief message.

You're not the only one looking for answers.

Meet me at the loading docks.

I'll be waiting.

Nick anxiously looked around the hallways, but they were empty. With no other leads to follow, he set after the one in his grasp.

Thunder began to rumble as Nick opened the door to the docks. The cavernous interior was pitch black save for what little luminescence crept past the threshold. Between the dim rays and rolling fog creeping underneath the distant loading bay doors, Nick could barely make out the nearest steel shelves. He flipped the light switch near the door, but it did nothing except make a depressing clack.

Nick turned on his flashlight and sealed the door closed behind him. Cold air pumped through unseen vents, churning the fog into a roiling froth. Nick glanced all around the storage racks, loading bay, and wharf master's office. He failed to spot a trace of life, so he yanked a small tablet from his kit belt. He powered it on and watched the screen until a flurry of green dots raced towards him. Nick's eyes widened in shock and eventual disgust as a swarm of squeaking rats ran between his legs.

Nick groaned and hopped to the side. He swung his flashlight in the direction the rats ran from and thought he spotted a flitter of movement behind a shelf.

"I know you're there," Nick said while pocketing the motion detector. He watched as a pair of red glasses peeked around the corner, followed by the tall and slender girl sporting them.

"I was hoping you'd come fast," Courtney Tyler smiled before shivering. She rubbed her arms and said, "It is cold and creepy as heck in here."

Nick closed the gap between them while saying, "Well you're the one who chose to meet at the docks."

Courtney shrugged. "It wasn't as…horrifying last time I was here." When Nick raised an eyebrow she said, "I'm a reporter. We live in places like this."

Nick set his flashlight on a nearby shelf so it would illuminate them both. "So it was you who left the note in Haymaker's locker?"

"Duh."

"You know that's considered tampering with evidence. I could haul you to Clarke for that."

Courtney crossed her arms. "Is that really how you want to start this? With a threat?"

Nick splayed his hands and answered, "I don't even know what this is. And it wasn't a threat, just an observation." When Courtney stayed quiet, he asked, "Why did you do it?"

"Because we're both after the same thing." She narrowed her eyes and added, "The Hungbringer."

An enormous clap of thunder shook the room.

Nick cocked his head and asked, "Who the-"

More thunder roared.

Nick narrowed his eyes. "Who the heck is-"

A staccato of deafening blasts shook the building.

Nick struggled to keep his footing and looked around in concern. "How close is this storm?"

An incredibly faint crack of thunder was his answer.

Nick clenched his jaw before asking, "Who the heck is the Hungbringer?"

"They're the lunch thief. Obviously."

"How is that obvious? What does Hungbringer even mean?"

"They bring hunger!"

"No one talks like that," Nick argued. "They're taking food. Why not call them The Food Taker?"

"How is that a good name?"

"How is it worse than yours?"

Courtney sharply inhaled and clenched her hands. "Look, we're not changing the name."

"But-"

"Shh," Courtney warned. "I heard that H.A.L.L.P.A.S.S. was roped in and there was just one agent on duty. That means we're in the same boat."

"So you're the reporter covering the robberies?" When Courtney nodded, Nick asked, "Then why do you want to catch them? Isn't it better for the news if they keep scaring people?

"That's not the kind of show we make." She bristled, "I don't remember you being this much of a jerk when we stopped the Black Atom together. Or did you forget that Libby and I helped with that?"

Nick chewed his cheek and admitted, "I'm sorry. This just isn't how H.A.L.L.P.A.S.S. usually works."

"Well this is weird for me too," Courtney admitted. "I'm not the biggest fan of asking for help. But I got a copy of the hall monitor's report on the Hungbringer and saw how empty it was. Not to mention the damage they've done. You heard what happened to the last victim?"

"Cindy told me."

"So you know this isn't just about some missing food. People are actually getting hurt. And if all of the hall monitors couldn't catch this thief in a week, something tells me neither of us can do it alone. So what's the harm in teaming up?"

Nick considered this and eventually shrugged. "I already am breaking one rule taking this case. I guess I can break another."

Courtney smiled as Nick raised a hand. "On one condition," he explained. "I had a partner before." He stared far past Courtney and admitted, "The best there ever was." He swallowed hard and met her gaze. "It only worked because we trusted each other's strengths and covered their blind spots. That means I'll follow your lead in putting the pieces of this puzzle together. But when danger comes, and since this is R.M.S. we know it will, you do what I say. Deal?"

Courtney huffed and extended her hand. "I can work with that."

Nick nodded and clasped her palm. They both shook as he said, "Then I assume you have an idea of where to start?"

Courtney smiled. "I do. Jimmy didn't figure out who the Black Atom was until he understood the motive. So I tried to think of all the reasons why someone would steal lunches, then worked backwards from there."

Nick nodded. "Makes sense. They could just be hungry, but if that's all it was we would have found some evidence by now."

"Exactly. This is more than just someone grabbing a free meal. They could be trying to hurt kids, but only a third of them ended up in the nurse's office. There are more reliable ways to cause chaos."

Nick rubbed his chin. "So if they're not doing it to hurt people or because they're hungry, maybe they get something else out of it?"

"Yes!" Courtney excitedly snapped her fingers and pointed at Nick. "I looked through all 163 of the clubs in this school. You want to guess at which one has made the most money selling food this week?"

It only took Nick a moment to groan. "Tom's store?"

Courtney beamed and nodded. "Right. His sales have nearly doubled since the first lunch was taken."

Nick nodded and scooped his flashlight off of the shelf. He swung its beam towards the loading docks' door. "Then let's go pay him a visit."