Julie was bringing file folders from one wing of the DSP building to another she saw the security guard with an unknown blond male in the main lobby. "Can I help you?"

"Hi there! My name's Billy Gilbert. I'm here to see Marucho," the blond replied.

Meanwhile, the security guard asked, "Miss Hayward, is it safe to release him? Bayview police brought him here earlier, but they left now."

"Really? So you're Billy?" The silver-haired analyst stared at the visitor for the longest time. "Yeah, it's fine. I'll take him to Marucho myself." After a silent walk in the hallways, Julie arrived at and knocked on Marucho's office door. "Billy's here! I'm leaving!"

The blond director opened the door immediately and gasped as the sight of his visitor. "So you're Billy! It's great to see you in person. I believe you met Dan and Runo already in the hospital. What beings you here? Were you followed?"

Billy shook hands with Marucho and replied, "Bayview police brought me here under the pretense of being interrogated. I'm here because I want to update you on what Warrington police's next move is. You might've heard that Barodius's trial got delayed."

"Yes, I heard. I'm calling my team to gather now, so follow me."

In the main conference room, Billy introduced himself to everyone again and led the meeting. "I was working undercover in this narcotics ring to find proof that Barodius that paying them to do something, until the main warehouse was destroyed by the explosion. Initially, the general public only knew about the embezzlement, so we're not sure how the narcotics ring information got leaked. My supervisors want me to return to Wardington to testify, and Barodius's legal team is moving quickly despite the trial being postponed to a later date."

"What tipped you off in the first place that led to his arrest?" Shun asked.

"Wardington PD received an anonymous tip along with one page from the company's bank account statement. It was just enough to start an investigation. Then one of the company's accountants later turned himself in and admitted to doctoring the ledgers."

"But how did you know he was working with a narcotics ring?"

"We didn't. I was working that narcotics case already, but then the accountant mentioned that Barodius was using outside 'unorthodox' help to make extra money. Medication sales alone aren't enough to generate the amount of revenue that we calculated. The checks and balances claims that there are sufficient funds to manufacture all the expensive medications when there shouldn't be."

Runo asked, "Can we convince the suspects that we arrested to testify that Barodius was paying them off? Starting with Rikimaru?"

Marucho shook his head. "The contraband didn't even have narcotics, remember? We couldn't even charge them for drug possession, let alone financial crimes. Billy, will you need help from DSP in Wardington?"

"Maybe...but ask my supervisor first. Wardington police is still obligated to maintain Barodius's safety until the trial. We'll definitely be stretched thin over there."

"I see. I'll call the office call afterwards. When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow morning. I should start packing now. It was nice meeting everyone. Maybe I'll see you in Wardington."

After Billy left, Shun followed Marucho downstairs and asked, "I'm assuming you want me, Dan, and Runo to go Wardington, right?"

"Yes, just you three at most. We can't be stretched thin either."

"But if you're sending Runo, what about Alice?"

"What about me?"

Waiting in the lobby with the security guard was the redhead herself, whom Marucho went to greet instead. "I'll explain later. Anyway, I have your consultant pass in my office. Give me a moment..."

With the blond director away, Shun explained everything. "There's a possibility that I need to go to Wardington to help with a case. Runo might be coming too, so I was worried about your safety. But you came here on your own?"

"Actually, Runo dropped me off here on the way to run other errands. But isn't Wardington far away?"

"It's two hours away from Bayview if the traffic permits. If the case drags on, then I prefer to stay overnight there. I'd rather not commute that much. Anyway, I'm curious...what made you decide to attend college overseas instead of staying?"

"I've thought about it for even before college applications. I stayed with my maternal aunt and also helped take care of my maternal grandparents until they passed away. 'Overseas' is just a perspective that varies depending on who's talking. Then I started working and had to commute a lot."

"Oh...sorry to hear that. Now you're back due to your paternal grandfather's death. Why did you have to commute so much for work? I thought you had a single workplace."

"That's what everyone thought. When I was in graduate school, I had a small cubicle to myself to work on editing tasks. After I graduated, my employer sent me into the field for investigative journalism since I didn't have any more academic commitments."

"What makes 'investigative' journalism different from news channels and articles?"

"What you watch and read is just a summary of what happened and still only the tip of the iceberg. Investigative journalism is like working undercover. It can get you killed if you're not careful."

That last sentence sent a chill down Shun's spine.

Marucho suddenly appeared and handed Alice her consultant pass. "All yours! You'll need to use this pass in combination with your fingerprints to access what you have clearance to."

"I have a question. How are you traveling to Wardington? Driving or flying?"

"She has to know why Runo will be in and out often," Shun clarified.

"Ah, that. I just spoke with Wardington police. You guys will be driving there and staying overnight for a few days. I have another call with them later to discuss—"

"Would it be alright if flew to Wardington with you?" Alice interrupted. "I have some family business to tend to. I won't ask to stay overnight. I can take public transit back here."

"What?! Alice, if you insist on going to Wardington, then at least stay in Runo's hotel room and don't go out. Lync Volan is still out there."

"If you really need to go to Wardington, then listen to Marucho," Shun insisted.

"If you both insist, then I'll stay overnight—as long as we're not violating policy or creating unnecessary expenses."

"Don't worry about it. Let me call Dan and Runo."

After the blond director left a second time, the raven-haired agent asked, "Your grandfather has assets or property in Wardington?"

"It's just a bank account that he originally opened in Wardington. Unfortunately, this bank corporation requires you to close the account at the same place that it opened."

"That's inconvenient. But in all honesty...if you grandfather hadn't passed away, would you have returned for any other reason?"

Alice bit her lip at the thought. "I don't know how to answer your question. I stayed in touch with him every week. He never told me or showed signs that his health was getting worse. Everything was fine, but when his lawyer broke the news to me, I was devastated." She stared at the consultant pass in her hand and sighed. "I'm still for a potential employer reply to me about my application."

"So you are staying for good since plan on working in Bayview now?"

"I suppose. I already left everything from overseas behind. Anyway, let me know when you're leaving. I'll talk about this with Runo back in her house."

"Do you need me to drop you off?"

The redhead checked her text messages. "No need. Runo's coming back to pick me up since she's done with errands now. See you around."

"Later." Shun watched Alice walk out the lobby entrance. There's this feeling that I just can't get rid off... I don't know what it is and nor do I know why.

-x-x-x-x-x-

At the driveway of a local hotel, Billy waved at two incoming vehicles that pulled up. "Hey guys! Either you can hand off your vehicles to the valet now, or drive to the self-parking garage past the clock tower."

Without second thought, Shun answered Billy, "Meet us in that parking lot then."

Runo drove behind Shun closely. "Are you okay, Alice? You look really pale."

"I'm fine. It was just a long, hot car ride."

Billy eventually caught up to everyone in the parking lot. "Guys, I'll take you to the lobby to get key cards for your hotel rooms. Barodius lives on the same floor, by the way. I didn't plan this, so don't ask me why."

"But why does he need a hotel room here?" the brunet asked.

"He doesn't actually live in Wardington. All other rooms on the same floor are empty, or occupied by Barodius's people or law enforcement instead."

After obtaining key cards, the former undercover led everyone to the elevator. During the ride up, Alice's hands trembled while holding onto the railing. "Everything okay?" Shun asked.

"I'm fine. I'm just remembering the morning that I checked out of that hotel and later got—"

"We'll get him. I promise."

Alice's hands immediately relaxed. "I trust you."

Dan asked Billy, "Who's paying for our rooms? And who's paying for Barodius and his legal team's rooms?"

"Our rooms are funded by the police budget, which more or less comes from taxpayers. Barodius is paying for their rooms using their own money because the court ordered it. I'm a local, so I'll be commuting and working out of the police station."

Once they reached their desired floor, Billy led the guys and girls to their respective rooms. "Wardington police station is a five-minute drive from this hotel. You guys have my number already, so I'll see y'all around."

After everyone waved Billy goodbye, Runo asked Alice, "Do you want to go to the bank now? Traffic will be worse if we go later."

"Yeah, we can go now. Thanks for your help, Runo."

The girls left their luggage inside the closet and returned to the parking lot, while the guys began unpacking. "Can you believe that Barodius's trial is open to the public?" Dan asked.

"Nothing wrong with livestreaming a high profile case to the public for transparency, but I know you're concerned about letting unrelated civilians sit in the court with—" Someone knocked on their door, in which Shun looked through the door viewer to see someone flashing a Wardington police badge. He opened the door and asked, "May I help you?"

"Sorry to bother you so soon, but Barodius's room was just found to be ransacked."

Dan also heard the officer's words, and he ran to the defendant's room with his best friend. "How did you find out? Did Barodius complain? Will this compromise the case?"

"Barodius hasn't formally 'moved in' yet, but one of his lawyer came to inspect the place first. We found the door ajar and saw the mess with the bedding, towels, curtain...you name it. The backup plan is to assign Barodius a new room. Some of my colleagues are going to the security office to check camera footage right now."

"I'm calling Billy," the brunet agent decided.

Shun was about to inspect the ransacked room when he received a call from Runo. "I was just about to call you. Barodius's room was just—"

"Alice and I were on the way back to the parking garage, but we encountered a young girl in distress on the beach boardwalk. I'm performing CPR while waiting for the ambulance. I might need to follow the girl to the hospital."

"Her skin is tenting," the redhead commented. "This level of dehydration needs immediate attention."

"But she's not breathing. She'll choke if I give her water." An ambulance finally arrived, as paramedics hopped off the back. "Shun, can you bring Alice back to the hotel instead?"

"Hold on." The raven-haired agent muted his phone and approached Dan. "Runo encountered an emergency, so I need to pick up Alice. How did your call go with Billy?"

"He's fully aware of the situation, but also worried that Barodius might countersue for poor security. Is Runo okay?"

"Runo's fine. She found an unconscious female civilian and needs to go to the hospital." Shun unmuted his phone. "I'm coming. Send me your current location before you go."

"Texting you now."

After the bluenette left in her own vehicle to follow the ambulance, her raven-haired agent arrived shortly after and found Alice. "What made you two stop here in the first place? At least you're close to the hotel."

"This was unintended. I actually finished my errand early. On our way back, one intersection was closed off due railroad crossing. We took a detour along the beach and saw the civilian girl holding onto the boardwalk railing before she collapsed." The redhead leaned against the boardwalk railing as well. "What if Runo didn't take the detour? What if she patiently waited for the trains to pass? What if—"

"I know what you're thinking, Alice. Runo got tied up with a civilian emergency. I end up leaving Dan alone to handle an incident so I can pick you up. Nobody expected any of this, but all of us at DSP made an oath to protect and serve. Runo knows what she's doing. It's no different than when I followed the paramedics to the hospital when you were stabbed."

Alice stood up and patted her forehead. "You're right. We can't be bystanders and—" She suddenly turned around and saw a short blonde girl staring at her from below. "I knew someone was staring me. Can I help you?"

"I saw your friend take my cousin away in the ambulance."

The redhead descended the boardwalk stairs and approached the blonde girl on the sand. "The unconscious girl was your cousin? What happened to her prior to all this? And what's your name?"

"I'm Chris. Her name's Soon. I'm still a minor."

Shun descended the boardwalk stairs as well and showed his badge to Chris. "I'm a federal agent. Why wait until after the paramedics took your cousin away? Wouldn't she want to see you once she wakes up?"

"We don't have any other family. I don't want to end up in child services or foster care."

Alice approached Chris and kneeled slightly to meet the blonde's eye level. "If Soon doesn't make it, then who will take care of you? Even if Soon wakes up, you two could still be separated. Just tell me how or why Soon collapsed in the first place." Then she whispered, "I won't tell anyone as long as you're honest with me."

That phrase made Shun nervous for unknown reasons as he glanced his high school classmate with unease.

The blonde sighed and explained. "Soon has sickle cell disease. She can get by on most days, but she'll need painkillers on some days. I'm scared that she took too much this time."

"What kind of painkillers?"

"I don't know. She gets them from work." From her pocket, Chris took out an unlabeled bottle. "None of her medications have labels."

Alice stood up and faced the raven-haired agent. "Painkillers alone won't treat the cause of pain in SCD. If these are opioids, then Soon might've overdosed. If she was disoriented and stayed on the beach for the entire afternoon, then she could've easily been dehydrated that way."

Shun opened the bottle, only to find white circular tablets that had no imprints. "Whom exactly does Soon work for?"

That question made Chris frantic as she looked all around. "He's been hanging out on the beach lately for some reason."

"Does he have a name? What does he look like? And what does Soon do at work?"

"His name is Julio. He's bald but buff. Soon only said she works in an assembly line. I don't know the street address, but I know how to get there."

The raven-haired agent searched for anyone with such name and traits in DSP's suspect database on his phone. "There's a Julio Santana...who happens to be a mob boss with ties to Wardington for child labor. He's also active in other cities too."

"Any chance that he's tied to Barodius or the narcotic ring, given this unlabeled medication bottle?" asked Alice.

"No list of known associates, unfortunately." Then he called Runo. "Are you free right now? Keep an eye on the victim. Her name's Soon and—"

"She's awake but still dehydrated. The doctors gave her naloxone after confirming that it was an opioid overdose. Is she a suspect?"

"More like a victim. I'll explain later, but please keep her safe." Shun hung up and gripped his phone tightly. "Runo confirmed that it was an opioid overdose, but Soon is awake now. Chris, are you sure that Julio will be on the beach today?"

"That's been the routine for at least a week now."

Shun checked his watched and then glanced around the beach. "What are you planning?" the redhead asked.

"I'm not sure. Maybe I should return in the evening and find Julio for answers."

"I'm coming with you."

An incoming call from Dan interrupted the conversation. "Shun, we checked all the cameras already. Only one hotel employee entered Barodius's original room, but I suspect that it was the perpetrator in disguise."

"But how did they know that it's Barodius's room? By the way, I have another case to follow later this evening. It has to do with the collapsed victim that Runo is watching in the local hospital."

"No problem. See you later."

The raven-haired agent hung up and announced his plan. "Chris, you should go home for now, but come back here at 7PM. I'll be here with Alice. Here's my contact information."

The blonde girl took the card and nodded. "Thank you. I really hope you can help us."

With Chris away, Shun explained everything to Alice. "I don't want you to get more involved than you need to, but you and I are the only people that Chris trusts right now. This also isn't an official DSP investigation, so I can't spend too much time on it either."

"But you're still curious to see who's behind this."

He froze momentarily. "I guess. That's just how this job is. Anyway, we've been out for too long. I don't want us to be dehydrated either. Dan must be going insane."

"Doesn't he always? Or is it especially worse with this occupation?"

"Anything's possible as a federal agent. It feels like you know what this line of work is like already."

Alice giggled slightly. "Maybe I do, or maybe everything from high school is slowly coming back to me."

Later that evening, most of the beach was clear of people, except for one area occupied by a bald muscular man on a beach chair. Chris later arrived on the beach and approached him. "Julio, I need help. Soon is in the hospital, and—"

"Hold it!" he snapped. "What do you expect me to do? Pay her hospital bills? Then deduct the amount from her wages? Forget it! She's responsible for her own health."

"But she's in the hospital because of the medication you gave her!"

"She should've thought twice when she agreed to work despite the risks from her condition!"

"Really?" Shun suddenly appeared on the boardwalk but walked slowly onto the sand with Alice next to him. "Nice to meet you in person, Julio. You've been on several agencies' radars for child labor."

"You—" Once Julio raised his voice, Chris hid behind Alice. "Is this a setup to blackmail money from me? I'm recording this on my phone right now."

"Nice try, but I'm a federal agent." After showing his badge, Shun then took out the unlabeled medication bottle. "Soon took this medication, and the hospital confirmed that she suffered an opioid overdose. I could charge you for distributing prescription-only medications to individuals other than the person that the medication was prescribed to...but you probably didn't obtain this by prescription to begin with anyway."

"That bottle has no labels on it. You could have created this bottle yourself and be framing me for something I didn't do."

"Soon is more than eager to testify against you in court."

"She won't do that, or else she risks having her cousin over there being sent to foster care. Speaking of court, none of you can touch me because I'll be testifying in court as well."

The raven-haired agent stared in confusion, but Alice suddenly asked, "What makes you think you're any better than the person you're testifying against?"

"Why am I obligated to tell you?"

"A mob boss like you wouldn't turn state's evidence without being offered a promising deal. What do you have against Barodius that local police is so interested in?"

Shun glanced quickly at the redhead, who kept her gaze locked on the mob boss. "If anything bad happens to me, then he walks free. Barodius Meunier asked me for a favor, which I agreed to after thoroughly discussing the terms and conditions. Then someone tipped the police off about embezzlement in his company. He mentioned my name, but I turned state's evidence to protect myself. I sent someone to ransack his room as a warning."

"Basically, you plan to spill the tea about Barodius but won't let him spill the tea about you."

"Is there anything else I can help you two with?" Suddenly, black car with tinted windows pulled up in the beach parking lot. "Otherwise, I need to leave. You have nothing on me about this medication bottle or child labor."

Shun was about to chase after Julio when Alice pulled on his arm. "Forget it. If he really did turn state's evidence, then he's definitely untouchable." Then she faced Chris. "Do you have somewhere safe that you—"

"Runo just texted me that Soon has to stay overnight due to another pain episode," the federal agent interrupted.

The young blonde scratched her head in confusion. "I can stay at a family friend's place, but I don't have enough money for the bus."

"We'll take you there then," Shun offered.

He and Alice took Chris to the family friend's residence as promised. Before sending her off, the redhead took out a few bills from her wallet and placed them in Chris's hand. "Keep this money for emergencies. You know how to reach us."

After Chris left, Shun began drove back to the hotel. "How did you know that Julio is testifying against Barodius?"

"It was just a guess. I didn't think that he would just say that out loud."

"I'm glad your leading questions got us that information. You almost had him talking more until his ride came."

"I know...but everything that Julio said doesn't prove anything. Maybe there's a way to make him accountable for Soon after Barodius's trial is over. But you're leaving immediately after the trial ends, right?"

"That's the plan. I could let Billy know what happened, and maybe Wardington police can look into this on their own time. But how do you know so much about these random facts? Like with the sawed-off gun barrel and managing sickle cell disease."

"Maybe I've seen more random things than you have. During both my desk job and field work, I've encountered many types of stories and situations—transporting and storing illegal goods, inhumane labor conditions, malpractice in healthcare, and many more unethical things. I'm the one looking for evidence and publish my findings to uncover what's really happening."

"Oh...kind of like what I do at DSP."

"I'm not at your level, Shun. You guys get all the high profile cases that make headlines every day. I just do my best to speak up for the wronged and helpless."

That phrase had the raven-haired agent pondering for the rest of the night in the hotel.