Chapter Two:

Detective Tobias Miller

Around noon later that day, Karen Miller sat outside her precinct, wearing her blue police uniform, complete with tie and badge. A beat-up old car pulled up beside her, and her dad rolled down the window.

"Hey, kiddo," he said. "Ready for lunch."

Karen smiled. "As always," she said, pulling open the door and sliding inside. She and her dad gave each other a one-armed hug, and she shut the door.

"So, where to today?" her father asked.

Detective Tobias Miller was an older man in his late fifties, with scraggly light brown hair the same color as Karen's, with a soft smile, and wrinkles around his eyes that crinkled when he laughed.

"Cheetah Nick's Barbecue," Karen replied confidently.

"Cheetah Nick's?" he said. "Are you sure, honey? That place can get pretty pricey?"

"I know," Karen said with a smile.

Her dad shook his head. "Alright. Cheetah Nick's it is."

He pulled out of the precinct's parking lot and out onto the busy street. "So how are things in the Thirty-Fourth?" he asked.

Karen shrugged. "Pretty slow today," she said. "I heard the Sixteenth saw some action with an armored car today, but we didn't end up getting roped into that one."

"Yeah," her dad said. "Though, I hear the rangers did most of that work."

"Yeah," Karen said, remembering her run-in with the red ranger earlier that morning. Her eyes fell on what looked like a pretty hefty case file sitting between them.

"What about you?" she said. "That looks like a pretty important case."

For just a moment, Karen saw her dad's eyes shift uncertainly. He hesitantly patted it. "Oh, no," he said. "That's nothing. "Just a bunch of tax fraud cases. A lot of those this time of year. You know."

Karen could sense her dad was lying, but she knew well enough not to push in case the details were sensitive. They pulled into a new parking lot, up to a sign showing a cartoon cheetah standing over a grill and holding up a rack of ribs. They got out, walked inside, and up to the counter.

"Hi, could we get the Trashcan Special, please?" Karen asked, before her dad could say anything.

Her dad's eyes grew wide. "Honey, that's so expensive," he said.

Karen smirked. "I know."

As her dad started opening his wallet, Karen put her hand on it and pulled out her own card, handing it to the cashier. "Today's on me," she said. "It's not every day your dad gets honored by the city with a Lifetime of Service award."

Detective Miller stared at his daughter, then scowled. "Your mother told you," he said.

Karen shrugged. "Maybe."

The cashier handed over a metal trash can lid piled high with all sorts of ribs and brisket and roast chicken. "So," Karen said, accepting it. "I am taking you out to celebrate with your favorite meal, from your favorite place."

Detective Miller looked like he wanted to argue but was swayed by the sight and smell of the delicious meats his daughter was carrying. He shook his head in defeat and followed her over to a table.

"I didn't want to make a big deal out of it," he said.

"It is a big deal, though," Karen said, pulling off a couple of ribs for herself and then spinning the lid for him to get some. "A really big deal. You've made a difference, Dad. You've done a lot of good for a lot of people, and now you're getting recognized for it."

Detective Miller shifted uncomfortably in his seat, dipping some potato wedges in the barbecue sauce dripping from his ribs. "I didn't do it for the recognition," he said.

"Well, you're getting some recognition," Karen said, shaking a chicken leg at him. "So, deal with it."

Her dad smiled, taking a bite of brisket as well. "So, anyway," he said. "How's life in the townhouse? We've been missing you at home."

Karen smiled. "It's good," she said. "I've missed you too. Though I've noticed someone's been leaving me sour gummies in that little secret compartment we found outside my front door."

Her dad put on an innocent face. "Couldn't have been me," he said. "You must have a secret admirer."

"Uh huh," Karen said. "Sure."

Her dad took another bite of his brisket. "Speaking of that," he said. "Now, that you don't have Mom and Dad around anymore, you seeing anyone yet?"

"Dad!"

Her dad raised his sauce-covered fingers. "What? Your mom wants to know, not me."

Karen rolled her eyes. "Just eat your ribs."

An hour later, Karen's dad dropped her back off at the precinct. Karen hugged him one more time before she got out. "Congratulations, dad," she said. Her eyes fell on the file between them one more time, and she remembered his anxious look when she'd asked about it.

"You are . . . staying out of trouble, right?" she asked. "Not putting yourself in any unnecessary danger?"

Her dad glanced at her for just a second, that same anxious look in his eyes. "I'll be okay, Kare Bear," he said. "I didn't get this far in my career by being a pushover."

Karen couldn't help but notice he didn't answer her question, but still didn't push any further. She got out of the car and shut the door.

"See you on Sunday?" he asked through the open window.

"See you Sunday," she said.

"Love you."

"Love you."

Karen waved as he drove off, a strange chill running through her as his car disappeared down the road. She shook her head and headed inside.

In his car, Detective Miller's face turned serious. He glanced down at the file beside him, that same fear and anxiety he had shown storming inside of him. He had a meeting to get to.

He drove into the heart of the city and up to one of the tallest skyscrapers, one bearing the symbol of the New Tech United Police. He got out and walked in, stepping up to the secretary's desk.

"Hi," he said. "I'm Detective Tobias Miller. I had a meeting with Commissioner Axelrod."

"Ah, yes, Detective Miller," the secretary said. "The commissioner's been waiting for you. You can go right on up."

"Thank you."

Tobias passed the desk and stepped into the elevator. At the top floor, the door opened onto a lavishly furnished office looking out over the city. The commissioner stood waiting for him.

"Tobias," he said. He was an older man, Tobias's senior by about a decade, with thinning white hair and a thick dark mustache, wearing a finely pressed gray suit and tie. He greeted Tobias by pulling him into a firm hug. "It has been too long."

Tobias smiled slightly. "Hello, Vernon."

Commissioner Axelrod glanced down. "You have barbecue sauce on your tie."

Tobias quickly looked down and did his best to cover it up. "Oh, sorry," he said. "I just had lunch with my daughter."

"I see," the commissioner said. "And how is Karen doing down there at the thirty-fourth?"

"She's great," Tobias said, following his friend back to his finely crafted wood desk. "She's doing well out there."

"That's great to hear." The commissioner sat down in his high-backed leather chair, while Tobias took the small cushioned chair across from him. "Now," Vernon said. "I understand you have something for me. It had better be good. I've been getting a lot of complaints about you over the last few weeks from pretty much every major corporation in the city."

"I know," Tobias said. "And it is, sir. It's very big."

He handed over his case file to the commissioner. Vernon flipped it open and scanned through it, his eyes growing wider by the moment. "There appears to be a criminal conspiracy infecting every level of the corporate and political world," Tobias said. "Millions of dollars siphoned off every year, all unaccounted for, but well covered up. I keep finding this trend over and over again in every single company I've investigated. I believe they even have people within the force, helping cover their tracks."

Vernon's face grew serious as he looked over it all. "Detective Lennox was looking into corruption at Roxcorp before he was in that accident," he said, tapping one of the files.

"That's right, sir. And Anya Ross was investigating Miramount before her sudden heart attack last year."

Vernon looked up from the files at his friend. "You think they were murdered?"

"I think someone made them disappear because they were getting too close," Tobias said.

Vernon looked at his friend with concern. "And you're sure you want to keep pursuing this case? What about Miranda? And Karen? What happens to them if these people come after you."

"With all due respect, sir," Tobias said. "If this conspiracy runs as deep as I think it does, My family and I are already being hurt by it. And so are you. And so is your family. We need to expose this thing. For the good of everyone. I don't care what happens to me."

Vernon looked at his old partner in exasperation, shaking his head as if he'd been dealing with this attitude for nearly thirty years. "Alright, Tobias," he said. "You're right. Let's get this thing done as soon as possible. What do you need?"

"A dedicated taskforce. The support of the city and the banks to get the company records. That will get us started."

Vernon nodded. "Alright," he said. "I can do that." He closed the folder and made to hand it back. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Is this the only copy of this evidence?"

"No," Tobias said. "I've made several copies of everything."

Vernon smirked. "Of course you have," he said, pulling it back. "I hope you won't mind if I keep this then. To present the case to the board."

Tobias shook his head. "Of course not."

"Alright," Vernon said, tucking the file under his arm and rising to his feet. "I imagine you'd like to get back to work on this as soon as possible then."

"Very much so, sir."

"Then I won't keep you."

The commissioner saw his old friend back to the elevator, letting him on. "See you at your recognition ceremony tonight?" he asked.

Tobias looked uncomfortable again. "Maybe," he muttered.

The elevator doors closed, the two friends nodding to each other one last time. Once Tobias was gone, Vernon's face turned into a scowl.

"Dammit, Tobias," he said, turning back to his desk and chucking the files in the fireplace. "I tried to steer you away from this case."

He watched the papers burn for a moment, then picked up his phone. "Yeah, this is Axelrod," he said. "I just got done speaking with Miller. No, the situation is far worse than we suspected. He knows way more than we expected. I need the Iron Claw."