"I'm sorry, I have never seen the guy you are talking about before. Maybe if you have a picture, I can share it with the rest of my staff…"

Part of him felt relief at the news that Bobbie hadn't been seen here before…at least not by the owner who, by his own words, spent most of his life in the small bar along Hyde.

The other part wondered what the connection might be then. Or did he use disguises when out and about looking for a victim? But why not do so when fencing jewelry?

Getting a picture of Bobbie would be the next problem. Steve had no way to access personnel data without a warrant- the sheer idea making his stomach churn. If Mike found out what he was doing behind his back, the consequences could be dire.

For what it was worth, he didn't have a positive ID yet. This could indeed all be some insane case of mistaken identity. Bobbie was a common name and the description could fit a lot of other people.

But his gut feeling said otherwise.

Unfortunately, there was a big difference between fact and feeling, especially when it came to a warrant.

"Listen, I talked to Amber's parents the other day. They said that your colleague…a…a Sergeant Haseejian said that you guys think this was a planned attack. Like somebody had been watching her for a while…"

Nodding at the bar owner's words, Steve absent-mindedly twirled the glass of iced tea in his hands before facing the bald man again, trying to keep his expression neutral.

"That's correct. Crimes such as these are usually well planned out. We are assuming that whoever attacked Amber was watching her, possibly following her around until it was the right time to strike."

"Well, I have a couple other female employees and while we do make sure they leave in pairs I…I guess I am worried that this guy will attack again. How soon do you think until you find this killer?"

It was a question he dreaded the most. How could he possibly give an accurate timeline on an investigation they had so little to go on right now? If Mike was here, he would come up with some eloquent detour to do both, reassure the bar owner that they were doing everything in their power while leaving the pressing question conveniently unanswered.

It was one of the many things Steve admired about his partner- being matter of fact while doing so in the most cordial and professional matter.

"We have to make sure we're looking into every angle…", the young inspector replied, hoping to buy himself some time, "Until we find out if our killer had a personal interest in Amber or if he sought her out at random, I would make sure that you take any precautions necessary to keep your staff safe."

There. That sounded good.

And yet, the owner must have sensed his insecurities when he just nodded indifferently, then turned around to wash dirty glasses by the bar.

Steve watched him for a few more moments, trying to ignore the bad gut feeling this case was beginning to give him. Worst of all, he feared that Bobbie getting dragged into the crosshairs of the investigation would only be the beginning of a hellacious nightmare of hurt feelings and antagonism.