Brice woke early on Saturday Morning, before Caroline or David which was typical.  The house was quiet and as he shifted in bed, Caroline rolled away from him and dropped an arm off the side of the bed and sighed.  The television was off and the faintest hints of morning light spilled through the small frosted window in the bathroom.  Yesterday seemed like the tail end of a nightmare.

Sitting out on the back porch Brice felt the cool and crisp spring weather and smiled brightly.  It was a beautiful morning.  He sat down with a hot cup of black coffee and read the morning paper.  He began to forget what happened last night as he realized that he truly lived for mornings like this.  This was why he worked so hard to maintain his standard of living.  This morning and mornings like it.  

He knew his wife would be up soon and may come out to join him.  For the most part it is typical Saturday morning articles on the front page and throughout.  One story however makes it to the front page and onto a later page as a continuation.  It seems that the son-in-law to Senator Benjamin Cardin of Maryland has turned up missing after a recent trip to New York.  Deborah his wife has contacted New York authorities and is now contacting Maryland authorities to aid in the search should he turn up.  Foul play is suspected.

The Cardin's lived in his neighborhood.

Brice did not know the Cardin's very well.  Their house was the biggest in the area, with a brick front, a fenced yard and an in-ground pool.  Their two small terriers were extremely yappy and he had seen Mrs. Cardin walking them often, usually when he was out getting the mail or mowing the lawn.  They spoke once or twice, but that was about it.  He remembered Mr. Cardin though, and very well since he often sped down the street in his expensive sports car.  Now he was an arrogant bastard.

For the life of him, he did not remember anyone ever visiting them, not that he paid that much attention to the goings on in the neighborhood.  But Caroline was grateful for their presence since the price of their house bolstered the values of the rest in the area, or so she said.  And he remembered her saying something about them always keeping their blinds shut in the front so no one could see inside.  And the fact that their lights were out every Halloween so no one ever went to their door.

Brice was not a detective, but a shift supervisor.  It had always been something he had wanted to get into, but over the years the timing had never been right, the opportunities escaping time and time again.  And when he became a Corporal, and then a Sergeant, the openings in specialized units like Burglary, Homicide, Investigative Services Team, Warrant Task Squad and the rest became fewer and fewer.

His mind had wandered, and he looked down to see his coffee cup was empty and that he had re-read the same article in the newspaper four times without catching a trace of meaning.  So he went to the kitchen and poured his second cup.  He could hear his wife moving around in the bedroom and then her steps on the stairs.   Damn but these houses were built like crap!  He will never buy a house built by Pulte Realty again! 

Caroline shuffled into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of coffee and mixed some milk into it, kissing Brice while she did so.  Her breath tainted with the Mint of toothpaste and mouthwash.  "Brice, I'll need to go to the grocery later today, is there anything you want?  And I'm assuming David will be with me most of the day."

Brice thought about that.  He had intended to take David to the Dojo with  him this morning.  He was supposed to be there by 9:00 and handle the extended 8-12 year old class scheduled from 9:30-11:30.  It was a class that David often attends with  him.  And then the Adult class started at 11:30-12:30, which ended his day.  David, when he attends the morning class, usually helps him with the adult class, but not on the mat.  Or he practices until 12:30 when Brice takes him out to lunch.

Saturdays were usually Father and Son days for him...at least that is how Brice thought about them.

"We need more coffee, but other than that I can't think of anything.  But I was thinking David would be coming with me today.  Are you sure about taking him with you?  Maybe its a one-off thing and it won't happen again."

"Ok, Wait here." Caroline disappeared for a moment into the kitchen and returned with the digital camera.  She clicked it on and looked at it for a second then showed Brice the picture in the small view screen.  It was "Zn" on metallic skin.  "Do you think this was a normal Saturday.  A day at the Dojo , really?  What if you change while going through your movements?  I understand you like to keep your routines but what's going to happen if suddenly 20 or 30 people know about this?  Do you want David to know?  It seemed like we were keeping it from him last night."

"I've got to make sure these come off this thing," she mumbled to herself as she fiddled with the back of the camera.  "If you want to take David and go teach class today, you go ahead, Brice.  I support your decisions right up to the point where they drag you away and put you into a laboratory for testing."

Brice gritted his teeth and thought for a moment.  "Fine, you win.  As always.  I'll call my partner and see if he can sub for me today.  I'll say i have a skin condition and don't know if its contagious or not.  If I have to I suppose I can even take some of that accumulated sick time I have.  I hate to ruin a perfect year so far though.  But you did give me another thought: Experiments.  If you take David out I can try some experiments to see if I can make the change happen.  If I can do it deliberately, or rather find out what conditions causes the change to happen,  I can probably avoid whatever causes it to happen....am I making any sense here?"  he said as he picked up the kitchen phone.

Charles Landing picked up in the first ring, "Brice, I'm glad you called.  You have got to get over here today.  You'll never believe who I ran into and who agreed to come over and give a demonstration today, Dave Batista, that wrestler turned MMA.  That guy is just awesome.  Sure his record has some losses on it, but come on, this guy has some moves."

The phone beeps, indicating another incoming call.  A quick glance at the number indicates that it's the police station.

"Charley.  You've got to be kidding!  I'm really glad to hear he's gonna be there today but I can't imagine what drew him to our Dojo.  Look, I'm really sorry, but I can't make it in at all today.  I, wait a minute, I have a call on the other line, its the station calling.  Hold on a minute."

Brice was awfully glad of the interruption.  He hated lying and avoided even the whitest of lies when possible. It seemed to him the closer someone was to him, the worse he felt about it.

He clicked over to the other line while he carried the wireless phone and his re-filled coffee cup into the living room. "Heeello"  he said into the phone.  He sat down in his favorite chair, put down his cup, and picked up the remote.  He switched on the television and turned down the volume so the talking head sounded like nothing more than a whisper.  It was set on CNN.  He liked it in the background because of the bulletin line on the bottom.  He could choose to pay attention or not.  And he had no idea how long these conversations were going to take.

"Jennings, this is Donaldson.  I hope you slept well last night, I hope you are having a good morning.  I hope you haven't turned on the news yet, so that what I have to tell you isn't tainted by that garbage.  Cardin's son-in-law was kidnapped and a body turned up in the middle of bumfuck West Virginia.  We are trying to get some better information from the authorities over there, but there's nothing but hicks in Hicksville if you know what I mean.  To make a long story short, Cardin and his daughter need an escort to make a positive ID before the body is moved and trying to keep this as tight as possible, I'm sending you.  Let your wife and kid know.  It's a long drive.  Day trip, no overnights.  Probably be about a 12 hour round trip.  And while you are over there, I know you are out of jurisdiction, but use some of the knowledge from those early classes you took to just poke your head around."

Brice used to own property in Romney West Virginia.  But long ago he sold it to his mother and step-father since it adjoined their property.  When his mother died, his step-father had sold the property and adjoining land for quite a penny and moved to North Carolina where his brother and his family lived.  So, from experience he knew that the trip to Romney was a 3.5 hour drive.  So that would not be too bad, assuming he only had to add an hour or so to reach bumfuck, or whatever hospital or morgue the body is location.

"Damn."  he said a little too loud.  "Sir, I...Yes, sir.  I assume they know I'm coming, and that I am taking one of  the unmarked cars?"  At least he would not have to lie to Charley.  "I can get cleaned up and be at the station in thirty minutes."  At least he would be traveling in a suit and tie and not his uniform.

'Caroline is going to be pissed!' he thought to himself.

David comes running into the kitchen and roars as he jumps into a fighting stance before Brice then gives a 'kee-yah' as he punches Brice in the gut.  "Mom says we aren't going to the dojo today," David makes a comment.  Caroline did not follow David downstairs, so must be getting ready upstairs still.  David is in his pajamas which look like a karate outfit with a fake black belt cascading down the leg of the pants.  On the back of the top is a picture of Ryu from the Street Fighter Series.

Brice did not get an answer to his questions from Donaldson.  The man seemed to be distracted by someone talking to him on his end of the line.  He still had Charley waiting on the other line.  But he laughed at his son.  "Hold on there sport, I'm on the phone here."

He had to assume the answers to his questions were all positive, it only made sense.  "I'll be there shortly."  he said into the phone, hoping Donaldson heard him.  He then switched over to Charley's line.  "Still there?  Good.  Look, Charley, I just got called into work and its going to take me out of Maryland.  I have to report in thirty minutes.  Please give Mr. Batista my regards and apologies for not making it today.  And I was calling to ask you to pick up my morning and afternoon classes.  I'm not sure if Scott is well enough yet to take either of them, he's been out all week."  

He listened for another minute as Charley, in his friendly, off-hand way, bitched him out but agreed anyway.  "I really appreciate it.  But duty calls."

After hanging up the phone he saw David standing there looking up at him.  He stood up from the chair slowly, and then tackled his son.  They hit the floor with Brice on the bottom, tickling David in a frenzy.  David screamed with laughter and tried his best to tickle back before diving over Brice's head, doing a forward roll to his feet, and spinning around in a Cat-Stance.  He waved his hands around trying to imitate a kung fu master, and moved his lips quickly while issuing sporatic words "You will never catch me, Dadyson!" He said  in a poor imitation of a Chinese accent.  And then he ran up the stairs.

Laughing, Brice chased him up the stair to the second floor, but stopped at the top and entered his own bedroom.  He called to David as he quickly went into the bathroom to get ready for work.  His wife was in the bedroom.  "Sorry David, I have to get ready to go now, I'm in a hurry."  A brief tingling sensation washed over his skin as he stopped chasing David down and then it was gone.

He started the shower and then pulled out his shaving gear as he spoke to Caroline.  "I know what we talked about, but I just got called in for the Cardin case.  The body of Senator Cardin's son-in law was recently found in West Virginia.  I am supposed to escort the Senator and his daughter to West Virginia to identify the body and poke my nose around about it. Though I suspect that the Feds are already there and looking around as well.  And although I don't think we necessarily need it, that is Day-back and Call-back for me you know, since this is my day off.  And it will probably take about 12 hours, or so I'm told.  That's 12 hours of Time and a Half, plus I get the day back.  I know how you worry about money dear, this should help with our vacation fund for the summer."

Caroline stopped smearing a light coating of make-up on her face the sponge squeezed between her forefinger and thumb.  She knew that some things were inevitable and the memory of the first years of their marriage and one of their anniversaries got post-poned for a sting operation.  When Donaldson heard about what had happened he personally cleared a restaurant after the fact for them, and it had hurt initially but she soon realized the wife of a police officer has to make certain concessions.  This was different in several ways but the look in Brice's eyes told her that this was on his agenda and there was little that she could say or do to keep him from it.

He saw that a fresh towel was hung up by the shower and left the bathroom door open so they could still talk, while he jumped in, adjusted the water temperature, and quickly soaped himself up.  There was silence for a little bit as Brice showered, then the curtain slid back slightly.  Caroline stood there crossing her arms and looking at him.  It wasn't the sexy look as though she were about to join him, but rather the look of concern like when David had got the chicken pox badly.  "Brice, be careful.  We don't know about that thing that happens to you.  It could cause some serious problems.  It's strange and frightening and if the tabloid are correct, folks with strange powers have gone up missing.  Not that I think that Black Licorice is the cure for cancer or that the BatBoy lives with Elvis."  She stopped talking.  Brice may have been about to speak but she spoke is a sob, "Just don't go missing, Brice."

This was quickly followed by, "Damnit!  I've gotta fix my make-up."

Brice stood there with his mouth hanging open as his wife turned and walked to the double sink.  She was really serious and truly concerned.  He quickly finished and turned off the water.  He grabbed the towel and saw that she was still at the sink, looking at his reflection.  She had not yet tried to re-apply her makeup, but had cleaned up the mess she'd made of her base.

As he dried himself, he approached her from behind.  When he was dry enough, he dropped the towel and took her in his arms.  He pressed her to him, her back to his front, as he looked at her in the mirror.  Damn she was beautiful.  And he thought they made the most perfect couple in the world.  She was the perfect height with the top of her head just touching the underside of his chin.  Her hair was lighter than his, and her eyes blue to his brown, but the differences were what made them special.  A teacher and a police officer, so damn stereotypical.

"I will not loose myself dear, and I have no plans to disappear.  And I cannot imagine anyone convincing me to do anything other than fight tooth and nail to get back to you and David."   He kissed the top of her head and gave her a strong hug.  "Now, I'd better get dressed before we use this bathroom for other than its intended purpose."  He added with a smile.

He moved into the bedroom and started getting dressed.  

Standing next to the open door of his truck, he gave his wife one more hug and kiss.

"Catch some bad guys, Dad!"  his son called through the window screen.  It was his usual farewell as he went to work.

"Will do, sport.  Take care of your mom while I'm away, but remember...whose in charge?"

"I am!"  David yelled out to him.

"In your dreams."  he said.

Softer, and to his wife he added more.  "I promise to be careful, and you try not to worry.  And I may have to be back this way anyway to pick up the Cardins', unless they're waiting for me at the station.  But in any case just remember that I love you and I will be back late tonight or sometime tomorrow."

She kissed him and was clearly sad and a little scared, maybe a little more scared than usual but longer trips always frightened her, "okay," she said.  "Love you."

*****

The Cardin's were waiting at the station and Donaldson was waiting for Brice.  He offered a handshake and introduced the Cardin's to him, "This is Deborah and senator Benjamin.  Senator, Deborah, this is Brice Jennings.  Sergeant and a good friend.  He'll take care of you on your trip."

Brice shook their hands and gave his greetings, then accepted the report file from Captain Donaldson.  It was inside an orange inter-departmental correspondence envelope, and it was pretty thick.

"The car is waiting, Brice."  The car wasn't the typical faire.  It was a black unmarked Cadillac with a modified interior.

The department had only one or two of these vehicles, as far as Brice knew, and he had never actually seen one of them before.  Used for dignitary protection details, they had a sort-of mythic air about them because they were never actually used.  Still, the department spent money to keep them up to date and serviceable.  At least he would have something to talk about on Monday morning when he went back to work.

He accepted the keys, asked for a moment, and then put some equipment into the trunk from his personal car and his assigned patrol vehicle.  When he was out of their sight for a moment he checked to be sure the backup pistol on his right ankle was secure and that his shoulder holster was not showing.  It was the only comfortable way to carry a firearm on long drives.

"Thank you for doing this Sergeant Jennings.  The Cardin family appreciates you taking the time away from your family for this sensitive matter with ours." Senator Cardin said as he stepped into the vehicle.  Deborah smiled with a sad look in her eyes and simply followed her father into the vehicle.  They were of course dressed down but still looked like they could attend a cookout on the white house lawn.

"You are most welcome, Senator.  It is close to a four hour drive to get there.  If you or your daughter need to use the facilities here before we hit the road, now would be a good time.  If you need to stop for a break or food along the way, don't hesitate to ask."

He opened the door to the car and looked inside.  He placed the envelope on the front passenger seat and pressed the button that unlocked the other doors.  He marveled at the modified interior.  Once the Cardin's were in place, Donaldson put a hand on Brice's shoulder, "Brice, sorry about the short notice.  I just needed someone I could trust.  Call in if you find anything interesting."  Donaldson gives a firm handshake and a slap on the shoulder before letting Brice get in and drive off.

The interior of the vehicle is an exercise in gadgetry and comfort.  The front of the vehicle seemed entirely separate from the back.  The back had been modified enough to make room for a tight third row with the second row reversed.  Separate music stations for the front and back which the Cardin's had already taken advantage of to have the news playing so that they could hear if the media was saying anything.  The ride was smooth and the GPS already programmed with a separate sheet of paper in Brice's packet to indicate potential stops along the route that would be quick and efficient with minimal contact for the Senator.

The ride was very smooth and comfortable.  It seemed more like a limousine than anything else.  He rolled down the window for a minute to see the thickness of the glass.  If this vehicle was armored, then the suspension steering and breaks were probably souped up as well.  It was a common mistake among the criminal underground to add 2000 lbs of armor plate and glass to a vehicle without significant alterations to the suspension, steering and breaks.  

He drove down 70 to 66 and settled back for the ride.  He could hear the music the senator had selected, though it was not to his personal taste.  It was too bad this baby did not come with the new Autonomous Navigation System, not even his department would spring for that kind of money.  He wondered when he would get a chance to look at the case file.  By his GPS' display, he saw that the total length of the trip, barring stops, would be 4 hours 7 minutes.  But he knew that construction delays could drag it out much longer.

It could be far worse.  United Hospital Center was in Clarksburg West Virginia.  It could have been all the way out in Charlston, something like 5.5 hours without any delays.  That drive would surely suck.

He glanced at the rear-view mirror, occasionally, back at the senator and his daughter.  They were casually talking, though the partition and the music did not let him hear what they were saying.  He suspected that the senator purposefully had the volume that high so they could talk privately.  But they did not ask to stop along the way, thankfully.

Still, it had taken a lot longer than expected to reach the hospital, and they had only stopped once for gas.  He really needed to use the bathroom.

When they pulled up he saw that the medical complex was huge.  What could he expect from an address on Hospital Drive?  Luckily there were plenty of signs and the directions told him which building he was supposed reach.

This was a very busy metropolitan hospital, but he had been instructed to go into the resident parking area.  Their idea of the word resident was much different from his own.  He immediately saw this was the area for doctors and other important people.  He supposed a visiting Senator was important enough.

He was not surprised that there was an attendant at the entrance.  As he approached, the man just waived them through.  The government tags, the tinted windows...he guessed they had a certain clout all of their own.  Luckily the parking was free.  He pulled into a vacant space and turned off the car.  Exiting, he went to the door where the senator's daughter was sitting and opened it for her.  He was glad to see the senator get out on his own.

What surprised him most was the lack of news media.  He expected to have to fight through a crowd to get the senator and his daughter inside.

"I suppose we should just go on inside, then."  He said to both of them.  She was red-faced, on the verge of tears, and with a white handkerchief in her hand.  He was stone-faced.  A glance on the inside revealed that they had been drinking spring water, although a stocked bar was available.  He imagined that the wine or harder spirits would be broken out on the way back.  

Brice grabbed the file from the front seat, secured the vehicle, and led them into the hospital.  He supposed they would have to ask around for where the morgue was located.

After some questions, the appropriate people and places were located.  The hospital staff assigned to the "freezer" were solemn and respectful.  Also present were a couple of officers who had transported the body to Clarksburg.  The Officers nodded politely to the Senator and his daughter, but remained on the outside of the room.  They were in uniform as expected.

Brice introduced them to the officers at the door and then turned to Senator Cardin.  "Sir, do you mind if I join you at first?"  he asked.  "I would also like to see what happened to your son."

Cardin only nodded before the three of them went in.  The place was cold.  A drawer had been pulled out of the wall and the doctor in charge snapped on rubber gloves and pulled back the sheet carefully.  Deborah immediately broke down crying, "Oh God, it is Zach."  Senator Cardin held onto his daughter while he looked at the body.  "It is my son-in-law," he said with a quaver in his voice.  Brice is able to see that there is a bullet wound in the neck of the body.  Cardin and his daughter move off to the side.  The doctor indicated to Brice while he stood there, "Gunshot to the neck is the cause of death.  Not a quick death unfortunately.  And the bullet went clean through so no evidence.  The body was found by a tour guide, I'm told, in a run-off stream of the Adena Caverns.  Nothing in the clothing, and it's a little worn, but it's in a bag for the family over there.  May I?"  The doctor is soft spoken and wants to cover the body back up and slip it back into storage.

he clears his throat, "We'll do the embalming here, and then have the body transported wherever you've got his resting place prepared."

"Of course," Cardin said.  "Honey, let's go sit somewhere, maybe get a little food to fill our stomachs."

Brice held out his hand to stop the doctor for a moment while the senator and his daughter left the room.  "I'll be right out for you sir.  And I will bring the clothing."  he said to the senator.

"May I inspect the body, Dr?  I assume a crime lab has gone over this body thoroughly, but I just wanted to go over it myself if you don't mind."  he asked as he turned back to the body.  He leaned in closer to the body to examine the wound.  He was looking for gun-shot residue which would indicate that the shot was from close range.  It would appear as gray dimpling on the skin and clothes and leave traces of the gunpowder from the weapon that fired the shot.  In the absence of the residue he was looking for evidence that the skin around the wound had been purposefully cleaned to erase the evidence.

When he was done with that he asked the doctor for assistance turning the body over.  He was looking to see where the exit wound and entrance wound was located.  The exit wound, even in soft tissue, would be larger than the entrance wound.  He was also looking to see what angle the shot was fired from.  Was he on his knees and the attacker fired down at him?  Was it from directly in front of him?

"Directly in front of him.  Plus, based on other evidence, he might have been holding his hands up as if in self-defense."

Once he determined the direction and angle the bullet traveled, he examined the man's arms, hands, knees and feet.  As he did so he asked a few questions.  He was looking for abrasions that might indicate a fight.  Evidence beneath his fingernails maybe.  Brice did not find any evidence of a fight, perhaps indicating that while the man clearly didn't want to die, he had perhaps willingly been in the company of his killers.

"Doctor, um do you know the time of death and which crime lab processed the body and clothing?" 

"The Crime Lab in Adena Gorge, small town, but a good place for a high tech facility for the Troopers who need to research.  Good secret.  Good place."

"Maybe I will have an opportunity to check out that lab while I'm in the area."

He felt rather stupid actually.  If he had had the time to review the case file under his arm he would probably have that information.  But he realized suddenly that if he had reviewed the file then its findings would have influenced his perceptions.  It was probably much better this way.

When Brice was done, the physician covered the body again and pushed the drawer back in carefully.  "The embalming process will begin tomorrow, so that the body can be shipped to Maryland for burial."

He nodded at that and moved to the bag of clothing.  He moved the bag to a table long enough to lay out a body and pulled out the clothes.  He laid the clothes out as if there was someone wearing them and then examined them as well. 'Found in a stream...' he said under his breath to himself as he looked at the clothes.  

"What can you tell me about the Adena Caverns and the area where the body was found?"  he asked the coroner.

"Sister caverns to Senaca.  Other than that I don't know.  I don't spelunk."  Brice put the clothing out in front of him, dress pants, a white button up with cuffs that look like there were permanently rolled.  The clothes, other than some soiling on the collar, blood or soot or something, looked good.  The shoes were Italian leather.  Obviously not something you'd go hiking in or even visiting the hills of West Virginia unless you were a senator or the senator's step-son in this case.  Some of the old stories about the Cardin's came to mind and if he remembered correctly, they enjoyed hiking, usually in the Rockies, but it simply meant they knew what to wear.  It seemed like he was out of place in more than one way.

There was no wallet, no jewelry, it seemed that he'd been shot and left the clothes on his back for his less than sanctimonious dumping. 

Brice examined the clothes carefully, noting where the blood was located, the soiling of the shoes and clothes.  From their condition, it did not look as if he had been dragged. Was he carried to the creek?.  And then he looked closer and remembered the body.  Should there have been more blood on the clothes?  What was that black stuff, Soot?  And he examined that closer.  Was he killed and then someone put these clothes on him and carried him to the creek?  He tried to imagine the amount of blood he would have on his clothes if he wore them while he was shot...and the coroner said it was not a quick death!  These clothes should be soaked with blood.  So he must have been changed into them after he was dead.

"Just a minute here doctor.  I need to check something."

He opened the file and found the Crime Lab's examination report.  He looked at the summaries of what the detectives in this agency thought happened.  Regardless of the situation, he knew that these clothes should have been held as evidence since it was a homicide case.  He wondered why they were not.

The report seemed to indicate that the clothes were not worn at the time of death but that they were indeed Mr. Cardin's.  The report also confirms that they were being worn when the body was found in the creek.  The clothes had been scanned for unusual evidence but no information of value was found.  The report, the body, the current situation all seemed to be dead ends.  The only value would be if Cardin could sit up and say what happened, but wouldn't that be an easy solution to every case?  Brice seemed to be lost in contemplation as his mind ran circles about the information and getting no where.  The coroner said in a little louder voice, "Officer?" snapping him out of it.

Brice clamped his teeth together at the rousing notes and at the same time in his head he heard the clang of metal on metal.  Alarmed for only a second, an orderly apologized, "Sorry. I thought you all were done with the body.  Just closed the drawer, best to keep em cold."  The metallic sound was simply the drawer closing.

"If you are done here?" The coroner seemed to indicate that enough foolishness had passed in the "freezer".

Brice nodded.  "Certainly, yes, sorry about that."  He closed the file, still thoughtful.  He then gathered up the clothes and put them back into the bag.  "I appreciate all your help Doctor."

Brice Jennings left the room still somewhat confused.  It seemed that so many things were left out of the report and it seemed oddly incomplete.

When he returned to the corridor outside he immediately searched for the Senator and his daughter.

The Senator was talking to a nurse and he spotted Deborah sitting in a chair.  He approached her and sat down next to her.  Her face was red and it was worse around her eyes.  He handed her the bag.  "Again, I am truly sorry for your loss ma'm.  Do you know what he was supposed to be doing in West Virginia?  His reason for being here in the first place?"

Deborah Westfall rubbed her eyes and looked upwards as if the act would contain her tears, and perhaps it did for a moment.  "He was supposed to be in New York on a business trip, he called me from New York, I recognized the area code on my cell.  He always stayed at the New Yorker, as high a floor as he could get to see the skyline.  Someone must have brought him to West Virginia to," she paused as her word choked.  "to die."

Ben Cardin had his glasses sitting on the table.  "It's alright, Deb.  I'll get people on this.  We'll find out who did this and they will be brought to justice.  We'll know everything.  Sergeant, I spoke with your Captain before we left.  If I need to drive Deb and myself back I can, and you can stay to continue if you'd like.  I'd prefer to have one of our own men involved in this instead of just the local boys.  It means more when you are looking after your neighbors.  To the officers around here, he's just another fatality.  You know what family means, right?"  It was a rhetorical question that Cardin asked, but the offer of whether or not Brice needed to stay to do any further investigation still hung in the air.

Brice nodded.  He knew that it would be against department policy to have the senator drive the car, but Captain Donaldson had the authority to make that decision.  "I still have to call it in sir, but I think you driving her back might be the best course of action."

He looked over at the nurse the senator was talking to a moment ago.  She had a sour expression on her face as she punched keys on her computer.  He knew that the senator would have his people working on funeral arrangements.  They would likely get a state police escort for the body in transit.

He put that out of his mind and focused on what he was supposed to be focusing on.  "Mrs. Westfall, can you pull up the exact time and date of that last call from your husband from your cell phone?"  He asked Deborah.

Turning towards Mr. Cardin he continued with that train of thought.  "Sir, I have no idea what type of cell phone your son in-law had, but if you could somehow get the cell phone records to Captain Donaldson as soon as possible, that could be very helpful.  And if you can work with his cellular carrier to see if that phone is still active, where it is located based on its GPS chip, and, or where he was when he made his last few phone calls, that would be very helpful as well.  If you need to subpoena those records Captain Donaldson will be able to get those, but you might get things done more quickly if you also call the State's Attorney in on this."

He only paused a moment before he continued with the next issue.  "If Mr. Westfall was supposed to be in New York, then we will have to find out exactly who he was supposed to be meeting with, when, and where."  

He suddenly realized the depth that this investigation was going to go to.  He had only scratched the surface.  He had a whole lot to do still here in West Virginia and then, it was very possible he would have to head on up to New York.  He would have to call Captain Donaldson and have an investigator assigned to the case in the County that he could work through and who would be doing the leg work there.  Researching the phone records was not an easy chore, and location records for phone calls might not be possible depending on the carrier.   AT&T, Verizon and Sprint could provide that information with a subpoena, but most other carriers did not have the systems in place to capture that data.  And Mr. Westfall might hot have had a phone with that capability enabled anyway.

Lots of ifs and maybes.  If he had the right cell phone and the right carrier, if he had that feature enabled, then maybe we could get the information we need that is crucial to this case.

He had more to say and a couple of phone calls to make, but he waited for answers first.

"I can get that phone information," the Senator said and flipped out his own phone and began pushing buttons. 

"We got that part of the plan that locates the other phones based on the signal.  The last phone call I had on his cell phone was the day before he called be from the hotel room.  We use Verizon so the records of our phone calls are online.  While in New York he was supposed to meet with a business partner.  Zach was involved in Terraforming investments like Dubai and used the capital he'd earned from islands hotels to do so.  I don't know who his partner was.  I never met him that is, but he met with him often in New York.  He was always Pann this and Pann that."

"GPS is handy when hiking.  His phone is still activated in his hotel room in New York." Senator Cardin said.  "I can get some people in there to get his things."  He smiled briefly over a small victory.

Brice's face was thoughtful.  The news on the phone was not good.  It meant tracking Zachary Westfall from New York to West Virginia was going to be so much more difficult.  Every few minutes cell phones contact nearby towers to ensure a live connection.  Even without GPS it is possible to track someone's cell phone across the country by the registry codes for each of those contacts.  Local law enforcement agencies have to pull teeth to get that information, but senator Cardin could probably get it in a heartbeat.  But since he left the phone in New York that was no longer a possibility.

He looked at the senator and opened his mouth to talk but stopped himself.  He was about to ask the senator to send someone into the hotel room wearing gloves and a camera.  It would never be a good idea to disturb the crime scene.  But Cardin would send in someone who was reliable and loyal to his family, that was certain.  That someone would likely protect the family by removing anything embarrassing to them, and potentially useful to his case.

"No!"  He said at last, calmly and with patience.  "Senator, listen.  If he left his cell phone inside that room then it is not likely he left it by accident.  That room is probably an active crime scene, the very location where the abduction took place.  He likely left there by coercion or force.  It is possible that prints left by his abductors are in that room, if they were stupid.  But I doubt they were stupid.  Either way there may be important clues about this case in that room."

"Zach...I mean, Mr. Westfall may have left us something, some clue that this captors may have overlooked. Sending someone inside may destroy that evidence. I highly suggest you call your people in New York immediately to prevent the cleaning service or anyone else from going in. Guard the room. I will contact my Captain and see what he can do with our interstate liaison."

Then his mind struck hard on a short passage he read from this morning's newspaper:  "Deborah, his wife, has contacted New York authorities..."

"It is likely that NYPD has already gone into that room.  But if memory serves, New York treats Missing Person very differently from Maryland.  They have a 24 hour rule.  The person must be missing for 24 hours before they begin investigating.  But they may have treated Mr. Westfall differently given the nature of his family.  At this moment there is no way to tell.  And then there is something else.

"You see, sir, we may have yet another problem here. If there is evidence of his abduction in New York, then this suddenly becomes a federal investigation since his body was found in West Virginia. Which means it is possible I will be handing this case off to the Agent in Charge or one of his or her suits as soon as an agent is on scene. But that does not mean we will be completely out of the loop on this, sir. In every case like this in the past our agency had a Federal Liaison, a Lieutenant stationed at Headquarters who worked closely with them. That Lieutenant can keep you informed as to how the investigation is proceeding.

He motioned to the phone in the Senator's hand.  "Please make that call now, Sir.  We need to secure that room.  I will make my own calls."  

Brice pulled out his cell phone and realized that Captain Donaldson was not on speed dial.  He thought about calling his secretary but thought better of it and found his cell phone number in his contact list.  He pressed Send with some trepidation.  Donaldson was not going to be happy.  Caroline was going to be pissed as hell...if he was right about what his Captain was going to tell him to do.

Donaldson was quickly on the phone and listened to any explanations that Brice may have had.  His conclusion was that this was unofficial business and spending an extra day or two in West Virginia for the official report could help long run.  Officially, Brice was spending a couple days of down time, unofficially, Donaldson wanted whatever the WV detectives may have missed or not thought to look at.  Donaldson suggested calling in the family to go pick him up and He'd have the department refund the gas and lodging.  Donaldson also wished Brice good luck with his wife and offered apologies.

Brice listened to his boss and closed his eyes for a moment trying to take this situation in.  This was impossible!  Ok, this was not how their department functioned.  If he was here in an "unofficial" capacity anything he uncovered would be suspect.  He looked over at Senator Cardin and said into the phone..."I have and idea about the unofficial cover, Sir.  I think that the senator will play along when I approach him about it.  And if it is alright with you I would rather leave my family out of this.  I can have the senator drop me off at car-rental place I saw just a few miles back, Enterprise, I think it was.  I'm sure I can find an econolodge around here somewhere for the next couple of nights if necessary and drive the rental back to the County.  I can return it at BWI and have Caroline pick me up there when I get back."

Brice could imagine having to wait a couple of days to get any actual answers.  Tomorrow was Sunday and, given what he saw from the file and the way the agency here dealt with important evidence, he suspected the Homicide unit here might be closed down until Monday.  They might even have decided to wait to finish their paperwork until then...and might not even be working today.  He wondered how many homicide cases they get around here each year anyway.

He refocused.

"And, Sir, I know you want this off the books for now.  I have a mirrored copy of the Virtual Case File system on my laptop.  I can type up my case notes, cut and paste it to a word file and email that to your personal email address if you care to give that to me.  That way if this, in some future date, becomes "official" I can transfer it to our server.  I can send periodic updates  to your email address."

Brice took a deep breath before continuing.  "If you could keep me informed about what is going on in New York, I would appreciate it.  That is where all of this began; that is where the trail of clues starts.  I am at the very end of the trail here, Sir.  I will work backwards as best I can, but if the Homicide investigators failed to collect Mr. Westfall's clothes and log them in as evidence...well, Sir, I have serious doubts concerning their competence as an agency.  Thats so basic it makes me ill."

"Hrm... Very well.  Clear it with the Senator and contact me by email," Donaldson gave him any pertinent information he would need for contact and was off the phone to attend to other business.  Brice was on his own for a couple of days.

Brice pressed the "End" button on his phone and looked at the time.  He could hardly believe it was not yet 5:00 pm.  He looked over at the Senator who was also just getting off of the phone.  He approached his daughter first.  

"Mrs. Westfall, I wonder if it would be ok if I held onto those clothes for a while.  I am going to check in at the sheriff's office and try to meet with whomever is handling this case.  They may want to hold onto these clothes as evidence."

She nods and says a quiet "Sure".

He turned towards Mr. Cardin.  "Sir, if you could give me a few of your business cards and allow me to drop your name in some ears around here it would certainly help us a great deal.   When asked, you can tell people I am helping out as a friend and looking into matters here for you.  Since this is way out of my jurisdiction there is no incentive for them to cooperate with me so I will need every possible edge I can muster."

 "Also, if you could drop me off at that car rental place we passed a few miles back, I would greatly appreciate it.  It looks as if I will be hanging around here a couple of more days." 

"Of course, Sergeant, I appreciate your additional help in this matter.  Donaldson said you go 110% percent, I believe it.  We are interested in the truth no matter how hard it might be to hear.  I saw the place you were talking about that won't be a problem."  Cardin fished out a wad of about 20 business cards from his suit jacket and handed them over to Brice.

"Thank you, Sir."  Brice said as he accepted the business cards.  He fished one of his own out of his wallet and turned it over to write on the back.  "Here is my cell and private email.  If you get any information about what happened in New York, please let me know."

When all is said and done.  Brice finds himself at the car rental with Senator Cardin taking over the driving and heading back to Maryland without him.  Deborah was expectedly quiet as she only stared out the window.  The events had probably scarred her for years to come.  Whether a blessing or a misfortune they had no children.

The car rental place was your standard Enterprise Rent-a-Car.  The one guy behind the counter was reading a Field & Stream which he put to the side and stood and greeted Brice with a warm handshake and a "Hello, Welcome to Enterprise."

Brice did not have much with him.  He had a small duffel bag, a laptop in its bag, and his briefcase.  These were the things he had managed to put into the trunk before they left.  Nowhere in those storage containers was there a toothbrush or a change of clothes.

"Hi!  I'm Brice Jennings."  He introduced himself as he fished out his wallet again.  "I'm going to be staying in the area a couple of days and will be needing a car.  I'll be returning it at BWI in Maryland if thats at all possible.  The car needs to have a good GPS since I don't know my way around here abouts."

The enterprise office worker is all smiles and takes down the information that is necessary from Brice.  The clerk searches his database and pulls up a couple of options, an SUV and a smaller two-door.  Whichever option Brice chooses, the clerk shows his the white vehicle and inspects the car and takes note of the gas and the special instructions for returning the car to a different state.  He asks for a credit card which will be charged at the end of the contract.  And Brice is efficiently on his way with a "Thank you and have a nice day."

Brice is looking at the GPS display.  Fairly standard with the usual buttons and extras.  It's built into the dash so it seems to get a good reception and have a feature or two that might not be present in the normal mounting version.

Luckily for Brice the man seemed to know his way around this area of West Virginia.  He was able to locate the small town of Adena Gorge despite that it was not actually on the map he was using to illustrate where it was.  But he also had the address of the crime lab located there, as well as the sheriff's department, both from the case file.  Brice first punched in the address of the Crime Lab and off he went.  He hoped to find a decent hotel or motel once he got close.

He realized while he was driving that the best course of action would be to find a place to stay the night right away, call home to Caroline, and then find a place he could buy a change of clothes, a toothbrush and shaving gear.  He was able to find a Motel 6 pretty close by, just two miles out of town, closer to Riverton actually, and right on Rt. 33.   He was delighted to see they offered free WiFi access and was settled into his small room very quickly.

The call to Caroline did not go well at all, but in the end she understood why he was needed here.  He gave her all the contact information for the hotel, said his goodbyes and hung up.

He was actually getting to like this place.  The people were extremely friendly and he was able to locate the nearest mall in short order.  The Meadowbrook Mall in Clarksburg was a few miles out, but it was really the only game in town.  He hoped the people there were just as friendly.  The afternoon sun played through clouds marking the likely threat of rain sometime in the future.  It was an easy drive to Meadowbrook ending with difficult parking on a Saturday afternoon, which would have been expected. 

It was your typical mall.  The layout was generally long with a couple of branches.  The people milling about the walkways of the mall were mostly young or old with few in between.  Mall walkers hurried past with arms pumping and white cords from earbuds swinging only a little.  The arcade was packed and the sounds of electronic competition echoed out.  Groups of teens hung out or meandered around talking about middle school and high school things.  The latest video games, the newest movies, the hottest or sexiest stars.  Brice was able to take it all in.  He was alone, and it somehow felt a little like a stakeout.  The only oddity on the surface was the presence of a greater than usual number of mall security officers roaming around.  But times had changed and maybe it was usual for West Virginia.

Before he left his car he had programmed Jahck Wolfe's cell phone number into his own cell phone.  That case file was proving to be more than useful.  He checked the time on the phone and started making his way to the local clothing store, whether it was Coles, J.C. Penny's, or Hechts, whichever was available and closer.  And while he made his way there he pulled up Mr. Wolfe's number and hit the send button.

Brice came in through Sears, passing by the home appliances.  As he navigated through Men's clothing towards the main thoroughfare of the mall, he hit send on the Cell and waited for a response.

Jahck reaches into his pocket wondering who it could be on the other end of the line. No names came to mind as he flipped open his phone and placed it to his ear. "Hello?..." Jahck said into the device skeptically.

Brice heard the answer and spoke with an authoritative but friendly tone.

"Mr. Wolfe? This is Sgt. Brice Jennings from Baltimore County Police Department. I was hoping to speak with you about what happened last night at the Cavern. I am in Clarksburg now, not too far from Adena Gorge. Is there somewhere we can meet?"

"I can meet you in the food court of the mall in Clarksburg as soon as I finish up what I am doing at the jewelry store if that is ok with you." Jahck replies to the officer in a calm respectful manner.

"The Meadowbrook Mall? I happen to be there right now. I have something to do first as well, though. In about an hour? You should be able to recognize me pretty easily. I will be the one carrying a brown briefcase and a Sears bag. I will meet you there."

Brice waited for an acknowledgement, said his goodbyes, and hung up the phone.  He had reached the men's clothing department inside Sears.  He looked for what he might wear as a detective.  He found a couple of good, button-down shirts, one olive green and one white.  He found two excellent ties, not too formal looking, and two good pairs of dressy-looking khaki pants but different shades of tan.  He got a brown dress belt to match the dress shoes he was wearing, and a few other items.  He could use the jacket he was currently wearing for a couple of days if need be.  And it was perfect for concealing his weapon in his shoulder holster.

When he walked out of Sears there was about ten more minutes left before his meeting.  He had to hit a drug store or something, but that would hold until later.

Brice made his way to the food court after checking with the main map he found in the mall just outside the doors to Sears.

When Brice reached the food court he found that the place was pretty crowded.  He got himself a plate of sweet and sour pork, with pork fried rice, and a large diet coke.  Then, by the sheerest of luck, he found an unoccupied table when a small family got up to leave.  

He set his sears bag on the table with his food and drink.

He then pulled his lap top out of his briefcase and set the briefcase by the bag.

He was quite curious about some of the details of the case and felt he had a way to check on one or two of the inconsistencies.  Once it was booted up he pulled up Adena Caverns.  It had a good website and a map was available, as well as tour details.

After reading a few minutes he found some details of the tour.

After opening Google Earth he pulled up the Adena Caverns.  He compared the satellite view with the tour details and map on the other site.  He pulled up the Seneca Caverns site and looked at the details as well. 

While he waited for Jahck Wolfe to arrive he picked at his food while he studied and compared what was available on the two caverns.

The two systems were described as sisters.   The details of the caves were remarkably similar with more people going to Senaca instead of Adena simply because of marketing and accessibility.  The Adena caverns had a feature not found inside of the Senaca caverns, which was the drop shaft.  The drop shaft was a fairly unique feature and it seemed odd that it wasn't more highlighted but tourism wasn't always on the mark for what people wanted to see.    While Brice went over the details the morning rush seemed to clear out.  A couple of kids, late teens, get pizza and take their order into the far back corner of the eating area, young love.  The food is standard food court faire, not terrible , but not superb.

Jahck makes his way to the food court after what seemed to him like hours dealing with the store clerk due to his eagerness to test the many theories about what was happening to his body. Combined with Sgt. Brice wanting to see him after roughing up some mall punks out in the open, Jahcks heart was beating so fast he could hear it in his ears. Keeping his cool Jahck made his way to the food court. As he got closer he started scanning the people he could see looking for Sgt. Brice. Jahck kept both his hands in his hoodie pocket around the case that held his ring, not yet having the time or the nerve to put it on. Jahck makes his way over to the table and greets Sgt. Brice, as he notices him.

Brice looked up and smiled as Mr. Wolfe came close to his table.  He stood and shook his hand.  "Thank you for meeting with me Mr. Wolfe.  Please, sir, take a seat."

Brice had conducted a thousand or more interviews and interrogations in his years as a police officer.  He could tell that this man was nervous.  He could see his chest moving as he tried to control his breathing and even imagined he could hear his heart pounding.  He had to set this man at ease.

"As I said on the phone I am a Sergeant in the Baltimore County Police Department, in Maryland."  He smiled and gave a little chuckle.  "Quite out of my jurisdiction, certainly.  I am actually here in an unofficial capacity, doing a favor for Senator Benjamin Cardin.  You see it was his son in law's body that was found at the Adena Caverns.  He is actually my neighbor.  He thought that perhaps a fresh set of eyes from someone on the outside in this case could do some good.  

As I looked over the facts, what few I had at my disposal, there were some details I was hoping to clarify, if you don't mind." 

"I don't mind a bit. Anything  information I can give you that would help capture the people responsible is yours." Jahck said still a little curious.

"Thank you sir, it will mean a lot to the senator.  And I hope I will not be taking up a lot of your time.  Let me pose a few questions."  He took out his note pad where he had previously written the more important questions down.

"Starting from when they entered the shop.  As I ask you these questions, I want you to play back the scene in your head.  Lets go from the moment they came in to the time you embarked on the actual tour.  You told the Sheriff's deputy that the man named Leon and a woman named Carrie entered and asked for a tour.  The woman went into the bathroom at one point.  While she was inside the shop, did she pick up anything?  A map, an item that she might have looked at in passing from the shop, a pamphlet that she might have left behind, anything?"

While he thought about that he continued with a couple of more.  "Also, think about the man, Leon.  Did he touch anything, any of the merchandise, also a map or a counter top?  I understand that the tour is usually paid for in advance, that is, before the tour actually begins.  How did he pay for it, in cash?  Credit card?"

"Whoa." Jahck said as he put up his hands to stop the sergeant in his barge of questions. "I will answer all your questions no problem but I can only handle one or two at a time. I am remembering pretty tough stuff from a point where I didn't think any of this information would be useful much less vital." Jahck says as he starts to think of the events of the night before.

"They asked for a tour while I was outside and we went inside. The girl used the employee bathroom, don't recall her picking anything up. The man had a map I remember I handed him one before the tour started. Payment for the tour, however, is at the end. This helps with the tipping process if the tourists already have their money out they tend to leave a tip as opposed to pulling out more money just to tip." Jahck replies catching up to the sergeants last question.

Sgt. Jennings nodded as he looked at his notes and scribbled something down.  "Thank you, Sir.   I suppose we will have to assume that the third member of that group...Eli was it?  He must have broken in the front door of the shop while the three of you were inside the caverns.  Lets see...um..."  he said as he consulted his notes.   Did you use anything to light your way while down there?  I took a tour once of the Laure Caverns and our guide had a flashlight and a laser pointer to show us some highlights along the way.  If so, was it recovered?"

"I recall having a flashlight. I don't think it was recovered. I left as soon as I was done talking to the cops and haven't been back yet." Jahck could imagine the shaft just staying lit up forever and found it humoring.

Brice pulled up the map of the Adena Caverns on his laptop and looked at it for a moment.  It was simply on another tab so it was more or less a click away.  He moved his finger along the route from the Drop Shaft.  "So, am I correct in saying that they  would have probably taken the flashlight with them if you had dropped it?  If they left it in the store, that is one thing.  At the very least a source of fresh prints.  If they took it with them, well then, that is another story.  Possibly, if the Feds find it in a car later on down the line it will be one more nail in their coffin.  Do you have more of those same flashlights down the line?  Make, model and color will be important.  So we need to know if they took it or not, well, if it is still in the shop or near the drop shaft in any case.

Now, onto some other, finer details.  Do you remember being hit?  I am trying to determine where you were hit and what Leon hit you with.

"I don't remember much about getting hit honestly. I remember them throwing the other body down the shaft and after that my memory is pretty blank until the point when I woke up in a stream at the end of the drop shaft." Jahck replied as he played the shooting back in his head. Talk about luck of the draw. He had played Russian roulette against a loaded gun and won. Not many people can say that. "The flashlight was one of those LED high power flashlights that are crazy bright. I'm not sure of the brand but it looked kind of like a black maglight."

Brice opened one of the other tabs on the browser.  Here were selected photos of the Adena Caverns taken by various tourists who had posted them on the web.  He found a few of the Drop Shaft and looked at them for a moment.  "So, you fell 40 feet without striking the walls, into ice-cold water that failed to wake you up immediately, and floated with the flow of the under-ground river for...."  He switched over to the other tab "A long, long way."

"You are one hell of a lucky man, Jahck.  I am no doctor, but I can only assume that any impact to the skull that would cause unconsciousness like that, along with memory loss has to have other serious medical implications.  I'm surprised you weren't put under a 24 hour observation stint at a hospital somewhere."  

'No way this guy is telling the truth' Thought Brice.  'Luck my ass.  He more likely woke up in the cave and wandered around for a while in a concussed daze and came to his senses when he found the body, though on second thought that is almost as unlikely.'

But aloud Brice said:  "Well, I appreciate your time, Sir, and  your cooperation.  I will be visiting the detectives in charge of the case and the crime lab, I hope, on Monday.  I believe that by Monday the FBI will be all over this case and will probably want to talk to you as well.  They probably have more experienced and trained interviewers than me on their payroll, so try to remember more of the smaller details when they do come in to take charge of this investigation."

Brice closed his notebook and his laptop.  "In the meantime I have a day to kill.  I can't imagine anything else is going to get done tonight or Sunday.  I'm new in town, what is there to do around here Jahck?"

Jahck laughed at the question. "Well, your pretty much doing it. The only stuff to do around here is the stuff you make to do yourself. Sure we got a few little local hangouts but it sure ain't much."

He looks around and sees a lot of people sitting around eating, others shopping.  He sees a young couple eating pizza in the corner and motions to them (see Visions of Spring and Life)

"If there is nothing for young ones to do around here they are going to be a lot of young parents.  I'ts been my experience that without something to do people, especially kids, generally get drunk, fight, or f...um, have sex.  I think this place is prime for some intrepid business ventures.  Gonna have to talk to a partner of mine when I get back to Maryland.

"So, no movie theaters, no bars, no dance clubs, no bowling allies?"  

"Nothing to snazzy but we have all of those things. The movie theater is kinda small so it is usually packed after six o' clock and the bars aren't worth seeing. The bowling alley is nice though. Younger people don't see the point in it I guess." Jahck responded as he looked around at the people in the mall.

As it seemed the small meeting was wrapping up, a group of men come into the Food Court area.  Five of the men seemed mid to late twenties, the other three were older teenagers.  They looked around and then made to mind tables near Jahck and Brice.

"I told you, he was made of stone or made of steel or something," one of the younger kids said.

One of the older men look over at Jahck and Brice, "Looks like flesh to me."  While he is looking over at Jahck and Brice he smiles, it's somehow menacing.  "You like to beat up kids, hero?"

Brice shifted his chair slightly towards the smiling menace.  As he did so he glanced up at the two video surveillance domes over-watching the food court.  They had darkened covers like most security systems so there was no way to know for certain if this small section was being monitored and recorded.  He also accidentally shifted his jacket so that the badge clipped to his belt was revealed.  But his .40 handgun was still concealed in his shoulder holster and he wanted to avoid revealing that if at all possible.

He also gave the entire group a once-over with his eyes.  He was looking for possible weapons, bulges in waistbands and pockets or ankles or even hands where weapons might be concealed.  He was also assessing the body language of the men and kids, as well as their expressions.

His situation awareness started to sharpen as he realized that these folks might be serious trouble.  He was making threat assessments and planning possible actions as he spoke.  He kept his body relaxed, his hands slightly open, but his stomach muscles slightly flexed.  

He briefly wondered if any of them had ever encountered someone trained in martial arts before.

"Who are you and what do you want?"  He asked in a calm and confident, yet authoritative tone.  It was his cop voice so, even without the badge, the way he is dressed, his short yet clean haircut, and his general demeanor should simply shout "HE'S A COP" in the mind of any street thug.  Of course Brice is not from West Virginia so the mentality of the common 'Street Thug' may not be the same here as in a city.

And although Brice Jennings was sitting on the chair, he would not be flat-footed should the smiling menace choose to come at him.  He was sitting on the front half of the seat with his left leg slightly back from the front left leg of the chair.  With the ball of that foot planted on the ground he could pivot to the left and spring up and use his right foot, knee, or leg to kick the not out of the man if he had to.  If it came to that he would be sure to let the man come to his feet and move forward before springing into action.  It was always best to be seen acting on the defensive.

And the man was foolishly close enough that if he pulled a weapon the move would be unavoidably noticeable.  Brice would have the space and time to disarm him.

He really hoped that this situation could be resolved without violence, though like always he was prepared for it.  But he really had no idea what these men were all about.  And his peripheral vision showed that the place had many, many witnesses that were even now starting to pay attention.  If he could stall them long enough he was sure that the security guards would show up.

"Nice bit of tin you got there.  Doesn't look familiar though, just like you.  Which you ain't from around here.  Don't make a mess in my back yard.  I imagine a pig like you doesn't travel far without a piece.  I've got a piece or two as well.  You think you can take us all down without a casualty or two?  There's a young couple over there who looks like they'd rather be somewhere else.  Maybe they'd like to have their afternoon ruined on your soul.  Besides, I wasn't talking to you, unless you liken yourself a hero as well."

This was just getting better and better.  It was a situation for which Brice was well trained and prepared for.

"While my friend here calls 911," he said, moving his head slightly, indicating Jahck, "about some common thugs saying they have guns on them, and threatening people in the food court, perhaps you could tell me what you have against heroes.  Because, although you may not have been addressing me, I most assuredly am speaking to you."  His tone was more aggressive than before, but only slightly.  It definitely told the man that he was not intimidated.

Brice was sure he would not be able to finish that first sentence before the man made his move, and he was ready.  The man was too close for gun-play, though that probably meant his friends were packed and ready.  He was prepared to break a joint; an elbow since he needed the man on his feet, and use him as a body shield for the thirty seconds it will take for him to pass out from the crushed larynx he planned on administering as well.  The broken joint would occur as he turned the man around to face his friends, and after the strike to the throat.

He had also kept an eye on where the man might be carrying a gun.  Men like this usually carried them in the back of their pants under their jacket.  However he would have likely moved it just before he made his approach to a more handy location, like the front of his pants, or far more likely in this public venue,  the pocket of his jacket.  From there he could fire it without it being seen.

He had been examining his adversary since he first saw him make his approach.  From the way his jacket hung on him he could easily identify which side most likely held the gun.  If he made a move with his hand to his jacket pocket Brice would be forced to make the first move.  As he launched himself forward he would be yelling: "Gun!  He's got a gun!  Everybody get down!  Someone call 911!"

The heel of Brice's right foot would land forcefully in a lateral and downward direction on the upper and inside portion of the man's right knee.  If the man were standing it would be a crippling blow, possibly permanent damage there.  Since he was sitting it would likely spin him to his right and put him off balance while he tried to stand.  Either way he would be in a lot of pain.  

But the action, regardless of his training or lack thereof, would cause him to raise his left arm to defend himself.  Brice planned on taking the mans' left wrist in his hands, and pulling him toward  Brice while twisting the arm hard.  He would be raising it slightly while pulling it out straight and applying enough pressure to nearly break the joint.  The move twists the opponent's body around, using both pain compliance and leverage, so that he is facing away.  And, when he lowered the arm just a little, he could make a strike over it with the outside of his right hand to the thug's throat.  The angle would prevent Brice from crushing the man's larynx, but he would not be able to breathe for nearly a minute.

After the strike to the throat he would immediately provide the pressure needed to quickly snap the arm at the elbow.

That action, the most risky, had to be done lightning quick because he was exposed to the thug's friends.  Until the man was disabled, at least temporarily with the initial pain of the broken joint and the lack of breath, and until he had him on his feet, facing away and in front of him, he was vulnerable.  So once in motion Brice would stay in motion.  He would end the first series of attacks with the man standing, facing his friends, with his left elbow broken.  He would have to switch grips on the man quickly to use him as a body shield.  If the men instead came at him he would push him towards them to keep them off balance while he dealt with them on better terms for Brice, his hands and feet. 

If they pulled weapons, all bets were off.  He would have to kill them.  He was prepared for that too.  Speed was the key, move and keep moving using training, instinct, and situational awareness.  Always know where the opponents are located in reference to yourself.

The image of some of the symbols that were on his metallic body flashed, ever so briefly, through his mind.  Lightning, energy...they moved at the speed of light.  If it came down to fighting or gun-play, he would have to ensure it ended quick.  No strikes to the face or body.  Throats, groins, and Joints only.  All gunshots would be center mass.  The man had one thing right.  There were a lot of innocent bystanders sitting around.  

He only hoped that he kept talking and did not move a hand towards where a gun might be on his body.

He tried to keep the rest of the little gang in his peripheral vision.  If one of them reached for a gun his reaction would be the same.

"Beating up kids and teaching them a little respect for others are two different things. I know these days with punks running around everywhere like they own everything and not caring who their actions affect it is hard to tell the difference. You must be the brains behind the bronze that tore up that nice lady's store earlier or is it just another layer of bronze?" Jahck replied to the thug as he pulled the ring slowly out of its case in his pocket and slid it onto his pointer finger making sure not to touch the stone. Jahck rotated the ring on his finger until it was in an ideal position for his thumb to touch the stone if his hand balled into a fist.

Jahck knew the response time of the cops in this area and suspected the thugs would too. If you where being robbed you'd have better luck walking to the store, buying a gun, loading it, walking back, and shooting the robber yourself.

Jahck's words were provoking.  The thug had just turned his attention to Jahck and did not see the instance and rapid change that occurred over Brice.  Brice's mind, racing through the possibilities and stealing himself to rapid and decisive action had changed him, physically.  He was living metal wrapped in casual clothes.  Though not the Zinc golem he was before.  It was different.  The symbols were different, and based on the searches Brice had done he knew they were alchemical.  On the back of each of his hands were the letters "Hg".  Before anyone could make a move, Brice had the main thug face down on the table in front of him with an arm painfully behind his back.  The Thug's face was pressed in the stained speckled brown surface with wide eyes wondering what had happened in those two seconds of movement.

The other thugs were either jumping up out of their seats or falling backwards, ass still planted on the plastic, unable to get their legs to work properly from the surprise.  "Gun! He's got a gun! Everybody get down! Someone call 911!"  Brice shouted but it sounded metallic and while some people reacted to his words, some reacted to the fact that something that looked like it just stepped directly out of Terminator 2 was holding a man down onto a table.  Gasps and silence filled the air with the backdrop of a metal spatula landing on the floor.

Jahck felt his hand reflexively ball into a fist, his thumb planted squarely on the gem and the warm metal encircling his finger.

The world seemed to slow down for Brice.  The man in front of him had turned to Jahck, and Brice had seen his hand twitch towards his jacket pocket.  He had intended to slap the inside edge of his own hand against his throat and grab his right wrist in his own left hand as the start of his action.  His right foot was also about to stomp his right knee at the same time.  It would have been a devastating attack.  But as his hand came forward, he saw the metallic sheen and caught sight of the letters Hg.  Suddenly the most vulnerable points on the human body were no longer valid targets in his mind.

The possibility of this happening had not occurred to him.  It jarred his mind and interrupted his action.  Instead of the chop to the throat, which might have killed the man instead of simply stopped his breathing for about a minute, he formed his hand into a hook grip and wrapped his hand around the back of his neck, gripped the man's right wrist with his left, and pulled the man forward and towards him by the neck, slamming his knee into the man's diaphragm.  Then he grabbed the man's elbow with his right hand and, with both of his metallic hands gripping two leverage points of his opponent's arm, twisted his whole body around with the arm as he put him into a painful arm-lock.  He then slammed the man down onto the table top face first.

The action was much quicker than he thought, and his physical strength had increased as well.  He moved the man about so easily that the man seemed to jerk like a rag-doll.  The thug's forehead unexpectedly bounced off of the table-top.  He only hoped that his actions were not fatal, that the man's chest was not crushed and his neck not broken.  But only then did he see the reactions of those around him. 

The main thug was already face-down on the tabletop when everyone else was moving back in alarm.  He did not know if he was bullet-proof, he did not know anything about his strange new body.  But he could not simply let his mind freeze with the shock of the experience.  He rolled with it.

He felt he knew where the man kept his gun and reached for it himself.  He pulled it out, made sure the safety was on, and slammed it onto the metal surface of the table right by the man's head.  The sound was thunderous as the two metallic objects collided.  He left a large dent in the table which he immediately regretted.  "The rest of you put your weapons on the ground!"  He demanded of the thugs.

"The man said drop your weapons!" Jahck said as he stood up with authority when he noticed the thugs were still awe struck at Brice's sudden transformation. Jahck also glanced at his own skin as he removed his finger from the ring he was wearing trying to concentrate on not turning into a human sized rock in front of the whole mall. Explaining one person transforming into anything would be hard enough without throwing in a second. Jahck did a double take when he realized Brice had transformed but felt an odd sense of calm instead of the fear and shock he knew he would have felt just days before.

Jahck felt his chest harden a mixture of metal and gemstone running down his arms.  It was both fortunate and unfortunate.  Fortunate because the thugs did not follow the advice given and they opened fire.  A bullet slammed into Brice, then another.  His liquid skin seemed to accept the bullets and they sunk into his metal flesh but stopped dead quickly before falling out.  A bullet struck Jahck in the chest and bounced off.  Another at a slightly different angle richoceted.   People were screaming and the thugs were scattering and firing at random.  Bullets with into tables, seats, the walls, the floor, and people.  Most were flesh wounds, painful flesh wounds, that the ambulences, when they arrived would be able to take care of.  For the sudden burst of excitement, Jahck unfortunately completed his transformation in full view of everyone attending.  Now, two superheroes were standing before the world.

Brice noticed the bullets striking him and their effect, but he knew he could not pause to consider anything.  He had to act. Remembering something from some movie from long ago, he forced his entire body to change form.  He flowed out of his clothes first and then shot tendrils of himself out to grab the thugs with guns.  He tried to grab them by the arms that held the weapons.  He then pulled them towards him.  But he also spread himself out a bit to make himself a better target for their aim.

He tried to speak as well but realized he needed all of his concentration for the task at...hands?  What came out was a gurgle.  He supposed that he had changed his body to a point where his vocal cords weren't working right.

Jahck couldn't understand Brice but it seemed he could handle the thugs fine so Jahck turned to the people and started helping them to their feet and instructing them all to leave. This place wasn't safe for any of them and he was making that perfectly clear. As he helped he made sure to always stand in between the thugs, firing blindly, and the people he was trying to protect.

Brice's body didn't flow quite like in the movie proving that he shouldn't try everything that he sees on TV.  His body did move quickly however and he was quickly on top of the shooters, first one then the other.  He grabbed arms and felt bone snap under his grip as he twisted them.  Weapons fell to the ground and with the sudden realization that they were not fighting anything normal, they began to run in all different directions.

Jahck was shielding the people from the last couple of random gun shots.  The people ran willingly not wanting to be a part of either gunfire or strange creatures.  Jahck's neck and chin, his arms down to this wrists were a mixture of metal and gemstone.  Brice stood over one of the shooters with a wide stance arms out his body a sheen of metal glancing over the scene.  People were running, thugs or young thugs in training included.  Their goal was foiled by Brice and Jahck.

One brave young man had grabbed a T-Mobile display placard and brained one of the one's trying to escape.  He was yelling something, the young man.  The man he hit flailed wildly but was quickly back on his feet and running for a door.

All Brice could see of the thugs now were their backsides.  Some of them ran cradling broken arms or wrists.  He turned and quickly assessed the scene around him.  (If he needs to he moves to his clothes and puts them on, including his gun).  He then takes a good look a Jahck for the first time.  It was hard to tell it was him, except for the clothes.  "Well, that answers some questions!"  He said as he collected his briefcase and laptop bag.  He felt some relief that there were no holes in either.

He also looked over at the young man who had wielded the display.  He seemed filled with emotion and it was hard to tell what was going through his mind.  But he had let go of the sign and was running back behind a table.  Brice could see two feet of someone laying down and he knew something was wrong, possibly deadly wrong.

He ran over to the two and he could see that the boy was cradling a young woman's body in his arms.  "My god!  I'm so sorry."  was all he could manage to say.  It seemed obvious to Brice that his words startled the boy.  He relaxed only slightly as the body flopped lifelessly in his arms as he adjusted his grip.  More blood spilled out of the dead girl.  Then Brice saw the arms of the boy tense, and suddenly, without warning, the girl spasmed.

The girl's body curls tightly into the boy then screams out. A faint sound in that moment accompanies the scream, the boy didn't seem to notice but Brice saw a bullet fall from the girl into the pool of her own blood and roll slightly away.

Jahck hurries over to the sound of the girl screaming as he tries to concentrate on returning to normal.

--> After the Mall Incident