51- Meanwhile...

Mazurka had spent the remainder of his day working over the previous crime scenes with his fellow Detective, Hakan Kavak. A recent transfer to the special task force. He hadn't yet told Kavak about the secrets the footage the Schneider's camera held, and steadily honed in on the finer details of each crime scene to avoid the topic. At each location, they would use the pictures from the files as references, moving through them as if the bodies were still present.

"What are you hoping to find?" Kavak questioned as he stared out across the green grass of the empty riverside park towards the parking lot in the distance.

"I don't know," Mazurka replied honestly. "I just think there has to be something connecting these victims. Something we missed or something we just aren't seeing. Something subtle and easily overlooked."

"We've scoured three scenes already, but this would be easier if they hadn't been cleaned up. We should move on to the newer ones, or perhaps head to the places that are more sheltered from the weather or where the cleaners wouldn't have bothered to be so thorough," Kavak remarked as Mazurka stood up next to him and brushed the dirt from his hands.

"I get what you mean but look around this place. I mean really look," he remarked as a runner gave him a friendly nod as he jogged passed them, down the paved, riverside trail. "There's no place for anyone to hide here. It's an open park, a few picnic tables, and riverside benches. The few trees that are here are far too small to conceal anyone, and the parking lot is the width of a football field away. So why here? Why drop a body in this spot?"

"Who was the victim?"

"Terry Otis, 37. Tox screen showed high levels of the street drug known as 'shade', if you want the chemical name, you can read the file for yourself. As far as his employment record went, it wasn't great. Mostly hit and miss. Short term with long stretches of social assistance in between. He has a young daughter, think it said she was only four, but would have to check on that, but the mother has full custody," he replied as he pulled his note pad out and began to flip through the pages until he found what he was looking for. "Yeah, here it is. Kid age 4. Has full custody, Terry never missed a visitation, and when sober she would allow him to see her whenever he wanted. Said he would spend every moment he could with her and was a good father despite his problems. Was usually working and attempting to get clean when he would come around. She made it sound like a cycle he couldn't break. He would run out of money, sober up, find a job, get a bit ahead, and then something would happen, and he would start using again, lose his job, and go right back into the usage."

"Poor man. Couldn't even find the strength to do it for his kid, and to wind up out here in the end? Tragic. But like you said, why here?"

"Exactly. This is completely across town from his last known address, which was, 1620 Gia Avenue, Rosemont Downs."

"Well, the Warrens are known for having a high level of drug trafficking, but not on this side of the river, and there are far easier locations to score in the Downs."

"See, I don't think he was killed here, but if he was moved, the question is from where? And why dump the body in this spot?"

"The killer clearly wanted him to be found. That's been determined by the profilers, at least from what was written in the report I read on the way out here."

"They are working on a new theory that this isn't just a serial killer, but rather some sort of hitman. They think he is either in Training or this is some sort of test of his skills, and that's why the bodies are being left out. Visual proof that he did the job."

"But from where? The other side is residential, but the berm would have hidden the view of the body, and there are no lights here. At the earliest it wouldn't be seen until daybreak," Kavak concluded as he pointed out the raised bank on the other side of the river.

"That being said, his body wasn't reported until eleven in the morning. I suspect most just saw the body as a homeless guy sleeping on the lawn."

"Precisely. This wasn't displayed to be seen. It was placed to be discovered. They would have to have known that the police would be called," Kavak said as he rubbed at his chin. "Could the employer be a cop?"

"That's a terrifying thought, but not every body was placed to be discovered, and the only cops that would be at each scene would be the task force members. No one could have known who was going to be assigned to it before there was even a reason to form it."

"Unless our killer staged the body dump sites to force one to be formed."

"That's still a fairly long list of people who can make that call though, including the council, Mayor, the seven district Police Commissioners."

"Not to mention the MET's higher ups. Not that they would ever turn to the police for assistance in the first place."

"But Freetier was where the first body was discovered," Mazurka said as they made their way back to the car. "That could narrow things down a bit."

"Who was the first victim?"

Mazurka opened up the trunk and pulled a file out of a box that was sitting inside.

"No idea. He was fresh, and had no I.D. He wasn't in any of our databases and didn't fit any missing persons reports. Our M.E. estimated him to be in his early eighties and took dental impressions since it looked as if he had extensive work done at some point, but it turned up nothing. He was found in the center of Hillridge park, sitting upright on a bench with his head tilted back and his hands folded together on his lap. Here," he said as he handed the file to Kavak. "The tox screen was clean. He was wearing a business suit, but to this day, no one has come forward saying they're missing a boss or employee. He's a complete mysterious." Kavak took a few minutes to read over the file as Mazurka sat back on the bumper. "See what I mean about this being a mess?"

"If you're trying to make me regret my decision, it's not going to work," Kavak replied with a bit of a chuckle. "Yechiel, I put in for this transfer because I'm hoping my experience can be of some benefit. To be honest, I was surprised that the Captain and Harlowe agreed to it so quickly. I only found out a few minutes before you arrived at the station this morning."

"To say Harlowe's desperate for help, would be an understatement."

"Something tells me you're holding back. Do yourself a favor, never play poker," Kavak stated as he closed the file and set it back into the box.

"Not the first time I've heard that," Mazurka replied with an eyeroll. "I'll fill you in on the rest of the case while we head to Piang Lee's crime scene in the downtown. It was a week before his body was discovered, so I'm betting the cleanup crew didn't polish the place to a shine."

Kavak grabbed the file for Piang Lee from the box before they climbed into the car and drove off, heading for Center Hills. However, before they could even make it out of the Warrens, Mazurka's phone began to ring through the speakers.

"This is Detective Mazurka and Kavak. We're in the car, you're on speaker."

"Oh good. It's Skye. The files I was working on from the Schneider case; they're ready."

"Did you find something?"

"Yeah, and you're going to want to drop what you're doing and come back to the precinct."

"You got it. Were about fifteen minutes out."

"I'll be waiting," Skye replied in an oddly chipper tone before the call disconnected.

"Looks like we're skipping the rest of the tour for now," Mazurka remarked as he turned towards the highway.

"That's okay. While I don't mind the grit of doing this type of police work, I have been more than curious about what that flash drive from the P.I. had on it. I was a bit surprised that you hadn't mentioned it yet."

"That's because you need to see the files for yourself. There really isn't any description I could give you that would make any sense, and our analyst hadn't quite finished with them yet."

"I'm more interested in knowing if the footage captured the murderer. Descriptions could have waited."

"Well, that's the thing, it does show the murder, and the one responsible. The problem is, we don't know what 'the one' is."

"That doesn't make any sense. If it's not a person, then what else could it be? Is that the real reason why you wanted to go around to these crime scenes? Are you trying to figure out what IT is?"

"That's exactly why. Whatever it is, it clearly isn't human. Not that the obvious stopped Harlowe from saying otherwise. I think he was just trying to make it easier on all of us. But denying what's on that video isn't going to help solve this case."

"What did Harlowe say it was?"

"As far as he's concerned, we are to treat it as a human that has managed to change its form, either by messing up a ritual or by doing it purposely, for reasons unknown. Harlowe still seems to be stuck on the idea that this is somehow related to a friend of mine and his bazaar situation with a girl who was a potential witness for that group killing in the Downs. The one victim had a couple of pictures of her on his person. We're still waiting on the warrant to search his place because despite this being a high priority case… well you know, it's the Downs. Still waiting on the autopsy reports too, but just like the rest, I doubt they will tell us anything we don't already know."

Arriving back at the station, Mazurka lead Kavak inside and were heading to Skye's lab when he heard Harlowe bellow from inside the office as they walked past.

"Good, you're back!"

Stopping, and taking a step back, Mazurka popped his head in passed the frame of the door. "Yeah, just got in with Kavak. I was taking him to Skye's lab."

"Good to see you again, Detective Harlowe," Kavak said as he waved over the top of Mazurka.

"Come in for a minute, both of you. I spoke with our newest asset earlier today," Harlowe remarked with a smug tone, seemingly pleased with himself as Mazurka sat at his desk and Kavak closed the door behind them. "Quayleigh Vershinin has agreed to work with us. We're to meet her tomorrow morning at Dixie's Roadhouse at eleven o'clock."

"You need to rethink this Harlowe."

"I don't need to rethink anything. She agreed to this, and I've spent the last hour on the phone with the MET arranging the details. The deals done. All we need is her signature and access to these archives is as good as ours. But I'm going to need you to hand over all the files you have on her."

"Why? What do you need them for?"

"Leverage," Harlowe responded with a stern glare. "That girl is our best chance for answers. We can't afford for her to walk away."

"She won't," Mazurka replied as he unlocked the top drawer of his desk and pulled out the files. Setting them on top of his desk, he tapped on the cover. "I've read what's in these, and there's nothing in them you could possibly use to force her into doing what you want."

"If you're concerned, might I suggest that you simply hold up your end of whatever deal you made?" Kavak interjected. "What reason would she have to run, if she feels safe?"

"Exactly," Mazurka agreed as he looked across at Harlow. "I'll make sure she shows up. There's no need to be underhanded about this. We are the good guys in all of this. If anything, Quayleigh already has little to no reason to trust us. She's been let down by the authorities before, and she's pretty perceptive. If she thinks we're not being honest with her, that's what's going to make her walk away. If we treat her honestly and don't threaten her, I don't see why we can't talk her through any reservations she may have."

"It's always better to be prepared," Harlowe replied as he reached across and took a hold of the files dragging them over to his desk. "Speaking of which, I'm thinking of making Folsten the liaison for her. What do you think?"

"I was hoping you would consider me for the position," Mazurka said as he leaned back in his chair keeping an eye on the files, berating himself internally for handing them over so easily.

"I need you free in case something else comes up, or another body comes in."

"Fair enough."

"When you say Folsten, do you mean Hayden Folsten, the profiler?" Kavak asked, as he lifted his hand to his chin.

"That's the one," Harlowe replied.

"I've worked several cases with her. She's extremely good at what she does. Are you certain you wish to waste her on babysitting an asset?"

"Given the place and the people there, it's exactly why I was thinking she'd be perfect for the position, but I've no idea if her and Ms. Vershinin would work well together. Hence why I asked for your opinion, kid."

"You should take her along to the meeting tomorrow, see if they get along at all," Mazurka suggested. "Personally, I think it's a good idea though. Putting a profiler in place to watch over her should prove we're taking her safety seriously. That will go a long way with her."

"Good point. For now, I'll keep our options open though. If she calls you, do your best to assure her that we're taking every precaution."

"I will, because we are. I'm not going to lie to her, Harlowe. For fucks sake, she's Dylan's girlfriend, and frankly, I'm lucky she'll still take my calls. After what happened this morning, she practically threw me out and told me not to come back. If it wasn't for Dylan, I wouldn't be able to keep an eye on her at all. And that was what you wanted wasn't it? We have to come through for her. That is the only way this is going to work the way you want."

"That's easy to say but try not to forget that we don't have jurisdiction over the MET. Nothing is going to change that. We can put it on paper, dot the I's and cross the T's, get everyone to sign, but no one can force them to play nice or fair. And what Ms. Vershinin doesn't know, won't hurt her. So, keep that information to yourselves. All we can do is lead her to the door with someone she thinks she can trust, and then we all get to wait and see if the MET holds up its side of the deal."

Mazurka felt the blood boil in his veins. Everything Harlowe had agreed to on the phone was just a ploy to get Quayleigh to agree to what he wanted, and if he warned her now, Harlowe would know it was because he warned her. 'Surely a signed contract would hold some weight over them though.' He wanted to believe that, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he was leading her directly to the altar she would be sacrificed on.

"If the police are offering a liaison, I can only assume the MET will be too," Kavak wondered aloud.

"They are. It was a part of the deal we made."

"Did they tell you who the liaison would be for their side?" Mazurka asked, hoping that maybe a name could at least lead to something he could use to force the MET to keep up their end of the agreement.

"Strangely enough, when I gave them Quayleigh's name, Archivist Phaedra volunteered for the position."

"Why does that make you sound nervous?"

"Easy, Phaedra isn't the type of guy who volunteers for anything that doesn't serve him in some way. He's the entire reason I thought Folsten would be the best option from our side. Her and Phaedra have already met."

Mazurka didn't like the sound of anything coming out of Harlowe's mouth, but he wasn't in any position to argue. He was just glad that Harlowe wasn't considering watching over Quayleigh himself given how he was acting. He was convinced that if push came to shove, Harlowe would abandon Quayleigh to save his own skin in an instant, without so much as a look back to take in the carnage he would leave behind. Folsten on the other hand, no longer sounded like a bad option.

"You should assign Folsten the position. She's already a step ahead of everyone else, and probably understands the situation more than you think," Kavak said out loud what Mazurka had been thinking.

"Like I said, options open. But I've held you both up long enough. Skye's probably wondering where you are by now."

"Yeah, we need to get going. We'll check back again later before we leave for the day," Mazurka remarked as he and Kavak left the room.

"I'm starting to think that it is you who needs to put in for a transfer," Kavak jested quietly as they made their way down the hall.

"You and me both," Mazurka replied dead serious.

The case had taken its toll on everyone but on Harlowe it had turned the honest cop he had aspired to be, into a man he no longer wanted to be around. He could easily see the questionable choices Harlowe was making and the ethical lines he was dangerously close to blurring. He was losing faith in his partner, making their current situation even more dangerous, because he no longer felt as if he could trust in Harlowe, and trust in a partner, for a cop, that was everything.