Take-Two [ Tragictrees & Annyeong Bunny ]

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Austin didn't say anything about being patted on the head, but was thoroughly confused. He tried to figure out if there had ever been a point in time where Lee had, willingly, touched him when it wasn't needed. He ended up coming up with nothing. He sighed to himself, and decided that he'd let Evelyn take care of any talking that needed to be done. He wasn't going to question every single action Lee did; that'd only lead down a path of more anxiety and he knew it.

Evelyn took the hint and nodded "Alright. Well, we're going to not be back til early in the morning, probably. I'd say 2 am. We're going to the dinner, and then we're going to try to have a look in the tunnels. Good luck to you two on both of your excursions." She replied, getting up and dusting herself off "God knows we all need a little luck."
 
Lee was caught in his thoughts. He mumbled a farewell of sorts and headed outside. Daniel quickly followed suit, and they both went their own separate ways. Thankfully, the drive to the college wasn't relatively far, so he had little time to think too much about everything. That, and he was sure that if he had to drive much longer, he would have dozed off. Once reaching the college, Lee went to the meeting and was a bit surprised. Inside the room were screens showing live feed, and the president was there waiting. He looked a bit distressed.

"Lee, we need to talk..."

Once Daniel got to the law firm, he sighed. He had lied about going out to dinner with his colleagues, as he didn't want to be the only one in that house. Not with everything that was going on and the idea of 'secret tunnels'. As he sat in his new office, he groaned with boredom. All of the work he needed to take care of, he had already done. So, with his time, he decided to look into the entire organ-theft, as far as legal terms went. There were a lot of laws against underground business like that, but when workers at a hospital were involved, he was sure that complications with 'hush money' was bound to be a thing. It happened all the time, unfortunately. Justice was corrupt at times. "Alright... let's dig in!"

Lee watched the monitor carefully, seeing a tall student making his way to the neighborhood from the college, the camera's view just catching them. They were using a computer to look at the feed from the night before, as the security guard had caught it. As the guard skipped ahead in the video, the detective watched as three police cars quickly appeared and went down the same street. It was suspicious, but not enough to prove the kid did it.

"Were there any night classes happening, or was the student on campus after hours?" Lee questioned, rewinding the tape to watch again. He took in the appearance of the student and the way they walked. It was only a bit he could get from it, but it still would help.

"We have about 5 or 6 night classes that get out about 30 minutes before this video. I could give you the list of classes with all the students, but I'm afraid it would take a while to try and narrow it down." the president apologized, and Lee simply shook his head before pausing the video.

"I can stay all night if I have to. This is my job." And with that, Lee watched as the president made his way to a file cabinet...
 
Dinner had gone as well as Austin had expected. That was to say, it hadn't gone well at all. It was, overall, awkward, and he got the sense that the people he was eating dinner with were trying to just get gossip and information out of him. This had also been paired with one of the girls asking him about medical terms and telling him how interesting it was no matter what he said for a short while, but that had quickly ended once he had, loudly, announced that his husband had a much cooler job than he had.

Evelyn was taking it all in stride, and had come up with a survival tactic that consisted of talking to just the younger kids, making her the unofficial babysitter. She found this simpler than talking to anyone involved with the neighborhood who was an adult or close to, and while she would've loved to save Austin as well, she found they were more interested in him, distracting them from asking her any personal questions.

The dinner itself, at least, was alright. The food was good, and so were the drinks. If one was to ignore the people there, it could've been a nice evening. Unfortunately, the dinner party came with the 'party' part, and made that impossible. By the end, both of them were tired of talking to any living being. Austin had started out that way. Evelyn had slowly progressed to that point after a numerous amount of people asked her about her vitiligo and made comments on it.

They did manage to sneak into the basement without anyone noticing, and then into a tunnel that had been hidden behind the boiler. It was a bit of a squeeze, and required them to duck a bit, but by the time 2 AM came around, they were into a tunnel with their phone lights on, finally in peace. This, of course, sparked conversation.

"So, I think I'm experiencing tachyphylaxis." Austin spoke after a moment or two of silence, speaking softly to avoid being heard by anyone who may be in the tunnels or, god forbid, in their own basement "I don't know, really, but I think I am maybe. It's not a huge deal, I guess, it's just....the timing really sucks, you know?"

"Elaborate on what tacky phil-whatever is, please." Evelyn replied, shining a light at him a moment, before turning it ahead once more "I don't know anything medical. I know that the triangle is the strongest shape in nature. That's my specialty."

Austin rolled his eyes "I think my meds aren't working. Again." He explained, sighing, ducking down and around an exit tunnel to avoid shining the light into the basement as they passed it "It might be the stressed, but I've also been forgetting to take my pills. I mean, I don't want to toss myself off a bridge again quite yet--"

"Don't joke about that."

"Alright, fair. Point is, I think I need to figure out a new drug or something, but we're here, so I can't exactly do that, and I've already had a feelings jam with Lee once so I'm not eager to do that again." He said, glancing over at her to gauge her reaction. He wasn't surprised to find her keeping her expression blank.

"Surprising. I would've thought he had plenty of comfort to pass around. And, what, you don't want to talk to the new guy?"

"Hah. You're such a comedian. I'll have you know he was actually weirdly comforting. I'm just not shoving that on him again. Also, hell no. He seems..." He trailed off a moment, trying to think up a word ".....nice. Normal. Put together, maybe. I'm not pulling him into my bullshit, especially since I don't know him. Look, just....I just want to make sure you're alright with keeping tabs on me. Again. Sorry."

"Austin, I haven't stopped keeping tabs on you, let me be clear." She replied, sending him a smile "So don't worry about it. If you need a 'feelings jam', I'm here for it." She paused, and held up a hand for him to stop "Hey. I think this is our house. Lets put a pin in this." She then started moving once more, letting Austin follow behind.

When they entered the basement, they found it completely overturned.

Austin let out a low whistle, kicking some of the carnage out of the way. "Well, I guess we weren't the only ones in the tunnel system tonight, huh?" He said absentmindedly, before heading for the stairs "Hopefully the horror story is confined to down here."

It wasn't. They reached the kitchen, and found the place also a wreck. Evelyn had picked up a baseball bat on her way up, and held it high, just in case the perpetrators were still around.
 
Looking through all of the students hadn't taken all night, thankfully. It was only around midnight when he was finished, and unfortunately, didn't bring up any new leads. The most he was able to do was pinpoint which kids that were taking night classes were also taking his class. He was spent, and he bid the college president a good night before heading to his car. On his way, he saw Daniel waiting outside, kicking at a few pebbles. The sight shocked him, to say the least, and he cleared his throat.

"What are you doing?" Lee asked carefully, eyeing the other male as he stopped quite a distance away. Daniel looked up and smiled, rubbing at the back of his head. He looked sheepish.

"I miiiight have been lying about the whole dinner thing. I just didn't want to wait back at the house." Daniel admitted, still smiling as he turned his gaze skyward. Lee lifted an eyebrow and tsked, motioning for Daniel to follow. As they got to his car, they both hopped inside, and Lee started the engine.

"So, you're saying you did absolutely nothing until midnight, then stalked my job? Very professional of you." Lee spoke in monotone, and listened as Daniel tried to justify himself. He was saying something about how he was headed home, but saw Lee's car there, so he decided to wait. The detective nodded a bit and turned onto the main road, not bothering to say anything.

"I have a question." Daniel asked, his grin now gone as he took on total seriousness. Lee gave a small 'hm?' to signal the lawyer to continue, glancing at the other for a moment before turning to look back at the road. "Do you always hate people, or am I just an exception? You treat Austin perfectly fine..." a slight pout could be heard in Daniel's voice, and Lee simply rolled his eyes.

"Well, you're personality clashes with mine, you're very touchy, and-" Lee stopped as all of those characteristics were what Austin had as well. It hit him how when compared to Daniel, Lee was a lot less annoyed by Austin. Deciding to reword his answer, the detective sighed. "Sorry, look, it's nothing personal. I just don't do new people very well. I hated Austin too when I first met him, so don't worry, you're not special." turning into their driveway, Lee glanced back over at Daniel to see him more or less tilting his head to the side, pouting a bit. "You look like a kid! Cut it out and get inside." Lee snipped, stepping out of his car. Daniel followed suit, and once they walked inside, they both froze in their tracks.

"What the fuck...?" Daniel looked around in shock, and Lee held a hand up to signal the other to be quiet. The detective walked in slowly, listening carefully. Nobody was there, thankfully. Quickly turning the light switch on, he saw the true damage: furniture overturned, vases and plates were smashed. Then, he heard a noise. They were currently in the living room, and the sound came from the basement. A voice, but he couldn't make it out. Lee then stepped into the kitchen and saw a silhouette, making his heart jump.

"Oh shit!" Daniel yelped, and Lee hurried to switch the light on, his eyes wide in slight shock as adrenaline rushed through his veins. It was Evelynn. Lee grabbed at his chest and felt his body relax, and he closed his eyes, bracing the wall. "Goddamn..."
 
Evelyn didn't lower her bat, and Austin had, at this point, grabbed a kitchen knife. The two of them looked like the disgruntled protagonists of a horror film, covered in dust and dirt from the tunnel, and looking rather paranoid. They relaxed a little upon seeing the other two, but still were considerably tense.

After a moment of just considering each other, Austin finally started to move again, tapping Evelyn's shoulder. "Check the rest of the house, see if anyone's around. I'm going to head back in the tunnels and see what I can find. Lock the basement door from this side." He said, moving back to the basement door once his cousin nodded, indicating she agreed. He suddenly felt a bit queasy about actually falling asleep in the house, because someone could have easily entered the house while he did. He flicked on his light again; he had a feeling he wouldn't be well rested for the rest of this trip.

The next thing that moved, he'd probably stab. He was working off of adrenaline at the moment.
 
"Follow Evelyn and check the rest of the house. I'm going with Austin." Lee ordered Daniel quickly, and before the lawyer could argue about it, he walked toward the basement as well. There was a feeling he had that the college student could be the cause, but he didn't want to jump to conclusions. He eyed Austin, seeing that he was holding the knife, and figured he shouldn't just randomly talk without letting him know he was behind him. The last thing he needed was to be stabbed.

"Don't freak out, I'm the one behind you, so don't stab me." Lee muttered quietly, putting his hand on Austin's shoulder first to signal that he was there. Then, he dropped his hand and looked down the stairs to the basement. "This could have been that kid..." Lee added as his own adrenaline continued to drum in his ears.

Daniel on the other hand immediately turned to follow Evelyn, grabbing a frying pan on his way. "There's nobody in the living room, and Lee said he didn't think anybody was in here. We haven't checked the rooms though." the lawyer whispered so quietly it was almost nonexistent. He peeked into the bathroom and saw it was vacant. He was a wuss in these situations, and he could admit that. It was why he was a lawyer and not working the whole police thing.
 
Austin tried his best to appear not startled. He wasn't completely startled, of course, but anything was enough to give him a bit of a jump at the moment. He did manage to not whip around and stab Lee, though, so he figured that it was a win. He sighed a little, getting a hold of himself. Checking this out was the best option in the moment, though they hadn't seen anyone down there when they had been traversing the system before. That could have changed, and it was better to look than to not.

"That kid seems to know that you're looking into him, then. The other houses weren't trashed like this." Austin said, keeping his voice down, descending the stairs, keeping a good grip on the knife "Well, let's get this over with, I guess. They're probably long gone, so prepare for a whole lot of nothing." His stance, of course, suggested that he thought otherwise, but it was simple because an irrational part of him was still extremely paranoid about the whole situation.

Evelyn sighed a bit, glancing at the man, before heading to one of the bedrooms. "We haven't. I doubt anyone's here, but I played baseball in high school, so if they are here, knocking them out is easy." She replied, her voice a little louder, but not much. She paused outside the door, before opening it quickly, holding the bat in front of her. What she found was nothing, except for the cat, who sat on the bed, undisturbed by the whole situation. "Well, Muffin's alright. That's something."
 
"You might be right." as Lee walked forward, he carefully headed down the stairs, taking in the trashed basement. It looked like a hurricane had come through, but thankfully none of their actual stuff was in there. The detective slowly made his way in front of Austin, seeing the hole that must have led to the tunnels. The dark-haired male looked into it and sighed. It looked dark and a bit cramped, so at least getting jumped would be harder in there. "Since you have the weapon, I'll follow behind you." Lee gestured to the tunnel, even though he had wanted to go in first. However, he wasn't stupid. He only had his pocket knife, when Austin had a large kitchen knife.

Daniel cautiously followed Evelyn to the room, breathing a sigh of relief that nobody was in the room. However, while Muffin was okay, the room wasn't. It was worse than the living room, as Lee's books were thrown across the room, pages torn out. Both of the detectives' clothes were strewn across the floor, and from the ripped pages, it looked like part confetti had been thrown all over the place. "Damn... I hope they don't freak out..." Daniel commented, his lips forming a frown at the sight. "So, your room next?" Daniel glanced at Evelyn before heading to the girl's room. He slowly opened it and peeked inside. Nothing. Daniel gave a relieved laugh and dropped his arm that was holding the pan, moving from the doorway to lean against the wall. "I don't know how they do this all the time, I feel like I'm gonna have a heart attack sometime this month."
 
"Thanks. I mean, I was going to go first either way, but your approval of the plan is appreciated." Austin responded, before moving ahead and into the tunnel. While he did hate being there, and the possibility that someone else was there, he didn't want a repeat of what happened in the barn. That, of course, meant that him going first was the most logical thing to do. He also had the large knife, so that was another reason for it. "I don't think we should travel too far in tonight. I don't really know these things well enough to say, confidently, I know where I'm going."

Meanwhile, Evelyn glanced around her room, taking in what had been overturned "Don't know about Lee, but Austin lives by the mantra 'live fast, die young, get some stuff done while you're at it'." She replied, before beginning to head to the next room "So he's actually aiming for the heart attack. Anyway, your room is next. You ready?"
 
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say." Lee muttered as he rolled his eyes. He wasn't nervous or freaking out, so at least he could keep Austin calm as they walked a bit deeper into the tunnels. There was a mildew smell, and a chill was evident once they began to walk. Just like in a n old horror movie. Lee kept an eye on Austin while also keeping an eye ahead. The detective turned on his phone's flashlight and held it up, watching as the path ahead of them was illuminated. With that, Lee stayed close, but not uncomfortably close. He just wanted to make sure nothing was going to jump out.

"Uh huh, great motto." Daniel spoke more of less in a sarcastic tone. When asked about his own room, he wanted to say no, but he couldn't look like a wimp or anything. So, he slowly nodded and followed Evelyn. He put a hand on the doorknob and sucked in a breath, pushing it open as he stumbled in. It was empty as well. "Oh, thank go-" then he stopped. There was something on his bed. A note.
 
Austin fell quiet, moving ahead slightly, before noticing something ahead. It looked like a person, and by the way they were moving, Austin decided to go with that assumption. Without much of a second thought, he broke into a sprint after them, trying to catch up. However, he lost sight of them after a moment or two, and stopped, leaning against a wall to catch his breath. Realizing he'd accidentally started running without telling Lee, he turned, trying to figure out where his partner was. "Sorry. Saw someone. They're gone now. Before you ask, I wasn't able to make anything out about them."

Evelyn stared at it a moment, before placing the bat down, walking over to the bed. She picked up the note, flipping it over in her hand once to get a good look at it. "Well, we know we were targeted now, if we didn't before." She said casually, before taking a closer look at it and beginning to read it. She wasn't all that surprise that they had left something.
 
Lee had glanced down at the ground when he heard Austin sprint off in front of him. He felt his adrenaline kick in and he cursed, feeling his breath hitch. He hated things taking him by surprise. He listened to the sound of Austin's feet and ran after him, hoping he wasn't turning down a wrong way. Thankfully, he lifted his phone light to see Austin bracing himself against the wall, catching his breath. Lee pressed his lips together as he slowed to a halt behind Austin. "Yeah, that's great and all, but let me know next time before you run off!" Lee snapped, bending over and putting his hands on his knees. He usually wouldn't have been so tired after a run, but seeing Austin suddenly take off, leaving him in the dark, Lee's adrenaline had kicked into overdrive. "It's fine. Let's head back." as Lee started to head back, he felt his mouth turn down a bit in slight confusion as a thought hit him.

"Is something wrong with you? You're not acting like yourself."

Daniel put a hand on Evelyn's shoulder as he leaned to look at the note as well. "I'm sure it's just some kid's cruel idea of a joke. I mean, it's definitely a threat..." Daniel scanned the note once more and lifted an eyebrow. The note read a simple 'Someone's always watching'. And while it was short and simple, it chilled the lawyer to the bone. "God, why are kids so creepy nowadays? It's like they watch too much CSI or something." Daniel whined a bit before stepping back.
 
Austin considered lying as he followed behind Lee, knife now lowered by his side, though he was still on edge. Lying would be easier, because he had told himself, and Evelyn, that he wasn't going to talk about Lee about it, because it wasn't Lee's problem. Frankly, it wasn't even Evelyn's, but she had offered for him to talk to her, and took care of him of her own free will. Lee hadn't exactly gone to that point, and probably would be uncomfortable with the conversation. But, the conversation about sharing things between partners came to mind. Austin had fucked up once. He didn't want to do it again. So, he decided he'd just overly simplify it, but still stay truthful.

"It's not that important." He said, shrugging his shoulders though Lee couldn't see him "My meds aren't working, that's all." Which was true. They weren't. The side effects of such he decided to leave out, however.

Evelyn, meanwhile, scanned the note once more "I'm telling you, it's Hannibal. That show was fucking weird, and kids watch it." She muttered, folding up the note and placing it in her pocket "Alright, well, it's clear up here. Let's see if the other two are back yet, and we'll talk this over. Then, it's time to do some cleaning. Sound good?"
 
"Hmm..." the sound emanated from Lee's throat as he continued to walk, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. He had been expecting the other male to brush it off as if nothing was wrong, so the fact he was telling him put him a bit at ease. Releasing an audible sigh, the detective slowed a bit in order to walk next to Austin. He scratched at his neck before turning to look at the other. "Is it a bad thing?" Lee questioned nonchalantly, though he began to grow curious. However, just as he asked the question, he saw their basement come into view, so he walked inside. "Actually, tell me about it later when we head to bed. If you're willing to spill that is." and with that, Lee sent a knowing glance to Austin before walking up the stairs, running a hand through his hair. He noticed Austin had been acting weird for the past few days, but they both had been too busy for him to actually sit down and think about it.

Daniel nodded and followed Evelyn to the kitchen, watching as Lee walked inside. "Cool, now we have a whole cleaning crew. I was afraid you guys would've been gone too long to actually help with the mess." Daniel commented light-heartedly, to which Lee rolled his eyes and walked to the sink, washing his hands.

"Austin saw someone, but he ran off before we could get him. I'm sure now that it's the college kid." Lee informed Daniel and Evelyn, sighing. He was so tired. The detective rubbed at his face and didn't even want to think about the mess of the house.
 
Austin followed Lee back, and leaned against the fridge, watching the others. He was a bit of a mess, but he figured he'd just take a shower after they were done talking. He needed that time to consider how much he should tell Lee anyway, who was asking more questions than anticipated. He thought that just telling a bit of the truth would've been enough, but apparently he had thought wrong. He glanced over to Evelyn, who seemed to be contemplating herself.

Her silence didn't last long. She took the note out of her pocket, going to Lee and holding it out "Here. Found this in Daniel's room. You might want to take a look. As for cleaning...." She sighed, looking around the room, then at everyone around her "I think, actually, we should all get some rest and do it tomorrow. We're all tired. It's been a long night. We'll lock and barricade the basement door, and close the windows, just in case. Everyone good with that?"
 
Lee took the note and, to his surprise, grinned. Then, he pocketed the note and nodded. "I agree. If any of us try to clean this now, neither of us are going to be able to focus tomorrow either. I'll get the windows." the detective stepped away from the kitchen and made his way into the living room. He locked all of the windows, some of which were already locked, before moving to the next rooms.

Daniel grinned and pushed up his sleeves, ready for action. "I'm down! I'll help with the basement door. I think there's some spare wood boards or something in the garage." he offered, feeling glad to help out finally. He was tired of just being a side character. Then, as Daniel started to walk toward the basement door, a loud shout emanated from Lee's room.

"You got to be shitting me!" Lee's voice filled the house, and Daniel winced a bit, rubbing the back of his head. He already know what the detective had found, and he had been expecting that reaction since he had gotten back.

"Uh... looks like Lee found his books..." Daniel spoke slowly, giving a nervous laugh as he then started to descend into the basement.
 
Evelyn watched Daniel leave, before looking to Austin with both eyebrows raised. "You look like you're a mess. I'll take care of the front and back door, but you...go take a shower." She said, looking him up and down "Please, if not for your own sake, then for mine. Also, your clothes are everywhere, so you probably need to search out what you're going to wear. Just a warning."

"Thanks, Evie. You're so kind." He replied, smiling tiredly at her "But yea, I'll go do that. Kinda expected my shit to be ruined. It is what it is. See you tomorrow. Try not to get ax-murdered."

"You too, moron."

So, Evelyn went to check the doors, and Austin headed to the shower. He didn't stay in for long, just about 10 minutes, because while he valued the time to think, he also knew he wanted some sleep. He actually figured that, by the time he got back, Lee would already be passed out, because it had been a long night, as his cousin mentioned. He was surprised to find that wasn't the case.

"Oh. Hey. You're still awake." He said, voicing his surprise, before scooping up Muffin- who he was happy to see was alright -and getting into his side of the bed. He wasn't sure what else to say; he didn't want to bring up the earlier topic, in case Lee forgot.
 
Lee was sitting on the ground, his mouth turned into a grimace as he looked through his books. While it was only a few of his collection, he had still spent a lot of money to get them. And now half of them were demolished. He had his face in his hands as Austin walked in. He groaned a response and rubbed his face for a few more seconds before moving to stand. Then, sitting on his side of the bed, the detective sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "Yes, as much as I hate to say it." Lee felt like a hundred cinder blocks were pressing on his neck and shoulders.

"And you don't have to be so... awkward. I can feel it." the dark-haired male pointed out as he stood to turn off the main light. He then walked to the lamp in the corner of the room. As he turned it on, Lee narrowed his eyes a bit at Austin, taking in his body language. "So. What's up with the whole medicine situation? Do you need to go back to Detroit?" Lee questioned, turning his head a bit as he eyed Austin. The detective walked back to the bed and sat down, trying to asses the other's reaction and position. He didn't want to push if it was a bad topic.
 
Austin sighed, keeping his eyes on Muffin. She seemed content to let him use her as a slight distraction, which he was grateful for. "Nah. It's just slowly starting to work less. It's probably the stress. That, or its my shitty memory, since I've been forgetting to take it." He answered, deciding to elaborate now that he was being questioned "Evelyn is keeping an eye on me already, so again, not a big deal. She already took my gun, which I'm becoming less grateful for now that we had a break-in, but hey, whatever." He paused, before tacking on "Which, she has a permit for the gun, so it isn't illegal, by the way. I don't think, at least. It's not like she's about to use it, so I'm pretty sure it isn't a huge deal. Not like this is the first time, anyway."

He let Muffin hop off the bed, and took off his glasses, setting them to the side. He was, of course, anxious to even speak about his issues, but he also didn't want to pretend they didn't exist. Besides, it would be better for Lee to know than for Evelyn to have to half-ass an excuse in order to get him out of something, if needed.
 
Lee pressed his lips together as he watched Austin speak. He... honestly, he didn't know what to say in this situation. But, he didn't want to show that to Austin, who had just told him what was going on. So instead, the detective tilted his head a bit and looked to the side, thinking for a moment.

"So, you're able to get it diagnosed when we get back?" Lee asked as he turned to look back at Austin. He had known that the other detective had medicine for certain things, but he didn't expect for it to be so bad at times. So, he sighed a bit before putting his hands on his knees, sitting with his legs crossed. "Plus... I probably wouldn't know what to do, but if you need someone to help out when Evelyn's not there, I could always try." Lee spoke carefully, so as to make sure he was wording his sentence correctly. It was the first time he had willingly reached out to someone else, so he felt slightly embarrassed. However, he didn't let that show as he had spoke in his usual monotone, keeping his gaze on Austin. There wasn't really a smile to add to that offer, but Lee tried his best to sound genuine.

"Just think of it as repaying a debt for the whole sleeping situation, if you need to... after all, it can't be great rooming with a paranoid insomniac." Lee smirked humorlessly a bit as he spoke, turning his gaze to the bed. He wasn't the best at talking about himself or what he had wrong with him, but he was sure it was easier to help someone else out. After all, he was a detective. It was his job, right?
 
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