Unbeknownst to the man, the detective was right beside him. Drake stuck to the shadows as he kept his back pressed firmly to the wall next to the window. Thankfully his worn old greying trenchcoat still served to help him hide in the darkness of the night. He relaxed as he heard the goon report what he saw to the others in the safehouse. `Whew. That was close. The cat that showed up out of nowhere and distract the damn mutt was a stroke of luck,` he thought to himself. As it is, none of the people inside the safehouse would notice anyone sneak out of the yard and make a break for it before they find the bodies. "Are you sure?" The ominous-sounding voice that spoke those three simple words immediately chilled Drake to the very bone. Drake saw the odds of him escaping the goons without any of them spotting him shrinking by the moment. If the word on the street about Blackthorne was true, he'll be dead -- or worse -- within the minute they find him. The bastard was a freelance, and from what he've heard one of the best there is. "I'll check..." The goon grumbled a bit at the unspoken belittlement, but neverthereless complied. He produced a small pocket flashlight, and proceeded to sweep the yard with it's light like a prison guard would. `No use sneaking around,` Drake thought frantically as he looked around for a safe path away from the slender beam of light, while the said inched closer to where he was hiding. `The moment he spots me I'm dead...` Right at the moment the goon turned towards him, there was a sudden shout of alarm that made the man turn his head. "Hey, I found Louie and the others! They've been whacked!" There was a commotion in the house as everyone inside scrambled upstairs. "Cripes! The Outfit's on to us!" screamed a shrill, whiny voice. Tanner was obviously not in a good mood. "Search the area!" Blackthorne barked the order to the other goons. "Whoever did this might still be around!" They looked in every nook and cranny of the house, but found nothing. That was because by this time, Drake and Jarhead was already long gone. * * * * * The two friends were silent for most of the trip back to the city. "So..." Jarhead, who was driving the inconspicuous grey coupe, finally broke the silence. "Where's the little girl?" Drake paused, ignoring the stench of decaying fast-food leftovers gathered on the floor as he considered his reply. "She's not in there." "The bust was a bust, huh?" Drake shook his head. "Not really..." Jarhead raised an eyebrow. "What did you find out?" "This case is not just a simple kidnapping case. I think that there's more to this case than a simple blackmail scheme, and my client is involved in something that's a lot bigger than he knows," Drake replied, rubbing his forehead. "Heck, it's even bigger that anything that I can figure out." "I think I'm getting the picture..." Jarhead mused. "Anything I can do to help?" "Just swing over to the Eclipse," Drake quickly changed the subject, producing the black book he appropriated from `Louie` earlier. "I'll be paying Hack another visit. I'm sure he'll be interested in this development, and can get me more information for this." Jarhead's eyes narrowed. "Dude, why are you giving me the brush-off treatment all of a sudden? I really want to give you a hand in this case of yours." "What about your job at O'Grady's?" "Drake," Jarhead replied flippantly, "you know very well that playing the part of 'security' is just something I do to pass the time between jobs in my real line of work." "Weren't you listening?!?" Drake exclaimed. "This case may be one that's way over our heads. I don't want anyone else to get in trouble because I've unexpectedly stirred up a hornet's nest." "All the more reason to call in Clane and the rest of the old team," Jarhead pointed out. "Dude, you've got to lighten up." Drake fumed. "Jarhead, it's been months since you've been in action. You can't be serious about taking on Tanner and the Outfit." "I am. I know a lot of people who would just love to take Blackthorne down several notches, if not completely." Drake shook his head, sighing. "You just wanted the chance to shoot up Crummtown." "Heh." Jarhead grinned. "Mass Destruction is fun." * * * * * M.E.T.A. Scene 6 4/10/2000 by Signus Megido for Beware The Radish http://www.chaoseed.com/btr/meta/