2019-10-14 - Leads and Flu

Gabriel is in the detectives' bullpen, as he usually is, a case file spread out in front of him. It is the Kruger murders, of course, the latest redball case that has the Department humming and the district attorney's office breathing down his back. His finger scans across the lines, as if trying to think of a new angle on things.

Oh, also, he looks awful. He just looks run down and dabs at his nose with a tissue from time to time. Like he's coming down with something.

"Fuck. Are you sick, too?" Charlie questions this from what she determines as a safe distance from him, a cup of coffee in her hand, a to-go container in the other. She looks like she might just run away if there is any point in time he might cough in her direction. "Why do you people keep coming in looking like this? Some of us got kids."

"Because you fucking want to tell Cassidy that I can't close the Kruger murder because I'm down with the flu?" asks Gabe to Charlie, even as he snuffs hard in his nose, trying to hold it back. He looks up at her, trying to hide the clear puffiness. "I'm trying to think of new angles to this before the interview tomorrow. What about the judge? If this fish thing is so trumped up, why's she taking it so seriously? A soft heart? Or something else?"

"There are a bunch of angles, Gabe." Charlie shakes her head as she circles around him, "And so that you can't close the case?" She raises a brow very faintly at him as she sets the her to-go containers down on the desk. Then she hits the power button on her computer before she sits in her chair, getting everything booted up, "So...couple out of the realm of possibility ideas were the Kruger's were the wrong target, unrelated to this fish shit and just yet again one more red herring."

It could probably be assumed she's going to get sick of fish one day. "The judge taking it serious might not be anything more than she's an environmentalist herself, or that she's not fond of gambling. I get that they are supposed to divorce themselves from their personal feelings, but..."

"You know what I mean," says Gabe, waving his tissue at Charlie. "We can't close the case. She wants all hands on this. The Captain wants all hands on this. And I, ah --" He snuffs hard, trying to control that post-nasal drip somewhat. "You know I don't have an ego on this shit. You think I'm trying to make Sergeant? I just want to close cases and put bad guys away."

A sigh when Charlie offers up new theories. "Maybe. But this was a professional hit. He just walks in and ices the wrong targets?" It is, as Charlie says, a more out of the realm of possibility idea to him.

"I know what you mean, and keep your damn germs to yourself." Charlie reaches into her drawer to pull out the hand sanitizer, starting to slather it all over her hands. "Yeah, everyone wants everyone on all this. Problem is..." She tosses the bottle onto her desk, "Nothing actually makes sense. Something starts to, and we're off in another direction because it's wrong."

"Yeah. We think it's Felix because they're in debt to him. But nothing comes back. We think it's the fish because they're witnesses, but the whole thing seems trumped up. Why do a professional hit for an outside risk? Unless maybe, with this judge, it isn't an outside risk." Gabe is just trying out the theory, seeing how it comes out. He doesn't seem sold. "Dammit. I am thinking about taking a run at the daughter, again, seeing if anyone is trying to buy up the motel now that she might inherit? I don't know. Somethings got to crack."

"Could try...At this fucking point I'm willing to kick down each and every door, see if there is anything on the other side of it." Charlie reaches for her container, popping it open before fishing out a plastic fork from her desk, "A no, wrong direction, it might take up a few extra minutes, but at least then we won't be wasting time looking in that direction."

"Yeah. I know. Me, too. And I've got at the body in the harbor I've got to work with the new murder cop they've assigned to us. Esme's coming back to us from whatever division she was in before this." Esme has been on several desks before. Gabe lost track. "And I'm coming down with a fucking flu. When it rains it pours, right?"

Gabe pushes the book aside, to try to clear his head. "Anyway. How's Georgie doing? She like her new teacher this year?"

"Georgie's alright...upset that it's not summer any more, but excited for Halloween, and she loves her new teacher." Charlie replies with a shake of her head, "So, it's a pretty mixed bag. Life is rough for a kid, yeah?" She starts to stab at her salad, moving it around in the container, "So we've got that interview, you want to bug the judge, and the daughter again. What else?"

"I don't know if I'd bug the judge. But I just want to pull some of her paperwork, ask around and see who she is getting campaign contributions from, what her reputation is on environmental cases. Like you say, she might just be a bleeding heart, merits be damned. But it's just trying to get some kind of angle on this." Gabe sighs. "But yeah. That's good."

But then back to Georgie. "That's awesome. What's she going to be for Halloween? If I'm not dying, bring her by my house. I'll get the full-sized candy bars."

"She likes kit-kats, get the giant ones of those." Charlie takes a bite from her salad, then she sets it down on the desk next to her, brushing her hands off, "I think she's going for princess...but she weirdly asked how I felt about a plastic sword. So she might be a self-rescuing princess."

"We'll sort it out. I'm not going to accept that this case won't ever get closed." Charlie leans forward, resting her forearms on her knees, "But, seriously, working while sick isn't going to help, is it?"

"I'll struggle through this interview tomorrow," says Gabe. Because it's a big interview! "And then if I get worse, I'll stay home and harass you by text for updates every few hours or so." He is trying to make a joke! Gabe is joking.

"Do you know Erin Addington? I'm sort of seeing her. We had a first date. But she came over with a ton of supplies for when I go down, I guess. She told me this flu doesn't mess around."

"Can't say that I know her personally, but I know who the Addington's are." Charlie takes a swallow from the coffee, finishing it off before she tosses the cup into the trashcan next to her desk. "You should also figure out if you are or are not seeing her. Sort of doesn't sound very promising."

"It was just one date. It went well, but, you know." Gabe waves his hand, vaguely. "One date does not make a Relationship-with-Capital-R make, you know?" He is trying to be Cool about this. But then again, Charlie would know he hasn't seen someone in a while. He wipes his nose, too. So sexy.

"No, but one date and then her turning up with cold medicine ready to go all Hellooooo Nurse might mean something." Charlie points out with a shake of her head, "I'm not saying it does, but I'm not saying it doesn't, either."

"I appreciate the Animaniacs reference, though I fear that she might be too young to get it." That, of course, makes Gabe pause for a moment and then he shakes his head. "Anyway. A few more dates and we can have the What Are We?" conversation. "You seeing anyone, Charlie? Got to be harder with Georgie at home." Not judgmental Just matter-of-fact.

"Yeah, I'm seeing someone." Charlie agrees with a nod, "It's called my desk, my phone, my badge every day." Needless to say, she is clearly having one of those epic dry spells that happen sometimes. "You'd think having a kid would be what complicates it, but reality is...being a cop is more a complication."

Gabriel laughs at that, a sort of a sharp sound that is of the 'I hear you' variety. "Yeah. I get it. People who want to sleep with you because you're a cop are usually crazies. Badge bunnies." Is what they call the female variety. "And then the normal people are usually turned off by the fact I stare at dead bodies pretty much all day."

"Uh huh." Charlie replies with a nod, getting to her feet, gathering up her food to close the container, "Usually I get a whole lot of questions about if I can get him out of that DUI, or if I'm a dyke. So.." She shrugs her shoulders a bit, "Guess that's why my ex-husband is a cop, yeah?"

"Bold move, asking a woman you're on a date if she's a lesbian." Gabe laughs at that and closes up his file. "All right. I'm going to stop spinning my wheels and head off to pull some judicial-campaign disclosure forms. Maybe it's a dead end. But at least I can feel like I'm doing something."

Gabe at least slathers his hands in sanitizer before he goes. "Keep getting 'em, Charlie. Stay in touch?"

"Usually that's pre-date. But I did get asked it once during a date, was very weird." Charlie rolls her eyes very slightly, "Let me know if you find anything." She pushes her chair beneath her desk, "I'll be around here all day."