"you gone clean?" connor inquired after a few seconds of nothing but the wheezing of crimson-stained ventilation systems and clattering footsteps against frosted tile filling the uneasy silence. the ebony-haired man's head raised from the smeared blood tainting the chilled tile to the gaze of the brunette confusedly; the viridescent-eyed detective quirking an eyebrow in question.

"have you gone clean? it's just, you don't look as much like shit as you did last month," he chuckled as phil rolled his eyes, shoving his shivering hands into the meek warmth of his torn jeans pockets. "uh, yeah, actually," he stammered after a moment, nodding hesitantly. "i guess i've been a bit too preoccupied to focus on killing my brain cells," he grinned, earning a questioning look from the brunette as they reached the heavy, iced over door and trails of cracking ice that laid in front of it. "preoccupied with what?" connor inquired as he quirked an eyebrow, their shivering bodies finding themselves led to an interrogation room; the sounds of thuds and insanity saving the raven-haired from having to force a lie.

the heavy door swung open, echoing a loud bang as they were met with a pair of wide-eyed, bloodshot pupils that phil could only describe with the word sharp. a smirk traced with egocentricity and violence etched itself across the man's violent, bruised lips as the yellowed lights reflected against the grease coating his uneven, obsidian-colored hair. speckled blood smeared across the grey table from the deep etchings painted across the man's chained wrists as an aftermath of handcuffs scraping into his blotchy, pale skin.

"hey there, sir," the man smirked, tapping his bony fingers rhythmically against the chilling table as phil gulped. "called on someone to help me learn a lesson, did you?" he taunted as his red eyes darted between the two men as they reluctantly dragged out the two chairs, ransom's violent eyes flickering to phil as they raked up his body hungrily. "you see," he whispered as he angled his body to the side, "i've been an awfully bad boy lately." connor exhaled deeply as he slumped into his chair, the darker-haired man following tentatively.

"ransom," he began reluctantly as he flipped open a yellow file, revealing a torn photo of zoe. phil swallowed the resistance clogging his throat as he forced his stinging irises away from the photo, when an autopsy report shoved lazily behind the grainy photograph painfully caught his eye. "why is this here?" he mumbled incomprehensibly under his breath, his gaze flicking upwards as he noticed ransom's hungry stare. "i miss him, he was a lot of fun," he pouted knowingly as he noticed the report held desperately inside phil's grip. "why is pj's autopsy in sugg's file?" the raven-haired man questioned firmly as he forced himself to look into the brunette's viridescent, secretive irises.

connor's chapped lips parted tentatively, but quickly closed as his tainted words seemed to catch in the cryptic spiderwebs that laced his throat. "what the fuck do you know, franta?" he hissed, rising abruptly to his feet. "you know about the prison bombing that happened last month, right? the time of the breakout matches up with her time of death, and this son of a bitch was one of the escapees. we have reason to believe..." connor forced out as he rubbed his eyes tiredly, "he might've been involved with sugg's death. ransom's blood was on the scene but traces of curare were too."

phil dragged his quivering bottom lip in between his teeth as he whipped his vision to the side; meeting the sly smirk painted across ransom's bruised disposition. "did he hire you, huh?" he growled, clenching his scraped knuckles as ransom's bloodshot irises burned into his gaze. the raven-haired man smirked as he licked his metallic-tasting lips, using his bitten finger to gesture him closer. "shh," he grinned, letting out a choked giggle before he started again, "he made the bomb and got me out, and then made me kill her. i wanted to wrap my fingers around her pretty little neck until i could feel the bones break, but no, no, no, he told me to mess with her drinks and shove a needle up her arm."

"jesus christ," connor muttered as he stood up, leaning against the wall as he rubbed his fatigued eyes. "curare, who is he? what did he tell you?" phil stammered desperately, earning a dark giggle from the bloodshot-eyed man as he quivered in his seat. "that's the best part," he grinned through a chorus of murderous giggles and insanity, "it's not him. it's not curare."

phil lips parted confusedly as he stammered for words, watching a trail of darkened blood trickle out of the raven-haired man's nose as he continued to giggle. "w-what? who is it? who's he?" phil spluttered, running his tremulous fingers through his hair. ransom leant forward, pressing his stained finger against his bitten lips and giggling a "shh" as the trickling blood ran down his throat; splattering crimson across the ebony-haired man as he began to cough through his giggles.

"it's no use, phil," connor shook his head as he placed his hand on the dark-haired man's shoulder, causing him to wince back as he stumbled out of the frosted doors. "no," phil mumbled absentmindedly as his body led him instinctively out of the penitentiary to the stained snow that he collapsed onto. he inhaled sharply, letting frost sting his strained throat as ransom's blood dripped off his forehead; the sharp man's words echoing in his blurred mind.

"it's not curare."