A/N: Jaewon Lee ❤️👌 ^^^
......[(( _ _ ))..zzzZZ(( _ _ ))..zzzZZ]......

RILEY:

My mouth forms a line as I look up from my notebook. I raise an eyebrow at Jae who's fanning her face with her hands. Squealing during an interview... Well, I guess there's always a new action I am bound to see after years in my work.

She says frantically, "Oh my god- I'm sorry. I just- that was embarrassing. Can you ignore that?" Jae adjusts the glasses on her nose. Her fingers play with the ends of her jet black hair.

"Okay..." I scratch the back of my head before continuing, "Let's get on with the questions, yah?" Jae calms down, nodding to my response. Her hands now settle down on her lap.

"Leah Caraway. She's your roommate yes?"

A nod.

"Does she have anyone who wants to harm her?"

Jae looks up, trying to remember. The woman seems to take the question considerably. She begins, "There's- no... she won't do that- but there's... hmm- oh yah!- wait no..." I suppress a tired sigh; must I deal with this after what's happened today?

My gaze shifts to Hal who's watching the lady with an amused expression. He notices me staring and locks eyes with me. He gives me a shrug at the woman's peculiar behavior.

I feel as if I'm a rookie police officer, asking questions again. I got to hand it to those guys. They do a lot of the blunt work.

Jae's mumbling stops, but another squeal emits from her. Hal and I look at her starting to get concern if there's something genuinely wrong with her.

The lady's hands cover her cheeks and she shakes her head slowly. Jae begins to ramble again, "I'm sorry! I just- ugh! I don't go out m-much. Leah is usually the one who brings people here. She and I have similar hobbies but she's the more social one- ohhh Leah..." She frowns, turning her attention to the floor with tears in her eyes.

"Hey now," Hal says. "That's why we are here. We'll be searching for your friend, okay? All we need is information." He pats my thigh to tell me to go on ahead.

I nod, catching Jae's focus, "You ready to talk?"

Jae nods her head dramatically, "Yes!"

Well then... at least it seems she's more focused now. I return to writing down my first question, "Enemies?"

"No one would want to harm her. She's super kind and caring- my personal opinion. I think her ex would be the only one that hates her but- no, Freddie doesn't hate her enough to want to kidnap her..."

I write down "ex boyfriend Freddie" as a suspect. I need all the leads I can get. I then ask, "So, why did you not give more details about Leah's workplace? She works at a club but we have no name and no address."

Jae fidgets in her seat; her fingers twirl faster around the black locks of hair. She blinks a couple of times, opening her mouth a bit as if she wants to say something but closes it right away. The glasses ride slightly down her nose again.

The asian woman finally decides to speak, "I thought... not mentioning more about her... occupation... would be beneficial for her privacy..."

A loyal friend. I can appreciate her need to keep her friend's privacy in check. But even with that, I need to press whether she likes it or not. I either find out later or now; I want to choose the latter.

My back hand lightly hits Hal's arm, indicating him to take the lead. He knows how terrible I am with pressing for more information without taking the person's feelings into account. My partner nods in the corner of my eye.

Jae has an odd grin on her face, completely different then her sullen mood a second ago. Bipolar maybe?

Hal speaks up, "Jae, we respect your friend's privacy but I have to be honest with you. We need all the information we can get to find your friend quickly. Privacy is only a tiny issue compared to helping Leah return safe. We need you help, okay?"

"O-okay, sir. I really do want her back safe and sound," her happy expression returns to the dejected one.

Jae's cute, I have to admit. She reminds me of my younger brother when he was younger and more innocent. He would be hyper and bouncy one moment but anything that upsets him will flip his mood fast. Emotional, really.

After a second of composing herself, Jae continues, "She works at a strip club."

...Huh, now why does that sound familiar...

"It's the Maneater Strip Club-" Oh boy... "and Leah's full-time employed there," explains Jae. Hal and I look at each other with wide eyes. What's the chance of having our case's missing person and Mabel's current guest, Roxanne, working at the same club?

I write down the information hurriedly. More questions continue to pop in my mind. I might as well ask the ones that don't require Jae to know Leah's job in detail.

"Alright, Jae. Can you tell me every detail about when you last saw Leah? It says here in the report that you saw her yesterday morning."

"Yes..." Jae recalls that time, "She wasn't acting normally. It was obvious because I know her after a year of being roommates... She- she seemed nervous? I don't know how to describe it."

"Jittery? Like some kind of paranoia?" asks Hal.

Jae nods, "Yes. Exactly. So yesterday I asked her what was wrong but she was so vague about it. 'The devil is coming,' is what she kept repeating. I know Leah; she's not religious at all, so when she said 'the devil' I was confused. She then told me that if she didn't call or text me in the afternoon I should file a missing person report for her. She's my closest friend and she's always there for me. I freaked out! I just- ugh! I don't know what to do..."

Her hands clench into trembling fists. Jae grits her teeth, shifting her gaze to the wooden flooring. I hastily write down what she said, allowing her to take a moment. Hal silently examines her; he's doing me the favor of body analysis if there's anything else she's holding back.

Hal nods, "I think that's enough. We've got two great leads to look into. Thank you, Jae. First, I must ask for permission. May we search Leah's room?"

Jae breathes in a breathes out slowly. She wipes a stray tear from her eyes, avoiding her makeup, "Sorry, I can't control my emotions, detective." She gets up from the couch and motions us to follow, "I'll take you to her room."

Hal and I follow after her in a narrow hallway. We stop at the end and Jae reaches for the door on the left. She opens the door and allows us to enter a tight room. A queen bed is pressed against the corner, making room for a dresser and a desk in the confined space. The smell of perfume is strong enough to make me want to gag.

Jae acknowledges my disgust at the scent, apologizing right away, "Sorry about the smell. We accidentally broke one of glass perfumes a few days ago. We can't seem to get rid of it after all the cleaning."

"It's fine," I sigh.

Hal's already at Leah's desk, scanning through the items laid out. I make my way to him but I can't see without him moving out of the way.

He turns suddenly, bumping into me. His arms automatically hold my hips to prevent me from being unbalanced.

My partner whispers, "Sorry, babe."

A loud high pitched squeal comes from Jae. Again.

I scowl her, wondering what is wrong with her. She only fans her round flushed face. Jae asks, "I'm sorry! I- hehe... I have this hobby. Leah and I like this kind of stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" asks Hal with a hint of amusement.

Jae fiddles with the ends of her hair again before answering, "Shipping."

"Shipping?" I narrow my eyes in question. Shipping what? What are they sending? Does his have to deal with the case?

"It's an Internet thing," Jae explains. "Leah and I tend to ship two men together... in a fictional r-romantic relationship." She places her hands on her cheeks and shakes her head, "Ooooh I wish Leah saw this because she would understand."

My jaw hangs open; I have been wondering all this time, why she keeps making high pitch noises. This is my answer?! My hands covers the front of my face as I sigh to myself. I move around Hal so I can get a look at Leah's desk.

Hal, this crazy ginger of mine, is laughing silently to himself. I ignore the two, turning my attention to miscellaneous contents on the table.

Hmm... mostly makeup. I slip a few papers to skim a portion of the content.... bills mostly. A picture of Leah and an unknown man sticks out between two fantasy books.

I examine the photo; it's definitely an old one, according to the back- three years old to be exact. The man in the photo is most likely the ex, Freddie, because he does not look like he's related to her to be her brother.

I pull at a drawer but it's locked shut. There's probably something either very personal or secretive.

"You know..." I hear Hal chatting with Jae, "It may not be fiction in our situation."

"Holy shit really?!" squeals Jae.

I scowl at my partner who has a shit-eating grin, "Hal! Shut up and come here." I make my way to him and pull him to stand closer to me. I address to Jae, "Can you open the desk's drawer, Jae?"

The woman pushes her glasses up the bridge of her nose. She continues to eye us with a happy expression; great, she's not dejected anymore but Hal didn't have to oust our personal life to a stranger.

Jae nods before approaching the desk, digging through its other contents. While she does that, I slap Hal on the arm.

"What the fuck, Hal," I growl lowly. "You don't just say that to people we barley know."

My partner pouts at me, "But I wanted to cheer her up somehow. She seems easy to please."

"But our relationship is personal. Don't do it again without asking me first, okay."

"I understand. Sorry, babe." Hal brushes his hand against mine, making me feel slightly better. We continue to watch Jae look for a way to open the drawer.

"Aha! There you are," she mumbles, fishing out a key from a small box that's mixed with the makeup clutter. She then unlocks the drawer with ease but then hesitates to pull it.

"Should I be doing this?" she mutters out loud to herself.

Hal and I head to her and look over her shoulder. Jae is only 5'2 so it's not difficult to see the drawer. She squeaks when she notices us looming over her; we give her a bit of space.

"You can stay here and monitor what we touch if that eases you," Hal says.

"Okay," Jae nods before sitting herself on the bed. It makes space for us to examine the desk, which we gladly take. I scan through the items in the drawer; there's definitely more expensive-looking things in here. It's smart to have it locked up.

I hand Hal a couple of papers that catch my eye. He looks through it while I continue to move things around in the desk. I spot a receipt; its handwritten with only a name "Pete" and a price, $30.

I ask Jae, "Uh... does Leah have a history of drug use?" It's either she owes this "Pete" guy thirty dollars for borrowing money, or she's buying drugs from the man.

Jae sighs, "Yes, but she's careful with it. I've known her to only do it once in a while."

Hal looks over my shoulder, moving close to me enough to reach around for something in the drawer. Under crumpled pieces of paper is a familiar pill bottle.

My stomach drops at the sight as Hal lets out a heavy sigh. This has been spreading all around the city since I first heard about it months ago.

Here we go again with the infamous drug, Daze.

......[(( _ _ ))..zzzZZ(( _ _ ))..zzzZZ]......
A/N: So I've been planning for a shorts that take place between Hangman Chase and Lady in Red. Fluff shorts and each chapter is dedicated to people who've supported me with the first book. I'll probably post them when I'm 3/4 done with this story.

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