Melanie stared at her computer screen with wide eyes, watching as the blood sample finally hit 100 percent. She clasped her hands together, watching the screen load as she grabbed the telephone on her desk, dialing Dick's office phone. A few seconds passed before the line clicked.

"Grayson." He spoke groggily, a quiet sigh echoing through the phone. Melanie raised a brow at how tired he sounded, assuming he had probably fallen asleep. She then paused, slowly turning to her clock.

8:37 PM

"Oh shit." She mumbles before remembering there was a phone by her face.

"What?"

"Sorry. The blood sample came back. I got a match. It's just taking forever to load, but it should be ready when you get up here." Dick hung up the phone quickly and Melanie set hers down, eyes flickering all across the computer screen as it very slowly started loading a picture. "God damn cement walls."

A loud knock echoed on her lab door, Dick walking in a moment later. "Victor Steel. 36 years old. He's been arrested before in Central City for attempted murder, robbery and aggravated assault. He was arrested two years ago for killing his dad, but was released from Black Gate on 'good behavior'." Melanie explained as Dick walked over to her, leaning down slightly to see the man's mugshot.

Melanie looked up to see Dick's hair was a mess, a large red spot had formed on his cheek with a button indentation. She looked down at his sleeves, spitting the button in question, which only meant Dick had fallen asleep at his desk.

"Didn't sleep enough last night?" Melanie raised a brow as Dick looked down at her. He gave her a confused look and she gestured to her own cheek. "For a detective, you aren't very good at hiding evidence."

Dick reached up and touched his cheek, feeling the tiny indent and sighed. He shook his head, ignoring her comment before turning back to the computer. "What else can you dig up on him?"

"A lot, actually. Looks like he spent a solid portion of his life in and out of prison for robbing gas stations, shop lifting and one account for human trafficking. Parents were drug addicts so looks to me like he just had it rough." Melanie shrugged and leaned back in her chair, turning to Dick. "He doesn't live that far from here."

"I'll let Gordon know we got our butcher."

•••

Melanie and Dick quickly approached Victor's home as a few cops followed closely behind them. Melanie pounded on the door, gripping her gun in her free hand. "GCPD open the door!"

After a few seconds of silence, Dick and Melanie shared a look and she backed away, reaching for the door handle and swung it open. The two detectives, followed by the very sleep deprived cops, burst into the house, guns drawn and flashlights flailing around.

"GCPD come out with your hands up!" Dick shouted, alerting a dog outside, which then started to bark relentlessly at the stranger. Melanie rushed down a hallway, opening the first door she saw.

Victor was throwing on a pair of pants as a woman covered herself with a blanket, yelling when she spotted the gun. "What did I do?!" Victor asked, raising his hands up as Melanie shoved her gun away, pulling out a pair of handcuffs.

"Victor Steel, you're under arrest for the suspicion of murder and robbery." Melanie stopped behind Victor as she listened to his heartbeat, racing with anxiety.

"Murder?! Robbery! I didn't do any of that!" The man begged as Dick rushed into the bedroom. Melanie threw Victor's hands behind his back, linking them together with her handcuffs.

"You remember your Miranda Rights?" Melanie asked him, pushing the man along.

"I didn't do anything! I'm being framed!" Victor turned to Dick as Melanie ushered him along.

"You have the right to remain silent." Melanie started as Dick followed behind her and Victor. "Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you?"

"I swear, man. I didn't do anything this time." Melanie continued to listen to Victoria heartbeat. It didn't skip a beat, but it just kept racing with fear. "Please... I've been trying to do good."

"Stop talking." Melanie demanded, though she only did it to stop herself from releasing him.

•••

"Blood samples found at a crime scene match your DNA." Melanie dropped the case file in front of Victor, whose hands were chained to a table. Victor stared down at it, shaking his head slowly.

"Do you want to tell me where you were on April 6th at around... 8-12?"  Melanie sat down slowly, staring Victor down.

"I was at home with some chick." Victor grumbled and Melanie nodded slowly, pulling a notepad and pen towards herself.

"You got a name for that chick?" Victor shrugged, tapping his fingers against the metal table.

"Stephanie Hale. Look, detective. I was attacked two days before this murder." Melanie paused, glancing up at Victor. "This guy injected me with something, and I went down."

"You... went down?" She repeated, turning to the observation window as if she could see Dick standing there. She turned back to Victor.

"Yeah. This giant dude in a hood injected me with something and the next thing I know..." Victor slammed his hand on the table, causing the chains around his wrists to rattle. "I can't move anything but my head. Couldn't even feel the needle go in my arm when he took my blood."

"Your attacker took your blood?" Melanie frowned in confusion and Victor raised his brows, pressing his lips tightly together and nodded.

"I told you, lady. I was framed." Melanie listed to Victor's heart slowly. It didn't falter. He wasn't lying. "I've been out of Blackgate for a month. Why the fuck would I want to go back to that shit hole?"

Melanie stared at Victor with uncertainty. She clicked the pen against the table a few times before standing up. "Where the hell are you going?"

Melanie slid the notepad and pen towards Victor. "Write down everything you remember about your attacker, and where and when it was. I need to talk to my partner." Melanie walked out of the interrogation after a few seconds. Victor stared at the closed door in disbelief before grumbling and grabbed the paper and pen.

"Framed? You believe him?" Dick asked Melanie as she walked up to him. The two looked through the observation window to Victor, who was scribbling on the notepad.

"It's been over a week since the robbery. Which means it's been nearly two weeks since Victor was attacked. A blood sample wouldn't tell me if he had a paralytic injected into him."

"So we have no way of knowing he's telling the truth." Dick crossed his arms and sighed quietly.

"If he was injected with something, the site would be healed by now, given his physique and health. But what if he is telling the truth?" Melanie turned to Dick as he looked to her, frowning.

"You believe him?" Dick raised his brows, and Melanie shrugged.

"He's been in and out of jail for years. Maybe his 'good behavior' wasn't a visage. Maybe he actually wants to be a better person." Something clicked in the back of Dick's head as he stared at Melanie. She frowned for a second, crossing her arms. "What?"

"Nothing. I didn't think you'd try and see the good in someone like him." Melanie turned to Victor, staying quiet for a moment.

"Everyone deserves a second chance. No matter what. And I think Victor is trying... all things considered." Melanie said softly, referring to how the had found the man. "I'm going to get that notepad from him. In the morning we can check out where he was attacked."

"You want to wait?" Dick asked and Melanie nodded, holding back a yawn.

"It's almost 1 AM. I've been here way longer than I should." Melanie walked away from Dick as his mind circled with thoughts, watching Melanie walk back into the interrogation room. She took the notepad and pen from Victor. She scanned the paper for a moment before walking out of the room. Victor turned to the observation window, staring at nothing.

"Alright. Tomorrow we'll see if he was telling the truth. I'll see you tomorrow, Gray." Melanie gestured a goodbye to Dick before walking towards her lab. After a few minutes, she reappeared with her purse, hair now in a low ponytail. She rummaged through her purse for a moment before pulling out her phone, walking out of the precinct.

Dick stared after her for a while, watching her disappear behind the wall.

He couldn't wrap his head around it. For someone that shared quite a bit of the same personality traits as him, Dick assumed Melanie also only saw the bad in people. Of course, she probably did see the bad in Victor, but the 'good behavior' release most likely made her see different.

It struck Dick again that Melanie was almost like him. Her secrecy kept drawing him closer to her. Every time he thought he had found something about her online, it was gone the next time he looked.

Even his background was online. Thought he was relatively popular as a child, so he couldn't say the same for Melanie. But she was also a detective, and had been a CSI for nearly three years. So of course he'd be incredibly suspicious as to why there was nothing about Melanie anywhere.

Maybe he should just take her out and drink his way into spilling her secrets.