DANGEROUS TIES

The black SUV pulled into the parking space. Two men wearing grim faces stepped out of the car. One looked around as though he thought someone would be there. Both men walked briskly up the walkway and into the CalSci Mathematics building.

The empty hallways echoed with the sound of footsteps on marble. The two men walked stifly towards their destination. They were not, however, immune to the eerieness of the silent building.

" Wonder if it's ever been this silent?" David asked aloud trying to relieve the tension.

Don didn't reply. He remained entirely focused on reaching his destination. David looked over at him seeing if he would he didn't, David quietly followed him knowing any other attempt at conversation would be pointless.

As the two passed a couple of classrooms Don up to one of them he looked inside the window but saw nothing except empty desk and an unmistakable scrawl on the white board.

Turning back to David he said, " I just thought, maybe."

" I'm sure Charlie's on his way home as we speak," replied David.

Don nodded. He knew, of course, that the victim was female, but that still didn't ease his gut. If someone could come in, unnoticed, and kill a student in cold blood, then he could have easily come after Charlie.

Stop thinking like that, Don told himself, Focus on the case and the case alone.

Despite his best efforts though, Don couldn't help worrying about his little brother. Even if the killer hadn't done anything to anyone else, Don knew that an incident like this would burn itself into Charlie's mind. Especiallly if the victim was a student of his.

The two men reached the door to the computer lab.

" After you," David replied holding the door open for Don.

Don nodded in acknowledgement and walked in. The smell is what hit him first. The entire room smelled familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. A young officer spotted the two men and approached them.

" I'm guessing you guys are the ones from the bureau," he said plainly as he shook Don's hand.

" Yeah, I'm Agent Eppes," Don said.

" Agent Sinclair," said David taking the officers hand, " So what do we have?"

"A few hours ago we had an anominouscaller on the line. He reported gunfire, and claimed a student was missing. We sent a few officers over and they discovered our vic."

" Can we see her?" Donasked pointedly.

" Of course, right this way," the officer replied leading the two men towards the central focus of activity, " We checked records and her personal effects. She is a student here at CalSci. From what we gathered she was working towards a mathematics major. Poor girl."

Don looked at the officer questionally. He couldn't tell if the man felt pity because of her death, or because of the class. Kneeling down, Don peeled back the cover that had been placed on the girl. He drew back in suprise. He had seen that face before, on the wall of his house. The young woman looked almost identical to his mom.

Don heard David take in a breath. Looking up at the younger man he was suprised to see a look of pain cross his face.

" David, you okay?"he asked, while trying to calm himself from the shock of the young woman's face.

Suddenly a young woman burst through the door.

" CHRISTINA!" she shrieked as she made a beeline for the body.

Several officers ran to stop her. After a desperate struggle they managed to hold her back. The woman continued to scream as Don stood up from the body. He watched in suprise as David began walking up to the woman and the officers. Calmly he grabbed her shoulders and began whispering something inaudible to Don. Miraclously the woman seemed to give up the fight. Sobbing she fell into David's waiting arms.

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