Raven rubbed his bushy goatee inquisitively.

"Now trust me, kid. I've been on the accused internet dating scene when you were in diapers, but I've never heard of a catfish scheme leading to a murder! Should we be considering Mr. Britainian Duke as a suspect?"

Mina flinched hard, holding her brightly colored arm bands to her face. Her retainer-covered teeth nibbled her colorful finger nails as she spoke. "No. Dukey is fully innocent. The mistake is fully mine."

Raven eyed Mina suspiciously. He looked over his papers again. "Just so we're on the same page..."--he held up the paper detailing the case--"this one to be specific. What was your mistake? Did curiosity kill the catfish?"

Mina's head sunk, her poorly permed hair falling down too. "Yesh. You see. I was going to finally meet my dearest sweetest Dukey-kins. We usually go on digital dates or digi-dates as I call them. He may be a champion horseback polo player, a philanthropist for orphans with vitamin C deficiency and a best selling novelist at seven, but he's notoriously shy."

Raven nodded. He had prepared some witty barb to question this girl's fraudulent boyfriend, but it would be 'shooting catfish in a barrel."

Instead, he merely questioned his client with something that cut straight to the heart of the matter. "Where did your Dukey-kins want to meet you?"

Mina looked up, her dark brown eyes sparkling in a starlit way and she grinned. "He finally wanted to meet me in...a back alley in downtown Business Park! How secretive and romantic!"

Raven nearly fell out of his chair. It was the innocence of young love. Or rather the sheer stupidity thereof. He didn't dare say that to her, but he grew deeply irritated at the girl's parents.

"Why didn't your parents stop you?" he squawked as angrily as a mother bird.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Mina shook her head. "I didn't tell them. I just went there after school."

Raven sighed. The only thing worse than neglectful parents was a crafty and determined teenage girl.

"Well then," he said, pushing his dark hair back exasperated. "I can guarantee you didn't find this strapping young lad like you were expecting."

"No..." Mina said, balling her fist up. Her eyes glistened with tears as she dramatically thrust her hands out "Just his jilted ex lover, a Spanish man named Diego Guapo. And he wanted to kill my boyfriend and me! It was then I..."

"Hold da phone kiddo!"

Raven's eyes scanned over the paper. There was already a major discrepancy in what was written there. Mina didn't even know the victims name. His name was not Diego Guapo, but rather Juan Incognito. He wasn't anyone's ex-lover either.

Raven deduced he would have to be very careful in this trial.

This girl was kind hearted, but she wasn't dwelling in the realm of reality. Someone else was clearly telling her things about what had happened.to her that tragic day, and he had a good feeling that "Dukey" had a strong grip on her mind. It would be his words of justice against Dukey's treacherous lies.

But before they could discuss anything further. Someone slammed a heavy stack of papers, crushing Raven's hand. "Yeowch!" he screamed.

Standing before him, a man in a ridiculous get-up posed dramatically with a scythe in hand. "See the girth of my legal documents, newbie? They absolutely crush those...and your knuckles!"

Raven held his swollen red hand up and began to suck on the fingers. He also used this as an opportunity to observe his new-found adversary.

"I didn't know it was Halloween already!" Raven said caustically causing the man to recoil.

The man was wearing a dark robe complete with a hood, looking like a Shad Lord from Planet Clash, or perhaps the murderer from the Howl horror movies.

He was definitely pasty and pale enough to be a murderer, but something told Raven this man could hardly kill a salad with a fork...or his scythe.

The man chuckled in a weedy giggle. "Beware newbie, because it is I, Larry the Rookie Reaper, hoping to add another unfortunate legal soul to my collection!"

"Ummm...Mr. Lockwood?" Mina asked innocently. "Is that what a prosecutor normally looks like? I've never seen one before"

Raven rolled his eyes. "Maybe in the ninth level of hell...or maybe the ninth layer of Comic Con."

Larry chuckled again before brandishing his scythe. "Just a warning little girl. I'm not just a prosecutor, I'm a persecutor! And for your unlawful murder, I'm gonna reap the criminality you sow!"