“GOOD MORNING, OFFICER KIRK.”

Officer Kirk nodded slightly, glaring at the person that greeted him.

Jake had never seen his role model so flustered. Officer Kirk, though still commanding and intimidating, seemed hurried and flustered as he paced around station. Jake followed timidly, ready to complete whatever task Officer Kirk would give him. However, it seemed like his only job was to throw out the countless paper coffee cups Officer Kirk would finish.

If there were one thing police stations had an abundance of, it would be coffee machines. Too many officers worked overtime, and with the media getting out of hand with the whole missing girl mess, more and more officers stayed in the office far longer than they are supposed to. Coffee was as essential to a station as oil was to machines. Officer Kirk made a cup of coffee at every coffee machine he saw, downing at least seven cups before he came to a rest.

Jake noticed many officers wave from their little windowed cubicles, then become confused when Officer Kirk did not wave back. Those that greeted Kirk in the hallways were met by a cold nod. Jake took on the job of returning the greetings, hoping that the officers would interpret it as a sign to leave Officer Kirk in peace.

“Car’s ready, sir!” Andrea reported. Somehow, she seemed even more energetic than Officer Kirk, even though she strictly frowned upon caffeine and complained it gave her headaches.

“Ah, yes!” Officer Kirk exclaimed, frowning deeper for some reason. He bumped into Jake as he hurried past, following Andrea. Jake felt a little hurt that Officer Kirk didn’t even acknowledge him. He made a mental note to be the one that got the car ready, should the situation repeat.

“Officer Kirk, Hallthorn here will bring you to your car,” Andrea said politely, a fake smile on her lips. Officer Kirk followed Hallthorn wordlessly, though it was evident these arrangements did not please him.

As soon as Kirk turned the corner, Andrea pulled Jake by the arm. Jake tripped on the blue carpet, stumbling to a stop. “Hey!” he hissed.

“Shut it,” Andrea replied in a pinched voice. “Do you even know where you’re going?”

“No! I was following Officer Kirk all day, throwing away his coffee cups.” Though Jake respected Officer Kirk more than anyone else in the station, he struggled to keep his annoyance away from his words.

Andrea shook her head, as if it were his fault that he knew nothing. “Here’s what you need to know. A stolen trailer was found in a park up in New Hampshire.”

“New Hampshire? That’s a five-hour drive!”

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“Six,” Andrea corrected, “but I could probably get there sooner. There will be other officers, but you and Kirk are coming with me. I’m driving, of course,” she said, glaring at Jake as if daring him to challenge her.

Jake did not provoke her. He had no wish to drive. As much as he despised Andrea’s habit of breaking the speed limit and using the power of the law, driving for six hours was more than he could take. He knew his limit was three hours, and he did not wish to challenge it.

“The trailer was full of blood, the police reported. Almost definitely Marine’s. There’s no one there now, though there are signs that the body was dragged. The dogs followed the scent into the middle of a forest, but then it ended. They’re still searching for the body.

“Also, a giant, four-foot rabbit was reported missing from some man’s pickup. Bloodstains were found around the car. They’re still running tests on it. There’s a lot of other details, but I think it would be easiest if you saw for yourself. I’ll try to explain it better late. I can give you the full report when we get in the car.

“Any questions? We have to leave soon.”

“Shelter?”

“We were guaranteed hotel rooms free of charge.”

“How long?”

“As long as we need to be there. Probably a week, at least.”

Jake nodded, a habit he had picked up from copying Officer Kirk. “I see. One more thing. It’s a little of topic, but I’ve been meaning to ask, how has Mrs. Lucifay been keeping up?”

Andrea sighed and rubbed her temples. “As good as a childless mother in jail could be, I guess. I doubt even the best of lawyers could help her much now, with the way she’s acting at least. I have no doubt she could file for insanity right now. Was that your last question? We need to leave if we want any chance of getting there before dark.”

Jake nodded. “Let’s go,” he sighed.

As they headed back to the elevators, Jake noticed no one went out of their way to greet him. It annoyed him even more, and he must have begun walking heavier because Andrea snapped at him to stop stomping.

“That’s all you ever do!” Jake whispered suddenly. He would have liked to raise his voice, but he didn’t want to disrupt someone working. Even though they stop working to say hello to Officer Kirk, he thought, feeling unusually bitter. “Everyday, you just love to yell at me and criticize.”

“What am I supposed to do?”

“Well, I don’t know, maybe say hello for once? Or even better, good morning?”

“Okay,” Andrea groaned rolling her eyes. “Good Morning, Officer Jake. You’re acting very strange today, you know that? Did something come loose in your brain when he tripped over the carpet?”

“No! See, there you go again. Insulting me like always.”

“Alright, alright!” Andrea replied, smirking and raising her hands in surrender. “I’m sorry Jake. I—” she was about to say something sarcastic but decided against it and bit her lip. “Come on, can you walk faster? You don’t need to look at every stain on the wall. Your hero—I mean, superior Officer Kirk is waiting for you in the car.”

“Hmph!” Jake snorted. “Yeah, yeah. Everyone wants to be with Officer Kirk. Like he’s the center of the universe. Like no one else exists. I can’t believe you live like that.” He stomped off angrily toward the parking lot.

What’s wrong with him today? Andrea wondered, staying behind. After a moment of contemplation, she shrugged and laughed at her own worry.

Must have broken up with his girlfriend or something.