Dickory

Bad Preconstructions

Phck, that's good...Reed sighed in bliss, eyes closing as he faced up into the hot spray. The shower had been Nines' idea. They'd gone back to the office to clock out, Reed had put his notebook on the table ready for the morning, and Nines had driven them home. Despite the late hour, he'd thrown together a quick sandwich, suddenly feeling peckish after all the extra work. Nines had been happy to sit with him in the bar as Pipsqueak raced around his new walkways. It certainly felt more homely since the remodelling. Warmer. More intimate.

"I can't help thinking he may have slipped up this time...I mean, it doesn't make sense! He was getting all the media attention he could have wanted, so why kill this woman now?" Reed had asked, green eyes piercing as he'd stared down at the half eaten ham sandwich on his plate. The woman, Berkley, she was important somehow. She had to be. Did she find something? She must have been researching her friend's death, right? What did she uncover? And how did Colin miss it? If Colin had missed it, then it had to be something physical. Something in the sixth victim's apartment or a message she'd sent to Berkley directly. So all those times Berkley was around the station; was she fishing for a story or trying to gather more information about her friend?

"Hopefully, we'll find out more tomorrow. I have already spoken to Colin about checking both her apartment and workplace, and we're going through her social media now." Reed's brow pinched slightly at that. It wasn't fair that Nines was still working, but he had nothing to do until morning. He knew what Nines would say if he mentioned it. Humans need rest and androids don't. Obviously, it made sense for Nines to keep working the case. They wanted to save as many lives as possible, so the sooner this sicko was caught, the better.

A few months ago that would have pissed him off. He would have been angry and worried about being replaced. Humans were so inferior to androids when it came to the physical side of things. There was no way in hell he could keep working day and night for extended periods, and even if he did, he was more likely to make mistakes or miss things as a result. He'd never be able to chase down suspects the way Nines or Connor could, though he had a pretty good track record for a human. He also wasn't as physically strong or durable. He didn't have parts that could be replaced. If he got badly injured, he'd need extended leave to recover. Nines or Connor could top up on thirium, replace the damaged part, and be back at work the next day. They could also process faster, gather and analyse evidence on the scene, preconstruct events, and access the database instantly.

He was confident enough now to know that he wouldn't be replaced. Not unless he fucked up and got himself fired. Fowler valued his work ethic and instincts. He'd gone out of his way to help him keep his job, overlooking a hell of a lot of complaints. Any other captain would have sacked him after the first three or four discrimination grievances, but Fowler had gone above and beyond to cover his ass. He wouldn't do that shit just to sack him later on for no good reason. There were also a lot of advantages to keeping humans on the force. Human victims were more comfortable with their own kind, and there was still a lot of discrimination. Humans also had better instincts, having honed them for decades in some cases. They had more life experience, picking up details and nuances that androids sometimes missed. There was also human intuition to consider, something androids didn't quite understand just yet.

It was likely the frown on his face that had prompted Nines to encourage him to finish his sandwich and take a shower. He'd been reluctant at first. He'd wanted to help somehow. It hadn't taken much convincing from Nines though. Reed was stiff and tired after the day they'd had and the cut across his chest would need to be cleaned and bound again before bed. Nines' gaze had softened as he'd finally agreed, wolfing down his sandwich before heading up to the shower. It had been a little painful at first. The hot water had made the sealing wound sting like a bitch, but now it was just heavenly.