IT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE! Three quick, classic cases.

ON THE EDGE OF DEATH, PART FIVE

MEET CHARLES, THE ARCHNEMESIS

She had been eager to get to work after a break so brief that it couldn't count as one, to the point of not questioning who she was going to ask for help. Alderton had mentioned his dislike of contacting him; at the same time, he deemed that man capable enough to assist, as well as a good choice to accompany a woman through a potentially dangerous quest. That for certain was one of his typical capricious expressions, concluded Alice: he was stubborn and dramatic by nature, as any man who had brains to spare, in her experience. She thought she might be about to meet the nicest person on earth.

Although the address wasn't far, the woman deemed it appropriate to pay the coachman extra to go as fast as he could, promising more at arrival. Her words proved convincing to a fault, since the request was fulfilled to what she assumed must have been the furthest limit in the current material plane; moreover, the carriage never flipped over, notwithstanding the sharp turns and uneven roads.

The address brought her to a door on which a plaque hung, which read: "Detective Charles Lloyd". She knocked; in a few seconds it opened to a young man, a new adult at most, by the looks of it. That couldn't be him.

"Welcome miss, please..."

"I apologize for the rude interruption, however, I am here on extremely urgent business. I came as detective Alderton's assistant, requesting detective Lloyd's cooperation in a delicate kidnapping matter. Time is of the essence, as you may imagine."

The boy tensed up, and started stuttering, "Oh... oh God... I'll... I'll g-go tell him... r-right away..." He ran inside, almost tripping on a chair to his right, then disappeared somewhere down a corridor.

Alice stayed put for a moment, before concluding that she was being invited in anyway, hence it wasn't necessary to remain outside. Following the voices she could hear coming from the direction the young assistant had gone toward, she saw him stand on a doorframe.

"Porter, if someone says it's urgent, you should always bring them to me," reprimanded a calm, yet authoritative voice. "It is on me to decide if I should help them or kick them out. I cannot do that if they are still standing outside. I need to listen to their case first."

"Yes, you're right Mr. Lloyd, I apologize, I'll-" he was turning around, when he saw the woman right in front of him. He flinched, letting out a choked scream, spooked by the unexpected presence.

As sorry as she was for scaring him, Alice quickly took the chance to enter the office. To say that the first impression was positive would be an understatement: it was a tidy, clean room, every part of it was well organized to the miniscule detail. She wished to spend more time to observe the magnificence, forced instead to focus her attention on the man behind the desk, who was now standing, offering his hand to shake. It felt peculiar, participating in a kind of greeting she'd usually been excluded from. "Good morning, Mr. Lloyd. I apologize for barging in."

"Not at all, I apologize for my inexperienced assistant's welcome, he's still learning how to deal. How may I call you?"

"I'm Miss Camden."

"Miss Camden, it is a pleasure meeting you at last, I've been hearing about John Alderton's new assistant."

"I hope what you've heard has been positive, sir."

"Oh, it very much has. I doubt you can say the same for myself, unfortunately."

It made sense in the heat of the moment, he was the boss after all; now that she was in front of the figure in question, the prospect of saying those words made her want to dig a hole to lie in. "Yes, Mr. Alderton did ask me to mention that, in his own words, he hates having to contact you regarding this matter, and that it is not possible to overstate how much he does."