FBI Damsel: Foreign Affairs

two: london precinct

The newlyweds calmly obliged and followed Detective Lisa ‘downtown’. They were nervous, sure, but knew better than to show it. They’ve never been on this side of the law before but knew full well how to play it cool. They were, in a way, psychologists.

“Sit here, please.” Heath and Andrea did as they were told. Heath kept one arm wrapped around his tiny wife, taking special care to watch out for her slightly bulging stomach.

“What is it we’re being charged with?” Andrea asked.

Lisa laughed. “You think...? You thought I brought you for...? HA! Oh, wow! And I thought my partner was daft!”

The couple exchanged looks. “Are you saying you didn’t bring us here to charge us with something?”

“No, no I did not.”

“Then why are we in an interrogation room?”

She looked around, confused. “This isn’t an interrogation room. This is my office.”

Heath had to hold back a laugh. “This is your office? A little dull and bare, don’t you think?”

Lisa shrugged. “I’m a minimalist. The less things I have the less distracted I can get, and the better off I am. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m the only female without ‘officer’ in front of her name. I need to be as focused as possible or they would strip me of my title in an instant.”

“Then why are we here?” Heath asked.

“As I said, I’m the head of the Foreign Affairs department, and we need your help on a case.” She handed them a thick manila-colored file. “This is Luca de Costa and his partner, Patricia Roux. They’re in a partnership to con people, then murder anyone who can connect them to the crimes and move to another country before they can get caught then come back later on and repeat the deadly process. We’ve been chasing them for ages but they always manage to get out of our grip whenever we get close. It’s bloody frustrating and at this rate we’re willing to accept any help from anyone, even Americans!”

“Hey!” Heath objected.

She raised her hands in defense. “It’s of no offense to you, of course. I only meant it in the manner that you don’t have to worry about this nearly as much as we do, what with us being surrounded by other countries, while you only have the Canadians and Mexicans.”

“True,” Andrea shrugged. “But why us, specifically?”

“I called the Federal Bureau of Investigation a while ago, asking for help, and they informed us that two of their best were on honeymoon here already, waiting for their first child to be born before returning home. I was asked - er, told, rather - by a vicious sounding Victoria Harper not to interrupt you until then. However, de Costa and Roux, they’ve struck again - worse than ever - and I’m desperate. Will you two help us? We’ll pay you plenty!”

“It’s never an issue about money,” Heath began.

“We shouldn’t be doing any sort of strenuous physical activities,” Andrea added, rubbing her protruding belly for added effect.

“I understand, since you are pregnant and all,” Lisa said quickly. She tucked a hair behind her ear before continuing. “However, I am going to make you a deal. You help us, and we’ll help you find what you’ve been looking for.”

“How’d you know?” Heath asked.

She smiled patiently. “As I said, we’ve been keeping close tabs on the two of you ever since your arrival, but heavier over the past few weeks. Anyone with permission to hold a concealed weapon gets a sort of ‘special’ treatment when entering our country and staying for more than a week’s vacation. I know many things about you that I’m sure you wouldn’t like any others to know. Like what happened with your neighbor at the end of last week.”