Enlighten Me (StemxStudxStud)

3

Taylor's Point of View~

I entered the McDonald's, with the smell of French fries and sweet concoctions filling my nose. Would the agent mind if I ordered something first, or were they going to order something for me like they do in the movies? I decided to anger my stomach and look for the agent. The voice had been a stereotypical monotone voice. I honestly couldn't even remember if it was male or female. Was that the point?

I looked around, obviously trying to find someone. Come on, come and collect me, this is pretty awkward, I thought in my head. If every PI job was going to be like this then I didn't want it.

"Miss Theodore?"

I turned around. A caramel man with blue eyes and the strongest jawline I had ever seen was gesturing for me to come over. I awkwardly made my way towards the high tables along the window of McDonalds. They were down the same hallway as the restrooms and the door to get into the kitchen.

"You are?" I asked, holding my hand out to shake his. "FBI Agent Gambino."

I could have sworn it was a woman talking. I felt really uneasy about this whole meeting. "Why did you guys need to talk to me? Did I...do something?" I asked nervously.

"No, no, of course not," he chuckled. "We wanted to come to you about a job offering. Working as a private detective for a case we need someone to look into," he proposed.

"Oh, but I- alright, what's the case?"

"It's actually a little unofficial," he chuckled again. I kept my face neutral. He was trying to give off vibes of comfort but all he was giving me was weird. "We want you to look into the rapper Ari Brill."

My eyes widened, "Oh, Ari Brill." I was about to say that I had already looked into her a little before, but not deeply. I was scared if I said I liked her music that he would think the case would be biased. "I'm sure you know her," he gestured out to me. Because she was a black, stud rapper? I rose an eyebrow at him and he cleared his throat.

"And, urm, we would like you on the case," he concluded. "What do I need to do? What are y'all looking for?"

"We believe that she might be selling psychiatric drugs....things of that nature, maybe cocaine and other things as well. Her sister recently went to jail for a number of killings. She's labeled as a serial killer, and we also know that the sister was involved in drug dealing. We just wanted to connect the dots. Might need to put two sisters away," he chuckled.

"Oh, well, what are my due dates. When do things need to get done? Am I working with anybody else?"

"Take your time. We need every little bit of evidence we have," he told me, laying I guess a reassuring hand above mine, "and if you find anything on the other sister we might be able to get her the death penalty. A few things concerning her trial are still pending."

"What methods do you recommend in finding more information about either of them? Where can I contact you at? And what's the pay?" I asked, pulling out my notebook.

"Well, we can talk any price. Price for how much info you get by the hundreds, price for the overall value of the case," he laughed again. This man annoyed me. "And, here's my card. You can also reach me at the office," he told me, pushing a sleek card my way.

It still felt warm from the printer, I slipped it into my pocket and my hands brushed my gun. "I'd recommend anything from tailing her, getting people to follow her, interviewing people, to talking to her yourself."

"Why is the case unofficial?" I questioned.

Detective Gambino's demeanor didn't falter a step. "Well, we have no hard evidence against her simply. We just have a hunch. I trust that money can...cover up a little loss of popularity in the crime community once this case becomes popular?"

"You mean you can steal my credit and pay me money for it?" I said with a smirk, "Sure. Just send a couple clients my way afterwards. I'm a little new to this all and I gotta eat."

He nodded vigorously, "I understand, I understand. Any leads, you let me know."

"Will this case ever become official....?" I asked. "Oh yes, of course when we have enough hard evidence. It'll just look like...I did it," he laughed sheepishly. Was this guy on crack or something? "Alright, I'll do it. I'll start now, I don't have anything else to do anyways. Do you guys already know a little about her? What about the types of files I need to access? And types I can?"

"It's all on this," he smiled.

He pulled a flash drive from his pocket and handed it over. It was warm too and I flipped it over in my hand. "This case better pay good money," I stated, like I still wouldn't take it. "Oh, it will," he insisted.

"Let me order for you," he offered a moment later.

I craned my neck to look at the menu like I hadn't been here dozens of times. "I don't wanna hurt your wallet."

"Oh, don't sweat it," he said smoothly.

"A quarter pounder and a large Tropical Sprite," I told him. He got up, leaving his stuff, to take the order. There wasn't a line and he went up to the cashier energetically. I looked away and pulled out my phone, I had habit I had when I was bored. I shifted through the pictures of me and my parents, sighing.

Would they be proud of me for landing such an important case?

"This is the order number. I can't stick around, but everything's already paid for," he told me with a bright smile. "Have a nice day, Miss Theodore."

"You too, Detective." I always wanted to say that. I watched people eyeball him as he left out. Maybe if I was straight I'd see what they saw. The woman came over and gave me my food and I left the McDonald's with the hot, brown bag against my chest. I put my gun back up and decided I was going to take my food back to my house.

I had work to do finally and I didn't know whether to be excited about it or groan.

Hey, I was getting money though.