danny typed in some numbers on Lucy's cell phone. this beautiful asian Lucy. how scared she was. he let it ring until someone picked up. he had something very important to tell the woman chasing after him and he was sure she'd want to hear it. someone's life was in danger of ending if this agent couldn't do her job fast enough. let the games begins...

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*The phone rang at the office, just like it did every day. Claire sat at her desk, looking at pictures of the Lucy killer's victims, each in turn. At least 7 people were dead, lost forever to this nutbag. She was lost in thought when Tim entered the room, pale. In one hand, he held a phone receiver.*

~Claire!~ *Something was wrong. She looked up, and he gestured to her own phone, mouthing the word 'Lucy'. Brows raised, she picked up the phone in her now-shaking hand as Tim started tracing the call without her saying a word.* Who is this?

-----------------------------

his voice was cold, empty, almost demonic.

"You know who this is. I can hear it in your voice..."

he paused a minute and muffled screams could be heard in the background.

"Lucy says hi."

the trace would take some time. locating a cell phone on a network was no easy task. by the time they could do anything about it, danny would be long gone, anyway. he'd already thought about this.

----------------------

*The voice was inhuman, and yet it belonged to a person just like her, who ate, slept, breathed, and lived. What had happened to turn him into such a monster? Claire couldn't imagine. An icy chill ran down her back as she heard the screams. He had another girl, she just -knew- it. Taking a deep breath, she cleared her throat.* Yes, I know who it is,... Danny. Who exactly is Lucy, Danny? Did she laugh in your face when you asked her out? Did she break your heart? Or maybe she's your secret crush...that girl you never had the balls to ask out. You should go after people who can fight back, Danny...like me. *This was definitely a risk, but if it brought this rabid dog down, Claire was up for a challenge.*

------------------------

he chuckled. her words meant nothing, personally. he knew, though, that he had gotten inside her head.

"I thought I'd add a little somethin' to our came of Follow the Leader. You like Hide-and-Seek? I hope so."

beneath duct tape, a muffled 'help me, please' scream might be heard by a good ear that was paying attention to such details.

"Calm down, sweetness." then the sound of hand on face. his backhand had chipped teeth.

"I'm sure you're aware of the effects of rattlesnake venom. It takes some time to actually kill a person, but with as big a dose as Lucy's gettin', I don't expect you'll have as much time as you'd like. She's gettin' her shot right now, actually."

another scream as a needle penetrated the woman's arm.

"I'm gonna make this a little easier for ya. Her phone'll stay on until you turn it off. Can you find her in time?"

----------------------

*Claire heard the scream, and the sound of a vicious slap. With her free hand, she yanked the cord as if strangling an invisible Danny. Claire was quite pissed, but somehow her voice remained calm and cold.* Of course I do. If she dies, it's just another reason to put a needle in your arm or a bullet between your eyes. I assure you Danny, one way or another, when this ends, you will be dead. *She glanced over at Tim, and he shook his head. Danny and the girl hadn't been located yet, but they were getting closer. Best guess, the new Lucy had an hour or less to live.*

--------------------------

"Dead, huh?"

he couldn't help but laugh at that.

"You're gonna kill me yourself? What makes you think I'm gonna let you catch me?"

a small trace of cocky in his otherwise calculated tone. the woman beside him wasn't making very many noises any more. mostly crying.

"Lucy wants you to come to dinner sometime. She says she's gonna make you some traditional Thai food."

another short pause as danny started the car they were in. it was quiet, the only thing to be heard was the engine turning over. no way to identify it over the phone.

"Another small clue to help you find her. Until next time, Claire."

he sat the phone on the dash of the car. a car door could be heard opening, then closing. a few seconds later, another car could be heard taking off down the road. any car enthusiast would know Mopar when they heard it.

--------------------

*Somehow she'd gotten to him. Good. She almost missed the not one, but two clues he gave her, almost. Tim looked up from his eavesdropping.*

~Claire. I recognize that car.~

Which one?

~The second one. Even Annie won't be able to figure out the first one. It's a Mopar.~

A what? *Claire was not overly concerned with cars since she lacked a penis.*

~A Mopar, trust me.~ *Pausing a moment, he clarified it.* ~Mopar is any car made by Chrysler, DeSoto, Dodge, Imperial, Plymouth, Jeep or Eagle. Short for Chrysler Motor Parts.~

Tim, isn't that a lot of cars?

~Well, yes. But it's less than the total number of cars in Mississippi.~

Good point. *She pressed a button on her phone* Annie?

/Heard the whole thing. Tim let me in. Nice job, by the way./

Yeah, thanks. He hinted she's Thai. Does that help?

/Sure does. Thai is not exactly a common heritage in the heartland of Mississippi. In fact, there are only a few communities in which they can be found..../

Good, Annie. Tim, find the cell phone?

~No, but using Annie's demographic info should help us narrow the search.~

Do it. Now. *Another couple calls and agents were dispatched in cars to the top five locations. Hopefully, this Lucy wasn't the only Thai girl in town and Danny wasn't just fucking with her again.*

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*Annie punctuated the silence that had fallen over the group.*

/Actually, Claire. Tim forgot something. It's a performance car, with a hemi engine. Your nutbag's driving a hot rod./

Tim?

*He sighed.* ~She's right. I missed it.~ *Claire could hear Annie chuckling under her breath.*

Where's the damn cell phone? *Looking down at the screen, a little white dot blinked steadily.*

~We got it boss. East of Jackson, looks like it's on a dirt road.~

Good work, Tim, Annie. *Claire only hoped it came in time.* Connect me to the closest car.

~We got one less than ten minutes away.~

(Ma'am?)

Officer. The vehicle you're looking for is at these coordinates. There's a girl inside who's been dosed with rattlesnake venom. She'll be near-death if not already dead. An ambulance is on the way. Let me know as soon as you find her. Suspect is believed to have left the scene in a Mopar with a hemi engine. You have the description. Find me that car, -after- you find the girl.

(Of course. Out.) *Ten minutes never passed so slowly, or in such total silence. Claire paced back and forth while Tim watched the computer screen. Even Annie's normal rock-n-roll was silenced. There was nothing but the wait. The phone rang, and Claire answered before the first ring finished.*

(We found the girl, but she was dead, ma'am.) *Of course she was. Danny probably dosed her so she'd die in minutes. They'd been so close, and it still wasn't good enough.*

Preserve the scene. We're coming out.

(Of course. Out.)

Tim, come on..*They left. As Tim drove, Claire could hear Danny laughing at her in the moonlight in that cold, demonic voice she'd -never- be able to forget.*

~*~Back~*~