[IC] 🦄 Darker Than Black - Merged With T.S.

[ONL]

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Robert Adler

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Location: Chicago (Grimaldi Books)
Skills: N/A

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An ex-serviceman turned FBI, former assosiate with the murder victim broadcasted on live-television? Yeah Robert had seen that too, but in his line of work he had gotten so used to just digging certain images and thoughts deep down...He didn't know why, perhaps it was to not get attached to clients? Or frankly, my dear, he didn't care after so many years? But for Adelaide he would care, and those memories were dug up from the proverbial garbage pile.

"FBI and trooper you say?" Robert repeated after Adelaide, walking slowly over to the coffee machine and filling up his empty cup. It sounded like the beginning of a classic Tom Clancy thriller, though Robert was always one for the older classics to be honest. At this point it sounded like a sound conspiracy, especially with the theories thrown at the wall earlier with Wentworth spying and possibly murdering people, the so-called grouped called "Juno" and Adelaide's book being stolen. Robert rarely bought onto the whole conspiracy-thing after 9/11, and yet with all that he had heard that day, even he was starting to formulate some thoughts in his insurance-fraud mind.

"What about the arms dealer? A guy like that surely won't go quietly into the woodwork, even if he's dead. Could it..." Robert began to ask, walking back over to Adelaide and handing her his cup of coffee. Surely she needed that more than he did. "I'm sorry about your ex-husband too, real mess...but say hypothetically, it could be that the two cases are connected. I don't know what your ex-husband was into, but him working with Marc around that time could have brough him into the line of fire as well. Made him a target, or made an example...Geeze, I sound like I work for the Mafia or something." Robert continued his musing, starting to walk around the room a bit as he theorized, but quickly turning back to Adelaide. "Anything you want me to do? Can I get you anything?"

[Dragoknighte]

Mali Anson

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Location: Grimaldi Books
Skills: N/A

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Zoie seemed pretty comfortable, so she wasn't going to try concealing things too much. This was a safe spot. Probably.

"We actually used to live in the same building," Mali explained as she toweled off her hands. (It was actually a small relief to see actual paper towels here. With a restroom as fancy as this, in this day and age, she wouldn't have been the least bit surprised to see one of those air dryers that didn't actually dry the hands in the slightest) "Well I guess we still do, technically. Don't know if he moved out since. But we hadn't formally met until just now. He offered to buy lunch, but time didn't allow for much more than that. I gave him my number, so he'll probably call within the next day or two if he remembers."

"If I had to guess what he was doing here, he's probably following some lead regarding Alicia's death. They were real close, and that man takes family seriously." With that, Mali opened the door and held it open for Zoie, thereby ending her two cents on that particular part of the topic until they were back in the relative security of the truck, although there was a tangent she did transition into for less secure, more casual spaces.

"He did ask if we knew of any good places to eat in the area. I didn't, and wasn't sure if you did either. Where is a good place around here to grab a bite? I could use some actual food." The airplane food was higher quality than expected, but it just wasn't enough, especially with how little she'd had the day before.

[Lady Absinthia]

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Date: Monday May 23rd, 2017

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Road To Grimm: The guy that walked out of the gas station didn't look up from the ground as he walked before he got into gray Honda and pulled out of the gas station, turning and driving off. Roy came out holding a plastic bag filled with stuff as he walked back over to the car. Setting up the pump he started to fill up the tank. Pulling out a three bottles he handed them over to Cecily. "Didn't know if you wanted no pulp, some pulp, or a lot of pulp so I just grabbed all three," he said as he handed them to her through the window. Looking in the bag he searched around before pulling out a red looking box and set it on the dashboard in front of her. It was a box of animal crackers. "In case you got hungry," he added.

Once he was finished filling up the car he tightened down the gas cap and climbed into the driver seat. Pulling out Mountain Dew he downed it real fast and then pulled out another, shoving it in one of the cup holders. "Hrm, wonder if Tim minds if I eat in here," he said before shrugging and pulling out a bag of chex mix and ripping it open. He pulled a little too hard and the pieces of chex, pretzels, and other stuff flew all over the place. "Well fuck," he said as he started picking some up and brushing the rest on the floor board. Grinning with a mouthful he pulled out a slim jim and shoved it in his mouth as he turned the car on. "Alright, let's go," he said biting down on it as he pulled out of the gas station.

Chicago, Illinois: Over in the church the father nodded slightly and pushed the box aside. Resting back in his seat he pulled out the drawer of his desk, searching around he found a note pad and a pencil. A quick shove and it was closed as he reached over his desk and set it down on the other side for Caesar to use. "Then just write down what you want me to pass along," he said as he leaned back in his seat once again. "Though, if what Joaquin has told me is true I hope it isn't through his daughter, I don't think we have enough food in the city to feed her," he said with a slight chuckle. (Granted, due to earlier issues with pressing over the line with said NPC, a reminder is being placed that Thalia is decommissioned for this RP unless she is brought in as a full character - so she can't be used period.)

Resting his knuckles against the side of his jaw, Atticus waited for Caesar to put down exactly what he needed to relay through the church to his old mentor. "Rome might have gotten further for a time but we are still standing, like cockroaches after nuclear war. We aren't going anywhere as long as the Latin America's and Irish are on board," he said with a shrug. There was something to be said about the Irish and the Mexicans. They were so far apart but in the end they were nearly identical. Large families, heavy in Catholicism, drank, fought, had colorful festivals, mom was usually the most feared in the family even if dad was the toughest. There was a lot more from that. Granted looking at the Padre he looked to be a split mix of the two.

Claire looked over towards Keystone and nodded. "Really? Cool. Well next time she is in the states I'll let ya know, maybe yous can join us for some karaoke," she said with a smile. "Blue's a hoot." Claire didn't seem like she was teasing but she did laugh. "Should have been with us one night out in London, god we's were sloshed," she added remembering the last night before she left the tour. She still had a scar from it. Loads of fun in her book. Stepping out of the car she shrugged a bit. "I actually met Alicia tossing her ass out of the backstage. She was trying to get something signed for someone," she said as she shouldered her bag. "We kept in touch but didn't talk personal shit, I was undecided about taking the job for a while."

Shutting the door she pocketed her keys. As he mentioned her friend, Claire sighed a bit. "Tasha," she said quietly. "Natasha, Dr. Brinne. We were friends but me brother was smitten with her, couldn't exactly blame him. Pretty, smart, and with a spinning hook kick that could shatter concrete. Well when she was feeling good." Leaning against the car she crossed her arms over her chest and kicked at the ground a bit. "Bitch was too stubborn, should have been resting, not flying half way 'cross the world but hey, that was her." Adding a shrug she stiffened her upper lip and motioned for Keystone to follow her. "Come on let's get you a ride so you can get back to the boss."

There was a nod from Adelaide. "Oh I am pretty sure they are," she said as she sat there. "I got a package from Lawson a few days after he died, said to keep it safe until he or Marc could get it. What the fuck to do with it now I don't know. Turn it over or start digging," she said as she sat there gripping the wet and worn out tissue in her hand. "Kai is gonna kill me if I get mixed up in this shit storm. We left Grimm for a reason," she muttered under her breath. Sitting there she stared at the ground and sighed. "Seriously you want a job? You know how to dig better than I do." Seemed she had decided to say fuck it and start digging. "Maybe I'll get a fucking answer."

Zoie nodded as she stood there. "Yeah, Juno had a file on him a mile long, on him and some fucker named Roberts who owned a security company over seas. It was part of the information I swiped from the party the other night," she said as she pulled a small SD card from her pocket. "Among other things." Flipping it over in her fingers before tucking it back in deep, well as deep as she could, they were female jeans. They weren't exactly known for pockets. "I know some higher end places. Think I saw some food boxes on their car when we came in, must be a cheaper place close. Oh I do know a cafe, good food and drinks, more of a bar setting. We got a little time. I can get us to Grimm by nightfall if we leave in the next hour or two," she added before turning and heading out of the bathroom.

Grimm, Indiana (Grimaldi Manor): The drive over to Adelaide's parents house, better known in the area as Grimaldi Manor, was rather uneventful. Things around town seemed calm now that the fire had been put out from the plane crash. The smoke was white now coming up from the tree line off in the distance and the smell of smoke was starting to clear. Granted, there were a couple sets of people huddled on sidewalks looking over there, pointing a finger or two, and speaking. Small town breeds gossip and a plane crash was something new in the area. No one had even known there was a working runway down in those woods. There used to be one but as far as anyone was concerned no one used it anymore. The Grimaldi's were the wealthiest family in town and if they didn't use it no one would.

Pulling up to the house everything seemed calm. The place looked still and empty. Not empty as no one lived there, but just empty as far as no one would be home. That wasn't uncommon this time of the year. Adelaide's parents were known for traveling a good part of the year since Adelaide had graduated high school and since she now lived in Chicago they spent very little time at home. That wouldn't matter, her close friends knew where the spare key was kept out in the garden hidden. Riley would know where to start looking. The land surrounding the house was open with old large trees dotting the property. A swimming pool and tennis courts were around back. Yet, even for everyone being gone, it was too quiet. No birds chirping in the trees, no sounds of squirrels rushing up the bark of the trees. And one single orange balloon floating by the front door.

[Sigil]

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Caesar Gonzalez

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Location: Chicago (Church)
Skills: N/A

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Caesar grunted a monosyllabic affirmation and reached across the desk. He took the notepad and pencil, carefully mulling over what he was to put down on the paper for his brother to read and interpret. Granted he would have the final say in the message that went back to California. This was, essentially, keeping him in the loop and asking him to handle some of the communication in the meantime. This meant that he would have to trust a little of the verbal coding, both in English and Spanish, that they had been employing. More importantly, he would have to write some of it down and give it to the Church. But if you can't trust servants of God, who can you trust, right?

Yeah, Caesar's mild paranoia had served to keep him alive this far. But when every means of communication was believed compromised, how does one shut out those who might get a message across quietly? He came here for a reason. So he started to write. It was a slower affair as he tried to summarize the situation and keep it simple, while expressing urgency. Moreover, there was one concept that he, Benicio, Maria, and his niece would know. Keystone too, as it came from the first meal that he had prepared for Caesar upon arriving in Justice. It didn't appear in any of his previously used correspondence and was an already established series of phrases, though it had not been utilized yet. It implied trust, and the knowledge that shit might be going down. Combined with some basic Security Procedure phrasing and the unknown element of the Church as a go-between, Caesar had the makings of a secure communication that directly informed his people to vacate and wait for instructions. It felt good to be going Old School with this.

"The Irish..." mumbled Caesar as he wrote. He hadn't dealt with them a whole lot in his history, though there was a bit of fun when the East Coast offices, especially the Boston office, was being established. "They celebrate Cinco de Mayo like it's their holiday. Don't even do it right. Any excuse to get hammered." The accusation wasn't entirely fair, seeing as most of the Irish he did have the pleasure of meeting were merely bloodlined from the island but American born. "Eh, I guess it's as bad as Mexicans pinching each other on St. Patrick's for not wearing green. People are stupid." Seemingly satisfied with what he had written down, Caesar placed the notepad on the desk and slid it back across to the Father. "But the Irish hold up the Church in their part of the world. And they're not afraid to fight for their families. Could do worse." He tapped once where he had written, continuing, "As much secrecy as you can. Nothing that leaves a trail. Gracias, Father Pearson. Tell me how I can repay the Church for its help."

Caesar had a feeling that he would have to fund a new wing for his chapel soon. If this worked, he was actually fine with that.

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J. Keystone

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Location: Chicago (MSS Chicago, parking deck)
Skills: N/A

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The casual discussion about Adele was serving to put Keystone at ease. When he realized this, he mentally instructed himself to get back on the clock. They were there for deathly serious reasons. Emphasis on deathly. People had died and more would before all this was over. This was not a business trip for the purpose of making friends and contacts, though if Keystone thought about it, it certainly wouldn't hurt to do just that. He wasn't a Gonzalez with their deep pockets and far reaching family. He was essentially alone in the world, except for a son that he didn't know he had until recently. So yeah, he was going to stay vigilant. But he was going to engage in pleasant conversation with people as he was able to. "Karaoke? Bloody 'ell, I've got to get snookered pissed to sing karaoke, Miss. Still ain't pretty, neither. I'd 'ave a go, long as no one minds being seen with he afters. Heh..."

The part that got him was the bit about how Claire had met Alicia. It was very possible that she was trying to get the illustrious Ms. Adkins to sign something for him. It fit with the time period and the fact that she knew how much of a fan he was. The thought of it even put a smile on his face, sad though it was. Keystone didn't know if he truly loved the woman, but she was a damn good friend and teacher, and a lot of fun besides. They hadn't gotten to the part where they discussed what they were to each other, which to his mind right then explained why she never told him that she was pregnant. Whatever they were, the gargantuan Brit missed the hell out of her. End story.

The next part threw him for an utter loop. Natasha Brinne. Dead. He had read the dailies on security tasks and was present for a lot of what went down in Justice while Caesar was in Mexico. The old man had asked them to background check that exact name, and they had done so very quickly and thoroughly, considering the time allotted to the task. There were a couple of suspect things in her background, mostly by association with a member of Juno. Maybe there was something to it and maybe there wasn't; she was a doctor after all and had a decent enough reason to be acquainted with a respected medical professional in Justice, Juno or not. All the same, Caesar might want to know about this.

Keystone got an excuse to send something from his phone, as apparently it chose that moment to let him know he had a message waiting. "Ah. 'xcuse, gotta take this." It was from Cecily. He honestly didn't think that he made that big of an impression, though he did mention something about reaching out if he was needed. This was probably the latter more than the former. He hurriedly cut a message back to her:

Not alone now. Emergency, or can text?

And then another immediately afterward to Caesar:

Natasha Brinne dead. Friend of Claire. Funeral she's going to. Advise.

Jogging up behind Claire, he casually thanked her. "I 'preciate the 'ell out of this, really. Um, I think Boss was saying something about a surveillance pack? Binocs, shotgun mike, etc? If it's a difficulty, we can throw it in on my expenses." He was looking at the lady like he wanted to say something else, but was debating the prudence of doing so.

[Nallore]

Riley Ridgeway

Location: Grimm, Indiana, Streets of Grimm -> Grimaldi Manor
Skills: N/A

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They weren't that far now from Adelaide's place, as they pulled up in front of the massive house now when she was younger Riley was always really jealous about the house. But she remembered crashing at Adelaide's place every once in awhile after her parents kicked her out and was forced to live in her car a bit. Now she was actually pretty glad she could afford a place like the Grimaldi's did, but Riley didn't really want to live the whole lavish life style which was why she chose to live in the Boston Heights buildings back at Justice. Riley then got out of the car looking over at Pyira.

"Well this is the place, spent a night or two here when I didn't have a place to, the keys should be in the garden." Riley said, as she remembered pretty easily where the spare keys were always hidden. Riley then stopped for a moment as she stared at the orange balloon that was in front of the front door to the house. Riley didn't like that was still there just like it was at the funeral home and the crash site, Riley took a moment and stared at the distance seeing the now white smoke. Riley cautiously started to make her way over towards the garden.

[FantasyChic]

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Priya Khurana

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Location: Grimaldi Manor
Skills:N/A

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The drive was relatively easy. The smoke from the plane crash appeared to be clearing up, but she noticed people still pointing and talking. It wasn't every day you had a plane crash in your town. It would be hot gossip for weeks to come. She pulled up to the manor and got out along with Riley. She took a look at it. It looked like she imagined. It was habitable, but it was also..dark. That could be attributed to the fact there was an orange balloon there.

"God it's like fucking It.." She was creeped out now, but she had a job. "I see a balloon, meaning our lovely clown friend was or is here, so eyes open. Before we head in, I know you can handle yourself, but this woman is dangerous. We take it calmly and slowly. Let's go." She followed Riley into the garden. She was not eager to face this, but she couldn't lie and say she wasn't curious about their serial killer clown friend.

[ONL]

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Robert Adler

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Location: Chicago (Grimaldi Books)
Skills: N/A

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"You what?"

Robert had been quietly continuing to listen to Adeliade's explainations of what had happened the past days, walking back and forth in close proximiy to where his boss was seated, never out of sigh for too long. Grieving widows and people like that, they needed to be looked after, some with more care and compassion than others, some just in case they were lying their asses off. Adelaide was of the first, and Robert was geniunely hoping there was something he could do to help. But it was at the end, the part where she offered him a job in doing some good old digging, that he realized what she had said.

"Hold your horses! You got a package, a real box in the mail from him?" Robert had to repeat it for himself more than as an actual question, but it sounded too cliché to be true. And yet he couldn't help but believe her. Walking back over to Adelaide, he stood in front of her and looked at her, clearly deep in thought. "Look Adelaide, I'm not some normal private detective just jumping on the first case I get thrown at me. This...this really isn't my speciality. I deal in insurance fraud, not conspiracy shit like this..."

Robert sighed deeply, running his hands through his thinning hair and rubbing his eyes. Crouching down in front of her, he tried to look her in the eyes. "But if that's what you want me to do, then fine, I'll do some digging. I just hope neither of us gets fucked over sideways because of this..." This really wasn't what he was supposed to do. Having gone from making sure some ancient book wasn't fraudulently misplaced to investigating murders and conspiracies? What on Earth was he doing? But maybe, just maybe, this was the little piece of excitement the desk-chained fraud-investigator needed?

"I might as well work on both cases as long as I can. Firstly, where's the package you got from Lawson? I need to see it if I'm gonna know where to dig. Secondly, you think I can get in contact with Wentworth? I need to know from someone tech-wize how one could get through their systems for that book. I'll do what I can do, even if I only deal in insurance normally."

[Morose]

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Cecily Ashworth

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Location: Highway to Hell Grimm
Skills: N/A

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Cecily tried not to think too much of the guy who drove off - odds were, he had nothing to do with any of this. She couldn't see danger everywhere she looked - it wasn't healthy to be that paranoid, as much as she felt like she was heading in that direction. People were just people. She didn't know about all of this until recently - not everyone in the world was already in on this scheme. She took a deep breath, before Cecily jumped a bit as her phone buzzed with Keystone's reply: It can wait. Text is preferred. She didn't like speaking on the phone, anyways. Texting was easier - she could carefully consider her reply without the promptness expected from a phone call.

She took the three things of orange juice, smiling a bit at Roy. A part of her, she had to admit, was tempted to get a huge container and combine them all, that way she would have a lot of some pulp orange juice. And while she did enjoy pulp, she still enjoyed the drink without it and she wasn't about to make Roy go look for a gallon jug or something similar. Cecily then couldn't help but grin slightly, seeing the animal crackers. "Keystone texted back, said he's busy at the moment but... If you let me know what exactly to say, I can play messenger pigeon," Cecily told Roy, figuring he was better at this stuff than she was.

Cecily couldn't help but giggle as he instantly made a mess of the car. "From what I know about guys and their cars, he's definitely going to kill you - or worse, confiscate your man card for good."

[Dragoknighte]

Mali Anson

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Location: Grimaldi Books
Skills: N/A

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"If possible, I'd rather make it to Grimm before stopping at any restaurants. We do have business to attend to. If we're really hungry, we can always go through a McD's drive thru or something." In the past, Mali had done a good bit of traveling, long drives across the country, generally to visit family in far off places, so she maintained the mindset of keeping her eye on the endpoint rather than taking the time to see the sights along the way. Time was precious and instead of wasting it making a bunch of unnecessary stops, they could spend it where it needed to be spent. If there was time later, then they could go hang around Chicago and sightsee. Not to mention the fact that they were there for a pretty serious reason, lesser concerns could be put off.

"So did you want to say more to her, or are we going to leave? Seems she's still busy with that man." Mali asked Zoie in reference to Adelaide and Robert. It'd be rude for them to just show up, let her know that her friend was dead, take a piss and bounce, but it didn't look like they were anywhere near the point of ending their conversation. She didn't want to interrupt, and she certainly didn't want to take part in whatever it was they were discussing. But there was also the danger of having to wait forever to finish talking, and then they'd miss being able to make it to Grimm before late night. However, this was more Zoie's trip than hers, so she left the decision to her, although Mali dropped the implication in her tone that she'd prefer not to stick around longer than necessary.

[Lady Absinthia]

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Date: Monday May 23rd, 2017

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Road To Grimm: Roy smirked a bit as he hit the road and started heading back towards Grimm now that their pit stop was over and they were all gassed up. "The fact that I have been known to wear yellow spandex for fun probably means I lost my man card a while ago," he joked. Reaching down, every so often he found another piece of chex mix. Depending on where he dug it out from depended on whether he ate it or chucked it out the window.

"Ask him if he knows anything about Roberts Security? I guess that is about as good as we can do for a start," he said before taking a drink of his soda. Roy wasn't exactly sure what to ask without giving away too much. He didn't know Keystone but it seemed he was their best link to the ways of those tea sippers over on the other side of the Atlantic. "Can you grab my phone and send a text to Priya as well? Let her know we should be back in town in about twenty minutes?" he asked as he motioned to his phone on the dash board. If he was having problems opening a chex mix bag he might not want to attempt texting while driving.

Chicago, Illinois: Atticus chuckled a bit as he lit up a cigarette and took a long pull from it. "Yes you could do far worse. Two sides of the same coin. Look at all your common grounds. Just within the same religion you have the Virgin of Guadalupe and they have Saint Patrick. Both strong figures that were about uniting their people. And let us not forget St. Patrick's Battalion. 600 Irish Soldiers who were fighting with the States, who turned their back on the US to fight along side Mexico. Last I checked they were the only foreigners that have been honored on the Mexican House of Representatives Wall of Honor. Over in Ireland, the very man that lead them is immortalized holding a Mexican Flag. In fact, your Zorro legend comes from the Irishman William Lamport who advocated for the defense of Native Mexicans. Ah, two nations who have bonded over the centuries. Both Pagan beginnings with similar lores. Both have their own heel dances. Both have faced their own immigration issues. And let us not forget a love of Futbol. I could go on but I won't," he finished with a laugh as he flicked the ass from his cigarette into the can. Taking the paper he looked over it and nodded. "Understood, no trail of this." Folding it over and slipping it into his pocket he looked over towards Caesar and shook his head. "I do this for my mentor, not the church. There is no payment, consider it between Familia."

Claire chuckled. "Couldn't be any worse than Alicia singing. Girl had many talents from what I knew, singing was not one of them. I think yer good," Clair said as she looked around and then checked the time. "Oh shit, right, bag and such, let's go. I gotta move," she said before taking a quick pace towards the door and scanning her key card, pushing the door open, she held it for Keystone and made her way up the stairs. "Oh here, take these," she said handing a set of keys over. "Just take that ride, I'll just take my personal vehicle to go get me brother," she added. It was the keys to the SUV she had driven him over in. Pushing a door open on the ground floor she headed down the hall and to another door. Another scanned key card and she was in. It was a nice weapons and supply locker. "ID IGCM80, checking out for Keystone, Jonathan. Direct orders from Gonzalez, Caesar," she spoke into an mic by a computer set up. There was a little flash of light set up.

"ID... EMJKUK80... Keystone, Jonathan. Cleared for supply," a voice rang in through the speakers. Claire nodded and spun around.

"Thanks Dwayne," Claire said and then motioned around the room. "Okay, get what you need. I gotta walk you back to the garage until you get cards and ID set in around here, if you end up staying longer."

Adelaide nodded as she sniffled a bit. "Yeah, it's down in the vault and I can contact Wentworth, they should have someone in the area," she said as she pulled out her phone from her back pocket. Stopping she stood up and gave the man a little hug. "Thanks," she said quietly before stepping back and hitting a few buttons on her phone. "Afternoon Norman. No, still no leads to the break in. Listen, I need a favor..." she said before stopping as she spotted Zoie standing there with Mali. "Just a minute," she added, putting him on hold.

"Yeah, sounds good. Let me just check and then we can head out," Zoie said to Mali before turning her attention to the grieving woman on the phone. "Hey girl, anythang we can do for ya before we jet? I gots to get to Grimm to break the news to Tinders parents," Zoie said as she stepped over to Adelaide and Robert.

"No.." Adelaide said quietly. "Actually yes, could you tell Marc's parents I'll come to town tomorrow to check in with them and help with the funeral if they need it? they have my number," she added quickly after a rethought.

"Oh, sure thang," she said before saying goodbye and heading out the door. Looking around, down and up the street it seemed they were alone right then. "Okay, let's get out of town. Once we are south of Gary we can hit a drive thru, shouldn't be long," Zoie said before climbing in the car and starting it up. Fastening her seatbelt she waited for Mali to join her. While she hoped all of this settling things with Marc, having the funeral and all wouldn't take long she wasn't in a hurry to get back to Justice, she just wanted to get a point where her and Mali could take a breather and vacation a little in Chicago. It had to be safer than Justice.

Adelaide waited for them to leave before taking the man off hold. "Yeah, sorry about that. No, it's fine. Listen, you have a tech you could let me borrow? Need to do some digging on a friends death. Well yeah, him too but more so a friend from high school. Marc, Marc Tinder. You can? Great. When? Today, perfect. Thanks Norman. Right, I will. Bye," she said before hanging up and looking over at Robert. "A couple of hours at most but we can expect someone today," she told him as she slipped her phone into her back pocket.

Grimm, Indiana (Grimaldi Manor): Over at the house things were calm. Out back the garden was between the house and the pool/tennis courts. It was a large sprawl of area but nothing was too high, at most waist high. There were paths leading through the garden and connecting through out it. Near the side of it closest it to the house were several potted plants where Riley would be able to find the key. It wasn't under a pot but in a fake rock near it she could flip over and pull the key out of.

The porch was open in the back and lead up to the back door, which was locked. Just inside the glass of the door one could see the sun room and beyond that the kitchen. The lights were off inside but there were plenty of windows and natural lighting to see around. Over by the pool the water rippled a bit and a float rolled over the water. The tennis courts were surrounded by a high chain link fence and the gate was open. It looked like it had recently been repainted, which wasn't uncommon. The family tended to repaint it every couple of years during the spring.

[Nallore]

Riley Ridgeway

Location: Grimm, Indiana, Streets of Grimm -> Grimaldi Manor
Skills: N/A

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"At night its a bit to creepy for me." Riley said softly as she heard Pyira making an 'It' reference which was probably a good assumption since there was a really creepy ass clown somewhere in town already. But it was a temporary place to stay when she was struggling, sighing slightly. "I know where the key is." Riley said to her as she entered through the backyard, and looked around a little bit as she tried to look for where it was. Seeing the potted plants that were there, she half expected them to actually have a better hiding place for their house key, or at least give a copy of it to a relative or someone else in town.

"For someone whos really rich they should hide their keys better, its just asking to be robbed." Riley said as she knelt down and pulled up a fake rock that hid pretty well within the rest. She turned it over seeing the key was tucked safely under the rock and pulled it off before standing up, and twirled it around in her hand. "Did you want to see if anything was broken or stolen inside, or look around the yard a bit more, or talk to the neighbors what they saw exactly?" Riley asked, as she eyed the pool and tennis court and thought about going in there at some point while in town.

[Sigil]

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Caesar Gonzalez

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Location: Chicago (Church)
Skills: N/A

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The priest rattled off a series of facts and events for Caesar's ears to process. Some of these things he knew, owing to a fairly standard education in Mexico, growing up. Others he did not know or had forgotten after the decades of his life. Indeed, the two peoples had similarities, that was for sure. Especially as one stood within the great equalizer of mankind, finance. Caesar remembered growing up wothout the means he possessed today. In some ways, the celebrations and bonds of family meant more back then; giving and sharing when they had less to give and share. So it was with the other colorful (if extraordinary pale) culture, he supposed. It was a shame they didn't get along better.

Mental note: Expand company into Dublin and/or Belfast.

Caesar perked an eyebrow at the priest seemingly invoking the name of La Familia. It might have been reassuring, but more than a little premature in their discussions with one another. Granted, he hadn't actually used both words, "La Familia", so ot could very well be a misunderstanding on his part. He relaxed his brow and nodded, giving a grunt of affirmation. In response, Caesar located a business card and placed it on the desk in front of him. "If you personally, or your church needs something, you use that. Understand? Not payment, if you won't accept that. Open favor for favor."

His phone buzzed in his pocket. This was not a number that was used lightly, nor one that drew the attention of the types that installed vinyl siding or offered once-in-a-lifetime deals in insurance. If his phone got a message, it was likely important. "Have to take this..." he mumbled, and looked on to the message just left from his Associate Director, Keystone. His response was simple.

Be honest. Shoot straight.

---

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J. Keystone

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Location: Chicago (MSS Chicago)
Skills: N/A

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Keystone wasn't much of a gun person. He knew about them, probably as much as he needed to, and he was trained in the use of certain types thanks to MSS, but he just wasn't a huge fanatic. He had seen people who were. Mostly, his opinion on these people took a hit when they began rattling off individual weapon specs and the proud collections that ran into the hundreds of items. Thanks, but no. Keystone could respect a talented marksman, though, and understood that fortune favored the prepared. So, standing in that armory, he gave it no more awe nor appraisal than a carpenter selecting the tools he would need to build a desk.

The weapons in the SUV would very likely suffice for him. Probably Caesar too, though he didn't know how much violence the man had planned, if any, for the town of Grimm. He would definitely check out the supply of non-lethals, and as mentioned earlier, a standard MSS surveillance bag. His knowledge of the actual tech involved was passing but not exactly masterful. Caesar would have been the man to speak to about that. Seeing as he gave no specific instruction in that regard, he had to assume that basics would suffice. Maybe his guide might have her own ideas on the subject that would have more polish than his knowledge of security procedures would allow.

His train of thought was interrupted briefly by the incoming text from Caesar. Be honest. Okay. But first, "Oi there, Miss McManus? 'Fore I go rootin' about, you got any suggestions on gears and the like? Headin' out toward Grimm after this. Wouldn't mind 'nother opinion." While he spoke, he did have the forethought to acquire a basic pack. Shotgun mic hearing amp, cameras, low light gear, mobile jammer, various et ceteras; pretty simple stuff from an electronics point of view. He debated the keystroke logger, but was unsure of when or how that would be useful in a place that was technologically stuck twenty or thirty years ago, to hear the buzz about Grimm. Tazers, though. No sense shooting everyone (regardless of Caesar's opinion on the subject). And perhaps some means of quick interrogation... but again, not really in his sphere of competence.

[ONL]

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Robert Adler

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Location: Chicago (Grimaldi Books)
Skills: Research

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"Good, good...we'll figure this out." Robert said as he had stood up from his crouching, standing before Adelaide while rubbing his chin in a beginning thought. What were they going to find in Lawson's package to her? Why did he send it to her, and what was the connection between all of this? Robert didn't get to do much thinking before he had recieved something he hadn't felt for a very long time. A hug. For a brief second the insurance-fraud investigator didn't know what to do, but soon enough gave Adelaide a much needed hug back. In silence he patted her back, before she let go and went to take the phone.

While Adelaide was subsequently preoccupied by an important phone-call and the goodbye of Zoie and Mali, Robert grabbed the cup of coffee he had earlier offered to Adeliade. In the other hand he pulled up his phone, drinking the now lukwarm coffee and looking at his phone in intervals. "Clemins...Clemins, Marc and Lawson...What the hell do you three do?" Robert asked himself in whispers, pacing back and forth the room of the book store. Normally Robert wasn't in the business of figuring our murders or conspiracies, but his experienced mind of fraud and Agatha Christie fun-facts did its best. While thinking, two different plausable theories came up again and again; Either Marc and Lawson had tried to compete with Clemins in the trade of arms-dealing or whatever else the known criminal had dealt with, or they had tried to go under cover in an attempt to bring him down from the inside. Now those theories still sounded like something pulled out of a crime-novel, but they still sounded plausible all things considered. But why would a former Navy Seal want to deal in illegal arms trading in the first place?

Robert stopped working his little grey ones as Adeliade finished up her phone call, walking up to her as she explained that someone from Wentworth would be there soon. "That's fast. Even if their security might suck, you've got to give it to them that their customer service is good. Guess knowing them helps." Robert said half-jokingly, taking another sip of the less-than-good coffee as he looked up at whatever security cameras were around, and back at Adelaide. "Are you okay with opening that package here? Might be best to keep it down in the vault if there's anything to worry about."

[FantasyChic]

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Priya Khurana

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Location: Grimaldi Manor
Skills:N/A

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"A bit creepy is an understatement. This is like if Halloween and Nightmares had offspring." She did not mention the fact there was a potential clown serial killer on the loose. It didn't need to be addressed as such. The house itself looked empty. "Always thought that towns that left their doors unlocked were crazy. Even if the town was peaceful, it didn't mean it always would be. Well, we have a way in, at least."

Priya walked over to the door. "We can save the neighbors for after. I want to get in there and check it out. There may be clues or a lead that we need. But, and I need to stress this, it could be dangerous. I know you can handle yourself, but remember to watch your back. And mine too, while you're at it. And I'll have yours. But we stick together. We are not splitting up. That is horror movie code for 'Please Kill Me'"

[Dragoknighte]

Mali Anson

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Location: Grimaldi Books
Skills: N/A

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There wasn't much for Mali to do in this situation other than stand back and watch the conversation play out from afar, but it did give her a chance to get a better look at the guy that Adelaide had been talking to. He was kind of grubby. He didn't look like any kind of law enforcement, or high class enough to be some kind of power player. So chances were that he wasn't involved with any of this. Maybe he was just a regular at the bookstore or something. But then again, Caesar didn't exactly fit the bill of CEO. But it wasn't good to have her become paranoid about every person they happened to pass by just because the game was still on, so to speak. In the end Mali figured if the guy was anyone of note Zoie would tell her.

Fortunately, Adelaide didn't want anything else, so they were free to go on their way without delay. It felt weird to just leave without any kind of acknowledgement, so she gave the shopkeep a small, awkward wave before stepping out of the store. If things went her way, the two of them wouldn't be beset by any unwelcome events like traffic jams or the like and be able to make it to Grimm on or ahead of time, but something was telling her that wouldn't be the case.

"You sure you don't want me to take over driving for a bit? You've been at it for awhile, might be good to give that foot a rest." Mali didn't know the way, but the vast majority of the route would consist of traversing the interstate, the occasional lane change wouldn't trip her up the way the labyrinthine sprawl of the cities could. She recalled in her first days in Justice, she swore she had turned right four times and ended up in a different location altogether.

[Morose]

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Cecily Ashworth

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Location: Highway to Hell Grimm
Skills: N/A

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"If the entire cop thing doesn't work out for you after this all blows over, you'd be a good vigilante," Cecily told Roy. She couldn't help but have a mental image of him wearing yellow spandex and fighting crime in the dark, doing what the police was unable to. If that ever happened, she hoped it wouldn't be in Justice at the very least. Nothing could save that city. The ground was poisoned with something dark and nefarious. It made somewhere as violent and dangerous as Gotham look like nothing in her opinion. "On it," she said, grabbing Roy's phone.

She first sent a text to Keystone from her phone - When you have a moment, what do you know about Roberts Security? It's important." She figured it could be a while before Keystone replied to her, since he was busy at the moment, but the nice thing about a text was that it could wait. He'd read it and answer it when he had a moment, Cecily was certain of that. She then set her phone aside and used Roy's, pulling up Priya's contact and typing out a text - Be back in town in 20. She had considered mentioning that she was the one texting and Roy wasn't, but she still didn't know if she could trust Priya. And even if she could, someone might have done something to the detective's phone. Keeping the ~hey, it's Cecily~ out of the text could be useful.

[Lady Absinthia]

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Date: Monday May 23rd, 2017

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Road To Grimm: Roy smirked a bit as he turned off the I-65 and onto Grimm Highway. It wouldn't be long now until they got to what was referred to as Murder Town USA, which was something considering how many people died in Justice everyday. "You know, then I would need a power set. How do you think I would look with Adamantium claws?" he asked as he put hit fist up. He laughed a bit as he rolled down the window a bit and lit up his cigar. Once it was settled between his teeth he growled a bit. "Oh yeah, harnessing that inner animal. Though I don't know if I can get my veins to bulge that much. Or that cut. I like pizza too much."

He shrugged a bit and ashed the cigar out the window. Driving towards town he sighed as it came into sight. The town had a thin haze over it from the crash sight and Roy quirked a brow. "Well fuck, makes this play look like Sleepy Hollow..." he said as he started to slow down from highway speed to city speed. "Let's get to the station and find out what the hell happened while I was gone," he added as he turned through town making their way towards the small government section of town and the police station.

Chicago, Illinois: Atticus nodded and picked up the business card. Taking a look at it he flipped it over in his fingers before looking back over to the man. "Understood, if there is a war I know who to call," he said with a slight laugh before opening a drawer and placing the card into it. He nodded as Caesar said he had to take it and went silent to deal with the phone. Pushing his chair back he stood up and picked up the box on his desk, carrying it back over to the shelf and placing it back where he had retrieved it from. His hand ran over it before he turned back to Caesar, waiting for the man to be done with the phone.

Once he was Atticus cleared his throat. "On second thought, I want to cash in that favor now," he said before turning back to the box and opening it up. Pulling out something from it and palming it in his hand. "Did you know that many of our religious traditions actually comes from much older religions. That we adopted them in an effort to make it easier for Pagans to convert?" he said as he closed the box slowly. "That even the Zodiac can be found within the bible as we know it, but it goes back much further than that?" he added as he walked back over to his desk slowly. "In fact, the zodiac is found in medieval stained glass as at Angers Cathedral." Sitting down he looked at his hand and shook his head. "Nothing in this world comes without a price, unfortunately." Opening his hand he held up a dice looking metal object. "Twelve sides, for 12 of their gods and yet they were over ruled by two." Pausing he set the item down on his desk and looked back at Caesar. "Ever heard of the Goddess Juno?"

Claire looked over towards Keystone and nodded. "Yeah, take a nuke," she snickered before waiving it off. "Knives, blades, a sixth sense. I did a read up of the place when I got the job here since it was close. It seems to be a house for bad juju. Got a cross? Holy water? Ever seen Buffy? Figure that place if a fucking hell mouth. Granted it could be a one time just bad egg fucking everything over but then again, small towns are good at covering shit up and any place with an Insane Asylum can't be fun unless you want a jacket that can make you hug yourself because your someone special too."

Shrugging she looked around the room and her lips pursed. "Honestly, other than the usual, I'd try to get a priest to bless me going there or to Justice, so you might want a double." Reaching into her pocket she pulled out something and then let it slowly fall from her fingers. It was a pendant on a chain, catching the chain just before she let it fully go. "Shit, keep this," she said as she handed it over. It was just a St. Christopher's medal. Checking her watch she looked at the time. "Fuck, okay, we gotta book. Caesar will need you and I gotta get to the airport."

Adelaide looked over towards Robert. "Yeah, let's do this in the vault," she said before setting down her coffee and slipping her phone into her back pocket. "Come on." Walking to the front door she locked it once Zoie and Mali were out the door and pulled down the blinds, turning the open sign to closed. Whenever their contact with the security company got there, there was a box he could ring them with. Heading to the stairs she made her way downstairs and towards the vault. Going trough the usual security procedures before opening the door. Pulling it open she stepped into the vault and waited for Robert. Once he was in she closed it up and started looking around. "Now where did I stick that," she muttered to herself. "I gotta admit it was weird but it wasn't the first time he had sent me something to pass on to Marc. Just after Marc got transferred to Justice I didn't get anymore. Didn't open the others but now that they..." she stopped there. Clearing her throat she kept looking around. "It's around here somewhere."

Zoie looked over towards Mali and nodded. "Sure as soon as we hit the I-65 outside of Gary we'll stop for a'bite to eat and can switch from there," she said as she wove through the streets of Chicago and headed east towards Gary. It wouldn't be a long drive to get them outside of Gary, maybe an hour at most if the traffic was bad. Hopefully it wouldn't be. Granted even bad traffic out here was nothing compared to Justice. Thankfully the traffic wasn't so bad and they were making some good time. "Funny, I moved out to Justice because I ain't be wantin' a borin' life in south Georgia. Now I'd give anythang fer a borin' life," she said in passing with a bit of a sigh. "Beginnin' to think that a zombie apocalypse wouldn't be a bad idea fer this world, then maybe then at least we'd know who the hell to look out fer. The ones not tryin' to eat our fuckin' brains."

Grimm, Indiana (Grimaldi Manor): Back when Riley and Adelaide were in high school, things were calm around Grimm. This was before the whole murder at prom thing happened. There had been whispers about bad things happening hundreds of years ago but for the most part if anything bad happened in town people didn't talk about it and it was forgotten the next generation. Only the older folks in town mentioning weird things in passing from time to time that the younger crowd would just blow off as people getting old and senile. It was a small town, where people knew everyone, you didn't bother locking your doors at night. You didn't worry about it. Especially in the richer part of town as the houses were so far apart and if anything was stolen it was easy to find the kid who got a hair up their ass to try to spice things up around town.

It was back when Adelaide was young that her parents had put in a music sound system for their pool and tennis courts. Adelaide loved singing and when she started dating Kai they would sit out in the garden and singing around a camp fire. Or when they had parties Riley could entertain the group of friends. It was all so wholesome back then. Very Americana. Yet, right then, those speakers weren't playing anything nice, in fact it went from silence to creepy really damn fast when music started playing over them. It was the creepy kids music that got played when the ice cream trucks would come around town. The controls for the stereo system were in the houses basement.

[Sigil]

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Caesar Gonzalez

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Location: Chicago (Church)
Skills: N/A

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Caesar listened intently when Father Pearson began to speak of how he might repay the favor. He even leaned forward in his seat, so intent on hearing how he may settle up with the effort the man was making on behalf of his family's safety. Apparently, the return favor required a touch of explanation. Well, no problems whatsoever. There was the slightest bit of confusion as the monologue from the good Padre went into the history of the Catholic Church; roots in preexisting belief, accounts of details added or changed for ease of conversion, et cetera. These were things that he knew about in a vague sense, nonspecific except for one of the cultures of his own heritage. But it made sense. The Church was an organization as old as almost any other in existence, with a ton of influence both social and financial.

The intro to the favor he was about to ask actually reminded him of a dream he had, just a couple of weeks ago. He was standing in the middle of a moonless night atop a Mesoamerican pyramid in the driving rain, lit only by the epicly frequent blasts of rolling lightning which outlined a great hawk-like figure behind the cloud cover. He was bleeding and armed with two of his trademark machetes, dealing death with both hands as an army of things recognizable as once being human (but clearly were not, be it the influence of science or that of the infernal). It was to be his death, but it would cost them dearly. But all this was something that he had dealt with and processed for himself. The reminder of the Church's earlier influences during its earlier days was amazingly similar to its actions during the Colonial period, when much of his ancestry was converted. Well, the Aztecs and those who followed left their scars of the Church as well. Caesar knew that as well as anybody.

By the time that Father Pearson got to the twelve sided die, Caesar could feel his heart drop. The intent look was replaced by a feeling of apprehension, bordering on dread. Dice? Really? Was there any escaping this? Was he being led - HIM, LED, by something greater than himself? Was he put on some path for some specific reason that would not be revealed to him until it was thoroughly trod upon? Well, fine. Down a winding trip into the darker aspects of his psyche, Caesar had performed the occasional clandestine wetwork (read: assassination). He preferred to know what his target was before engaging. Intelligence saved lives and made for a smoother job, in Security as well as... other things. In this House of the Lord, he could take a few things on faith.

But the second that the guy said "Juno", Caesar's eyes went glassy and bloodshot, and his hand made connection with his forehead in a manner most unseemly in polite society. It was quickly joined by the other and followed by by a sound that contained elements of both a growl and a sigh. It was not flattering. It was not pretty. The moment was horribly out of place for the situation, or any situation for that matter, without proper context. Caesar let that word run through his head a few more times. Juno. Juno. Juno. Juno. God damn JUNO.

His head slammed down on the desk. Twice. Caesar contemplated a third time, but instead raised his finger, pointing to the sky. "¿Esto es lo que quieres de mí, Dios? De Verdad?"₁ This time, the growl had no trace of exasperation. He raised his head and looked to the priest. "Okay. I'm okay. It has been a very trying time since moving to California. If I knew exactly where to lay the blade this wouldn't be as big a problem." Caesar cleared his throat. "Yeah. Lunillud Aleae. Celestial Dice. Juno. Goddess and secret girls' organization. There is no escaping this." He exhaled a long breath. "You are helping to keep mi familia safe. What can I do to help you?"

Translations

1 = This is what you want from me, God? Really?

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J. Keystone

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Location: Chicago (MSS Chicago)
Skills: N/A

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Keystone wasn't much of a knife guy. He kept one with him, though it was more of a utility item than it was a hard and fast weapon. When Claire mentioned that blades would be handy, the large Brit just shrugged. "Well, I ain't got a cross on standby, and holy water's not in our standards, yeah? But I do love me some Buffy. The series what followed, eh, not so much." He paused for a moment as he stuffed all of his goodies into a duffel. Just for the hell of it, he did take the keystroke recorder. Not like it could hurt anything. He did give a little nod toward the idea of getting himself blessed. Unfortunately, he wasn't the one of their group in a church at that point in time. That would be El Jefe. Of the two of them, oddly enough, Caesar was the one who was more in tune with the more Godly elements of society. The realization actually made him stop for a second. Keystone didn't know whether to laugh or stand there in confusion.

He did accept the St. Christopher's medal though. In fact, he was a little touched at the gesture. "That's a lot of 'eavy, Miss McManus. Many thanks, really. Truth on it, if I was anything at all, it'd be Anglican... yeah, but I'm like, 98% sure it's the same God. Naw really, thanks. Mean that." He actually smiled a little. Fine, she was the daughter of Irish immigrants (distantly, first gen, he didn't know) from Boston, and he was a steadfast East Ender Cockney from London - traditionally, their peoples were not the best of friends. This was America, though. Things were different here, apparently. And she used to associate with Adele, which was also awesome. And fought competitively as he did, though in India. He'd be lying to say that he wasn't impressed by the woman somewhat. "Look, you got my contact info, yeah? Lemme know if I can give you an 'and after you've got yours squared away. Or if you need a good sparring partner." He slung his pack full of acquisitions over his shoulder and began to follow Claire out of the armory. "Y'know, might be an idea gettin' me clearance for this office on our way out. Me an' Bossman might 'have to come back through this way, afters."

Moving down the hall, Keystone took the time to respond to Cecily's text:

Roberts Sec - Big Heavy of security biz in Europe. Based in England. Took over Wentworth contract for Justice Memorial same time MSS took over Queensguard RnD. Want me to look into it?

[Nallore]

Riley Ridgeway

Location: Grimm, Indiana, Grimaldi Manor
Skills: N/A

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"Oh trust me, I almost made that mistake the last time I was hear." Riley said, remembering it pretty clearly when she was in Grimm the last time with the final showdown with Chris. Her sister decided to run off to try and deal with him, and Riley being protective and wanting to help she went there as well. And Marc telling her to stay back while he ran into the fun house where her sister and Chris were now, well being the stubborn person she was Riley followed anyway and the rest was history now at this point. She killed Chris, but she didn't regret following them in and nearly getting separated either.

"But I got your back partner." Riley said towards Pyira and gave her a slight smile, and nodded slightly stick together and don't go out on your own. The place was pretty big as well. "I know my way around the place so just follow me." Riley whispered as she took the key and started to unlock it. When the really creepy children's music started to play. Taking a moment to look over at the pool and tennis court, which gave her a slight flash back to the fun house when she killed Chris. "Well, I know where the controls for the surround system are in the basement.." Riley said as she unlocked the door and made her way inside and started to make her way towards the basement.

[ONL]

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Robert Adler

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Location: Chicago (Grimaldi Books)
Skills: N/A

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"Sounds good. After you." Robert said to Adelaide's confirmation of going downstairs to deal with the package, watching her close up and lock down the store tight. Again it wasn't that Robert believed in them being observed by some unknown person or persons unknown through the security cameras. It was perhaps however more convinient to check the packages downstairs in the already well-equiped vault downstairs, in case they needed some gear. As Adelaide walked down the stairs, Robert followed suit, thinking back to his earlier thought that this might make a good book.

The question was, Christie, Clancy or somone entirely different. Robert needed to start reading some more modern detective novels.¨

Downstairs Robert waited for Adelaide to open the vault with the ususal security measures that put his own workplace to shame, and went in before having the vault door closed behind them. How many times had they been there already that day? Twice in the vault, twice down the stairs. If they kept this up, perhaps Robert would get some much needed excercise. His wishful thinking was interrupted by the far more important clues Adelaide gave Robert, making him close up the distance between them, making sure he wasn't touching anything. Not without gloves. "I can see why it's weird. Normally one either recieves the package for themselves, or they know what it. This sounds fishy." Robert commented matter-of-factly, watching her as she looked for the package. "How long ago was that? Marc being transferred to Justice. You know why? And did you never ask him what were in the packages?"