Love Bingo Fic / "Profile Found" / Prompt: Learning to know Eachother
Written for Love Bingo. Fandom: Brothers and Sisters
Love Prompt: Learning to know eachother
Author: ihrtmr
Love prompt list: Learning to know each other
*****
Name: Profile Found.
Fandom: Brothers & Sisters
Characters: Kevin Walker
Rating: PG
Prompt used/word count: (2,200+)
Summary: Kevin assists in a criminal investigation where people are disappearing in the greater Los Angeles area.
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Brothers & Sisters are the sole property of ABC
Kevin sat tucked away in a small corner of the rarely used conference room, nosed buried in his laptop computer. Though he had his own office space, he sought the solitude of the empty room equipped with a large and diverse legal library. Leather bound books filled the line of book shelves crammed with every imaginable published criminal case of any consequence over the past decade. Not to mention the convenience of the multi-purpose copier/fax/scanning unit that made his tedious research process, somewhat more manageable.
He wasn’t a criminal attorney. Far from it. He handled small litigations, and arbitrations. Specifically, legal matters related to business - drafting contracts, advising businesses, and keeping business clients out of trouble, where business related legal matters were concerned. But always looking to expand his knowledge, he often volunteered to take on extra work for the various partners at his firm. Extra work translated into making oneself indispensable and positioning oneself for the seldom opportunities for promotion as they arose. Extra work also translated into tedious research. Hours and hours of reading, web searches, and phone calls; all things which the busy partners had little time to engage in on a case by case basis.
This particular case was a criminal one. Various individuals were found dead or missing in the greater Los Angeles area. Family members had gone to the authorities but the case remained unsolved. There seemed to be no connection amongst the missing. Five men simply vanished. Varied ages, various nationalities, and various vocations.
Armed with only names and pictures of the missing men, Kevin got busy surfing the web in the insurmountable task of searching for clues.
Mark Crosby, one of the missing, had a text based social networking account - Nothing of note. A handful of posts each month between as many buddies, on topics from books to restaurants, to the merits of actors on new television shows.
Juan Garcia, a publisher of children’s books, had a Facetime account and seemed to be surrounded by family and friends in every picture posted. He and his wife seemed happily in love after a couple of decades of successful marriage.
Tad McDonald - A professional surfer. He also had a Facetime account. Nothing unusual, loads of friends, varied interests, from bars to sports to dating, but he seemingly had nothing in common with the other missing persons.
Though this case was not in Kevin’s main area of expertise, he had one thing that police, investigators; and attorneys with far more tenure had. Kevin had drive. He was a perfectionist where his career was concerned. He couldn’t resist a mystery and he was consumed with the desire to prove he had the goods to handle the difficult cases. So he pressed on, jotting notes, trying to find links or any commonalities between the men.
Kevin slammed his laptop shut in frustration. It had been two days and he’d found nothing of consequence. Nothing that connected these individuals in any way. Not their occupations, contacts, hobbies or friends.
The next day with a clearer mind, Kevin asked his secretary to reschedule his appointments as he dedicated another day to continued research. He meticulously took notes. Perhaps he had missed some connection. Or perhaps there was no connection. The disappearances may very well have been isolated incidents, not remotely related. But his gut told him otherwise, so he carried on, carefully reviewing each man’s online footprint, making note of their interests, linked sites, who they had friended, and places they’d frequented.
Kevin paced the room, and somberly looked through the pane glass window into the night sky, gloriously lit by city lights. The view from the top floor was beautiful, Kevin thought. But somewhere in the thrill and romance of the pulsating city lights was a predator, turning his beloved city into a foreboding metropolis rifled with crime, corruption and a general decay that rivaled Gotham city. Sighing in frustration, Kevin paced the room again before returning to the conference table and picking up Tad’s file once more. Despite his distaste for doing so, he mentally prepared himself for the inevitable phone call to Mrs. McDonald who had retained the firm.
Kevin: “Mrs McDonald?” Kevin spoke into the phone. “Sorry to bother you so late. My name is Kevin Walker and I represent the law firm investigating the missing person’s case involving your son.”
Mrs McDonald: “Do you have any news for me Mr. Walker?” the woman asked anxiously.
Kevin: “Unfortunately no. I have to warn you that criminal cases are extremely complex. I understand that you wanted to sue your son’s primary social media account for their alleged involvement in his disappearance. It’s absolutely true that in the United States you can sue whomever you like, but I have to be completely honest about the probability of this working in your favor. At the moment the prosecution doesn’t have enough evidence to indict anyone of a crime. I’m afraid this is an uphill battle.”
Mrs McDonald: “I understand Mr. Walker,” the woman responded with conviction “but it’s a chance I’m willing to take. I don’t know who took my boy, but I know it had something to do with his online activity. Even if I have no evidence, my instincts know he was in danger. He spent all of his time online, got in over his head, and suddenly went missing. These sites have got to take accountability for putting people in this type of danger. Win or lose I want to proceed with this law suit and investigation!”
Kevin: “I completely understand how you feel, but even if we find evidence of collusion, there may be mitigating circumstances that could acquit the accused of a crime. What I’m saying Mrs McDonald, is that even if your gut feeling is right; even if Tad got himself involved in some criminal activity, suspicion alone can’t convict the perpetrators. We need evidence. Hard evidence. Have you gone to the police, even the district attorney with your allegations?”
Mrs McDonald: “Mr. Walker, if I hadn’t already tried, would I be retaining your firm? Of course I went to them, but there is so much criminal activity in Los Angeles that they can’t be bothered with my suspicions. That’s why I’m willing to pay someone to give this case the attention it deserves. That’s why I’m willing to take a leap of faith and sue the people I think might be responsible. I’m not going to sit here and wait 20 years for someone at LAPD to work a cold case after I’m long dead and gone!”
Kevin: “I’ll do my best Mrs McDonald”.
Mrs McDonald: “I don’t know what your best is Kevin Walker, I just want my son back ; and in the event that’s not possible, I want someone to pay for what’s happened to him. If you can’t see yourself doing that, tell me now and I’ll find someone who will.”
Kevin: “Give me a chance to research further. I’ll get back to you.” said Kevin clicking off the phone.
Suing Facetime? Her request was unreasonable, impractical and next to impossible. Laughable really. A huge multi-million dollar conglomerate with mountains of attorneys in their legal team to handle millions of complaints, from fraud, to alleged impersonations. His lawsuit was a drop in the bucket where legal matters for the social media corporation were concerned. But it was his task to either reason with her to drop the suit, or find a damned good reason to pursue it - and he simply didn’t have the heart to convince her she was wrong.
Back online Kevin scoured the Facetime account. He looked at every post in recent months, every link, every reference. There it was. How could he have missed it? Post: 3/17/13 “So excited! Two week countdown. #Soulmates rocks!”
He’d seen the post before. It hadn’t meant anything at first sight, but this time Kevin performed a web search for “soulmates.” He found that it was an online website to meet locals interested in love connections. He wondered if other missing victims had references or weblinks to this site and scoured his hand written notations to confirm his suspicions.
Kevin’s heart sank as he found the notation under Juan Garcia’s name. He’d thought nothing of it initially. Merely a reference about his loving spouse, he’d thought. Kevin anxiously set up a free account and filled out a simple profile so that he would have access to all members. He completed a profile for a male interested in other males looking for romance, then took a deep breath before executing the search.
Tad McDonald. Profile found.
Status - single. Kevin was greeted with a profile photo of the young man, early twenties, green eyes and blonde hair. He liked to surf, play video games, was a Pro Surfer working on his degree in sociology. He was bi-sexual, but currently interested in exploring an m/m relationship.
Slowly he searched for profiles on the other missing men. His jaw was locked in staunch determination as he fought the tears that threatened to spill.
Mark Crosby. Profile found.
Status - Dating. Openly gay, looking for friendship with benefits.
Juan Garcia. Profile found.
Status - It’s complicated. Married, father of two. Reportedly straight but admittedly having conflicts with his sexuality. Would like to meet someone trustworthy to explore his feelings.
Scotty Wandell. Profile found.
Status - Single Looking for a relationship. Loved to cook, loved music, loved to dance. He wanted someone to take care of, someone to take care of him. Someone to be his family, someone to learn to know.
Kevin stared at the last profile picture, looking into the most beautiful blue eyes he had ever seen. A lone tear finally escaped his eyes as he wondered what happened to this beautiful creature, so full of life and love and ready to share it. This man, with the sweet face and playful eyes, just wanted to get to know someone. He seemed so full of hope and expectations. And for that alone he may have paid the ultimate price….
****
“Targeted! They were all targeted because they were gay!” Kevin yelled in frustration when he later met with his boss to discuss the case. “I’ve subpoenaed the sites records and reviewed all activity between all the missing parties. I've been researching for days. At first I saw nothing in common between the men they were connecting with on Soulmates, but then I subpeonad the IP addresses and bingo! They each had contact with a member linked to this IP address,” said Kevin emotionally handing a small piece of paper to the man across from him. “In this day and age it’s a miracle he didn’t have the foresight to erase the electronic trail, but here it is. The police have been notified and are on their way to the residence,” said Kevin wringing his hands hoping against hope that at least some of the men would be found unharmed. His mind then wandered to the sky blue eyes, and sweet smile of the last victim.
24 hours later….
A swat team had been sent to the address Kevin had located and they found the perpetrator on the premises. Kevin had been apprised of all the details and he went to visit Mrs. McDonald personally to inform her of the news. James Rhys Stark had confessed to setting up various online aliases with the sole purpose of perpetrating crimes, including luring victims, the abduction, torture and murder of four gay men in the Los Angeles area, including her son Tad. His reasons? ‘To rid the planet of a few homos’, he’d crassly explained. Kevin’s visit with Mrs McDonald had been emotionally brutal, but he wanted to be there for her. He owed her that much. He had promised his best, and it was his obligation to comfort her as best he could.
After the brutal conversation, Kevin made his way to the hospital and sat in the empty corridor, brow furrowed stressfully as he waited for news. As he sat in the uncomfortable chair thinking about the events of the past 24 hours, a nurse walked up and handed him a cup of black coffee. “He might be unconscious for hours Mr. Walker. Are you sure you want to wait? He’s not even allowed non family visitations until morning.”
Kevin looked up at the nurse and thanked her for the coffee. He took a sip gratefully before answering. “This man was found unconscious, bound and gagged in the home of a serial killer. He was there for days and barely made it out alive. The way I see it, he should have someone here when he wakes up. I just hope it’s ok that it’s me.”
“Scott Wandell is a lucky man” she said smiling sweetly at him. Lucky? Kevin certainly didn’t think so, but she meant well. Kevin’s heart was weighed down. He wished he could have saved them all. He wished he would have found Mrs McDonalds, son; and that he’d resolved the case sooner. All those poor unsuspecting men…..
Kevin looked down at the tattered printout of the victims and focused on the one who’d survived with exhaustion and relief. The one with the piercing blue eyes and sweet, sweet smile, the one he patiently waited to meet, the one he hoped to learn to know.
The end
Love Prompt: Learning to know eachother
Author: ihrtmr
Love prompt list: Learning to know each other
*****
Name: Profile Found.
Fandom: Brothers & Sisters
Characters: Kevin Walker
Rating: PG
Prompt used/word count: (2,200+)
Summary: Kevin assists in a criminal investigation where people are disappearing in the greater Los Angeles area.
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Brothers & Sisters are the sole property of ABC
Kevin sat tucked away in a small corner of the rarely used conference room, nosed buried in his laptop computer. Though he had his own office space, he sought the solitude of the empty room equipped with a large and diverse legal library. Leather bound books filled the line of book shelves crammed with every imaginable published criminal case of any consequence over the past decade. Not to mention the convenience of the multi-purpose copier/fax/scanning unit that made his tedious research process, somewhat more manageable.
He wasn’t a criminal attorney. Far from it. He handled small litigations, and arbitrations. Specifically, legal matters related to business - drafting contracts, advising businesses, and keeping business clients out of trouble, where business related legal matters were concerned. But always looking to expand his knowledge, he often volunteered to take on extra work for the various partners at his firm. Extra work translated into making oneself indispensable and positioning oneself for the seldom opportunities for promotion as they arose. Extra work also translated into tedious research. Hours and hours of reading, web searches, and phone calls; all things which the busy partners had little time to engage in on a case by case basis.
This particular case was a criminal one. Various individuals were found dead or missing in the greater Los Angeles area. Family members had gone to the authorities but the case remained unsolved. There seemed to be no connection amongst the missing. Five men simply vanished. Varied ages, various nationalities, and various vocations.
Armed with only names and pictures of the missing men, Kevin got busy surfing the web in the insurmountable task of searching for clues.
Mark Crosby, one of the missing, had a text based social networking account - Nothing of note. A handful of posts each month between as many buddies, on topics from books to restaurants, to the merits of actors on new television shows.
Juan Garcia, a publisher of children’s books, had a Facetime account and seemed to be surrounded by family and friends in every picture posted. He and his wife seemed happily in love after a couple of decades of successful marriage.
Tad McDonald - A professional surfer. He also had a Facetime account. Nothing unusual, loads of friends, varied interests, from bars to sports to dating, but he seemingly had nothing in common with the other missing persons.
Though this case was not in Kevin’s main area of expertise, he had one thing that police, investigators; and attorneys with far more tenure had. Kevin had drive. He was a perfectionist where his career was concerned. He couldn’t resist a mystery and he was consumed with the desire to prove he had the goods to handle the difficult cases. So he pressed on, jotting notes, trying to find links or any commonalities between the men.
Kevin slammed his laptop shut in frustration. It had been two days and he’d found nothing of consequence. Nothing that connected these individuals in any way. Not their occupations, contacts, hobbies or friends.
The next day with a clearer mind, Kevin asked his secretary to reschedule his appointments as he dedicated another day to continued research. He meticulously took notes. Perhaps he had missed some connection. Or perhaps there was no connection. The disappearances may very well have been isolated incidents, not remotely related. But his gut told him otherwise, so he carried on, carefully reviewing each man’s online footprint, making note of their interests, linked sites, who they had friended, and places they’d frequented.
Kevin paced the room, and somberly looked through the pane glass window into the night sky, gloriously lit by city lights. The view from the top floor was beautiful, Kevin thought. But somewhere in the thrill and romance of the pulsating city lights was a predator, turning his beloved city into a foreboding metropolis rifled with crime, corruption and a general decay that rivaled Gotham city. Sighing in frustration, Kevin paced the room again before returning to the conference table and picking up Tad’s file once more. Despite his distaste for doing so, he mentally prepared himself for the inevitable phone call to Mrs. McDonald who had retained the firm.
Kevin: “Mrs McDonald?” Kevin spoke into the phone. “Sorry to bother you so late. My name is Kevin Walker and I represent the law firm investigating the missing person’s case involving your son.”
Mrs McDonald: “Do you have any news for me Mr. Walker?” the woman asked anxiously.
Kevin: “Unfortunately no. I have to warn you that criminal cases are extremely complex. I understand that you wanted to sue your son’s primary social media account for their alleged involvement in his disappearance. It’s absolutely true that in the United States you can sue whomever you like, but I have to be completely honest about the probability of this working in your favor. At the moment the prosecution doesn’t have enough evidence to indict anyone of a crime. I’m afraid this is an uphill battle.”
Mrs McDonald: “I understand Mr. Walker,” the woman responded with conviction “but it’s a chance I’m willing to take. I don’t know who took my boy, but I know it had something to do with his online activity. Even if I have no evidence, my instincts know he was in danger. He spent all of his time online, got in over his head, and suddenly went missing. These sites have got to take accountability for putting people in this type of danger. Win or lose I want to proceed with this law suit and investigation!”
Kevin: “I completely understand how you feel, but even if we find evidence of collusion, there may be mitigating circumstances that could acquit the accused of a crime. What I’m saying Mrs McDonald, is that even if your gut feeling is right; even if Tad got himself involved in some criminal activity, suspicion alone can’t convict the perpetrators. We need evidence. Hard evidence. Have you gone to the police, even the district attorney with your allegations?”
Mrs McDonald: “Mr. Walker, if I hadn’t already tried, would I be retaining your firm? Of course I went to them, but there is so much criminal activity in Los Angeles that they can’t be bothered with my suspicions. That’s why I’m willing to pay someone to give this case the attention it deserves. That’s why I’m willing to take a leap of faith and sue the people I think might be responsible. I’m not going to sit here and wait 20 years for someone at LAPD to work a cold case after I’m long dead and gone!”
Kevin: “I’ll do my best Mrs McDonald”.
Mrs McDonald: “I don’t know what your best is Kevin Walker, I just want my son back ; and in the event that’s not possible, I want someone to pay for what’s happened to him. If you can’t see yourself doing that, tell me now and I’ll find someone who will.”
Kevin: “Give me a chance to research further. I’ll get back to you.” said Kevin clicking off the phone.
Suing Facetime? Her request was unreasonable, impractical and next to impossible. Laughable really. A huge multi-million dollar conglomerate with mountains of attorneys in their legal team to handle millions of complaints, from fraud, to alleged impersonations. His lawsuit was a drop in the bucket where legal matters for the social media corporation were concerned. But it was his task to either reason with her to drop the suit, or find a damned good reason to pursue it - and he simply didn’t have the heart to convince her she was wrong.
Back online Kevin scoured the Facetime account. He looked at every post in recent months, every link, every reference. There it was. How could he have missed it? Post: 3/17/13 “So excited! Two week countdown. #Soulmates rocks!”
He’d seen the post before. It hadn’t meant anything at first sight, but this time Kevin performed a web search for “soulmates.” He found that it was an online website to meet locals interested in love connections. He wondered if other missing victims had references or weblinks to this site and scoured his hand written notations to confirm his suspicions.
Kevin’s heart sank as he found the notation under Juan Garcia’s name. He’d thought nothing of it initially. Merely a reference about his loving spouse, he’d thought. Kevin anxiously set up a free account and filled out a simple profile so that he would have access to all members. He completed a profile for a male interested in other males looking for romance, then took a deep breath before executing the search.
Tad McDonald. Profile found.
Status - single. Kevin was greeted with a profile photo of the young man, early twenties, green eyes and blonde hair. He liked to surf, play video games, was a Pro Surfer working on his degree in sociology. He was bi-sexual, but currently interested in exploring an m/m relationship.
Slowly he searched for profiles on the other missing men. His jaw was locked in staunch determination as he fought the tears that threatened to spill.
Mark Crosby. Profile found.
Status - Dating. Openly gay, looking for friendship with benefits.
Juan Garcia. Profile found.
Status - It’s complicated. Married, father of two. Reportedly straight but admittedly having conflicts with his sexuality. Would like to meet someone trustworthy to explore his feelings.
Scotty Wandell. Profile found.
Status - Single Looking for a relationship. Loved to cook, loved music, loved to dance. He wanted someone to take care of, someone to take care of him. Someone to be his family, someone to learn to know.
Kevin stared at the last profile picture, looking into the most beautiful blue eyes he had ever seen. A lone tear finally escaped his eyes as he wondered what happened to this beautiful creature, so full of life and love and ready to share it. This man, with the sweet face and playful eyes, just wanted to get to know someone. He seemed so full of hope and expectations. And for that alone he may have paid the ultimate price….
****
“Targeted! They were all targeted because they were gay!” Kevin yelled in frustration when he later met with his boss to discuss the case. “I’ve subpoenaed the sites records and reviewed all activity between all the missing parties. I've been researching for days. At first I saw nothing in common between the men they were connecting with on Soulmates, but then I subpeonad the IP addresses and bingo! They each had contact with a member linked to this IP address,” said Kevin emotionally handing a small piece of paper to the man across from him. “In this day and age it’s a miracle he didn’t have the foresight to erase the electronic trail, but here it is. The police have been notified and are on their way to the residence,” said Kevin wringing his hands hoping against hope that at least some of the men would be found unharmed. His mind then wandered to the sky blue eyes, and sweet smile of the last victim.
24 hours later….
A swat team had been sent to the address Kevin had located and they found the perpetrator on the premises. Kevin had been apprised of all the details and he went to visit Mrs. McDonald personally to inform her of the news. James Rhys Stark had confessed to setting up various online aliases with the sole purpose of perpetrating crimes, including luring victims, the abduction, torture and murder of four gay men in the Los Angeles area, including her son Tad. His reasons? ‘To rid the planet of a few homos’, he’d crassly explained. Kevin’s visit with Mrs McDonald had been emotionally brutal, but he wanted to be there for her. He owed her that much. He had promised his best, and it was his obligation to comfort her as best he could.
After the brutal conversation, Kevin made his way to the hospital and sat in the empty corridor, brow furrowed stressfully as he waited for news. As he sat in the uncomfortable chair thinking about the events of the past 24 hours, a nurse walked up and handed him a cup of black coffee. “He might be unconscious for hours Mr. Walker. Are you sure you want to wait? He’s not even allowed non family visitations until morning.”
Kevin looked up at the nurse and thanked her for the coffee. He took a sip gratefully before answering. “This man was found unconscious, bound and gagged in the home of a serial killer. He was there for days and barely made it out alive. The way I see it, he should have someone here when he wakes up. I just hope it’s ok that it’s me.”
“Scott Wandell is a lucky man” she said smiling sweetly at him. Lucky? Kevin certainly didn’t think so, but she meant well. Kevin’s heart was weighed down. He wished he could have saved them all. He wished he would have found Mrs McDonalds, son; and that he’d resolved the case sooner. All those poor unsuspecting men…..
Kevin looked down at the tattered printout of the victims and focused on the one who’d survived with exhaustion and relief. The one with the piercing blue eyes and sweet, sweet smile, the one he patiently waited to meet, the one he hoped to learn to know.
The end