Ring Around the Rosie, Chapter 3/?
Title: Ring Around the Rosie
Author: onabearskinrug
Character/Pairing: Ten/Rose with Jack, Mickey, Jake, Pete, Jackie, and others
Rating: Teen for language, rating will most likely increase in future chapters. Look who you're talking to.
Summary: Very AU!! The Doctor and Jack are stranded in London when the TARDIS malfunctions. Obviously, the only thing to do is to open a psychic detective agency. They soon get called in to assist DIs Rose Tyler and Mickey Smith on a murder investigation. What could be more romantic than that?
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or the amazingly brilliant Psych.
A/N: I've been watching too much Psych lately, and this little bunny popped into my head. Mega thanks to the gorgeous and amazing timelord1, kelkat9, and who_in_whoville for encouraging me to wander a bit out of my comfort zone, and ultra-mega thanks to who_in_whoville for coming up with the awesome title! I hope you like it!
Also, if anyone is familiar with investigation procedure and whatnot, I'd love some help to make this more realistic. Most of what I have here I picked up from TV, or I'm just making up my own protocol. Would anyone like to serve as my sounding board? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? :-)
Catch up:
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2
The Doctor had learned a great many things over the last seven months of being stranded on Earth. One of which was the ability to step back and let others do their jobs. He learned early on that he couldn’t just take charge and run an investigation the way he wanted. There was protocol in place, and if his associates on the police force didn’t follow it to the letter, it could render an entire investigation worthless. Therefore, he was glad to run his side of the investigation his way, but still respected the police force and became well-versed in procedure and protocol and was almost always willing to allow London’s finest to take charge.
Also, for some reason, he found it difficult to argue with DI Tyler when she smiled at him like that.
He pondered this while he sat at her desk, the DI standing behind him, walking him through the procedure to look up contact information for Jocelyn’s immediate family. He could have found the information easily enough on his own, although he wasn’t sure how legal his methods were. He also found he didn’t mind the research and busy work so much with Rose’s lovely human warmth pressed close to him and the fresh scent of her soap and skin invading his senses. Not that he made a habit of smelling humans or anything. He simply appreciated good hygiene and nice soaps just as much as the next alien with a hypersensitive nose.
Bringing his thoughts back around to the research at hand, he noted that Jocelyn’s parents were listed as her emergency contacts. He copied down their names, home and work addresses, and the various phone numbers listed. DI Tyler explained to him that she preferred to deliver this type of news in person, even if it meant a wild goose chase in tracking the family down. She explained that she never felt comfortable calling someone to tell them a loved one was murdered. She liked to be able to bring comfort, to answer any questions face-to-face.
Jack and Mickey had been mildly successful in their tasks. The first ring was in evidence, and they were just waiting for a PC to fetch it for them. Meanwhile, the next ring was still stuck with forensics and they had to wait for the team to return before they could look at it themselves. Therefore they were all hot on the research trail, the Doctor and Rose looking up contact information on both victims and Mickey and Jack looking up information on metal working. They hoped they could contact metal and jewelry suppliers to see who may have purchased the necessary materials to make two nearly identical rings. Of course the Doctor could have easily given them the exact chemical composition with one lick, but Jack had vetoed that method early on. They were trying to keep a low profile, after all.
The Doctor heard Rose sigh deeply and turned to look at her. She sat on the corner of her desk and toyed with the case file in her hand.
“Inspector?” he asked gently. “Everything all right?”
She smiled gratefully. “Yeah, just…’s not exactly my favorite part of the job, y’know? Having to tell parents that their child is dead.”
The Doctor’s first instinct was to reach across and cover her hand with his. In fact, he had to knowingly restrain himself as his arm twitched forward. He’d only known this detective for a few hours. Certainly he liked her enough, but he had no idea how she’d view an action like that.
“Well,” he began, sending her a cheerful grin. He was thrilled when her own smile widened. “Sitting around talking about it isn’t going to make it any easier. Come on! Once more unto the breach, DI Tyler!” He stood up and offered his hand, figuring this type of contact could be considered gentlemanly and not ill-intentioned. He was relieved when her smiling brown eyes met his, grasping his hand and allowing him to pull her into a standing position. “Allons-y!”
******
“So, you’re psychic, eh?” Rose asked once they were in the squad car, casting him a sidelong glance and grinning teasingly.
“I suppose you could call it that,” he replied.
“And what would you call it?”
He shrugged. “Where I’m from, it’s not really that impressive.”
“You’re full of it!” Rose laughed. “Can’t think of a single person who wouldn’t be impressed by what you do. What about your family?”
The Doctor tensed, something he could tell Rose noted. He had barely discussed his family even with Jack, whom he had met fresh out of the war that had destroyed his entire planet. Jack had helped him a great deal over the course of the last two years, and he’d come to care for him almost like a brother…well, maybe a cousin…well…maybe that one uncle who only came around at Christmas and Easter and inexplicably referred to you as “Skipper.”
“So…” He was grateful that Rose decided to change the subject. “You gonna show me your moves or what?”
“Hmm?” Dammit, she was smiling at him again. This was becoming a problem. “Moves?”
“You know, read my mind? Give me first hand evidence? A good detective never goes on hearsay, Dr. Smith.”
“Just the Doctor,” he corrected absently, turning to look at her. “You…want me to read your mind?”
“I just said so. You know, for a so-called genius you’re pretty thick.” And there she went with that smile again. He reached out and turned the heater down.
“All right,” he grinned back. “I’ll need to touch you. May I take your hand?”
“Such a gentleman,” she teased gently, gesturing with her chin toward her left hand, resting on the gearshift. “Go on. Show me what you’ve got”
“Anything you don’t want me to see just imagine a door closing and I won’t look, I promise,” he told her before taking her hand and closing his eyes, connecting gently with her surface thoughts.
He has really nice hands, floated across her mind absently. He grinned.
“Well, I exfoliate,” he replied to her errant thought, stroking his thumb across her soft skin in an almost unconscious gesture. “Yours aren’t so bad either.”
Rose yanked her hand away, the engine revving angrily as she missed shifting. She blushed, placing her hand back where it was supposed to be and urged the car forward.
“Note to self,” she murmured. “Telepathy and driving is more dangerous than drinking and driving.”
The Doctor laughed, genuinely and heartily, and marveled silently at the blushing detective next to him. He hadn’t even known her a day and yet, he knew he was going to truly enjoy working with DI Rose Tyler.
******
Rose sat across from Marian and Alex Taylor in one of the station’s conference rooms and sighed to herself. Things had gone well thus far, as well as it could go with having to deliver horrible news to two obviously loving parents. It never got any easier. She had made tea and comforted Mr. and Mrs. Taylor at their home, answering their questions (and silently scolding the Doctor for sticking his fingers in their jam jar) as best as she could before asking them to come down to the station. The police needed their statement and they also wanted to turn over Jocelyn’s personal items as soon as possible. They agreed readily, eager and willing to do anything they could to help find the person who killed their daughter.
Rose informed them that she would be recording their conversation, turning on the small device. “This is Detective Inspector Rose Tyler for the London Metropolitan Police Force, interviewing Mr. Alex Taylor and Mrs. Marian Taylor for any information on the murder of their daughter Jocelyn Taylor. Today is Thursday 12 May, 2011. Present at the interview is Dr. John Smith, consultant with London Investigations and Detective Agency-”
“I’m sorry to interrupt, Inspector,” Mr. Taylor said gently. “But what part is Dr. Smith playing in the investigation? What exactly does a consultant do?”
Rose turned and raised an eyebrow at the Doctor, who offered a resigned sigh and a “Go on,” gesture. “He’s a consulting psychic with the department. He’s helped solve a great deal of cases over the last six months.”
Mr. Taylor seemed to scoff at the word “psychic,” while his wife perked noticeably. “Psychic? Can you contact our daughter, Dr. Smith? Can you speak to her?”
The Doctor looked uncomfortable for a moment, rubbing the back of his neck nervously before speaking. “That’s…not exactly how I work, Mrs. Taylor. I’m sorry, I deal mostly with events and the suspects.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Taylor, I wanted to thank you once again for coming in to the station,” Rose continued the interview gently, trying to detract Mrs. Taylor’s attention away from the Doctor. She noticed his grateful expression out of the corner of her eye. “I realize how difficult this must be for you.”
“Thank you, DI Tyler,” Alex answered, clutching his wife to him. Rose smiled at the couple softly. “We want to help in any way we can.”
“When was the last time you spoke with your daughter?”
“Oh, must have been…at the weekend, I think,” Mrs. Taylor answered. “She was always so busy during the week, we really only caught up when she had time.” Tears welled up in her eyes at this, and Rose immediately grabbed the Kleenex box and handed it over. “Thank you. I just wish now we’d made more of an effort, you know?”
Rose reached over and put her hand over Mrs. Taylor’s. “I know how you feel, Mrs. Taylor. Whenever you can, we’ll continue. Take your time.
For the next half an hour or so, Rose asked her usual series of questions- did you notice any change in her behavior as of late? Was there anyone you know of who wished harm on your daughter? Did she discuss her work, the case assignment? Did it seem dangerous? Who did she generally see on a regular basis? None of their answers indicated anything out of the ordinary. A typical, bright young girl who seemed to just be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
“Was Jocelyn dating anyone?” Rose asked.
“No, she hadn’t mentioned it anyway,” her mother answered. “Always so focused on work. She used to say she’d start dating once she started working a fifty-hour week again.” Mrs. Taylor chuckled softly, and Rose smiled.
“Don’t I know how that goes,” she offered, pulling the photograph of the ring out of the manila folder. “One last thing and then I’ll have one of our PC’s take you home. Do you recognize this ring?” She handed them the photograph.
“No, I don’t,” Mrs. Taylor answered. Her husband nodded in agreement. “But then, it had been a little more than a week since I saw her. She could have picked it up during that time. Doesn’t really seem like her taste, but you never know, do you?”
“Suppose not,” Rose said, taking the photograph and tucking it back into the folder. She turned to the Doctor, who had been quiet for most of the interview except for a few short interjected questions. She gestured towards the couple, silently asking if he had anything else for them, to which he shook his head faintly. “Thank you for your time, Mr. and Mrs. Taylor. We’ll be in touch, and please contact us if you think of anything that could be helpful.”
******
The Doctor returned the conference room, having snuck out as Rose and the Taylors were saying their farewells. He smiled sympathetically as he noticed her leaning heavily against the table, looking completely exhausted despite it only being a few minutes past noon, and offered one of the ceramic mugs in his hand.
“Tea?” he asked. “Superheated infusion of free radicals and tannins. Perfect thing for heating the synapses. Or keeping you from falling asleep on the table as it were.”
Rose grinned, some of her pep returning at the sight of the welcome beverage. She took the warm mug from him and sipped, eyes closing involuntarily. “Mmm…I’m convinced. You must be psychic. This is perfect.”
“Just what the Doctor ordered?” he asked, wagging his eyebrows playfully at her.
Rose laughed. “That was awful.”
He mirrored her stance, leaning against the table and clutching his own mug. “So, what do you think?”
Rose sighed. “I think we got everything we’re gonna get from them. No boyfriend, a few close friends we’ll have to interview. And her coworkers. Seems like she spent most of her time at the office, it’s probably the best place to start. Did you get anything from her parents?”
“I couldn’t sense much,” he answered. “Beyond that their grief was genuine.” He didn’t mention that this was because he could sense the unique brain chemicals typical of grieving humans. “I don’t think they had anything to do with it if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Neither do I.” Rose sighed.
“You did well in there,” the Doctor told her. “I could tell it wasn’t easy for you. But you held yourself together. I’m impressed.”
Rose smiled at him. “Thank you. That means a lot.” She sighed yet again. “I know it isn’t logical, but I feel partially responsible. Every time an innocent person is killed or hurt, I always feel like there was something more I should have been doing to stop it. I wasn’t diligent enough, I should have noticed any odd patterns or activity, you know?”
“That won’t do you any good,” the Doctor told her gently, again fighting the urge to take her hand. “You can’t take that sort of responsibility upon yourself. And believe me, I know it. The best thing we can do is try to figure this whole thing out and catch this guy before anything else can happen, eh?”
Rose smiled at him gratefully. “You know just what to say, don’t you? I’ll have to remember to come to you whenever I need a pep talk. Next step, I suppose I’ll be doing the interviews. Mickey’s better here anyway. He’s fantastic with the research and tactics, I’m better with the people. Was like that when we were kids, too.”
“You and Mickey have known each other that long?”
“Nearly all our lives. We grew up together,” Rose answered, taking a long sip of her tea. “Even dated for a while, right at the beginning of university. Didn’t take. Obviously.” She grinned at him. “We were partners in crime. Dad never knew what to do with us.”
The Doctor was suddenly assaulted with a glimpse of Rose‘s timeline, of an obviously significant event from her childhood. A young Rose and Mickey were sitting at a booth, each begging a uniformed Pete Tyler for chocolate cake. He quizzed them, telling them to close their eyes and asking how many hats were in the room. He beamed proudly when they each told him and described them, telling the waitress to bring a piece of cake with a scoop of ice cream. He smiled softly as the vision gently came to an end, loving the small glimpse of this mysterious detective’s life.
“I didn’t realize you were the chief’s daughter,” the Doctor told her, chastising himself for not realizing it earlier. Now that he knew for certain, it was so completely obvious. They shared the same eyes, the same smile, and even their speech patterns and senses of humor were similar.
Rose smiled at him. “Caught that, did ya?”
“Just had a bit of a vision,” he said. “You three were sitting in a restaurant and he wouldn’t give you chocolate cake until you told him how many hats were in the room. Brilliant man. And brilliant you and Mickey.”
Rose laughed out loud. “Blimey, I’d almost forgotten he did that.” Her expression softened as she turned back to him. “Not many people around here know. He wasn’t the one who recruited me, I got placed here by one of the higher-ups. Still, I don’t want people to think I got this job because of who my dad is, you know?”
“Right,” he agreed. “Won’t say a word, I promise.”
Rose smiled gratefully. “I know.”
The Doctor watched her as she tilted her head back, eyes closed, moving one hand to rub at her neck. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the sight of her, relaxed and unguarded, and his fingers were practically itching to tuck an errant strand of blonde hair back behind her ear. Or to replace the hand massaging her neck with his own, rubbing the sore muscles gently until she let out delightful little noises of pleasure.
“Rose! Doctor!”
He was instantly alert, the Doctor snapping out of his odd reverie at the sound of Mickey’s voice from the doorway. Blimey, where was his self control these days? Maybe he was tired. It’d been a few days since he slept, he might be due for a nap. Perfect. He’d nap once he got back to the office any he’d be back to his old self in no time.
“What’s going on, Micks?” Rose asked, pushing herself off from the table.
“You’ll never guess what happened. Jake just got back from the crime scene. They took the ring off the body and it completely fell apart. And we got the first one out of evidence and it had done the exact same thing!”
“What?” Rose instantly bolted out of the room. The Doctor followed close on her heels, following her into her dad’s office, where Jake was waiting with Jack and Pete. “Can I see the rings, please?”
Jake handed over both evidence baggies, and Rose gaped. Indeed, the rings had broken apart, one consisting of four interlocking bands and the next of five. Before she could say anything, the Doctor had swiped the bags out of her hand and had dumped both rings into his palm.
“They’re puzzle rings!” he declared, immediately fiddling with the small objects. “Well, that’s clever, isn’t it?”
“Puzzle rings?” Chief Tyler questioned, rubbing his hands over his eyes. “Oh, that’s what I was afraid of. Rose, could you shut the door, please?”
“What’s going on, Chief?” Mickey asked.
He waited until Rose returned to begin talking. “About fifteen years ago, we had to investigate a string of murders. Same type of victims, young professional blondes, on their way home from a late night at work. And the killer left a puzzle ring. Once we’ve got them assembled we need to check on the inside of the bands. There should be a series of numbers, indicating a code. This code spells out a riddle, giving the police a clue to the killer’s identity and a deadline. He was challenging us to catch him before he could kill again. Unfortunately…” He trailed off.
“You never caught him,” the Doctor murmured, clicking the final band into place on the first ring. “You’re right…numbers. What’s the code?”
“It was ridiculously simple. First number, page in the OED. Then a dash, second number was just the number of the word on the page. Easy. The riddles, though…they were vague at best. He may have thought he was clueing us in but there was nothing in there we could work with. The last ring said something about how much we bored him, and he’d get in touch when we brought him a worthy challenger.”
Jack whistled low. “So, Mr. Cuckoo-Pants just…what…wants to send us on a wild goose chase?”
“Are we sure this is the same guy?” Jake piped up. “Maybe it’s a copy cat? How can we be sure everything is going to be the same?”
“Who else would know all these details? It’s not like we make the case files public,” Mickey offered. He turned to Rose. “So, what now?”
“Well, we need to get these codes worked out,” Rose told him. “Looks like the Doctor’s got the assembling covered. Once the riddle’s deciphered, then we need to actually figure out what it means. But that’s not all we can do in the meantime. I think we should treat this like any other murder investigation and start digging around to try and find out who this guy is.”
“Good idea, Rose,” Pete told her, offering a softly affectionate smile. “We’re gonna need interviews done, the research on the metal suppliers was a good lead. We’ll need to get the rings down to the labs for analysis, get the proper composition so we know exactly what to look for. We’ll compare it with the old case files, make sure we’re working with the same killer. I’ll get our new profiler in here. She’s brilliant and should be able to come up with something for the end of the day.”
“Jake and I can hang around here, keep going with the metal work and the suppliers. We’ll dig through those old case files, too, see what we can turn up,” Mickey said.
“I’ve got a pretty strong background in decoding as well as resident psychopaths,” Jack told them all with a grin. “I’ll start getting those riddles worked out, see if I can figure out what they mean.”
“I suppose that leaves the Doctor and I to do the interviews? Does that work? Doctor?” Rose asked gently. He’d been uncharacteristically silent, he knew, even as he’d been paying attention to everything around him. He was staring at the rings as if they represented all of the awful things about humanity. Anger was brewing in the pit of his stomach. “What do you think? Are you getting anything from the rings?”
He ignored the last part of her question. “This man…he’s killing innocent girls. He’s stalking them and beating them and taking them away from their families for what? To satisfy his own sick, twisted ego? So he can pat himself on the back and say ‘Well done me, looks like I got away with murder again!’ Well, he obviously has no idea who he’s dealing with.” He looked up at the assembled team, noting Jake and Mickey and even Chief Tyler flinching at the dark look in his eyes. “We are going to end this.”
Next Chapter
Author: onabearskinrug
Character/Pairing: Ten/Rose with Jack, Mickey, Jake, Pete, Jackie, and others
Rating: Teen for language, rating will most likely increase in future chapters. Look who you're talking to.
Summary: Very AU!! The Doctor and Jack are stranded in London when the TARDIS malfunctions. Obviously, the only thing to do is to open a psychic detective agency. They soon get called in to assist DIs Rose Tyler and Mickey Smith on a murder investigation. What could be more romantic than that?
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or the amazingly brilliant Psych.
A/N: I've been watching too much Psych lately, and this little bunny popped into my head. Mega thanks to the gorgeous and amazing timelord1, kelkat9, and who_in_whoville for encouraging me to wander a bit out of my comfort zone, and ultra-mega thanks to who_in_whoville for coming up with the awesome title! I hope you like it!
Also, if anyone is familiar with investigation procedure and whatnot, I'd love some help to make this more realistic. Most of what I have here I picked up from TV, or I'm just making up my own protocol. Would anyone like to serve as my sounding board? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? :-)
Catch up:
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2
The Doctor had learned a great many things over the last seven months of being stranded on Earth. One of which was the ability to step back and let others do their jobs. He learned early on that he couldn’t just take charge and run an investigation the way he wanted. There was protocol in place, and if his associates on the police force didn’t follow it to the letter, it could render an entire investigation worthless. Therefore, he was glad to run his side of the investigation his way, but still respected the police force and became well-versed in procedure and protocol and was almost always willing to allow London’s finest to take charge.
Also, for some reason, he found it difficult to argue with DI Tyler when she smiled at him like that.
He pondered this while he sat at her desk, the DI standing behind him, walking him through the procedure to look up contact information for Jocelyn’s immediate family. He could have found the information easily enough on his own, although he wasn’t sure how legal his methods were. He also found he didn’t mind the research and busy work so much with Rose’s lovely human warmth pressed close to him and the fresh scent of her soap and skin invading his senses. Not that he made a habit of smelling humans or anything. He simply appreciated good hygiene and nice soaps just as much as the next alien with a hypersensitive nose.
Bringing his thoughts back around to the research at hand, he noted that Jocelyn’s parents were listed as her emergency contacts. He copied down their names, home and work addresses, and the various phone numbers listed. DI Tyler explained to him that she preferred to deliver this type of news in person, even if it meant a wild goose chase in tracking the family down. She explained that she never felt comfortable calling someone to tell them a loved one was murdered. She liked to be able to bring comfort, to answer any questions face-to-face.
Jack and Mickey had been mildly successful in their tasks. The first ring was in evidence, and they were just waiting for a PC to fetch it for them. Meanwhile, the next ring was still stuck with forensics and they had to wait for the team to return before they could look at it themselves. Therefore they were all hot on the research trail, the Doctor and Rose looking up contact information on both victims and Mickey and Jack looking up information on metal working. They hoped they could contact metal and jewelry suppliers to see who may have purchased the necessary materials to make two nearly identical rings. Of course the Doctor could have easily given them the exact chemical composition with one lick, but Jack had vetoed that method early on. They were trying to keep a low profile, after all.
The Doctor heard Rose sigh deeply and turned to look at her. She sat on the corner of her desk and toyed with the case file in her hand.
“Inspector?” he asked gently. “Everything all right?”
She smiled gratefully. “Yeah, just…’s not exactly my favorite part of the job, y’know? Having to tell parents that their child is dead.”
The Doctor’s first instinct was to reach across and cover her hand with his. In fact, he had to knowingly restrain himself as his arm twitched forward. He’d only known this detective for a few hours. Certainly he liked her enough, but he had no idea how she’d view an action like that.
“Well,” he began, sending her a cheerful grin. He was thrilled when her own smile widened. “Sitting around talking about it isn’t going to make it any easier. Come on! Once more unto the breach, DI Tyler!” He stood up and offered his hand, figuring this type of contact could be considered gentlemanly and not ill-intentioned. He was relieved when her smiling brown eyes met his, grasping his hand and allowing him to pull her into a standing position. “Allons-y!”
******
“So, you’re psychic, eh?” Rose asked once they were in the squad car, casting him a sidelong glance and grinning teasingly.
“I suppose you could call it that,” he replied.
“And what would you call it?”
He shrugged. “Where I’m from, it’s not really that impressive.”
“You’re full of it!” Rose laughed. “Can’t think of a single person who wouldn’t be impressed by what you do. What about your family?”
The Doctor tensed, something he could tell Rose noted. He had barely discussed his family even with Jack, whom he had met fresh out of the war that had destroyed his entire planet. Jack had helped him a great deal over the course of the last two years, and he’d come to care for him almost like a brother…well, maybe a cousin…well…maybe that one uncle who only came around at Christmas and Easter and inexplicably referred to you as “Skipper.”
“So…” He was grateful that Rose decided to change the subject. “You gonna show me your moves or what?”
“Hmm?” Dammit, she was smiling at him again. This was becoming a problem. “Moves?”
“You know, read my mind? Give me first hand evidence? A good detective never goes on hearsay, Dr. Smith.”
“Just the Doctor,” he corrected absently, turning to look at her. “You…want me to read your mind?”
“I just said so. You know, for a so-called genius you’re pretty thick.” And there she went with that smile again. He reached out and turned the heater down.
“All right,” he grinned back. “I’ll need to touch you. May I take your hand?”
“Such a gentleman,” she teased gently, gesturing with her chin toward her left hand, resting on the gearshift. “Go on. Show me what you’ve got”
“Anything you don’t want me to see just imagine a door closing and I won’t look, I promise,” he told her before taking her hand and closing his eyes, connecting gently with her surface thoughts.
He has really nice hands, floated across her mind absently. He grinned.
“Well, I exfoliate,” he replied to her errant thought, stroking his thumb across her soft skin in an almost unconscious gesture. “Yours aren’t so bad either.”
Rose yanked her hand away, the engine revving angrily as she missed shifting. She blushed, placing her hand back where it was supposed to be and urged the car forward.
“Note to self,” she murmured. “Telepathy and driving is more dangerous than drinking and driving.”
The Doctor laughed, genuinely and heartily, and marveled silently at the blushing detective next to him. He hadn’t even known her a day and yet, he knew he was going to truly enjoy working with DI Rose Tyler.
******
Rose sat across from Marian and Alex Taylor in one of the station’s conference rooms and sighed to herself. Things had gone well thus far, as well as it could go with having to deliver horrible news to two obviously loving parents. It never got any easier. She had made tea and comforted Mr. and Mrs. Taylor at their home, answering their questions (and silently scolding the Doctor for sticking his fingers in their jam jar) as best as she could before asking them to come down to the station. The police needed their statement and they also wanted to turn over Jocelyn’s personal items as soon as possible. They agreed readily, eager and willing to do anything they could to help find the person who killed their daughter.
Rose informed them that she would be recording their conversation, turning on the small device. “This is Detective Inspector Rose Tyler for the London Metropolitan Police Force, interviewing Mr. Alex Taylor and Mrs. Marian Taylor for any information on the murder of their daughter Jocelyn Taylor. Today is Thursday 12 May, 2011. Present at the interview is Dr. John Smith, consultant with London Investigations and Detective Agency-”
“I’m sorry to interrupt, Inspector,” Mr. Taylor said gently. “But what part is Dr. Smith playing in the investigation? What exactly does a consultant do?”
Rose turned and raised an eyebrow at the Doctor, who offered a resigned sigh and a “Go on,” gesture. “He’s a consulting psychic with the department. He’s helped solve a great deal of cases over the last six months.”
Mr. Taylor seemed to scoff at the word “psychic,” while his wife perked noticeably. “Psychic? Can you contact our daughter, Dr. Smith? Can you speak to her?”
The Doctor looked uncomfortable for a moment, rubbing the back of his neck nervously before speaking. “That’s…not exactly how I work, Mrs. Taylor. I’m sorry, I deal mostly with events and the suspects.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Taylor, I wanted to thank you once again for coming in to the station,” Rose continued the interview gently, trying to detract Mrs. Taylor’s attention away from the Doctor. She noticed his grateful expression out of the corner of her eye. “I realize how difficult this must be for you.”
“Thank you, DI Tyler,” Alex answered, clutching his wife to him. Rose smiled at the couple softly. “We want to help in any way we can.”
“When was the last time you spoke with your daughter?”
“Oh, must have been…at the weekend, I think,” Mrs. Taylor answered. “She was always so busy during the week, we really only caught up when she had time.” Tears welled up in her eyes at this, and Rose immediately grabbed the Kleenex box and handed it over. “Thank you. I just wish now we’d made more of an effort, you know?”
Rose reached over and put her hand over Mrs. Taylor’s. “I know how you feel, Mrs. Taylor. Whenever you can, we’ll continue. Take your time.
For the next half an hour or so, Rose asked her usual series of questions- did you notice any change in her behavior as of late? Was there anyone you know of who wished harm on your daughter? Did she discuss her work, the case assignment? Did it seem dangerous? Who did she generally see on a regular basis? None of their answers indicated anything out of the ordinary. A typical, bright young girl who seemed to just be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
“Was Jocelyn dating anyone?” Rose asked.
“No, she hadn’t mentioned it anyway,” her mother answered. “Always so focused on work. She used to say she’d start dating once she started working a fifty-hour week again.” Mrs. Taylor chuckled softly, and Rose smiled.
“Don’t I know how that goes,” she offered, pulling the photograph of the ring out of the manila folder. “One last thing and then I’ll have one of our PC’s take you home. Do you recognize this ring?” She handed them the photograph.
“No, I don’t,” Mrs. Taylor answered. Her husband nodded in agreement. “But then, it had been a little more than a week since I saw her. She could have picked it up during that time. Doesn’t really seem like her taste, but you never know, do you?”
“Suppose not,” Rose said, taking the photograph and tucking it back into the folder. She turned to the Doctor, who had been quiet for most of the interview except for a few short interjected questions. She gestured towards the couple, silently asking if he had anything else for them, to which he shook his head faintly. “Thank you for your time, Mr. and Mrs. Taylor. We’ll be in touch, and please contact us if you think of anything that could be helpful.”
******
The Doctor returned the conference room, having snuck out as Rose and the Taylors were saying their farewells. He smiled sympathetically as he noticed her leaning heavily against the table, looking completely exhausted despite it only being a few minutes past noon, and offered one of the ceramic mugs in his hand.
“Tea?” he asked. “Superheated infusion of free radicals and tannins. Perfect thing for heating the synapses. Or keeping you from falling asleep on the table as it were.”
Rose grinned, some of her pep returning at the sight of the welcome beverage. She took the warm mug from him and sipped, eyes closing involuntarily. “Mmm…I’m convinced. You must be psychic. This is perfect.”
“Just what the Doctor ordered?” he asked, wagging his eyebrows playfully at her.
Rose laughed. “That was awful.”
He mirrored her stance, leaning against the table and clutching his own mug. “So, what do you think?”
Rose sighed. “I think we got everything we’re gonna get from them. No boyfriend, a few close friends we’ll have to interview. And her coworkers. Seems like she spent most of her time at the office, it’s probably the best place to start. Did you get anything from her parents?”
“I couldn’t sense much,” he answered. “Beyond that their grief was genuine.” He didn’t mention that this was because he could sense the unique brain chemicals typical of grieving humans. “I don’t think they had anything to do with it if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Neither do I.” Rose sighed.
“You did well in there,” the Doctor told her. “I could tell it wasn’t easy for you. But you held yourself together. I’m impressed.”
Rose smiled at him. “Thank you. That means a lot.” She sighed yet again. “I know it isn’t logical, but I feel partially responsible. Every time an innocent person is killed or hurt, I always feel like there was something more I should have been doing to stop it. I wasn’t diligent enough, I should have noticed any odd patterns or activity, you know?”
“That won’t do you any good,” the Doctor told her gently, again fighting the urge to take her hand. “You can’t take that sort of responsibility upon yourself. And believe me, I know it. The best thing we can do is try to figure this whole thing out and catch this guy before anything else can happen, eh?”
Rose smiled at him gratefully. “You know just what to say, don’t you? I’ll have to remember to come to you whenever I need a pep talk. Next step, I suppose I’ll be doing the interviews. Mickey’s better here anyway. He’s fantastic with the research and tactics, I’m better with the people. Was like that when we were kids, too.”
“You and Mickey have known each other that long?”
“Nearly all our lives. We grew up together,” Rose answered, taking a long sip of her tea. “Even dated for a while, right at the beginning of university. Didn’t take. Obviously.” She grinned at him. “We were partners in crime. Dad never knew what to do with us.”
The Doctor was suddenly assaulted with a glimpse of Rose‘s timeline, of an obviously significant event from her childhood. A young Rose and Mickey were sitting at a booth, each begging a uniformed Pete Tyler for chocolate cake. He quizzed them, telling them to close their eyes and asking how many hats were in the room. He beamed proudly when they each told him and described them, telling the waitress to bring a piece of cake with a scoop of ice cream. He smiled softly as the vision gently came to an end, loving the small glimpse of this mysterious detective’s life.
“I didn’t realize you were the chief’s daughter,” the Doctor told her, chastising himself for not realizing it earlier. Now that he knew for certain, it was so completely obvious. They shared the same eyes, the same smile, and even their speech patterns and senses of humor were similar.
Rose smiled at him. “Caught that, did ya?”
“Just had a bit of a vision,” he said. “You three were sitting in a restaurant and he wouldn’t give you chocolate cake until you told him how many hats were in the room. Brilliant man. And brilliant you and Mickey.”
Rose laughed out loud. “Blimey, I’d almost forgotten he did that.” Her expression softened as she turned back to him. “Not many people around here know. He wasn’t the one who recruited me, I got placed here by one of the higher-ups. Still, I don’t want people to think I got this job because of who my dad is, you know?”
“Right,” he agreed. “Won’t say a word, I promise.”
Rose smiled gratefully. “I know.”
The Doctor watched her as she tilted her head back, eyes closed, moving one hand to rub at her neck. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the sight of her, relaxed and unguarded, and his fingers were practically itching to tuck an errant strand of blonde hair back behind her ear. Or to replace the hand massaging her neck with his own, rubbing the sore muscles gently until she let out delightful little noises of pleasure.
“Rose! Doctor!”
He was instantly alert, the Doctor snapping out of his odd reverie at the sound of Mickey’s voice from the doorway. Blimey, where was his self control these days? Maybe he was tired. It’d been a few days since he slept, he might be due for a nap. Perfect. He’d nap once he got back to the office any he’d be back to his old self in no time.
“What’s going on, Micks?” Rose asked, pushing herself off from the table.
“You’ll never guess what happened. Jake just got back from the crime scene. They took the ring off the body and it completely fell apart. And we got the first one out of evidence and it had done the exact same thing!”
“What?” Rose instantly bolted out of the room. The Doctor followed close on her heels, following her into her dad’s office, where Jake was waiting with Jack and Pete. “Can I see the rings, please?”
Jake handed over both evidence baggies, and Rose gaped. Indeed, the rings had broken apart, one consisting of four interlocking bands and the next of five. Before she could say anything, the Doctor had swiped the bags out of her hand and had dumped both rings into his palm.
“They’re puzzle rings!” he declared, immediately fiddling with the small objects. “Well, that’s clever, isn’t it?”
“Puzzle rings?” Chief Tyler questioned, rubbing his hands over his eyes. “Oh, that’s what I was afraid of. Rose, could you shut the door, please?”
“What’s going on, Chief?” Mickey asked.
He waited until Rose returned to begin talking. “About fifteen years ago, we had to investigate a string of murders. Same type of victims, young professional blondes, on their way home from a late night at work. And the killer left a puzzle ring. Once we’ve got them assembled we need to check on the inside of the bands. There should be a series of numbers, indicating a code. This code spells out a riddle, giving the police a clue to the killer’s identity and a deadline. He was challenging us to catch him before he could kill again. Unfortunately…” He trailed off.
“You never caught him,” the Doctor murmured, clicking the final band into place on the first ring. “You’re right…numbers. What’s the code?”
“It was ridiculously simple. First number, page in the OED. Then a dash, second number was just the number of the word on the page. Easy. The riddles, though…they were vague at best. He may have thought he was clueing us in but there was nothing in there we could work with. The last ring said something about how much we bored him, and he’d get in touch when we brought him a worthy challenger.”
Jack whistled low. “So, Mr. Cuckoo-Pants just…what…wants to send us on a wild goose chase?”
“Are we sure this is the same guy?” Jake piped up. “Maybe it’s a copy cat? How can we be sure everything is going to be the same?”
“Who else would know all these details? It’s not like we make the case files public,” Mickey offered. He turned to Rose. “So, what now?”
“Well, we need to get these codes worked out,” Rose told him. “Looks like the Doctor’s got the assembling covered. Once the riddle’s deciphered, then we need to actually figure out what it means. But that’s not all we can do in the meantime. I think we should treat this like any other murder investigation and start digging around to try and find out who this guy is.”
“Good idea, Rose,” Pete told her, offering a softly affectionate smile. “We’re gonna need interviews done, the research on the metal suppliers was a good lead. We’ll need to get the rings down to the labs for analysis, get the proper composition so we know exactly what to look for. We’ll compare it with the old case files, make sure we’re working with the same killer. I’ll get our new profiler in here. She’s brilliant and should be able to come up with something for the end of the day.”
“Jake and I can hang around here, keep going with the metal work and the suppliers. We’ll dig through those old case files, too, see what we can turn up,” Mickey said.
“I’ve got a pretty strong background in decoding as well as resident psychopaths,” Jack told them all with a grin. “I’ll start getting those riddles worked out, see if I can figure out what they mean.”
“I suppose that leaves the Doctor and I to do the interviews? Does that work? Doctor?” Rose asked gently. He’d been uncharacteristically silent, he knew, even as he’d been paying attention to everything around him. He was staring at the rings as if they represented all of the awful things about humanity. Anger was brewing in the pit of his stomach. “What do you think? Are you getting anything from the rings?”
He ignored the last part of her question. “This man…he’s killing innocent girls. He’s stalking them and beating them and taking them away from their families for what? To satisfy his own sick, twisted ego? So he can pat himself on the back and say ‘Well done me, looks like I got away with murder again!’ Well, he obviously has no idea who he’s dealing with.” He looked up at the assembled team, noting Jake and Mickey and even Chief Tyler flinching at the dark look in his eyes. “We are going to end this.”
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