Log:Superkids!, Scene 10

Superkids! 2007/06/02 	 Jennifer Miles Fuchs 10

Scene: China Nights Restaurant, Ming Street

It's eight o'clock, the appointed time, and Agent Fuchs hasn't turned up yet.

Jennifer arrives early for her appointment with the FBI agent. Jessica also arrives early, in disguise and not showing any signs of knowing her sister. Both the twins are alert to possible presence of other agents, especially those with little earpieces, in the restaurant or nearby.

The twins give the agent a few more minutes.

Then an obvious (if looking for one) FBI man turns up: he has the suit look. He's alone, and carries a large folder under an one arm. He's got a young face, but clearly isn't young, and has something of a world-weary look to him.

Jennifer nods and part stands to cue the agent in on where the table is. She glances behind him and lifts an enquiring eyebrow as he nears, "Good evening Agent Fuchs. I'm Jessica Markham. You're alone?"

Agent Fuchs nods. "This is all unofficial, and on my own time. No one else here. A pleasure," he smiles, offering his hand.

Jennifer shakes his hand firmly but carefully. "Than I must thank you the more for agreeing to see me."

"Sorry I'm late - couldn't find anywhere to park. And it's no problem. No one's wanted to talk about the Zero Killer for years." He smiles ruefully. "I think they stuck me in the file room in Quantico so they wouldn't have to hear me talk about her any more."

Jennifer looks quizzical. "The Zero Killer? Your name came up while I was investigating the activities of a Dr Nathan Harbor. One of his ex-colleagues at Yale mentioned you had some information that might be helpful But this is the first time I've heard the name Zero Killer."

He gets excited. "Ah, but that the thing. It's my belief that Dr Harbor was one of the last victims of the Zero Killer."

He's about to open his bulging file, then says, "oh - shall we order first?"

Jennifer says, "His ex-colleagues seemed to be of the opinion that Dr Harbor went into hiding rather than being vanished. They mentioned that his research notes and samples had been removed by someone who knew exactly what to take. Yes, by all means. I'm not familiar with Chinese food in your country, perhaps you could order for both of us?"

He nods, and calling the waiter over places the order before going on. "I know. And they convinced a number of other people of that too. But I don't buy it. Maybe one of them is connected with the killer in some way. But the case bears all the hallmarks of a Zero Killer hit. Or rather, lack of them.

Jennifer says, "So what are the trademarks of a Zero Killer hit?"

"No hairs, no fibres, no blood, no DNA traces, at least of the killer. No body. Security devices bypassed or destroyed. But not body - that's the key. Most of the hits are officially missing persons, not murders."

Jennifer looks a little thoughtful. "Any pattern to the suspected killings? Are we looking at a probably hired assassin or was their an agenda of some kind?"

He taps the files. "It took me years to assemble all this, not least because most of the crimes were misclassified - still are. In my opinion, she's a hired assassin, who operated worldwide. Most of the victims are high-profile, the sort of target a killer could get a high fee for. But no real connection between them. I think -" I stops as the waiter approaches with the appetizer.

Jennifer remains quiet until the waiter has served and departed, then waits to see if Agent Fuchs will continue.

He leans closer as the waiter leaves. "I think once I even found her advertisement on the Net. Not until it was obsolete and useless though."

Jennifer smiles, "Advertising on the Net. Now that is brash. Do you know anything else about the Zero Killer. You said 'she' for instance, implying at least some information has come your way."

"Once - just once - she was careless. She was interrupted, before she could destroy the evidence fully, I believe. Normally, I think her MO is to kill whoever interrupts her, but this time she left, with an audio monitoring system not fully destroyed. We got a bit of her voice on that. Degraded, but enough to say it's a she. English accent, too."

"Which fits - her first killings, at least, the ones I've tracked down, were in England...."

Jennifer says, "England, or Scotland?"

He opens the file, and start passing you details of the cases, chronologically. They start about 20 years back. "England."

Jennifer purses her lips, "Twenty years? That's... unexpected."

"Why's that?" he asks. Jennifer pauses at victim number four. It looks like Auntie, less 20 years.

Jennifer says, "I was expecting five or six years. And starting in Scotland." She leaves the file open at victim #4 and returns it to Fuchs. "What can you tell me about this woman?""

"A biochemistry research student, in Cambridge, England. She vanished - or was killed - along with two colleagues." He digs back for victims 2 and 3. The British police thought it might be a kidnapping at first, or a terrorist act by anti-bio-research people, but no demands were ever made and no one claimed responsibility.

"Funny you should ask about Scotland though - that's where the last case was."

Jennifer leans over to tap the photo, "This woman is in a Starguard holding cell in the base here. She was the target of my investigation. Curiouser and curiouser. When was the killing in Scotland? How long ago?"

"Nearly six, in Dundee. Or at least, that's where the victims were resident. Scene of death - or indeed if there was a death - was never established, officially. A couple and their daughter, a known meta. That's how my attention was called to it in the first place."

Jennifer nods and names Dolls parents. "Were those the names?"

He looks impressed. "How did you know?"

Jennifer says, "I met the daughter. I think I can give you a link between a number of these killings. Not a hired assassin at all. I suspect you'll find they are mostly the parents or guardians of meta children who were treating the children badly. My computer skill certainly isn't up to checking that. How about you?""

"Just a minute - Did you say Dr Simmonds is alive?!"

Jennifer nods, "Victim number four is very much alive. She never killed one of the people engaged in arresting her."

"You think it's her? The Zero Killer?!" His excitement couldn't be less if you had found the fountain of youth.

"Where is she? What's she being held for? I want to interview her!"

"But I think you're wrong. None of the case had a strong meta connection other that the last, and perhaps Dr Harbor's, given the nature of his research. If they had, I might have been on to her sooner."

Jennifer looks unconvinced. "Possible but the chronology is debatable. The suspected killings started twenty years ago. Dr Simmonds would have been fairly young at that time. Not impossible of course. Some people start at an early age. Dr Harbor was involved in the illegal genetic engineering of a meta child, so there's a definite meta connection there. As to seeing her, she's in Starguard custody and as of this morning I am no longer a member of Starguard." She smiles confidingly, "In some people's book the only thing worse than screwing up is getting the job done by breaking the rules."

He smiles sympathetically. "Did I mention I'm in the third subbasement in Quantico?"

Jennifer says, "Yes. Which is why we're having this conversation and I'm buying you dinner."

"It not *all* punishment," he allows. "They know I've got the sort of mind to spot the connections that might have been missed between old cases, so I do some good. But it's mostly punishment."

"They just don't want me talking to anyone about my crazy ideas. Which is why I suggested dinner."

Jennifer nods and continues, "I have good reason to believe Dr Simmonds has killed a number of people, the parents in Scotland six years ago being among them. However most of her other suspected killing have fire as an MO. Now most killers tend to stick to their tried and tested methods, so I'd argue that we're looking at two killers, your Zero Killer and Dr Simmonds, connected obviously but not the same person.

He nods. "That makes sense. Not that I'm aware of the other cases you're talking about - hm, unless that fire in Louisiana? House burnt down, daughter miraculously survived then disappeared from the orphanage?"

Jennifer nods, "The little girl's name was Charlotte Everley, nick-named Di by the other children. She's terribly traumatized by the death of her parents. It's going to take care and time to help her."

Jennifer says, "I think in that case the fire was a genuine accidental fire. Dr Simmonds might have killed the parents without remorse if they were treating the daughter badly but I don't believe she would have risked the girl being hurt in the fire."

"Yes, Charlotte Everley, that's her." He smiles. "Looks like you're really cracked this one! My hat's off to you."

Jennifer says, "I have a lot of help."

Jennifer smiles slightly, "If you interview Dr Simmonds I'd like to ask a favour and accompany you. Now she recognized me and might well reveal that identification in any interview you have with her so I think it's best to tell you in advance. Are you seated comfortably?"

He nods. "I'm beginning to think you know more about this than I do. But if there's anything in the files that can help - well, obviously I can't help at all and have no idea how you got your hands on this."

Agent Fuchs nods. "I'll see if I get be let off the leash to do the interview."

He waits expectantly.

Jennifer puts a crystalline object about the size and shape of a goose egg on the table and then places her hands flat on the table well away from the object, so her hands are visible and clearly empty. "Do you recognize that device?"

"Wolfguard. Energy whip. You --?!"

Jennifer says, "Once upon a time there was a young child who decided to leave their family. They went to England and were taken in by the British Government. Sent to one of those covert groups that don't exist. When they were hurt in the course of serving their adopted country they were pensioned off and allowed to move to a city where there were lots of metas to keep an eye on them."

Agent Fuchs nods and smiles. The sort of smile which suggests that he might have some familiarity with at least some part of the story.

Jennifer grins, "I go to the local high school. Teach tactics to the CBPD at Steel's Gym. And I have friends here now. I've never regretted what I did for an instant."

Fuchs nods, and explains his relative nonchalance. "Before I was in the third subbasement I was on the M-files - cases with a metahuman element."

Jennifer nods, "You needed to know. Only you through. You'll keep this confidential I hope?"

He actually laughs. "What, you think people still believe a word I say about anything? But yes, I can keep a secret. They'd have locked me up long ago if not."

Jennifer grins again and puts the energy whip away. "How I got onto this was through some misbehaving meta kids. Managed to talk to them and found there was a shadowy figure in the background, a woman named Auntie. No prize for guessing who Auntie turned out to be. The kids revealed that Auntie had been travelling all over the world collecting meta children. Now I thought at first she was grooming them to be minions in her schemes. But I'm starting to think that she was, in her own warped fashion, actually doing most of what she did for the benefit of the kids.

He frowns. "I don't see how that fits in with the killings - well, hopefully we'll find out in the interview."

Jennifer nods. "There's lots of loose ends." she agrees.

"Well - ah, here's the main course!"

Jennifer nods, "Now I'm not a member of Starguard any longer I'm going to relax and catch up on life. But if you ever need someone with my kind of abilities you've got my PDA number. Call me."

He smiles. "And if you ever need a washed-up conspiracy theorist, give me a call."

Agent Fuchs is pleased to entertain Jennifer over the rest of dinner with tales of the Wisconsin cheese mystery.