Black, White, & Red.

Chapter 6 - Another Body

Body after body started filling the M.E.'s office of the GCPD. Ed and Lee were up to their necks in corpses. They had a pile of nothing until Lee noticed the same M.O. with all the victims. One conclusion: one perp.

Ed was extremely excited about the new development. Instead of taking lunch, he stayed busy trying to put more pieces together. He remembered there was a certain smell on the first victim, so he went around to all the bodies and tried to catch something on them. It must've faded off the older bodies, but he could still find it on the newer ones.

He spent the rest of the afternoon focused on figuring out other similarities between the corpses. Ed and Lee had their work cut out for them, but they were starting to figure it out. With all kinds of interruptions between a department meeting and Jim being Jim, there wasn't enough time in the day for another breakthrough.

Ed went home to his fiancé with his mind still in the office. Oswald kept trying to get his attention. He was trying to love on him and ease his mind, but Ed wouldn't have it. "Not now anyway..." he told him. Ed didn't like to say no to his sweet little penguin, but he had to. Of course, his 'sweet little penguin' threw a fit, but it's nothing Ed wasn't used to.

Oswald could be a bit of a crybaby, and they both knew it. Ossie doesn't care because he's not over the top about it. He'll just pout to his riddle man. Ed was used to it, and truth be told it was one of the things he loved about Oswald.

Oswald remained pouting for the rest of the night. He was more upset than usual. Ed didn't think too much of it and figured it'd pass. Ed has always been very focused on his work, and this isn't the first time his brain has stayed in the office through the night. Oswald didn't seem to mind this much before.

During dinner, he kept trying to tell Ed about how Ms. Mooney isn't up his ass anymore and that he's actually ahead on work since he's working on stories about the murders as they come in. That's when Ed snapped at him and told him to not write about what he tells him. That the case is still developing and any information that is uncovered needs to stay confidential. They both remained quiet after that.

That night when they went to bed, they slept a little further apart than normal. They faced opposite walls. Neither one really sleeping; although they both believed the other to be sound asleep. On Ed's mind, the case. On Oswald's mind, Ed and the way he snapped at him. 'He's never done that before...' he thought, 'I need to get his mind off that damn case...'

The next morning, they were both still very quiet. Ed woke up first after only an hour or two of sleep. He brought a cup of coffee to Oswald as a gesture of solidarity. He said, "I'm sorry that I yelled at you last night. You know I didn't mean it. This case is really bothering me. It won't happen again. I promise". Oswald took the cup and held it close before taking a sip. He let the heat from the coffee spread through him before he responded. "Okay," he said still barely a whisper. Obviously still upset about the evening before. They finished getting ready in silence before heading separate ways for work.