don't get me wrong () prodigal son SLOW UPDATES

Twelve

Chapter Twelve:

Theodora sat alone in the board room, everyone else had dispersed. JT was off checking for another family member, Dani left for another smaller case and Gil... she didn't know where he went.

Malcolm had gone off somewhere, she didn't know where. So she sat alone, staring at the TV that someone had turned off after she left.

They found her.

Who was on the other end of that phone call?

12.

For some reason she knew that meant channel 12 but she didn't really know why. And why wouldn't the man just say channel 12 instead of only the number? Or how about not bothering to call her at all? That would've been the correct choice, in her opinion.

The door opened, and she just assumed it was Malcolm but Gil pulled up a chair and sat across from her.

"I'm sorry about your Mother."

"Everyone is."

Gil sighed, "We don't know much about each other, do we?"

"No."

"You're sounding like Bright."

Theodora sighed, rubbing her eyes. "She went missing a long time ago. I was so young."

"I worked on her case, did you know that?"

She looked at Gil, interest sparking with in her. "You did?"

"Yes." He nodded, "It was pushed aside because of The Surgeon's capture and all of his victims but I found it and picked it up again."

"Did you ever get a lead?"

A pause. "No. Other than what I'm sure you already know."

"How could she just disappear from some washroom in a Café? She never came out— that doesn't make sense."

Gil coughed, pursing his lips. "The tape was turned off for an hour exactly 3 minutes after Jay walked in. It turned on 24 minutes later."

"What?"

The door opened and JT appeared, "Got a name and an address."

Gil stood up, and Theodora scrambled after him. "What else? Did my father know?"

"No." Gil huffed, following JT out into the main area. "He wasn't allowed to work the case. To personal."

Her eyes widened, "So you just knew this the entire time? Did it help with the investigation—"

"If it did, John would've known."

"John?"

"Johnny." Gil chuckled, "Nicknames. He didn't mind them."

Theodora had no idea what to say. She was still thinking when Malcolm rushed in, holding a hot cup with a little bag in the same hand. He smiled, handing them to her.

"What's this?"

"Hot chocolate with three and a half marshmallows and a dollop of whipped cream." He said, "And a chocolate glazed donut with extra glaze."

She raised an eyebrow, "Why?"

"Sad food." He looked completely serious. "To cheer you up. You're very specific when it comes to cheering up food."

She stared at him for a few more seconds before laughing, his confused look adding to the humour.

It was odd, how most of the time he seemed closed off and cold, weird but not. Yet could come here and hand this to her acting like the man she had first became friends with, acting like a boy who was actually... maybe, happy?

She had forgot, the thing they used to do whenever one of them was going through something. It had started when they were at school, and Malcolm had been just devastated when a girl he liked called him 'super weird and crazy.' Theodora had gone out and picked up a extra large coffee with eight shots of expresso, which was his favourite at the time, two slices of cheese pizza and a chocolate chip muffin from some Canadian themed cafè down the street. When she was upset, he'd show up with this. A very specific hot chocolate order and a donut.

"Thanks." She told him, "Want the marshmallows?"

"Of course."

She could feel Gil and JT watching them with weird looks on their faces as she popped the lid off and picked out the three and half marshmallows, handing them to Malcolm who put them all in his mouth at once.

JT huffed, "I'll get you the address, then."

"Yes. Find Dani, we'll start making our way over." Gil nodded, "You two meet us there."

They both agreed, and Malcolm lead her out down the stairs this time all the way to the parking garage.

Theodora quietly followed him to a car, which she knew was his. They had been taking so many taxis, she forgot he had his own car. He opened the passenger door and motioned for her to sit, with a roll of her eyes she did.

Theodora remained silent the entire way.