"Karyl, the check please. Let's go, brief me on the way to the Station, we don't have much time."
"Apparently, they found the guy this morning passed out inside one of the cars… do you want some coffee to go."
"Yeah, double shot latte."
"Go ahead, I have this covered."
The two detectives left the dinery in a hurry. The overly kind waitress was used to the sight, after all no one else would dare to go out this late at night. This old establishment would most likely have closed a few hours ago if it wasn't for the public servants that come here every afternoon like clockwork, looking for a place to stay and avoid going home.
"Want to drive? I shouldn't have had the burger Chief, I am falling asleep any moment now. I was sure our day was over."
"I told you to just order a salad, you are going to run out of points at this rate. When are you going to get a wife to cook dinner for you? I'm worried you know, I don't want you to end up at the MWB like the last kid."
"Nah, I'm used to this. I was assigned to District 4 remember; I got the bad end of the stick because I missed the last month at the Academy."
"Yeah, I have heard that a million times. Wait, stop distracting me. The briefing, what the fuck happened this morning."
The hybrid, white car moved slowly across the roads. The eerie couple was heading downtown, hence they had to go below the speed limit to avoid alarming the unlucky souls still outside at this hour. A woman in her thirties that looked like a college student wearing her first suit, and a man in his twenties that looked like he just came out of prison, the sight of the two riding the same car was as scary as funny.
"Right, so… they found this guy passed out inside one of the train's cars. You know, typical office worker, living alone, they checked his registry and nothing out of the ordinary. He left his job at the same time as always, got to the main station right inside the Ministry and boarded the last train like he does every day."
"Okay, he was probably drunk. Send him to the pricks at Counseling and leave us alone."
"Slow down Chief, you know they wouldn't call us if there wasn't something juicy here."
"Then get to juicy part."
"I forgot Chief Mika is all business. Anyways, the Captain thought exactly like you and, even though the fella hasn't bought booze this month, they left him inside the station until he woke up to figure out if he was getting some on the side."
"Park on the back, I owe a few reports to the Sargent and he must be on office duty right now. We are taking the service door."
District 1 main Police Station, one of the most respected and feared buildings in the city. The old architecture that escaped modernization to preserve the tradition associated with the trade, stood out from the various government buildings around it.
"You won't believe what the bastard said as soon as he woke up."
"What, did he lose his memory. I got one of those earlier this year, it was a pain in the ass to process."
"Nah, far better. This fella swears he saw a ghost last night."
"Inside the Ministry?"
"Yep."
"Bull."
"Yeah, he said he went inside the building to get some water before the train arrived and saw it. He ran for his life and was lucky enough to have the next train arrive right away. He got into it and that's the last thing he remembers."
"He has to be lying."
"He doesn't appear to be. We tried to contact Counseling, but they are not touching this with a 10-foot pole until Safety hands their assessment first, so we had Ray from Well Being do a few tests and he is clean. The Captain wants our opinion before filling the report."
"Then I assume we are buying his crap, aren't we?"
Detective Mika turned the car off and took a big sip of her coffee before opening the door. Looking fiercely at the two patrol officers standing in front of the service door leading to the station, she got outside and sighed.
"Maybe you can talk some sense into him before taking the case. In my opinion, we are doomed if we even start believing him."
"For a doomed soul, you seem too happy about this."
"Hey, extra hours are extra hours. I can squeeze a few vacation days from Well Being after we deal with this mess."
Ignoring her apprentice completely, Mika made sure her small notebook was tightly kept inside her back pocket.
"Let's get this over with."
Apprentice Detective Joey followed behind his superior after making sure to grab the coat she left inside the car. The empty street, even while surrounded by the public service displays, felt incredibly dark and lonely, as one of the pratol officers approached the couple.
"Hey! You shouldn't be going out this late if it's not an emergency. Show me your phones."
"Move, they are expecting us."
Not even looking at him, she kept walking and shot a scary look at the other officer still waiting by the door. Behind her, Joey flashed his phone leaving the two officers with their mouths wide open. Under his ID photo, an app showed a badge with three letters…
Phantasm Special Unit.