"What a way to start the day. And I just cleaned this!" Harvey complained as he spilled coffee on his tie. Jim had just pulled up to the latest crime scene at the docks. A middle-aged man was lying on a pile of wooden boards and tires. He appeared to have been beaten and stabbed to death. Even though the Falcone conflict was resolved, it didn't mean that all of Jim's coworkers were back to acknowledging him as one of their own. But in time, most would hopefully come around. "Harvey!" Jim called out to his partner. "Hey! Uniforms found the body. No wallet, no ID, no watch. He got beaten up pretty good. I'm guessing the cause of death is that gigantic gash in the side of his neck," Harvey explained, pointing to the deceased's deep gash.

"You think? What's all the black on him?" Jim questioned. "I dunno, ink? Paint?" Harvey answered. "Hmm. Good morning, Ed," Jim looked over to where Ed sat hunched over, jotting down notes as he inspected the body. "Detective," Ed replied with a grin. "Going by overall coagulation, I'd say the time of death is midnight. But he's only been here for a couple of hours. Rats have just started on his ears. Sneaky little buggers," "So not a mugging. Muggers don't move the body. Abrasions on his knuckles, he put up a fight," Jim took notice.

"Look at the suspenders. I'm guessing he's some finance guy," Harvey pointed out. "Maybe it was an abduction ransom thing gone wrong, he resists, ka-chunk! Do you want to talk to the uniforms that found the body?" Harvey asked. "Uh, you do it. We should canvass the area, though. A lot of homeless around here," Jim noted. Harvey nodded, saying that he'd get some unis on it. But Jim insisted he could handle it himself before calling one of their colleagues, telling him to go smoke somewhere else. "Come on, Jim, that's what we got uniforms for. Let them do it!" Harvey called out. "And I'd rather do it myself," Jim replied.

Ed looked up from his notes, asking the detectives if he should run all the prints. Jim and Harvey looked over with looks of obviousness. Running prints was part of his job after all. "Yeah, Ed. Run the prints," Harvey answered. Ed bent over the corpse, his metal scissors poking around inside the deceased's mouth for something out of the ordinary. "This one too?" Ed questioned, pulling out a severed finger. Harvey's eyes widened. Who would leave someone's severed finger inside a dead person's mouth? What kind of message was that sending?

"Yeah, Ed. Run that too," Jim answered. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

At Anders Prep, the warning bell rang, letting everyone know they had about five minutes to get their first period. To Holly, it all felt like another day at school. But little did she know that this day would be a bit different. Outside the school, Bruce and Alfred pulled up to the sidewalk, and Bruce looked out the window at the school. It had been a while since he had attended there, and despite his best protests to stay homeschooled, he was forced to return. Alfred exited the limo and opened the passenger door, gesturing for Bruce to come out.

"Had to happen sooner or later, huh?" the butler commented. "Is this really necessary? Homeschooling is just as effective. I can show you the data," Bruce complained. "You need to be around children your own age," Alfred attempted to reason. "But Holly's my age!" Bruce pointed out. "Well yes, but I don't think she's here," Bruce gave him a funny look, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of familiar blonde hair. To his and Alfred's surprise, Holly was indeed there, meeting up with Cara before walking into the school.

"I stand corrected, Master Bruce," Alfred looked back at him. "But that's all the more reason for you to go. You two can catch up," Slowly, Bruce got out of the limo, swinging his bookbag behind him. "Don't you miss your other mates?" Alfred questioned. "Not really. I've always found them kind of childish," Bruce admitted. "Well, that's what they're meant to be, aren't they? That's what they do. Don't you want to be like a normal kid?" "I'm not sure," Bruce answered. "Define "normal" and make a good case for it,"

Alfred was growing tired of the argument, insisting that the young boy would be going to school. "Now, start walking," Alfred instructed. Inhaling a quiet sigh, Bruce walked up the stone steps with his head held high. He barely acknowledged the people who gave him looks as he walked into the school, and looked at his schedule for his first class. He walked up a flight of stairs and walked into his English class. "Ah, Mr. Wayne. Nice to see you've returned!" Mrs. Fleming smiled, shaking his hand. "It's nice to be back," Bruce responded. "Well, find yourself an empty seat, we'll get started soon,"

Bruce nodded and plopped down in a seat towards the middle of the room. "Hey, Bruce!" A soft voice spoke to him. He looked to his side and saw Holly at the seat to his left, smiling at him. "Holly, I-I didn't know you were going here," He spoke. "I didn't think I'd be here either, but here we are!" Holly shrugged. Bruce nodded in agreement just as the second bell rang and Mrs. Fleming began the class.

~~~~~~~~~~

Back at the precinct, Jim was back at his desk, talking with the victim's mother, who was understandably distraught and begging for answers to his son's sudden death. "Very sorry for your loss, ma'am. Can you think of anyone who would want to hurt your son Coleman?" Jim questioned. "No, sir. Nobody. He was a good boy," The woman sniffed. "Yes, ma'am, I can see that. No arrests, an honest young man. What did he do for a living?" Jim inquired. The woman explained that Coleman had been working at a coffee shop. When Jim told her her son was found wearing a suit, the woman explained he was looking for a job in finance.

"He was very ambitious. First in our family to go to college," The woman explained before the tears started falling again. "Who would do this, sir?! Why?!" she begged. "We'll do our best to find out, ma'am," Jim assured. While Jim was busy talking to the victim's mother, Harvey spoke with Captain Essen, letting her know the progress on the prints Ed ran through the system. "So far, nothing on the severed thumb, and none of the city's ERs have seen any thumbless guys," Harvey explained.

"You think he went black market?" Essen asked. "That's next on my list," Harvey answered. Essen looked through the closed blinds to where Jim was sitting, asking Harvey how he was doing. "Angry. How would you feel if every cop in the building ran out on you? And now they all treat him like he's got the plague. Cause seeing him reminds them of what cowards they all are," Harvey vented. Essen returned her gaze to him, looking slightly offended. " I'm sorry, Cap, I didn't mean you," Harvey clarified.

"Nope, you're right. But he's gotta get over that. He can't do this job alone, luckily he's got you," Essen commented. Soon, Jim wrapped up his conversation with the grieving mother, and he reconvened with Harvey to discuss the extra details on their victim. And after Harvey presented some of his extra info, both men had an idea on where to continue their investigation. Across town, the two detectives approached a shady and abandoned-looking warehouse, and they could hear a man's painful screams echoing throughout. "Morphine! Morphine!" The man screamed. 

And just as Jim and Harvey followed the screams to a smaller room, they saw another man towering over the gurney and knocking his patient unconscious. "They teach you that in med school?" Harvey answered. The doctor turned around and met Harvey's gaze. "Oh, Bullock," he acknowledged before returning his work, carefully prying out bullet shrapnels. "Is that Kenny Suffield?! Smash and grab guy. Also, a real hound with the ladies. Who shot him?" Harvey asked.

"I do not ask," The doctor muttered, grabbing a needle and thread. "Well, me and my partner doing all the rounds of you black market sawbones. The guy we're looking for would've come in early this morning missing a thumb," Harvey explained. "Sorry, I know nothing," The doctor shrugged. "You'd tell us if you knew, wouldn't you, Doc? I mean, that's the deal, right? You give us info, and we let you keep operating," Harvey's voice got darker before he chuckled. "That's a pun, operating," Jim gave him a warning glance before something familiar caught his eye. 

Lying on the table next to the gurney was a white shirt soaked in black. "Black ink, just like on the victim," Jim realized. A tiny smirk formed across Harvey's lips as he shook his head at the doctor. "Fine! He came in about 3 this morning. Didn't give a name, but this dropped out of his pocket," The doctor caved, handing the detectives a business card. "Sionis Investments," Harvey examined, holding it to the bright overhead light. "What'd he look like?" Jim questioned.

"Mid-20s, suit, suspenders," The doctor described. "Just like our dead guy," Harvey recalled. Jim apologized to the doctor before reaching for his phone. "This is Gordon. I need an ambulance and a black and white at 1856 Wilton," The doctor's eyes widened as he set down his work and began pleading with Harvey to get him out of this mess. But with backup already on the way, Harvey's hands were tied. When backup arrived, they immediately shut down the illegal medical practice and took the doctor into custody. But his protests and pleas to be set free continued as they perp-walked him into the precinct.

"Wait! Just wait a second. Just get me Alvarez, will ya?!" The doctor struggled against his handcuffs. Alvarez dashed over to the detectives, both angry and confused. "Bullock, what the hell, man? I got a deal with that guy!" Alvarez confronted. "Well, the deal's off!" Jim retorted, locking the holding cell door. "But I told you everything!" The doctor shouted. "Yeah, after we caught you in a lie!" Jim snarled. Alvarez and Jim nearly butted heads, Alvarez saying the doctor always lied and that they just had to squeeze out the info.

"You're screwing the rest of us!" Alvarez scoffed. "Oh, yeah? How does that feel? You like it?" Jim challenged just as Harvey broke them up before a massive fight ensued. "I get it.  None of these sons of bitches had your back when it mattered, but where was I? I was there, remember? With Falcone, the mayor, blaze of glory? Be nice, for my sake," Harvey pulled Jim to the side. "I am being nice," Jim insisted. "Haven't you learned your lesson? We're only alive because Falcone let us live. You got to go along to get along, Jim,"

Jim shook his head, saying he didn't have to play nice. "You think locking up Doc Scumbag there is gonna make a difference?" Harvey asked. "I'm on your side, I proved that. So, I'm asking you, please, let the Doc out and tomorrow, you and I will go check out this Sionis Investments together," Harvey persuaded. "Sorry, Harv," Jim apologized before returning to his desk. As Harvey was about to return to his, Alvarez grabbed him by the arm, telling him this wasn't right. But Harvey shut him down, telling Alvarez to put a zipper on it.

~~~~~~~~~

"How about we have lunch outside today? It's a nice day out," Cara suggested as she and Holly walked together, noticing their usual table was crowded. "Sure, why not?" Holly shrugged. The two girls walked out of the side entrance and down the stone steps towards a fountain, a horse statue made out of jade rose from the water. "I've never noticed that before!" Holly spoke up. "I walk this way to get to fourth period all the time. It's a nice place to sit and enjoy the quiet," Cara explained.

They took their seats at the fountain edge, listening to the birds chirping from the trees and the bubbling of the small jets inside the fountain. It truly was peaceful. Holly took a bite of her salad just as someone else walked past and sat a few inches away, engrossed in his notebook. "Hey, Bruce!" Cara smiled, breaking Bruce's focus. "Oh hey, Cara. Hi Holly," Bruce responded. "You two know each other?" Holly inquired, looking back to her best friend. "Yeah, we've practically known each other since we were in primary," Cara answered. "It's nice to see you back at school. I'm sorry about what happened,"

"It's fine, just taking it one day at a time," Bruce sighed before returning to his book. Holly had to admit, she never thought that Cara and Bruce knew each other. Sure, both of them had come from reasonably powerful families, but Cara barely mentioned Bruce, if not ever. But Holly just brushed the thought off as she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. The silence and peacefulness once again took over, and Holly looked out into the afternoon. It wasn't warm, but it wasn't chilly either. The perfect mix of both temperatures.

Occasionally, the wind would blow, making the hairs on the back of Holly's neck stand at attention. "Brucey! How are you doing?" Tommy and his group of guys approached the fountain, taking up the remaining space between Holly and the boy. "Tommy, hey," Bruce slightly smiled. "I'm well, how are you?" "Oh, you know. Chilling," Tommy answered. If by chilling, you mean continuing to be a pretentious jerk. Holly rolled her eyes, trying to ignore him.

"So, your mom and dad got killed, huh?" Tommy questioned. Bruce's face fell at the horrible memory. "Yes," his voice grew quiet. "You see the whole thing? The blood and everything?" Tommy continued with the questions. The gorier they became, the more Cara and Holly looked at each other, sharing the same thought. Who the hell asks someone who suffered such a tragic event to go into gory detail about their loved one's demise? Holly didn't have to look at Bruce to tell he was very uncomfortable with answering. She could feel the tension a mile away.

"Was there guts?" Tommy leaned in closer. "Stop it, Tommy. He doesn't want to talk about it," Holly stood up. "This is none of your business, middle class. Buzz off," Tommy glared. "It is our business when you're taunting our friend!" Cara chimed in. "I'm just interested. I've never seen a real dead body," Tommy justified. "It's still disgusting to ask those things!" Holly crossed her arms. The group turned their attention back to Bruce, who tried to block out their statements. Finally, he had enough and walked off towards his next class.

As Tommy and his gang stood up, Tommy kept his sharp gaze on Holly before reaching over to her tray, grabbing the vanilla cupcake, and bringing it to his lips. "Thank you!" He smirked before walking away. "No consideration whatsoever," Cara inhaled. "Here, you can have mine. I'm stuffed," She passed her cupcake over to Holly, who took it graciously and finished eating it just as the bell rang for the next period.