Doc

As there had not been any major cases since the gang war, Ryan and Allen were checking the list the manager gave them in Ryan's apartment. It had been quite a long time that they did not have to go to the station for overtime on a holiday.

"As far as I know, none of these guests had any history of involving with drugs"

Allen shoved the printed papers to Ryan. It was the list of VIP guests Jean served personally that night. Although the bartenders normally stayed at the bar on first floor, they would have to go make drinks for the guests on 3rd floor if they were requested. And as Allen had said, the rooms Jean served had night did not have anyone who dealt drugs.

"Let's put them aside for now. We can get back to them later. It did not have to be them. Anyone who visited the club that night could have met with Jean in some way"

Not all VIP guests asked for a bartender as most of them wanted their conversations to be discreet. Some did not even call for girls to serve them drinks. For such people, Anios was not just a club for drinking and having fun, but a place for their dealings and secret meetings. That was how much they trusted the security of the club and those people were the most dangerous and most suspicious for now.

Allen nodded in agreement and started looking up the information about other guests that night. While they were busy with their own papers…

Ding dong…

Ryan stood up and walked out to fetch the door. Ryan was displeased to see the guest. Why did he have to show up whenever they were discussing about the case?

"Hello, Lieutenant Parker. You've come again"

Ryan raised his voice for Allen to hear so that the latter could keep the papers and devices they were working on.

"Hello, Captain. Sorry for intruding" William Parker greeted with a grin.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Yes, I had some new information about the drug I want to share with you," William said.

"Working hard as ever on a holiday," Ryan chuckled. After he decided that he had given Allen enough time to 'prepare', he led the lieutenant into the apartment.

"Please take a seat, Lieutenant"

"Hello, Lieutenant Parker," Allen greeted.

"Oh! You are here again. You two work together every day and yet you can't bear to separate from each other even on holidays. What great partners!" William laughed.

Both Ryan and Allen smiled wryly because William's words hit their weak spots indirectly. As both of them were single men and clearly workaholics, all they could do on holidays were to accompany each other in the shooting range, training arena or at the bars. It was not that they did not want a beauty to spend time together with; it was just that because they were hell-bent on catching criminals, they were never successful in their relationships.

"Ahem!" Ryan coughed awkwardly.

"What is that you wanted to share with me, Lieutenant?"

Actually, Ryan did not want William to pursue this case further, as he knew the nature of the big fish behind the scenes. He did not want to alarm the perpetrator and he did not want William to be harmed. Despite his treatment towards criminals, he could still be said to be a good cop as he did excel in solving cases. However, if Ryan told him to stop he would be more suspicious and may even become more reckless.

"I found that two of the drug users visit Anios club every week. I thought it was nothing strange at first. But it had been going on for some time and they were quite timely with their visits."

'They must be working as moles for the club owner' Ryan thought. Ryan knew that the club owner was already digging about his employee's death and that he could not be related to the drug in the way William thought.

Oblivious to Ryan's thoughts, William enthusiastically continued, "You know that I've been in this city for about 10 years. So, I've heard all kinds of rumors about that club. Although on the outside it is only a club, on the fourth floor, there is said to be a clinic. A clinic for all the big figures of the city"

This information stunned Ryan and Allen. Even after brainstorming for a whole month, they had never thought of that possibility.

"Although, there had been rumors that a well-known underground doctor was related to that club, there is still no solid proof. However, with this connection between the drug and the club, I think the rumors may be true after all. That concierge doctor might be the one studying the effects of the drugs"

"How much do you know about this doctor?" Ryan asked.

William shrugged his shoulder.

"This doctor is like a ghost. Everyone talks about him yet no one has seen him. The only thing I know is that all the powers in this city regard him highly and that people call him 'doc'"

Allen almost choked the water he was drinking. Is there such a coincidence in this world?

Ryan shot him a warning look, worried that he might reveal anything in front of William. Allen had to admit that he's not as good at pulling a poker-face as Ryan. Although Ryan was not expressionless, because he was always smiling, no one would notice what was going on in that head of his. Well, Allen did not know that Vivienne Byrne had already seen through Ryan's façade.

"'Doc'? I don't think that's a specific name for a person. Don't most people call their doctors 'doc'?" Ryan asked.

He did not want the drastic lieutenant to be anywhere near his weird acquaintance.

"What you said is reasonable but I've also heard about other concierge doctors just like him and they are always mentioned using their names or nicknames. You must have heard about Dr. Bartkowski and Jack the Ripper?"

Ryan nodded as he had indeed heard about those doctors' name before.

"Is he that skillful to be regarded highly by the big-shots?" The 'doc' Ryan knew was only around his age. He thought older and more experienced doctors would be more influential. Ryan kept on using the male pronoun for 'doc' following detective Parker.

"Not only are his skills good, he is also said to be quite loyal. You should know that most underground doctors don't live long because they're silenced after their purposes are served. No gang leader would want to leak their weakness to others. However, they treat 'doc' differently because they could trust her. For them, confidentiality is even more valuable than her skills. Well, that's all I have. I hope that it would be as helpful as the clues Lieutenant Rogers have found." William said his last words sarcastically.

Ryan knew that Allen asking around those drug users could not be hidden for long from William's sight.

"It's not that I don't trust you with your work. It's just…"

Before Ryan completed his sentence, William interjected.

"I know. I understand that you two are having your own secret investigations for that murder case. What I don't understand is that why you can't share the information you have with me. Aren't we on the same side?" William said grudgingly.

Ryan sighed. He understood that in William's world, there were only two kinds of people, the people who belonged inside the iron bars and those who belonged to the outside of the bars. But Ryan did not know how to explain to this man that the word 'justice' was more complicated than that. People could not be categorized only as 'criminals' and 'normal people'.

If William knew that they were letting the manager of Anios club and the supposedly famous underworld doctor help them with the case, he would strongly oppose them.

"I've only found out that three gangs are involved with the new drug. I think you've already known that since ages ago, lieutenant. We really don't have anything useful to tell you at this point," Allen said politely.

"Whatever you say, detectives. Whatever you say…" William smiled cynically. Then he bid farewell to Ryan and Allen and left.

After making sure that Lieutenant Parker had left, Allen could not hold the question in anymore.

"You think the two are same person?"

"Doc?" Ryan asked knowingly.

"She should be the one, right?" Allen asked again as he remembered the second floor of her house.

"Should be," Ryan agreed. "Didn't she say she's interested in human bodies? Also, even though she said she spent most of her time in Anios, I never saw her there. The rumors Lieutenant Parker heard might be true."

"That's why there were so many experts protecting her," Allen said.

"If Anios really has a clinic with such an influential concierge doctor, it would explain why the club is a neutral zone," Ryan said.

All the puzzles on their mind were solved one after another and they had to thank Lieutenant Parker for that.