FAKE Fic: To Catch A Criminal

[badly_knitted]

 


Title: To Catch A Criminal
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Dee, Ryo, OMC.
Rating: PG
Setting: After the manga.
Summary: Chasing criminals is part of the job, but some chases are particularly memorable.
Word Count: 969
Written For: Challenge 388: Chase at fan_flashworks.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
 
 


At its most basic, a cop’s job was to maintain law and order, protect the public, and catch criminals. In reality, it was a whole lot more complicated than that, especially for a detective tasked with investigating crimes. In an ideal world, crimes would be prevented before they could be committed, but the world was far from ideal, which meant that cops were constantly playing catch up.

 
Crimes were committed, reported, investigated, solved if at all possible, and the wrongdoers punished in whatever manner was deemed appropriate, whether that be a warning, a fine, community service, or a prison term. The punishment was dictated by the courts, not the police themselves.

 
Of course, before punishment could be considered, the criminals had to be caught, and that was seldom as easy as it sounded, mostly because no criminal wanted to be arrested. The smarter ones would go to any lengths to avoid capture, going into hiding, skipping town, or even leaving the country if they could.
 

Others, believing the crime they’d committed could never be traced back to them, just carried on with their everyday lives. They might exercise a little more caution to avoid drawing unwanted attention to themselves, stick to the speed limit, steer clear of the area where the crime took place, and make sure they had an alibi just on the off chance someone might ask, but that was about it. Contrary to popular belief among the criminal fraternity, most criminals were not nearly as clever as they thought they were.

 
Denny Brewer was a case in point. He was a small-time thug, shoplifter, pickpocket, purse-snatcher, and opportunistic thief. He’d done time before, but figured he’d become better at his chosen profession over the years. Safe to say he was deluding himself.

 
This time he’d broken into a house through a first-floor window that had been left ajar, pocketed money and all the small valuables he could find, and slipped out again, closing the window behind him to conceal point of entry. He’d worn gloves so as not to leave fingerprints, a hoodie with the hood up, and a stocking mask to hide his face in case anyone saw him, but he’d overlooked a few things. It was raining, so he’d left muddy footprints all over the floors, he failed to notice the security cameras on the house next door, and his hoodie had the logo of the auto shop where he worked emblazoned across the back. Really, he made it easy for the cops to identify him, and easier still when he pawned the jewellery and other items he’d taken while still wearing the same hoodie.

 
Having the cops show up at his work looking for him unsurprisingly spooked him. He knew he had to get away pronto, and so…

 
“Is he serious?” Dee asked his partner, a disbelieving tone to his voice.
 

“Looks serious to me. Well, he mostly looks scared,” Ryo corrected himself.
 

Dee sighed. “Why do they always haveta run?”
 

“Technically, he’s not running.”
 

“Yeah, he might be makin’ better progress if he was. This could end up bein’ the shortest chase in the history of chases.”
 

“The slowest too. How much of a head start should we give him?” Ryo grinned at his partner.

 
“I vote we just get in the car and follow until he runs outta breath.”
 

“That wouldn’t be very sporting, Dee.”
 

“Maybe not, but it would be funny as hell!” There was a wicked gleam in Dee’s eyes. “Kinda wishin’ I had a camera with me, but I guess the one on my phone’s gonna haveta be good enough.” Pulling his personal phone from his pocket, he snapped off a couple of shots of the attempted getaway.
 

Maybe fifteen yards or so down the street, Denny was hunched astride a child’s bicycle, knees nearly up around his ears as he pedalled like mad. Thanks to the bike’s small wheels and the flat rear tire, progress was not especially swift.
 

“Well, you can bring the car if you want, but it seems only fair that one of us should chase him, and it’s a nice day for a jog.” With that, Ryo set off in pursuit at a leisurely pace.
 

Shrugging, Dee followed. “If ya think I’m lettin’ you have all the fun…”
 

Needless to say, it didn’t take the two detectives long to catch up. They flanked Denny on both sides, effortlessly keeping pace with the panting, sweating man. Dee flashed his shield.
 

“Pull over.” He smirked down at Denny.
 

Ryo just grabbed the back of the fugitive’s hoodie, bringing him to an abrupt stop. The bike might have toppled over but for the training wheels.
 

“Denny Brewer, you’re under arrest on suspicion of burglary,” Ryo announced.
 

“We’ll also be chargin’ your sorry ass with resistin’ arrest, and one count of vehicular theft, ‘cause I’m pretty sure the bike ain’t yours. One thing I gotta know; all those cars in the auto shop, and this is what ya picked to make your getaway?”

 
“It’s not my fault! I don’t know how to hotwire a car, and my boss keeps all the keys locked away in his office,” Denny whined.

 
“You’ve got legs, don’t ya? You could’a run, made it a real chase. This was just plain embarrassin’.”

 
“I’ve got an ingrowing toenail, okay? It hurts to run.”

 
Dee shook his head in disbelief at what he was hearing. “Have ya ever wondered if maybe you’re not cut out for a life of crime?”

 
“I’ve just had some bad luck, that’s all.”
 

“News flash: it’s not about to get any better.” As Ryo cuffed Denny, Dee picked up the bike as evidence. “Maybe while you’re behind bars this time you’ll reflect on your life choices, but I’m not gonna be holdin’ my breath.”

 
Some people just never learned.
 

 
The End