I've Given All I Can, It's Not Enough

When the world is insane, sometimes you have to lie to the authorities.  Especially when they don't have any real clues or suspects.  But the lying comes later.  I'll start at the beginning, last Thursday.  Police and CSI in the halls of the engineering building.  I introduced myself as a student who'd just gotten out of my Forensic Anthropology course, and was interested in investigation procedure.  Some bullshit about understanding if there was any kind of problem, yada-yada, not wanting to get in the way, and I completely failed to be let anywhere near the scene.  What I did have was a conversation with a law enforcement officer responsible for keeping people away from the scene.  Within sight of the scene.  Though not the original scene, as it turned out.

The place I was watching them investigate was Dr. Ellison's office.  I saw no initial signs of trouble from where I was, but overheard some other gawkers mention he'd been missing for a few days.  My immediate thought was that his research had continued, with Michael Ng's help, and had drawn the attention of the City.  It was easy to imagine him opening the door to his office, and walking off the map completely.  I was starting to look around, worried that the City would want me back, since it had already been here...when they brought out the desk.  

Apparently a tenured professor gets quite a large, impressive desk.  It must've been nice, because it was still quite an impressive piece of work, even as a charred husk.  They carried it out in two pieces, the fire seemed to have started in the middle and burned through the most there.  I asked why this wasn't an arson investigation, and he told me they hadn't expected a fire.  Which told me pretty quickly that this wasn't the primary point of investigation.  So I tried to find out more.  

Obvious advice time, runners, researchers, observers, and miscellaneous troubled individuals...when there's an ongoing homicide investigation, and strange things that puzzle the detectives are already afoot, it does not pay to be too interested or insightful.  It really doesn't pay to be the one to ask questions about the other missing person associated with the case, or the research that was destroyed in the mysterious fire.  Unless you like those rooms with the one-way mirrors and the uncomfortable chairs, and having to wait for hours for the police to question you.  

Finding out that the last people I talked to about the Empty City had mysteriously vanished had me a bit jumpy.  Being stuck in a small room with a flickering lightbulb and the shadows jumping around and only a single door to leave by didn't really help either.  The good part is, being completely innocent in any rational way will get you off the hook.  Eventually.  While I was being questioned, I found out about the first crime scene, and the bloody mess that eventually brought the cops and the crime scene guys to Dr. Ellison's office.  Breaking the story here, I'll tell you what I was able to learn within a day.