Choice: A Carmen Sandiego AU

Part 5: Reminisce

Graham returned to ACME's HQ with low spirits at the failed arrest. Now his cover was blown. Carmen had always been cool and mysterious, but never angry, much less wrathful like she was earlier.

And his relationship with her was now ruined forever. Why had he done this?

Liar. Thief.

As he was walking back to his unfamiliar office space, Julia Argent (his partner, apparently, but he literally knew nothing about her) walked out of a door and nearly hit him.

"Oops!" She squeaked, stepping back. "My apologies, Agent Davies."

Graham winced. "Please, call me Graham. I do not like my last name." He grinned, and Julia smiled. "Alright, Graham. Um, you can call me Julia, if you want."

"A'right, Julia. So, what's the deal with this place? Was it seriously made just to catch Carmen?" He frowned, looking around. "I feel so out of place. Like I shouldn't be here for more than one reason, but I can't remember why."

Julia shook her head slightly. "Well, we used to be dedicated to taking down an organization called "VILE", but now Chief has dedicated us to taking down Carmen, because she seemingly knows a lot about it. Also, she hacked our servers a few weeks ago."

She looked saddened. There was something familiar about what she said for some reason, but he didn't know why.

"Were- are you guys- you seem like you know her, somehow. Were you two close, or something?" He asked awkwardly.

"Well...we have a complicated relationship. I suppose we should get to know each other. Come sit." The bespectacled agent said.

Julia sighed through her nose and they sat on a couch in the breakroom.

"I was in Interpol partnered with Agent Devineaux when I first met her." She started her story.

"Well, not met. We had been researching her for a case. My first case. I'd only been with Interpol for two weeks. Chase and everyone else thought it would be easy. A thief who wears bright red? We went out expecting an open-and-shut arrest."

"I guess that's why we were allowed to go. Devineaux isn't- well. Entirely the most competent. And I was very new. Anyway, we went, and Chase chased her all over Poitiers before he caught up with her on a train. We thought she had stolen something, but in fact we found a whole host of stolen artifacts in the vault she had left open."

Graham snorted a little. "Had she stolen all of them?"

Julia shook her head. "The apartment belonged to an import-export company, which we now know was VILE. She led us right to the artifacts. And, I believe she is much too thorough to have left a vault of her own open, if she were to have any."

Graham exhaled through his nose. Huh.

"You said your partner caught up with her? On a train? He didn't arrest her?"

"No," Julia laughed. "She got off at Paris. She left someone dressed in her coat and hat..."

She broke off, and looked at him.

"A civilian?" He asked. "From what I could tell, she always tries to keep civilians out of our dramas."

Julia pursed her lips. "No...we believe she was having a fight with him on the train. The roof of the car was blasted out, and he was found knocked out, with a sort of electric weapon with him."

She stared at Graham, a curious expression on her face. "It was so strange. He looked nearly exactly like you, as far as I remember."

"Really?" Graham wondered. "That's strange. I have a few older sisters, but no brothers. I guess I just have that sort of face. Or maybe you could be remembering wrong?"