VIRAGO

alpas

alpas (v.) - to become free, to break loose

There was a soft knock on the screen door frame a little while after they had gotten home for the evening. Dana had just poured herself a cup of tea while her roommate had gone upstairs to finish up some homework for her class. She typically did any of her homework downstairs in the open space, but when it came to either AP Literature or Creative Writing, she stayed as far away as possible so she could think for herself. She walked over to the door and saw the case detective waiting on the stoop, and she opened the door for him.

"Sorry to bother you so late, Ms. Gordon. I knew Ms. Reed had a soccer game and didn't want to intrude upon that." He said in greeting, but she shook her head and waved him in.

"Nonsense, Detective Crawford. Please, come in." She responded, and he tipped his hat as he stepped inside the door. As soon as he was inside he took his hat off, and she noticed the jet black hair that sat on top of his head.

"Lovely place you have here." He commented.

"Thank you. Would you like a cup of tea?" She asked, going back over to the kettle.

"No, thank you ma'am. I just need to speak with Ms. Reed for a moment and then I'll be out of your hair." He answered in a polite manner. It surprised her how much of a gentleman he was, for he seemed like the type of man that would come in and dominate an area with his demeanor. She was sure he could, but he did not feel threatened in the environment.

"She's upstairs doing some homework. I'll fetch her for you." She said as she excused herself to head up to the guest bedroom that became her room. She knocked on the door once she got there, and when she heard her say to enter, she just peeked her head in the door.

"I'm just about done." Samantha said as she turned her head around.

"Detective Crawford is here to see you. He's in the kitchen." She told her, and the girl nodded, setting her pen down.

"I'll be down in a minute." She responded, and Dana stepped back out of the room, leaving the door open since she was going to be leaving in a few moments. She went back downstairs and into the kitchen, finding Detective Crawford petting Macavity.

"She'll be down in a minute." She informed him. "You have a new friend." She chuckled as she picked her mug of tea up off the countertop.

"I'm more of a dog person myself, but I grew up with cats, so they have a spot in my heart." He responded with a small smile as Jellylorem hopped up onto the counter. "Hey there."

"The darker one's Macavity, the white and brown one is Jellylorem." She told him, and she saw him smile at the names.

"Like the musical, right?" He asked, and she felt her cheeks redden.

"More off of the book the musical is based off of, but yes." She said as they heard the stairs creaking.

"My mom was a star on Broadway before I was born, so growing up we watched all sorts of musicals and I knew every word to a lot of the soundtracks. Cats was one of my favorites." He told her.

"Mine too." She responded softly as Samantha came into the room. She looked exhausted, but she still had a smile on her face as she greeted the detective. "I will be in my office if either of you need me." She said, grabbing her tea and walking down the back hallway, stepping into the door across from her bedroom.

"Good evening, Ms. Reed. Sorry to interrupt your homework." He greeted, and he finally sat down at the kitchen table. She followed his lead and took a seat across from him.

"It's no problem, I was just about finished anyway. But I know you're not here to talk about me." She responded, and he gave a soft chuckle, nodding his head.