"Are you lovebirds done?" asked Zac. "The files are ready."
Jesse smiled, gave Finn a quick, playful peck on the lips and walked away to the computer system to call up her AI. It wasn't as sophisticated as Finn's own Ares, but the tech at the Outskirts was nowhere as good as what was possible in the heart of the city. Finn tried to use this thought to ground her, but she couldn't stop blushing from what had just happened. She tried to compose herself, failing to do so completely and finally just joining them at the computers. Seeing the data displayed starkly on the screens was like being doused in cold water. Exactly what she needed to draw back her focus. Jesse was right. This was an amazing amount of information. An insane smorgasbord of facts, figures, numbers and a bunch more stats.
"Jesse, this is..." Finn said, her voice trailing off.
"Yeah, I told you." Said Jesse, smiling.
"It's Jesse's life's work," said Zac. "To keep us safe."
Finn started combing through it all. She would have been faster with Ares' help, but this system was too old to accommodate her. That was fine. If Finn was good at anything, it was recognising patterns in the most random information. Data synthesizing. That's what Zhen had called it. And it wasn't long before she found what she was looking for. Jesse had given her a little idea of what to look for, but she found so much more.
The prostitute deaths weren't the first of their kind. However, the others were extremely well hidden. Over years. Same MO. The details were sketchy, but they were there. It went on across state lines and countries, but somehow enough information had been collected over that time and entered onto a digital database somewhere that Jesse was able to find. For years now, she'd been breaking in police databases and taking only the records pertaining reports of violence against prostitutes. These were always low on the totem pole of police concern. Jesse had made it a mission to document and follow up on every one of those reports.
Over the years, Jesse had been using this information to direct, and sometimes lead, a local group of ex-military, ex-special forces vigilantes to dole out justice when they found irrefutable evidence on a suspect from the reports they collected. They had never connected these murders before today though. It was Finn who saw the pieces and connected the dots.
"Why did the killings stop?" Zac asked. "If you're right, this serial killer stopped for six years. Then he came back for this spree. What happened?"
"MechSoft happened," said Finn.
Jesse scoffed. "I don't get it. What do they have to do with any of this? All this demonstrates is that there were other victims of this serial killer before the eleven who are in the news right now. I don't get how this is connected to MechSoft?"
"MechSoft is the proprietor of most of the police software that you've been digging around for years. I'm surprised they haven't shut you down. But I think I know why," said Finn.
"Are you going to tell us?" asked Zac.
Finn turned around in her chair. "Because they're doing the exact same thing that you are, Jesse. They're pulling in data from the same backdoor. To shut it down would be to cut themselves off. They haven't come for you because what you're pulling off the system is specific, distinct and usually inconsequential to whatever they're doing."
Jesse fidgeted in spot and quickly looked around the warehouse. "That's how they knew about me?"
"I don't doubt it," said Finn. She got up and paced a few feet. "You said before that they wouldn't mess with me anymore because I was under your protection. Why is that?"
Zac answered. "A team of mercenaries were sent here a few months ago. They instantly regretted it."
"They didn't know you had an army," Finn said.
"We were contacted after. MechSoft offered us money to relocate," said Jesse.
"And?" wondered Finn.
"Jesse refused the offer," said Zac. "They've been quiet since. Stayed out of our way."
"If you're right, Finn," said Jesse. "They aren't pushing the issue because they've determined that we're not a threat to them."
"Or at least they thought so, until we saved you," said Zac. He turned to Jesse. "There's been some unconfirmed rumours about something big about to happen."
Jesse turned to him. "You didn't tell me."
"I'm still trying to confirm the source," said Zac. He turned to Finn. "If it's true, then this is on you Jess. You're the one who brought her in."
"I'm sorry," said Finn. This was bad.
"Don't be," said Jesse. "This was bound to happen. We just have to get ahead of it. What else does the data tell you. We find out what they think we know, and we have leverage."
Finn nodded.
"I went a little deeper in my searches than you," said Finn. She turned to Jesse. "Don't worry, I made some modifications to your system. They won't know I was there."
Jesses gave a small nod. "I trust you."
"I found the same pattern on other serial killer cases. Not just the ones concerning prostitutes. Different kinds of serial killings, victims and locations. Basically, the killer goes on for a while, then suddenly stops. Then they come back a few years later and they go on a spree before they are promptly captured and imprisoned," said Finn.
"Like the engineer?" said Zac.
"That's what it looks like initially," said Finn. "But this case with the engineer doesn't fit."
"What do you mean?" Jesse asked.
"For starters, he couldn't have been the one responsible for the killings before this last spree. His known locations at the time and the times of the previous killings don't match up. Only the details of the eleven murders correspond with his known whereabouts at those times," said Finn. "And there's another thing. Something really odd, but that makes a perverse kind of sense."
"What?"
"The capture and imprisonment of each of these serial killers coincide with a new MechSoft company advancement that would have otherwise required an impossible amount of red tape to get approved," said Finn. She turned to look at Jesse and Zac to see if they understood what she was saying.
"They're using police data to find and capture serial killers, then later releasing them to be properly apprehended as a trade to keep MechSoft ahead of the pack with its controversial advancements?" said Jesse.
Finn took a deep breath, feeling the weight of this discovery. "Yeah. I think so."
"What did they get for the engineer?"
"That's just it," said Finn. "There's nothing currently happening at MechSoft and there's no indication that there will be soon according to their public news outlet. And, like I said, the engineer was the wrong guy. I don't think he committed any of those murders. This wasn't a trade. This was something else. Something to do with the engineer. Maybe he did something or knows something, and they need him out of the way. But why not just kill him?"
"Because this way, he's an example," said Zac sombrely. The other two turned to face him. "And this circus of a trial is the best way to make sure the message will reach everyone it needs to."
A few hours later, Finn opened the door to the apartment and invited Jesse in.
"You didn't have to accompany me all the way home," said Finn, feeling a little shy.
"I wouldn't put it past MechSoft to come after you, despite how silent they've been," said Jesse. "What you did this afternoon? Everything you found out? That's dangerous information."
Finn nodded, suddenly feeling the weight of what she'd learnt. "Would you like something? A glass of water, maybe?"
Jesse nodded then looked around at the apartment's open kitchen, dining room and living room setup.
"I like the cat in the lobby," said Jesse, taking off their coat. "It's nice that he's there to help the residents."
"That's the first time I've seen anyone hang out with Joe," said Finn. They'd found a cute resident sitting with the ginger cat as they walked into the apartment building.
"That guy looked like he really needed someone to talk to. And Joe... it was Joe, right?" said Jesse. Finn nodded. "Joe looked content and alert, like he really was listening as he lay on the guy's lap, purring with every stroke."
"Zhen will really like that," said Finn, offering Jesse a glass of water.
Jesse took a sip from the glass and smiled. "Zhen, right. Your friend, not girlfriend. Even though one would be forgiven to think otherwise after that little performance at the bar that night."
"Zhen is just my roommate and my friend," said Finn. They would soon be sisters, but she didn't really feel like bringing that up. "Nothing more."
"Sure," said Jesse, putting down the glass and standing up from the kitchen island's bar stool. "How about a tour?"
"Uh, yeah, of course," said Finn, sculling the water in her glass. She led Jesse to the little hallway that held doors to the bathroom and their rooms. "And this is my room."
"I really didn't need a tour," said Jesse, gently shutting the door to Finn's room. "I just wanted to know where your bedroom was."
Finn turned to face Jesse, her heart beating fast. "Oh?"
"The word 'No' is a sentence," said Jesse, advancing closer. "You can use it at any time."
"Yes," said Finn. She shook her head and tried to clarify the statement. "I mean, I know I can say no, but I won't. I say 'yes'."
For the next few weeks, Jesse came over to the apartment every day after Finn was done with work. They would try and figure out what the engineer had done but getting into MechSoft's database was impossible. Finn was good at playing the defensive game when it came to software. Zhen was the offensive player. She would have figured this out in no time. Finn just ended up being frustrated. But it wasn't all bad. Jesse had a way to turn Finn's tension and frustration into nothing but pure bliss using nothing but her tongue.
Jesse wasn't her one true love, but Finn didn't mind. There was no heartache with Jesse. No desperate thoughts of inadvertently betraying and losing her. There was just pleasure and fun and adoration from Jesse. And Finn really needed that right then. She needed to know that her life wasn't just one long slog filled with the dread of falling in love.