Bitemarks 3.3

Bitemarks 3.3

With his hands cuffed behind him Ed was chaperoned, unceremoniously, towards a desk at the nearest police station. The bored looking officer behind it pulled a fresh form from a pile.
"Name?"
"Dale Fletcher."
This was the first part of the system.
"Address?"
"32 Westcroft Avenue, It's in Bradford." Ed said. And it was. A real address, registered to one Dale Fletcher. If they bothered to check they'd find the bills paid from Mr Fletcher's account regularly and a passport and driver's licence proving Ed to be Dale Fletcher.
"Post code?"
"BD12 3FG."
It wasn't perfect. If they looked hard enough they'd realise it to be fake in the end. But it would buy time. Ed wasn't sure what for exactly.
The officer addressed the other policeman holding Ed.
"Charges?"
The arresting officer placed Ed's gun down on the desk, and the clip he'd removed from it.
"Possession of an unlicensed firearm. Unknown model, no serial number. Discharge of an unlicensed firearm in a public place. That's it until we question him, but possible connection to a murder as well."
The desk cop didn't bat an eyelid. He just wrote it all down then sealed the gun and clip in clear plastic pouches and placed them in a safe behind him.
"Sign here."
Ed waited while he was uncuffed then signed Dale's signature at the bottom of the form.
"Right, come on, with me." barked the arresting officer, tugging Ed down the corridor.

Fingerprints were the next stop and after that Ed was bundled down more corridors, past security gates, to the cells. His escort pushed him through and locked the door behind him. He stopped to open the hatch on the door and peered through.
"We'll be back for you in the morning. You can ring your lawyer then, unless you need us to provide one?"
"I have my own." said Ed. Sure it looked bad but he wasn't about to let this faze him. The system existed for a reason. He had all faith in Alf. The cop slammed the hatch shut and bolted it. Ed looked around at his room for the night. An off white mattress with thin grey blanket and a stainless steel box that was no doubt the lavatory. It was bolted to the floor as was the bed and overhead a dome camera sat nestled in the roof, a single red LED its only feature. Ed lay down on the bed and tried to sleep.

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Skarletta looked up from her papers as David entered.
"What happened to you?"
"I was shot..."
Skarletta came over to him and examined the wound.
"Hmmph. It'll heal. Lie down."
A foolish mistake, she thought to herself. David had given away their location and being so caught up in the remembrance of her mission she'd forgotten to spawn more distractions. No matter.
"David. I have to go to Coventry." she waved the papers he'd printed off as explanation. "You stay here. Rest up. It shouldn't take me long."
She neglected to tell him she wouldn't be returning. From Coventry she would go straight to find her ship, leaving more spawn in her wake. If she had further need of David she could return for him and if not he'd suit his purpose as a diversion for anyone trying to follow her.
"Do you need to me to do anything while you're gone?"
Skarletta shook her head.
"I have all the information I need for now. Oh. Wait, there is one more thing. You do have a car, right?"