The news that Gaston might be out in the open had to be acted on quickly.
“I’ll get Wiz to go over to Patricia’s house to intercept Gaston,” Shining said over the radio to Airborne. “If he leaves, get Báistí to follow him discretely, and you follow her. Get Rough to follow you on the ground, like a chain.”
“I’ll do that, sir.”
“Give Báistí a few pointers on covert pursuit, but remind her that this is a dangerous criminal we’re following.”
Airborne signed off with understanding and Shining came out of his office. The first pegasus he spotted was Ace. Shining sent the Guard to the police station to fetch Wiz and then accompany him up north to Patricia’s house.
When Ace had departed, Shining mulled over the evidence and tried to think. Gaston could be coming out in the open as a ploy to bring heat onto himself as a distraction from other targets, or he could be trying to lure the guards into a trap. From what Shining had seen, Gaston was himself a big target, so it was probably not the former possibility. The likelihood that it was the latter remained to be seen.
Shining radioed his concerns to both Ace and Airborne. Ace radioed back a reply. “I just formed up with Wiz. He agrees. We’ll try to get there before Gaston leaves. If we don’t however, he doesn’t think it’s a good idea to let Báistí follow Gaston on her own.”
“We’ll have somepony within sight,” Shining assured him.
“I trust you, sir,” replied Ace. Shining frowned at the undertone in his statement. Wiz was definitely not the same kind of cop as Stormfeather.
There was nothing to do but wait. Shining frowned, feeling the detachment of commanding from a distance. He thought about their surveillance efforts so far, considering that maybe there was another way of going about it.
He walked over to the intel spaces. Mag looked up from his data as Shining walked in. “Sir?”
Shining replied, “I was thinking that you could magic us up some impromptu listening devices, either literally or figuratively.”
Mag nodded. “I’ll get the girls working on it. Depending on the situation, we might be able to do a magic-powered bug or a radio.”
That was promising. Shining sat down to pick through the evidence again. Abernathy running was a good place to start. Where had he gone? Could they track him? Was there anyone in the city he could be staying with? Shining went through the evidence found at his place again: a few business papers, a radio, money, and some love letters.
“He’s moving!” Airborne suddenly called through the radio.
Shining picked it up. “Understood.”
Mag pulled out a log and listened as Airborne called out their movements. This was both so Wiz and Ace could find them, but also to keep track of things on a larger scale.
Shining glanced at the rough map that Mag was drawing. Once again, he was reminded of the feeling of being a detached commander. It was nice to see the broader picture, but it felt less personal.
Gaston traced a path almost directly southwest from Patricia’s house. He’d gotten down to the vicinity of the hospital before turning southeast for a block and then heading back the direction he’d come. Shining gritted his teeth. It looked like he was doubling back, and that meant he either knew or suspected he was being followed.
And then came the report that Shining did not want to hear. “He turned east and then we lost him. Sorry sir.”
“Wiz and I didn’t manage to catch up with him before he broke contact,” Ace reported.
“He passed Mr. Thrift’s store and looked like he was continued east,” Airborne said, adding to his earlier report.
Shining thought about that. Didn’t Gregory say something about Abernathy possibly being out east somewhere? But where, exactly? There was a lot of farmland and scattered houses and outbuildings out that way. It would be next to impossible to locate a hideout without some other clues to narrow it down.
“All of you get back here,” Shining said. “We’ll regroup and come up with another plan.”
He drew up some notes while he waited for them all to return. By the time his Guards and the two griffon escorts got back, Shining knew what he wanted to say.
First off, he asked if Wiz had made any progress towards the tasks Shining had wanted him to accomplish.
“The chief is still holding off on assigning another officer to the case,” Wiz said. “However, I did get you permission to set up in Abernathy’s house, if you want.”
Shining hoped the terrible smell of death had dissipated. He nodded. “I’ll see if we can do anything with it.”
“Also, you asked about bailing out Gilgamesh,” said Wiz. He told Shining how much it would cost. The number was disturbingly high.
Shining frowned and quickly considered the team’s finances. If they paid it, they could only operate in Port Talon for perhaps three more days. They might be able to talk to Celestia and get more money before they ran out, but he would prefer to get the funding secured before hand. He had to decide if Gilgamesh was worth it.
“Isn’t that kind of high for the crime he was arrested for?” Shining asked. “Could we talk to the judge and ask if the bail could be lowered considering the situation?”
“That…might be a little bit above my job,” Wiz admitted.
“I can do it,” Báistí put in. “It might take a little while, but I know who the judge is.”
Shining nodded to her. “Thank you.”
He took a moment to glance at the map and evidence log before turning to the rest of the team. “In the meantime, the rest of us need to find something to do.”
