[center][h1][color=8882be]Ashley Gallagher[/color][/h1][/center]
[center][h2][color=8882be]Smith Residence[/color][/h2][/center]

[i]"It's a long shot, but unless you have any other evidence, it's what we have."[/i]

Ashley mulled over this statement for longer than necessary, thinking on it as if he were peering over the edge of a steep cliff. He thought of Emerald, of the information she could possibly-- rather, no doubt reveal. He then thought of Alison, the girl brutally murdered with only the faintest of connections to the original crime. If he brought Emerald any deeper...

The soft brown eyes of Detective Smith seemed to creep into the back of his mind, wrinkled at the corners, lips forming witty words forever silenced. Ashley thought on the navy coat he would never again see draped over the back of his desk chair, he thought on the boy who would grow up without a father. He could bring justice to the man, to his friend, he [i]had[/i] to, with no limitations.

And yet as he examined Calvin with a neutral eye he found himself lying as fluidly as water through a spout. "I've got nothing, Cal. The Club is our best shot. I gotta make a stop if you don't mind, forgot some papers at home. You finish up here with the Coroner, I'll meetcha'."

If he was being completely honest, he wasn't sure how he felt about working with Lovegrove. He had only slightly abrasive memories of the man, enough to temper his trust. You could never truly trust anyone from Ad Vice, Ashley had learned. Hell, he hardly even trusted himself. The faster you learned that, the longer you'd last. Nobody was your friend. Smith was an exception, and he was dead.

Ashley worked a cigarette from his pocket, offering a curt nod to Lovegrove before departing. He caught the Coroner's assistant in the hall... Tiffany, he believed her name was? "Go ahead and tell the Coroner we're wrapping up and moving on. Give the family some peace-- But don't let them in just yet." He swallowed, lighting the tip of his cigarette with a shaking hand. "I don't think she's quite ready."