Had it gotten bigger?<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2F78.media.tumblr.com%2Fd1e32ed049af2d2caa3ea5192aadedf7%2Ftumblr_njgyprrvdR1s5r9kko1_250.png&amp;hash=e76a7bad45bc6b0dbf34b1362c432bb3" href="https://78.media.tumblr.com/d1e32ed049af2d2caa3ea5192aadedf7/tumblr_njgyprrvdR1s5r9kko1_250.png" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Desmond Rhodes </a>—or just Dez to most people who knew him— sat forward in his chair, dark eyes zeroed in on a black dot on the off-white walls of the computer room. A set of headphones perched atop his head, the music blaring into his ears drowned out the soft hum and whir of the computers cooling fans. The volume was higher than was advisable but he preferred it that way, anything to silence the detrimental thoughts that invaded his thoughts when things were too quiet. He sat wasting time  for a while now, staring at the black spot no larger than a red dot on a laser. And the longer he stared the larger it seemed to grow until it was all he saw, everything else fading until it was just him and the dot. The fucking dot. Where had it come from? Why was he so fascinated by it? He was supposed to be working. Three projects were coming up on their deadline, one of which was a computer his client wanted built from the ground up with very specific parameters. He needed to finish it.<br/><br/>A vibration ran up his left leg and Dez jumped, his focus snapping back to the present. Hand reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone. It was the grey one, not his personal phone, no, this one he used only for Resistance work. And it looked to be just that. One of the suspected androids that they'd been keeping tabs on was moving toward a Melius building. No doubt with a victim in tow. Dez sighed tossing the phone onto the desk, no work  was getting done today. He pushed out of his chair, stretching to loosen stiff limbs and muscles that came from sitting in the same position too long, when his phone vibrated again. A quick look at the screen told him that Kassia was on her way to intercept the android and it's quarry. Good, she had it handled.<br/><br/>Work could come later, and seeing as how he usually worked better under pressure he wasn't too worried about the encroaching deadline, confident that he'd get the work done on time, no sooner and no later. Besides, he had a sudden terrible craving for a strawberry tart, something he hadn't eaten since...that fateful incident a few months back. He shook his head as if to get rid of the memory, making sure to grab his phone before stepping out of the room and locking the door behind him. Something he'd started doing after his roommate had wandered in one day and managed to spill a sugary blue slush all over his equipment. All the money and time he'd spent to ensure everything was up to his standards gone, lost, wasted. The only bright side to that whole disaster was he'd had the forethought to backup all important files and documents. Otherwise, he would have to be looking for a new roommate. He'd seen red for days after, avoiding the idiot until he had calmed down some and while he may have forgiven, he hadn't forgotten, hence the locked door.<br/><br/>With his roommate most likely knocked out, the apartment was quiet and Dez was careful not to make too much noise as he headed for the front door, no need to wake the sleeping giant.<br/><br/>He took the stairs like he always did, 15 flights of them, footsteps echoing off the walls as he descended at a steady pace. On reaching the ground floor he settled his headphones around his neck, giving a smile and a wave to the old cat lady who lived on the first floor of his building. Samantha Whittaker: Age 78, widowed, lived alone, had an estranged son, was violating quite a few building codes but that wasn't his problem. And that was just the basic stuff. There were more in-depth documents sorted alphabetically on every person that lived in his apartment building.<br/><br/>Dez squinted against the sunlight as he stepped out into the chaos of noise and motion that came with living in such a busy city. The peaceful quiet of his apartment called him back but he really wanted that damn tart and the cafe was only a few blocks away from his building. With most things he needed within walking distance and public transport covering anything out of range, he'd never bothered to invest money into a car. Walking helped to clear his head so that was a bonus.<br/><br/>The cafe was bustling with the afternoon crowd by the time Dez arrived, the scent of freshly brewed coffee and the white noise of multiple voices talking at once created the sort of ambience that was almost relaxing. He placed his order before managing to find a table situated in a comfortable nook in a corner, with a clear view of the entrance. Which was perfect, as he had a strong aversion to sitting with his back exposed in public places.<br/><br/>Strawberry tart and iced coffee in hand,  Dez settled down, pulled out his phone, tapped out a quick message to one, Kelly Parker. Confident that Kassia had the Moore situation under control and that someone would be there to back her up if need be, Dez focused on setting up that meet with Melius CEO's personal assistant.<b><i>'Tomorrow afternoon, four pm. Bell Coffee Shop.'</i></b>Public, but with just the right amount noise that they wouldn't be over heard.<br/><br/>Kelly just might be the in they had been looking for and even though the woman had agreed to join their little 'crusade', she was still a wildcard.And right now they needed to tread carefully.<br/><a class="username" data-user-id="1136" data-username="@Mature Desires" data-xf-init="member-tooltip" href="https://blackdahliaroleplaying.com/members/1136/">@Mature Desires</a><br/>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br/><br/>It may have been a slow day at the library but<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2F564x%2Fcf%2F95%2Fc9%2Fcf95c9b07c4e372be04e456df4cb81b4.jpg&amp;hash=1324e80daac64f04b8482c3d572507f3" href="https://i.pinimg.com/564x/cf/95/c9/cf95c9b07c4e372be04e456df4cb81b4.jpg" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Erin Mackenzie</a>went about her work with a diligence and focus that kept her from the chilling glare of her supervisor that a few of her other fellow co-workers received from the surly woman. Even on quiet days there was still work to do and there was something almost therapeutic in the mechanical task of organizing the old books from the new ones. With technology being a large part of people's everyday lives, most written word was computerized these days, but so long as there were still trees to kill, paperbacks would continue to be used. Erin enjoyed —no scratch that— loved her job, couldn't imagine doing anything else. Most days could be stressful and trying, her supervisor was a right pain in the ass, and patrons usually left her with a headache by the end of the day, but she still woke up in the morning looking forward to the work day ahead. Her friends had labeled her a workaholic and hardly bothered to invite her out as much as they used to, nothing she could do about that. It was natural for people to drift apart. Still, she tried to set time aside for recreational activities; which reminded her, she was supposed to go out for drinks with a few people from work the coming weekend.<br/><br/>Shit, what was she going to wear? No, nope, not going to worry about it. She refocused on the task at hand, doing a quick perusal of the check list in front of her. There were still a few things that needed looking after and she got on that right away. No time like the present.<br/><br/>By the time her shift had ended, Erin had managed to finish off all the items on her check list and then some. Gathering up her things, she made a mental note to pick up some flowers on her way to the hospital to visit her mother. As much as she hated hospitals she still made an effort to drop in whenever she could. Her siblings had made it clear that they were not ever planning to visit the woman who had abandoned her children. While Isabelle Givani wouldn't be winning any mother of the year awards, Erin believed in second chances and the woman was dying for crying out loud. But her brother and sisters weren't hearing it, they just didn't care. Nothing she could do about that.<br/><br/>Bag slung over her shoulder Erin hailed down a cab, trying to calm the nervous flutter of anxious energy that had her wanting to puke. Once again she questioned her decision, as she did on every other occasion. Didn't matter that she was always happy that she had visited, after the fact. God, she hated hospitals.