Blurring traces

[Gambit]

"Hmm, I dunno," Gambit shrugged. "Can't have it validated wit' a power of attorney, ya know. Why would I be givin' ya just a part of it? I have no interest in its contents, merely passin' de item to de client, is all." He put out the cigarette stub in the ashtray and sipped his coffee.

[Somebody?]

Serena meant to say something like ´Well, I wouldn´t know. Why don´t you tell me?´Which would be something she would be saying to any other person coming to her with such a request. But for some reason that did not seem to be too much of a relevant question regarding him. Because, right, what interest could he possibly have beyond that? He was merely a thief after all, she knew that.

"All right," she said. "we´re quite interested in that list, too. All we found so far was an empty folder, not a page left, so we just guessed there must have been something like a list. Looks like somebody made sure it disappeared."

[Gambit]

"So," Gambit said, "ya see, helping me find it is to our mutual benefit. I need 'who's and 'where's. What's de story wit' Steve an' Harry? Dey worked alone?"

[Somebody?]

"We don´t think they do." Serena replied, twisting her coffee between her hands slowly. "Harry is dead and Steven has shot wound on his shoulder and isn´t too cooperative in that respect. All he gave away was a vague description of the killer." She paused, retracing their investigation so far. "We have the suspition that the two are part of a small militant anti mutant group we heard of a few times already, called Sapien Pride. They have no fixed location but one we knew of, here in New York. We arrived in time today to find the smoking heaps of whatever documents they might have had."

[Gambit]

Gambit made a note of that in his phone. "Where do Harry an' Steve come from? Can it be traced? I been fishin' for a connection, but all I got was a bunch of vaguely relevant cases from all over; didn't even find any hints at those two guys. I just figured it might be related and worth takin' a look in that direction... which is a pain, by de sheer numbers of it. Dey been busy, no?"

[Somebody?]

Serena nodded. "They have been, even though there have been a lot of hate crimes over the last decade or so and we are unable to match the right group or person to each murder. There are a few we are certain of that can be assigned to them, but the majority remains unsolved." She took a sip of her coffee before continuing. "We have a lead on Steve that might yield some results. He´s possibly from Houston originally, served a few years in the army before he was kicked out."

[Gambit]

Gambit nodded, taking another note. "Last name?" he asked, hoping this wasn't anything too secret. He wouldn't go to Houston, of course, but more information about those people meant he could find some more recent and geographically close traces of their activity.

[Somebody?]

"Palmer." Serena said. "We hardly know much more about any of them. No fixed place of residence over a span of more than a few months at a time."

[Gambit]

"Well, dat be somethin' I'm familiar wit'," Gambit smirked. "So why ain't Steve talkin'? So hard to crack?"

[Somebody?]

"He denied any bonds with anti mutant groups and when we produced evidence he resumed to his right for a lawyer." Serena said. "We sent a special unit to their hideout in New York but as I said, we arrived too late. We guess the group is relying on a sort of agreement: when on a mission and there is no contact for a while, it is assumed that a mission failed or a cover blown. That would explain why the New York branch destroyed their evidence."

[Gambit]

Gambit leaned back in his seat with an exhale of exasperation. "Dis be gettin' funnier by de minute," he commented. "I might just up de price on my commission." He sipped his coffee. "I plan to get to deir center," he told Serena. "See if I can attempt a break-in to steal data. If not, den rob whoever's carryin' it. I really wish I didn' have to get too deep in dis," he scrunched up his nose in obvious disgust, "ideological hostile mess."

[Somebody?]

"I´d do that if I were you." Serena said. "there´s a whole network of these groups. Most of them are badly organised, but some are a bit more dangerous. This might be one. They seemed more informed than the average bunch of ignorants."

[Gambit]

Gambit let his gaze wander around the bar for a moment before settling it on Serena's features again. If this particular group was better organized, it meant they held more information to work with, which, in its turn, meant there were more chances to find a lead. "Where was de New York location?" he asked. "I might hear a t'ing or two 'bout it."

[Somebody?]

"Newark, near the airport." Serena said, not even wondering why she would give someone, even if this someone was a person she considered a friend, so much information about a case. "An abandoned industrial facility just across the Newark Airport Railway Station. A hall used as an office room, but what we found was just ashes. If there were any computers, they must have taken them with them to some other location because there were none left."

[Gambit]

"I guess dere wouldn' be," Gambit nodded. He paused, wondering how to cover his next question. It felt like he was about to reach the limit of asking so he had to make do with just one final bit of information Serena could give. "D'ya know anythin' on de suspected murderer? A rival organization? A mutant vigilante? Who could be interested in messin' wit' de guys and know where t' find 'em?"