Two Heads Are Better Than One

[Ella713]

Two Heads Are Better Than One
Rated PG
By Ella713

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Logan and Guillermo try to solve a murder on their own with no help from Mick.

Logan knew that he should call Mick. He was the expert on these things but Logan felt like his contribution was always limited to computers and hacking codes. Surely he was capable of a lot more. Closing the news article, he made up his mind. Guillermo had access to the body. Maybe he was tired of the same treatment. Logan quickly took a shower and got dressed and drove to the hospital.

Guillermo looked up when he noticed a vampire was approaching.
"Hey Logan man. what's up?" He asked shaking his hand.
"This is going to sound crazy, but I was reading about that dead kid they found at the Montgomery Playground." He began to explain.
"Yeah, what a mess" Guillermo said. "Somebody beat the crap out of that kid. He had severe internal injuries most likely chocked on his own blood."
"That park is only a few blocks from my place" Logan said.
"Did you see anything?" Guillermo asked quickly.
"No. But I did hear something strange. An older guy was yelling at someone, most likely that kid" Logan said.
"Did you call Mick?" Guillermo asked.
"No. Not yet. I was actually thinking about looking into it myself. See what I can find out."

[Ella713]

Guillermo stared at Logan for a few minutes.
"Logan do you think that's a good idea? I mean this sounds like a bad situation and you don't know what it involves. And this is usually Mick's territory" He reminded Logan
"Look, Mick's busy with the whole Kostan's The Governor thing. He won't have time for it. But we do" Logan hinted suggestively wiggling his eyebrows.
"Uh uh! No way man! I'm not getting involved in this" Guillermo said shaking his head.
"If we solve this, just think of the babes we'd have coming our way. And face it. You've got the medical part covered and I've got the rest." He said convincingly. Guillermo thought about it for a moment. There had been quite a few times when he had been on the right track about a crime to only be shoved back my Mick or Josef. And it would turn out he was right the whole time. Maybe if he and Logan could solve this murder, he's get a little bit more respect.
"Ok. I'll do it. But if things start getting dicey we need to bow out and call Mick" Guillermo said.
"Deal!" Logan said with a large grin. "You got the coroner's report? Guillermo pulled out the file and took out the report for Logan to look at.
"So Max Fletcher age 13, was killed via blunt force trauma after being stabbed 6 times." Guillermo explained.
"That sounds like overkill for such a young kid" Logan wondered out loud.
"I figure the stab wounds didn't kill hill. Unless you hit a major artery, it would take a while to bleed out. So they conked him on the head and that's what finally did him in."
"What about kid's family. Anybody come to claim the body?"
"Just an older sister. Her and her husband live near Barstow. The parents are MIA. No one's seen them in a couple of weeks" Guillermo said
"Something bad is going on here man. We gotta figure this out!" Logan said closing the report.

Logan looked up at the depressing little cottage house that had been until very recently the home of one Max Fletcher. The front door was wide opened. Logan walked carefully in. The house was a wreck. Someone had tossed the place obviously looking for something. He walked into the kitchen and saw liquor bottles everywhere. Looked like Max had a horrific childhood. He went upstairs to check out the kid's room if he had one. The small room at the end of the hall was neat as a pin and Logan knew it was Max's room. Logan went through everything. Max seemed to be a very smart kid. He was reading books on software design and engineering! This kid must have been some kind of genius. Logan froze as he heard someone open the door downstairs and walk in. He quietly stepped into the small closet.

"Look at this shit hole!" A loud voice said throwing something hard to the ground. "We have to find the boys parents!"
"We'll find him. All we gotta do is check all the local taverns!" Another voice laughed and Logan heard the door close. He quickly went to the window and looked out. He saw two men in their 30's possibly wearing suits. They got into a late model cadillac and drove away. Logan took down the license number and left out the back door.

[Ella713]

Guillermo went over the Medical Examiner's report for a third time, smacking his forehead for missing it the first time. The contents of kid's stomach contained peanut butter, cheese, bread and .....aluminum copper? That didn't make any sense, but when he checked the list of the autopsy remains, there it was. A computer chip? Why would the kid eat something like that? Because he didn't want anyone to see what was on it. Guillermo wasd finishing placing every back where it was when Logan ran into the room.
"Guillermo, I just came for the kid's home and someone really tossed the place. I mean everything was thrown around, except for the boy's room. It was neater than neat. I think he was some kind of genius or protegee. He had books on engineering and computer programming and software design." Logan said quickly.
"Well, that makes sense because he had a computer chip in his stomach."
"You're kidding! Let me see it" Logan asked quickly. Guillermo handed him the small computer chip. "This is a RAM chip" Logan said turning over and looking at both sides.
"Yeah, so what's that mean?"
"RAM allows a computer to temporarily store data so it can be utilized quickly by the CPU" Logan said. "We have to find out what's on it. Let's go to my place."

They arrived at Logan's flat in 20 minutes. Logan's place was cluttered sky high with video games and PC magazines.
"Just move that crap off the chair" Logan said with a wave of his hand. He plugged in the chip into his computer. The screen flickered for a moment. The resolution wasn't as clear as he'd hoped, but you could still make out what was going on. Max was sitting in his bedroom on the bed. An older man walked into the room and sat next to him on the bed. Max looked nervous and afraid. Logan stopped the computer from running. He didn't want to see a little kid violated like that. And it made him angry at the very thought of it.
"That poor kid." Guillermo said shaking his head slowly.
"Max videotaped what was happening to him so there would be some proof. Now all we have to do is find out who that bastard in the video is."

[Ella713]

Logan found out that the cadillac was registered to a Dr. Julian Samuels. A Pediatrician whose specialty was brain disorders in children. They looked at his photo and compared it to the the video. It was a dead match.
"Okay so now we know who killed the kid. What are we going to do?" Guillermo asked. Logan shrugged his shoulders. He hadn't thought that far ahead. He supposed they could turn the information over the Carl........
"Let's see if we can find the parents. If we find them we can really find out what happened to their son." Logan explained. Guillermo nodded enthusiastically. He was really hyped to solve this thing.

They were at the 11th bar and Logan thought he spotted them. He saw a couple in the corner whispering quietly to each other, taking furtive glances at the door when someone walked in. In short, they looked hunted. Logan purchased a bottle of whiskey and walked over to their table.
"Hey, all the tables are taken, mind if join you?" He asked with a smile and he held the bottle in front of them in view. He saw their eyes light up with anticipation.
"Sure, we don't mind" She said scooting over so Logan could sit next to her. Logan opened the bottle and poured a large measure for both of them and taking a little for himself.
They shot the breeze about the weather and inflation and the price of gas. Logan saw that they were feeling a lot more relaxed so he started asking questions.
"How long you two been married?" He asked. The man scratched his head for a moment.
"What is it? 11 or 12 years Patty?" He asked trying to remember. His wife looked up surprised almost forgetting they were there.
"12 years" She said reaching for the bottle to pour herself another drink. "What about you?" She asked Logan looking at him seductively.
"No, nothing like that. The whole finding the right woman is hard. Then there's the whole issue of children. You got kids?" He asked in what he hoped was a casual voice. The woman dropped her eyes.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. I was just making conversation" Logan continued, pouring the man another drink which he gulped down.
"Our son died not too long ago." She said staring down at her drink.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything" Loga apologized. The woman grabbed Logan's hand tightly.
"Our boy was murdered." She said softly.
"By who?" Logan asked. The woman shook her head.
"Nobody knows." She said looking at her husband. "And we thank you for the drink but we gotta be going" She said standing up and almost falling over. "Come on William" she said sternly and they stumbled out into the night.

Logan walked over to where Guillermo was sitting.
"What'd you find out?" Guillermo asked him.
"It's definitely the parents. And they told me that their son was murdered but claimed they didn't know by who"
"Well, I've been talking to some people here and they said the parents are well known drunks. Been coming around for years. No real troubles or anything, but Max is their son. No one remembers hearing anything about them being abusive to the boy, but there was some neglect. They said Max practically raised himself." Guillermo said sadly.

"I say we try and find this Doctor." Logan said firmly
"Yeah. And don't hold me responsible for what I'll do to him" Guillermo said in anger.

[Ella713]

Dr. Julian Samuels lived in a very nice section Laurel Canyons. He was divorced from his second wife for cheating on her with one of his interns. Now living with this intern he couldn't figure out why he cheated on his wife to begin with. Nicole, his intern was very beautiful with her pouty lips and doe eyes. But she lacked refinement and depth. She was happy to lie around all day watching television. She had absolutely no goals other than being pretty. His wife Sonja had a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology. She had very firm opinions and a wicked sense of humor. She also had no sex drive whatsoever. His libido led him to Nicole and now he was sorry. He pushed his thoughts away and tried to concentrate on the work in front of him. Max Fletcher had been a sad case. The boy showed so much promise at first. Max began reading at the age of 3 and by the time he was 7 he could take apart a computer and rebuild it perfectly. He was writing HTML code and doing programming work. Max would have been his Alan Turning. He would have reshaped the tech industry. Who knows. Max was on his way to perfecting artificial intelligence. But Julian knew he was losing him. Max began to notice girls. And began to establish other interests like baseball. To think that little shit was going to throw away a promising career for baseball! He pushed the papers to the side. He couldn't make any sense out of them. He needed a distraction.
"Nicole my love, I'm going out for a bit" Julian said to her as he grabbed his keys. Nicole didn't hear him, she was focused on the latests antics on The Bachelor.

Julian pulled up to the softball field and took a seat in the bleachers. He watched the boys finish up the game and put away there equipment. A young boy sat next to him.
"Hey Dr. Samuel" He said with no emotion.
"Hello Eddie. How are you?" He said softly placing his hand on the boys thigh.

"Are you sure this is where the doctor lives?" Guillermo asked.
"Of course I'm sure. Come on, let's check it out" Loga said taking off for the large house.

[Ella713]

"The Doctor lives very well" Logan said taking in the size of the home.
"Most of them do" Guillermo said walking quickly to the back of the house. "Look, over there. I think that patio door is unlocked" They both ran quietly to the patio and stepped lightly in. They heard the television from behind a door. "Logan. You stay here make sure no one comes out or in. I'm going upstairs to see if the doc has an office" Guillermo said taking off. He found the office right away. Papers were lying all about the desk. Guillermo picked them up scanning them all. Paydirt he thought. These were all reports on Max Fletcher. Apparently this Max kid was some kind of uber genius according to these reports. He took all of the papers and headed back towards Logan.
"What'd you find?" Logan whispered.
"The motherload. Come on let's get out of here" He said. As they made their way out of the house, they heard a car approaching. The quickly his behind a large wisteria bush.
"I think that's the doctor" Logan said quietly. Dr. Samuels stepped out of his car with a young boy following close behind. "What the hell" Logan said becoming alarmed for boy.

Both Guillermo and Logan very quickly left their hiding spot running at the doctor. Logan grabbed the young boy and Guillermo grabbed the doctor by the throat and lifted him into the air.
"Are you hurt?" Logan asked the boy. 'Did he hurt you? What are doing here with him?" The boy watched at Guillermo held the doctor in one hand with some kind of superhuman strength.
"We were just going to run through some test" The boy said.
"What kind of test"?
"Software test. We were testing animatronics to see if a multi-disciplinary field could be established in computer software" The boy explained. Logan nodded to Guillermo and he let the doctor down.
"Whoa! You're telling me that you can introduce disciplinary function into computer code? How?"
"Don't say a word Jason!" The doctor screamed. Guillermo punched the doctor and knocked him out cold.
"The doc hooks me up to the computer system to monitor my emotions and reactions to various images and the computer documents it, then we combine with the multi-disciplinary fields and see if the computer can....well feel. Not just feel but react to actual emotions" The boy finished.
"You understand what he's talking about?" Guillermo asked in confusion.
"Yeah, I do. And it's scary stuff. How close are you?"
"We were real close with Max. I mean it's Max's project. He was the genius. But since he died, the doc and I were trying to finish it without him"
"Did Max leave the project?" Logan asked suddenly.
"Yeah. Lately all he talked about was baseball. He really wanted to play for the youth league with me. He had a wicked fastball. I told him he should try out. Next thing, he's gone"
"That's because he was murdered." Guillermo said Jason stepped back in shock.
"M...murdered? Who would murder Max?" He asked in surprise. Logan pointed down at the doctor.
"How about the good doctor there?"
"Look, doc was pissed that Max had lost focus, but I don't think he'd kill him"
"And everything is in there?" Logan asked and Jason nodded. "Well, let's go take a look" he said walking towards the door.

[Ella713]

Jason slowly opened the door to the small structure and they stepped in. There was an array of computer equipment in various stages rebuilding. Logan started going through everything.
"What is that video camera hooked to?" He asked. Jason walked over and stared at the camera.
"This isn't a part of our project. Maybe it's surveillance." He offered. Logan turned on the equipment.
"Hey Logan, That's Max Fletcher!" Guillermo said. The video showed Max compiling data then trying to leave. Dr. Samuelson trying to get him to sit down and finish. Max stood up and threw the papers down and started to walk away from the doctor, who came up behind and stabbed him in the back. When Max fell down the doctor stabbed him several times but Max still appeared to be breathing. Then the doctor picked up what looked to be a large flashlight and leveled a blow to his head. Jason shut his eyes.
"Shit! He killed Max!" He yelled becoming scared. Suddenly the room was awash with light and there stood Dr. Samuels blood pouring from an obvious broken nose with a gun in his hand.
"You don't understand. I loved Max. Loved him like he was my own son. It was I who inspired his intellect! It was I who believed in his abilities! And he wanted to squander it on frivolities! I've perfected computer technology into the next age. True artificial intelligence, capable of thought and yes judgement! I won't let anyone stop me! Not some trailer park trash kid and not you!" He screamed pointing the gun. Jason stepped back.
"Doc! What about me? I helped you too?" He pleaded.
"Jason, you poor misguided idiot. Max was the brilliance in this project. After all the work was completed all you had to do was sweep up the debris" He said shaking his head with a smile.
Logan was furious. He looked at Guillermo. They knew what they had to do. Guillermo who was closest to Jason would protect him and Logan would take out the doctor. "Don't try it!" The Dr. ordered sensing that Logan was going to rush him. "I doubt you're faster than a speeding bullet" He joked. With preternatural speed Logan had rushed the doctor and knocked the gun out of his hand and had pushed up against the concrete wall.
"How's that for fast Doc?" Logan said in anger baring his fangs and draining him completely. Guillermo quickly got Jason out of the structure and called Isabelle.


Josef walked around the building with Logan as he explained to Josef what he was looking at.
"Josef, I'm telling you. There is no way humans are prepared for this kind of technology! I mean...."
"Logan I know. I've seen the Terminator movies" Josef joked "Don't worry, Isabelle and I will take care of it. Where's Mick?" He asked looking around.
"Guillermo and I handled this ourselves" Logan said proudly. Josef looked at him in surprise.
"I think a lot of people underestimate you Logan" Josef said.

Logan and Guillermo got a lot of press for the solving of the Fletcher murder. People called them good samaritans and heroes! And they loved every minute of it.


Artificial Intelligence. Josef thought as he looked at the equipment in his basement. Logan was right.
Mankind couldn't have access to this. It would be the destruction of them all. He looked at the work men.
"Wall it up." He ordered watching them work on sealing up the future.





The End