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"Come on," Simon said to Amber, unable to keep the sense of urgency out of his voice. "We need to get to the university."
Amber and Simon hurried back to their car, and Simon could feel his heart pounding with the urgency of the situation. If he was the killer they were looking for, then they had to hurry. They had to find Marcus Johnson before he could hurt anyone else.
Thankfully, it was only a short drive to the university, over the bridge and onto one of the islands. There, large buildings in a Gothic style loomed ahead of them in a series of spires and ivy-covered walls. A central campus seemed to focus around a large quad, while the sprawl of it was contained by the limits of the island that the university sat upon. They pulled up in front of the campus, and the two of them leaped out, heading into it and looking around for any sign of their suspect.
They found a member of campus security instead, a large man who looked over at the two of them suspiciously as if wondering what they were doing there on the campus at night. Simon flashed his ID and watched the security guard’s expression turn to something more helpful almost instantly.
"We're looking for a homeless guy who might be hanging around campus," he said.
Amber held out her phone. She'd pulled up a picture of Marcus Johnson. That was good thinking. It was a lot easier than trying to describe him.
"Him?" the security guard said, sounding surprised that the two of them were looking for him. He gestured in the direction of one of the campus administration buildings. "I think I saw him over that way somewhere. Why? What has he done?"
"We just need to talk to him in connection with a case," Amber said.
It was the right thing to say. Simon didn't want to raise a panic about Marcus potentially being a serial killer when they didn't have enough evidence to connect him to the crimes yet. He also didn't want campus security to overreact if they saw him. Not until they knew more.
Instead, he and Amber started to make their way over towards the administration building, hoping that Marcus would still be there when they got there.
As they walked, Simon couldn't help but feel a sense of unease settling into him with every step he took. The darkness had fully descended by now so that the only light came from the lamps that dotted the campus pathways. It meant that there were plenty of shadows beyond their glow. He glanced around, wondering how many potential hiding spots there were for someone who didn't want to be found. They passed by several students, and each time, Simon had to check to make sure that they weren’t the man the two of them were looking for.
They rounded a corner and saw a figure huddled up against the wall, wrapped in a ragged coat. Simon's heart leaped into his throat as he recognized the figure from his photographs. It was Marcus Johnson.
Amber started forward, but Simon held out a hand to stop her. They needed to be careful about how they did this. They couldn’t just rush in blindly. They didn't know if Marcus was armed or if he had any friends nearby who might try to intervene.
They approached more slowly, their hands on their weapons, ready to draw them at the first hint of trouble from the homeless man.
Marcus Johnson?" Simon said, keeping his voice low and non-threatening. "I'm Agent Simon Phelps, and this is Agent Amber Young. We need to ask you some questions."
Marcus looked up at them, his eyes wide and unfocused. It was clear that he was drunk or high, or both. Simon could see the glimmer of a bottle in his hand.
"Don't care about your questions," Marcus said. "Keep away from me!"
"Where were you last night, Marcus?" Amber asked, taking another step forward.
"I don't talk to cops. I know you're out to get me."
"We're FBI, not cops," Simon said. He hoped that the difference would help Marcus to understand the seriousness of the situation. "Were you anywhere near the north bridge?"
"I don't talk to cops!" Marcus snarled and took a clumsy swing at Amber with the bottle.
Simon stepped into the path of the attack, blocking the swing. They’d let themselves get too close, and now there was no time to draw a gun, even if it might have been useful. Against a drunk with a bottle, it seemed better to do this without resorting to lethal force.
"Get off me!" Marcus snarled, throwing punches at Simon, trying to break away.
Simon covered up, stopping the punches from getting through while making sure that he didn't lose his grip on the arm holding the bottle. That could hurt him much more than any of the punches the homeless man could throw at him.
Simon wrenched at that arm, and the bottle clattered from Marcus' grasp, falling to the ground and shattering, with shards of glass scattering across the paving underfoot. Simon knew that he needed to be careful now. He couldn't take Marcus to the ground now to control him, not with so much broken glass there.
That moment of hesitation gave the homeless guy the opportunity that he needed. Marcus managed to land a punch to Simon's jaw then, hard enough that he was able to break away. Before Simon could recover and grab him again, he turned and started to run.
Simon and Amber followed after him, their feet pounding against the paving. They had to catch him before he got away. Marcus weaved through the buildings, his ragged coat flapping behind him as if he knew his way around the university perfectly. He was surprisingly fast, considering his inebriated state.
Simon and Amber gave chase, their adrenaline surging as they ran through the campus. They couldn't let Marcus get away, not when he was their only lead in the case. They kept pace, and then they started to catch up.
Marcus was fast, but Simon was faster. He'd always been in good shape, and now his FBI training allowed him to close the gap between him and Marcus quickly. Now that they were well clear of the broken bottle, Simon had no qualms about taking this suspect down. He tackled him from behind, taking him to the ground. Marcus struggled and kicked, but Simon managed to keep him pinned down until Amber arrived to help cuff him.
Panting, they both stood up, their eyes fixed on Marcus. It was clear that he was still under the influence, and it was unlikely that they would get any useful information from him at this point. But they had him, and that was a start.
