Earlier in the day, Samantha sat quietly as she got to the point with Jade were possible careers would come into play. Samantha knew that Jade wanted to be able to help weres, but she also knew that could be a very vague qualifier. There were many ways to help weres, and they could all go in different ways and would often have different skills, and because Dymixious Drake had been purposely vague with regards to his family when Moon Lake had set him up in the town for "protection," Samantha had no way of knowing exactly what skills Jade had and how they would apply. As such, she sighed and then flipped through the folder she had with her until she came to a piece of notebook paper.
"Well... I understand your point on wanting to help weres," Samantha said to Jade as she handed the paper to Jade, "and believe me, NO person in Moon Lake would want to oppose you on that front... but there are many ways to help weres. So, what you have is pretty much a project of brainstorming possible ways you could do so in Moon Lake..."
Jade looked down at the notebook paper and noted the list of job titles that were on the page. It included a fair number of jobs that looked to be connected to Moon Lake's city government or to various other emergency services. She also noted that the list was also written in two colors of ink, black and red. She found a key at the top of the page where those colors were explained. Black ink indicated that there were positions that were open or had the possibility of coming open in the near future. Red ink indicated that while the position could help weres, they either didn't have openings at the present time and it wouldn't be likely that one would come open in the near future.
"There are a fair number that are in the red here," Jade said slowly.
"Yes... well... many of the city positions are full, there are a few that could technically open up with regard to elections next year," Samantha spoke, "though... there could be a lot of bureaucratic red tape to get on the ballet and we're reaching a point in the year where meeting those official requirements would be cutting it rather short. I suppose you could manage it if you wanted to run for office in Moon Lake, but that's the ultimate point where if you lose in the election... you'd be right where you are now. And many of the non-elected posts tend to stay fairly stable with regards to employment."
Jade slowly nodded and looked over the list of positions that were either open or could be open. One thing that drew her attention was that one of the open positions was with the local Moon Lake newspaper as a reporter. She'd run a small gardening blog online while she'd been living with Dymixious at his family compound, but a lot of that was more a hobby than anything else.
"Your local paper has an opening?" Jade wondered.
"Not so much an opening as it is a policy," Samantha answered, "they can allow for anyone to post an opinion page from time to time to voice ideas and so on, which in a way could help weres, and they would pay for any opinion piece sent to them that they decide to publish. Some people add to their income with that sort of thing... though the opinion they argue for may vary. Some have put in opinions on sports and some on decorations and gardening... and so on. If a specific column is either really popular or their editor likes the writing... that person could be added to their regular staff."
"Interesting," Jade said slowly.
"Now, obviously you'd have to exclude direct and obvious references to weres, as the paper can be read by those outside Moon Lake..." Samantha spoke, "but with the right wording you could still get the general point across."
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Meanwhile, in Seattle, Tom had his own issues. He still had his assignment that was to garner research into what law enforcement agencies thought with regard to being prepared for potential violent crooks coming into Washington, and particularly western Washington. For the most part it was a research assignment at the moment, but after two major gun battles in the area, one in Seattle with Lionel Ulysses and the "Rat Pack and the other being an incident in Moon Lake with a Dymixious Drake. Nestled between those battles was the murder of Lionel Ulysses, which the FBI had figured had been done by Dymixious Drake. It had spooked his editor to some degree that the region would have two major gun battles in the space of a week or so, and thus the assignment to see if Washington State's police forces were on the alert and ready for any potential major crime spree that might be coming.
"I thank you for agreeing to a face to face interview, madam director," Tom spoke politely as he looked across the desk that the director for the FBI's Seattle Field Office was presently sitting. She was an older looking woman, though she was dignified and Tom had to privately admit that before that magical night with Alice, HE had looked a lot older than he did now.
"Some of the terms of your paper's questions go beyond what would be something that would be in a press conference," Director Cummings spoke as she eyed the reporter with some degree of suspicion. Speaking with the press wasn't something she was unfamiliar with, as from time to time she would have to give press releases and briefings based on what the Seattle Field Office was handling at that particular moment, the questions seemed to go beyond what they were doing in any one case. In this, it would be best to keep certain things quiet with regard to active investigations and actions that required some measure confidentiality. "I can't answer questions concerning those things across a room."
"They largely relate to some of the things we've reported on in general and concerns that could be had that major criminal groups could be moving into the region," Tom explained, "after the battle with Lionel Ulysses and then his murder picking a fight with police... there could be the potential that they are the first of a line of major felons that could be threatening."
"So, your editor is nervous on this, I take it?" Director Cummings asked with a small chuckle.
Tom managed a small chuckle at that as well. On the whole the assignment wasn't quite one that he wanted, and a part of him even figured that the way he pursued the reporting on Lionel Ulysses arrest had earned him this assignment as punishment. Essentially let the law enforcement agencies point and laugh at the reporter in the tin hat, and his talk with the Seattle Police Commissioner seemed to go that way. Though Director Cummings didn't seem to be going that route and even offered him a seat across from her.
"To an extent," Tom admitted, "but I'd think that anyone would be nervous where in about a week's time you have two major battles between criminals and law enforcement with one being connected to a known gang wanted in several states for varying drug related crimes and the other related to a supposed serial killer/vigilante. Seattle may not be the most violent city... but to have such big battles is sure to make people nervous."
He then sat down as Director Cummings nodded in agreement. He couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at this, as it surprised him. She seemed to be far more accommodating with him than the Seattle Police Commissioner was.
"There has been plenty that's even made us nervous," Director Cummings spoke, "particularly as the battle that lead to Lionel Ulysses' arrest and some recent investigations regarding an organized crime group from New York/New Jersey making its way out here have also been noticed... but they came to us through the Bureau's standard channels and we got some help from agents from those areas... Though I can't reveal too much more in the way of details."
"So there ARE groups from outside Washington State moving in?" Tom asked.
"From what we've been able to intercept, it's more that these groups are being drawn here for personal reasons," Director Cummings spoke, "Not actually trying to set up shop in the state. We have one hired hitman and his employer awaiting trial for trying to assassinate someone in the state as part of a scheme to essentially kidnap a woman and take her back to Alabama. The intentions were violent, yes, but not with the concern of establishing long term bases in the state... And that is the way things have gone for the most part."
"What about groups like the Rat Pack or Dymixious Drake, both of which have been in Washington State for years," Tom asked.
"Their cases are somewhat special," Director Cummings explained, "as you should know from what we've released that much of what we've noted Lionel Ulysses as doing is rather low level and the only technicality that could have brought him to our attention was his habit of crossing state lines from time to time. In this, much of the standard jurisdiction with him would be with local law enforcement and wouldn't be beyond the norm for the area. And given that man he killed in Virginia was from Moon Lake, just as Lionel Ulysses was, I'd probably guess that much of what he'd done is rather personal... a crime of passion, rather than a massive criminal mastermind. And the only reason we were involved after that was the fact that the man he killed was a Marine Corps officer and the murder was on a Marine Corps base."
"True... but Dymixious Drake... from what your agents have reported since his death was announced," Tom commented, "he was supposedly involved in a string of murders of known criminals... murderers, rapists, and mobsters... and that he's had a history of such vigilantism."
Here, Director Cummings couldn't say too much. While Dymixious Drake was dead, the agents investigating him had the suspicion that his father was also involved and that they'd never had the evidence to prove it beyond that Dymixious and his father lived in the same compound east of Seattle and totally out of the way on some side roads in the mountains. However, the man's irritation at the investigation had been visible and she had authorized he remain under surveillance under the suspicion of having something to do with Dymixious's activity. So far there hadn't been any unusual activity, but she couldn't reveal anything regarding to what related to dealing with the investigation of Dymixious Drake.
"The only thing I can say on him is that while what he did do was wrong and dangerous, as we have laws for a reason and law enforcement to execute those laws," Director Cummings spoke, "to a certain extent one can understand why someone would engage in vigilantism... in that they want to take a bite out of crime as it were... but the way to do that is join law enforcement and be properly trained. Just because Batman is celebrated in comic books doesn't mean that sort of activity supported in real life."
Tom slowly nodded, "so at worst Dymixious Drake was only misguided?"
"Misguided in the sense of how he handled dealing with criminals," Director Cummings answered, "but in that posed a serious danger to any undercover officer trying to get evidence and so on... and those problems were further compounded by the fanaticism that drove him to pick a fight with a small town police unit... Which from the article I read... It strikes me that the man had an excessive amount of entitlement in his actions... to engage police in such a fight, and put three in the hospital..."
The woman shook her head at that and gave a heavy sigh, "but as I said, Dymixious Drake's actions strike as more of an oddity than a threat and that with the rest the threat was more in relation to some other personal goal than out right criminal threats."
"I'd think the biggest thing my editor will probably want beyond what you've told me is how well you're paying attention to other possible threats..." Tom said slowly.
"And that you can be assured that we ARE paying attention," Director Cummings answered, "and we do our best to cooperate with all local law enforcement agencies and even keep in touch with Canada's Mounties, in case they need help with a catching a potential suspect. In this... I DON'T think there is a major threat of a uncontrolled crime spree that would make Washington State look like a war zone."
Tom felt some relief at that, and felt that this interview had gone better with regard addressing the things his editor was concerned on. It'd be enough to give him enough confidence for the big debate he knew was coming. The Moon Lake City Council Meeting the next night.