isla hadn't given the gun a second thought, putting it in her locked wardrobe for safe keeping, far out of harm's way where no one could get to it. she knew it was nate's, knew it was registered but didn't want it to get caught up if the police had made an appearance. sure enough, just as she was locking the wardrobe, sirens could be heard from all different corners, cars coming to a screeching halt in front of her home. isla quickly peered from the upstairs windows, neighbors coming out, frightful shouts and pointed fingers coming from almost all of the surrounding homes. she wanted to roll her eyes, but the neighborhood was relatively child-friendly and having someone abducted off the sidewalk and the inclusion of gun shots would make fellow young parents nervous.

there was a pounding knock at her door, followed by "open up, it's the police!" isla had shouted down the stairs that she would be just a minute, but over the sounds of anxious whining dogs, she was sure the cop didn't hear her. she had to kick off her boots, rip her fishnets, dump the jacket and pull on a thigh length robe to cover the outfit she currently boasted. she should've been quicker, left faster to avoid the police. another knock and this time, she shouted louder. the ripped fishnets were hiked up to her thighs, almost as high as the hem of her shorts and out of eyesight, and her robe was pulled tightly around her, hiding what she could.

throwing the door open to reveal the storm door, isla regarded the cop suspiciously. the officer tipped his hat with a stern ma'am and she gave him a nervous smile. this officer was no stranger to her and she opened the door to let him in, the dogs bum rushing him quickly as he stepped past the threshold. once the door closed behind both of them, isla turned to the officer who was just glancing around the living room where they were. her arms folded and she looked at him.

"sorry to bug you, miss castiel. i'm sure you know what this is in regards to. did you see anything?" he had taken out a pad of paper and pencil, ready to jot down anything she'd told him.

her voice was quiet but shaky, arms still folded defensively, but it appeared as if she were hugging herself more than anything. "i only heard what i thought was a gunshot. i looked out to see what all the commotion was, but there wasn't much left to see. i saw a couple of guys beating up on another guy then toss him into a van." she shrugged, giving him her most believable innocent look. "i didn't see anyone holding a gun, so i thought maybe it was just the van backfiring...they sound really similar, ya know?"

the officer nodded as he wrote, low 'mhm's' coming from him every a couple of words. "did you see who it was? did you get a good look at anyone's face?" he asked, looking over his pad of paper.

she had paused, as if trying to recall the faces of the men in front of her house before pursing her lips and shaking her head. "i didn't really see them. just a few guys wearing all black, or something close to it." she watched as he wrote down more notes. "do you think this is a clown thing? i know that's been going around a lot and it is getting close to halloween. could it have been ... i don't know, staged or something?" even though she was trying to act as inconspicuous as possible, she talked to distract him.

the cop laughed and shook his head. "hard to say, though we haven't had any clown kidnappings. this isn't an area known for high crime, so it looks pretty specific. have you noticed anything different around here lately?"

again, isla had paused so she didn't answer him too quickly, screwing her face up to make it look like she was really thinking about her answer. "not really? like you said, it's not a heavy crime area. the whole neighborhood is pretty quiet, it's just a lot of young families." she frowned, a somber look taking over as she rubbed one of her arms. "i hope none of the kids saw any of it. it must be really scary."

when he was finished taking her statement, the officer tipped his hat again and nodded, thanking isla for her cooperation. he left and isla waited in the doorway until he was off the sidewalk before closing and locking the front door. the dogs were impatiently whining at the back door and she knew they only wanted to go outside to bark and annoy the neighbors. knowing she had to bide her time before taking off, isla let them out and stood on the back porch, arms hugged to her body to keep her warm in the chilly october morning.

the cops still hadn't left after what felt like hours but was maybe closer to only one. she had been pacing in her bedroom, the dogs now sacked out on top of her bed while her clothes littered the floor. she kept checking the window every few minutes to see when the final cars would pull out, and when they finally had, isla knew she had the make a hasty escape before she got caught up doing anything else.

once dressed again with a fresh pair of black fishnets, isla made her way out of her house, engaging the security system and locking all of the doors before walking over to the detached 3-car garage. she was opening the door when a voice from behind her nearly scared the daylights out of her.

"i saw you pick up that gun," a woman's voice had said accusingly.

"what gun?" isla turned and once again pulled her famed innocent look, worried eyes looking over at the other woman.

"don't play stupid with me, castiel." the woman pointed her finger right in isla's face, apparently feeling brave after the events of the morning unfolded in front of their houses.

"get your god damned finger out of my face, deborah." isla's look went from baffled young blonde to haughty and ill-tempered in seconds and she regarded the woman with such disdain that that alone caused her to drop her accusing finger. she'd turned her back on her neighbor and stepped into the garage, almost daring the other woman to follow her. "once again," she said, her voice now cold and stern, "what gun?" she'd picked up her helmet and put it on, instantly muffling the woman's accusatory words.

the finger was immediately dropped, but the allegations flowed freely, though apparently on deaf ears. isla nodded as she strapped it under her chin. it was clear she wasn't listening while she pulled on a pair of black gloves.

"are you even hearing what i'm saying?" the older woman hissed, stepping into the garage before immediately stepping back out when isla shot her a glare.

"sorry, what was that?" she asked, sitting on the leather seat of her bike and hitting the kickstand with her heel. "the helmet makes it hard to hear, can you say that again?" she moved the bike forward, but just as deborah opened her mouth to repeat herself, hands on her hips and face as bright as a boiled lobster, isla turned the key and started the harley.

the woman blanched, nearly screaming in her frustrations. "huh?" she said, pointing to her helmet and shrugging. "sorry, still can't hear a word you're saying!" she revved the engine and used the control on her bike to close the garage door behind her. beneath her helmet, she was forcing herself not to laugh at the sheer anger overwhelming the other woman's face. isla knew she was going to regret this, but duty called and she needed to get to the clocktower as soon as possible. "sorry, deb! we'll catch up later, okay? call me!" her voice was barely audible over the roar of the engine as she pulled out, leaving the neighborhood behind her in nothing but exhaust fumes.