When it comes to something that could be dangerous, Frank can't just stop thinking about it. As much as he'd try to, he might end up following her if she left without him. He wouldn't be able to help it, so the invite is met with a surprised look.
"Yeah. I can do that." He quickly accepts the terms before she changes her mind.
"Good. And I mean it. I can't risk this guy running off. The information he has could really change a lot of lives in this city." She lets her hand run down over his shoulder and squeezes his upper arm gently. A slow smile curls her mouth. "Well, might as well give you a tour of the office if you're coming along. Just give me fifteen minutes to get ready."
Frank figured he'd be spending his first day back in New York in her apartment waiting for Karen to come back. The idea that he gets to tag along has him looking ready to go.
Karen gives him a smile, and then picks up their plates to deposit in the sink before she disappears down the hall to get cleaned up and changed. True to her word, it didn't take too long. Her routine is pretty minimalist. When she re-emerges, her hair's twisted into a loose bun, and she's changed into a blue blouse tucked into a gray skirt with a pair of flats. It might be an odd choice for an interview with a criminal, but she finds that the look tends to disarm the people she talks to. It helps that it's the way she likes to dress anyway.
"Ready?" she asks as she bustles around the room to tuck her laptop and phone into her purse.
Karen doesn't need to do much to look good. He was glad she was the type of woman who didn't overdo it with make-up and let her natural beauty show. She did look more like she was going to the office than going to a bad part of town, but he didn't question her. She was the professional in all this, right? Frank was just happy to tag along.
"Yeah." He pulled his coat on and opened the door for her. Once they were in the car and he was driving them to the location, he glanced over at her. "So what's this guy like?" The one she's meeting.
Karen smiles at him as he holds the door open. Thankfully, her nosy neighbor is apparently preoccupied, because she doesn't appear at her door to watch where they go. It's entirely possible she's at the peep hole, but that's discreet enough. She tucks her bag in behind her legs as she climbs into the passenger seat and considers his question.
"Kind of a punk, really," she says finally, sounding almost fond as she says it. "I don't think he had a lot of other doors open for him, you know? He finally started to talk to me when I came by with Foggy one day and he gave him his jacket. I think I've just about got him convinced we can protect him and his mother if the chips are down."
Karen has the sort of sympathy in her voice for the punk that most people wouldn't, including Frank. Sure, sometimes life deals a bad hand, but that doesn't mean you go around hurting innocent people or taking advantage of them. Hurting punks, though? He doesn't have a problem with that. Especially if they threaten someone he cares about.
"Foggy?" Interesting name. Sounds like another compassionate person, though, judging from the story.
Karen can find a way to sympathize with most people if she really puts her mind to it. Even if her source is kind of a punk, she can see the difference between someone who is calling the shots, and someone who's caught in a system stacked up against them. Sure, she could spend her time slotting the little guys into jail. She'd rather take down the whole system.
"Yeah, it's his nickname. Franklin. I'm not entirely sure how he got it, he and Matt were friends in college."
"Matt? Are these guys reporters, too?" It sounds like she's got quite a few people she's friends with, or at least working with. Frank is glad she's not working alone on something as dangerous as this, but he doesn't like that she would've gone alone to this meeting if he hadn't been here to tag along.
Of course Frank expected Karen to have a life in New York while he was deployed. He's just reminded that he's missed a lot.
"Lawyers," Karen answers. "I met them on the first story I worked on. They do a lot of pro bono work for people that end up on the wrong side of corporations or get swept up by corruption. So it helps to work together." She can get her hands on information for their cases, and they return the favor by pointing her in the right direction when she's between stories.
"Lawyers who work for free helping people? You sure they're lawyers?" Frank means it as a joke, but it's pretty rare to meet a lawyer like that. Most only seem to care about money or winning cases.
He's been gone a long time, but he still remembers the city like the back of his hand. It's not long before they're getting close to her destination.
Karen laughs at the question, looking over at him with a half smile. "I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't vetted them myself. They're great at what they do, too. I think we'll be able to make some real change if we keep working together."
She's pretty sure that Frank has taken some shortcuts that she doesn't know about. Once he parks the car, she leans in to drop a quick kiss on his mouth. "Remember, you promised to stay in the car," she reminds him.
Frank smiles a little at the kiss. He was about to lean in and do the same thing to her.
"Yeah, I know." It won't be easy, but he'll stay. Right? He's going to do his best, but he'll also be watching her and the guy she's meeting like a hawk the entire time.
"I'm always careful," she answers as her fingers run over the collar of his jacket. Which is true - she's meticulous in her research and thorough in her follow up. There's no accounting for the human element complicating things, but she does her best to cover all her bases. And she keeps a gun in her purse.
The bag is slung over the crook of her arm as she gets out and bends down to give him one more smile before she turns and walks down the sidewalk to the meeting place. She sticks out like a sore thumb in her business clothes in the morning light, but she still walks at a quick, confident pace.
A person can be careful and still get hurt. Frank doesn't doubt she's careful, but he knows how dangerous the world can be and how suddenly things can change.
He leans a little to keep his eye on her as she walks away from the car. Already, he's itching to follow her on foot, but he stays put. For now. So long as he's still got eyes on her, he might actually stay in the car. Maybe.
She does stick out. He hopes she doesn't get mugged on the way there.
Luckily, Karen finds that people tend to leave her alone if she looks like she has somewhere to be. She hasn't had to add a mugging on top of the troubles she invites on herself simply by the work she does. Yet.
She reaches the end of the block where she can see her source waiting in the shadows of the building there. Before she can greet him, he takes her arm and leads her into the convenience store.
Frank sits up in his seat when he sees the man put a hand on Karen, and then she's taken into the store. Well, that might be okay. He probably won't try anything with the clerk or any other customers in there.
Still, Frank's view isn't as good as it was. Karen said not to leave the car, but she didn't say he couldn't move the car, so he leaves the parking spot and claims one closer to the store. People sit in parked cars all the time in the city, so it won't look too strange.
Karen is aware on some level as she lets her source pull her into the store that it's very likely Frank will follow. They've never been in a situation quite like this before, but she knows him. Knows the way that he shoulders responsibility. Part of her thinks she should caution her source but she doesn't want to spook him.
"Hey, come on. There's some food in the back aisles. Let me grab you a few things while we talk." The younger man nods and they quickly make their way past the front window to the back of the store.
It was almost tolerable watching Karen through the window, but when she moves out of sight, Frank scowls and taps his fingers against the steering wheel. He's getting agitated now. Is she alright in there? What if the guy pulls a weapon on her? She's not in a back alley or something, but that didn't mean she was safe in the store.
Karen must've trusted the informant, at least a little bit, to let him take her in there. Frank does his best to wait for now. Maybe it was better if he watched the door to make sure no trouble followed them inside. For now, he stayed put... but it wasn't easy.
Trust is a tenuous thing. Especially when it comes to working with a source. So much hangs in the balance. The first few times she'd tried to connect with a source had been a miserable failure, but she'd figured out her niche. The pure determination that fueled her wouldn't let her settle for less.
Several long minutes passed before Karen hurried out of the little store, looking annoyed. She started to turn down the sidewalk and then realized that the car was closer, and a quick half smile quirked up her lips before she moved around the car and got in the passenger seat. "Let's get out of here. He ran out the back."
Frank was moments from rushing in to see if she was alright when Karen came out. There's a huge rush of relief at seeing her, even if she does look annoyed. At least she appears unharmed.
"Should we go after him?" Frank is already starting the car to give chase if that's the case. He doesn't know if Karen got the information she wanted, but it doesn't sound like it.
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"Yeah. I can do that." He quickly accepts the terms before she changes her mind.
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"Yeah. I'll grab my coat."
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"Ready?" she asks as she bustles around the room to tuck her laptop and phone into her purse.
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"Yeah." He pulled his coat on and opened the door for her. Once they were in the car and he was driving them to the location, he glanced over at her. "So what's this guy like?" The one she's meeting.
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"Kind of a punk, really," she says finally, sounding almost fond as she says it. "I don't think he had a lot of other doors open for him, you know? He finally started to talk to me when I came by with Foggy one day and he gave him his jacket. I think I've just about got him convinced we can protect him and his mother if the chips are down."
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"Foggy?" Interesting name. Sounds like another compassionate person, though, judging from the story.
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"Yeah, it's his nickname. Franklin. I'm not entirely sure how he got it, he and Matt were friends in college."
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Of course Frank expected Karen to have a life in New York while he was deployed. He's just reminded that he's missed a lot.
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He's been gone a long time, but he still remembers the city like the back of his hand. It's not long before they're getting close to her destination.
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She's pretty sure that Frank has taken some shortcuts that she doesn't know about. Once he parks the car, she leans in to drop a quick kiss on his mouth. "Remember, you promised to stay in the car," she reminds him.
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"Yeah, I know." It won't be easy, but he'll stay. Right? He's going to do his best, but he'll also be watching her and the guy she's meeting like a hawk the entire time.
"Be careful."
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The bag is slung over the crook of her arm as she gets out and bends down to give him one more smile before she turns and walks down the sidewalk to the meeting place. She sticks out like a sore thumb in her business clothes in the morning light, but she still walks at a quick, confident pace.
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He leans a little to keep his eye on her as she walks away from the car. Already, he's itching to follow her on foot, but he stays put. For now. So long as he's still got eyes on her, he might actually stay in the car. Maybe.
She does stick out. He hopes she doesn't get mugged on the way there.
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She reaches the end of the block where she can see her source waiting in the shadows of the building there. Before she can greet him, he takes her arm and leads her into the convenience store.
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Still, Frank's view isn't as good as it was. Karen said not to leave the car, but she didn't say he couldn't move the car, so he leaves the parking spot and claims one closer to the store. People sit in parked cars all the time in the city, so it won't look too strange.
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"Hey, come on. There's some food in the back aisles. Let me grab you a few things while we talk." The younger man nods and they quickly make their way past the front window to the back of the store.
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Karen must've trusted the informant, at least a little bit, to let him take her in there. Frank does his best to wait for now. Maybe it was better if he watched the door to make sure no trouble followed them inside. For now, he stayed put... but it wasn't easy.
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Several long minutes passed before Karen hurried out of the little store, looking annoyed. She started to turn down the sidewalk and then realized that the car was closer, and a quick half smile quirked up her lips before she moved around the car and got in the passenger seat. "Let's get out of here. He ran out the back."
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"Should we go after him?" Frank is already starting the car to give chase if that's the case. He doesn't know if Karen got the information she wanted, but it doesn't sound like it.