Audrey looked at Luna. Her eyes were wide and full of suppressed tears. Luna narrowed her eyes at the older woman, leaning toward her, and then Audrey cast her gaze toward the ground. She brought her hands together and pressed them between her knees.

“Well, the company wanted me to keep quiet about it,” she said, “but since the CyberShell is gone and Cooke is dead, then I suppose I can be honest, right?”

“What are you talking about?” Luna asked.

“Ryan died on the job. It was an accident, but it had something to do with faulty equipment. CyberShell paid for the funeral costs, and they even gave his wife a large sum of money. I don’t know anything about there being no records of Ryan working for the company, but I do remember hearing that Cybershell had wanted to make sure this would stay out of the news. They wanted to keep it a secret, and that’s probably why you can’t find anything.”

Luna sipped her coffee to hide her frown.

“Are there any documentation to confirm this?” Ezra asked.

“I’m sure that Ryan’s wife Chenguang has something, but it might be difficult to contact her.”

“And why’s that?” Luna asked, and there was a sharpness in her voice from anger that was not aimed at Audrey, but the woman still flinched at the tone, anyway.

“Well, after Ryan died, she tried hard to take care of their son, but I suppose it got to be too much for her. She asked Duncan and me to take care of him for her while she went off to see her family or something. It’s been five years since then, so I can’t remember what exactly she had said. We haven’t heard much from her since then.”

Luna drank the rest of her coffee before it became too cold to be palatable. Then, she took out her phone, and after pulling up the video of the two people exiting the HRB building, she handed it to Audrey.

“What’s this?” she asked, frowning at the screen.

“Does anything about these two seem familiar to you?”

“No, not really. I mean, they’re wearing hoodies I’ve seen on a lot of people. Where is this?”

“Have you watched the news lately, Mrs. Poole?”

“No, I suppose it’s been a few days.”

“Are you aware of the other partners for CyberShell?”

Audrey chewed on her bottom lip as she handed the phone back to Luna.

“There was Ethan Banks and Brooklyn Sanchez. They were at Ryan’s funeral if I remember correctly, Mr. Cooke was as well. Actually, everyone came—everyone who worked there at the time.”

Luna only nodded at that as she tucked her phone away.

“We have a few questions regarding your nephew,” Luna said to change the subject.

“Scott? What about him?"

“I understand he has a history of running away,” Ezra said.

Audrey scowled at Luna.

“Are you suggesting that he may have had something to do with Mister Cooke’s death?” she asked. “Scott would never—He’s a good boy. He has his problems, but I’m certain he has nothing to do with what happened to Mister Cooke.”

"We believe that the two people in the clip I showed you might have seen something that could help us, and I'm merely searching leads on who those two people are. Your cooperation could help us find what happened to Banks and Cooke."

The scowl on Audrey's face remained as she turned her gaze toward the hands in her lap, but she nodded.

"Scott was only twelve when his father died,” Audrey said. “Duncan and I tried to make him happy, but it has proven difficult. He’s seventeen now, and I don’t think I’ve seen him smile a single day since he’s been with us. I’m sure he might have of been fine if he hadn’t effectively lost his mother as well.

"He has run from home a couple of times," she continued. "It’s terrifying. We don’t have any idea where he went during those times, but he always came back out of nowhere. All I’ve noticed was that he seemed a little happier when he came back."

"What do you mean happier?" Luna asked.

"Even though we ground him and take away his things, he just seems fine with sitting in the kitchen or in here to study, and sometimes he even talks to us more. It's strange. For the majority of the time, he would rather sit in his room, but after he's spent some time away, he's just fine spending time with us."

"What sorts of things specifically does he like to talk about?"

"Usually it's just machines, movies, and games, but sometimes he'll tell a story about his friends."

"What can you tell me about his friends?"

Audrey's face softened, and she shook her head.

"There's not much to say. I've never met them, and I can't even seem to recall their names."

"How many times has he run away?"

"Three times. He hasn’t done it in a couple of years, so we’ve felt comfortable letting him have his freedom again. Of course, he’s been coming home rather late, and I just got a call this morning that he hasn’t been to school. So, I suppose, he’s done it again.”

Audrey sighed, and she rubbed at her temple.

“He’s a smart boy,” she continued, “but I wish I understood what was going on in his head.”

Tears glistened in Audrey’s eyes, but she swallowed the emotions down.

“If there’s anything else you need to know, Lieutenant Pinkerton,” she said, “I would suggest you find my husband, as I don’t think I have anything else to say.”

Luna nodded. She stood, and she dug into her pocket for a small card, which had the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department’s number.

“All right, Mrs. Poole,” she said, holding out the card to Audrey. “I thank you for speaking with us today, and if there’s anything important to our investigation that you think of, please be sure to get in contact with me.”

Audrey took the card without otherwise acknowledging Luna’s words. She just dropped it on the table with a look of disgust, and a tear slipped down her cheek.

“Be sure you inform the police if Scott doesn’t return home, Mrs. Poole,” Ezra said, as he stood as well.

“Yes, I will,” Audrey said, her shoulders sagging.

“Thank you for the coffee,” Luna said, grabbing Ezra’s arm before he said anything else. “We’ll show ourselves out.”

It was impossible to drag an android anywhere, especially heavier combat units like Ezra, but Ezra allowed Luna to guide him out the front door and to their vehicle at the end of the driveway.

"Mrs. Poole was upset with us," Ezra said as soon as they were both in the car, "for asking about her nephew."

"No one likes the idea that someone they love and trust might be a suspect in a murder investigation. I always try to be gentle with relatives, but they still never receive the news very well. Let's go find Mr. Poole, shall we?"

"Of course, his place of work is only a mile away from here, Lieutenant."

"Thanks, Ezra."