this case was unexpected - Alice

Even with Alice on maternity leave she still had a good sharp brain. By now the babies were getting settled and her figure was looking a little more like it was before. She wasn't there yet and as summer was giving way to fall she wore something a little more warmer. Loose fitting pants and a long sleeved blouse was todays outfit as she was working in the kitchen making up more bottles of milk and fruit juice.

Both Ayden and Aurora were napping on the other sofa in their baby grows and looking a bit longer already she heard the knock on the door. So left what she was doing answered the door. She was surprised to see Laurent Dumas here and smiled broadly. "Come in Laurent. What brings you here?" she posed certainly more energetic than she had not so long ago. Two slumbering babies nestled on cushions at the opposite ends of a sofa couldn't be missed.

Laurent Dumas

"They're only there weeks old. So still trying to figure things out but when you get them both having a nap at the same you time you get productive" Alice replied with a smile. "I was probally just pregnant when we had the Guadeloupe case. Then didn't find out until I got shot in a warehouse raid. That was a messy day as it went room to room. But in between that there was a case that involved our local OSE. A guy whose name turned up as a result of your investigation. That was Julius Lanchester and he's in Florida awaiting trial right now".

So bringing him up to date with police work was first. Then came motherhood and how she got there. "My boyfriend was as surprised as I was. Ayden is the boy and Aurora is the girl" she added before asking "can I get you something? Like tea or coffee? Also I may have babies but not baby brain. So if you need to ask me anything feel free". She assumed he was working with Francis and others of her colleagues but did wonder how his case brought him here.

Laurent Dumas

"I do have tea. This won't take long" Alice replied and went to the kitchen to make said tea up. In the meantime she would talk from the kitchen. "The bad rumours they never tried to fix certainly don't help but I have dealt with two OSE agents since I started my work with the security services. The ones I dealt with professionally did a good job but a bad apple like the one I shot certainly doesn't help things" she posed. That was the local OSE man she shot from range who ended up being sympathetic with STRIFE and hating her kind.

"My most recent case with them was an international arrest warrant. If Interpol hadn't cut us out of the loop Julius Lanchester would never have had a chance to build a criminal operation up here. That's all been rooted out and his other operations will unravel too". Alice knew the risks with frontline police work but these little ones gave her an even bigger reason to make a better world for them.

"We each chose a name. Lucas works for ARI as a scientist so they're going to be smart if nothing else" she chuckled and then came out with a cup and saucer with a tea bag floating in it. A little spoon rested on the side of the saucer.

"I've never stopped being curious and while I'll have a few more weeks off it might help wrap up most of my Horticuture degree. Then a semester would finish it off. The people in OSE you should be talking too are Ace Nottingham and Blythe Mercer. They're the ones I worked with".

Laurent Dumas

"The guy I shot was was the local OSE man who betrayed everything he stood for back in your patch. I hope local authorities got to deal with him after we left" Alice replied sipping her coffee. The Lanchester case was a massive pain in the ass to deal with but she could tell him good news. "The Lanchester case was just that; a massive pain but he was captured along with his goons and seven mercenaries from Eastern Europe along with a boat crew trying to get him to safety. Right now he is in the care of Florida police given his crimes he committed there.

I did get to send them the reports we had before I went off on maternity leave. So hopefully he'll never surface from jail ever again.

I think you two would get on well" she posed and then he mentioned something else. "Really? Do you think the work will keep you here from time to time?".

Laurent Dumas

Alice knew how big the island was and even she had only gotten to a fraction of to it. She looked back at Laurent and replied "I did have help from the Ashford PD and our security services teams. Two of these commando teams were involved at the end and the triumph was shared by all. So was the praise". Alice knew she was valued and she made sure the others involved were as well. Crime never ended and she did want to give her children a better future.

"We are quite large but there's only one real population centre; that's the new city and includes the old town and the slums. The slums were the suburbs of the old town before the new city was built and that fell into decay and partial disuse afterwards. I suppose as the city expands the old town and slums will be swallowed up by it but that's a long time away. You still need to remember that people will live away from right here but there's not going to be that many of them. Fishermen work from little settlements west and east of the city boundaries but some might well go south in time".

She had the map in her head as the city was in the middle coastal part of the northern half of the island. Its made sense that some people would take the chance eventually to settle on those southern coasts just like explorers going on a wagon trail west.

"Yes you can. Aurora is cold to the touch but as far I can work out that's normal for her. I think she was born with an oddity ability turned on and her breath is cold as well. She chills her own bottle if she holds it for long enough" she added. Then carefully lifted her sleeping daughter for Laurent to see properly. Her little face moved and she also moved in her sleep. She had a shock of dark hair as well and it was starting to grow too.

He could take her if he was careful as she offered her to him.

Laurent Dumas

"It's also diverse in terms of people. Humans and oddity and they come from all parts of the world" Alice replied. Having worked closely with Laurent in that dangerous mission in his home patch he might well be with Francis and herself later on when it came to crime fighting.

"You've got her secure. When she's not content you'll know about it" Alice advised. "We can deal with her ability. Also when she goes to school she'll have a head start. Her brother looks normal but he does have oddity dna. We'll know what he can do later on".

Aurora was off course very cute as well as showing an ability. Her brother still slumbered looking cute in his own way.

Laurent Dumas

Alice always had a life outside of work. She even had a life outside of growing up in an army camp though she couldn't leave it. It was a common problem for law enforcement officers the world over but she could tell Laurent she did have one.

"Do you think you could be a parent?" she asked seeing how well he was getting on with Aurora. You could teach a baby a lot before they were influenced by the village and she answered his second question.

"Being a parent was a surprise but I like it. I had a feeling I was paternal given how I've dealt with children in cases; now I've got two of them but I do intend to be a frontline officer again. Francis will be glad to see me back" she added.

Laurent Dumas