Evidence

      Connor looked around. Cold snow swirled around him, clogging his collar, falling on his face, making it difficult to look around. Having adjusted the optical sensors, he moved towards the playground, judging by the plan given to him, it was necessary to examine it. It was difficult to see something through the winter blizzard, an old, dilapidated swing that was probably put up before our era. A rotten bench, not inspiring confidence, but his gaze caught on an iron, painted red — or rather peeling — paint slide. Moving closer, he scanned it, but without noticing anything, decided to examine it from the other side. After going around it a couple of times in a circle, he squatted down looking at the stairs leading to the hill. Thirium, traces of fresh thirium. The diode flashed yellow for a second.       — Tin can, come on quickly. We're leaving, there's nothing here. — Connor looked around, through the snow he noticed Gavin beckoning him to the cars.       Deciding to use a quick hand—or tongue—to scan for traces of Thirium, Connor bent slightly. After looking closely, he touched the iron slide with his tongue. Notifications and information about who owned this Tyrium appeared almost immediately before my eyes. As soon as the scan was over, everything disappeared and the android wanted to go to the cars, but it was not there.       Connor tried to get up with a jerk, but his tongue stuck tightly. He stuck to this slide as to his own, he stuck to the fucking iron slide. He jerked again and a couple of notifications about the potential danger of damage to parts appeared in the processor. The android froze analyzing the situation, the diode blinked yellow a couple of times, and then exactly red, slowly switching back to yellow. It remained to hope that at least they would not leave without him, otherwise he would stay at the hill for the winter. But Gavin can leave him here, after all, they came in his car. But no one was going to leave him here for the winter, soon approaching footsteps were heard behind his back, and after that a dissatisfied grumbling. It seems Hank sent Gavin after him, mentally deviant has already estimated how much time Reed will spend to first laugh with his position, and then how much more he will think about how to peel it off. After a couple of seconds, the grumbling subsided, and Gavin began to look thoughtfully at the picture before him. The detective's eyebrows closed seriously on the bridge of his nose, and his eyes blinked a couple of times.       — Why are you sitting here? Gavin walked around him in the hope of understanding how it happened, and under what circumstances Connor had to lick the slide.       — I'm stuck, — the deviant said slowly, burbling and stammering. Connor closed his eyes wearily, he already knew that he would definitely not get help in the next ten minutes. Gavin sat down next to him, examining his stuck and frozen tongue, trying not to laugh. But unable to restrain himself, he burst out laughing from full awareness of the absurdity of the situation.       — Did you lick the fucking slide? — Gavin asked, almost choking with laughter. — Well, are you going to sit until spring?              Trying to shut up, Reed continued to laugh into his hand, switching to a soundless choking laugh.       — It's not funny, — Connor said, covering his eyes with his hand so as not to see Gavin's hysterical fit of laughter.       He hoped it would work on Reed, but when Gavin heard the android's burr and at the same time serious tone, he burst out laughing again. Connor was incredibly annoyed by this, rolling his eyes again, he decided to just wait until Gavin got tired of taking him out with his jokes.       — What parents didn't say in childhood that you can't lick iron in the cold? — Gavin continued joking without shutting up —       That's right, you didn't have either. Reed admired his genius and the genius of his jokes, considered himself probably a super genius, a superintelligence. A superclown, Connor added to himself, but did not dare to say, yet it depended on Gavin now how soon he would get off this slide. But after three minutes, the detective stopped talking and looked Connor over with as thoughtful a look as he could. There was a spark of incomprehension in his eyes.       — So you're really stuck? — Gavin looked serious for a moment.       The android chose not to answer this question, himself let him guess. Gavin frowned, the deviant even began to think that he could see incredible thought processes taking place in the detective's brain. It seems that Reed guessed something and reached into his pocket. Connor looked at him suspiciously, hoping that he would get at least something useful. Pulling out a bottle of water, Gavin looked at her as if she would solve all the problems of the world scale now, but noticing that Connor was not particularly inspired by his idea, he hurried to explain.       —It's water, — Reed explained, pointing at the bottle.       The android sighed wearily, hoping that Gavin knew what he was doing. Fully confident, Reed deftly opened the bottle and sat down next to the android. Grumbling like what would Connor do without him, Gavin poured almost all the water from the bottle on his tongue in anticipation that the deviant would easily come off. That's just something seems to have gone wrong. When the water ran out, Gavin thoughtfully turned his gaze to Connor, to whom the genius of his plan had not yet reached, and then the detective... I didn't understand what I did wrong.       — So the water is already cold, — Connor clarified to him with noticeable irritation.       Realizing—but not accepting—his stupidity, Gavin threw the bottle into the nearest urn and examined it again. All his plans were exhausted, he wouldn't run for another bottle of warm water, and it wasn't a fact that it wouldn't cool down in such a frost either. But then Gavin's head was visited by another — no less brilliant — idea.       — Well, since all my plans have failed, — Like a true titan of thought, Gavin began to outline his brilliant plan.       — You only had one plan. — Casually noticing this, Connor turned away as much as his tongue still safely frozen to the slide allowed.       — Shut up! We will act the old-fashioned way.       Taking off his gloves—which were probably already frozen to his fingers—Gavin sat down again. The palms were covered with an unpleasant frost, and the fingers were unbearably pricked. Reed made a mental note that if he got frostbite, it would be Connor's fault.       — Really? — Deviant is noticeable doubted his plan. — You're going to rip my tongue off. — The android was already starting to lose his nerves, he certainly wasn't going to stay without a tongue.       — The smartest or what? If you don't like it, think for yourself. Gavin crossed his arms over his chest, offended.       But when he didn't hear any objections from Connor, Reed took him by the shoulders again. You'll have to help in any case, not voluntarily, so Hank will make you when he comes. Slowly pulling it, the detective realized that the android was stuck tightly — even if you drag it with a bulldozer — and that you definitely can't do without the use of force here. But deciding not to bother much about what would happen to Connor's super-sensitive sensors on the tongue with all his strength, he jerked it towards himself, tearing the android from the ill-fated slide.       Gavin did not immediately understand what happened after, the last thing he felt was a strong blow to the back of his head. There were dozens of questions in his head, not understanding why he was lying on the snow, he lifted his head, concentrating, he noticed a metal pole a couple of centimeters away, looking up a little higher, he realized that it was a swing, he hit his head on a swing that was half a meter from the slide. The next thing he noticed was someone's feet walking straight towards them.       — What took you so long? — His vision was still blurry, but Gavin could make out Hank's silhouette standing next to him. The lieutenant did not immediately look at them, he was enthusiastically flipping through something on the phone. — My God, I understand everything, relationships, yes... but not on the street.       Reed frowned slightly in an attempt to comprehend his words, there was still the same noise in his head. But as soon as it dawned on him what Hank Gavin meant, he almost instantly flushed up, throwing him a hateful look.       — What are you talking about, Anderson? — Gavin croaked, trying not to pay much attention to the ringing in his ears. But turning his gaze to Connor, who was calmly lying on him checking his tongue for safety, it seems to have come to him with an unusual speed, for the first time in a day, a record. — Bitch! Get off me bucket of bolts! — Gavin continued to shout, waving his arms hysterically. Without waiting until Connor, who was diagnosing himself for injuries, would get off him, Reed jumped to his feet as if stung, hurriedly shaking off the snow from his jacket. Finding his hat lying near the swing, Gavin pulled it up to his ears and, without waiting for Connor to get up, tried to explain to Hank how it happened that the android was lying on him and that this had nothing to do with the fact that Anderson could already have made up his mind. — Yes, I... we... It's all by accident, Connor is to blame, fuck he even began to lick this slide. — It didn't really clarify the situation, and it didn't really bother Hank either. — Fuck you, let's go before they leave without us. — Waving his hand, Anderson moved towards the cars, he was not going to listen to their senseless excuses, he had more important things to do.