Getting back on the trail in the cover of darkness to aid him from avoiding Copper, James traversed his way to the beach towards Bob's house, as he was planning to do before Copper distracted him.  Seeing he was home like most everyone, he knocked on his door.  The sight of sand meeting snow made this day all the more surreal.
	"Pthhhpth coming."
Opening the door, the purple cat gazed lazily at the raptor.
	"Why hello James.  What a surprise."
	"Sorry I've not seen you often Bob."
	"Ohhh don't you worry about it.  Now tell me, whassup?"
	"You heard about Daisy right?"
	"Oh yes.  Sorry to hear."
	"I just wanted to ask you where you were last night."
	"Oh I was outside."
His eyes widened slightly and he had to resist the urge to grab him.
	"You...you were?"
	"Oh yes, around 5:30 or so, I went to the museum and back."
	"...okay, why?"
	"Ohhhh to look at the paintings."
He whispered to James with a side glance.
	"Don't tell anyone, I got a reputation to keep up.  Blathers never knows I'm in there, always sneaking back and forth when he's asleep, yanno how people love to gossip here, pthhhpthht.  But I'm a bit of a classical fan myself."
	"Well, okay...did you see anyone on your way back and forth?"
	"Hmmmm nope, the wind was kinda picking up around the time I got home...though I did see Tom Nook outside oddly."
	"Yeah?"
	"Yeah around maybe six or so?  Was sneaking back and forth from his li'l store all bent over, looked reaaaaaal dodgy.  Even heard him muttering something like 'stupid bitch, didn't want her stupid package then fine' or sumthin' like that."
	"...right.  Thanks Bob."
	"Pthhhpthhhht, no problem, hope ya find who yer lookin' for."
And with that, the raptor ran off to Tom Nook's place, feeling his knuckles tense up in a rising anger, having a guess at who the "stupid bitch" in question was.

Walking up to Nook 'n' Go as he fired himself up, he was greeted with the raccoon's warm smile.  He was however leaning a little heavily on the counter with a hand on his belly.
	"Welcome to Nook 'n' Go, how can I-"
He didn't finish his greeting when he was punched in the face hard and James leapt on him.
	"Wh-what the hell are you doing!?!"
	"You were up to something last night, weren't you?"
	"Wh-wha-what!?!!  What are you talking abou-"
	"Don't give me your fucking bullshit, I know you weren't really in your little convenience store then.  Was she in debt with you, huh?  Did you get a li'l "persuasive" you fucking rich bastard!?!?"
	"N-n-no, I never did!"
	"You had something about a little package, you thought you could lure me away?  Well congrats, you fucking did, but now I got a special gift for ya!"
	"S-stop it, you're talking crazy!"
A slash across Nook's face made him scream.
	"TALK DAMMIT, WHY DID YOU DO IT!?!?"
	"F-...for the money!"
	"What's with all the money, huh!?!?  Why all the money you squeeze from everyone, this fucking house I have to pay for all the time JUST for you when I can just work here and pay the debt off easier!  Sounds good a motive as any!"
	"I have my own reasons...you'd never understand."
	"Ohhh?  I'd never understand huh?"
A solid kick in the crotch gave him a little leeway to the raptor's line of thinking as he curled up into the foetal position, shuddering with pain.  James now noticed some dried blood on his fur.
	"My lover is dead...dead like a dog.  You think there's nothing I can't understand at this point you fucking greedy raccoon?!?!"
	"Wh-what!??!  You mean...Daisy??  I thought-"
	"You thought WHAT!?!?"
	"I NEVER WENT NEAR DAISY!  IT'S NOTHING TO DO WITH HER!"
	"...and what were you talking about before?"
	"It...it's none of your business."
	"Oh.  I think it fucking is."
He grabbed the racoon's hair viciously to pull him back up, making him gasp sorely.
	"Anything you just said has just become part of my interrogating."
	"You've nothing to do with it!"
	"That's my fucking choice to decide, not yours!  Now tell me what you did last night or else all the things I said I'd do to the killer I'll do to you!  And I think you heard me that night."

A shuddering of horror in the businesscoon's eyes made him eventually admit:
	"FINE!  F-f-fine...I'll tell you.  But if I tell you...promise you won't judge me, because it has nothing to do with Daisy.  I never touched her."
	"...go on."
	"I...did something terrible once...long ago.  You know the Able sisters?"
A slow nod of suspicion from James
	"I knew them since I was in my prime, perhaps your age, poor girls losing their parents like that, growing up together.  I've been good friends with her...still am.  The older one's a heck of a strong woman...even after what I did she can still look me in the eye."
	"Wait wait...you...didn't kill their parents did you?"
	"NO, no no no...but I didn't exactly help their family.  I shoulda known better, Mabel was barely nine or so but I loved money too much to care!  That other sister they mentioned...she moved away because of me.  I told her all about the options in the city, pretty much convinced her for a pick of the profits, hell I got her in!  I needed it, I can't be homeless again, I CAN'T!"
	"...you..."
	"I told you not to judge me because it has nothing to do with Daisy!  Dreams are NOTHING without money dammit!"
	"That doesn't make you any less guilty of breaking them apart when they had to be together the most, you fucking bastard!"
	"Don't tell me you've never had desires like that, boy!  I know you must have had your own greed betray you at certain things that you can't control.  Now I have to pay for it for the rest of my life, when SHE keeps reminding me every day, and that sweet little smile on Mabel's face with that sadness behind it, MOCKING ME!"
	"Even when you have your own store?"
	"Laws work different here.  I made that deal go up for Label, she'd not have left if it wasn't for me and her business is VERY profitable, more than her sisters' crappy little mom-and-pop business right beside me.  I've been homeless for three years.  I am not going to miss this chance again, and Label can't get out of my clause either, I don't care anymore!  I just want to LIVE in a wonderful clean store like this again."
	"...you're right.  I will never understand you."
Not even able to muster the energy for another punch, he merely bitchslapped him across the face, making him lurch back in surprise.
	"You asshole."
	"Well...don't ask questions like that until you do."
	"Well guess what, I've been homeless as well, I KNOW how you feel, you fucking piece of shit.  Okay I robbed some places, and I got lucky with a job in a bar, but I had limits!  I didn't steal everything in a house, I never broke entire families apart, I didn't even break anyone's limbs to do it unless they were real assholes.  I will NEVER be like you."
	"Wait until the smell of money comes to you when ya gather enough of it.  Then come back and tell me."
	"Oh I will...if there's anything here to come back to.  Enjoy your wonderful clean store, you black-eyed dick.  But that doesn't change the fact you were sneaking around last night looking all suspicious."
	"Why don't you go to talk to the Able Sisters then?"
Tom sneered through his bruises, no longer caring about a good impression.
	"You're all such good friends with them, like one little Orphans Anonymous group right?"
	"Okay, that's it."
Now he had enough.  James decided to take a shovel from off the rack of Nook's store and clobber the back of his head with it, knocking him out unconscious after a few more blows.
Checking that he wasn't dead, he flung the shovel into some glass products to indulge his vandalism and headed next door.  The Able Sisters had heard the crashing from Nook's store, and were surprised to see James walk in.

	"Oh, w-w-welcome James..."
Mabel was looking away from him for some reason, wearing some sort of hat that covered her brow as Sable walked up.
	"Anything you need, James?"
	"I need to know what Tom Nook was doing.  He was sneaking around here last night."
	"Why do you need to know?"
	"It might have something to do with Daisy.  You know she's dead, everyone does, I need to find who killed her."
	"Tom...was here at the time.  He didn't go near Daisy."
	"...so...what happened?"
He sensed some sort of shame coming from Sable.
	"It's not any of your business James.  Keep searching, there's nothing for you here."
	"Sable...please don't turn me away.  I don't suspect either of you, you're too good for this, I really like you.  Don't."
	"Why do you care?"
	"You're an orphan like me.  I feel...I just feel a companionship with you, I know how you feel dammit, I want to help you!"
	"You can help by leaving."
	"I just beat the shit out of Nook to hear half of what happened last night, now tell me!"
	"...you beat up Tom?  Wh-what did you do?"
	"He's a li'l scarred and...I maybe clobbered him with a shovel."
	"...he deserved it to be honest."
	"What?"
With a heavy sigh, Sable asked her little sister:
	"Mabel...take the cap off."
	"B-but sis-"
	"We can trust James.  Show him."
She slowly took off the headwear to reveal a rather bruised left eye, slightly watery from either pain or sadness.  James understood.
	"He...did that?
	"We had a fight about...Label.  He told you about her right?"
	"This other sister of yours?"
	"And how it was his fault that she moved away and I was forced to struggle to keep this store and my little sister going?"
	"Ah huh."
	"Then you already know what happened.  I've argued with him so many times, I can't forgive him for it.  He calls me his voice of reason but that's the only thing I can never reason about him with...he used to be such a good friend until he became desperate for money, so scared."
	"Scared?"

	"Of being homeless again.  It changed him.  Once he got money after that, he never let it go.  And when that offer came from a fellow businessman to find a fashion designer, he tempted Label away.  Right when I needed her the most.  Our arguments have been bad...but not this bad.  He never hit either of us until that night."
	"Oh god..."
	"I never used my sewing pins for anything other than sewing....I could have killed him, but I'm glad I didn't."
	"Cuz otherwise who'd look after the place and your sis right?"
	"Mmhmm...he had this coming."
	"I'm sorry...but not for clonking him with the shovel, hehe."
	"Well...I can forgive that.  Was there anything else you needed?"
	"Just to find who killed Daisy."
	"All on your own?"
	"I HAVE to, I owe it to her to do something."
	"But Copper-"
	"If Copper finds him before me, then fine, but I have to try!  I have ONE clue and I can't let it go to waste!"
He showed Sable the paper pink slip with the writing of who he assumed was the killer.  Sable looked at it carefully and an idea came to her.
	"Maybe...wait...you just need to find someone's writing right?"
	"Yeah."
	"Receipts."
She clicked her fingers and went to a drawer, unearthing various papers of what appeared to be checks and signings for various orders of clothing.
	"Sometimes we have to ask for signatures or such when ordering special items.  I'm sure everyone has done it in this village."
	"Not me."
	"Well I hope this helps, lemme see everyone's signatures."
Looking through them all, she found five different papers of handwriting of her customers from various months ago.  Tom Nook, Freya, Pellie, Bob and Rasher.  They carefully examined each piece of handwriting, checking each letter or word that was in both precisely.
After what felt like 10 minutes of critical examination, James realised at last who had written the pink slip.  He scrunched it up with a fury at how close he had been to the killer only today, so close he could have grabbed the neck of the murderer and slammed it into their doorjamb.
With a look of realised fury in his eyes, he looked towards the door and was about to leave.  But then he noticed to one side a paper guillotine for cutting paper and fabric, wrenching it from its place and leaving with heavy footsteps despite Mabel's protests.
	"W-wait, that-"
	"Shhh, quiet sis," warned Sable as she held her sister tightly to her bosom.  "Don't talk to him...he won't listen."
He headed to the house of his target, but realised he might not have enough weapons and started thinking what could work.  With an idea in his mind, he headed back to his own house, easily avoiding Copper on such a dark night and kicking his house door open.  He soon came back out wielding a perfect-looking club, in the form of the Ankylo tail.
	"Hehehe, yeah...I won't strangle ya...I'm gonna bash yer fucking brains out."
With a new look of ultraviolence upon him, he walked all the way to the house of the killer, past Daisy's home without even looking at it.  He did not need any reminder at all of his objective as he walked all the way to the seafront, sand and snow in his claws as he knocked on the door.
No reply came.  He wasn't going to wait as he broke into the window, smashing it with the fossil before clearing any glass from the pane and climbing in.  He wasn't going to give a shit about breaking and entering now that he truly knew who Daisy's murderer was, hearing him in the darkness of the house.
	"Well...I guess the jig is up at last, pthhhpth."
	"Shut the fuck up Bob."