***DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN SPONGEBOB OR ANY OF IT'S CHARACTERS AND ALL THAT JAZZ. (ALTHOUGH, LANCE, LEONA, GARRETT, ETC. ARE MINE.)

Murder in Bikini Bottom

By Christina Santos

Chapter 1: The Krusty Krab

Inspector Lance Trout was one of the best detectives in Bikini Bottom. He was clever, quick, and well-rounded. He had a good head on his shoulders. His intelligence has allowed him to solve many cases and also got him on the top of almost all the dirty criminals' lists in town.

Lance was at a local alehouse; The Half Shell. He was seated at the bar solemnly staring at his glass of liquor. The band on stage was playing Tony Bennett, and the smooth, calming jazz spilled throughout the room. Lance liked listening to the music; it brought him a sense of relaxation. Relaxation was all he really needed after solving countless murders in the last month. Different cases from, not just Bikini Bottom, but other cities as well, like New Kelp City. He was also still recovering from his father's death. His poor father was only 65. He died 2 ½ weeks ago due to heart failure.

He quickly put the thought out of his head and closed his eyes to take in the sound of the music playing. He listened to the trumpets, the piano, the singing, the laughter and talk that surrounded him. A smile crept upon his face as he felt himself slowly beginning to relax. He exhaled not realizing he'd been holding his breath, and opened his eyes. It felt as though he'd released all of his troubles in that single breath.

He looked over to a young lady fish that was staring at him from across the bar. She blushed and quickly turned her head; Lance smiled at her. She shyly looked up at him, checking to see if he was still looking at her. Lance winked at the beautiful, young dame and she giggled. Before he could get up and walk over to where she was sitting, his phone went off. Lance sighed, frustrated. He took out his phone and looked at the number. It was his co-worker.

"LeOna…" He said to himself.

He looked back up to where the young women was, but she was gone. He sighed again and answered the phone.

"Is there something wrong, LeOna?" he asked.

"Lance! You need to get your tailfin over the Krusty Krab ASAP. We've got a big case here. I'll give you the details when you get here. We've already got the *bluecoats here with us." She said anxiously.

*Bluecoats = Police

"I'll be on my way..." was all Lance said and he closed the phone.

There were a lot of questions running through his mind, but for the moment, he was just focused on getting to the Krusty Krab. He left money for the barkeep, and quickly got to his car.

(x)(x)(x)(x)

When Lance arrived at the Krusty Krab, the *black and white were all over the place. The media was pushing through the crowds of people, and reporters were shoving microphones into cops faces. He overheard Garrett Fischer, sheriff of the Bikini Bottom Police Department (BBPD), talking to one of them.

*Black and White = Police (again)

"We won't release any information on the murder just yet. Right now, we are all playing another game of "Who Done It" and we don't need the media, or anybody else to know what's going on right now. I will release information later once the case has been solved." Sheriff Fischer said.

Lance looked through the crowd of officers, trying to find LeOna, but she found him instead.

"There you are! Come on, we need to get inside!" she said as she pulled him along.

Some of the reporters tried to get some information on what was going on from Lance, but he gave them all the same answer: "I don't know." Some cops that were in charge of taking guard, pushed the reporters back as the two entered the restaurant.

When they got inside, Lance was shocked to see what had happened. Never in all his life did he think he would have to handle a case like this, but here it was, right before him. It was possibly the biggest case in all of the sea…for King Neptune had been murdered.