VERMON
PRESENT
"Detective, glad to hear from you." Agent Alan said, welcoming both Aaron and me into his office. He was looking at the two of us smiling but I could tell that it was fake. Not surprising considering even Mr. Valentine was here with his security details.
I managed to not roll my eyes.
"Likewise." I nodded, not wanting to make a scene right now. Besides, Valentine had a keen eye on me for the most part. I didn't want to give him something to goad on but luck had it that he smiled, acknowledging my stare.
"Haven't seen you in a long while. Why don't you introduce us to your friend, young man?"
Young man?
Valentine looked only to be in his late twenties. Hell, even I looked older than him but of course, I didn't point that out. Instead, I forced myself to sound polite. "I apologize. This is my friend and partner, Aaron Jeller."
Aaron wasn't as subtle as me. He dropped a huge file on the table, shrugging. "Heard a lot of things about you, Mr. Valentine. Have to say, you have quite a reputation."
Valentine flashed him a smile. "Do I? Do tell, do tell."
If I didn't stop Aaron now, chances were he'd accuse Valentine outright of murder or trafficking people. So, snatching the file, I diverted the conversation toward Chief. "Gentlemen, let's talk about what's important right now. Like the case, Chief, what did you want to talk about? What about the body you found?"
Before Chief could open his mouth, Valentine quipped up. "I was hoping Vermon could enlighten us about that. Out of all the cases, he took this one. There's must be something interesting about it?"
I smiled, despite wanting to jump over the table to whack him in the face. As if he could read my mind, his smile brightened.
Fine, two could play the game.
"With all due respect Mr. Valentine, you are still one of the main suspects. Chief might spare you the details but I haven't ruled you out as an innocent yet. Also, you have made many enemies throughout the years, what to say that one of them just didn't stop caring about your reputation and finally shut that asylum down?"
"Oh? But I have an ally that can assure you Vermon that it's not me you're after. Why don't you ask Chief? We had dinner that night in a very public setting with others. You can ask anyone." Valentine insisted, giving me a lopsided smirk. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed Aaron fidgeting in irritation. This man was out to get us, alright.
"Look, Mr. Val-"
Chief leaned forward with a harsh chuckle. "Gentlemen, if you'd step aside from your personals problems for the time around then it would do good for all of us. Detective, did you find anything?"
"Someone broke into Aaron's house last night and he said he saw the same warnings in his house that were in the sanatorium. We'd be looking for that after we finish this meeting." I took a deep breath, feeling the pressure of finding her dead coming back again. "I have sent some of my smaller sources to scout the area around the sanatorium. We are hoping something comes up from that."
I paused, waiting for Aaron to speak up warily. Say what may, he didn't bring up my obsession with the diary or the fact that I hid any evidence. Instead, he opened the file near him with a somber look. "We talked to a few people there. Found a good source out of it. They had good insight on what went through the night before but I'm not comfortable enough to say their name or what they said in front of him. Can I send the report later if that's ok?"
Chief nodded sharply before turning to look at Valentine. "And your people, Mr. Valentine?"
"They found the body that matched the DNA of the blood found on those walls. I understand the public is scared right now. They are paranoid and most probably not even trusting you to catch the one responsible for killing their loved ones. I thought a lot about it and decided that since the killer is already dead, you can close the case. Give some hope to the people."
"Really? How can you be so sure? There were two different DNA there, written by two different people." He benefitted the most from this case. So, why was he giving up now? I took a shot in the dark. "Any chance it was Byron?"
His eyes twitched.
Bull's eye.
"Byron is my most trusted assistant. I've known him since he was just a troubled teen. I'd be happier if you'd rather do your job better instead of insulting him." I had to grip the table to not make a jab about how he was the last person to chide someone on how to do their job. He left my sister at the altar, ruined her life, and yet he had the nerve to show his face here. But as Chief stared at Valentine with a stone face, it became clear just how he thought about his words.
"We haven't got the post-mortem report yet," Chief said, nodding at others. "And until we do, you can't write it down as case closed because right about now there might be a killer running around in the open."
Valentine quickly masked his face into an impatient one. "Fine, but you all better work faster to catch this killer you believe is still breathing. Now if you'll excuse me...I have places I need to be."
And with that, he left the room until the only people who remained were the people who actually contributed something in the case. I didn't even know I was holding my breath until Chief spoke up.
"Sorry for the rudeness. I don't particularly like Mr. Valentine either but for some reason, he wanted to see you. I thought a meeting in front of everyone would be a good idea rather than whatever he had in mind."
"Thank you." If Valentine had his way...no, I couldn't think about that right now. "I wanted to ask some questions about that body you found. Are you certain that it was a girl-"
"You never heard it from my mouth." Chief managed to give me a brief smile before his cold look returned. "But the age and the body type looks like it was a middle aged John Doe. So, I can say with a certain confidence that it wasn't a girl."
I stood there, shocked. It wasn't her but someone else and I should be angry about it. Another person turned up dead on a side road but all I could breathe was one thing.
She was alive.
***
5132
PRESENT
"Please, don't kill me!"
Please, don't kill me...pleaseee...
Why did it always have to be like that? Why couldn't it be, I'll shut up and let you feed in peace? Or better yet, here, take meee. But no. The girl was still screaming.
"I'm sorry! Do you want money? I'll give you everything I have. You can even take my son with you!" I doubted the son in question was still alive by the way she was beating him earlier. Only an eleven month baby and gone from the world. Pity. Real pity.
"Oh, dolly, dolly but he's not breathing." I let her know with a pout. "Besides, I like you as desert. Not him. They are too fussy."
The girl looked at the baby and let out another cry. No doubt almost getting someone's attention. I never played with my food before but for some reason, this one seemed to be worthy of that. But I had a short time and so much to do.
Like not get caught.
So, I opened my mouth, ready to hear those tunes of evil when a bark snapped right beside me. Before I could even ward off my hands as a warning, I noticed the playful silver gaze honing on me from the shadow.
"Mikhail."
"You are a hard woman to find." He boasted as if he was actually hurt. "I'm mortified that you'd try to run from me."
Seeing another person, the girl should have asked for help but she was a strange one. Instead, she kicked me in the stomach and ran like her life depended on it. I couldn't hide the disappointment from my face.
"Look what you've done. You made my dinner run away."
His eyes followed the girl and he breathed out heavily. "Let her go, I-I'll fix her."
"Then?" His eyebrows raised in question so I elaborated. "Then you'll find me another dinner? I'm hungry."
"Yes." He deadpanned, making me squeal. "God, no! Lana, look at you."
I could feel the blood smeared on my skin.
I was conditioned to just take, take and take.
Whoever got in my way was their problem, not mine.
Looking back at him and the bodies left behind, I let out a sigh. Staying at Mikhail's place wasn't safe. It was bound to happen one day. I had to leave even if he begged me to listen to him for once, to not leave. But I needed to find a shelter of my own. Especially, when I was supposed to be dead to the humans.
It was a good thing that he was a good few feet away cause I was thinking of another murder in my hand. "Stop calling me, Lana, for God's sake. I told you, it's 5132, a number to fear and remember."
"That stupid number you got from that horrible place?" His nose scrunched in disgust. "I'll pass. Now, tell me why you're here, not picking up any call I leave for you. You're basically hiding from me."
"I had to leave. You know how humans are, I was getting sloppy and..." I trailed off, trying not to think about the real reason. I was getting dependent on him. "We had a deal. We helped each other out and that's it. I want nothing else to do with you."
No sooner than the words came out my mouth, he took an alarming step, the playful gaze turning into a murderous one. "Oh, you made that pretty clear when you left me on a motel after we fucked each other's brains out. Trust me, I know how to take a hint."
"Apparently not if you are still following me around like a creep."
Before I could utter something else, he was there to grab my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. "Stop it. You don't have to be so strong all the time, don't have to hide from me. You know the urge to take souls dims down when I am with you. I saw it, I'm sure of it, Lana. I'm not letting you shrug that away."
I knew it too, deep down. But I could never openly admit it like he could. So, I kept silent, stubbornly letting him stare. But apparently, he had a lot to say for both of us. "I know a place you can hide. I will shield the entire property, all you have to do is trust me."
I couldn't hide the chuckle. "Trust? I can't even trust my own self around you. You think I can trust you?"
"We will just have to see then, won't we?" His lips twitched in which could have been a real smile in months. "I have just started to figure you out, Lana. Don't give up on me now."
Funny, everyone I knew already gave up on me.
***
How did it go? What do you think about Mikhail? What do you think happened? Let me know!