Dorian Mystery - Art of Murder

Chapter XVII

'Was this the end?' I mumbled to myself when I checked around me and saw only a dark deep water.

'No.'

A familiar voice echoed and I was looking for its source, but I couldn't find it.

'Junior?'

'No, it's not the end. You still have one last mystery to resolve.' His voice continued as he has never heard me.

'How can I do it? I feel powerless.'

'You were never powerless, Detective. Just remember that you are not alone.' His voice kept on talking and I was thrown back to reality. A painful reality, but still I was alive.

'I thought we've lost you for a second.' Vince told me on a happy note.

I looked around and realized I was in a hospital room. I remembered what happened now. I was heading out to the car, but someone set an explosive to get me killed. Was it Shrevenport? Or someone else? I got up the bed, despite the pain, stitches and Vince's comments that I shouldn't get down the bed yet.

'It doesn't matter this now, I need to hurry before the moon rises tonight.' I told him and went to check my coat. Seems that everything was missing from the pockets, wallet, money, keys. Someone took everything from there. Lucky me I had a secret pocket inside the inner pocket that I created it manually long ago. The USB flash drive was still there. I put on the coat and left on my bare foot. Vince was behind me trying to understand what's the whole rush about.

'Tonight is the Full Moon and if we don't act quick, Shrevenport will select the new target.' I said and kept on walking. Vince had his jaw dropped after hearing this.

'Wait, wait, wait, so Shrevenport was choosing the victims?'

'I don't know until I see the drive. But I know for sure he is working with the Artist.' I replied and walked outside the building. I was waiting for a taxi to come by to get me home.

'How is this even possible?'

'It's a long story.' I explained him and felt how one of the stitches was hurting me.

A taxi stopped by when I requested the pick up and asked him to rush home. Vince was besides me and soon we arrived home. Everything was as before. Nothing changed or signs that someone was there. I took the laptop and checked real quick the files Vince gave me. I had to be fast before they learn about my absence.

It seems that his file was clean. It even had a background history, but still a fake ID means a fake background story.

I looked at his birth year – which was 1973, however during the birth records, none of it matched his name. So we have a match that his birth date and name are missing, but still there should be a Daniel Shrevenport somewhere. On the FBI database I wasn't able to find any records of Daniel Shrevenport, was it because he wasn't alive anymore?

I searched the necrology list and found a match. Seems there was a Daniel Shrevenport, but he died at the end of 1856.

'Smart. He assumed the identity of a man who died long ago to ensure we won't find him so quick.' I said and tried to laugh.

Vince was still amazed of this discovery and shocked in the same time. Shrevenport was actually a person using a fake ID and they listened and trusted him like dogs.

'How could we be so blind?'

'Well how did he advanced in hierarchy?'

Vince tried to remember what made him so remarkable, but there was nothing and his file shown it too, there weren't big cases that he was involved into, but the answer was already obvious.

'To be honest I don't know. All I know was that before he used to work with Secret Services' He confessed to me and lowered his head in shame.

'It's simple. He was promoted by Kan Trakh Lam. He was the one asking for a fake ID to introduce him into Secret Services to keep appearances as he was needed for this whole operation. Then Trakh Lam moved him to FBI for a while and gave him the promotion after "solving" couple of small cases. I bet those cases were also arranged by him.'

'But why all the fuss just for that?'

'I assume that Trakh Lam has a bigger plan that we have yet to uncover. Certain is that at a certain point, the Artist was working with him, but seems that it was not the case anymore after being discharged.'

'So you mean the Artist gave up?'

'I have a crazy theory, but I won't say it right now.'

Vince looked at me intrigued, but didn't asked more questions.

'So how can we catch him?'

I suggested to wait until the full moon is rising and find out at that point. Vince agreed and went to make a coffee. It was to be a long night. Most likely the last one for me dealing with this case.

The night finally came. We were waiting outside the FBI Headquarters in a random car that we had borrowed. I've bought two new classic phones with keypads, while my original phone was home and so was Vince's. We had to give the impression we are home trying to think of the next course of action.

We were waiting for Shrevenport to get out the building since the lights in his office turned lower, but when the full moon was in the position, his window sparkled all of a sudden.

'We need to go, now!' I said and got out of the car. We reached his office, just to find a bloodbath. Shrevenport was dead. The Artist commited it again and this time it was in the FBI headquarters. It seems that his body was moved from the original spot to the chair where he used to sit on, but it could've been clearly seen that he was shot in the chest. Vince called the other FBI agents and forensics. We were on the way to the surveillance room when another shot was heard nearby. We headed towards the source of the shot and saw another dead body lying in her chair.

'Vince, go check the security system and block the doors.' I ordered him while I was rushing to the surveillance room. I reached there and checked all the cameras, but didn't see anyone. Scrolling through the past 30 minutes I was able to see how was Shrevenport shot, but the killer knew where the camera was and hid himself from it. So was with that agent's death.

'Damn it!' I said and hit the keyboard by accident and saw how it was rewinded to the present. I saw the killer's gun behind Vince and a message on the bottom right corner.

"I know you're watching this! Do it again and another one dies."

I tried to call Vince, but it was too late. The gun was triggered already and Vince's body fell to the floor slowly as he was still trying to fight back.

He was dead...

Another person dead because of me...

I ran to the Vince's crime scene, hoping I would still encounter the killer, but it was just me and only me there. His body was still lying on the floor. I had to go away before waking up being accused for murder. I took the emergency stairs and left through the back of the building just in time for the police to arrive. I sneaked back to the car and drove as fast as I could.

Shrevenport was connected to this incident. But why was he killed? Was it because he was discovered? Or because his part in the plan ended? And poor Vince. Why he had to die? It was not fair at all. I was about to cry when I've noticed a sticker attached to the window on the passenger's seat.

'I will kill everything you love until you give up, Detective!"