The Phantom Conspiracy

8. The Meeting

The townhouse came into view. It was a magnificent rustic building standing in the heart of the city. Previously used as a venue by the royalty to conduct important events, it could now be booked by any citizen as long as they didn't damage the property and were fine with paying a hefty fee for it. It was known as the 'City Palace'. That night it had been booked by the Judge to conduct the marriage of his only son. The building looked absolutely glamorous decorated in fresh flowers, fairy lights, fountains and expensive sculptures.

Riccard pulled up the in the massive parking lot. Giana climbed out of it wearing track pants, a nylon t-shirt and sports shoes. Riccard had a similar outfit on. The two had decided to put on some sports gear so they could easily make a dash for the exits just in case the situation escalated. They had spent the previous night studying the map of the entire property and chalking out an escape plan. There were, in total, four exits. Two of those were in the West and led straight into the thick woodlands which were to be avoided at all costs because it was really easy to get lost in them. The remaining two exits consisted of the main entrance in the North and the emergency exit in the South. Riccard and Giana had decided to only use those two.

'Why is the place so hot and crowded? How are we ever going to find the Guardians here?' Riccard looked around wearily.

'That is if they turn up here, Ricc.' Giana sighed. 'We did threaten them and all but maybe they are smart enough to figure out our motives. And remember how they instantly realised it was you texting them back when you received the letter? What if they find out about this too?'

Riccard ran his hand through his hair, 'I don't have an answer to that Gia. It's our best bet though, the closest we can get with whatever we have. Hash anyway seems really eager to shut the case and have us arrested. He's coming up with weird conlusions every single day.'

'Ma'am and sir,' a security guard dressed in a black uniform walked up to them, 'is there anything I can help you with?' He handed Giana a little form. 'I am assuming you are here for the Judge's son's wedding. You are required to fill this up before entering, it's just for extra seurity.'

'Which Ju...', Riccard couldn't complete the sentence as Giana grabbed his arm and pressed it hard.

'We'll do that. Thank you for the assistance!' Giana chimed in.

The two waited for the guard to turn around and leave.

'Shush Ricc,' Giana scolded in a hushed tone, 'they won't let us in if they come to know that we aren't here for the wedding. Stop being silly!'

'But how will we figure out which Judge? What if it's the one who's daughter they are suspecting got killed?'

'The guard's still not the right person to ask. I'll ask some of the ladies around here. You should text the Guardians and tell them that we are waiting at the location.'

Giana and Riccard went their ways, they had to get these little tasks done to get onto the final one and all they had was tonight.

Giana pushed through the crowds of people gathered around the entrance and headed straight for the main hall. She spotted a waitress scrambling around with a pile of dirty plates.

'Excuse me, can you please tell me where the restrooms are?' Giana was sure that she could spot someone there and bring up the Judge's daughter in a casual conversation with them.

'Take that left and then the first right.' The waitress pointed towards a narrow lobby.

Giana scurried down the lobby and stopped right in front of the ladies room. Its walls were covered in huge mirrors and it was spotlessly clean. The air freshner had a lovely lavender fragrance.