"They get more and more creative with each murder", Magnus fumbled with his jacket as he walked away from the crime scene.
"We don't know if it's the same murderer", I told him as I checked the surroundings again.
"All other murders have been the result of physical force, of sharp objects such as blades or knives. This man has been tortured with acid to blind him before he is completely drained of his blood. It doesn't match the MO to all the other murders"
"Maybe it was a vampire on the hunt", Magnus joked, voice thick with sarcasm, as he looked back at the car.
"Sure, and we are the Wolfgang hunting them", I muttered before we saw the car Greenaway roll into the forest grounds.
"Where is the witness that reported the crime?", he hollered as soon as he got out of the car. If we two were worn out from the murders, Greenaway himself was beginning to spiral. Both of us pointed at the lady sitting by the paramedics, shaking with shock from the gruesome scene that she had witnessed. She had left the house for a jog in the forest, instead looking trauma right into its eyes. He stalked off to talk with her first, leaving Magnus and me alone again.
"Hey, Chris", Magnus began.
"Hmm?", I looked away from the paramedics to face my best friend.
"Don't tell her about the victim", he continued with a blank stare.
I did understand who he was referring to but failed to grasp why he would tell me not to talk with Cerise about this. We both knew she was in one way or another. That this was part of the mob she belonged to.
"Isabelle barely gave you any names till now. Maybe it is time for you to let her struggle a little. Don't tell her any details from this victim", he pointed at the car, "maybe she will squirm and reconsider the information she knows that is useful for us to catch King. Don't go to her for help, let her come to you with the needed information".
Giving my best friend one, long look, I let the words weigh out in my consciousness. Playing this little trick could certainly be effective in case Cerise indeed knew more about this mess than she made us believe. As much as I trusted her, did not mean she trusted me just as much and was ready to help us catch the head of the organization that held her captive her whole life. But what benefit did she profit from if she protected him? What leverage did he have over her for her to stay loyal even on the soil of freedom? Or maybe she did not know anything further than the lies and useless information they told them to keep their business running at a low-risk cost. Alliances quickly turn into enemies in their circles.
Magnus' suggestion, in any justifiable way, was the best tactic for the greater good.
If we wanted to catch the murderer, if we wanted to catch King, I had to get hold of more useful information. One way or another. Quickly.
Before the murderer completely spiralled.
Before King came back to claim his Dark Angel.
Before my time with Cerise was over.
"Hey, Chris!", Cerise greeted me from the garden, sprawled on the garden couches. Her smile was not the usual cheerful grin but looked painful. Like her mask was on the verge of cracking. Which seemed to prove Magnus' theory wrong, as much as I hated it.
As much as Cerise meant to me, I barely knew her.
I only knew the version of her that existed in my head.
The version of her that I developed in my head since the day she had been taken.
Despite the hollering amount of alarms that rang in my head, I was more than certain that taking her as my wife would fill me, and fill in the void in my heart that I dreadfully carried with me for years. The sensible investigator in me screamed at my heart for putting my selfish interests first whenever Cerise was part of the picture. The biggest problem was that Cerise was in all the pictures as of late.
But would she marry me? Would she find a way to find a foot in the life that was normal to me but so foreign to her? Would she be taken back? Would they hurt her? Would they kill her for betraying them?
Hundreds of scenarios flooded my brain. Each of them ended with me being left heartbroken or wounded, scarred, or dead. Expect one. One had a happy ending written in its stars with us smiling at each other. Older. Stronger. Happier. Which one was our endgame?
"My phone battery died so I couldn't let you know ahead but the boys are coming over"; I nodded to the trail of men following me into the garden:
Magnus, Preston, Yahir, Chankyung, Seonghwa, Jesse and Haven.
Cerise immediately straightened herself up and closed the sketchbook, tugging it away from sight. "Oh no, not at all!", she pressed out but let her eyes flicker over some of the familiar and some of the stranger's faces. I walked over to her and pressed a soft kiss onto her forehead like I always did when I came home. How I greeted her whenever we had been apart. It was automatic, a ritual and my muscles relaxed once I felt her close to me. I saw the corner of her lips tug before they slightly rose upwards. She loved it, there was no denying that. "Oh, my manners", she then stood up, standing next to me she gave a smile to my group of friends. "I'm Isabelle, it is nice to meet you all. Chris told me a lot about you guys".
"I hope only the good kind!", Chankgyung threw in.
"Well, we are about to find out how much Chris told his fiancée about us, don't we guys?", Magnus added and the laughter instantly died. Cerise's whole body tensed and I could only imagine how deathly I looked at Magnus.
"Fiancé? Chris?", Seonghwa looked between Magnus and me. Haven looked at me with horrified eyes that instantly softened when they landed on Cerise.
"You didn't tell us that you are getting married. Or that you found the love of your life. It is great that you found it! But aren't we your closest friends?", the shock on the faces of the guys began to turn into hurt and disbelief.
"Alright everyone, calm down. Let's sit and we will talk about it, okay?", I motioned to the couches and each one of them sat down. "I'll get you guys some drinks", Cerise muttered before hurrying inside the house, out of sight of Magnus. He had been grilling her since the first day and as much as I knew that it was necessary. I hated it. "Thanks for nothing", I mumbled as he sat down next to me. I kept the space to my left free for Cerise so she could sit furthest away from the guys.
There were no other men that I would trust with my life or the life of my loved ones but her comfort was a bigger priority to me in this moment. When I scooted over to give the others some space, my hand brushed the paper of her sketchbook before it fell down the cushions. Leaning over, I picked it up but a piece of paper fell out from it so my hand picked it up too. the sketch was black and white and before I could stop myself, I was looking at the picture in front of me and felt the blood in my veins freeze.
There was blood.
A pile of blood.
And a woman lying inside of it.
Another woman bleeding from between her legs.
And a man. Holding a baby in his arms.
