Bookview Valley 3

Chapter Nineteen: A Theory

Friday, September 3rd

I shake the nerves out of my fingers, bouncing on my heels, as I wait for Vincent. He told me he would pick me up and take me to the police station. Now, I wait for his car. Could he not drive faster? I blow warmth onto my hands as I stand out in the chilly air. 

Finally, his car pulls up and he hops out. He opens the passenger door for me as I climb in. He sits back in the driver's seat and we take off. The first couple of seconds are quiet until he finally breaks the silence.

"Are you nervous?" He asks. 

"Yes." 

"Me too."

I give him a shocked look, "You're nervous?" 

"Why wouldn't I be?" He glances at me,  his violet eyes unsettling in the moonlight, "I'm breaking into a police station."

"You've literally killed people," I point out. 

"I don't plan on killing the cops." 

"That's fair," I glance at him, his black hair starting to fall into his face, "I'm sure it'll be fine." 

"I hope so." 

"After we get the suit, are you going to tell me the rest of the plan?" 

"Yes." 

"I'm assuming you're not telling me now, so that if you get caught and I'm still in there I can tell them I don't know anything." 

"Correct." 

After a few minutes we pull into the parking lot adjacent to the police station. This way it's not super suspicious, but also not so far away that we can't make a break for it. I feel a bit weird lying to the police and helping one of the people they're trying to catch, but I just have to remember that Vincent is helping me take down the entire organization. As well as possibly helping me find the Crimson Skeleton; my brother's killer and, I'm assuming, maker. 

"Are you ready?" Vincent asks once we've parked. 

"Not really," I answer before opening the door. He watches me get out, but I don't glance back. Instead, I make my way to the station, my nerves on end. If I think about it too much I'll panic. This is for the greater good. Besides, Luci is..was? Luci is my brother, so technically his suit should be mine anyway. I already have the knife, I'm just getting the other part. 

Opening the door to the station, I let myself in and walk straight to the lady behind the glass. She glances up from her Sudoku puzzle, but she doesn't seem the least bit surprised to see me. This does make sense, I've been here far too much for my own liking. 

"Go on in," She mutters, turning back to her puzzle. I slip through the mirrored door and into the station. Vincent was right, there are only a few cops still here. Luckily, Sheriff Mulligan is also here. His black, beady eyes find me instantly and he gives me a questioning look as he walks over. 

"Sheriff Mulligan," I say, not really sure where to go from there.

"Morgan Brooks, what can I do for you?" He asks, taking off his cap and running a hand through his thick, brown hair. 

"I, uh," I should have thought this through more, "I had some questions. Or, rather, a theory." 

"A theory, huh?" He motions for me to take a seat across from a desk; I do just that. 

"Yes, about the Skeleton killings," I nod, not sure where I'm going with this. Vincent said he'd call me when he was done, so I just have to wait for the phone call. 

"Alright, what is it?" The Sheriff grabs a pad and paper. Wow, I did not realize how much they cared about my thoughts. I guess I really have been through all of this. Why wouldn't my theories matter?

"Um, so I think that there's more than one again," I start off, because it's true and it was true the last time too.

"Okay, that would make sense," The Sheriff nods, "What else?" 

The other two cops that were still in the station crowd around the desk. Perfect. I continue, "So, what if they're not copycats?"

"Well, they very well can't be your brother and Jamie Cardigan."

"No, they can't, but what if Luci and Jamie were connected to something bigger?" I suggest, getting into the flow of this, "You remember that red book I found, right?" 

"Yes, the one we couldn't find again?" 

"Right, well I think it's connected to all of this. Maybe, it's a group doing all of this?"

"Alright, that's a good theory," The Sheriff jots some notes down while the other two cops mumble to each other. 

"Also, do you recall me mentioning something about the Crimson Skeleton? The one who killed my brother?" 

"Yes, though we found no evidence of them." 

"Maybe, the Crimson Skeleton is the leader," I say, "That's why the color is different, and why they took out my brother." 

"So, let me get this straight," The Sheriff peers at me from over his notepad, "You think the Skeleton, is actually the Skeletons? There's a group and they're being led by the Crimson Skeleton?" 

"Yes," I nod. This is the closest I can get without telling them what I learned from Vincent. Hopefully, this can actually help them, so in the end they can help me. 

The Sheriff glances at one of the two cops, "Do something with this information." 

"Sir, what am I-" 

"Just figure something out," The Sheriff waves the two cops off. I watch them as they walk away, but fortunately they don't go anywhere near the evidence room. The Sheriff turns back to me, "This actually might be kind of helpful. We've thought some about it, but we were more focused on the idea of copy cat killer." 

"Right, but if there are more of them," He gives me all of his attention, "Then we're dealing with something much bigger." 

"You do have a point," The Sheriff says just as my phone begins to ring. I slide it out of my pocket and glance at it. Vincent is calling.

"I need to take this," I say standing. 

"Morgan," The Sheriff stops me, "Thank you for your help, but please refrain from getting anymore involved with any of this business." 

I grin at the Sheriff, "I will try not to, but they seem to find me." 

The Sheriff sighs, "Stay safe."  

...

I rush as fast as I can to the car without seeming suspicious. Yanking open the car door, I slide into the seat. Vincent waves a black package at me, and I can only assume that it's the suit. 

"That was pretty easy," Vincent chuckles as we pull away from the station.

"Let's never do that again."