A Danger That Lurks In The Darkness | A TPQ AU |

XIV | "Being With You."

MINI
"Wait, there's another text coming through, I think,"

Opposite her, Rudy's eyes widened, as he stayed shock-still, his spine straight.

Another text popped up, just two words, and an emoticon: Good luck :)

That was it.

"James?"

"James,"

"Could he be lying to us?" Rudy pushed away from the desk, and, clutching the table, came to her side, still on his chair.

"I don't think so— there's the official court seal on the corner,"

"So... is he helping us?"

"I... don't know,"

Rudy tapped the table, a random beat echoing in the silence between them.

"Let's assume he is telling the truth," Rudy began, tugging at his hair.

"These names..." Mini tilted her head. "They seem familiar,"

"You heard them before?"

"No, it's just..." she trailed off, before abruptly sitting up straight, her eyes wide, clear of sleep.

"Posters," she said, quietly.

"Posters—?" he began, but fell silent. "Missing posters,"

"The missing person's directory," they said, in unison, as Mini began typing.

"Read out the names to me?" She handed him her phone.

He squinted, before beginning: 'Katie Anders'.

"Got her profile,"

"'Lindsey Borsta'?"

"Hm,"

And on-and-on it went, from 'Viola Batcher' to 'Myra Nyers' and to 'Nina Somers'.

Adjacent to her, Rudy blew out a breath, as she said, quietly, "Twelve,"

"Twelve people—whose information he shared."

"They all went missing from dates they were on," Mini said, quietly. "Their families reported that they had been going out, but they just... vanished,"

"Vanished until..." he didn't finish his sentence, looking sick.

"Until their bodies were found," she finished it for him, slowly, the words leaving a slimy aftertaste in her mouth. 

He leaned in close to her, his gaze flicking from one missing poster to the other, all open side-by-side on her laptop, in front of several tabs.

"They all look similar,"

"As in?"

"They were all white— and around 5'4, 5'5."

Her eyes widened, as she leaned in, too. "And they were between the ages of 23 and 25."

"Height, build, eye colour— it's all common among them all."

"Rudy." She said, her fingers curling in on themselves.

"Hm?"

"Look at where Katie Anders's body was found,"

"Reyands' street,'' he began, then frowned. "That's the street next to where Lissa Lawtons's body was found,"

"Exactly."

She got up with a grunt, and grabbed the box of thumbtacks on her desk, emptying the red ones in her hands, her eyes now fixed on the map that was behind them.