The Feast of Fears

The Devil's Bargain

Detective Jameson sat in his office, sipping his coffee and staring at the file in front of him. The murder of Sarah Jenkins was still unsolved, and he was no closer to catching the killer.

Ava walked in, looking pale and shaken. "Jameson, I've been thinking," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I think I might have found a connection between the murders."

Jameson's eyes snapped back into focus. "What kind of connection?" he asked, his tone sharp with interest.

Ava took a deep breath. "I've been going over the cases, and I think the victims all have one thing in common. They were all involved in some way with the Lost Souls Café."

Jameson's eyes narrowed. "The Lost Souls Café? What makes you think that?"

Ava hesitated. "I...I saw something there. A symbol on the wall. It looked like an eye with a vertical line through it."

Jameson's expression turned grim. "That's the symbol of the Cult of the Devourer," he said. "We've been investigating them, but we couldn't find any concrete evidence of their involvement."

Ava's eyes locked onto his. "I think they're trying to send us a message," she said. "I think they're trying to tell us that they're involved."

Jameson nodded, his mind racing with possibilities. "Let's pay a visit to the café and see what we can find," he said.

As they arrived at the café, Ava felt a sense of unease wash over her. Something didn't feel right.

Inside, they found Ethan sitting at a table, sipping a cup of coffee. His eyes locked onto Ava's, and she felt a shiver run down her spine.

"Ah, Jameson," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "I've been expecting you."

Jameson's hand instinctively went to his gun. "What do you know about the murders?" he demanded.

Ethan smiled. "Oh, I know plenty," he said. "But I'm not telling you anything until you agree to play by my rules.

Jameson's eyes narrowed. "What kind of rules?" he asked, his voice firm.

Ethan leaned back in his chair, a smug look on his face. "Oh, just a little game," he said. "You see, I know something about the murders, but I'm not going to tell you unless you agree to play along."

Ava felt a sense of unease wash over her. She didn't like the way this was going, but she knew they had to play along if they wanted to get any information out of Ethan.

"What do you want us to do?" Jameson asked, his voice tight with tension.

Ethan grinned. "I want you to find something for me," he said. "Something that belongs to someone very special. And in return, I'll tell you everything I know about the murders."

Ava felt a sense of trepidation. What could Ethan possibly want them to find? And what did he mean by "someone very special"?

Jameson's expression was skeptical. "What makes you think we can find whatever it is you're looking for?" he asked.

Ethan leaned forward, his eyes glinting with malice. "Because I have reason to believe that you're already on the right track," he said. "You're getting close, Jameson. And I want to be the one to help you get there."

Ava felt a shiver run down her spine as she realized that Ethan was trying to manipulate them. But what choice did they have? They had to play along if they wanted to solve the case.

"Okay," Jameson said finally. "We'll play your game. But if we don't get what we need from this...there will be consequences."

Ethan grinned again, his eyes glinting with excitement. "Oh, I'm shaking with fear," he said.

As they left the café, Ava couldn't help but wonder what they had just gotten themselves into.

As they walked away from the café, Jameson turned to Ava. "What do you think he wants us to find?" he asked, his voice low and serious.

Ava shook her head. "I don't know, but I have a bad feeling about this," she said. "He seems to be enjoying himself, and that's not a good sign."

Jameson nodded in agreement. "I don't like it either. But we have to play along if we want to get any information out of him."

Ava pulled out her phone and dialed a number. "Hey, Rachel, it's Ava. We need your help. We're trying to get information out of Ethan at the Lost Souls Café, but we need some intel on what he might be looking for. Can you dig up anything?"

Rachel's voice came over the line, hesitant. "Ava, I'm not sure if I should be telling you this, but...I found something strange in the files. There's a rumor that Ethan is searching for an ancient artifact. Something that's said to have the power to grant wishes."

Ava's eyes widened. "An artifact? That's crazy talk."

But Jameson's expression turned serious. "Not necessarily," he said. "We've seen some weird stuff in our line of work, Ava. If this artifact exists...it could be the key to solving the case."

Ava felt a shiver run down her spine as she thought about what they were dealing with. They were in over their heads, and she knew it.

"What do we need to do?" Jameson asked, his voice firm.

Ava took a deep breath. "We need to find out more about this artifact," she said. "And we need to get it before Ethan does."

Jameson nodded, his eyes locked onto hers. "Let's get to work," he said.

As they began their search for the artifact, Ava has gotten again, the feeling that they were being watched. She glanced around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary...

But then she noticed something strange on the wall of a nearby building. A symbol, similar to the one she had seen at the café.

"What is that?" Jameson asked, following her gaze.

Ava's heart raced as she realized what it meant. They were on the right track, but they were also in grave danger.