GO, DIE & COME BACK

CHAPTER 16: AN UNEXPECTED TURN

The crime rate had increased in some parts of Edinburgh. It was the work of a whole gang. They were executing their plans from outside Edinburgh. Murders, thefts, and bank robberies had become quite prevalent in those days. The police were working tirelessly to catch that gang, but they couldn't, as the thieves left no evidence behind. The policemen gathered in the house of a businessman, where gunshots were heard last night and a dead body was also discovered. "So, any evidence?" The commissioner asked.

"Not at all, sir. Here is that same thing again." The cop acknowledged. He pointed at the burned substance. It melted too. The samples were taken and sent to the laboratory.

The commissioner went to the lab and asked the forensic expert, "Did you bring out anything from those samples?"

"Yeah, I've gone through all the samples and found out that they were the burnt particles of rubber. After studying a lot of these samples, I can conclude that they are face masks."

"So, the thieves are using rubber face masks while doing this stuff."

"I'm afraid, yes."

"Alright pal. Thanks for the information. I'll catch up with you later."

*  *  *

The news regarding a terrible accident that happened to Nina reached the Barrels the next day. Chaos was created in the house, and of course, Lady Lynda fainted. Nick crept into depression. The frequent visits of policemen were made to their homes. Each time, they said that they were not able to find the body or that the body was buried deep in the ground. Within hours, that news was on television. The Clarks went to Barrels to share the agony and also to console Nick.

Victoria was stuck before the television screen, listening to every syllable that every person had to say. Whereas, Matt was in the bathroom, having his first bath since he committed that crime. He thought that the hot shower would wash away his sins. As he came out, Victoria asked, "Did you see her body when she was dead?"

"No. I thought she must be buried in the sand and gravel that lay there."

"They didn't find her body. Is she still alive?" Lines appeared on her forehead.

"What nonsense are you talking about? No one can survive after falling from that height." Matt decided to go home at last, as he hadn't visited his mom after that accident.

No birthday celebration happened. They waited for Nina, and when she didn't arrive, they all got worried. After informing the police, her phone got tracked and was found at the accident site. While going home to meet his mother, Matt didn't ask Victoria to come along. They both knew the reason.

Actually, according to Clark, their daughter, Victoria, has been missing for days. John had done the same as he did to search for Nina. He had hired men to find her out, but there was no news regarding her as Matt had bought an apartment for them in a lavish area so that no one would ever dare to break into that place. John didn't inform the police about Victoria's missing case because he couldn't risk making the same mistake again that he did years ago. Before he was into the business of cars, he used to deal with the merchandise of antique porcelains. Once, a rich party accused him of a fake ceramics scam. The commissioner, being covetous, favored that party. Those people had roots in the mafia world. They offered the commissioner an enormous share for arranging false proofs against John to prove him guilty, which he did. John squandered a massive amount of money to bring things under control, but he was just a single person against the mafia and an avid cop. He even received threat notes from them, persuading him to rest the case. Eventually, the case was closed once he was found guilty, based on false proofs, and he was heavily penalized to see himself as liberal again. That's why he trusted hiring men to search for someone rather than confiding in the police, which involved the commissioner.