The Pale Lily

Confidential Suspect

Elara sat in the corner booth of Mason’s Den, the weight of the past few days pressing down on her like a vice. The leads had finally begun to align, each piece of the puzzle fitting together in a way that made her skin crawl.

Jeffrey Aldor. The name alone sent a sickening churn through her stomach.

Five years ago, Aldor had swept through town under the guise of a legitimate businessman—a high-powered negotiator who cut deals with the local elite. But beneath that polished exterior was a man with a dark, festering secret: a history of pedophilia, known but never punished. Money and connections had kept him out of prison, his past swept under the rug as he continued to walk free, unpunished for the horrors he had committed.

Elara had heard of him before. She remembered the sickening headlines, the whispers in the force about how some people could buy their way out of anything. Aldor was one of those people—untouchable, at least by the law. But now, his name had resurfaced, and it was tied to Isabelle Murdoch’s disappearance.

Elara stared at the grainy surveillance footage the bartender had dug up from the old security system. It was unmistakable: Jeffrey Aldor had been in the bar the night Isabelle vanished. He was the man the bartender had described—the smooth-talking stranger who had argued with Isabelle in the back room.

The realization hit her like a punch to the gut. Isabelle hadn’t just vanished randomly. She had been targeted, and Aldor had something to do with it.

Elara’s fingers trembled slightly as she flipped through the old reports on Aldor. His record was long, filled with accusations and testimonies from victims who had been silenced through legal loopholes and payoffs. He was a predator, and Isabelle had been his prey.

But why Isabelle? Elara thought. What had drawn Aldor to her? Was she just another victim, or was there something more?

The questions swirled in Elara’s mind, but one thing was clear: this was the lead she needed. If she could connect Aldor to Isabelle’s disappearance, it would break the case wide open. But that also meant dealing with Aldor, and the thought made her sick. Men like him were slippery—protected by money and power. Even now, years later, she knew he would be difficult to touch.

But this was her chance. The case she had been forced into by Lysandra now had a clear path forward. And yet, there was something deeply unsettling about it all. Lysandra had wanted her to find this. Why?

As she packed up the files and tucked them into her coat, a familiar dread settled in. If Lysandra knew about Aldor, if she had orchestrated this whole twisted game to push Elara toward him, there was something even darker lurking beneath the surface. But for now, Elara had to focus. She had a name, a lead, and a dangerous man to track down.

She stood up from the booth, her legs stiff from sitting for so long. The dim lights of the bar flickered as she made her way toward the exit. The stale air of the bar faded behind her as she stepped out into the cool night, the distant hum of the city filling the silence.

Elara took a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves. Aldor was the key, but she couldn’t shake the unease that followed her. She had dealt with dangerous men before, but something about this case felt different. Darker. And Lysandra’s involvement made it all the more twisted.

Just as she pulled her phone from her pocket to make a call, it buzzed in her hand. An unknown number flashed on the screen.

Her heart skipped a beat. Every instinct screamed at her to ignore it, but she knew better. In this game, nothing was a coincidence. With a deep breath, she accepted the call and raised the phone to her ear.

For a moment, there was nothing but silence. Then, a voice spoke—calm, cold, and far too familiar.

“Well done, Detective,” Lysandra’s voice purred through the line. “You found him.”

Elara’s stomach dropped. “Lysandra. What do you want?”

Lysandra laughed softly, the sound sending a chill down Elara’s spine. “Oh, come now. You know what I want. I told you—solve the case, and I’ll give you a reward. But we’re not quite done yet, are we?”

Elara clenched her jaw. “What do you mean?”

There was a pause on the other end of the line before Lysandra’s voice turned sharper, darker. “Aldor isn’t just a lead, Detective. He’s a monster. But you already knew that, didn’t you? What you might not know is just how deep his connections run. You think finding his name is the end? No. It’s just the beginning.”

Elara’s grip on the phone tightened. “What’s your game, Lysandra? Why point me toward him?”

“Because,” Lysandra whispered, her voice almost a hiss, “I want to watch you squirm. You’re hunting a monster, Elara, and I want to see what you’ll do when you’re face-to-face with him.”

The line went dead.

Elara stood frozen on the sidewalk, her pulse pounding in her ears. The case had taken an even darker turn, and Lysandra’s twisted hand was guiding it all.

She slipped the phone back into her pocket, her mind racing. Aldor wasn’t just another name on a file. He was part of something bigger, something far more sinister. And now, Elara was caught in the middle of it.

But no matter what, she would find out the truth.

And when she did, Lysandra would be the one to pay.