Queen Of Hearts [under editing]

Chapter twelve

Brynn •

The Pittsburgh Public Library is closed at this time in the morning. I can't see many librarians voluntarily working at 4:00am. Surprisingly the library is not locked. I would have thought someone would have made sure that nobody could enter and steal hundreds of dollars worth of books. The Detective Inspector walks inside first. We follow him closely. It seems that the Police Force in Pittsburgh aren't big library users so everyone is relying on Mackenzie who is never happier than when she is holding a book.

The smell hits me as soon as we enter. Something sharp, bitter and rotten.

Blood.

The scene is horrible. Every single person is dead. Children lie scattered in the young readers section, shielded by loving parents who were unsuccessful in saving them. Books have been knocked off shelves, presumably when people tried to flee. An officer walks over to the desk, trying to ignore the corpse sitting behind it.

"Phone cords have been cut, sir. And there's a jammer here too. It would have been impossible to call for help."

"What about screaming for help?" The Inspector questions.

"The walls are soundproof." Mackenzie says quietly. "They couldn't have been saved no matter what."

I put a hand to my mouth as I try not to vomit. This is horrible. Who the hell would do this? To adults let alone children.

The Inspector walks on, and somehow I find the strength to follow. He leads us to the body of a small boy. He is holding a book. Alice in Wonderland. There is a card stuck to the cover. Scrawled across it in black ink are the words "There is one joker in every pack."

I feel light headed, dizzy. The room starts to sway.

Lucas places a hand in the centre of my back, steadying me. Mackenzie looks paler than a ghost.

It's all become real. The murders, the bodies, the innocent lives. I can't deal with it. Before this all started I thought I was the strong one. But it's me who faints, not Kenzie. It's me who can't handle it.

***

Uh oh! What do you think is gonna happen next?
Let's just say it's about to get interesting :)