Infinite

Chapter 13

The letter was sealed with glossy red wax. It glinted in the fresh morning sun; reflecting off the golden light beams. I turned the little envelope over in my hand, examining the parchment.

"It is from her majesty, my lord."

Sebastian's cool, even tone pummeled the air beside me. I was nearly too aware of his presence... trying too hard not to look him in the eyes. I knew he noticed, but he refused to address any outstanding issues these past few days; resorting to purely professional exchanges and conversations. It was unnerving, yet I welcomed the much-needed break from my own head. I let it be, so that I had not a need to care.

The paper was scrawled with the neatest of handwritings; addressed to 'The Queen's Watchdog, Ciel Phantomhive'. I wasn't sure if the thought was new, but I was beginning to wonder how well that name fit me. The letter its self seemed to hold some kind of power, and even I hesitated before opening the fragile bundle of words made with ink and trees. Three pages of writing fell out onto my desk; two of which were files containing vital information on the current case. I picked up the letter first. The Queen's unmistakable handwriting glared up at me in striking black.

It read:

My Dearest Boy,

I trust you are well, as of late. It has been a while since I last had a case for you. Please do take this as proof of a job well done, and do not stress. You have done well in keeping my streets rid of vermin of the nastiest degree. I thank you for your hard work, and am pleased to present you with quite the vexing case, indeed. I trust that you will find the contents of the enclosed files interesting enough to pursue with gusto, as I feel this particular riddle is much to complex for anyone but a Phantomhive. This is something I wish I could have been rid of years ago, and I am ashamed to admit that this disturbing agenda has been allowed without my notice for this long.

Children have been going missing in London for decades upon decades. It seems as though each time a case has been deemed closed, yet another leak springs from the bowels of the city. These serial kidnappings have owned a prime place on mine, and yours agenda for quite some time now. I have been aiming my gun closer and closer to the culprit with every file tucked away, and I am confident now in knowing it is aimed properly. I understand this case may produce personal feelings. I pray that you will remain objective with your decisions and understanding of this complexity, and use such sentiments to fuel you.

I am now placing the gun in your hands. I trust that you will know when to fire.

Sincerely,

Queen Alexandrina Victoria

Placing the handwritten note aside, I picked up the other two files with curiosity.

'CLASSIFIED'

They read with bold letters at the top of each page. There were rows and rows of pictures of children whom had gone missing. They lined the front, and half of the back of each page. There were so many faces to be seen, the names of each victim seemed to be in the smallest of print. As my eyes scanned the contents, I noticed that each face and name had a date.

'Ruby McDonald - 1864'

was the first girl on the list.

I quickly checked the last name on the second piece of paper, and surely enough, it read,

'Charlie Paige - 1891'

"The last six are from this year."

I mumbled, scanning the list upward. I noticed that as the years had gone along, the frequency of missing children had lessened. I started back at the top of the list. There were a total of 24 victims taken in '64, thirteen in '83, and so on.