LIfe's Too Short

Chapter 14

Petra invited them in, gesturing for the two officers to sit down.

Deep down she hated the Military Police. She remembered when Sara was afraid that she'd join them after she placed sixth, but Petra reassured her, saying she wouldn't join them even if they weren't so corrupt. As far as she knew, the Military Police officers were drunkards who forced the new recruits to do all the work. But despite all this, she prepared and placed two mugs of coffee in front of them and took a seat.

Levi leaned against the wall. The officers had been shocked, even scared when they caught a glimpse of him. He wasn't exactly the most welcoming person.

One of the officers pulled out a clipboard, the one with dark, curly hair.

"Petra Ral," the other one with straight, blonde hair said, shuffling through papers in his hands. "Member of the Survey Corps, enlisted at 15. Placed sixth in the Trainee Corps."

"Hmph," he put the papers down. "Ms. Ral, we'd like to know what your father was doing exactly before he was killed."

Petra's hands were tightly clasped together in her lap, shaking.

"He was going out to get food," she explained. "He told me that food would be hard to get, given the situation, so he was going to buy some before it became too scarce."

The curly-haired man jotted this down.

"And where exactly was that?"

"The main market, I believe."

He flipped through the pages again.

"It says here that your father's body was found south of the main market," his eyes squinted. "It appears from the location of this house that he was headed directly north from here."

It made sense. When she'd go to pick up food or buy clothes, she'd walk past the library and down the street would be the market.

"That's the normal path we'd take to go there, sir."

"I see."

His eyes scanned the papers.

"Where were you at the time he went out and was killed?"

A small part of Petra believed they were accusing her of murdering her own father, but she shoved that feeling aside.

"I was here, at home," she informed him. "The whole time. I never left."

"Were you alone?"

"No. Levi-Heichou came to discuss business with me after. He was here when the news was broken to me."

He flipped a page.

"And who did that?"

"Daniel Castur."

Just the name coming out of her made her mouth taste sour.

"Do you believe there is anybody who would possibly have had a reason to kill him?"

She shook her head.

"No, sir. My father was well liked by many of the people here. Refugees and former residents alike."

Her throat felt dry, and her eyes watered. She hoped she didn't look like she was about to cry.

"And does he have a reason to kill anybody?"

Of course not, she wanted to hiss at them.

She shook her head.

"My father doesn't believe in violence unless it's against the titans. He'd never harm someone unless it was in self-defense."