Saltwater & Ink

27. The Mirror *in omnia paratus*

Inky sat alone in her messy apartment, the paintbrush in her hand. She had been working on one of the paintings for the art show that Thorn had promised to set up for her. She smiled, absently playing with the thin red ribbon he'd tied around her wrist. I wonder what you're doing right now, she thought. It had been a few days since she'd last seen him, they'd both been busy with work and had to go back to their own separate lives.Work had been strange at the Gallery after Thorn had quit, Cayson barely acknowledged her now and usually hid in his office. The detectives had been visiting the Gallery more frequently than ever since the discovery of Miranda's body, and it made Inky incredibly nervous.
The lead detective, Morris, had been the most involved in the investigation, coming in to interview all the employees to find a possible suspect. Every time Inky had seen him, he carried the yellow legal pad full of illegible notes, along with a sealed evidence bag. Inky suspected that Morris drank on the job, especially given that day at Tapestry when he was talking freely with Cayson. She wished she knew how much they'd looked into the murders, she'd overheard the detective saying something about a few potential suspects on their list, and hoped that Thorn wasn't one of them.
She sighed, setting the paintbrush aside. Her work wasn't enough to distract her from the lingering paranoia that the truth would soon be discovered. Inky had seen several of her coworkers talking to Morris, and she knew that they didn't like her or Thorn. Even Emma, who she hadn't seen since the night she'd assaulted them at Tapestry, had shown up to add her piece. Inky decided to go to her office and try to finish up some paperwork, maybe she'd be able to find out if anyone knew more about the progress of the investigation so she could warn Thorn if anyone was getting suspicious.
Walking slowly down the street to the Gallery, Inky thought that it was unseasonably cold for mid-summer. She wished that she'd brought a jacket, and hoped that it wouldn't start raining while she was trying to get work done. Inky quietly entered through the employee door and walked up the dimly-lit staircase to her office. She unlocked the door, locked it back behind her, and flipped the lightswitch, illuminating the room. Let there be light, she thought sarcastically, blinking against the sudden brightness. There was a note taped to her desk, a thin piece of ancient parchment paper with a black and white photo accompanying it and a familiar, precise handwriting in sepia pen.

INKY- TODAY I AM WORKING ON CURATING YOUR ART SHOW- SORRY THAT I HAVEN'T BEEN AROUND LATELY. DETECTIVE MORRIS IS GETTING SUSPICIOUS, HE FOLLOWED ME TO THE MUSEUM YESTERDAY AND I'VE BEEN TRYING TO DEFLECT ATTENTION AWAY FROM US.

NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS NOW- JUST KNOW THAT I WON'T LEAVE YOU FOR ANY REASON. I MIGHT HAVE TO GO OUT OF TOWN AGAIN TO TAKE CARE OF A FEW THINGS. BEWARE OF CAYSON- HE'S GETTING MORE UNSTABLE AND I FEAR THAT HE'S CLOSE TO FINDING OUT THE TRUTH. I KNOW I TOLD YOU I'D TRY NOT TO DO IT AGAIN- BUT THIS IS A DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCE, OUR LIVES MIGHT BE IN DANGER. THE RED VOID FEELS CLOSER TO ME NOW THAN EVER BEFORE, AND I MIGHT HAVE TO DO SOMETHING DRASTIC THIS TIME TO STOP IT.

PLEASE KNOW I DON'T INTEND ON LETTING THE ABOMINATIONS WIN, AND I WOULD DO ANYTHING FOR YOU TO KEEP YOU SAFE. YOU ARE THE ONLY THING IN MY LIFE NOW THAT MATTERS. I DIDN'T WANT TO KILL AGAIN, BUT THE DARK PRESENCE IS GETTING CLOSER TO THE SURFACE.

IF I END UP HAVING TO LEAVE TOWN FOR A BIT- I'LL DO MY BEST TO STAY IN TOUCH. PLEASE DON'T BLAME YOURSELF FOR MY MISTAKES- I THOUGHT THAT I HAD EVERYTHING UNDER CONTROL, BUT THAT WAS JUST PRETENSE. I MISS YOU, I THINK ABOUT YOU CONSTANTLY EVERY DAY WE ARE APART. IT FEELS LIKE I'M LIVING A LIFE OF FICTION WHEN WE AREN'T TOGETHER.

I LEFT THIS PHOTO FOR YOU IN CASE ANYTHING GOES WRONG AND I HAVE TO RUN. BELIEVE ME, I'M TIRED OF RUNNING. I JUST WANT TO BE WITH YOU, YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE IN MY LIFE WHO HASN'T TRIED TO LEAVE ME OR HURT ME DESPITE THE TERRIBLE THINGS I'VE DONE. I KNOW IT'S WRONG AND I DO APOLOGIZE FOR THAT- BUT I WILL NEVER REGRET MEETING YOU, INKY. YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE THAT MAKES ME FEEL ANYTHING BESIDES RAGE AND DESPAIR, AND DESPITE WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN- I KNOW WE WILL SEE EACH OTHER AGAIN.