PART 2 -
I follow her gaze to the bed. Gasping, my hand covers my mouth.
The bed, unmade, and with its pale covers tugged back, is coated in blood. Scarlet soaks into the sheets, staining the satin fabric with violent vibrancy.
I take in the disheveled room, the knocked-over chair, the smashed window, the blood... everything points to a struggle. My panic passes as my training kicks in. Textbooks, lecturers, hell, even Harrison's gruff instructions ring through my skull - how to secure the scene, how to stop myself and Alice contaminating it any further...
But first things first.
I tug my phone out of my pocket and unlock the screen, but Alice's slender hand reaches out and slaps it from my palm. My stomach lurches as it skids across the bed, bouncing on the pooling blood like a pebble across a lake.
"What are you doing?" I snap, reaching for it back. Alice shakes her head. Her heart-shaped face is drained of colour, and her delicate frame is visibly shaking as she stares at the bed.
"You can't call the police," she mutters, her voice laced with fear.
"What the hell is going on Alice?"
"I think.... God, I thought it was over. He promised me."
"Alice.... Tell me now."
"I can't."
Dread, and it's familiar chill wrap around my bones. "Any why not?"
She closes her eyes, bottom lip quivering. "Because.... it involves Owen."
***
Happy New Year everyone!
DDx
