Silent pursuit

Chapter 3: Shadows of the park

The hospital car park was strangely quiet just has the day broke, the usual commotion replaced by the placement of the police tape and the multiple figures of forensics at work. A severed left leg lay cold on the concrete, leaving a significant trail of blood leading to the rest of the detached body, which lay crumpled against a wall, a mere shadow of the person it once was.

Forensics carefully caught every view of the crime scene, the camera flashes creating harsh, strange light on the scene. Travis and Anita approached the scene, their strides heavy with the weight of dread. As they turned the corner and the full horror of the scene hit them, Travis’s breath caught in his throat. His phone slipped from his fingers, clattering to the ground as his mind fought to understand the violence before him. Beside him, Anita’s knees buckled, and she fell onto the concrete, her face drained of all color.

One of the forensic team members, a young guy with a concerned look in his eyes, bent down to collect Travis’s phone. “Is this your first crime scene?” he asked, his voice soft but with a tinge of doubt. Travis swallowed hard, pushing himself to regain his calm. “Can I get the pictures of the scene? Who reported the crime?” he asked, his voice stressed but steady.

A woman from the forensic team approached, her face grave as she addressed Travis. “Hi Travis, the body has been identified as the D.P.O’s nephew,” she said, her words hanging heavy in the air. She held out a small, blood-stained object, “This was found in his hand,” she added, giving over the hospital badge.

Travis’s gaze moved to the wall behind the body, where a chilling message was scrawled in blood: “Temi died but the Counselor forever lives.” The words seemed to twist in his mind, their meaning as dark and twisted as the method by which they were written.“Was this written with his blood?” Travis asked, his voice barely above a whisper, as if speaking any louder would make the terror more real.

The forensic woman nodded, her eyes darkened with sadness. “Surprisingly, yes. But it looks different from the other crime scenes, like it was done in a rush.” Anita, still pale and shaking, signaled Travis to step away with her. They moved to a quieter part of the garden, the bright flowers and singing birds a shocking contrast to the darkness that surrounded them. Travis turned to Anita, his face a mask of barely controlled anger. “I can’t believe I trusted you,” he hissed, his voice low but sharp. “So you decided to go down this same path again?”

Anita’s eyes widened in shock. “Again? Wait, you think I’m the killer?” Her voice cracked with hurt, denial washing over her like a cold wave. “Alexander, how can you possibly think of me like that?” he questioned him her voice breaking with every word. “Because you changed your name, that makes you a saint? Huh, Deborah?” Travis’s voice rose, annoyance and anger bubbling to the surface as memories flooded back.

The memory was still fresh in his mind: Deborah, sitting alone in her room, cutting herself, tears running down her face as she clutched a picture of Temi in her lap. Alexander had walked in then, offering his hand, muttering the words that set them on their dark path together. “Let’s take over from Temi,” he had said. And Deborah, in her pain and desperation, had taken his hand, a grin pulling at the corners of her mouth.

“So who do we intend to kill first?” she had asked, her voice filled with a sick desire. But Alexander had stopped her, raising his hand in a comforting motion. “What, whoa, calm down,” he had said, his voice smooth and controlled. He had led her to a plastic chair, his own eyes sparkling with a cold, measured light. “We have a promising future ahead of us. In a few months, you’ll be in your final year. I don’t think you want to end up like Temi.”

Deborah had looked at him then, confusion and fear mixing in her eyes. “I made Temi end up the way she did,” she had whispered, her voice shaking with guilt. “That’s so not the case,” Alexander had answered, his voice firm. “Temi chose the path she took. You should too.” Deborah had nodded, her resolve fading. “I’ll think about it,” she had whispered, and the memory faded as the present world came crashing back.

Anita, standing in front of him, was clearly shaken. “See, I miss Temi, but I wouldn’t kill people using the Counselor’s name. It’s a scar I want to erase too,” she said, her voice thick with emotion. “Besides, why would I try to find the killer if I knew that i was ?” Travis’s eyes narrowed, suspicion still lurking in his gaze. “You can, if you’re playing by Temi’s handbook,” he shot back, rolling his eyes in anger.Anita’s eyes filled with tears, her voice breaking as she spoke. “You told me the police force would help me forget my hurt, but here you are, hurting me all over again.”

Travis felt a pinch of guilt hit me in form of her words. He reached out, pulling her into his arms. “Look, I know I should only bring smiles to my baby’s face, but the odds are not in our favor, and I don’t want to lose you,” he whispered, his voice softening as he held her close. Anita hid her face in his chest, her tears dripping unto his shirt. “I don’t want to lose you either, but I’m scared,” she admitted, her voice hushed. “The aura of the killer is so similar to Temi’s. And if she truly is alive after six years, I… I…” Her voice fell off into sobs, her body shaking with the force of her feelings.

“Hush, baby, hush,” Travis purred, laying his chin on her head, trying to comfort her as best he could. But inside, his mind was rushing, trying to piece together the bits of a puzzle that seemed to grow more complicated with each passing moment. As the scene around them faded, the only thing that remained was the dark cloud of doubt and fear that hung over them, creating long shadows on their frail confidence.