Darkness

~

                All I saw was darkness; the pitch black nothingness devoured me, sending me spiraling through thoughts and emotions. Is this what happens after you die? I asked myself. Darkness consuming me into nothingness.

                I remembered being stabbed, then shot, and then someone yelling out my alias. I believe it had been Elliot; but then again who knew? Maybe I had been dead before it all happened; maybe my soul was already dead. A thought attached to my memories brought me back to attention. Elliot. Perhaps he was dead too, and I would see him in this abyss.

                “Have you already given up then?” A voice mused. I blinked. Had I?

                “I don’t know,” I replied. “What does it matter if I have already died?”

                A soft, low chuckled echoed through to my very core. “Being dead and dying are two completely different things. But I suppose in your case it is one and the same.” I scowled into the darkness.

                “Who are you?”

                “I am simply someone trying to figure you out,” the voice chuckled to me.

                “But who, specifically,” I asked again.

                “Someone you are very close to, but also someone you’re not close to.” I blinked. “I simply want to know if you are dead or alive.”

                “Do I have a choice,” I asked, curious as to why the darkness was asking me.

                The response was simply. The chuckle turned out into a full blown laugh.

                “You only have a choice because it is not your time yet,” it answered in between laughs. “You will know when it is time because we will meet again.”

                “Then I should think that I am alive.” The laughter stopped abruptly.

                “Then wake up Amelia.”

~

                Beep

                Inhale.

                Beep

                Exhale.

                Beep

                Inhale.

                Beep

                The resounding beeping of a heart monitor was the only noise I heard for some time. I realized it was my heart monitor, meaning I was in a hospital. Does that mean I am alive, I thought to myself. My wounds had been fatal.

                Soon I heard another sound intercept the beeping; a person talking.

                “I wish you would wake up Kay,” the sad voice said. “Lawrence really wants to come see you but the nurses won’t let him out of his room.” I realized it was Rose Thatcher, one of the few people I trusted. Was she visiting Elliot and me? How many times had she been here?

                I wanted to open my eyes and tell her that I was okay, but my eyes did not have the will to be open yet.

                “Though, then again it has only been one week since you had died,” she said. One week. The words hit me like a London tour bus; one week. I had been out for one week. But then I realized what else she said, “Since you had died.”

                What does she mean I had died? I am alive and breathing; the heart monitor is proof of that. I could not have died; I would not be here then, would I?

                “I don’t even know if what I am saying is getting to you,” Rose continued. “I just hope you wake up soon Kay.” I heard the door shut behind her with a click. I wanted to shout out, asking what she had meant by I had died. But I was too tired, perhaps I could ask her later…

~

                I woke up again, meaning my eyes still had yet to open. I felt like I was a new born baby, not being able to see the light in the world; or the darkness. I heard someone come into my room, making me think it was Rose.

                God, I couldn’t have been farther off.

                “Hello again Kay,” Carter’s voice spread through the room like venom through my veins. “I was informed that you were still alive; you and your partner. Though, I expected Lawrence to live, I thought for sure that you would die.”

                Well, nice to see you too, I thought sarcastically. I was incapable. He could kill me and make a run for it, and I would not be able to stop him.

                “I am just here to see how my enemy is doing. And I know you can hear me in that state of yours,” he said. I wish I could glare at him, or say something sarcastic. I heard muffled footsteps of his shoes on the floor.

                He whispered into my ear, “I also want you to know that if you want to find me; I’ll be in Japan.” I felt his breath on my ear, making me want to hit him.

                But he backed away, walking to the door. “Hope to see you soon, Kay.”

                Carter now seemed to say my alias like it was a foul language, which I knew he had no problem with yelling out to anyone. I again heard the door close softly, and I know that I would not be seeing, or hearing for that matter, again until I got out of this godforsaken hospital.

~

                The beeping of the heart monitor was starting to annoy me. At first it had been a friend, reminding me that I was still here on this planet and breathing. But now it was just a problem.

                I did not know if it was the fact that I had been in the hospital for so long, or that I had yet to open my eyes; but I was highly annoyed since Carter came to visit. I felt like I had let my culprit just slip through my fingers like water through the trees when it rained.

                Rain, I thought. Just another thing I have not been able to see. I knew it was there though. I had heard it pounding on the windows of my hospital room.

                I heard for the third time this week the door open softly. This time the muffled footsteps seemed to shuffle across the floor.

                “Amelia,” a person whispered. “I hope you wake up soon.” The voice held a slight English accent, making me know that it was my long time partner; Elliot.

                I heard him drag a chair to the side of my bed. He rested his cool hand on top of mine. I wanted to tell him that I was okay and that he should not be worried. Even though I knew that would be a lie.

                “I hope you can hear me,” he said. “The nurses and doctors finely let me out of my room so that I could see you. Though, it would seem you still need to wake up.” Great, I thought to myself. That’s just great. I can’t even see you Elliot. I was angry at myself, for not being able to wake up. I wanted to shout at myself; I was tired of the darkness.

                Just wake up!

2: Light

Light

~

                I squeezed my already closed eyes tight, trying to open them. Then I shot them open; only to immediately close them again. The florescent lights overhead were blinding, causing my eyes some pain.

                Elliot had left; well, actually he was forced to leave by a nurse, who told him that everyone was going to be in bed. I personally thought the whole concept was amusing; Elliot did not sleep much, because like me, he thought that sleep wasted perfectly good time. This soon led us in the direction of insomnia.

                My not sleeping in the apartment annoyed Rose, who thought that you could never have too much sleep. And, sadly, when I told her about my thoughts on sleep one night, she laughed saying that that was the “dumbest thing” she had ever heard.

                I opened my eyes again, this time aware of the blinding lights. Why has the nurse not turned them off, I thought angrily. Just because I was asleep does not mean I will not be blinded when I wake up. If this is what it felt like being in the light, I would prefer being in the darkness with insanity.

                I scanned the room, noticing that the room was perfectly decorated in the shade of white. It annoyed me. The only real color of the entire room was the floor; which happened to be an ugly shade of yellow, as though the designers had thought that lime green and mustard yellow would look great mixed together.

                I shut my eyes, tired of straining them. I was going to have to open them later anyway.

~

                I shot my left arm out beside me, despite the pain in my chest and right shoulders at the movement. I had yet to open my eyes again, but first I was going to look for a pen and paper on the small hospital table next to me.

                To my luck I found a small note pad and a pen, making me open my eyes at the find. The pen was a blue Bic™ pen that one would find on almost every desk in North America. The note pad was just an ordinary note pad you could buy at a dollar store.

                Taking the cap off, I brought the pen to the paper. I wanted to write a note to Elliot or Rose in case I fell asleep or passed out. I started to write, but I soon ended up taping to tip of the ball point pen on the paper. The. Pen. Would. Not. Work.

                “Fuck,” I cried out. “Blasted pen, why won’t you work?” Now my luck was back to its horrid state for the day. I started to get highly annoyed by the pen’s lack of ink, making me want to throw it against the wall, despite the pain I was feeling.

                I went back to hitting and was about to curse it again when I was interrupted.

                “If you continue that, you will hurt the pen’s feelings,” a smooth monotone voice said to me from across the room. I blinked and looked over at the corner of the hospital’s room. Elliot was sitting with his knees to his chest, resting his head on one of his arms that was on top of his knees.

                He was wearing a black long sleeve shirt and jeans. I noticed a white bandage in contrast with his shirt wrapped around his arm. When did he hurt his arm? From what I remember he only was shot. His sky blue eyes blinked at me from under a mess of ink-black hair.

                I really wish sometimes I could stop myself from talking. “Are you okay? How is your shoulder? What happened to your arm? It was not like that when I was stabbed,” I blurted out. Elliot seemed to leap from his chair, swiftly making his way over to me.

                I was about to continue when a pale, cool finger was placed on my lips, silencing me.

                “I am fine, as is my shoulder. I was burnt when we were evacuating the building,” he said. “Do not give me that look. It was a first degree burn, and I was not the one who died.” Oh right. I had forgotten about my supposed death. I had been meaning to ask someone, though I was sadly in an unconscious state.

                I removed his finger with my left hand, holding on to his cool hand with my own.

                “What do you mean I died? I am right here, am I not?” Elliot sighed, as if he did not want to talk about it.

                “Apparently you died while in the ambulance on your way to the hospital.” I felt my eyes widen.

                “What?”

                “You stopped breathing due to loss of blood. You were gone for more than five minutes, but the doctors were able to revive you,” he said. “I was in the hospital fighting with doctors to see if you were okay. Rose told me what happened after the fact, and how you were in a coma like state.”

                I said nothing. I mean what could I say, that it was alright? That it was fine that I died and might no longer be on this planet with other humans? I looked down at the diamond patterned blanket. Then I recalled an earlier conversation. What was it again? Something about how it was not my time and I had a choice. Who said that?

                What I did recall vividly was a rabid darkness that surged into my soul and very being. Was that what death was like? Or was that what happened will you were just dying?

                I brought right hand to my head, despite the pain my shoulder gave me, and tried to relax in the coolness of my pale hand. I felt that my auburn hair was longer, now it was well past my shoulder blades, making its descent to the middle of my back.

                I felt another hand come up to my head, twirling a curl of hair around its fingers. I looked over at Elliot, concerned.

                “Hey,” I said, grabbing his attention. “I’m here now and I am not going anywhere.” I smiled reassuringly at him. He smiled back, but just barely.

                “I know, and I hope it stays that way for a while,” Elliot said soothingly. I hoped to stay as well; especially while in the light.

3: Irritation

Irritation

~

                “Bloody hell,” I yelled, slamming the news paper down. Rose looked up from a fashion magazine she was reading in a chair, startled.

                “What,” she asked cautiously. “Is this about how you won’t get out of the hospital ‘til two weeks from now?” No, I thought; even though that did have some part for my foul mood that was not the problem.

                “Read the headline story,” I said, handing the paper over to her. Rose looked at it in disgust; she thought that if it had nothing to do with fashion and was not in a magazine, it was not important. I wasn’t even sure if she had ever read a news paper. I almost chuckled at the thought of Rose reading the paper while in her bright pink pajamas.

                “Do I have to?” she whined. I nodded my head, waiting for her to start. She frowned.

                I watched as I saw her eyes moving over the print on the paper. I waited twelve minutes, annoyed. It’s not even a very long article, I thought. After fifteen minutes the twenty-two year old handed the paper back over to me, or rather through the paper at me.

                “I don’t see what your problem is,” Rose said with a shrug. I frowned, looking down at the paper.

                “What do you not see it?”

                “No, all I just read was useless stuff about three different people getting killed by some guy,” she answered irritably.

                I sighed. “All of the deaths are in favor of Carter’s plot.”

                “Not really, no.” I blinked, shrinking down into the hospital bed. I realized that I would not get anywhere on this topic with Rose; but Elliot would understand my thoughts once I explained them in full.

                I sighed again. “Well, did you bring what I asked for?”

                “Yeah, but I don’t think you should get up to do it yourself,” Rose said tentatively. I stared at her, thinking.

                “I can do it,” I said stubbornly. This time she sighed, flashing a pair of scissors towards me. I grinned and reached towards her.  She snapped her hand back quickly, not giving them to me.

                “I will not allow you to cut your own hair. I shall cut it, just tell me the length you want,” she said. I knew I would not win this argument, so I told her that I wanted to have it just below my shoulder blades.

                Rose got up and pushed her chair closer to the bed. I turned as best I could to try to allow her to get to my hair. She brought the scissors up to my hair, snipping while humming a happy tune.

                “You know, Lawrence is going to be unhappy that I cut your hair,” she said.

                “Hmm?”

                Even though I could not see her, I felt her roll her eyes. “He likes you with long hair. And personally, so do I.” I shrugged. It did not matter what they liked, it was a simple matter of what was convenient for my job.

                “Then he can deal with me later,” I stated monotonously. I could feel Rose’s stare on my back, trying to burn a hole through my body. I then felt her release my hair, which felt a far bit lighter.

                “I have to go Kay,” she said as I turned around. Rose was already up, making her way to the lone door I longed to leave in a matter of minutes. “And don’t try to leave. I can see that look in your eyes.”

                I blinked, frowning. I needed to get back into the habit of hiding my emotions like before.

                Rose waved, closing the door behind her and leaving me completely alone.

~

                The next person to come through the door, besides annoying nurses, was Elliot. I smiled up at him; he simply gave me a small smile in return.

                “How are you?” He questioned. I gave him a thumbs up. He grunted, taking a seat in the same chair were Rose used to occupy.

                “I found out something,” I said bluntly. Elliot blinked, watching me tonelessly.

                “What did you happen to find out?” I bit my lip. I never told him about the visit from Carter.

                “Well,” I began. “I was reading the news paper and learned that a series of murders all seemed to be linked in supporting Carter in his plan.”

                He nodded. “I read the same article.”

                I scratched the back of my head awkwardly. “I forgot to tell you something earlier.”

                Elliot raised an eyebrow. “What?”

                “Carter happened to stop by when I was still asleep. He told me that if I wanted to catch him, I would have to follow him to Japan…” I trailed off. Bloody hell, I thought when I saw his face. Elliot looked far from being remotely happy.

                A deadly silence soon filled the room, resting over the tops of our heads. I watched the door, not daring to look back at Elliot.

                “And you failed to mention this, why?” His voice was a deadly calm, though I could still hear the ice in his tone. I now turned toward the wall, praying that he would not ask me again.

                “Amelia.” I willed myself not to turn. “Why do you insist on putting yourself in danger?”

                I blinked, my eyes narrowing. Was he blaming me for Carter getting away? No, that would be impossible. I was asleep; he has no right to blame me. And so, I whirled on him.

                “What do you mean? I did not ask for him to come in the hospital, I had no control over the situation. I mean he could have killed me but he didn’t; so do not come in here and say that it was my fault,” I practically growled at him.

                Sky blue eyes blinked back at me as I stared at Elliot with my double colored ones. I saw him swallow; I had never before gotten this mad at him or anyone for that matter. I must be losing it, I concluded.

                “I am not blaming you,” he said, more calmly then before. “I am irritated at the fact that I was not told this information.” To me, he looked like he had something else to say, but decided against it. I could almost see the words forming in his head, even though I did not know what the words were.

                Elliot slowly got up from his chair, heading for the door. I put my head in my hands, wondering.

                “I hope you get out of here soon. Goodbye, Kay.” He spoke without turning around, leaving me irritated in my own insane thoughts.

 

4: Complaints and Travel

Complaints and Travel

~

                “No,” I said sternly. Rose pouted, making me frown. I had just gotten out of the hospital, and was sitting in our small headquarters.

                After I told Elliot about Carter being in Japan, he planned a flight for us to leave today. Rose and Richard, as far as they were concerned, were not going to have me go off to stop a mass criminal by myself. When I told them I had Elliot, or Lawrence to them, Rose started to complain and argue; leading up to the present conversation.

                 “Why,” she whined at me. I scowled.

                “Well, one reason is that it is dangerous. Another is that you have no experience for this line of work,” I explained, barely concealing my frustration.

                “It’s my brother,” Richard retorted from behind Rose. My gaze slid over to him, daring him to speak again. Though, he wouldn’t look me in the eyes either.

                “If I may interrupt,” Elliot’s monotone voice spoke behind me. “But I do not know if I am comfortable with you two coming along with us.”

                Rose looked confused. “Huh? Why?”

                “Well, though both of you are victims, I do not really trust the brother of our main suspect.” Rose clutched on to Richard, mortified.

                “Richard would never do that,” the blond said quickly.

                “And how would you know,” I asked. “I don’t believe that you thought Carter capable of this either.” I was not really helping my point; I was simply making her upset, though that wasn’t my intentions.

                She watched me, searching for some type of emotion, since I had put on a blank face.

                “You’re right I didn’t think that. But I know what people are good and who are not good,” she stated calmly. I watched her, interested at her reaction. Rose didn’t get upset; she simply retorted back calmly.

                I blinked at her. “Anyway, even if you came, and I’m not saying you are, but do you know how to speak Japanese?” She blushed and shook her head.

                “But Richard does so he’ll speak for me.”

                “Hmm,” was my reply. I turned toward Elliot; he looked highly irritated. I frowned at him, knowing that I was not winning this fight.

                “Well,” Elliot started. “It looks like the four of us are going to Japan.”

~

                I sat in one of the private seats of the Thatcher’s plane, staring at the sight before me. Elliot was helping to cause the commotion in front of me. Rose was beside me, looking just as impressed as I felt.

                “What do you mean, ‘you were working on cases’?” Richard yelled at Elliot.

                “I mean just as I said,” Elliot replied. I just watched to two, not wanting to get involved.

                “Well, why can’t you talk to Rose and I? Or better yet, your partner!” Elliot’s gaze looked at me briefly, turning back to Richard.

                “It’s not very productive.” Rose, being braver than me, decided to cut into their argument.

                “How much longer ‘til this flight is done,” she questioned calmly. Elliot and Richard whipped around towards her; Richard looking upset, and Elliot looking somewhat surprised.

                “Six more hours,” Elliot replied just as calmly. Rose looked at me; I knew I had an amused expression plastered on my face.

                “Isn’t that great,” I said quietly; but loud enough for Rose to hear. She just shook her head.

                “Yeah, great.”

~

                After another hour of them fighting, they gave up. I eventually turned to Rose, asking if she wanted to play cards, which I just happened to have on me. She agreed making us play the card game War with each other.

                Then Elliot got bored, noticed us playing, and asked to join. And thus, led to the four of us playing Kings while we waited for our flight to end. This development would not have been so bad if Elliot would not keep making us play; we wasted four more hours in the plane by just arguing over not playing anymore.

                Rose got tired over the course of the eleventh game, and claimed that she was going to bed; Richard followed her, saying that he was tired as well. I got up at the same time, planning on just lying in a bed thinking of a plan for when we did get to Japan.

                Elliot stayed awake, and I could hear the soft clicking of his keyboard as he typed away the night.

                I put my hands behind my head as I gazed up at the ceiling of the plane. I knew that we would need more help when we got to Japan; that I was sure of. The only problem was, was that I wasn’t sure if Rose and Richard would agree to the kind of help we were going to need.

                After all, criminals are the best for what we were going to be doing.

5: Birth

Birth

~

                We had made it. The plane had landed without so much as another fight from Richard and Elliot. Rose kept clinging to me, as though that would make her understand the foreign language surround us. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at her; citizens were looking at the four of us like we were freaks. Or serial killers.

                Elliot was kindly having a conversation with Max Waters, the man who had taken care of me since I was six. He had always stood by Elliot and I. Even when he learned that we became detectives, and wanted to travel the world to safe people.

                I smiled at the thought. Elliot and I becoming detectives had been a shock to Max; who had told me to stop calling him Mr. Waters, because it made him feel old.

                “So, I have now made arrangements for the four of us in a small home,” Elliot said, stalking closer to Rose and I. I looked at him, carefully.

                “That’s good, shall we go there then,” I replied to him. He raised an eyebrow, searching my face for something. I stared back at him, my gaze not wavering. I would accept his challenge any time in any place.

                “Yes, we should go and get set up before we continue our investigation,” he said, not taking his eyes away from mine; which had narrowed.

                “Great, let’s get some food on the way. I’m starving.” Rose stepped in between us, as though sensing us fighting mentally. She had cut of our battle, making me turn towards her with a smile; she had always been good at telling when someone was upset.

                “We’ll pick up food on the way, Rose,” I said smiling. Elliot and I would just battle it out later, even if we didn’t want to. I did not understand why we kept having these battles, as though we could not understand each other’s thinking. It was starting to annoy me; not being able to tell what he was thinking half the time over the past few months.

                Months, I thought, surprised. It had almost been a year since we started this case; since I had met Rose and Richard; since the time I had left Elliot in anger to prove that he was wrong.

                So long, I thought mildly. How could I not have noticed that it had almost been a year? Was I that distracted by this case? Or was there another reason behind it? The more I asked myself these questions, the more I was confused. I just didn’t understand why I could not have noticed such an important detail. Almost like the time I had failed to notice what was wrong with Carter. I mean hadn’t he been giving off an odd sense when he tried to enter my room that first night?

                I sighed. I was thinking into this too much. I needed a break, something to distract me from the time, the case, everything.

                “Let’s go Kay,” Rose called out in front of me, in English. I sighed again, having not noticed their movement. I heard a group of Japanese teenagers say “baka” softly towards Rose. I chuckled lightly, at least that was one thing that would never change.

                “I’m coming,” I called back, running to catch up with them, my luggage trailing behind me. Elliot looked back at me, a small smirk plastered on his face. I scowled at him, causing Rose to lift an eyebrow while she looked between the two of us. It looked as if she had something to say, but thought better of it and didn’t utter a word.

                It was going to be a long trip to the house.

~

                The car trip to the house, or headquarters, was surprisingly quiet. No one uttered a word. Elliot and I probably were giving off a dangerous vibe. Or at least I was, seeing as how I was thoroughly annoyed at Elliot, who failed to mention that he already contacted our reinforcement.

                When we made it to headquarters, everyone left to claim a room, leaving Elliot in the main entre of the house. I had left and chose a room farthest away from the front door, claiming it to be my own. I had placed my entire luggage, which was not very much, beside the single bed that occupied the room.

                Aside from the bed, the room was rather bare. There was only a few other things in the room, one being a dresser, the other being a small wooden desk. There was a closet by the door, but I probably wouldn’t end up using it.

                I sighed again, sitting down on to the bed, defeated. I was tired, but not tired from lack of sleep, but tired of the time that had passed over the course of the year. I lied down on to the soft bed, closing my eyes. I stayed that way for what seemed like minutes, just taking in the peaceful silence. But then my silence was interrupted by someone calling my name.

                “Kay!” My eyes shot open. They really didn’t want me to rest, did they? I got up, not even bothering to yell back at them. I opened the door to my room quietly, leaving the peace behind only to enter into a room full of chaos.

                A brute of a man stood in the living room, his bulky shoulders and wide frame taking up much on the space. His skin was slightly tanned, blue eyes bright with amusement, and he had short dirty blond hair. A woman sat beside him in a striped armchair. She was also blond, but was short and slender; the perfect body for a thief.

                “Hello,” I stated lamely. The man turned, only to bring me into a bone crushing hug.

                “How are you Kay,” he said, pushing me into my chest. I gave a soft grunt, letting him know that I couldn’t breathe. “Oh. Sorry, I forgot that you were thin.” He let me go, and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

                I laughed, making everyone look at me. “It’s great to see you Titus. And Charlotte.” I smiled, I couldn’t help it. These two people knew me, and Elliot; even though they were both criminals.

                “Umm, who are they,” Rose asked confused. I turned to her.

                “Criminals,” I said, and having seen the look on her face, quickly added. “But they’re great friends who have helped us in the past. They are professionals at their jobs; professionals of the underworld.”

                “Yes, you’re right again Kay,” Charlotte said. “And I believe my husband has some information for you and Lawrence.” I gazed at Titus.

                “Oh? And what would that be Titus? Find something for the case,” I said. He looked as if he wanted to bolt out of that room as fast as he could.

                “Uh, yeah. But you’ll need a computer,” he said in Japanese. I stared at him vaguely.

                “You need to speck in English for Rose over there.” I motioned to Rose, who looked completely lost. Titus nodded, while Elliot pulled out his white laptop.

                “So what is it?”

                “Well, I heard about a certain killer who may have joined Carter Mattson.”

                “And?”

                He looked around uncomfortably. “The killer had some plans that he shared with some of the other underworld criminals. Oh, and his name is Nathan McCarty.” I heard Elliot typing in the name into the computer; it would take him some time to find the information we needed.

                “What else do you know?” I asked.

                “He said to me that he had a daughter, and that he was going to look for her to get her to join him, even if he had to kidnap her. Oh, and Nathan also said that she has her mother’s hair and one of his eyes,” Titus explained quietly.

                “Don’t you mean eyes,” Rose inquired. He shook his head.

                “No, eye. He had onyx eyes, kind of like Kay’s left eye. Actually her eye is only a little bit lighter than his.” Titus stared at me. I stared back.

                “Nathan McCarty,” Elliot’s voice broke through the silence. “His first victim was a man named Sam Ramsey, he shot the man in the chest. It was unclear if the shot was in defense or to kill. Nathan is describe to have brown, almost black, hair, pale skin, and ‘eyes that drill into your soul’ or better known as dark eyes. He is very famous in the underworld.”

                “His second victim was a woman named…” Elliot stopped abruptly. I turned to look at him, curious as to why he had stopped.

                “What’s the matter,” I asked. He simply shook his head, not answering my question. I raised an eyebrow. Titus looked even more nervous.

                “His second victim,” Elliot continued quietly. “Was a woman named Annabelle Walker; she was eighteen at the time of her death and had recently had a child.”

                “Is that it?” I didn’t understand what his problem was.

                “This victim, Annabelle, was very close to Nathan. They apparently were planning on getting married in autumn when she was sixteen, meaning he was seventeen and had already killed Mr. Ramsey, but she realized that she was pregnant and abandoned Nathan.”

                “And this is a problem why?”

                “Well, according to Annabelle’s parents; when she ran away she knew about the man the Nathan killed, and wanted to protect her child. And so, Annabelle had her child when she was seventeen, and named the baby girl Amelia.”

                I was silent; I didn’t know what to say. I mean I couldn’t just jump to conclusions, right? “What is the child’s birth date and place of birth?”

                Elliot read further. “It says that the child’s birthday is January the third, and that she was born in England. It does not say the hospital.” He looked at me. “Annabelle kept the child until she was about one, and then put her into an orphanage in Winchester, England. Nathan was anger at the fact of losing his child and killed Annabelle in anger.”

                And there it was; the pieces fell into place, telling the life of a child that was barely one year old at the time. I suppose I could have jump to conclusions. They would have been right.

                I looked at Elliot, he looked concerned. I could feel some of the color drain from my face. I was related to a serial killer. How could I not have known?

                I started to feel cornered as everyone looked at me; Rose and Richard were confused, Elliot was concerned, as were Titus and Charlotte. Elliot stood up from his chair, reaching a hand toward me. I backed away, as if he would hurt me. I turned abruptly, Elliot watched me.

                “Kay, we’ll get through it,” he called after me as I ran to my room. I opened the door, and locked it behind me. Leaning against the door, I could hear Rose’s confused voice as she asked what was wrong. I felt tired, as if the whole house was going to fall on me if I let my shoulders drop.

                Getting up, I headed to the bed. I lied down and stared up at the ceiling, wondering. I was related to a serial killer, the words kept playing in my head like a broken record. What was I going to do?

~

                Hours later I finally opened my door; after Rose came knocking asking what was wrong; after Elliot leaned against the door, trying to persuade me into coming out. None of their talks helped, and after hours of quiet; I decided to come out.

                I walked straight down the hallway, into the living room; Elliot was there, sitting under a kotatsu and drinking what smelled like tea. He noticed me instantly, looking up with sky eyes full of concern.

                “Are you alright,” he asked softly. I didn’t respond, only sat down under the kotatsu. I had forgotten that it was winter here in Japan. Then I noticed something else; where were the other four?

                “Where are the others,” I asked. Elliot blinked looking at me.

                “Rose said she wanted to go shopping with Richard, and since they are not fluent speakers in Japanese, I sent Titus and Charlotte to go with them,” he explained. I stared at him, and poured myself a cup of some the tea on the table.

                “Are you alright,” he asked again after a silence.

                “Yes.” I looked down at my tea, only just noticing his look.

                “Liar.” I shook my head.

                “I’m not really lying,” I said, looking up at him. He didn’t look convinced.

                “How are you not lying,” he said. I shrugged.

                “It’s hard to explain.” Silence. Silence was my only answer from my partner. And when he did talk, I was surprised.

                “I’m sorry.”

                “What?” I was confused; I didn’t understand why he was saying that he was sorry. Sorry for what? For trying to help?

                “I’m sorry,” he said again.

                “Why? What are you sorry for,” I asked.

                “I am sorry for asking for information. It made you upset, making you lie to me,” Elliot explained. I blinked. Oh, I thought. I smiled sadly.

                “It isn’t your fault.” He watched me closely. “I would have found out eventually, and I wasn’t lying to you when I said that I was not upset.” I took a deep breath.

                “The truth is that, I didn’t know how to react,” I said. Elliot looked confused; it seemed that I was going to have to explain for clearly.

                “I wasn’t sure how to react because I have never needed to respond this way. I mean, should I be happy? Sad? Upset that my father is a killer? Angry? What should I feel Elliot?”

                He returned a sad smile to me. “I don’t know.” I blinked; he didn’t know. What was I suppose to do?

                I sighed, getting up from the kotatsu and walking towards the main hall.

                “Where are you going?” I could feel his eyes on my back.

                “I’m going for a walk.” I could tell that Elliot frowned.

                “It’s raining, Amelia.” I looked out the window.

                “I know, but I like the rain.”

                “Don’t get sick,” he stated as I put on a pair of shoes.

                “I never get sick,” I said back, opening the door to the raining world. I was going to clear my head, not to get kidnapped and definitely not to get sick. I waved at him as I slowly closed the door behind myself.

6: Sick

Sick

~

                I got sick. By the time I returned to headquarters, Rose and everyone else were already there, and I was sneezing with a fever. Elliot sighed at me. Rose seemed concerned and told me to get to bed, since I had been in the rain without a jacket for more than a couple of hours.

                I told her I was fine, I was not sick. I never got sick. But alas, Elliot pointed out that I wasn’t acting like myself and that I was slouching in my chair. I retorted by saying that I just learned something about my family, causing him to wince, but that only made him get up and literally carry me to my room.

                “And I’ll tie you to that bed if you get up,” he said before closing the door behind him. By the way of his tone, I knew that if I got up, I would be tied to the bed.

                “But I’m never sick,” I mumbled out to myself, wrapping my body into the blankets. If I was going to be stuck in this room, then at the very least I could try to get some sleep.

                I closed my eyes, wondering what I would dream of when I slept. Be it peaceful or not.

~

                The six year old glanced at the boy sitting beside her; he didn’t seem that odd. He had black hair, pale skin, and sky blue eyes, but he didn’t seem that odd. The girl thought that it seemed odd that the man, Mr. Waters, was going to take her to another orphanage.

                When the boy looked at the girl, she quickly turned away, thinking that if he saw her eyes that she would be hurt. She heard the boy hum as she turned to look out the window, watching the passing trees and houses.

                “My name is Elliot,” the boy said to the girl. She didn’t turn around, not wanting to give into her curiosity.

                “I wonder if we will be friends, you and I.” The boy seemed to be talking to himself, as if thinking in his head wasn’t good enough. “Are you not going to say anything?”

                No, the girl thought. I’m not.

~

                Later that day, after the girl was put into a room with a female roommate, she wandered around the orphanage. She was simply looking for some where quiet to go; somewhere where she would be able to think in peace.

                The girl noticed two thick looking dark doors. Curious, she pushed open one, peeking inside to see if it was occupied. But what the girl found was not only quiet, but a library. She adored books; they were her only way to get away from the world when she was at her old orphanage.

                And so, the girl crept inside, grabbing one of the many books off of the lower shelves. The book was Peter Rabbit. The girl walked over to one of the chairs occupying the room and sat down, opening the book to the first page.

                She had taught herself to read, having to hide the ability from the people from the other orphanage.  At the old orphanage, she sometimes would read under the thin covers while everyone else was asleep.

                “Oh, hello,” a voice broke through the girl’s train of thought as she read. Jumping, she looked up and saw the boy, Elliot, from earlier. The girl quickly got up, put the book back, and walked away. Elliot looked after the girl, wondering why she wouldn’t talk to him.

                “Uh, bye,” he said to the girl as she closed the door softly behind herself.

~

                It had been a few months since the girl came to Safe’s House; and this time she was sitting under one of the trees in the courtyard, reading a book. The girl knew that he was there, waiting for her to talk to him.

                “So, are you ever going to talk to me,” Elliot asked the girl. She glanced at him, making him look surprised.

                “My god, she looked at me! What am I to do?” The girl stifled a giggle. Elliot smiled down at her, realizing that he was getting to her.

                “Ah, so you do acknowledge my existence,” he said clearly. The girl looked up at him, analyzing him. Elliot seemed to be about two years older than her, making him eight and not six; and even though he was smiling, he seemed to be trying to stay stoic.

                “Hmm,” the girl replied, turning back to her book. The other children of the orphanage were playing games in the fields. Elliot looked at the children, then back to the girl.

                “I will get you to talk to me someday you know that, right?” The girl gave a slight, almost unnoticeable, nod. “Good.”

                She was left alone under the lonely tree, and for once in her short life, was content.

~

                I woke up, a smile plain on my face. That was one of the happier memories of my childhood, and remembering it made me happy. I always thought that Elliot was an odd child, being so determined to get me to talk to him, as though we were already partners.

                I sighed underneath my pile of blankets, knowing that I was going to have to get up, even if Elliot didn’t want me to. But I was determined, and I started to peel back the layers I had built over myself.

                “And where do you think you’re going,” a monotone voice asked through the sound of my blankets falling off me. I shifted my body towards him, and smiled.

                “My god, he looked at me! What am I to do?” I quoted him in English. Elliot’s mouth twitched upwards; he was trying to fight back the smile. He failed, and soon a grin stretched across his face.

                “Oh, are you quoting the younger me? Has your fever risen?” I rested my head on the pillow next to me, and shook my head sadly. He sighed, getting up and putting his cool hand on the back of my neck. “It has risen.”

                “I don’t care,” I said. Elliot peered down at me. Then a thought struck me; had I ever thanked him for the past?

                “Hey,” I said, causing him to look at me oddly. “Thank you for being so determined to become my friend. It helped me. And thank you for every other time you helped me.” His eyebrows rose.

                “Are you sure you’re okay?” I shook my head, telling him I wasn’t. But for the life of me, I couldn’t stop smiling.

                “Hmm,” was his response. Then out of nowhere, he leaned down toward my forehead and kissed it.

                “Get better soon,” Elliot said, walking out of the room and closing the door behind him with a soft click. I felt my face get hot, and I blamed the fever. Is it really the fever? A voice in my head asked.

                Yes? I thought hopefully.

                Nope, came the response. I thought more about the subject, about Elliot. My face grew even hotter as I remembered him kissing my forehead. The hell, what’s wrong with me?

                I felt my eye twitch. I need to talk to Rose, I thought. But I also needed more sleep.

7: Emotion

Emotion

~

                I slept for a few more hours, stuck in the lonely room with Elliot not returning. I wanted to get up, to go and ask Rose about my… problem. And so, after a little bit of contemplating, I decided to get up; even if Elliot was going to tie me to the bed to make me stay in it.

                I quickly threw the blankets off of my body; I felt better, as though I was no longer sick, except my chest hurt slightly for some unknown reason.

                With a sigh, I rolled out of the soft bed and on to the cool matted floor. If I was going to have to deal with Elliot, then I might as well do it now; sadly this thought only led to me creeping out of my room and towards the living room, which I hoped held Rose. And walking into the room, I wished I had thought of a better plan.

                The first thing, or person, I saw was Elliot, typing away on his laptop. He noticed me, and without looking up, gave me a quick glare.

                “What are you doing out of bed,” he asked; and to me, he sounded ticked off.

                I tried to sound casual. “Nothing much, you?” Now he looked up, making me to want to shrink back into a corner and disappear.

                “Go back to bed.” His tone sounded like those of a demanding father, making me raise an eyebrow.

                “No, I need to talk to Rose,” I made my voice sound strong, but to me it sounded like a cracked mess.

                Apparently, Elliot thought so too and decided to ask me why I needed Rose. I was going to have to come up with an excuse on the spot. I should have thought of this earlier.

                “I need her to tell me something,” I said, as if that explained everything; and if you think about it, it kind of does. Elliot seemed to think about this for a second, then hummed and nodded toward Rose’s room. Thank God.

                I walked away from Elliot, hoping that I wasn’t too suspicious, and toward Rose’s room. I gazed at the dark wooden door in front of me, thinking that I should probably knock before entering. But, just as I was about to knock, Rose opened the door and literally pulled me inside.

                I fell to the matted floor, in a somewhat graceful manner and looked up at the twenty-two year old in wonder. She looked excited that I was at her door or in her room technically. Should I be concerned that she is excited, I asked myself.  Probably.

                “I’m so glad that you’re here,” Rose said excitedly. Yes, I should be worried. I looked at her as if she was some stranger, and right now, she kind of was.

                “Why,” I asked cautiously. She looked at me with a smile; a smile that I could only call frightening. I wondered how Richard dealt with her for so long.

                “Because you have an interesting question for me, don’t you my English friend?” I stared at her, she was actually scaring me.

                “Maybe,” I said, looking at her before picking myself off the floor. Rose came closer to me, forcing me to sit on her bed since there were no chairs. She stood hovering in front of me.

                “Well, what is it?” She was staring at me expectantly. I tilted my head to the side and bit my lip in thought. What was I supposed to say?

                “I am feeling… odd.”

                “What do you mean odd?”

                “I do not know what this emotion is.”

                She looked at me oddly. “What emotion?” Looks like I was going to have to explain it more clearly.

                I shrugged. “Elliot kissed my head when I was lying in bed and my face got hot, but that was probably because of the fever. Oh, and my stomach felt funny, like someone was trying to tickle me; and when I thought about everything my face only grew hotter.”

                Rose watched me patiently, her expression showing the sign of excitement. I continued.

                “But I blame the fever and whatever illness I had or have,” I finished lamely. Rose got up, made her way towards me, and shook my shoulders. Surprise was evident on my face. Bloody hell!

                “Oh, I can’t believe that’s how you feel,” she squealed into my ear. What is she talking about?

                “Uh, what?” I was dumbfounded, and that rarely happened. Rose came down so that her face was directly in mine.

                “You love him,” she stated simply.

                “No,” I said it as a question. She rolled her eyes, nodding. I shook my head. Rose was wrong, I couldn’t love him; he was my partner and friend, and in my line of work, romance was the worst thing possible. And even though I had never felt such an emotion before, I knew it couldn’t be love.

                I put a hand to my head, thinking. Could it? Why was I doubting myself?

                I got up suddenly, denying the idea, and walked to the door.

                “Thanks for your help Rose,” I said before closing the door behind me and cutting off her endless “wait.” I was going to have to act as if nothing happened, between me and my feelings. I was going to remain stoic and solve this case.

                Even if it was the last thing I do.

8: Party

Party

~

                I took the liberty of avoiding Elliot the rest of the day, and making sure that when Rose asked me why, I kept a straight face. He didn’t seem to notice, he was too distracted with something on his laptop. Probably some movement with your father and Carter, a voice in my head said to me. I did a mental nod; the voice was probably right.

                “Kay, come over here please,” Elliot called to me as I wandered past him. I stopped dead in my tracks. Why?

                “I need your opinion on some of Carter’s movements recently.” Oh. I wanted to hit my head on the wall.

                “Okay,” I said calmly. While in reality, I was freaking out. Why am I acting like this? I wasn’t being a good partner; this was just a thing that I would need to deal with. I was most likely because I was still partly sick.

                I leaned down next to Elliot, looking over his shoulder at the laptop’s screen. The information made look at him oddly; the information was simply about a masquerade party coming up in a few days. Wait, didn’t I already tell him about that?  I thought back to before I was in the hospital, and I recalled already having this information at hand.

                “We already had this information,” I told him breezily. Elliot looked up at me, his blue eyes shining with something.

                “Oh, did we? I forgot.” I stared at him wide eyed. He forgot something? I having the same colored eyes was more possible than him forgetting something. I thought he was full of it.

                “Well, I brought it up before… some things happened.” I didn’t really want to talk too much about my death. He nodded in understanding. I was the one who died you twit.

                “Yes, well the party is coming up soon and I have made you and Rose both invitations for the party. I need you to see if Carter will be there and if you can find out his next movements,” he explained. I nodded, but stopped. Wait, Rose and I? We’re both girls.

                “I know you are both female, but I need you to escort Rose to the party, disguised as a male. Which you can pull off, since I know you. Though you will need to cut your hair shorter.” I pulled at the end of a curl. I was glad that I was allowed to cut it shorter again, even if it was only because I needed to pose as a man.

                “Alright, is anyone else going with us?” He nodded.

                “Titus and Charlotte are going as backup in case something were to happen,” Elliot said clearly. In case something was to happen. Like what?

                With a sigh, I turned to go and cut my hair shorter, but Elliot’s voice stopped me.

                “And be wary of your father, Kay.” I know, I thought. I know.

~

                I had Rose cut my hair, since she said I would make it look ‘messy’.  It was short, and in a style similar to my original hair cut I had kept for years. It looked messy; due to it being mussed around by me, but once smoothed out it would look ‘great’ as Rose said.

                I was told that I had to wear a suit and tie, meaning I would need to go and pick one. I also needed a mask. Rose insisted that she come with me when I chose a suit, because I was escorting her to the party in the place of a guy. I told her I already had a suit picked, and she wanted to look at it so that she could match my colors.

                The suit was white, the jacket was a tail coat, the vest was a black, and the tie was a dark, almost blood, red. Rose told me that she had a red dress that would match perfectly, meaning the only thing left was the mask.

                I wanted a mask with meaning. Or at least, a mask with some meaning to me. Rose said that it really should represent something about me, and the made me decide on my mask. A raven. The mask showed the beak of the raven, and the details made it seem as if feathers were around the eyes. Thankfully, the eye holes were covered in a black mesh, making it impossible to tell my eye color.

                When I showed the mask to Rose, she said it was wonderful and mysterious. She wanted to focus on color, so her mask was a wolf. Black but highlighted by red. It matched her dress, and I wouldn’t complain anyway.

                Titus and Charlotte were dressed similar to us. But they already had their ear pieces in their ears. Elliot was handing one to Rose by the time I walked out of my room, tightening my tie.

                “You look good,” Elliot said to me, placing the ear piece in my ear. “But still be careful.”

                “I know,” I smiled at him, even though he wouldn’t be able to see it underneath the mask. I saw him smile slightly, and then he walked back over to Rose.

                “These ear pieces will allow you to hear me clearly while inside. It will also allow Richard-san and I to tell where you are, and if you’re safe or not,” he explained in Japanese. “Do not take them out under any situation.”

                We all nodded our understanding and walked out the door towards the car waiting to take us to the party.

~

                We stepped out of the car, me acting like a perfect gentlemen. The party was in a mansion, which was owned by one of Carter’s employees. I frowned at the sight of the glowing mansion in the night. If there was going to be a problem, then this is where it would happen.

                Rose seemed overly excited about going into the mansion, making me have to remind her not to get Carter’s attention, since we were undercover. She said that she understood, but still looked like a child in a candy store. Or like Elliot when I first talked to him.

                “What do you think this is going to be like,” Rose whispered to me once we were inside.

                “I don’t know, but Lawrence-kun wouldn’t let me take any weapons so I’m slightly concerned if something happens,” I replied back. She looked at me oddly.

                “Why are you speaking in Japanese and in a deeper voice?” I rolled my eyes.

                “We are in Japan and I am supposed to be a male. Also call me Lawrence not Kay.” She nodded in understanding. I looked around at the guests. I spotted Titus and Charlotte dancing a good distance away. Yes, they’re helpful.

                Then I remembered I was to be a gentleman.

                “Would you care to dance, Rose-san?” I extended my hand toward her. She nodded; I had been teaching her some Japanese. She took my hand, and we started the waltz.

                I was glad that I had learned the male’s part, it allowed we to focus on my surroundings more.

                “You know you are a great dancer,” Rose said to me. I thanked her, and noticed the light brown hair of Carter, I also zeroed in on his voice over the music.

                “Yes, you may if you would like,” he said to a dark haired person in front of him. They gave a reply back, but I couldn’t hear it. I would have to get closer.

                “Rose-san I found Carter,” I told her in a whisper. “I need to get closer to hear what he is saying.” She nodded in understanding, breaking off our dance. I bowed, she curtsied. I casually walked past people and close enough to Carter, but far enough that he shouldn’t see me.

                “Are you enjoying the party,” a cool voice said behind me. I jumped and turned around to meet a man in a black suit with a tiger mask. “Because I think it is rather dull.”

                I scanned the room; everyone was either dancing or talking. It was rather dull.

                “I agree with you but my Lady is enjoying the party so I cannot complain,” I replied to the man.

                “Your Lady? An interesting thing to be saying, madam.”  I stared at him and backed away slightly. He leaped forward trapping my wrists in his hands. He pulled me into him, holding me tightly.

                “Shh, the fun is just about to begin,” he whispered into my ear. I could hear the smug smile on his face. What did I get myself into?  “Watch, my darling.”

                He pushed my head towards the crowd of dancing people, his hand pulled out the ear piece in my ear as he did. The man looked down at it with what I was assuming was disgust.

                “So, Carter was right. He would try to keep tabs on you.” Oh, bloody hell! Why do I always have to deal with odd people? I thought to myself, trying to move out of his grip. But sadly, he was strong and I could not even move my head; though for some reason, my mask had yet to fall off.

                I watched as Carter walked to the front of the stairs, causing everyone to stop dancing and watch him. Their expressions made you think they were looking at a god of some sort; whereas all I saw was a criminal.

                Rose was looking around for me, though she couldn’t find me and turned toward Titus and Charlotte. Rose, I really hope that you see what’s about to happen. I could tell what Carter was about to do, and I wished I could warn the three of them, if not only Rose herself.

                I saw her say something to Titus, who had surprise splashed on to his face, and he spoke to Charlotte. The trio started to make their way to the door, but Carter decided to speak.

                “Good evening everyone. I do hope that you all are enjoying yourselves,” he said, breaking the silence. His voice was convincing and clear. He slowly started to walk toward Rose.

                Then it struck me. He’ll recognize Rose!  I glared at Carter, even though he couldn’t see me.

                “Ah, you three do not seem to be enjoying the party. Have I not made it enjoyable,” Carter said to the back of Rose’s head.  Titus turned around.

                “We have just realized the time, sir. My wife and her friend are tired and wish to rest at home. Your party was most enjoyable,” Titus said with a bow. Carter didn’t look convinced.

                “Young lady, you had an escort when you came through those doors. Where if he?” He had her. They were lost.

                Rose turned around slowly.

                “My escort is still here and I have told him that I shall be leaving, but he told me that he was planning on staying at such a wonderful event,” she said to Carter making him smile.

                “Yes, well I shall tell your escort that I say hello.” He turned away; he was letting them go for now. “Oh, please tell Lawrence that I say hello.”

                The three looked at him, and then slowly walked out of the mansion, leaving me behind.

9: Secret

Secret

~

                The only thing I could do was watch; watch as the people I called allies leave me behind in the enemy masses. The thought of being in this house with the man I was to arrest, and perhaps the serial killer that was my father, was, even to me, terrifying. That thought distracted me enough to forget that I was being held against my will by some man.

                “See, they left you,” he whispered in my ear, his cold breath sending a shiver up my spine. “Are you scared?”

                “No,” I said firmly. I was not scared; I knew Carter would not kill me if he knew he could use me against Elliot, at least not yet.

                I could tell that the man frowned and shook his head, sadly. I felt him pull me as he walked backwards a step; he was going to take me out of sight.

                “I’m sorry but I have to do this,” he apologized. What?

                I felt a blunt object hit my head, leaving a stabbing pain in its wake. The man let go, leaving me to slowly fall to the floor, unconscious.

~

                A dull, but throbbing pain was my wake up call. My cheek felt cold, lying on a cracked concrete floor. Probably another warehouse, I thought, thinking of the first one; the one that was now a burnt mass in the middle of nowhere.

                I was not going to shoot my eyes open, like I had in the hospital, in fear that I would once again be blinded by a burning light overhead. My right eye, my light eye, opened cautiously, looking for a burning light. But to my surprise, I saw none. All I saw through my right eye was a rusted, green painted, metal pillar. The dark eye opened, only to see the same thing.

                What the hell? I shifted my shoulder, trying to move my arm. I noticed a slight burning sensation on the wrists of my hands; I was tied back by rope, and whoever did this knot knew how to tie. I pushed with my left shoulder, the one on the concrete, to roll on to my back. The only thing this achieved was a nice view of the grey ceiling.

                Then something occurred to me. My mask had not been removed. I quickly sat up, causing the raven mask to shift slightly on my face. I instantly felt dizzy, and leaned my head on the pillar next to me, closing my eyes. You’re now my friend, I thought to the inanimate object.

                “Oh, so you’re awake?” The question came from a voice in the dark. The voice was familiar, but this time was concerned and not sadistic. Well, at least not as sadistic.

                “No,” I said sarcastically. “I am not awake; I am simply dying from blunt force.” I heard a slight chuckle from the voice in the dark, causing me to open my eyes and turn toward the noise. Only the figure in front of me was one I had not really thought of much.

                Sitting in front of me was my father. The silence that settled over us was unbreakable.

                “’Deep into the darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before; but the silence was unbroken, and darkness gave no token, and the only word there spoken was the whispered word, ‘Lenore!’” I finished quoting into the darkness before me.

                “Oh ho! So, my darling daughter knows Poe,” he responded. “It’s a good thing you know something and ‘Nevermore.’”

                I smiled into the darkness, at the man I would not know as my father. To me he was a serial killer, and nothing more. He smiled back in kind.

                “You have the same smile as me,” Nathan said. I felt my eyes narrow at him in plot. A light flickered on beside the shadow of his figure. All I could do was stare; stare at the man before me, at the brief feeling of remembrance.

                His brown-black hair covered part of his face, leaving an eerie shadow crossed over his features. His pale skin was much like mine, perhaps a little bit tanner. But what really captured my attention were his eyes.

                His eyes stared back at me with a drilling soullessness that leads to a never ending abyss of darkness. His eyes captured me, fed off me until nothing but my soul was left in his vision, seeing through me. The lighting of this room made his eyes suffocating to watch; made them impossible to look away from. They are the eyes of a demon; they are a part of my eyes. A part that runs deeper then I had ever thought; a part of me being a demon, if such a being even existed.

                I ripped my gaze from his, pulling what was left of me in a path behind. I could not tell what his reaction was.

                “Your soul seems a little broken, Amelia,” he said, his voice soft, calming.  “A broken soul… it has a sad sound to it. I wonder what could have possible led you to being so.”

                “Nothing,” I said quietly, for once I was unsure of my tone; of emotion pouring into it. “Nothing led me… I’m not broken.”

                “I never said you were. Just your soul, your very being is broken, not your mind.”

                “Nothing,” I repeated. “Nothing led me; it simply found me.” I heard a sigh and a scrap of a chair.

                I turned my head to see him, my father, Nathan standing right in front of me. He put his hands behind my head, untying the knot to my mask.  To me, he was untying more than just a mask; he was untying me; the being on this world who is me, the identity of me, as if all my secrets are pouring into him in a single breath.

                Nathan gazed upon my face, tilting my head toward him. I watched him as he watched me. His gaze was not just seeing me, but everything. I saw him; the man who was my father, but also a serial killer.

                “I won’t lie to you, or betray you. You can tell me everything, and I’ll bear it with you. I am your ally; I am your father and I will protect you against everything I can,” he said to me softly.

                I shook my head out of his grip. “You’re lying now. You work for Carter.”

                “I’m not lying.”

                “You are. If you’re not then tell me why you work for him.” I looked at him, demanding an answer.

                “I’ll tell you a secret,” he said, leaning down next to my ear. “I don’t work for him.”

10: Trust

Trust

~

                “What?” My voice echoed through the silent room, bouncing off the cement walls and back to me.

                “I said that I don’t work for him,” Nathan said to me again. “I have done nothing for him, Amelia.” He sounded honest, but he could be an excellent liar. No, I thought. I am very sensitive when it comes to lying. I know when the person tries to lie. But I couldn’t think he was telling the truth, could I?

                “You look like you don’t believe me,” he said, slicing into the silence like a knife through butter. He was right; I didn’t believe him. I couldn’t believe him.

                “You’re right,” I said to him. He moved away from beside me to sit in the stool again.

                Nathan sighed, looking tired and older than he really was. He was my father, and though I was supposed to believe him, I couldn’t.

                “I know you don’t trust easily, but I assure you, you can trust me.” How could I trust a serial killer when I was a detective? How? In my opinion trust had to be earned, not just given.

                “I can’t trust you.” I sounded more serious than I really was, or at least it sounded that way to me. He looked sad, but at the same time, proud; proud that I had not trusted him; proud that I wouldn’t believe him.

                “I’m glad you don’t trust me; or else you would trust many people who would hurt you, like Carter and his men.”

                “I could trust you,” I said finally; and in actuality, I could.

                He smiled at me brightly, much like an adoring father who had just seen his child walk for the first time.

                “That’s great; then I’ll untie you.” He made a move to get closer to me, pulling out a box cutter. Out of instinct, I bent back to kick him. He stopped; watching me closely so that he would not get hurt. Realizing what I was doing, I quickly put my feet down.

                “Are you really that paranoid,” he asked, walking toward me again. I nodded as he bent down and cut the ropes binding me. I rubbed my wrists with my hands, thinking. Elliot going to be ticked by the time I get back. I looked at my father. And especially when I bring him with me.

                “Thanks,” I said to him, standing up beside him. He was taller than me, about the same height as Elliot, who was roughly a head taller than me. But I was about five foot six, meaning it wasn’t too hard to be taller than me.

                “Let’s get out of here,” my father said, grabbing my hand. “And you can take me to where you’re staying.” Should I take him there? Do I know him enough?

                Seeing my questioning look, he quickly added, “You can check me for bugs and trackers in the car. Okay?” With a sigh, I nodded in agreement.

~

                Nathan practically dragged me outside; we had been in a basement and the moon was glowing brightly over the outside world. It’s still night? We couldn’t have been down there very long, I thought. But sadly that wasn’t the case, when I asked Nathan he said that I had been knocked out for almost a day, but woke up later that evening.

                By the time I can out my shock, we were at the car. In my view was an old red Saturn, its paint chipped and the back window cracked slightly.

                “It’s old but works like a charm,” the serial killer said proudly. He must have had it for a long time.

                “As long as it does not break down, then I’m good with it,” I responded looking at the vehicle. He looked expectantly at me, and I froze. What did he want?

                “Aren’t you going to look for bugs?” Oh, right. I came beside him, searching everywhere for bugs and trackers. To my surprise, he came back clean.

                “Uh, you’re clean,” I said awkwardly. His face broke out into a smile, much like a kid at Christmas. And he jumped into the passenger seat, waiting for me to join him. All I could do was stare at him with a blank face.

                “Are we going or not?” I jumped into the car, hoping that Elliot would not be too angry.

~

                He was ticked. When I had gotten to headquarters in an old car that wasn’t mine, he freaked. Then he had noticed Nathan behind me, and he lost it. We were both practically dragged into the building and placed in a chair. It was much like interrogation, but only silence filled the room.

                I sat there, not knowing what to do. Should I apologize? Or should I say that I was kidnapped and had no choice? But that wasn’t true, I had a choice, I just chose the wrong one.

                “Why do you have to make such rash decisions all of the time,” Elliot said, his voice laced with angry. He had sent Rose and the others to their rooms, and I sadly hoped that one of them was there as a witness before he murdered one of us.

                “I thought that—“

                “You thought what? That I couldn’t protect you? I’m your partner and you brought a serial killer that is working for Carter Mattson to our headquarters, where was your mind at?” I stared at him, unsure of what to say. My father didn’t say anything either, he just kept looking at the ground.

                “My head was on the floor,” I half-joked. He glared at me.

                “I need you to stop making rash choices,” he hissed at me. I gulped; I had never seen him this angry before.

                Elliot’s gaze went over to the serial killer next to me, thinking.

                “I will come up with a solution for the both of you.” And he walked out of the room, leaving in an empty silence.

11: Solution or Problem

Solution or Problem

~

                Elliot came up with his version of a solution. I didn’t like it and neither did my father. Rose just stared at the three of us, probably thinking that we had gone mad. Titus and Charlotte had come into the room and walked away immediately, refusing to help me, in fear of setting off Elliot.

                Yes, he did come up with a solution. It just wasn’t very thought out. I was currently chained to the right side of Elliot, my father on the opposing side.  I looked at the hanging chain between us with disdain, thinking that he was being an idiot.

                “Since you decide to be rash, I’ll have to stop you by making you stay here,” Elliot said to me, making me roll my eyes.

                “You didn’t think this through; this is just as rash as me,” I argued. “And won’t I just take you with me when I ‘decide on doing something rash’ as you put it.” He shook his head.

                “Why not just chain me to Nathan?”

                “That would be putting my partner in danger.” I stared at him with a blank face. He was being stubborn, and an idiot. I sighed, giving up and sitting on a chair. Nathan looked unimpressed with Elliot and kept glancing at me for help.

                I think everything would have been fine if Rose hadn’t brought up an issue, one that Elliot hadn’t thought about.

                “What about going to the bathroom? I mean Kay’s a girl not a guy.” I looked at Elliot, an eyebrow raised. He shrugged.

                “It does not matter. If she needs to go to the restroom then Nathan and I will simple wait outside.”

                “What about showers?”

                “It will be the same procedure,” he said in a way that cut off all other arguments. I sighed, looking at the floor. It had not been a good idea to come back with Nathan, knowing how Elliot was feeling since I left—escaped—the first time at the beginning of this investigation.

                Then a thought struck me; was it really a good idea to have Elliot beside Nathan, a serial killer, and me on the opposite side so that I could not referee them. I bit my lip, thinking on how I was going to have to deal, or change, this.

                So, I decided that change was probably for the better.

                “I don’t think that it’s a good idea for the two of you to be beside each other,” I said to Elliot, looking from him to Nathan. Elliot looked back at me, a thoughtful expression on his face.

                “I agree. Perhaps my daughter and I should be chained together instead of to you,” the serial killer said in agreement. He didn’t even consider this, just answered.

                “No. I will not allow that to happen. I do not know what would happen in that case,” Elliot said roughly. I rolled my eyes.

                “Then how about I go in between the two of you,” I suggested. He considered this, looking from me to Nathan.

                With a sigh, he said, “Fine.”

                And thus, I was in the middle of the two men, hoping that I would not regret this decision.

                                                                                                ~

                The new… arrangement proved some difficulty. Not in the fact that I was a girl, but the fact that even though I was between them, they still tried arguing and picking fights with each other. Since we were chained two hours ago, I had to stop three fights already.

                And currently, they were on their fourth fight. I was getting tired of it, even though it had only been a couple of hours.

                “I don’t see why it matters what his movements are,” Nathan said to Elliot, who glared from around my shoulder.

                “It matters because we, as in Kay and I, are planning to arrest him for various charges, and we need to be at least one step ahead of Carter Mattson,” Elliot countered.

                “Why not send someone to find out his movements?”

                “Because the only fully qualified person is Kay, and I have a feeling that she would do something rash.” And the pot called the kettle black, I thought to myself, trying to ignore them while I drew a picture of Snake. I had committed to memory what Carter’s top henchman looked like, and had already drawn Troll and Carter himself.

                “I would not let my daughter go alone; I would go with her,” Nathan argued. He was going to learn the hard way that Elliot was as stubborn as I.

                 “Quit calling her your daughter! You hardly know her!”

                “I doesn’t matter I am still related to her!” Right now, I was envious of Rose and the others, who had walked away a while ago; but sadly for me, I couldn’t leave.

                “And I’m her partner!” I gave up on drawing and sighed, throwing the pencil to the table before me. They were starting to give me a headache.

                “That doesn’t matter either! I care for her more!” Nathan yelled.

                Elliot lost it. “You cannot care for her more! As I said you do not know her, meaning you will not be able to have the same connection!”

                “I do care!” Now I lost it.

                “Lawrence, give me the key to my handcuffs. Or else I am going to kill someone, and it won’t be me,” I said my voice a deadly calm. The two stared at me, shocked. My tone was worst than me yelling at them, and they knew that they needed to listen.

                Dumbly, Elliot handed me the key. I snatched it, unlocking myself from the two, attaching them to each other, and leisurely walking to the hallway. I stopped in the door frame, looking over my shoulder.

                “I am going to my room. Fight each other all you want until I get back.” Then I walked into my room, closing the door; the soft click more threatening than any slam.

12: Memories

Memories

~

                The thick door closed with a soft click. I sighed in relief, leaning on the door slightly, now feeling tired. You should not be tired, I told myself. But I was, and there was no changing that.

                I slowly made my way to the hardly used bed, my eyes starting to close. Practically falling on to soft bed, I closed my eyes thinking. Elliot is acting odd lately, kind of like when we first met. With that thought on my mind, I drifted into sleep.

~

                The girl was seven now, almost eight, and had yet to utter a word to Elliot. He had been persistently trying to get her to speak, especially now that he knew she acknowledge his existence. But the girl continued to not speak to him or anyone else for that matter. She would not look him in the eyes either, as though it would cause one of them pain.

                So one day, Elliot had had enough of the girl not talking to him, and decided that he was going to have to force her to utter a single word. He had to find her of course. And when he did find her he noticed that she was, as usual, reading a book under that lonely tree in the courtyard, not caring about what was going on around her, but on the world of the book in her hands.

                With a sigh, Elliot rushed up to the girl, plotting to get her to talk. She glanced at him vacantly, as though it was normal for him to be there. Elliot stared back at the girl before him, her eyes hidden under her short hair that was just long enough to block them when she bent her head.

                “You know, you can talk here. It’s not like the other orphanage,” the nine years old said to the girl. She hummed and nodded slightly, as though she already knew that but didn’t care.

                “Then talk,” he said irritated. She shook her head, closing her book and placing it beside her. This time the book was Black Beauty, which was advanced for a person her age. She must be smart, Elliot thought to himself.

                He bent down beside her, taking up a crouched position in the lush green grass. Elliot moved his head so that he could try and see the girl’s eyes. She flinched and turned away, seeming embarrassed. Elliot blinked, confused. He had not done anything wrong, and was just trying to look at the girl.

                “Why won’t you let anyone look you in the eyes,” he asked softly. The girl simply shrugged, not wanting to talk still. Elliot sighed again, feeling slightly defeated.

                Then a thought occurred to him, and he felt rejoiced. Elliot quickly moved Black Beauty before the girl had anytime to reacted, she moved to grab it, but was captured by Elliot, who held her face to look into her eyes.

                The girl stared at him, shocked and not knowing what to do. She was afraid that she would be hurt; that if someone saw looked her in the eyes she would feel the pain that she felt when she was at Miss Pennies.

                But Elliot just stared into her two colored eyes, thinking and transfixed. The girl wanted to bolt, to run away from him and never look back, even though that had not helped her so far with the stubborn person. She knew that she would not get away, so she waited; waited for him to say that she was a freak, that it was odd for her to have a light eye and a dark one.

                Then, finally, after what seemed like hours when it was in fact only minutes, Elliot spoke.

                “Your eyes are beautiful,” he said, his voice as soft as a fluffy pillow, as smooth as a creek.

                The girl blinked, surprised. “Wh-what,” she stuttered out. Her voice sounded weird to her, like it wasn’t her own. The older boy looked at her and said again.

                “Your eyes are beautiful. They are so amazingly unique, that I am transfixed.” He let go of her head, giving back the book. She took it, looking at him questioningly.

                “Usually people say they are odd, and that I am a freak,” the girl said quietly, much like a whisper. He shrugged.

                “I don’t see anything odd about them,” he said, a smile breaking out on his usually stoic face. She thought about this, and a wide, happy smile came to her as well.

                Elliot was taken aback. He had gotten her to speak, but she also smiled a true smile; one that was filled with love and hope, one that he had not seen in a long time from anyone.

                The girl stuck out her hand. “My name is Amelia.” He took it, shaking the hand extended before him.

                “And I’m Elliot.”

                “I know,” Amelia said, dropping his hand and walking away. And even though they didn’t know it, they were, from that moment, friends.

~

                Years past and the two people, who never thought to be friends, were the only people they trusted, aside from Max Waters. Elliot, who was now fourteen, and Amelia, who was twelve, never told anyone else their real names. She went by Kay, and he by Lawrence. That is how everyone else knew them; Kay and Lawrence.

                The two never really talked to anyone else much though, and decided that they were the only friends that each other needed, which was true. They would read together, eat meals together, and when Amelia practiced violin, Elliot would sit there and listen to the beautiful music that came from the instrument.

                Then Elliot brought something up to Amelia, who had the same interest as him. They both liked to solve cases that the police couldn’t solve, and became partners in helping each other. Both wanted to be a detective team of two, but only go by one name.

                That’s what they were planning on doing with their lives; they were planning on being detectives. Max Waters were at first surprised, but understood their decision and wanted to help the two find cases that had gone cold.

                And thus the birth of the Colored Raven; two people who were so young became top detectives in the world. They grew up together, leaning only on each other, sharing secrets that no other soul would know. But Amelia stilled didn’t fully lean on Elliot, wanting to be slightly independent.

                The boy who had come scarred to the orphanage was now mostly healed; and the girl who had come to the orphanage from another, was healing. She could still not get rid of some things from the past, and suffered nightmares for it when she slept.

                But it didn’t matter to the two. As long as they were together they could get through anything if they tried, Elliot had said to Amelia. It was true. They would get through anything together until their last breath.

13: Invitation

Invitation

~

                Hours past, and I had refused to move from my room. I did not want to go out and face them, Elliot and Nathan, when they were going to start childish fights with each other and drag me into to them.  Neither bothered to try and get me, knowing full well why I had come into the lonesome room in the first place. They also probably just didn’t want me angry at them.

                But since I knew I was going to have to come out eventually, and be chained again, I thought I might as well come out now. If they were going to fight, then I was going to have to hit them to make them understand that they were being idiots.

                I slowly rose from the soft bed that had engulfed me in memories, moving to the cool wood floors below. My socks slid softly on the smooth surface, making a slight sound. I was ready to face them; to face the loud noise that was them.

                Walking to the door that I had shut many minutes ago, I opened it cautiously, tentatively; hoping that I would not meet the noise that I was ready to face. But instead of the noise, I met something that I was familiar with, something that could be counted as worse to others.

                Silence. The silent sound seemed to echo across the whole house, reaching my ears with surprise.  I was expecting to hear more yelling, more of the argument of who knew me better; though the obvious answer was Elliot, who I had known for years.

                I walked into the room, only to see the two staring at something together on a computer screen. What’s the matter, I thought seeing the look on their faces. I let out a sigh, causing the two of them to swivel around in their desk chairs and stare at me, as though I was now the computer screen.

                “What,” I said after a minute. They both visibly tensed, like I was going to yell at them or something of the like. “Why did you two look so worried?”

                Elliot and Nathan glanced at each other, like they were sharing a joke that I was not to know. I watched their movements carefully, analyzing every move, every emotion shown. But Elliot kept a stoic face, or now he did, and Nathan looked just as worried as before.

                “No reason,” they said in unison. I blinked, surprised. Since when were they getting along, I thought mildly. Without further a due though, Elliot unlocked the handcuff between the serial killer and him, and gestured towards me to lock myself in; the one that had connected Elliot and I was lying on the ground, its sliver chain swinging slightly.

                I sighed again, taking the extended chains in hand and attaching them to my person. Nathan watched me, looking guilty, and Elliot simple turned back to the computer, avoiding my gaze.

                I’ll have to question them later, I thought, taking a desk chair with wheels and sitting. Though I knew that the two probably wouldn’t tell me, I would find out for myself by looking on the computer screen.

                I pretended to stretch, looking casual, but glanced at Elliot’s computer. He noticed before I saw any information and shut the windows down in an instant. I made a defeated noise, curling back into my desk chair.

                I would get the information somehow, even if it took hours to get.

~

                They refused to tell me. No matter how important the information could be for the case, they still refused to tell me. It was like trying to deal with two stubborn children who wanted to run around and play, but in this case they were lazy and didn’t care what was going on with the world around them.

                I wanted to hit them both; slam their heads together in frustration. But that wouldn’t get me anywhere, though it would put me in better spirits, and be amusing to anyone around us; though Rose and the others still had yet to come back.

                Finally after two more hours that added to four, I hit my head on the desk in front of me. Having already finished my sketch of Troll, or John, I was left with nothing to do aside from trying to get information out of the two twits I was chained to.

                Said twits looked at me when the sound of my head hitting the desk reached their ears. They were surprised, I could tell.

                “Are you okay, Amelia,” Elliot said, knowing that my father knew my real name and that the others were not around.

                “No,” was my muffled reply.

                “How are you not okay,” Nathan asked from my left. I scowled down at the dark desk below me.

                “I’m not ‘okay’ because it would seem the two of you do not deem me worthy enough to know important information of the case,” I said, picking my head up to look at the two out of the corners of my eyes.

                Elliot looked uncomfortable while Nathan looked concerned about my head. I watched them; taking turns out of who to look at with my eyes. I knew that Elliot would never give me the information, but my father looked like he might if I stared at him long enough.

                And so, I stared at him with a glare. He squirmed under my gaze, and I wondered if my mother ever did this to him.

                “Carter invited you and I to meet him to get information, he just really wants to talk to you I think,” he blurted out after a minute or two. “Quit looking at me like that! Your mother did the same kind of look!”

                I felt my eyebrows rise, and heard Elliot say something under his breath.

                “I was not going to tell you in fear of you doing something rash,” he said when I turned the glare on him. He flinched visibly.

                “But Nathan and I would both be going. I would be safe even without bugs,” I said to him. He shook his head trying to tell me that I wasn’t going, but we both knew that I had already won once I had learned the information.

                I nodded to his pocket where the key was held. “Looks like we’re going on a field trip.”

14: Movements

Movements

~

                The wind stirred the cherry blossom petals like snow, blissfully trailing along the paths and trees. The pink petals were through the entire park, littering everyone’s vision with colorful spots. It was a fascinating thing to watch. Or at least it was for me.

                Nathan stood beside me, a lone tall figure shadowing over my form. We were at this park because the invitation, which was supposed to be out of my knowledge, had said that Carter would be meeting us here to share information.

                Elliot of course had told me not to come, even with my father. He was worried, and though he kept a straight face, I knew. He worried because he thought that I would get kidnapped, or do “something rash”.

                He was right to be worried, knowing from the past that something could likely happen. But he shouldn’t worry, even as my partner, knowing that I was capable of defending myself.

                Presently, I watched the petals of the cherry blossoms, drifting down toward my feet in the breeze. The two of us were sitting silently on a bench, hoping the Carter would come soon. He had told us to come a noon; it was two now.

                But alas, the shadowy figure of Carter came in the distance; his hood was covering most of his face, in fear that someone other than us would recognize him. Carter must think that we put up a warning, I thought to myself, standing with my father at the sight of him.

                Two figures stood beside him, Snake and Troll. They were obvious in the park, wearing dark clothes that matched nothing but themselves. Those two were here to protect Carter against Nathan and me, as though we were going to try anything other than gain information.

                But no matter how I thought about the situation, I hated it. It felt like he was always one step ahead of us, and that we needed him to give us information or we couldn’t solve this case. It gave Carter power over us, and in a way, it gave him strength.

                Carter walked over to us, spotting me, with a cocky walk that was more like a strut. I glared at his form that was coming closer.

                “Don’t do anything rash,” Nathan whispered beside me.

                “Why would I?” I couldn’t help but feel like I was being treated like a meddling teenager, or a child. “I am not a child.” He grunted his reply, since Carter was now in hearing range.

                “Hello, Nathan,” he said to my father, then turned to me.

“And hello Kay~,” he sang. I stared at him, what drugs was he on? I did a small wave, not trusting my voice to be calm, since it would probably be laced with annoyance.

“Hello again, Carter,” Nathan said from beside me. “I hope you will just tell us the information so that we can leave.” Carter shook his head.

                “I can’t do that. This is like a reunion with the person I tried to kill and the person who betrayed me, I can’t just let my enemies pass by without a hello and friendly talk,” he said. I wanted to arrest him now, but knew that I needed more evidence. “Why aren’t you talking Kay?”

                I scowled at him. “I was not talking because I believe that I should arrest you now, but I know I need more evidence,” I said, the venom dripping from each word. He raised an eyebrow, pushing off his hood at the same time.

                Then he smiled a wicked grin. “I wonder if you have scars from where I hurt you.”

                I smiled back. “Yes, but they are just more to add to my collection and mean nothing.” He frowned, and Nathan looked nervous.

                “Just tell us the information,” Nathan said, keeping a stern voice. He did not like the way we were interacting with each other, and I didn’t blame him. Even though I didn’t know him when I was younger, he was still a concerned father for his daughter.

                “I’ll tell Kay the information and you can go and talk to Snake and John, you know to catch up,” he said turning to the serial killer. Grumbling, Nathan left the two of us, Snake and Troll trailed behind him, as if scared to touch him.

                I watched them leave, slightly worried. Nathan was ,to Elliot, security for me, and now he was out of reach, causing me to be alone with the criminal.

                “Look at me,” Carter said, his voice suddenly cold and stern. I kept watching the place the three had gone.

                “You do not boss me around, nor do you frighten me in anyway,” I replied, not looking at him. He growled under his breath, and grabbed hold of my face, turning it to face him. I glared defiantly at the hazel eyes before me. They were no longer the kind eyes I had seen the first time I had met him.

                “You still have the two colors, hm.”

                “They don’t exactly go away,” I hissed at him, but he was distracted.

                “Light and dark, dark and light, I wonder what it’s like to see through those eyes; to see all the bad, to see all the good,” he said, softly. “But you mostly see the bad.”

                I paused. What was he saying? That I don’t see most of the good in people, that I only see the bad in things. But he continued talking.

                “You see all the bad in the world; due to your job, your past, and your eyes. You know some good, but it doesn’t make up for all the bad.”

                “It doesn’t matter,” I said, tearing my head out of his hand. I was close to biting the hand before me. “I came here for information, not a conversation.”

                I backed away from him a couple of steps. He looked hurt, like I had done something to him that I didn’t even know I did. And maybe I had, and just didn’t know it.

                “Fine,” he growled. “The information that I am going to give you is this; I am leaving Japan and going to Winchester, England. And I hope to see you there to stop me.”

                I stared at him, not knowing what to say. I was going back home, to where many things happened, good and bad.

                “You’ll lose this case. You and Lawrence.” I shook my head.

                “No, no matter what, we always win our cases.” He grunted.

                “Snake! John! We’re going,” he called and walked away with a small wave. The two other men came back, running to catch up to their leader.

                Nathan came back as well, and immediately came over to me.

                “What happened,” he asked, seeing the look on my face. I shook my head.

                “Nothing… Let’s go back to headquarters.”

~

                The entire time it took us to get to headquarters, or the small house, was silent. I did not tell Nathan the information I had ‘gathered’. I was going to tell them all together, if anything.

                And when we pulled up at the house, I immediately went straight inside to Elliot, who was still in the living room with a cup of tea.

                “What did you find?” He asked me. Nathan and everyone else came into the room too, hoping to hear what was going on.

                “We are leaving,” I answered. He blinked, and everyone else was surprised.

                “What do you mean,” Rose asked me. I didn’t look at her, just at Elliot.

                “We have to go to Winchester, England.” Now Elliot tensed, putting down his cup of tea.

                “Why?”

                “That’s where he is going,” I said simply. “And that’s all he told me.” Elliot nodded, standing up from his chair.

                “Well, let’s go pack.”

~

                Everyone was packed and ready to go in a matter of thirty minutes. And now we were at the air port, getting into the plane that would lead to my home, to Elliot’s home.

                The only thing I could do was stare out the window, watching the ground disappear below us. Titus and Charlotte said that they were staying in Japan, meaning only Rose, Richard, and Nathan came with us.

                Elliot was sitting beside me, looking at the ceiling of the plane.

                “Should we visit them when we are there,” I asked quietly.

                “We should,” Elliot replied. I was ready, no matter what, to face Carter for the last time.