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As the crime scene faded away, Alexei stood beside me, acknowledging the burden we shared—the weight of finding this killer.
I glanced at his hands, stained with blood from an encounter prior to arriving at the crime scene and mirroring the victim's wounds. An immediate tension filled the air as I shifted my gaze from his hands to his eyes.
"Where were you last night, Mayor?" I asked in a mix of inquiry and scrutiny. I was trying hard to veil the irritation and fear building up in my veins. I should have known that the show of grief wasmerely a display to garner pity and throw us all off him. Good thing I picked up on it myself.
"I was home. Alone." he replied curtly, in a voice that left no room for further arguments.
I knew he was lying; the unspoken truth lingered like a phantom ghost. Yet, I chose not to press further.
The bloody imprints on his nails hinted at proximity, hands going where they shouldn't. The question remains: where was he and why does he have blood under his fingernails? I don’t think he noticed it was there, or else he would have washed it away before arriving.
A heavy silence surrounded us as the coroner's team wheeled away the victim's body. I got in beside the Sheriff and we headed back to the police station. At my cluttered desk, I reviewed the crime scene details.
The suspect board loomed; we still didn’t have a suspect yet as a team. Just tid bits of suspicions and clues, nothing too specific to give us an insight into the kind of killer we are looking for. Personally, the Mayor is my own suspect but I needed more time to prove it.
I delved into reports and records of interviewed witnesses and sifted through fragments of information hinting at a pattern, trying to make a thread that connected the victims.
The morgue's clean smell hit me as I walked in, a break from the heavy outside air. Dr. Simmons, the coroner, looked up, his face showing a mix of clinical focus and calm skill.
"I'm here to watch the autopsy," I said firmly, not giving any room for disagreement.
He nodded, pushing his glasses up, pointing to the stainless-steel table with the victim's still body. The bright lights made the scene clear, exposing the grim job.
As the examination went on, I watched with intense interest. Dr. Simmons worked precisely, each cut revealing a truth beneath the skin.
"There's no outside DNA," Dr. Simmons told me, his eyes on his work. "Clean. There are no signs of a defensive struggle either. Perhaps he knew his killer and submitted to the torture without fighting back."
The victim's body having no foreign DNA raised many questions in the investigation. The lack of evidence made me think about Alexei, the Mayor with bloody nails who told a different story. Doubt touched my thoughts—could he be innocent?
I kept my suspicion hidden, not wanting to reveal it too soon. The coroner's report didn't match the harsh image of a fight on the victim's body. With his mysterious presence, Alexei remained a puzzle I couldn't solve.
As I continued watching the autopsy, my eyes went to the puncture marks on the man's neck. The subtle and dark wounds followed a pattern I'd seen before. Animalistic, primal—a significant change from the calculated violence in the crime scene.
The pieces started fitting together in my mind, bringing about some understanding. The animal attack theory, first seen as unlikely, gained strength with each new revelation. But where did Alexei fit in this changing story?
I knew he had secrets, his mysterious air making him an enigma. Yet the proof, or lack thereof, made it hard to find a clear answer.
Leaving the morgue, I faced the growing belief that Alexei might not be as innocent as he said. The puncture marks, the bloody nails—they challenged me to find the truth.
Back at the police department, the suspect board stared at me. I was doing something wrong and I could feel it in my bones. I just needed to find what it was!
CHAPTER 9 | SUSPICIONS
ALEXEI’S POV
The big hall echoed with quiet talk as vampires gathered beneath dim chandeliers. The air held tension, a feeling that matched our serious situation.
I had called an urgent meeting of the vampires. Seeing Diego in that manner unleashed something in me. That man was my brother, we have been together for as long as I could remember and he would never place me last.
The feeling of me failing him was heavy on my shoulders and I hate that I won’t be able to get rid of it for a long time. I failed my brother—I failed Diego.
I stood at the front of the hall, like a leader in the shadows. The faces in front of me showed both wisdom and tiredness from many years.Recent events upset the balance we kept hidden in Harmony Grove. All my life, my major goal was to make Harmony Grove peaceful enough for everyone, both humans and supernaturals.
Diego's death cast a sad shadow on the gathering. His absence left a big gap, reminding us of the danger we faced. His death wasn't just a loss; it was a warning written in blood, saying that our kind was no longer safe. Whoever was hunting us was coming for us very soon, and just like Diego, we wouldn’t be able to escape or fight back. What the hell was going on!
"Thank you all for being here," I started, my voice carrying through the hall. "We are in a new and dangerous place. Harmony Grove is not as safe as it used to be. Our home has been tainted from the peaceful abode it was before. We are being hunted, when it should be the other way around.”
People nodded in agreement, understanding the changes that threatened us. The council's warning echoed in my mind, reminding me that time was running out.
