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“S
he called.” Detective Ocon paced around the living room in my apartment. “Who?” He stopped pacing and gave me a tired look. “Well, whoever our killer is, she called Anthony again.” I suddenly sat up straighter in my chair. Did she call? Were we able to trace her? “What happened?” He rubbed the stubble on his chin in between his forefinger and middle finger. “We were not able to trace her location as the call was less than two minutes. However, she did leave something behind for Anthony as a clue.” “What did she say?” He sat down on the sofa, facing me.
"Well, at first, she tried to make small talk with him. She asked him how he was and then said that she had been busy since they last talked as her mother was sick. From what I gathered from the officer who was present with Anthony, she was definitely using something to hide her real voice. He said he could not be sure if she was using an app or if she was deliberately doing something to her throat. Anyway, she said to him that she had recently found out his father had passed away.
She pretended that she had no idea. She gave him a phone number. He asked her if it was her personal phone number, and she said no, it was a home landline number. She said her phone was damaged and is currently in a repair shop. I think she played it quite smart. If it was some normal person, this would have been a very plausible excuse as to why she called from two different numbers. The way she added it into the conversation was also quite subtle and clever. Anyway, Anthony noted the number.
My team is tracing it for a location as we speak." I knew this was good news, but at the same time, I was skeptical. “How is the number or location going to help us? She obviously will not be there.” Detective Ocon gave me a knowing smile, the one he gives when he knows something I do not, something crucial. "Something is better than nothing. Knowing the location gives us access to her information. If she is using that location, then she either owns it or knows the person who does. Even if it is the property of someone she knows, we have a trail that can lead us to her.
Do not forget; she is trying to draw us out to have a go at you. She took a calculated risk, which resulted in long-term benefit for herself." I asked him the question I was waiting to ask. “So, in a sense, I am the scapegoat?” Detective Ocon smiled at me in another one of his knowing smiles and got up. “I will get going now. I will keep you updated.” With that, he left.
This is the first time I have been back at the university since my kidnapping. It felt surreal. People greeted me as if I had never left. She wished me well. Old colleagues, people I would never consider my friends, yet I felt certain warmth when I looked at them.
The place, the people, everything felt so familiar. It was good to see everything again. None of them asked me any questions about my absence. I was so grateful for their considerate behavior that I had no idea how to express myself. I just smiled and nodded. The university air, the fresh grass, all of it made me wonder why I had not come back earlier. Nathan had officially submitted a request for a sabbatical when I was in detention after Andrew's death. Andrew. His name brings a bout of sadness to my day.
A void fills my heart as I think about working without him by my side. Even though we did not work in the same department, his presence made everything a hundred times better. Be it good days or bad days; he was always there. He was there when I needed to celebrate with him; he was also there when I needed to vent. How was I to go about my day and act like it was all normal when the one person who made it normal was no longer here? What is crueler is that I will start to feel his absence as normal. Time is both cruel and rewarding.
It gives you comfort in the fact that you will eventually move on with life and the pain will lessen, but it also breaks your heart in the fact that you will normalize your life without that person. You will no longer feel the need to hold their face in the palm of your hands one last time. I walked past Andrew's office. It had been assigned to someone else. Of course, they could not have kept it as a shrine to him. Yet another reminder that life is cruel; your entire life's work may amount to nothing.
Days upon days are spent doing the same exact thing, only for it to be discarded. I felt a pang of resentment towards the person occupying his office. This person just goes about their day as if they are not sitting in a place with a thousand memories.
They will never know about the countless lunches I had in Andrew's office because eating in front of strangers made me anxious; they will never know about the many birthdays we celebrated here because we were both too busy, but Andrew said we should not be missing out on our lives. "I do not need a fancy dinner.
You are here, and that is enough," he said when I apologized for not having planned one for him. Even though he had the image of being social when we were alone together, all he ever wanted was peace. I stared at his office door, a tiny part of me hoping he would open it and walk out and start ranting about how angry he was that his sports team lost or how happy he was because his sister graduated. Obviously, the door remained shut; he never came. I sighed and walked away.
I entered my office to see Annette already waiting for me. Upon seeing me, she got up from her chair with a big smile on her face and immediately ran towards me to embrace me. At least something remained the same; at least Annette is still here. I hugged her back with all the affection I could muster. "It is so great to have you back. God, I missed having you here.
Do you know how many moments something happened in the office, and I wished you were here so we could laugh about it together? You really ditched me on this one. You are going to have to treat me to make it up for it." I smiled at her statement. She made me happy. I liked that she was still the same. It gave me the sense that even if my whole life turns upside down, Annette will still be there to pick up the pieces and just silently be there with me. It was then that I noticed the basket sitting on top of my desk. Annette pulled away from the embrace, and upon following my gaze, she said, "It is from Nathan. I just saw his name written on the card.
I did not open the card, so I do not know what it is for, but I am assuming it is good luck on your first day sort of thing, right?" I felt the entire vibe of the room shift when she asked me that question. The cloud in her eyes was back, and she looked at me with no emotions on her face. Is she insinuating that something might be going on between Nathan and me?
How could she even think that? During such moments, her eyes scared me. “Of course, what else could it be?” I gave her the answer I thought would be appropriate. She nodded her head and whispered “Good”. With the cloud in her eyes still persistent, she left my office. I watched her retreating back as I dug my fingernails into the palm of my hand to control my own anxiety. When she finally left the office, I released a breath I did not realize I was holding. Sometimes she scared me way too much.
I opened the card perched on top of the basket.
Dear Victoria,
Hope you have a great first, not first, day at the office. If you have a hard time fitting in again, then offer muffins to people around you. Everyone loves muffins. They will all instantly like you, and you will not feel alone.
Nathan.
I smiled as I finished reading the card. I was lucky to have him. A knock at my office door jerked me out of my thoughts. "It is Max. Can I come in?" I sighed and opened the door for her. “So, what did Detective Ocon say?” I had asked Max to talk to Detective Ocon about her not accompanying me to work. I love the sense of security her presence provides me with, but I do not need people at the office asking me more questions.
Plus, the office feels like the one thing my personal life has not yet interfered with. I want to keep it that way. "He said that at work, you are safe enough to not need my help." I heaved a sigh of relief. “But,” here it comes. I got my hopes up too soon. "But I am still to accompany you to and from work. You are not to exit the premises under any circumstances.
If you do go somewhere, you must tell me beforehand so I can accompany you there. You are to inform me fifteen minutes before you have to leave, so I have enough time to make it here. These are the instructions he gave me." Okay. That was not so bad. That makes sense and is a valid precaution. I smiled at Max and mouthed a thank you as she turned around to leave for our apartment.
The entire day, people knocked on my office door and came in to congratulate me on coming back. All day, I offered the people who came muffins. Nathan was right; Everyone loves muffins. I smiled as I collected my things to go back home for the day. I called Max to pick me up before I began to pack my things.
Weirdly enough, I did not see Annette around the entire day after our bizarre interaction in the morning. Is she mad at me? How can she be mad at me because of something she made up in her own head? And even if something was going on between me and Nathan, which would never happen, who is she to get mad? Is she not the one who broke up with him? Then why is she still acting like she owns or has a right to his life and choices? Honestly, this is stupid. I shook my head in anger as I got a call from Max saying she was here. I picked up my stuff along with the card from Nathan and exited the building.
“So, what did you do all day?” I asked Max as we walked together. I realized my work was not only a break for me but for Max as well. She does not have to look after me twenty-four-seven. She does not have to stay on alert at all times. This must be good for her too. “Well, I went back to the precinct today. Although Detective Ocon made it clear that my first priority was still your safety and I have to run to you if you need me, I think he was secretly happy to have me back. He even treated me to lunch. He only does that when he is happy.” I smiled. I felt guilty that she had to go through so much trouble to guard me. It is nice that this is finally working out for both of us. "If you do not mind me asking, what is your bond with Detective Ocon?" "Well, it is like a mentor-mentee situation. He has taught me from the day I joined the precinct.
I once asked him why, and he said he studied my file before I joined his command. He said he felt a bond with me because we were both people who joined the police force because we were wronged by the police. He said he did not want me to make the same mistakes as he did once. Sometimes he is harsh on me because of this, but I think most of the time I learn a lot from him." I nodded my head as we continued our walk.
The night air was calm, cool, and serene. We walked under the twinkling stars as leaves rustled around us from the silent, ever-so-shifting air. Nothing could be heard. It was dead silent. No dogs, no cats, and certainly no humans. I loved this environment. In such moments, I felt like the entire world belonged to me. Just then, I felt a shift in the air. The rustling of the leaves due to night air turned into a crackle due to footsteps. Both of us stopped dead in our tracks at the same moment. Someone is following us.
Max looked at me, and I saw her unspoken words saying do not look back. My heart picked up speed in my chest as we tried to continue our stroll as before, not giving anything away. Max was trying to sneak glances at the back to get a glimpse of the face of whoever it was. But whoever it was chose a safe distance. We could only hear their footsteps; we could not see them. If we tried to go faster, we knew they would either run after us or run away from us. Both of those scenarios yield us nothing. Just as we were walking, Max took a sharp turn away from the apartment. She was trying to fool the person. I could feel her texting on her phone without looking up.
Just then, I realized she was taking us through a route riddled with security cameras. She is trying to get her caught. The person was still following us. In the silent night, their footsteps were the only thing I could focus on. How did we not hear her before? It had been silent since we left the university. Why can we only hear her now? Maybe she hid at a specific route she knew we would take and then began following when she heard us talking, thinking the sound of our conversation would mask the sound of her footsteps.
I noticed Max's fingers moving systematically in the pocket of her leather jacket. I realized she was texting someone. Why did she not take out the phone? Of course! It will alarm the person following us through its light. “Keep talking like normal,” Max whispered in a voice that would have been barely decipherable if we had not been walking so close. “So, uhh, was your first day back?” Max asked me to buy time for reinforcements to show up. I counted my steps as I walked to resist the urge to turn around and take a peek at the person. Suddenly, the footsteps began to grow distant, like the person had decreased their pace. I saw Max looking at me with an alarmed look in her eyes.
Did the person figure out the security cameras? Max suddenly pulled out her gun and jumped around to run after the person, but it was too late; whoever it was was already gone. Max ran a hand through her hair and screamed in frustration. “Damn it, damn it, damn it!!!” She tried to run after the person by following the path we had originally walked but to no avail. It was like she appeared and then disappeared into thin air. Max began kicking the sidewalk as she continuously said, “Damn it, damn it, damn it!!!”
Backup showed up five minutes after the person left. I had no idea how I was feeling about any of it. This was the first time I had been this close to her since she kidnapped me. I always thought that if I ever got to be this close to her again, I would not let her go. But I froze. I froze. I was scared. I could have turned around and seen her.
Even when Max turned around to run after her, I remained rooted in my spot. I was terrified of her, and she was not even close to me. I think I know why. Since I moved into this apartment, it was the first time I had felt secure in a place. Anywhere else, I know she will be able to track me and come after me, possibly even harm me. But whenever I was in the apartment, I felt secure. It felt like home. I cooked in peace, I cleaned in peace, I did my work in peace, and I slept in peace too.
So, the possibility that she may be able to ruin another thing that was precious to me scared me. Even though I knew it would not happen. Max was with me. Max even changed our route to one which can never lead to the apartment to protect me. I knew the backup was coming and that she may even be caught.
Yet, the fear was so overwhelming I could not help but feel chills run up and down my arms. It was the first time I had felt that fear of sleeping with one eye open. I exited my thoughts to see Detective Ocon talking to Max. He had one hand placed firmly on her shoulder while he talked with the index finger of the other hand pointing toward Max.
Max had her head held down and was looking at her shoes. Is he scolding her? But for what? I began to walk toward them. Detective Ocon had already finished talking with her when I got in their earshot. Sensing my presence, he turned toward me. “Victoria, are you okay? I heard the account of what happened from Max. Judging from her story, I am assuming you were not harmed. But still, are you okay?” I nodded my head upon inquiry. Realizing he was still waiting for my reply, I said, “I am fine. Just a little shaken from the encounter.” “Understandably so. Even though I do not see any security cameras around, I will still check if this street has any cameras. Maybe we can find some footage from the dash cams from one of the cars parked here.
Though, considering the angle at which you three were walking and then comparing it to the angle of the cars, I doubt we will find anything. However, we will still check just to be sure." I nodded my head. "Thank you, Detective, for coming even this late." He gave me a nod before walking away and towards some of the patrol officers. I looked towards Max to see her still staring at the ground. She looked so lost. Her hair had come loose due to her frantic running and kicking on the sidewalk, and it was now cascading down her back. “Everything okay?” I asked her. She looked startled to hear my voice. She then looked in the distance as she said,
“Not really. I am just wondering if I made the right call by waiting for backup. I wonder if I should have gone after her as soon as I heard the footsteps. Maybe I would have caught her.” I looked at her in disbelief. She cannot seriously blame herself. What if whoever it was had been armed? "Max, no. Why are you thinking like that? That is not true. You made the right call. Of course, you did." She was shaking her head, and it looked like she was about to say something when I raised my finger to silence her. “Let me finish.
Let us say you had gone after her. You had turned around and followed her from the start. Then what? She was far enough that she would have run at the first sign of danger. And, she could have been armed. If she was armed and you had gotten hurt, what then?
You made the right call in every possible scenario. Stop beating yourself up. We will get her one of these times.” To my surprise, she laughed. “You know, that is exactly what Detective Ocon just said to me.” So that is what he was doing! And here I thought he was scolding her. I began to laugh too.
We looked at each other for a second and then burst into laughter. I heard Detective Ocon’s voice in the middle of our laughter calling us crazy girls. I could not agree more. We were crazy.
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