The Situation

etective Ocon got here before Nathan did. He arrived with seven police officers and completely sealed off the attic. Four of the officers were working there, while three others surveyed the house. Detective Ocon himself looked baffled by the situation.

“Where were the two of you?” I answered before Max could. “We were at the house of a neighbor of mine, Mrs. Waltham. She used to take care of me when I was little. She visited me two days ago and invited us for dinner when she found out we were going to come here.” Detective Ocon grunted gruffly. “How did she even get in here?

The locks look sturdy enough to me.” This time, Max beat me to it. “She came in through the attic window.” I flinched at the way Detective Ocon looked at her. So much anger. “Officer, did you follow standard safety protocols and check the locks before leaving?” Max nodded her head, not uttering a word.

I had never seen Detective Ocon adopt such a professional tone with her. If anything, he always seemed relaxed and comfortable around her, like he trusted her. "I did, sir." "If you had done your job, how did she get in? Not only get in but purposefully leave behind her marks?" I flinched at his harsh tone. "Detective Ocon, it is not her fault. She was going to check the attic window.

I stopped her. I not only stopped her, but I also prevented her from going up there. It is my fault, sir. Max has done a wonderful job; please, do not blame her for my stupidity." I was scared of him; I truly was. Even though I was scared, I could not let Max take the fall for something that was my fault. He remained quiet for a moment before continuing in his dangerously calm tone. "Officer, it is your duty to protect Victoria in all circumstances.

You have handled such cases before, and you know better than to listen to the victim when they are this sentimental. I truly did not expect such a mistake from you." I was more surprised at Max than I was at Detective Ocon. She made absolutely no excuses.

She did not even blame me. She simply nodded her head and said, “I apologize for my behavior, sir. There is no excuse for it. It will not happen again. I will make sure of it.” I had never seen Max like this. She was always so confident.

She never faltered in her resolve. Yet here she was, arms folded behind her back, standing with slouched shoulders and a hunched back, with her head hanging down, refusing to look Detective Ocon in the eye. The guilt I felt at this moment was beyond anything I had felt before.

I did not only put myself in danger; I risked Max as well. Even if she was trained as an officer, she was still a human being and vulnerable and susceptible to danger. Moreover, I made her embarrassed in front of her superior. My own head was hanging in shame. Just as Detective Ocon went upstairs to check on the team working on the attic, a car pulled up outside. Its blinding headlights emitted rays straight into mine and Max's eyes through the window glass. Nathan was here.

"Victoria, oh God, are you okay? Max, what about you?" He exclaimed loudly as soon as he had stepped one foot inside the door. He rushed toward both of us and began to examine us for injuries. “Nathan, calm down. It’s fine. We are fine.” He stopped upon hearing how stern my voice was and finally looked me in the eyes.

There were so many emotions swimming through them at once. “Where is Detective Ocon?” I pointed up the stairs, and he nodded. “How did this even happen?” he asked. This time, I refused to let Max take the fall for me. “Max was checking all of the locks of the windows and doors before we left. She asked me about the attic, but I refused to let her go there.

She came through the attic window.” Nathan looked at me like I had grown two heads. “Victoria, are you kidding me?” I tried my hardest not to flinch. “You not only put yourself at risk, but you also stopped Max from doing her job, in essence, jeopardizing her career!” He was even madder than I expected. I knew he was right. "I know, Nathan. I know. And I am sorry. It will not happen again." "Of course, it will not happen again! If it did happen again, you might not be in a state to be standing in front of me and claiming you will not repeat your mistakes because you would be dead!" He knew he had gone too far.

I could see it on his face. He knew it before he even finished his sentence. I could see regret replacing all of the other emotions swimming in his eyes. "Victoria, I did not...." "Nathan, no, it is fine. You are right. Who knows, if we had not been at Mrs. Waltham's at the time, then she may have gotten to us. I might not have been here tonight, either. I would be dead." I looked straight into his eyes as I said this. He looked terrified, genuinely terrified.

Max cleared her throat from behind me, reminding us of her presence. For the interval that we were talking, I had completely forgotten that Max was there. "Sorry for interrupting such a pleasant conversation, but I just want to clarify and put in a reminder. She is safe and sound.

Nothing bad happened. There will not be the next time because I refuse to listen to Victoria again, although I do understand why she did not want me to go up there. Please stop talking about death when everyone is alive. Thank you." With that, she turned around and retraced Detective Ocon's steps toward the attic.

We were both too stunned to speak. Max never talks like that. But she was right. Both of us were dwelling too much on what could have happened instead of what actually happened. We needed to be focused more on the reality of things. I looked at Nathan and had a feeling that he was thinking the same thing. “Truce?” “Truce.” We shook hands on that before going upstairs.

The attic looked like life had been breathed into it. Although it was the same exact grimy, dirty place, it looked important and surreal as people walked about it and camera shutters went off, and different plastic zipper bags were being sent down. It really felt like I existed in a film.

––––––––

Except the author was totally against my existence and refused to cooperate with me. Sounds about right. Detective Ocon looked at us and began speaking. "We have collected some valuable evidence. Fingerprints were found on the hibiscus flower, and a hair was also found floating in the sparrow's blood. Surprisingly, no fingerprints on the windowsill or any of the cardboard boxes, or even the wall itself. No trace of forced entry was found. Even though we believe she did not leave the attic, we will still search all rooms for confirmation of our hypothesis.

We will run the fingerprints through our system to see if there is any match. We will also compare it with the fingerprints we found on the pocketknife that was used to kill Andrew. Even though this should not have happened, I do believe that we have acquired some solid leads.

They will be enough to confirm her identity as well as build a strong case against her in court to ensure she does not go free. And, about the impending trial, Victoria?" I had been listening attentively, trying to store every word he said in my brain. Upon hearing my name, I looked at him. "I hope no inconsistencies appear in your statements.

The defense will use them against you. A court trial is all about how you spin the narrative around the victim and the accused. It is all about looking in between the gray areas of the constitution and bending it as far as you can without breaking it. It is not about right or wrong or even fair. So, even if you are in the right, you could still potentially lose this case.

I am warning you beforehand, so there is not any trouble later on. And, if you have decided on a lie, stick to it till the very end like it's a hymn etched onto your heart. I trust Nathan will prepare you for it very well." He nodded at Nathan when saying that as if acknowledging his skills as a lawyer.

When he had said if you have decided on a lie, the look he gave me sent shivers down my spine. It was like I had laid bare my soul in front of him, and he was reading every single one of my secrets. It was haunting. I merely nodded my head. Just then, I remembered my father's diary still sitting atop the table in the living room. I immediately ran down the stairs to get it. I then hid it away safely in my backpack.

Something was sitting in my room. A fluttering piece of paper wrapped around a lily stem. She had been here! I picked up the piece of paper with shaking hands, my throat closing in on me.

I heard you have another cool nickname, "Vic." Cute, is it not? I thought so too. By the way, long time no see. I am pretty sure I miss you more than you miss me, but then, why would you miss me? You have some lovely friends. Anyway, just wanted to visit that wretched house you grew up in and see if it was worth the hype. Turns out, I have seen better.

Anyway, I have a bone to pick with you. A little birdie told me you moved, and to top it off, you moved because of me. How rude of you. And here I thought we were best friends. You did not even invite me to your new home. So, as a housewarming present, I left something for you in the attic.

Or have you already seen it? Lovely, is it not? Such a charming present. I knew you would love it. After all, you do love bringing death to the people around you. I will see you again soon. Just wanted to let you know that I am still here in case you forgot about my existence. But then again, how could you forget? With that pendant still with you, how could you forget?

Love, Turquoise.

Vic? Is she threatening me with Anthony? How does she even know about him? At this point, I should just stop asking that question. Apparently, she knows everything. Am I even surprised? What I was surprised about was my reaction to the letter. I did not care. I was tired.

I was tired of worrying about her and tired of worrying about everyone around me. I had no energy left. And so, I was calm. With the letter still in my hands, I walked toward where Detective Ocon, Nathan, and Max were still standing, deep in conversation. I silently walked up to them until their focus shifted toward me. At first, no one said anything.

Then, Detective Ocon noticed the letter in my hand. He swiftly snatched it from me and began to read it out loud for all three of them to hear. “Where did you find this?” “It was in my room, wrapped around a lily stem.” Detective Ocon stared at the letter in his hand and bellowed, “Victoria, what pendant?” Nathan looked at me, surprise evident in his eyes. “You told Detective Ocon about the pendant, right?” I shook my head no. The disappointment in his eyes was so evident. I knew he was questioning everything right now.

I heard Detective Ocon let out a frustrated sigh beside me. I should have told them. How did I get so carried away by my own suspicion of everyone? "Do you know how much you have hindered this case? If you had let us know about the pendant earlier, we could have extracted DNA from it. We could have had all this evidence a lot earlier than today. Victoria, do you not want this case to be solved? If so, then tell us already.

We should not waste our time on this." "No, that is not what I want." "Well, what do you want!?" "I did not tell you because I did not trust you" At my words, all four of us went silent. "You had already not believed me once, and I had no idea what you would do this time around.

An apology does not fix everything. As much as I tried, my mind refused to trust you. I felt like all you were doing was building up your own case, even though I knew it had already been dropped. But can you blame me? I had no idea where Hannah was getting all her information.

I had no idea who to trust. I felt like someone was constantly watching me and someone close to me was going to betray me. So yes, I made a mistake. But do not forget, I had lost everyone who was close to me. Moreover, I was not given any time to grieve them, and all of this manifested itself into trust issues.

I am sorry for the way I have behaved, but if any of you had, even for a second, put yourself in my shoes, you would understand what it is like to be terrified of everything that moves, terrified of every place you call home, and terrified of losing everyone you love." I said all of it in one breath. I knew I was wrong to withhold information.

I knew I was wrong to assume that no one was on my side. But I was suffering so much that rationality itself felt like a foreign concept. The entire room was quiet. My own brain felt like it was on fire. Both Nathan and Detective Ocon were staring at me, while Max had fixated her gaze on something on the ground.

Realization set in that I had said too much and how pointless every single word was. "Detective Ocon, sir, I am so sorry. I know I was wrong. I am really sorry. I should not have lashed out. Here you are providing me with full-time protection and solving my case while I am a baby. I am......" "No need, Victoria. You are right. Your actions may not be justified, but I understand your intent behind them.

I think we all need to move on to continue working on this. Let us just forget about all this stuff and focus on the present. No one has betrayed you, and you are safe and sound. That is all that matters," Detective Ocon proclaimed in a monotone. I wanted to say more, but I knew he was right. This was no time to dwell on the past.

Detective Ocon sent Max and me back with Nathan immediately. Currently, we were driving back with Nathan in his car. The car ride was silent. It was not the comfortable kind of silence. I was sitting in the passenger seat while Max sat at the back. My mind drifted back to the conversation I had had with Detective Ocon before we left. “Sir, I need to talk to you about something.”

He had been surprised by my attempt at starting a conversation. “Sure, go ahead.” I braced myself. “You know how the letter started with calling me Vic? Well, there is only one person who calls me that. I think it may have been a threat.” “A threat to whom?” “The woman we had dinner with today, Mrs. Waltham, she has a son. His name is Anthony.

We are almost the same age. We grew up together. He is the only one who calls me Vic. I think Mrs. Waltham and Anthony may be in danger.” He got lost in thought as I said this. “Where do they live?” “Next door.” “Take me there.” He followed me to Mrs. Waltham's house. It was late at night, so it took a while before Anthony opened the door. He was surprised to see me. He gave Detective Ocon a once-over and became even more confused.

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and said, “Jesus, Victoria. You scared me. Is everything okay?” “Is Mrs. Waltham asleep? I was hoping not to make her a part of this conversation.” Anthony nodded and invited us in. “Anthony, I cannot explain everything. It is a long story. However, you and Mrs. Waltham may be in danger. You must remain cautious at all times and also keep an eye out for anything unusual.”

Before Anthony had a chance to say anything or protest, Detective Ocon began to speak. "Hello, Anthony. I am Detective Ocon; I have been assigned to Ms. Frietz's case. As she said, we cannot divulge too many details. It is for your own safety that you remain ignorant of these matters. However, I will be leaving some officers at Victoria's house who will also be surveilling your place for any unusual activity.

If something happens, do not hesitate to go to them. They will be on alert at all times." "Okay, but you need to give me some kind of explanation. You cannot just spring stuff on me in the middle of the night and expect to keep me in the dark forever. I need to know something in order to keep myself and Ma safe." I sighed. He was right. I looked toward Detective Ocon. He looked at me, observing me as if testing me to see what I would do in such a situation.

"Look, Anthony. Remember when you told me about that woman who visited Dad? How angry does she look? Well, Dad has some unresolved stuff with her, and she is coming after me for that. She is dangerous, very dangerous. She has targeted many people around me. She may have even killed." At this, all sleep vanished from his eyes, and he looked at me with extreme distress. "Why would she come after us?" "She is threatening me.

We do not know for sure what she wants. All I know is that you must remain cautious at all times. Your security is also a priority for the officers in my house. We would leave officers with you, but I do not want Mrs. Waltham to find out about this." He nodded his head, understanding my point.

When we were walking out the door, I heard him say. “Victoria?” I turned around. “Will you be okay?” I just stared into his eyes for a while. He was part of my best childhood memories. “I will be fine, I promise. Just take care of yourself and Mrs. Waltham. Call me if you need anything.”

The results of the fingerprint analysis were here, or so I was told. I waited outside the forensics lab for the results. I sat in a chair with Nathan on my right side and Max on my left side. Detective Ocon was in the lab. I kept bouncing my leg in anticipation. This could be it. This could be our biggest clue. The pit in my stomach was growing every second.

The tick of the clock felt like the loudest sound I had ever heard. Nathan put a hand on my knee to calm me down. Just then, Detective Ocon came out of the room, his expression betraying nothing.

All three of us simultaneously got up and walked toward him. "The results are out, and they are quite unexpected." I looked at him with furrowed eyebrows, waiting for him to continue. “The fingerprints from the flower, the letter, and the pocketknife match. However, it is not Hannah. In fact, Hannah has been dead for quite some time now. A month, maybe.”

-End of Part 5

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