“What kind of noise?” he asks.
“Like an… ‘Urgh blah…’ dying noise.”
“Would you repeat that so I can document it?” Claude asks as he pulls out a notebook and licks the tip of his pen.
“Of course!”
“Ignore him,” Marcus says. “He’s not even a detective.”
Claude looks quite taken aback by this exclamation. “Excusemoi? I am too a detective! I detectived my way right into your life!”
“So you were walking by and heard someone dying, so you ran in here and…?” Finn prods.
“Everyone was already dead besides the little girl. Ender entered not long after I came in. I, admittedly, was holding up a body when he walked in. Not for fun but because I was so confused. I couldn’t find how he’d died when his heart wasn’t punctured and his head was still attached. He was just… dead. Very dead. Do you mind explaining what happened here?”
“This is the same way the bodies at the council ended up,” Finn says.
I stare at the bodies on the ground as I think about this information. “I was told that Ender was the person who killed them.”
“Well, you were told wrong,” Finn says, and I can’t tell whether he’s willing to tell me what happened to defend Ender or because I’m a council member and by all rights should be fully informed. “What happened was that the council was trying to look into how to create true vampires. In order to do so, they were attempting to extract information out of Ender, who they captured. They also arrested Marcus so they could force me to go into the council building alone. When I went in there, I realized something was very wrong and out of fear for my life, I let Ender loose. He only killed people who were trying to attack us. Everyone else was already dead before I ever even let him go. A big part of me believes that the council members who took me, led by Addison, had killed the others and planned on placing the blame on Ender… but obviously I can’t prove that now that she’s dead, Harris doesn’t seem to know anything, and Kaden has been arrested and is no longer in our control.”
“I see,” I respond. While it’s not the story the US council fed me, it does line up with the information I currently know. Those left of the US council are very much anti-Ender. They gave me a detailed list of all of his wrongdoings, but I feel like there has to be a reasonwhy. “So you have no idea what this thing is that’s killing vampires?”
“We… question if what is being used to kill the vampires is related to the ammunition we found during the incident with Patrick Grady… the same ammunition that was used to kill Watson,” Finn says.
I quirk a brow. “Watson… now that was an interesting man.”
“Don’t get me started on Watson,” Finn grumbles. “Let me help you find a clinic for the cat.”
“Thank you,” I say as I watch the vampires scrutinize the bodies. It’s been weeks since the council members died, yet examining their bodies turned up very little… but who exactly killed them?
When I arrived, I didn’t even realize that they had the girl with them. Why did they take her? Was it to draw Ender or the VRC here? Possibly…
Finn takes my phone from me and sets it so the maps will lead me to the vet clinic. “When you’re finished, please come back here. I have more questions for you.”
“Of course,” I say. “Thank you so much!”
I hurry the cat over to the vet and quickly explain what happened. I ask if I can pick him up in the morning, and when they give me permission, I pay and head out the door while being reassured that the cat is in good hands. When my phone rings, I see that it’s Vivian and am aware she’s going to be annoyed that I lost sight of Ender.
“Hello, my sweet sugar pie!” I say.
“If you ever answer the phone like that again, you’re fired.”
“Hello, my sassy sour pie. Is that better?”
“Immensely,” she says. “SO?”
“So I have made contact with the VRC members as well as Enderandthe little girl. All in one day! Talk about efficient! Am I right? I’m right, just admit it. I’m positive I deserve a raise. Possibly even Richard’s position.”
“For doing your job?” she asks.
“With finesse!”
“What did Ender say to you?”
“We didn’t exactly have a chance to speak. But when we do, we will havemanywords!” I assure her. “I would like to ask what kind of shampoo he uses because his hair is lustrous.”
“I really regret sending you.”
