Tags: Psychological Thriller, Urban Noir, Vigilante, Mature Themes, Serial Killer, Crime Drama
⚠️Authors Note - Mature Content
"This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, nations, corporations and events are products of the author's imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real events or persons is coincidental."
Edward sat in his apartment's hilariously small bath. He leaned against the wet white wall, his blonde head resting against it. He was exhausted. Bruised. He kept falling asleep, the slight nod, the momentary moments he couldn't remember-
He couldn't keep awake. He hadn't slept in weeks.
The lukewarm water that sat to his recently stitched chest cleaned his fresh wounds, a parting gift from the Drones of BlueJet, the Owl and of course, how could he forget - the teen who launched him into a wall.
The previous week WRECKED him physically and mentally.
All he could think were his failures and one of his biggest? He couldn't save Everlyn Silva. He searched, he found a trail and then lost it as quick as the cold wind. Then the slayer vanished. He was gone. As if he didn't exist.
He then resurfaced in Norry City, Massachusetts.
And killed again.
(Every time I find his trail. He's gone.)
Edward stood, his body scarred, bruised. Bathwater dripped from his long shoulder length blonde hair.
His pale defined body glistened.
His mind raced. His physical injuries were liveable-
His broken bones would heal.
His cut flesh would heal.
His black bruises would heal.
His gunshot wounds would heal.
But-
His mental scars were all present. Everything he shouldn't have to face plagued him.
The last few nights have been particularly draining.
Too many nights he spent waking up, screaming the names of those he failed. Too many nights he hoped the monotonous sound of his morning alarm would awaken him from a nightmare.
Instead he awoke in one.
The Owl's son was rescued. Promise City was being defended by Star-Patriot. BlueJet was in turmoil. The kids from the lab were taken to a secure facility. The city was a little safer-
News Reel: PCNN Promise City
"Big news, after tensions soured to put it mildly in October earlier this year, tensions have slightly warmed between the People's Republic of China, New Russian Federation and North Korea."
"This comes after the Russian Ice Princess Anastasia Malenkova visited the North Korean capital where the three countries came together-"
"With the meteor split into thirds. Nuclear war averted. And the 'Tuman River Cold War' is over. What's next?"
The television played in the background-
Near was now recovering.
For four nights he rested. But just because he was forced to physically rest by Star-Patriot, he continued to follow cases remotely.
With Sunohara on his own terminal they followed cold cases, or those forgotten on the backlog.
The Japanese Otaku typed furiously, as he muttered while sifting through numerous pages and references.
He adjusted his glasses-
['What are we looking for Ed?']
'What aren't we looking for Yohei my man.'
Click Click Click Tap Tap
['The list you gave me were…. A ghost clown-... A chaotic speedster-... The Owl-.... the Wedding Ring Slayer….']
'And I am sure there are many more-.... I'm grabbing a soda.'
Edward sighed, limping to the small dimly lit kitchenette.
['Just sayin' since you've been down for the count-
There's a lot more happening in the city.']
Pop
The fridge opened-
Inside was a pack of six Coca-Nola's… well now minus one.
Pissssss POP
Edward opened his red can and took a refreshing sip.
'Go on.' he groaned.
Slowly trudging back to his computer and closet office.
['Well, a bank was broken into a couple days ago by a … .gorilla?']
'Not the strangest thing to happen.'
['A J-Pop artist, called Kanon Maruoka was abducted by an unknown assailant… she went into her dressing room and poof she was gone.']
'That IS….strange…'
['Oh.. and on top of that… three married women have disappeared and reappeared dead. Perhaps, and potentially related to the case you chased a few weeks ago.']
'So, he is back.'
Near sipped from the soda can, behind him his armour glistened. It was brand new, shiny. Lined beside it sat gadgets behind a glass case. Stored safely was his broken armour.
With a pained grunt he flopped onto his leather office chair and exhaled-
'What has Patriot been doing?'
['Ethan was called away, he tried to refuse, saying he was honor bound to remain within Promise City…but-']
'But?... the deal was I rest and he protects the city in my absence.'
['He was sent to another country, ordered by the President of the United States.']
'Go on.'
['Sent to stop a nuclear meltdown in Russia-
Stop a war-
Fight extra-terrestrial threat-']
'I get it. Near is local. Star Patriot is global.'
Edward leaned back, his chair creaked-
and turned his head, to face Near's armour.
'Suppose Near is coming back.'
The streets were cold, and dark. They were coated in snow, and ice. Near stood on the ledge of the Promise City Police Department, for the first time in four days he could smell the festive cold air of the bustling holiday season city.
Crouched low-
Crunch Crunch Crunch Crunch…
A familiar sound. It was Detective Brady, his hands deep in his brown trenchcoat pockets.
'Not seen you in a while.'
'A needed rest, apparently.'
Near rolled blue his eyes-
'Ah, enforced rest. So Star-Patriot was telling the truth. Surprised you did as he ordered-'
Brady stood besides the kneeling vigilante. He lit a cigarette-
'The Owl was happy. She was seen walking in the park with her son.'
'Hmm.' Near responded.
'He's back.'
'I know. A patrol saw his handy work.. In a tree in Promise City Centre Park.'
Brady said, exhaling smoke.
He handed Near small rectangle photographs of the crime scene. They were grotesque.
The woman was strung up in a tree, her hands tied behind her back. She was slumped forward. Bloody. Her hair is a mess. Her stomach cut wide open, entrails in a pile underneath her. Her large bosom bare for all to see, the killer's intent? Destroy her decency.
'What is the victim number?' Brady asked-
'Ten.'
Near continued, handing the pictures back to Brady without looking.
'The Slayer went North into Massachusetts. Norry City.'
Near typed on his wrist gauntlet, with each miniature button pressed there was a soft beep-
'He was run out of Norry City by the Winters Syndicate after killing a friend of the Winters family.'
'Now what?' Brady asked, the distant wailing of PCPD cruisers darting across the brightly lit city.
'Find the Slayer before he can kill again.'
Then a faint crackle of the Detectives radio-
['Detective, Signal 11. Body found. Possible unattended.']
Brady's tired brown eyes fell on Near-
'We got our lead.'
Later that night…
Near knelt low, he peered down on the crime scene. The Promise City Diamond Park.
Brady, alone, passed through the police's yellow tape barricades. In winter coats they stood, their arms folded, their vehicles' lights continuing to flash.
They shivered. Exhaling vapour as they contemplated their life decisions.
'It's friggin freezing.'
'Minus f*cking 20 and we're HERE.'
'My ass is frozen.'
'Detective.' One tipped their hat.
Brady walked to the scene-
Crunch Crunch Crunch
One black shoe in the snow.
'Alright boys, what did we get?'
One of the police sergeants pointed upwards-
Into the trees.
The body was spread across the treeline. Her limps scattered like decorations. Her entrails were like sprinkled confetti. Her lower torso was sitting at the stump of one of the trees. Her top torso was torn asunder, bare, and utterly eviscerated. She hung forwards, her long brown hair flowing downwards.
Near observed from the ledge of the opposite building-
Brady and him were linked by an earpiece.
['So?']
'It's definitely her.' Brady muttered with his hands in his deep pockets.
'I'm sorry sir?' A cop asked, confused.
'Don't worry son.'
Brady continued-
'Aged 39, blue eyed, naturally tan… she lost all her colour from a year of captivity.'
['A year..?']
'Her file says she went missing in 2017 in Albany, New York.'
['The slayer… this woman must have been the first to go missing… if not the first definitely one of them.']
'Her name is Emily Haines. Her husband reported her missing after she never returned from a work function for her company; Haines&Co.'
Near paused for a moment.
['Her disappearance occurred before I was in America. Was there more disappearances like hers?']
Brady scoffed, he slowly approached the hung corpse-
'There's thousands of kidnappings kid, how am I supposed to find if one was any different than the others?'
['Because, this was personal, this was done by someone who knew her.']
Brady stopped dead in his tracks, his foot inches from a pool of frozen blood.
'How did you deduce that?'
['Because the Slayers' other victims were nowhere near… this.
The whole crime scene screams… personal.']
'I will upload photos for you.' Brady whispered, his earpiece clipping pictures of each angle.
['I'll visit the crime scene once the police clear out. I will look for a trail personally.']
'Mr Haines disappeared after reporting his wife's disappearance in 2017.' Brady muttered.
A few hours later…
'Hey boys! How's it going lads?' Edward waved enthusiastically-
'Hey Eddie boy!'
'Hey Hey! You missed Detective Brady!'
The policemen welcomed.
Near would have been too loud. Edward? He was perfect.
'So, how did you end up here?' One of the officers asked.
'Foot patrol. It's my night on this beat tonight.'
He asked Sunohara to manipulate the schedule, using a program to mimic one of the top brass terminal accounts.
'Ah unlucky.'
'So… this is the signal 11?'
Edward asked, pointing at Emily's remains.
'Go ahead, have a look, we all did. Kinda sad, but oh well our shift ends at 20.'
Edward vaulted under the police line, and slowly walked towards the treeline.
'Sunohara. What did you find?'
Sunohara's voice echoed in his ear.
['Her and her husband were getting a divorce. He was going to lose everything.']
'That's the motivation.'
['It says he left town right before her trip.']
Edward reached into the muddy snow and found a small piece of paper. Partially frozen, smudged.
'Seems you missed something Brady…' he muttered with a shit eating grin-
He unravelled it. It was a receipt for a taxi out of Albany to New York City.
'Yohei, what did you find?'
['Good news, well, bad news, either way it is a lead. The purchase address is listed in Promise City. Someone became sloppy.']
['Emily Haines owned numerous properties across the United States.']
'I will pay this one a visit.'
['It has had recent work done, the apartment blocks elevator has recently had work done.'] Sunohara continued-
['Mr Haines still resides at this apartment. He was in a coma from 2017. He crashed his car the night he reported his wife's disappearance.']
Inside Haines' Apartment Block…
Near walked confidently through the elevator's golden doors. He looked all over the elevator, the numerous advertisements for the Christmas season lined the mahogany wooden walls.
A Holiday season tune rang as each floor passed.
Nears fists were clenched, he was waiting for anything to happen.
….
'Coming!' A man's voice shouted. Mr Haines.
He adjusted his cufflinks then-
WHAM
The apartment door exploded off its hinges.
'WHAT THE HELL-'
Haines shrieked-
Near's boot shattered the door.
With a thunderous CRASH.
Near's dark frame overbore the doorway. Cloaked in darkness he approached.
'Mr Haines. Your fingerprints are all over what happened to your wife.'
'W-what… HOW DARE YOU! YOU ACCUSE ME OF KILLING-' Mr Haines spluttered-
'I did not say it was you, I said your fingerprints were all over it.'
'I LOVED her! I would NEVER!'
Near, scouled-
'I never said you would.'
Haines continued-
'LOOK! HOW COULD I DONE IT I WAS IN A COMA AFTER BEING IN A CAR CRASH AFTER MY WIFE DISAPPEARED!'
Rapid footsteps approached, it was Brady.
'You called.' He said to Near.
'Question, Mr Haines, I am going to search the apartment for evidence.'
'On it.'
Brady and Haines immediately sat down, Brady sat with his pocket notebook, as the Detectives pencil scratched upon the paper. Near scanned the room for anything relating to the case.. But something didn't feel right.
He could feel it. As he crossed the threshold into the apartment's kitchen.
In his mind, it raced, it taunted him-
'Aged 39, blue eyed, naturally tan… she lost all her colour from a year of captivity.'
He spun around-
'Mr Haines disappeared after reporting his wife's disappearance in 2017.'
And then Sunohara's voice-
['Mr Haines still resides at this apartment. He was in a coma from 2017. He crashed his car the night he reported his wife's disappearance, the reporting office, Detective Brady.']
'Brady!' Near shouted running back into the living room.
THUD
Pain pierced Near's side. It was a knife.
Mr Haines sat headless. And Brady? He walked over to the couch.
He sat relaxed, a cigar burning from his jaw.
To be continued…