Silent Shadows

Chapter 3: Messages

The atmosphere at the precinct was tense. Everyone was on their toes.

Another note had shown up. But this time, all over the news.

'To craft the perfect murder, you first have to choose your victim right. Choose someone with a lot of enemies.' -

Lorenzo's words plagued Emily's mind nonstop. She couldn't escape the haunting possibility that his theory might be true. Some undeniable facts were displaying themselves in front of everyone.

This is a murder case.

The killer is a psychopath.

The killer knows who Emily is and wants to play.

But this also raises many questions that need answers, the most important of all;

Is this a serial murder case? And if yes, how many and who?

A headache threatened at the surface of Emily's mind.

"Detective," Her attention snapped to chief Rebecca standing by her office door. "See me in my office please."

Emily nodded, pushing away her swirling thoughts, and followed Rebecca into her office. The chief's office was impeccably tidy, every file and paper in its place, much like Rebecca herself. Her ash brown hair was pulled into its usual high ponytail, and her badge shone brightly against her neatly pressed suit.

"Take a seat, Emily," Rebecca said, gesturing to the chair opposite her desk. Emily complied, her muscles tense.

"Another note," Rebecca began, her tone clipped. "This one was sent to the media directly. The whole city is in a panic."

Emily nodded, the weight of the situation pressing down on her. "We need to get ahead of this. Whoever this killer is, they're toying with us."

Rebecca's eyes narrowed. "We need to consider every possibility."

Something flashed in Rebecca's eyes. Something Emily doubted was true. After all, how would she know that Lorenzo paid her a visit last night.

"What other possibilities do you have in mind chief?" Emily challenged.

Rebecca's eyes darkened, her head rose slightly but kept her composure. "A pattern is starting to show here detective. Arson and a missing person. I want you to look into all the arson cases involving a missing person." Rebecca paused for a minute, she and Emily never breaking eye contact. "Oh, and detective, this is not just one of my possibilities."

Emily couldn't deny the hostility in Rebecca's tone, nor could she ignore her prideful stance. Yet, she knew it won't be in her best interest to show her spite now.

Emily, bit her tongue and her fingers dug deep into her palm. She was sure it would be bleeding by the time she left the office.

Keeping her cool she spoke, "Of course chief."

Emily left the chief's office, her mind racing. The precinct buzzed with activity as officers and detectives worked tirelessly to find any lead on the killer. She knew she needed to stay focused and not allow her spite to take control. But the human emotions are deemed stronger, even more than Emily's analytical and logical mind.

Lorenzo's voice echoed in her mind again, clashing with the same theory Rebecca believes.

Emily's stubbornness would make her do anything to prove that they're both wrong. Especially, Rebecca. Yet, she knew she can't let her stubbornness be the end of her career.

As she made her way to her desk, her phone buzzed with a text message. She pulled it out, her heart skipping a beat when she saw who it was from.

"Meet me. We need to talk. - Lorenzo"

Emily's grip tightened around her phone. She knew she shouldn't, but something compelled her to hear him out. She quickly typed a response, agreeing to meet at a nearby café.

-------

The café was a quiet, unassuming place, a stark contrast to the tension that had become her daily reality. Emily spotted Lorenzo sitting at a corner table, his dark eyes scanning the room. He looked up as she approached, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"Detective Harris," he greeted her, standing up as she reached the table.

"Lorenzo," she replied curtly, taking a seat. "This better be important."

"It is," he assured her, leaning forward. "I've been doing some digging. Reverend Marcus had more enemies than we thought. Some very dangerous ones."

Emily arched an eyebrow. "And how did you come by this information?"

"I have my ways," he said cryptically. "But that's not the point. The point is, there is one person connecting both Reverend Marcus and my brother. A common enemy."

Emily sighed. "I get it, Lorenzo. But I can't act on your suspicions alone. I need evidence."

Lorenzo's eyes flashed with frustration, his voice going an octave higher. "I'm trying to help, Emily. My brother is missing. I can't just sit around and do nothing. You need to come down to the ground a bit and see that you don't know everything!"

Emily felt a pang in her chest. She understood his desperation, but she couldn't let it cloud her judgment. After all, she did go by the book, and the book is never wrong.

"I understand, Lorenzo. But you need to let me do my job." She replied nonchalantly, almost, if not very provocative. As if she didn't leave Rebecca's office yet, her spite shot at Lorenzo mercilessly.

Lorenzo leaned back, a resigned look on his face. "This was my last chance with you detective." His eyes grew dark. "I wanted this to take a more legal turn, but I guess you police idiots will never be of any use."

Lorenzo grabbed his keys and left with no looking back, leaving Emily in her raging thoughts. The cramps that have formed in her stomach were of no help either.

"You need to get your s**t together Emily," Sam approached from his seat on the table behind them. "or you'll be losing all your strong assets."

Without another word, he left.

As Emily left the café, she couldn't shake the feeling that she's ruining her own case herself. She decided to dig deeper into Reverend

Marcus's background, hoping to find the lead that could break the case wide open. The common enemy Lorenzo spoke about and she was so stupid to not listen and know who he was.

She just added more work to herself.

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Back at the precinct, Emily poured over Reverend Marcus's files. She meticulously combed through his history, searching for any connections that might link him to Matteo De Luca's disappearance. Hours passed, the sun setting outside the precinct windows, casting long shadows across her desk.

"Emily," Sam's voice broke through her concentration. "You need to see this."

Emily looked up, her eyes tired but alert. Sam handed her a file, his expression grave. "We got a tip-off about a suspicious death a few years back. A man named Richard Greene. His house was also burned down. He never stopped accusing the De Luca's from being behind it."

Emily's heart quickened. "Do we have any details?"

Sam nodded. "It was ruled an accident at the time due to lack of any evidence that it was arson, but Greene had other thoughts in mind. He sure kept a grudge."

Emily didn't need him to finish. She knew what it meant. "Get me everything we have on Richard Greene. We need to re-examine his case. Maybe now, we might have a motive to connect."

Sam nodded. "Let's see how Greene connects to Reverend Marcus too."