Hours before, as Elizabeth awoke to the chilling pool of her own blood, Sir Tansi was already dressed, poised to slip away into the dawn.
Edward idled the car near the wrought-iron gate, a silent sentinel, while Damon moved to open the door. But Tansi waved them off, his gloved hand gesturing towards the distant, roaring chaos beyond the walls.
Sir Tansi was a study in dark contrasts: a button-down coat, black gloves, and black canvas shoes completed his ensemble.
"I'm heading out alone," he stated, preempting their approach.
Outside, Aaron waited impatiently in his own vehicle, his brow furrowed as Tansi materialized, a demon in the morning light.
Tansi opened the passenger door and slid inside.
"We're trying to blend in, not audition for a remake of The Crow," Aaron quipped, his tone laced with exasperation.
"You're a recognizable officer; subtlety is no longer an option," Tansi retorted, unfazed. His gaze flicked over Aaron's attire, a smirk playing on his lips. "Is that why you're dressed for a beach party?"
Aaron ignored the jab, firing the ignition. The engine roared, and they sped off towards the State Mortuary.
The ride was taut with unspoken tension. The siblings were virtual strangers, their interactions stilted, devoid of warmth. Aaron found himself surprised that Tansi had even volunteered for the case.
The mortuary loomed ahead, its gates swinging open in anticipation. An elderly woman, her face etched with years of heartache, emerged, recognizing their vehicle.
Despite the hour, an eerie quiet blanketed the mortuary grounds. As they exited the car, the woman approached, a practiced smile gracing her lips.
"Officer Aaron, I wasn't expecting you so soon." Her smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "We're still processing the Mayor's remains—"
"We're here for another matter," Aaron interrupted, cutting through her practiced routine.
"Ah," relief washed over her features. "You should have said so." She chuckled, a dry, humorless sound, and gestured for them to follow. "Who are you looking for?" She turned, her gaze lingering on the unfamiliar figure of Sir Tansi.
"16:27 death yesterday, tag number 219. I need to know who last visited the deceased."
The woman paused, her brow furrowed in thought. Then, with a nod, she shuffled towards a towering stack of files, her fingers dancing across the spines. Locating the one she sought, she scanned the pages, her eyes darting across the faded ink. "Here," she announced, drawing them closer. "John Becker, owns a strip club. Cause of death: suspected alcohol poisoning, though the police suspect foul play."
Aaron absorbed the information, his expression grim. Tansi, however, remained impassive, his face an unreadable mask.
"Who visited him last?" Aaron pressed.
"No record of visitors," she replied, her finger tracing the lines of text.
"Take us to the body," Tansi interjected, breaking his long silence.
The woman led them into the frigid depths of the mortuary, a vast chamber lined with rows of metal boxes.
"219," she muttered, her eyes scanning the numbered slots. Finally, she stopped, producing a key from her pocket and unlocking the designated container. With a grunt, she slid the box open.
It was empty.
"As expected," Tansi remarked, shattering the oppressive silence.
"Impossible," the woman gasped, disbelief etched on her face. "I'll check the CCTV footage." She hurried away, leaving them alone in the icy chamber.
Tansi approached the empty container, his gloved fingers tracing the cold metal. He brought his hand to his nose, inhaling deeply.
"Not the same body," he declared, a hint of amusement in his voice. He chuckled, a sound that grated on Aaron's nerves.
"It's not funny," Aaron hissed.
"On the contrary," Tansi mused, leaning closer to examine the container. "I knew that body seemed… out of place."
Aaron sighed, frustration simmering beneath his controlled exterior. "Let's go review the cameras." He turned and stalked out of the room, leaving Tansi to his morbid observations.
Tansi lingered, his gaze sweeping across the rows of containers. He ran his gloved hands over the locked boxes, pausing to inhale, searching for a familiar scent.
None of them yielded anything.
His amusement deepened. "Clever."
He exited the chamber and entered the surveillance room, where Aaron was already engrossed in the monitors. The screens displayed a network of camera feeds, each capturing a different angle of the mortuary. They focused on a particular feed, rewinding and replaying the arrival of John Becker's body. They watched as he was wheeled into the refrigerator room, his face briefly visible for identification. They saw him placed in the container, the door locked, and the key returned to the elderly woman.
The footage fast-forwarded, showing no further activity.
Until their arrival.
"So, he simply vanished?" Tansi asked, his tone conversational, oblivious to the tension in the room.
The others stared at the screen, their faces etched with disbelief.
Without another word, Tansi and Aaron left the mortuary and returned to their car.
As soon as they were inside, Tansi spoke. "The body was never brought here."
Aaron slammed his head against the steering wheel, a groan escaping his lips. Was there no end to this madness?
Regaining his composure, he adjusted his seat, a flicker of annoyance crossing his face at Tansi's unnerving calm.
"It seems the band was removed before John was brought in," Aaron observed, his grip on the steering wheel relaxing slightly. His phone rang, and he answered, holding it to his ear.
Thirty seconds of silence, punctuated only by his listening, then the call abruptly ended.
"There are two bodies now," he said to Tansi, his voice grim.
He started the engine and headed towards the site where the half-skeletonized man had been discovered.
As they approached, the scene came into view—a cluster of police vehicles, detectives snapping photographs, and the area cordoned off with yellow tape.
"Officer Aaron," a middle-aged woman approached, her ID badge identifying her as a detective. Her hair was pulled back in a tight bun, and she wore jeans and a tucked-in blouse. "You reported a single body."
Aaron and Tansi approached the bodies, ignoring the detective's insistent questioning.
She persisted, stepping closer. "You said it was one body."
Aaron shifted his gaze from the remains to the detective. "Yes, just one." He pulled out his phone, displaying the initial photograph. "Have them check for prints." His eyes flicked towards Tansi, who had already ducked under the police tape and was examining the second body.
"There were shoe prints, fresh ones, but they yielded nothing," she said, her eyes following Aaron's as they watched Tansi.
Tansi was lost in his own world, oblivious to their scrutiny.
He knelt, touching the legs of the second body. It was in the same state as the first—half-skeletonized, the flesh withered and gone.
Aaron approached, hands on his hips. "Anything?"
Tansi rose, dusting off his gloves. "Not a recent body, and not John Becker." His amusement seemed to have dissipated, replaced by a grim intensity. "Whoever is doing this is experimenting. Probably to create a disease or a weapon—" His phone rang, interrupting his train of thought. He glanced at the screen before answering.
It was Edward.
As soon as the call ended, Tansi turned to Aaron.
"I have something I need to attend to."
Concern flickered across Aaron's face. "Everything alright?" Tansi nodded, a curt, reassuring gesture. It was enough. "Give me a second, I'll drop you off."
"Edward is coming."
There was no room for argument.
Moments later, Edward's car pulled up. Damon opened the back door.
As soon as the car pulled away, Tansi spoke, his voice dangerously low.
"Who slapped Beatrice?" The atmosphere in the car plummeted, becoming suffocatingly oppressive. It was rare to see him this enraged.
"Miss Elizabeth did, Sir."