The security guards led a shattered Hazel toward the exit, leaving Jayce standing in the middle of the pediatric wing with blood drying on his skin and a storm brewing in his chest. He turned on Detective Vance, his hands curling into fists, ready to unleash hell on her for destroying Hazel's career. But Vance didn't flinch. She leaned against the cold hospital wall, her supermodel features hardening into a mask of grim reality as she checked the hallway to ensure the Captain was out of earshot. "Save the righteous fury, Jayce," she whispered, her soft voice cutting through his anger like a scalpel. "I did her a favor. If she's suspended, she's off the grid. If she's off the grid, she might actually live through the next forty-eight hours."
Jayce froze, his eyes narrowing. "What are you talking about?"
Vance stepped closer, the scent of her expensive perfume mixing with the lingering smell of death. "That 'criminal ' in the cafeteria? He wasn't some lone lunatic seeking a punchline. He was the first of five. My boys just finished raiding his apartment in Soulard, and Jayce... it's a house of horrors. The guy was obsessed. He didn't just play dress-up; he worshipped the classics. Michael Myers, Scream, Texas Chainsaw, Jason, Chucky—he had shrines built to them like they were gods. But it's what we found in the kitchen that changed the game." She paused, her green eyes shimmering with a rare flicker of revulsion. "We found his wife. Or what was left of her. He'd used a bone saw to cut her clean in half. Her upper torso was tucked into the deep freezer, frosted over like a macabre doll. Her lower half..."
"He shoved it into the charcoal grill on the back patio. He'd sprinkled it with honey and a mix of exotic spices, like he was prepping a Sunday roast. He wasn't just a killer; he was a collector, and he was part of a set."
Jayce felt a cold sweat break out across his neck. "You said there are four more."
"Four more 'tributes' are wandering around St. Louis right now," Vance confirmed, her voice dropping to a ghost of a breath. "And the 'Joker' was the least disciplined of the group. The others are smarter, faster, and they're going to be looking for the person who ended their friend's masterpiece. By throwing Hazel under the bus and getting her kicked out of this hospital, I've made her a ghost to the system. If she stayed here, she'd be a sitting duck in a brightly lit cage. Now, she's invisible. Take her, hide her, and don't let her out of your sight. Because the 'Michael Myers' of this group? He's already been spotted near the AMC Esquire 7."