Sharice Evtiar ①

The neon lights of the police station lit up the room with blinding white light. Two men were leaning over a desk, watching a pile of paper spread out before their eyes.

"More than 300 victims, huh... That's a hell lot."

The first had well-dressed black hair. He had a short beard around his face, and a pair of elegant glasses sat above his nose.

Passing the hand in the files, different names, different faces, passed under his eyes.

"Kuro Kaiko: A 47-year-old man found dead, without arms or legs, in his apartment. His wife was ripped open next to him, and their daughter... Only pieces left." Said the man calmly, dismissing the file from the pile.

"Arianne Germain, a 24-year-old expatriate, was killed in a karaoke, and the three friends who were with her at the time are still missing, presumably dead..." again, he spread the file.

"Meryl Swad, 67. This one..."

"Well, you plan to tell me the stories of the 300 or you're done soon?" The second man approached with a sigh, and with a brutal blow of the hand, made all the paperwork fly on the ground.

"What..."

"They are dead, these people. It is useless to return to their case for hours. We could not save them." He whispered, sitting on the table. He took a lighter out of his pocket and lit a cigarette, which he put in his mouth.

The other picked up the mess he had made while sighing.

"I know, it just makes me sick to tell me that all these people... have died by the fault of one person. If we could have stopped her before, then we would have saved a lot."

He got up and put the folders back on the table. The smell of the cigarette was strong, and he could not help but cough.

"Damn, you know you're not allowed to smoke in the premises, Goto."

The man blew again, without stopping. He had brown hair in battle, and he was not well shaven. Even if his face was neglected, he was clean on him, in his black suit.

"I know, but it's your fault, Den. If you did not annoy me by bringing out all these old mistakes, maybe I could stop smoking someday."

"It's never your fault, huh... We've been working together for three years, but I still do not get used to it." Den said, leaning on the table next to his teammate.

Three years that he was chasing the person responsible for these murders, all more horrible than the others.

Silence settled in the room for a moment. Only Goto's breath could be heard.

"It's been a long time, for sure."

A grim smile appeared on his lips.

"But we finally got her."

"It was a stroke of luck, to find her agonizing in an alley, you know..."

"It does not change the fact that she's behind the bars now. We just have to wait, and this bitch will be executed. If it was up to me, I would have made her suffer a few years for all of that. To make her pay for her crimes..."

"But we are policemen, not torturers." Den corrected him. Even the worst criminals were in the worst case, simply put to death. Those who had no chance to regret their actions. Those who could never reintegrate into society.

And no doubt that after killing more than 300 people, for the majority of innocents, this one was far from being sane.

Goto's phone rang. He took it out of his pocket grunting, crushing his cigarette on the table.

"Yes ?"

A voice echoed in the device. It was his superior's.

"Goto, I need you and Den to come to my office for a few minutes, I need to talk to you."

"Well, we're coming."

Quickly explaining the situation to his partner, the two men put the papers on the table and soon left the room.

The police station was big : it was the most important police center in the region. More than a building, it was a complex, and many people worked there, whether in offices or in other rooms.

Thus, the office of their superior was not very far. Arriving at the door, they knocked before entering quickly.

"Ah, here you are."

The director of the intervention unit department stood up to greet Goto and Den.

"I hope you are not too exhausted, to stay up so late." He said laughing.

Indeed, it was soon 5 o'clock am. The two police officers often worked at night, since they were mobilized during the day on the ground.

"It's okay, we're used to it." Answered Den with a smile. He sat in front of the director's office, Goto doing the same next door.

"As you know, the criminal you were in charge of hunting has finally been caught. It was thanks to your work over the past three years that this has been possible, and for that I want to thank you personally."

"It's the least of all things. Degenerates like that, I'd like to catch some more often..." Goto growled. Three years was too long. If they had gone faster, they would have saved many lives.

"The senior managers are aware of your actions, and have decided to promote you both."

Den's face lit up at the director's words. After such a long work, the reward was worth it!

"You are both assigned to the new branch of the police." Announced the director.

"The new branch?" Goto said a little surprised. He had never heard of a new branch, and obviously, his teammate either.

"Let's say it's still a bit experimental, and our most experienced field officers will be used in this new branch to get to the most dangerous criminals faster. I'm aware of the danger of promoting you to this post, and if you want to refuse, I'll find you another job. "

Den nodded without waiting. The opportunity was too good.

"I accept !"

Goto hesitated a moment, before sighing. Office work was not for him anyway.

"I accept too, so..."

"Perfect !" The director presented them with their new employment contract. "From now on, you will be inspectors of the special government brigades, and I count on you to do your best."

Den signed the contract without waiting, barely looking at it. Goto read a few lines, and seeing the excitement of his partner, signed it too. He would read all this paperwork later.

"One last thing that matters... As I told you, this branch is for the moment experimental. Each unit is composed of an inspector, and of a second person outside of the police. So you won't be working together anymore."

Den had a twinge in his heart when he heard that. After three years with Goto, even though it was not always the nicest teammate, he ended up doing it. But he also wanted to evolve professionally, and it was a necessary sacrifice.

"I understand..." he said, glancing at his sidekick, giving him a smile. "We will still go to have a drink together, don't worry!" He added cheerfully.

"It's not like I'll miss you, don't worry." Goto answered coldly, a smile betraying nevertheless the lack of emotion that he was trying to keep.

"Glad to see you get along so well. Being welded is the most important thing in a unit." The director said with a smile.

"By the way, about the second person outside the police you mentioned..." Goto did not know what to expect, so he preferred to ask the question.

"Yes, sorry, here are your future teammates."

The director pushed two files in front of the two men. Den glanced at his, not recognizing the woman in the picture. On the other hand, Goto was speechless, frozen, in front of the portrait that had been handed to him.

"It's... It's a joke...?"

"No. The reason this new branch is experimental is that, the units are made up of a government inspector and a former criminal who was apprehended and sentenced to death. We are pushing their death sentence indefinitely for the time they're working for us. " Explained the director.

But it was not any criminal that was in this picture. How not to recognize her ? The killer with more than 300 victims. The one they had chased for three years.

Sharice Evtiar.