Chapter 24: Epilogue of the Arsonist

Elk Cafe, East Wing, Noon

Jerome sat in a nearby cafe watching the noon news, next to him was a latte he had not taken a sip off since he'd placed it on this table. There it showed on the television, in all it glory, his masterful handiwork. Five storeys worth of a building still burning as the firefighters battled the blaze, they needed to keep it from spreading to the forest and creating a wildfire. The bodies recovered numbered to nine, including one that had its heart ripped out and was then burned, on scene investigator gave some very shocking statements. This crime was set as a precedent for something never before seen in Trade City East, it was a massacre and they believed it to be a highly trained, covert and psychopathic team of killers that dismantled Diablo de Fuego. They had trouble identifying the body burnt in the compound, it was unrecognizable and mutilated considering the heart was ripped out. In lesser news the suspicion on Dr. Anisha Maria was cleared and the police had declared a manhunt for Dr. Maddox Crane, the medical association would soon gather to strip him of his license to practice and the debaters would trounce the reputation of the police department for arresting the wrong person and letting the real culprit escape, it was unavoidable really. As he sat at the table he heard the sound of some very familiar heels stepping into the cafe and he let out a smile as he turned around. Indeed standing in the doorway of the cafe was the pristine beauty that was Lillian Blake, both frightening and charming at the same time. She wore yet another suited dress, something that fit her a little more sexily this time. She noticed him almost immediately and made her way over much to the chagrin of some lifeless people who were invigorated with her presence.

"Hall," she said in a form of greeting as she took a seat and crossed her legs.

Jerome smelled her perfume, something a little different today, a touch more exotic than royal.

"Ms. Blake,"he greeted back with a nod.

"Have you found Crane yet?" she asked diving right into the topic.

Jerome raised an eyebrow at that as they both looked at each and smiled, she knew what had happened and yet she still continued to hit the wrong spot…perhaps for fun.

"No…nothing official or concrete," said Jerome with a shake of his head.

"I must thank you for stopping me then," said Lillian as she reached over to grab Jerome's latte which prompted a small look of curiosity from him.

She took off the led and took a sip and her face scrunched up as she swallowed it down.

"Still tastes bad," she said.

"You drink blood," he said and she nodded.

"Yes, once you go red, you can't go back," she continued, inciting a chuckle from him.

"All of my thralls are dead, right?" she asked.

Jerome nodded, "All of them, though I must ask, why did you sent people with grenade launchers and assault rifles after a police van that housed nearly all civilians."

"I couldn't take a risk with Dr. Maria," said Lillian as her face turned apologetic. "Besides I had no way to confirm that Dr. Anisha Maria was indeed a civilian, from what I knew she had set the hospital on fire two times."

"I can see why you would assume the worst," said Jerome, he understood that all people weren't like him, able to get a person's information on the fly with his AI, others had to make assumptions and deductions to gain information about a person without said person's permission.

"I apologize for the use of extreme force," said Lillian. "I did not know you were in the van either."

"If you had know, would you have changed your plan?" asked Jerome and Lillian nodded.

"I would have sent more force," Lillian replied causing Jerome to shake his head and smile wryly.

"At least you're honest," said Jerome grabbing his latte cup back from Lillian and taking a sip himself…it had gone cold.

He sighed and put it back down on the table.

"You should have brought him to me," Lillian said.

"For money?" asked Jerome.

"If that's what you wanted," said Lillian.

"What if I wanted something more," asked Jerome leaning forward and Lillian met his gaze head on as her lips pursed into a light smile.

"I could oblige," she said soft, seductive voice, which she pulled off perfectly. "But can you handle it?"

Jerome blinked several times, simply staring at her and then leaned back with a small somewhat tired smile.

"Right now, you might indeed be a little too much," Jerome said shaking his head.

"I think so too," she replied, she pulled out something from her suited dress' jacket pocket and placed it on the coffee table.

Jerome looked at it curiously and then recognized it for what it was. "Business card?"

"It has both my work and personal number on it," said Lillian as she leaned back again after sliding the card across to him.

"I didn't have your number previously," Jerome said thoughtfully. "Yeah, this will help."

"Call if you need any help, you've done me a favor after all," said Lillian.

"Would you consider it a favor?" asked Jerome. "I thought you wanted revenge by your own hands."

"I don't judge and it wasn't my life to take alone," she said simply and finally stood up, it seemed their converse was at an end.

Jerome simply nodded and then turned to look at the television again when he felt her presence still there. He turned to see her looking at him.

"Is there anything else?" asked Jerome curiously.

"Yes," said Lillian. "If you would follow me to my car."

Jerome's eyes perked up a little at that as he looked over her a little, she was killing it stylistically in this dress and her body…it was chiselled to perfection, too bad he could only appreciate it on an aesthetic level, he couldn't go deeper, especially with Eckhard cutting everything off for him. At this rate, he would die a virgin…was he a virgin? He couldn't really remember at this point but nevertheless Jerome stood up and followed her to the curious eyes of some people. One of the men in cafe had suddenly gained some immense courage and stood up from his seat to the amusement of Jerome and approached Lillian. She flicked her hair with her finger to the side so her eyes could be seen clearly. Her pale gray eyes made contact with her admirer and he paused in his tracks at the predatory gaze.

"Don't," she said and he deflated like a balloon.

As Jerome walked past him he sarcastically mimed getting shot in the chest causing the man to give him a dirty look. As they got out of the cafe, Jerome pulled up next to her.

"That was a little mean don't you think?" he asked.

"I wasn't interested," she answered succinctly with a raised eyebrow and a half smile.

"What about if I asked?" Jerome said flirting at a line.

Her half smile turned into a more fuller one, "It would depend I guess."

"On what?" he asked with simple curiosity.

"On you," she said and they finally reached her car.

As he looked at her exceptional posterior he touched his heart then clicked his tongue, damn, he felt close to nothing, Eckhard was good, very good. His mind did somersaults but his body quelled everything, it was really annoying feeling. She unlocked her rather expensive car, a BMW, colored in white. Opening the backdoor she reached in and pulled out a cardboard box and it was at this moment Jerome noticed several teenagers stopped on the sidewalk to admire the figure that was Lillian.

"You've got more admirers," he said as Lillian placed the box on the roof of the car.

"It's a regular happenstance," she said.

"It must be irritating, to be looked at like that?" asked Jerome with a raised eyebrow.

"Not to me," said Lillian as she closed the door and leaned against the car and shot them a look that sent them scurrying off. "I stand above them, they can only look."

"That's some high pride," said Jerome with a chuckle.

"It's my pride," she retorted and tapped the box. "Found this in my brother's room."

"Evidence on Crane?" asked Jerome.

"Yes," Lillian replied. "You gave this to him, as I recall."

Jerome frowned, he didn't technically and he did technically but he let out a light smile, "Yes, I do remember it."

"I won't ask for your reasons," said Lillian with a light frown of her own. "But this is what got him killed I suppose."

"Yes," Jerome replied.

"Take it then," said Lillian passing the box over Jerome. "Clear that other doctor's name."

"I will," he said.

Lillian nodded and then got in her car and as she started it, she rolled down her windows.

"I didn't know you could be so brutal," she said with a smile, he shot one back of his own.

"It's a recent thing," said Jerome. "All the stress has been getting to me."

"There are other ways to release it you know," she said suggestively and then pulled out of the parking and drove off, leaving him with a box of evidence and his wishful desires.

He did understand what she was getting at but this body could hardly do what she had said, well this body could but his AI was c*ckblocking him on a permanent basis. He looked at the box of evidence again, something he's seeing for the first time and finally let out a sigh, with a short whistle he walked out of the parking lot himself, taking a slow walk back to the police station.

***

Reception of Oceanic Central News Network, Trade City Branch, Evening

After dropping off the evidence at the station, leaving it, despite his hatred, in Roy Sharpe's hands he had set out to settle one last thing. This had been bugging him since the day it happened and he finally needed a conclusion to this episode, he'd left halfway completed. After asking at the reception to call on Darcy Ito Hamada and forcing the call through with his official credentials he sat on a very comfy chair to the side to wait for the bubbly reporter. As he waited in the foyer of the building he watched around as people by and by passed through and fro. The foyer was a buzz of activities and everyone appeared to be busy. Then from the crowd at the bottom of the stairs he saw a figure break loose, very oddly dressed in a cute way. As soon as Darcy saw Jerome she seemed a little taken aback, nevertheless she still walked over to him.

"So..." he said starting the conversation. "A journalist eh?"

She winced slightly as she let out an apologetic smile, "How did you find out?"

"It wasn't as hard as you might think," said Jerome with a slightly cold smile. "I am after all a police officer, but a mediaperson pretending to be a journalist…why?"

"Hey!" she snapped. "I am a journalist, I have my degree, I just happen to work here is all."

"Right," said Jerome emphasizing the word and then he looked her in the eye and continued. "It took guts to play a police officer, I almost bought your sob story…almost."

"What gave it away?" she asked with a sigh.

"It might have worked on anyone but me," Jerome continued. "But I don't trust anybody…it just took me so long to get to you because I had some other more pressing matters."

"We can still work out a deal y'know," she said with one eye closed as she leaned forward, intentionally pressing her cleavage out and Jerome just smirked.

"I liked your bubbly persona better, there are others that pull off the sexy temptress far better," he said massaging his thumb as he merely took a glance at the cleavage then focused back on her face. "I've just met someone to that degree."

She shook her head with another sigh as she leaned back again.

"You must have had something on me," said Jerome. "To come out to play with me to this degree, I mean I wasn't just a random cop you found was I?"

"You were," she protested but at another glare from Jerome, she piped down. "No, you're right, I was looking for you."

"And Joseph Brock wasn't really your informant either I gather," said Jerome and she shook her head a disbelieving look on her face as he ripped her story to shreds. "How did you two meet then?"

"It was when I was doing a community project," she said taking in a deep breath. "I met him and then I saw him talk with you, I thought I had something so followed him."

"What did you find?" asked Jerome with a raised eyebrow.

"I can't re-," another cold glare from Jerome and her protests died down again.

"The two of you met several times and I caught something about the full moon decapitations and the Ninth Order," said Darcy. "I have no idea what the Ninth Order is though…is it like some sort of organization?"

Jerome let out a chuckle, "You're answering my questions Ms. Hamada, not the other way around."

Darcy pouted, "Come on, can't you reveal a little something, I went through all this."

Jerome chose to ignore her as he continued, "So…what else, I'm guessing that's not all, you need to have something more to have the courage to pull off what you did."

Darcy looked straight at Jerome, trying to decipher but apart from a tinge of madness that played on it, she couldn't see anything else, not like she was an expert psychologist anyhow.

"Viewbridge Cemetery," she said. "I saw you and Joseph Brock go in and then I saw some other men, decked all in black."

Jerome's eyes narrowed, she was recounting the tale of this body's hours before his rebirth into it.

"Continue," he said.

"I couldn't get any surveillance inside the cemetery," she said looking a little displeased at herself. "But I saw the six men come out a little while after and then some more time after that, you came out…covered in blood."

'So she did see,' Jerome thought, not the important parts, just the head and tail of the rope, the middle was still hidden to her, he then wondered why Hector would allow his people to be caught on surveillance by a journalist like Darcy of all people, did he know? Was he planning to deal with her? Did he just get to Hector before Hector could pull off whatever he had in mind for Darcy.

"What did you assume, when you saw it?" asked Jerome snapping out of his thoughts.

"I assumed that a huge fight or something along that line had taken place," said Darcy as she herself looked a little spooked at the thought of it all.

"You saw Joseph Brock right before his murder," said Jerome with a small smile. "And you didn't report it to the police?"

Darcy gulped as she realized the sudden seriousness of the situation but then she immediately calmed down, "You were there as well, you must have seen him being killed…or maybe you had something to do with it."

'Well, what a way to flip it on me,' he thought, despite being a little air headed at times, she was smart.

"What makes you so sure that I haven't already debriefed my superiors and they're keeping it under hush because there's something more to it," he said without missing beat and at that she gulped, he had gotten inside her head.

"That…why?" she murmured faintly as she thought to herself.

Jerome let her think as he pulled out of his pants pocket a dictation machine, a little old school sure but Eckhard had transferred what he had recorded at the hospital onto here…he had lost his phone and he would need to buy a new one.

"This here…" said Jerome snapping Darcy out of her thoughts. "Is a change of testimony by a very important witness to the arson case that's been ongoing."

She looked a little shocked but then as she glanced down at the dictation machine her eyes changed as they gleamed, her mood changed ever so quickly.

"Who is it?" asked Darcy as she eagerly snatched up the dictation machine.

"Reyhana Rostami," he said. "An alibi Dr. Maddox Crane provided."

"Why are you giving to me?" she asked suddenly suspicious and he chuckled.

"Don't worry, I have no ulterior motives," he said and then he grinned. "Just passing along some information…you seemed a little like a lost puppy to me, I just had to help."

She looked at him a little strangely as she mulled over what he said, she then turned away with a blush…something very interesting to him. Despite her great capabilities at acting, it seemed in that particular department she was not as experienced as she made herself out to be.

"I can keep this?" she asked fawning over the machine all of sudden.

"Yes," Jerome answered getting up.

He turned to walk away but then paused as he turned to Darcy, "I don't particularly care about the video you have of me but other people might."

"Other people?" she asked quickly.

"Yes…other people," Jerome answered. "You saw those men dressed in black didn't you, haven't you with your intelligence at the very least deduced that they might have been the ones to kill Joseph Brock, they might find out that you have the video and come after you."

"Oh…" she said and then she paled.

Jerome shook his head with a wry smile, "You can keep the video, I don't care as I've said or you can sent it to me, delete your copy and pull your head out of this rabbit hole."

"I…" she seemed a little conflicted, a good sign for a journalist he noted.

"Stay normal Darcy," he said. "There's a place more frightening than hell, existing right alongside us, you don't want to be a part of it."

"What are you talking about?" Darcy asked but he passed her a grave smile without reply to her question.

"Enjoy your exclusive," he said and with that he walked off.

Making his way through the mass of people in the building, no doubt working overtime on the many crimes that had happened in the recent days, he exited the building.

***

Jerome's Loft, East Wing

He had taken a taxi back to his loft, as soon as he had entered the taxi, he had asked the driver to be quiet and drive. He needed to think, it was words the driver didn't appreciate much because as soon as he had gotten out of the taxi he was given a very dirty look by the driver, something he simply shrugged off and gave the driver cash. The driver drove off and Jerome turned to his apartment complex in front of which were several vans. He walked up the stairs to see the area taped up and workers walking about. One of them came to him as soon as he appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Excuse me, do you live here?" asked one of the workers and Jerome nodded.

"Unit 2, just the one across from the hole you're covering," Jerome said.

"Right," the worker nodded and then he turned to his fellow workers. "Make way, we've got a tenant here."

The workers who had been fairly busy patching up the damage he had done to this building suddenly stopped and looked at him, he had the shame to look like he felt a little bad about it before quietly trudging through. The worker followed him and as he approached unit two and then he fumbled to get his keys out. As he approached with the key to lock he discovered a small problem, the door was already unlocked. He wheeled around to look at the worker next to him.

"The door's open," he said frowning.

"Yes," the worker said with a questioning gaze. "Your brother's in there."

"My…brother?" he asked as he thought about where or rather when on earth he had a brother.

He quickly opened the door and entered only to see a teenage boy on his bed, in what was a posh school uniform with his phone in his hand. The boy appeared to not have noticed his entry. He cleared his throat, loudly to make the boy aware of him. The boy looked up then adjusted his glasses before he broke into a grin and got off the bed.

"Big brother!" he exclaimed, the boy ran up and hugged Jerome, catching him totally unawares.

'F*ck!' was his thought, 'Eckhard, Jerome's family details does include a brother, what's his name, give me his details.'

Jerome had known about this body having a brother but he had never cared about it, the boy was studying all the way in Austria of all places, there would be no need to worry or care but it appeared that the boy had suddenly came back into his life.

<>

He pried the boy off of him and gave him a light smile as he sweated on the inside, how on earth was he supposed to act like a brother to this boy and looking at that face the boy clearly expected a lot of him.

"Why aren't you at school?" asked Jerome hiding his nervousness with his clear voice.

"Oh…" the boy himself looked down a little nervously. "I got suspended."

Jerome's eyes widened, was the universe trying to screw him over? Of all the things, this brother had to get himself suspended and come back here at this precise moment in time.

"I'll be with you for the next two weeks," the boy said cheerily, slapping Jerome in the back.

"Right," Jerome answered a little weakly, two weeks, how on earth was he supposed to act in front of this boy…he had massacred an entire gang and burned a building to the ground, damn it to hell, he wasn't going to trip up here.

"Hehe, enjoy your stay," Jerome said as he sighed and watched as the boy happily nodded.