3.04 OBSESSIVE LOVE: Contractor

The Exorcism Department Chief gives them a grave stare. She's a middle-aged woman, built sleek. Her peppered hair is dyed a tasteful dark brown and it sits in a permanent neat bun on her head. She's not a tall woman but commands an intimidating aura nonetheless, her expressions don't range far outside of angry, concerned, approving, and disappointed. 

It's only natural that Voir fidgets under her gaze but that doesn't stop Kyden from feeling impatient and annoyed with his partner. He quickly kicks to his side, trying to silence Voir's fumbling but it doesn't really do much aside from make him yelp.

The chief stares both of them down with her sharp brown eyes. She doesn't waste any time on pleasantries. "This is about the Phasing Demon that you subdued yesterday."

The two partners shared a look. Kyden contemplative and Voir concerned. 

The chief ignores their gazes and continues, "The demon's contractor has been identified but not located. We've reason to believe that she's entered another contract."

Kyden nods, understanding. Even if a contractor ends up being saved from being parasitized by a demon they enter a contract with, it is very likely that they will soon fall victim to another demon. Contractors have an extremely delicate mental state and require plenty of therapy and rehabilitation to function in society after a demonic encounter.

"Wait, are you saying that we have to work overtime?" Voir whines like a petulant child, "It's so late—"

Kyden ignores him and asks, "Is it an indirect or direct contract?"

The chief's gaze falls on the priest, she too chooses to ignore the complaining recruit, "We've reason to believe that it's direct. If you find her quickly then there still might be a chance." 

Voir suddenly straightens, his brows are furrowed. 

"Any information on the host?" Kyden asks.

"Unfortunately, aside from her abandoned lair, there's not much to go on."

"It's something," Kyden says, "Voir and I will depart immediately." 

The chief nods approvingly. With a brisk salute, the two exorcists rush out of the offices and into one of the company cars that litter the underground garage.

Kyden lets his partner take the wheel because there's not much else that Voir is good for. It's a twenty minute car ride even if Voir hits the gas. It's the only moment of reprieve that Kyden gets so he settles with the stale veggie burger that Voir bought him, thankful that the dunce at least remembered that the clergy doesn't consume meat. 

There's a snazzy jazz tune playing from the car and Kyden doesn't comment on how it doesn't really suit Voir. He pulls out his phone and sees that he has a message from the professor. He feels compelled to respond, putting down his food to reply to the rather mundane inquiry that Professor Ervenir has about his art. 

Voir catches a glimpse and even in a situation like this he has the galls to ask, "Do you have a girlfriend?" 

Kyden feels his brows twitch, "The members of the clergy aren't—"

"Allowed to engage in intercourse, I know that part!" Voir chirps, "But you can still have relationships and even get married, right?"

Kyden's lips pull taut. That's true but… "It's not recommended." His answer is short, without any proper explanation. The truth is, he doesn't want to talk about it. Things like romance and his repressed desires are things better left unexplored. 

Voir doesn't seem to get the message and continues to ramble, "In my opinion," he hums, as though a kid like him might have any sort of wisdom to share, "You ought to let loose a bit, Rev. Kyden. Enjoy life. I know you priests have all these restrictions and stuff, but who said it meant that you can't live a little."

Of course, it has nothing to do with priesthood and everything to do with himself. Kyden scowls and isn't in the mood to entertain pointless chatter. "Drive faster," he hisses.

Voir's pleasant smile falls. "But Rev. Kyden, the speed limit is—"

"I don't care." Kyden snaps, "The sooner we get there the better. The host doesn't have time for us to be dawdling."

"Right," Voir straightens his back at the mention of the host and follows Kyden's instruction, foot slamming down on the accelerator. The car zooms through traffic and Kyden feels relieved. He finishes his veggie burger.

…

The Phasing Demon that they exterminated two days prior had entered into an indirect contract with their current target. He was a prolific demon that captured and killed young men; each with a very specific set of features. Tall and stereotypically attractive, blond hair, blue eyes. The Phasing Demon would kidnap these men and leave them to die in terrible conditions; ranging from drowning to being buried alive or just being left to die chained up in an old abandoned shed.

Whatever it was that the demon's contractor wanted, was never truly fulfilled but apparently had something to do with these killings.

Kyden pockets this information as they exit the car. The duplex is lined with yellow tape, rain drizzles from the dark sky and wets the ground. The dogs are being ushered into police cars, their effectiveness thwarted by the weather. 

A mustached man in a beige trench coat approaches them both, his hand is extended toward Kyden, likely recognizing him as a priest from his attire. "Investigator Ozrek," he says with a rumbling grave tone.

Kyden doesn't like pleasantries but he does his best to seem minimally cordial, accepting the outstretched hand and introduces himself, "Reverend Kyden Retourne." 

"And I'm Voir— Voir Lerouge," his chirpy partner hums between them, eyes crescented like an eager dog. Investigator Ozrek eyes them both before he ushers them towards the scene.

"C'mon in. But I don't know what you'll find that we haven't yet to pick up."

Before Kyden enters he notices that there aren't many cars in the first place. Investigator Ozrek is the only one on the scene and Kyden doesn't recognize him despite the long list of investigators he's worked with in the past.

The duplex's interior is pretty typical for the home of a well-to-do young woman who lives on her own.

"Belle Sacris, age twenty six, lives on her own. Just recently separated from a boyfriend that she's been seeing for about a year. She works as a manager at a boutique shop and is currently studying part time. The girl's a hustler. It's a real shame."

Kyden scowls at the information and walks on in to investigate the scene on his own, abandoning the investigator with Voir, who is more than eager to entertain the older man.

Voir's nasally voice is almost song-like, like a damned bird that doesn't stop chirping. "Wow… erm, so any idea about her contract? What did she do in her free time? And how long has she been separated from her boyfriend?"

If there's one thing that Kyden will credit Voir for, it's the fact that he remembers how contracts work. A demon investigation is, after all, very different from one done for regular crimes. 

They need to pinpoint the source of the host's deepest and darkest desire. 

"Well," the old investigator scratches the back of his neck while Kyden looks around. Everything is pretty neat, but not overly clean either. The home looks lived in, nice, with touches of personality that dot the space like the vintage style carpet beneath the coffee table or the array of magnets that decorate the fridge. There are several faces that reoccur, a circle of girlfriends smiling and laughing in the photos. "The girl's got it pretty good. She's well adjusted despite being a young little thing. Keeps up with her grades, has enough income to pay for this place on her own and her social life is pretty damn stable too.

"If there's anything that's an issue it's probably this guy." Ozrek pulls out a tablet. When he realizes that Kyden isn't paying him any mind, he scowls and shows Voir instead. 

"Who's that?" Voir hums, leaning into the tablet. 

"The boy's Harris Riley. The boy's our target's ex. Just parted ways about two months ago and it was something rocky. The boy didn't treat her right. And do you notice something interesting about him?"

Behind him, Kyden hears Voir exclaim, "Oh wow! He looks just like the Phasing Demon's victims. With the blond hair and blue eyes and everything."

"You bet he does," there's a notable tinge of pride in the way that Ozrek responds and Kyden ignores them both in favor of climbing the stairs.

The lights upstairs are on and the hall is narrow, with just a bathroom and two rooms.

The first room that Kyden finds is what looks like a study, with a bookshelf brimming with books and an art station for painting and drawing. He's absently reminded of the text he received from the professor, asking about his old drawing habits. Kyden chooses not to enter the room and moves on, where he finds Belle's bedroom.

After about twenty minutes of looking around, he finds himself disgruntled. Because the answer to their question seems so blatantly obvious that he cannot fathom why that idiot investigator had missed the mark so completely. Why was were there so many incompetent fools in the field lately? With this thought simmering at the forefront of his mind, Kyden descends the stairs.