Chapter 20 (The Doubles)
Keres hummed a Catholic hymn. The only one she really loved out of all others she had listened to. Only remembered. It was a song written in remembrance of those who fell during the Great War. Ian and Nikolay were involved in a war. The war she started with Diego and so she wondered what they would be remembered for. What Nikolay's family and friends would remember him for, what Ian's friends at school and the members of Black Cat would remember him for. She washed her hands in a bowl of water and remembered the Priest's sermon on Pontius Pilate washing his hands off Jesus' blood.
Ian mumbled words trying to talk through the duct tape
"What? You've got something you want say to me?" She took off the duct tape roughly
"Ouch!" Ian winced
"What do you want to say?" She asked
"I was just going through my head just how pathetic a man I am for a girl who looks like she'd be blown away by a tiny breeze to have him tied down like this" he added
"That's all?" Keres asked and made to return the duct tape back on his mouth
"No!" He said startling Nikolay
"You're not the Keres I know" he said
"Who are you?" He asked. Nikolay rolled his eyes at his perceived foolishness
"You didn't know any of us at all. So you wouldn't know who I am" she said and placed the duct tape on his mouth
"Hey handsome" she said turning to Nikolay
"You look better with that mouth of yours shut" she added and walked away
"9.30pm"
The CIS agents were all smiles when different Broadcasting Stations surrounded the building hoping to get a word or two from anyone of them. They felt like idol celebrities who went on hiatus and had a comeback to find their fans still loving them.
"This is the News Desk and I'm currently standing in front of North Valley's Central Intelligence Service building. The CIS agents have given us updates concerning the Diego Paper Factory blast and it's said that they have caught the real culprit responsible for the recent murders going around North Valley" the reporter who was live was able to grab Lars' attention
".....with me is Lars Richman, the State CIS investigation team's Chief. Chief, what's your take on the arrest of the culprit?" She asked. His time to shine. He literally did no work but was taking the credit as the Chief who helped in finding the real culprit.
"Well, I sure am glad that we've caught the real culprit and not having to accuse innocent high school students to be responsible. I mean, what high school student would do that to someone's property?"
"...I knew it from the start that we had the wrong person and I want to use this opportunity to apologize to the family of the late Sandra Stewart for not immediately investigating further to clear their daughter's name but we assure you people of North Valley that we'll burst all crime doers and none would be left standing" he delivered his speech
"Chief" Wallace said hitting him by the side
"What?" He asked
"You haven't given credit to Detective Grace and Orlando" Wallace said
"Oh, that's true" Lars said and turned back to the reporter
"And of course, they say that behind every leader there's a subordinate" he said
"Who says that?" Carla asked perplexed
"I would like to give some of the credits to my Detectives, Detective Grace and Detective Orlando"
"They laid down their lives for us to see this day! But thank goodness they didn't die in the process. The day of the down fall of the serial murderer has come!" he said
"...From North Valley Central Intelligence Service, Natalie Gogun reporting" the reporter concluded
"Are we done here?" Grace asked and walked in
"What's wrong?" Orlando asked following her inside the station
"They're out there celebrating that they've gotten the wrong man whereas the real culprit is out there set to commit more havoc and we have no idea how we're going to keep the promise we made to the man who's taking the fall for her" Grace lamented
"That's why they say, never make promises you can't keep" he said
While the CIS agents who didn't know the real culprit wasn't caught were getting interviewed like celebrities Diego wondered who they were going to meet to get Nikolay if the culprit was caught.
"Culprit identified as a man, not girl. Keres, is a girl not a man. Ultimately the person they have is not Keres" Sean said
They must be making another mistake again, right?" Diego asked
"Probably?" Sean said
"What do you mean probably? They are making an obvious mistake!" Diego yelled
"Don't get too serious and cheer up a little or else this would end up being a flop" Sean said
"10.00pm" Diego said checking his wrist watch
"Don't worry, we'll get there in time for you to get your son and for me to get revenge for my daughter" Sean assured
"I hope so" Diego said
Grace and Orlando had pulled the entire man power they could get from the CIS and FBI. The abandoned gas station was surrounded by these men and women ready for action. Grace handed out photographs of Keres and Diego to them.
"Wait, isn't this Diego Lukeman?" Carla asked seeing the photographs
"Yes" Grace said
"Keep an eye out for either him or the girl in the photo and inform us if anyone of you catches a glimpse of them" Orlando said
"Yes, Detective" Carla said
"Also look out for any movements at all" Grace added
"It's late so no one should be out here. Plus this place is completely desolate" Wallace said
"Still keep an eye out for any movements" Grace insisted
"11.45pm" she said looking into her wrist watch
"Just asking out of curiosity" Orlando said
"Why didn't we at least contact Diego to confirm where he's meeting her?" He asked
"It's Hunter, and he's Keres' Uncle so he'd know better" Grace said
"I don't like this" Orlando said leaning on the car
"What?" She asked
"Keres is smarter than this. It's too easy" he said
"Don't say that!" Grace cautioned
"When people say too easy bad things happen" she added
"Are you sure it's a gas station?" Orlando asked Grace
"You heard Hunter too, why ask me again?" She asked
"Hunter Evans, you have a visitor!" An officer said opening his cell door
"Julianne" Hunter said as Mrs. Peters walked in. She didn't utter a word and just sat in front of him. She never liked Keres because she was always trouble but she hated herself more for falling for Hunter when she knew that he would never make her his top priority when Keres was around. He was willing to go to jail for her. Something she was sure he wouldn't do for her.
"What's the problem?" He asked holding her hands
"Are you satisfied now?" She asked
"Does being in this shit hole please you?" She asked
"Julianne...." He said
"I don't get why you have to do this for her. It's her cross so let her carry it and besides Keres is in no way worried about going to jail" she said
"I've seen my lawyer and he said he had spoken to the lawyers of the deceased and they have a strong case against Keres, I mean me " he said
"I don't think the court would just settle on a life term without parole but a death sentence" he added
"What?! No!" Julianne said getting up
"I'm just letting you know so you'd be prepared for it" he said
"Oh God" she said standing up with her face in her palm
"Look, Hunter..." She started but her voice broke. She started crying as she walked up to him
"Julianne..." He said
"It's not too late to tell the truth, okay? I mean, that ungrateful brat doesn't even know the sacrifice you're making for her! So, let's go and tell the Detective that it's not true"
"Please...." She cried as she laid her head on his thighs
"You of all people should know that it's not her fault" he said patting her back
"She's still young, there's enough time for her to change and get her life straight again. But for me? Look, Julianne I've lived mine" he said pulling her up to face him
"I'm just giving way for her to live again" he said
She stood up and sat back on the chair and wiped away her tears
"Keres is not at the gas station" she said
"Or at least she's not going there" she added
"What do you mean?" He asked
"Remember she said she installed a listening device in Diego's house?" She asked
"Yes" He said
"She sent him a text and he said it out loud" she said
"Said what?" Hunter asked impatiently
"The location of her meeting place with him" she said
"And it's not a gas station" she added
"Where is it then?" He asked
"A Super Mart, and it's 12.00am" she answered
"We have to inform Detective Grace" he said standing up
"I have her phone number off heart. Are you with your phone?" He asked
"Are you out of your mind? You're a detainee and you want to use my phone?"
"The warden might see you" she said
"Quick!" He said and opened her bag
He took out the phone and dialled Grace's number
"Detective Grace speaking, who is this?" Grace asked as she picked up the call
"Grace it's Hunter" he said
"Hunter? How'd you get a phone?" She asked
"No time to chat, we got the address wrong"
"It's Lake Point Super Mart and you have to be there before 12.00am!"
"What?!" Grace exclaimed
Diego had long gotten to the Super Mart. Sales had ended for the day and it was closed except, Keres had a key. The plan Diego had was simple. Sean had told him it wasn't necessary to have an elaborate plan when dealing with Keres because she thought simple in her own way and if they were every going to get her they had to think like her.
"Okay. This is it" Diego said when they parked their van behind a tree opposite the Super Mart
"We'll walk slowly but swiftly into the Super Mart and take her unawares" Sean told the Agents
"It'll be hard for her to spot us in the dark so we're safe. Now, let's go in" he said and they began to troop out in their numbers. They all thought that it was going to be easy. But Diego's simple plan was still too elaborate compared to Keres'
Keres was on the roof top of the Super Mart. She saw when they drove in and began to walk out of their vans. Ian and Nikolay were also there tied down but wide awake. They heard the vans drive in and wondered who it was.
She dropped a chair in front of the Caliber 7.62mm M24 sniper rifle with a silencer and sat down. She placed the detachable backup iron sight into the tapped holes in front of the barrel beside the receiver and looked into it to see her opponents. They were as clear as day. She steadied herself, took aim and shot
One agent fell down dead.
"What was that?" Diego asked. They looked around wondering where the shot came from. She shot again and another one went down
"She's here! Take cover!" Sean said
"What do we do?" Diego asked him feeling confused
"I ...." Sean began
A bullet struck him in the heart
"Sean!" Diego shouted falling on his knees beside him
"Diego..."
"She's using a long bolt action...." Sean said as he held onto Diego
"What does that mean?" Diego asked
"It'll take her at most four seconds to shoot again...use those four seconds to run inside and save your son....." Sean said coughing out blood
"What?" Diego asked as Sean drew his last breath
"Sean!" He shouted
Another agent went down while the others ran into the safety of the Super Mart. Diego took that as his cew and raced into the Super Mart just before she fired another shot. Keres searched for him amongst the corpses. He wasn't there
"At least he's got brains. This would be interesting" she said standing up as no agent was left standing outside. She left Ian and Nikolay on the roof top and went down smiling all the way. She turned off the circuit box and the Super Mart went dark in an instant
"What the hell?" She heard some agents say
She went down and from her boots took out two Skorpion vz. 61 machine hand gun and began to fire at them. Diego took cover while his agents went falling to their deaths as the bullets pierced through their bodies. When she exhausted the bullets she dropped the guns and took cover.
The Agents came out from their hiding places and began to fire their weapons at her
She quickly ran up the stairs and hid behind a pillar close to the kitchen wares unit of the Super Mart and smiled to herself as she chewed on her gum
"Get that bitch!" Diego screamed
"I think we've got her" An agent said seeing where she dropped her gun
"Really?" Diego asked and slowly came out
"Yes, found her gu....." The agent started but soon had a butcher's knife in his head
"Darn it" Diego said and went back to his hiding place. The other agents began to shoot at the direction where the knife came from. She appeared behind them and began to slice off their heads.
They too, feel down dead.
"Keres!" Diego called walking out of his hiding place. She turned around and he fired the gun at her head. She dodged quickly but the bullet grazed her fore head. Blood gushed out of the wound. She looked at Diego angrily as the blood slid down her cheek and spat out her gum. She had been playing around too much.
He tried to fire again but she was quicker this time. She threw another knife at his hand cutting through his wrist. The gun fell from his hand causing the bullet to miss direction
"Ah!" He screamed
"That all you got?" She asked him
"After getting all nosey that's all you got to face me?" She asked
"No. That's not all" he said
The agents left walked out of their hiding place and charged at her
"Well I was hoping for that" she said and began to fight the them
Five men to one girl. After pulling off some karate moves she had them down. Diego had long began to run for his life, looking around the Mart hoping to see Nikolay so they'd leave.
Keres looked around and found Diego's gun lying by her feet then picked it up and shot the agents. Throwing the empty gun away she reached for the pistol in her waist and cocked it
"You know..." she began walking briskly towards where he ran
"...You shouldn't have ever killed her. I mean, you should have just asked your son to stay away from her"
"But no, you didn't do that and because of that single action you took you jeopardized all my plans!" She shouted and began to shoot at him
"Stop!" Someone shouted and hit her head with a frying pan from behind. She turned around angrily
"Nikolay" she said her voice filled with spite
"Yes, that's right" he said slowly walking to his Father
"Nikolay, son! Thank God you're okay" Diego said holding him
"You love hitting people at the back of their heads so I thought I could do it to you too" he said
"Why?" He asked as she looked at him angrily
"Did you think Ian would turn out like you? We're guys, we know how to sort out our differences" he said
"Yeah, we make one great team" Ian said appearing also
"Against you" he added panting
"That's what you think" she said
"I actually hoped you would come down here" she told Nikolay and pointed her gun towards Diego
"To witness the death of your Father" she added
Ian tried to grab the gun from her but she shot him on the knee
"Ah!" He shouted in pain and fell down. Nikolay stood looking at her wide-eyed
"That's your friend!" Nikolay yelled
"No!" She yelled
"Sally's his friend. I'm not" she said smiling
Just as she pointed the gun back at Diego he ran in front of him
"Keres, I can't let you kill my Father" he said
"That doesn't change anything. Only means you have to go first" she said and shot him on the stomach. The force of the bullet pushed him back and he fell to the ground
"Nikolay!" Diego shouted trying to run towards him
Keres fired two shots on the floor close to his leg as a warning. He stopped abruptly in his tracks
"I don't get you at all Diego. You said you wanted to get rid of the son who doesn't support his Father and I'm offering to do it for you but here you are getting all emotional" she said
"Or, do you want to do it yourself?" She asked offering him the gun
"You're crazy" he said kneeling beside Nikolay as he bled on the ground. He was unconscious
"No, I'm not" she said and shot at his shoulder
"Ah!" He groaned from the intense pain
"I'm not crazy!" She shouted and shot him again
"You are the one's who are crazy!" She said pulling her hair
"You're all crazy!" She shouted
"I'm not crazy!"
"That's right" Grace said appearing behind her
"You just need help" she added
"You again" Keres said and made for her
A serious fight ensured between the two females. Blows, punches and kicks were flying in the air and eventually Keres got the upper hand. There was no beating her in a fist fight or a gun fight.
"You're next" she told Diego and began to walk towards him
"Stop!" Grace said and shot at Keres' leg
"Ah!" Keres shouted and stopped in her tracks holding unto her leg. Grace stood up and cuffed Keres before she could make a move
"Let me go!" She shouted as the CIS and FBI had the Super Mart surrounded
"Let me go! I'm going to kill that bastard! I'll kill you Diego!"
"I'm going to kill you!" She shouted as Grace dragged her out
"Get those two into the ambulance" she told Carla and Wallace
"Gulliver, get the other ambulance to take the dead bodies away" she added still pulling Keres away
"Diego I'm going to kill you! Do you hear me!" She continued shouting as Grace took her away
"Diego Lukeman, you're under arrest for the murder of Hazel Evans and for illegal acquisition of landed properties" Orlando said
"Just to mention a few of your crimes" he added as he handcuffed him
"Thank God" Diego said relieved
"I don't care if you arrest me just get my son to a hospital fast" he said as the paramedics took Ian and Nikolay out on a stretcher each
"But, how did you know to come here?" Diego asked
"We have our ways" Orlando answered
"Thank God" Diego kept saying as they lead him into the Police van. Keres made for him again as he walked pass her outside the building.
"Let me go!" Keres shouted as Grace pulled her into the Police van
"Stay put!" Grace said and handcuffed her to the door
"I'm going to kill you!" Keres said stopping Grace from leaving
"And I'm not going to burn you like I tried to before. I'm going tie you up and peel the flesh off your face with a knife and feed it to the dogs!" She said
"Wow" Grace said
"Thanks for the description, I can just imagine it" she added with a pinched expression. Keres looked like she meant it
"That's not all" Keres said
"I'm going to take you to a stable, tie you to a horse and ride it with you behind sweeping the ground and you're going to see life slowly leave your body. You know why? It's because that's the death that's benefiting to a bitch like you!" She shouted
Grace slapped her across the face
"Ah!" Keres groaned. She was surprised that she hit her
"And you? Aren't you a bitch that's pissed off because she didn't get to kill her sister?" Grace asked as Keres glared at her
"What about you huh? What's the kind of death that's benefiting for someone like you?!" Grace shouted
"She's not her sister! She's just a selfish convincing little brat!" Keres shouted
"I can't believe your Uncle is taking the blame for you and here you are piling up more dead bodies! How are we going to cover up for this one huh?" She asked
"We can't say it's Hunter again because he's in jail already so how're we going cover this up?!" She shouted
"I want to help you but you won't let me in" she said calming down
"I hope this will" she dropped the letter Hunter gave her on Keres' legs as she made to leave
"Did you really think that I'm going to let you put your handcuffs on me and chain me up like a dog?" Keres asked and broke the handcuff to Grace's amazement
She started advancing towards Grace
"No" Grace said
"I didn't believe it when Hunter told me you would do that but thank goodness I came prepared" she added and handcuffed both her hands to the door
"Grace!" Keres shouted angrily
She walked out and closed the car door shut and walked away with Keres struggling inside
"Have you gotten everyone out?" Grace asked Wallace
"Yes, twenty seven dead bodies" he said shivering
"The two boys are on their way to the hospital and Diego is on his way to jail" Carla said
"Okay" Grace said
"Detective, she's getting away!" Gulliver said pointing towards Keres as she drove the van out
Mrs. Peters sat looking like a widow while the members of Black Cat were her consolers. As far as she was concerned, Hunter was a dead man. The law had a limit of leniency when it came to giving it's verdict. Keres had gone beyond doing what was punishable by the maximum sentence. It was the death sentence that awaited Hunter who decided to be Jesus for her. Worse, he asked her to help Keres. She knew from the moment she challenged her in class that she was going to be trouble. All she did was take a little time before she showed who she really was
"What can we do to help?" Silas asked
"There's nothing we can do anymore" Mrs. Peters said
"Have they found Keres yet?" Hurricane asked
"I don't know" she said wiping away her tears. Keres rushed into the room looking so pale. She had lost lots of blood and was bleeding from every opening the bullets that hit her made and from the bruises she got when she tried to escape the Police van. The members were startled seeing her in front of them when she was supposed to be in Police custody.
"Where's Hunter?" She asked
"Keres!" Silas shouted rushing towards her
"Are you okay?" He asked holding her head
"Get off" she said brushing him off
"Where's he?" She asked Mrs. Peters
"You've finally destroyed him" Mrs. Peters said
"You've finally killed him!" She shouted throwing the flower on the table down
The glass broke and a piece cut through Keres' wrist. Another injury.
"Julianne!" Silas shouted and rushed in front of Keres
"Where's he? Is he dead?" Keres asked Silas
"No. CIS building, under custody" he informed
Keres walked out of the room and got into the Police van she stole to come there and drove to the CIS station. After a few minutes she arrived at the station and rushed in
"Excuse me Miss, how can I help you?" A Detective asked
"Hunter Evans? Is he here?" She asked
"Miss your head's bleeding. I think you need to see a doctor" the Detective said and others began to gather around
"Just answer the damn question. Where's he?!" Keres shouted
"Keres?" Marcel asked walking up to her
"Are you okay?" He asked touching her head
"Hunter?" She asked brushing his hand aside
"Come with me" he told her
"Don't worry, I've got this" he told the Detective taking Hunter's cell's key from him and took her to where Hunter was
"Hunter" Marcel said informing him of his presence
"Huh?" Hunter asked getting up from the bed
"What do you think you're doing right now?" Keres asked
"Keres!" Hunter called rushing towards the burglary proof
"Just a minute" Marcel said and opened the door
"Come here" Hunter dragged Keres inside
"I'll go stand watch" Marcel said and left
"Where were you? You didn't kill him did you?" He asked
"If I did would you take the blame for me?" She asked
"Keres...." Hunter pressed
"I asked you before, what do you think you're doing?" She asked again
"What does it look like to you? Didn't you read my letter?" He asked
"No. I did not" she said coldly. She threw the letter to him. It was unopened
"I only came because that stupid Detective you sent told me you were covering up for me" she said
"Keres, look we care for you" he said holding her hand
"We love you" he added
"I don't know what love is. But if love means doing what you're doing right now then I guess it's foolish" she said
"Keres, you're wrong about everything. Your Mom and Dad loved you. They never meant to make you feel bad by taking extra care of you"
"They loved you till their deaths" he said
"No. If they loved Maeve they would have killed themselves when she went missing like how they killed themselves when Hazel died" she said
"They didn't love Maeve at all" she added
"Tomorrow, the Judge would decide what to do with your, I mean my case" he said
"I think they're going to sentence me to life imprisonment since my lawyer said they don't have people killed again when they murder someone" he added
"I don't care" she said shrugging her shoulders
"I had a plan and if you didn't foolishly come out to surrender yourself I would have eliminated those two nosey Detectives and everything would have been forgotten" she added
"That's what I don't want" he said
"I don't want you getting more blood on your hands"
"Well, too bad. I heard a Detective tell Grace that I shot and killed twenty seven persons today and you surrendering yourself didn't stop me" she said
"It did" he said
"You came here and if you heard a little bit earlier you wouldn't have killed all those people" he said
"Hunter" she called
"You've turned yourself in and there's nothing I can do to help you get out of here because you wouldn't like my method" she said
"Maeve appreciates you doing this but this little act of kindness wouldn't stop me. Instead, it'll make me so angry that I'll take the weapons of those detectives and get them all on their knees but you wouldn't want that"
"So, have fun in jail" she said and stood up
"Is...Is Maeve still in there?" He asked
"She wants me in control. That way, no one can hurt her"
"Mom slow down!" Stellar called as her Mom ran into St. Luke's hospital
"My son!"
"Where's my son?!" Claudia asked holding a Police officer in the emergency room by his shirt. They had been told by Grace that their son had been found but not the way they left him. Claudia felt her world fall apart. She didn't care that Diego was arrested, all she cared for was her son's health and hearing Keres shot him meant he wasn't in good health.
"Which of them?" The Officer asked
"What do you mean which of them? Did she hurt more?" She asked
"Ma'am, which of the boys?" The Officer asked
"Nikolay.... where's he?" She asked as Stellar caught up with her
"He's with the Doctors now" the Officer said
"Oh God" Claudia exclaimed and broke down in tears
"Mom...." Stellar said holding her in her arms
"He's going to be okay, I promise" she added crying
"Aren't you also here for the other boy?" The Officer asked
"What other boy?" Claudia asked
"Um...., Ian West, he was also in the operating theater and he was brought in with your son" he said
"Ian West is with me" Mrs. Peters said walking in
"You!" Claudia said getting up from the floor
"What?" Mrs. Peters asked
"You are with those people who want to kill my family right?!"
"Murderer!" Claudia shouted and went for Mrs. Peters throat
"Ma'am you can't do this here" the attendant in the Emergency unit said
"Hold yourself Lady!" Mrs. Peters said holding her hands in the air
"Young lady, take care of this woman" she said to Stellar and shoved Claudia to the floor
"Mom!" Stellar called rushing towards her
"Where's Ian West's room?" Mrs. Peters asked the attendant
"Room eighty nine" the attendant said
"Thanks" Mrs. Peters said and walked away
"You'll pay for this!" Claudia shouted after her
"Oh, my son. Nikolay!" She shouted
Mrs. Peters walked into the room and saw Nikolay and Ian having a serious discussion
"What's going on here?" She asked
"Mrs. Peters?" Nikolay asked surprised to see her
"Nikolay Diego?" She asked
"Are you here on behalf of the school?" He asked
"No, she's one of us" Ian said. Mrs. Peters gave him a quizzical look
"Ah, I've been briefing him on the happenings around here" he said
"Since I almost died without knowing anything" Nikolay chipped in
"I see" she said
"Aren't you supposed to be in the operating room?" She asked
"I was out long ago" Nikolay said
"Anyway your Mom almost killed me out there in the emergency unit" she added
"My Mom's here?" Nikolay asked
"Yes, she is" she said walking up to Ian
"How's the knee?" She asked
"I'll survive" he said
"Good" she said and made to walk out
"What happened with Keres?" He asked stopping her
"She isn't my responsibility anymore" she said
"Is she alive?" Nikolay asked
"Still reeking havoc" she answered and walked out
Just then, Claudia walked in but not without eying Mrs. Peters
"Nikolay...Oh my God, son are you okay?" She asked rushing towards his bed
"Mom, I'm fine" he said
"Do you know how worried we have been?!" Stellar shouted crying
"Stellar....." He said
"I thought you had died when you went to confess your love!" She yelled
"Stellar!" He cautioned as everyone looked at him. What did a nineteen year old boy know about love?
"Did you tell her?" She asked
"No, but she doesn't feel the same way" he said
"Well that's good then" she said
"Huh?" He asked
"You almost got killed because you ran after her so that means danger would come your way if you are anywhere near her"
"It's good she doesn't feel the same way" she explained
"So, what are you going to do now?" Nikolay asked turning to Ian
"Well, for starters I'm going to get the hell out of this place and go back to the church. Father John must be back from his seminar and he'll be pretty dazed when he finds neither Keres nor I there" he added
"Okay, I'll call you just in case of anything" Nikolay said
"No need to bother" Ian said
"Huh?" Nikolay asked
"I'll call you first" Ian said and reached for the clutches beside his bed
"Good day Mrs. Diego" he said and walked out of the hospital
"Who was that?" Stellar asked Nikolay
"A classmate" he replied
"Oh....." She said staring at him walking away
"You better get your eyes out of there. He's a play boy" Nikolay warned
"That's left for me to decide" she said still staring
Keres stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her. She looked around her new apartment. If she was still going for Diego's throat she needed to lay low first and plan extremely well to finish the job. It was taking longer than she expected. She changed into new clothes and sat by her study table, picked up a gun and a towel and began to clean it up. She began humming a song smiling to herself when her cell phone rang
It was Grace
"What?" She asked as she picked up the call
"I don't know how you knew it was me and I don't want to find out but Diego's trial's the same day as Hunter's, you can come and see for yourself how you've destroyed his life" Grace said
"Thanks for the info" Keres said
"At least, I can go there and fulfill my promise to kill him" she added and ended the call
"Bunch of lowlifes!" She cursed and threw the phone across the room
Ian thought of the perfect lie to tell the Priest and how to explain his use of clutches and his absence from the church. He got down from the taxi and began to walk into the church with the aid of the clutches. He saw a lot of people gathered in the church holding a service with another Priest present
"What's going on here?" He asked and everyone turned in his direction
"Oh, he lived here right?" Someone whispered to another
"Look, his using clutches"
"I heard the person who killed the Priest did that to him" people began to whisper
"I said, what's going on here?!" Ian asked
"Son, the presiding Priest here has gone to meet with the Lord" the Priest said
"What?" Ian asked
"Yesterday, his body was found in the garage"
"Apparently, he was murdered" the Nun answered
"What?!" He asked open eyed
"It's the same killer that blew up Diego paper factory that killed him" another said
"Keres...." Ian thought and threw the clutches away and stormed out of the church limping. He dialled her number with shaky hands
"Yes?" She asked as she picked up
"Keres, you daughter of Jezebel!" He cursed
"How could you do this?!" He asked
"What did I do again?" She asked feigning ignorance
"You better come to the lounge or else I'll find you myself and put you down!" He shouted and ended the call
He limped his way down the road and boarded a taxi. After a few minutes, he got to the lounge and found Keres waiting there
"How could you do this you animal?! After everything he's done for us!" He shouted
"What are you talking about?" She asked
"Oh don't give me that shit. I know you killed Father John" he said
"Killed him?" She asked
"What am I? Some sort of ass who just kills randomly?" She asked
"You didn't?" He asked surprised
"No I did not" she said
"I put him to rest" she corrected
"What?!" Ian asked not believing his ears
"He was in pains, Ian" she said walking up to him
"He had to swallow dozens of drugs at once due to his ill health. I had to do something" she said
"So you killed him?" He asked
"I helped him" she said
"Think about it. He tried to keep the fact that he had a terminal illness a secret so he'd continue to do God's work so I simply put an end to the old man's misery. At least he was a righteous man so heaven awaits him" she said
"Keres, you killed Father John. That man was nothing short of kind to us" he said
"I know right? And that's why I did what I had to do"
"You should have seen the way his hands trembled whenever he was holding his Bible. I sure am glad that's finally over for him" she said
"You're insane!" He shouted
"No. I'm just someone who gives people what they need when they don't know it" she said
"No medical practitioner would have ever told him that the only way to end his ailment would be by death" she said
"Then what about Nikolay? What about me? Are we in any form of pain?"
"Why did you try to kill us?!" He shouted
"You're in pain, Ian" she said
"Ah, this isn't the Keres I once knew. How did she become like this? It's my fault"
"Anytime you see me isn't that what goes through your mind?" She asked
"So the only way to end that is to kill you" she said
"And as for Nikolay, I was going to kill his Father if that stupid Detective didn't meddle in my plans. How do you expect him to handle the pain of losing his Father? So if he dies he wouldn't have to go through a tough time" she explained
"Then why kill his Father then? Huh?!" He asked
"He meddled in my business. Something I've been scheming for seven fucking years and he had the guts to get nosey" she said
"You need help" he said
"No. What I need is Diego and I alone in a place so I can finish him off. Everything would go back to normal then" she said
"Unless, I stop you" he said
"Hmm...." She said laughing
"How's the knee?" She asked squatting
"I didn't cause too much harm did I?"
"Ian, don't get in my way" she said getting up
"Until I come for you just back off if you wouldn't help me get what I want" she said
"I'll stop you" he said
"Stop me?"
"Do you think that by standing in front of a moving train you can stop it?"
"You'll only end up getting crushed to pieces Ian" she said and walked out
She got to the front of lounge and tried to open the door. She suddenly couldn't move her hands
"Ah...." She groaned as she held her wrist
"No" she said as she moved towards a mirror in front of her. She saw her eyes drift and then she fell with a thud
"Ah!!!!" She groaned holding her head. She suddenly went still. Motionless. Then she got up and walked out of the building
"Orlando, think about it"
"There's got to be a way to pull Maeve out. I mean if her Uncle being in prison didn't work then there's got to be another way" Grace said
"Really?" Orlando asked
"Can't you just put this to rest? Her Uncle took the blame for her so people would have someone to push for all those murders and we would finally be able to convict Diego so he'll be in prison. There's no way she'll go in there to kill him" he said
"But you're forgetting that this is Keres.." Grace started
"Who is an eighteen year old girl" Orlando said
"And who also just murdered twenty seven fucking people!" She yelled
"Leave it for the Violent Crimes Team Grace" Orlando said
"Are you forgetting that we are nothing but mere investigators who took the job of the reinvestigation team?" He asked
"And so? Does that mean that we would have to fold our hands and watch this double destroy Maeve's life?!" She asked
"No!" Orlando said pulling her towards him
"It only means we don't get to talk about it here because Jason is watching us. But of course when we get out there we're bursting some butts" he smirked
Grace looked over his shoulder to see Jason a re-investigator monitoring them
"Jerk" Grace said knowing he was playing her all this while
"Grace!" Someone called rushing in
"Oh my God" Grace exclaimed
"Grace!"
"Oh my God, what's she doing here?" Grace exclaimed as Orlando took out his gun
"Orlando what are you doing?!" Ben shouted
"She's a minor and she's unarmed" he added
"Oh trust me Ben, you don't want to see her armed" Orlando said
"Grace, I know what you're thinking but it's me, okay" she said with her hands in the air
"What the hell are you talking about?!" Grace asked
"Put her on handcuffs!" Orlando ordered
"It's me!"
"Maeve!" She shouted
"What?" Grace asked stepping forward
"Grace? Grace what the hell are you doing?"
"Step away from her now!" Orlando said
Grace looked into her eyes and saw the difference. The way she looked at her was different from the way Keres did. Keres had this sarcastic and murderous look everytime. This time, it is was a calm and gentle look
"Maeve?" Grace asked
"She's tricking you" Orlando said
"No I'm not. It's really me" she said
"I'm back" Maeve said
That husky voice of Keres was gone and a calm version of it began playing out of her vocal cords
"Where's Uncle Hunter?" She asked
"Come, I'll take you to him" Grace said holding her hand and leading her outside
"Isn't he in this place?" Maeve asked
"No, they've transferred him to the prison before his trial" Grace said holding the car door open for her
"Okay" Maeve said and got into the car
"Wait here" Grace said and rushed back in
"Grace, what are you doing?" Orlando asked holding her wrist as she tried to walk out with a cup of coffee
"Maeve's back, the real owner of that body" she said and pulled away from him
"Let's go" she said as she got in and started the car
"Okay" Maeve said as she put on the seat belt
"Oh, here" Grace said handing her the coffee cup
"Thanks" Maeve said taking it from her. A thanks?
"You sure are not Keres" Grace said smiling as she drove off
"Ah!" Maeve groaned as she spat out the coffee at the first taste
"What's wrong?" Grace asked
"Keres doesn't drink coffee, it gets her hyperactive" Maeve said
"But you aren't Keres now, right?" Grace asked
"No, but I'm used to her just drinking water" Maeve said
"Now that you have your body to yourself you can do whatever you like" Grace said touching Maeve's hand
"Temporarily" Maeve said
"Huh?" Grace asked, her eyes fixed on the road
"I have my body now but it's temporary. Keres is still here, I just pushed her away for a moment" she said
"That's why I need to get to Uncle Hunter fast" she added
"How much time do we have?" Grace asked
"I don't know. Twenty minutes?" Maeve said and groaned holding the dashboard
"What's wrong?!" Grace asked
"I can feel her. She's coming"
"You said you were going to call first but I beat you to that" Nikolay said when Ian picked up the call
"Look Nikolay just get out of the hospital and go to a hotel or something because I don't know where's safe for us anymore" Ian said
"What are you talking about?" Nikolay asked
"She killed the Priest, Nikolay. Keres killed the Priest and she's claiming to have done him a huge favor" Ian said
"I just left her now and I'll be honest, this thing with her is getting worse" he added
"Gosh" Nikolay said with his face in his palm
"Wait, didn't you guys say that Keres is Maeve's double?" He asked
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with this?" Ian asked
"How about we try to get Maeve out, maybe she'd make Keres stop" Nikolay suggested
"Nikolay, Keres said it herself. Maeve's gone" Ian said
"What if she lied? Keres is the Queen of lies you know" Nikolay said
"Okay, but how do we talk to Maeve when we can't even get close to Keres" Ian asked
"Hypnosis" Nikolay said
"I've been doing a lot of reading here and um... according to what's here I think we can get to meet with Maeve through a hypnotherapy session" he said
"Okay, and how are we going to get Keres to go for therapy when she believes she's not insane?" Ian asked
"We don't get her to do it. We'll force her" Nikolay said
"How?" Ian asked
"There's a long list of injections that can leave someone, even the almighty Keres paralyzed for a period of time" Nikolay said
"I like you better now" Ian said
"Yeah, I know. You might even fall in love with me" Nikolay joked
"I'm going to meet with that Detective and tell her about our plan" Ian said
"Okay, I'll meet you there" Nikolay said and ended the call
"See you soon, Keres"
"Excuse me, we're looking for a Detective"
"Detective Grace" Ian said
"She just left" Orlando said making them to turn to him
"We can talk to him then" Nikolay said and walked up to him
"We're here because of Keres" he said
"And Grace just left because of Keres" Orlando said
"What?" Ian asked
"Keres came in here claiming to be Maeve and Grace took her to the prison to see Hunter" he said
"Keres came here claiming to be Maeve?" Ian asked
"That's impossible. I just left Keres not long" he added
"How did she look? Like Keres?" Nikolay asked
"She was Keres no doubt except the fact that her voice changed plus she called Hunter Uncle" Orlando said
"That isn't something Keres would do right?" He asked
"Yeah, she's never called him Uncle" Ian said
"Then she's Maeve and we better hurry so we can get to talk to her" Nikolay said
"Wait, didn't you boys want to talk to me about something?" He asked
"We'll brief you about it in the car" they said and walked out
"Kids" Orlando said and got his car keys
"Here we are, I called in advance to let them know we were coming" Grace said on getting to the prison. Maeve made to come out but fell to the ground
"Maeve!"
"Are you okay?" Grace asked rushing to help her up
"I'm fine" Keres voice rang out. Grace pulled away and stepped backwards surprised at the sudden change
"What was that?" She asked
"I've got to get in there" Maeve said and began to walk inside
"Ah!" She groaned holding her hands as she stopped abruptly
"What now?" Grace asked
"I can't move" Maeve said
"She's stopping me"
"Eight minutes" Grace said looking into her wrist watch
"Here, let me help you" she said holding Maeve by her waist. Together they walked in and showed the guard their pass
"We're here to see inmate Hunter Evans, we've called before hand and it's an emergency" she said holding on to Maeve
"Come with me" the guard said and led them to the visitation unit. Hunter was already waiting
"Uncle!" Maeve said disengaging from Grace and running towards him
"What's going on?" Hunter asked Grace
"Maeve" Grace mouthed at him
"Maeve?" He asked disbelieving
"It's really you?" He asked taking her face in his hands
"I'm really sorry Uncle, I tried to stop her"
"I'm sorry. Because of me...." She sobbed
"Oh my God. I knew it, I knew you'd come see me" he said embracing her tightly
"One minute" Grace said checking her watch. The switch could happen anytime
"I'm so sorry you ended up like this, I never meant for it to happen" she said
"It's okay, no one meant for it to happen too. What's important is that you're here now" he said
"We didn't mean to kill those....." Maeve stopped
There was a moment of pause and Grace knew what was happening. She raised her head from his shoulder and looked at him
"You don't look good in Orange" she said as her eyes drifted again
"Keres" Grace said
"That's right" Keres said getting up from the bench wiping away the tears Maeve shed
"Keres, where's Maeve?" Grace asked
Keres put on her usual evil smirk
"Safe" she answered and walked out
"Where is she?" Orlando asked as he and the boys rushed in
"Didn't you see her on your way in here?" Grace asked
"We won't be asking that if we did, would we?" Ian asked
"Maeve's gone and Keres is back" she said
"Wait, so what does this mean?" Ian asked
"Does it mean that they can inter switch from time to time?" He asked
"It would seem so" Grace said
"That's good, at least when it's Maeve we can carry out the hypnosis" Nikolay said
"Hypnosis?" Grace asked
"Yes, we'll be able to bring both Keres and Maeve together again and maybe get Maeve to convince Keres to let her go" he said
"Why does that sound so impossible?" Grace asked
"It's not, we could do it" Ian assured
"I think my being in here made Maeve want to come out but I also think she's still scared of the outside world" Hunter said
"That's why she let Keres take over again" he added
"But isn't this impossible? After eight years Maeve's still there?" Orlando asked
"Keres wasn't suppressing her, she was protecting her and living her life for her so I guess that's why we were able to reach out to her" Nikolay said
"But now? Now that she did this do you think Keres would just protect her?" Ian asked
"That's why we too would have to act fast"
Keres lit the candles around the bath tub and turned bags of ice into the tub before filling it up with water. She slowly took off her night dress and slipped into the tub. She exhaled and then closed her nostrils with her fingers before getting under the water. She struggled to stay under gasping for breath and then suddenly her body began to float to the surface
"Ah....." She breathed in
Suddenly, she found herself in her sister's old bedroom. She saw little Hazel playing with her toys on the floor all lonely.
"Maeve..." Hazel said as a tear slipped down her cheeks. Keres looked away without any emotion and walked up to the door leading to Maeve's room. She opened the door and a bright light enveloped her
"Maeve" she called and walked inside closing the door behind her
"Keres" Maeve said standing up from the floor where she sat
"You lied to me!" Maeve said as Keres walked up to her
The entire placed looked and felt like a mirror with the same person standing opposite each other
"Did you see what happened before you came into the room?"
"That has been tormenting me for years now!" She shouted
"You told me she didn't care but she did. She missed me" Maeve cried
"And did you also see what I saw before I got into this room?" Keres asked
"What are you talking about?" Maeve asked
"Hazel's room" Keres said
"It was nicely decorated with toys and all that stuff but you?"
"Look around you. You live in shades of grey and blank spaces"
"Are you happy about that?" She asked
"Do you really have no idea what that means?" Keres asked
"It means you were forgotten. Completely and totally forgotten" she said
"That out there is just a memory that you built yourself. One that never existed by the way"
"So, why did you do what you did today?" She asked
Maeve turned around angrily
"Maeve, don't you remember everything?"
"You asked me to take control, to defend you from those who want to hurt you and that's what I'm doing so I'm not always happy when you mess with my plans after you gave those orders" Keres said
"Like how you kissed Nikolay pretending to be high on drugs" she added
Maeve turned to her in surprise
"Yeah, I know" Keres said
"I mean Sally was the one who was high on the drugs and for us to maintain balance and not spill you took over which was good but you making out with him was something I was never happy about" she said
"I actually wished we would never have to talk about that but after what you did today..."
"Maeve, I'm really mad" she said
"I wanted to see my Uncle, is there a problem with that?" Maeve asked
"No, not at all" Keres said
"It's only a problem when you go running to Grace telling her that you're back. And that's why I'll protect you Maeve"
"From everyone one of them that have ever hurt you and Grace is just one of them. She isn't now but soon would be. I'll protect you from her"
"So Maeve, don't you ever do what you did again" she said and turned around making for the door. She walked out of the door and shut it behind her cutting out the light. She bent over to little Hazel crying out for her sister and kissed her fore head. In an instant the room and little Hazel disappeared.
Maeve Immediately broke down in tears feeling her memory taken away.
Keres opened her eyes and she was in the bathtub with most of the ice already gone. She was once again in control