Chapter 1
Ducking under the police tape, Olivia and I met with Lucy, the ME. I can explain the acronym, but I'm sure you've all seen crime dramas before. Along with Lucy were a handful of Unis standing around waiting for orders.
The forensics team was already on the scene collecting evidence and taking pictures. So, with everyone getting to work, I decided to walk around and note a few things. As I pursued the apartment, I got a whiff of the blood and decided to pull out a bag of popcorn from my Item Box or dimensional spatial inventory to distract me from that oh-so-sweet, sweet smell.
"Lucy, what do we got?"
"Olivia, good to see you again. We should totally catch a movie sometime!"
"While that sounds great, can we focus?"
"Oh, sorry. We got blunt trauma to the face and head. Small circular indentations but no sign of the murder weapon. Also, there is bruising on her neck from what looks like someone gripped her powerfully."
One of the forensics personnel stepped up. "No signs of forced entry and only one set of fingerprints discovered so far, ma'am."
"Thank you, Kevin," Detective Olivia Blaine said, then looked over to find where I had wandered off to. "Jacik, do you care to weigh in on any theories about what has happened? You know, since you're an official consultant now?" She definitely had sarcastic vibes in her tone. "Where the hell did you get popcorn?" She could see the steam rising out of it. "And how is it still hot?"
"Magic, remember?" I gave her the same sarcastic tone in return. And then replied to her first question. "And yes, I would love to weigh in. The neighbor did it. There, solved. Can we stop by the dry cleaners on the way back? I need to pick up a few suits."
"Solved? You care to explain this magnificent insight into murder?"
"Ugh… fine. All the pictures on the walls in the apartment are perfectly straight, except for the wall that shares a border between this apartment and the next-door neighbor. Then, if you notice this massive clock in the middle of the living room being worked on, you'll notice that it has a rather large bell. The tenant was clearly working on the clock as a project; however, on her desk here, amidst her schematics, you'll discover her hearing aids. The woman was deaf and obviously didn't know how loud the bell was. The neighbor pounded on the wall, which caused the pictures to go askew, but when she didn't stop, due to not hearing the pounding, the man then came over and pounded on the door.
"When she didn't answer the door, he got even more angry and went to get a hammer. Now I know the forensic guys said there wasn't any forced entry, and technically, they were right, but the divots in the door were not just old dents. They happen to be the exact same size as the head of a hammer, which will also match the blunt trauma to the victim's face and head."
"Yeah, these markings could easily be from a hammer," Lucy inserted.
"Therefore, since the lock wasn't broken, it is assumed that the victim finally heard the knocking due to the hammer on the door. She then went and unlocked the door then started to open it; however, as the door began to open, the neighbor kicked the door, which then slammed into the victim, breaking her nose and knocking her to the floor. He then got on top of her, held her by the throat, and hammered her face in. In his panic, he ran off and took the murder weapon with him."
"Aside from the skewed pictures on the wall, how do you know it was that neighbor? And why wouldn't other neighbors come out when hearing the loud banging on the door?"
"Judging by the scent of the blood, I would estimate this occurred around eleven last night. But you're right; that loud noise should've prompted other neighbors to report what happened, except that there are no other neighbors. If you go out and look, you'll notice menus in all the boxes aside from this apartment and the one next door. On this floor, currently, these are the only two tenants. This crime scene might've gone on undiscovered for some time if it wasn't for a delivery guy stumbling upon the crime scene."
Olivia, Lucy, and Kevin all went and examined the door, then the hallway, and then motioned for the unis to advance on the neighbor's door. With guns drawn, they knocked loudly and yelled, "Police!"
The door slowly opened, and a hulking of a man slowly lowered the hammer knowing he was caught. He slowly got to his knees and placed his hands behind his head. While he was handcuffed and carted off, Olivia turned to me with what I was clearly able to read on her face. She had questions. "Yes?"
"How could you smell the time of death from the blood?"
"Judging by the wounds and coagulation, Jacik is probably right about the timeframe," Lucy stated.
"Told you, I'm a vampire."
"You also told me you do magic. The only believable thing about you is that you're a nightclub owner and rich. Oh, and probably a con artist."
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"But he was right on this case, at least so far," Kevin interjected.
"If you want to definitively prove the timeline, you can check that camcorder over there," I said while pointing out a device aimed at the clock. "She liked to record her restoration of the clock."
~~~
No one had seen the small black device since it was propped up next to a black statue of an angel. Again, Olivia found herself amazed at the observational skills of her new partner. She still hated being shown up so easily like that. She had sarcastically called out to him for his input even before she had developed any theories. But not only did he respond with something intelligent, he solved the damn case with ease.
Reviewing the recordings also verified everything Jacik had said. There was pounding on the wall, then pounding on the door, then a lapse of time before even louder pounding. The woman got up and paused the recording here, which showed the time as 11:03 pm, then presumably went to answer the door, which evidence on the door and the victim clearly revealed what had occurred next. But how can someone smell the time of death from the stench of blood alone? Surely, he wasn't a real vampire, right? Olivia shook her head at the nonsense.
"Your new partner is crazy good," Lucy said, breaking Olivia out of her troubling thoughts. "I can't believe he got everything right down to the time of death. Girl, is he single? Cause, like, if so, can you put a good word in for me?"
Olivia chuckled at the absurdity of it all and then responded, "He's a major player. While he might be single, he's never alone." Olivia had seen Jacik's wild side the few times she visited the club, but deep down, something held out hope that it was all smoke and mirrors—a façade of sorts. But every time that feeling tried to rise up, she squashed it down and told herself to focus on her work.
While this case was thrust upon her at the same moment this partnership was, she had already decided to figure out who and what Jacik was. She especially wanted to know where he had been for the past month. So, she would accept this partnership for now, but all for the sake of learning the truth.
~~~
Both Governor Johnson and Lieutenant Governor Jameson were behind bars due to a massive scandal involving The Mesa, the leader of the anti-hero faction, and a plot to steal hero powers and give them to others. The new Governor, Molly Tanner, was meeting with the hero teams Pantheon and Cosmic Trio about the scandal's aftermath and the subsequent destruction that spanned hundreds of miles, including an entire mountain range turning into a crater.
"Everyone settle down," Molly stated with a firm and clear voice that brought S and A rank heroes to quiet down and then take their seats. She was a black woman who rose to her position due to her no-nonsense attitude and quick wits. In this country, leaders aren't elected; they're promoted based on points earned by accomplishments.
"Governor, all I'm saying is that this is over a month later, and we've already given our statements. Why are we here?" Captain Cosmo, also known as Derek, one of the most powerful people in the country, asked.
"First of all, I don't care what happened a month ago. I wasn't there. I am here now, and we will have this discussion. We will determine a plan moving forward. And we will discuss restructuring the teams because your city, Derek, is no more. We have to bring superheroes back into trust with the public, and right now, polling is at an all-time low over this fiasco. So now, I have to root out all corruption, which I am very aware of the prince's involvement and that will be dealt with soon. But my job is to capture the man in black. While I understand he was the reason for defeating our mess, he still caused untold destruction and death. Now, tell me everything you know about him…"
~~~
"Boss, you have a guest here looking for a favor. When will you be in?"
"I can drop by. Give me," I checked my watch, "twelve seconds."
Traveling extremely fast by running is normal. Vamp speed is stupid powerful. However, shadow traveling is so much faster. Getting used to melding with the shadows, getting my bearings, and teleporting to a shadow in real reality can take a while. However, I still have vamp speed and incredible cognitive speed. I've gotten it down to about twelve seconds, and I opened the door from the cellar to greet Darci, my alien club member disguised as an Asian gothic woman. Now, to be clear, in this world, none of the normal Earth countries I came from are the same. However, despite each country having different names, the skin colors are still the same, and for ease of translation, it is easier for me to use the terms for what I know best.
"Shadow travel again?" Darci asked in a whisper. She didn't even have to lean into my ear because the club music was pushing the limits of appropriate decimal levels for our area, which is loud. My hearing was just that good. I gave her a smile in response and nodded my head into the crowd to indicate which person I was to meet with. "Over there, the black guy in a 10k suit," she said, this time in a normal voice.
"He's handsome. Why are none of the girls flirting with him?"
"His bodyguard is why."
Then I noticed a woman in a tight red dress sitting back with a leg crossed over the other, sporting a scowl that would chill harden veterans. "Oh, I see. Fabulous."
"I know what you're thinking, but I also don't think this will work in your favor."
"Oh, ye of little faith," I replied with a smile and then sauntered over to the client.
As I approached, the woman got up and faced me directly, nose to chin, but we locked eyes. I sniffed her scent in the most obvious way possible and then broke the tension. "Oh, you're feisty. Perhaps we can tangle later?"
"You'd have to be such a man that eclipses an S rank hero or," she shrugged, "a woman."
I knew she was trying to be condescending toward men, but I responded in the only way I knew how. No, I didn't unleash the full extent of my aura, but I did unleash the full effect of my charm. Frankly, it was a manipulation of my aura mixed with a pinch of my intent to kill. Watering it down like that gave me a dangerous but seductive desire that no one thus far had been able to resist. This woman wasn't an exception, even as deadly as she was.
She took several steps back at the sudden barrage of pheromones and aura pressure and tried to pull herself together to harden her resolve as a bodyguard but then her employer abruptly interrupted her struggle with a clear instruction. "Let him through; he's the host, and I am his guest, who humbly seeks a favor." The bodyguard used her stumble backward as a measure to cover her shaken demeanor and fell back gracefully before bowing to allow me through. She was good. Strong even. I could use someone like that on my side. But business came first, and I sat across from the man who asked for my attention.
"Hello. What favor are you seeking?" I simply began with a wicked grin on my face.