She's The Devil

Miranda’s POV:

I glanced at the street before us. Pine street, with its quaint mom and pop shops. It used to be lively, especially along this time of the year as winter approached. But today it was dark and gloomy. Residents had shut themselves indoors, windows and doors bolted shut. They had gotten wind about the officers that disappeared her last night, and everyone was on edge.

“lets start by questioning.” I said to Ferdinand. His hand went to his pistol at his hip holster, a sign that he was feeling threatened.

we headed to the bakery where they had been last spotted before they vanished.

“Yes, they were here. Kind men, both of them.” The owner of the bakery, a middle aged woman in leopard print said.

“Did you notice anything strange after they left?”

She adjusted her glasses on her nose bridge. “No, nothing at all. They bought their usual doughnut and coffee, and they left.”

I turned and glanced at Ferdinand. His hand was still on his gun. I gently tapped his hand and motioned for him to calm down, he was scaring the old lady.

“Thank you ma’am, we’ll be sure to ask around more. And if you notice anything more, don’t be scared to give us a call.”

She nodded, and her wrinkled face lit up with a smile. Just as we turned to leave, she called us back.

“There was something! Oh dear me, my memory isn’t the best.”

A spark of hope lit up in my chest. “What was it? What do you remember?”

“There was a bike. And a man on the bike, he followed the officers. Ah yes! I remember now!”

“A bike? What did it look like?” Ferdinand asked.

“Ah, I can’t tell, young man, it was big, and oddly silent.”

I smiled gratefully. “Thank you, ma’am, you’ve been helpful.”

“Please, I hope you find them. They’re our regular and most cherished customers.”

“I and my partner will do our best.” We bade her goodbyes and left.

“A silent bike.” Ferdinand said once we were outside of the bakery.

“There was no bike on the traffic cams.”

“Or maybe we missed it. We’ll have to go back and --”

“Officers!” a loud shout tore through the air. We both turned to see a boy running up to us. His eyes held fear. He raced up to us and slowed down, breathing heavily and sweating.

“What is the matter?” I asked.

He pointed a shaky hand down the street. “T-the kids! They found something in the back! Oh thank the heavens you’re here!”

Ferdinand and I exchanged a tense look. “Show us,” he said.

He nodded and ran off in the direction he had pointed in. we followed behind him and got to the backyard of a shop. The place was clustered up with bags of trash and broken furniture. But that wasn’t what caught my eye. A few parents stood around, cradling crying kids. We walked up to one of them.

“Ma’am, Officer Fontaine here. What happened here?”

The woman looked at us, her eyes holding the same fear I had seen on the boy’s face. She pointed at a pile of trash. “The kids found it. They saw…”

Ferdinand headed over to the pile of trash.

“Everything is going to be okay ma’am. Please step back.” I did my best to move them all out of there. My heart thumped furiously. I could almost guess what was happening.

Ferdinand made a call to headquarters. Our eyes met and he confirmed my fears.

**

Bars weren’t my thing.

But today called for it.

Ferdinand, myself and his girlfriend sat at the bar, drinks in hand and faraway looks in our eyes. I swirled my straw in my glass of mojito, toying with the mint leaves insdie. I had drank half of it and then my stomach closed up. The music thumped through the walls, vibrating everything. I hardly heard it.

I could still see them, officers Stuart and Kevin. Their faces bleached of all colour, eyes dull and glassy. I could still see the flies that swarmed around their bodies, heavy and loud, as if they had ben dead weeks when it was only likely a day.

Their bodies bore signs of torture. The fingers on each their right hands had been cut off, and it wasn’t clean. Same with their toes. There were signs of strangulation, and rope marks all over their bodies. The looks of horror etched onto their faces indicated that they had suffered a lot before they died.

A clean kidnap. Severed fingers and toes. Body horror.

This wasn’t just any kind of homicide. This was targeted. This was palnned. And it was effective.

I sipped my drink and sighed. No matter how many times I come across a dead body in this line of work, it doesn’t make it any easier. And I am reminded that humans have capacity for great evil.

The three of us sighed at once. I turned to them and we shared a tense smile.

“How are you?” Erica, Ferdinand’s girlfriend asked with a kind smile. She was a stunning supermodel. She and Ferdinand had been together since high school, and they were inseparable. She also knew about our current tasks and assignments. One of the kindest and sweetest people I had ever met.

“A bit shaken,” I said. “it’s hard to believe they’re gone. We saw each other last week.”

“Oh well, its out of our hands now.” Ferdinand said with a sigh. “FBI has stepped in, they’re gonna handle this.”

“I knew it was related to the underground.” I replied. Ferdinand met my eyes, a silent warning not to continue. I pretended I didn’t see it. “It’s probably one of the bigger families. Probably Federico and his goons.”

“Well I’m glad it’s out of our hands.” He said with a hint of finality. I sighed and turned back to my drink.

“It’s so sad,” Erica said. “I hope their families find peace.”

“I hope so too,” Ferdinand said.

But how can they? Officer Kevin left behind a pregnant wife. Officer Stuart had a daughter who was just starting college. How can they find peace knowing that their fathers were killed by heartless criminals?

I drank the rest of my mojito. The music changed, and Ferdinand cheered.

“I love this song! Come on babe! Let’s dance!”

They got up and turned to the dance floor. Erica turned to me, her eyes concerned.

“Perhaps you should dance. It’ll help get your mind off things,” she said.

“Yeah, find someone. Take him home or something. Just have fun.” Ferdinand said with a suggestive wiggle of his brows.

I wrinkled my nose. “Ew.”

He burst out laughing. “Still as anti-romantic as ever.”

But before I could reply, they were already on the dance floor. I watched them dance, lost in each other’s eyes and my heart felt warm. Love and relationships was something I had sworn off on. I didn’t need the distraction, and divided attention. I went back to my drink and ordered another one.

A chill suddenly ran down my spine, and I felt a pair of eyes on me. I turned around quickly, but all I could see was the busy dancefloor and all the couples there. The feeling wouldn’t shake off, and with it came the distinct feeling of danger.

I reached for my hip and my hand met nothing. I quickly remembered that I was out of uniform, and in a body con black dress.

Okay Miranda, calm down. It’s nothing, you’re just overreacting.

Three men walked into the bar.

My heart dropped into my stomach.

From their looks alone, I knew they weren’t ordinary. The one in front, I would guess was their leader was very tall. Well over six feet. He had long black hair tied at his nape and striking blue eyes. He had his head high, a cold disdain on his quite handsome features. He wore a suit and tie, quite the outfit for a nights out, which further added to my suspicions. The other two beside him smoked cigars, their eyes hidden with dark shades. They wore basic clothes, shirt and slacks.

The feeling of impending danger grew and grew.

I turned to the dance floor, trying to find Ferdinand. He was completely engrossed with Erica.

I turned back to those men. They made their way to the lounge area, headed for who I saw was a man in a vacation shirt surrounded by women. The moment he looked up and saw the three men approaching, he jumped to his feet. The blue eyed man pulled out a gun and fired.

The bar erupted into chaos. The music stopped and people began running in all directions. I ducked, my back pressed to the bar.

Of all days to be unarmed!

More gunshots were fired, the blue eyed man unflinching despite it all. I looked at the man he had been firing at. Three dead bodies lay at his feet, more men with guns.

“Miranda!” Ferdinand called out. I turned to see him crouching Erica to his chest. “Get over here!”

The blue eyed man put his gun away and walked away. The shooting continued. The bar began to get quite as more people ran out. I looked at Ferdinand. He shook his head. I turned and ran.

“Miranda!” he screamed above the chaos.

I crept behind the man, making sure I left a safe distance between us. He walked with purpose, heading to the back of the building. My brows furrowed in confusion, what is he doing?

The night’s air bit at my exposed arms and legs, and I wanted to turn back and return to the warmth of the bar. The sound of sirens began wailing in the distance. The man walked to the garage. He took something I couldn’t see out of his pocket and turned down a sharp corner.

I paused, wondering if to just turn back or continue tailing him. On second thought, I’m sure Ferdinand can handle it.

I sped up and turned down the corner.

The next thing I felt was a hand clamped around my neck. My eyes went wide and I immediately slammed my fist into his face. Blood spurted from his nose. And yet he did not blink. He didn’t even flinch.

My heart began to race. His grip on my neck tightened as he applied more pressure. I struck his hand, kicking as hard as I could.

He didn’t fucking budge. He just stared at me, blank.

His eyes were clear and completely dead. I hadn’t seen such eyes on a human before. So devoid of life and light.

“You have been staring at me from the moment I walked in.” he said, his voice strangely soft and gentle. I expected a deep voice to match the build.

That made him all the more dangerous.

He dropped me to the floor. I grasped my throat and gulped down lungfuls of air. Each time I tried to speak, I would start coughing. My lungs burned, and my throat hurt.

“Who are you?” he asked.

I looked up at him, my eyes red and watering. He clicked his tongue.

“I do not like that look.”

Before I could reply, his fist shot out, faster than I could follow and struck my face. The force of it rattled my brain in my skull. The corners of my vision darkened, and I blacked out before I could recover. The last thing I remember was being dragged through the floor and thrown into a trunk.