If Theo was earlier pumped with energy, he was now completely exhausted. It took longer than expected for him to be permitted access to the gallery's front cameras, but he did and he decided on finishing this as soon as possible. And so he sat down by his work desk, set down a cup of coffee he desperately needed and turned on his trusty computer. While powering on, he looked through the files of every victim, searching for any kind of useful information that could help him define the culprit. He took a large gulp of the blackest coffee he could find, eyes scanning through seemingly endless lines of information. Until he read through all files and figured that those names looked somehow familiar. The hand gripping on the cup of dark liquid stopped midway to his lips. Like he's had something connected to them all in past. Luckily his computer already welcomed him with a lightened up screen and in a matter of seconds his hands worked in an inhuman pace clicking keys on the keyboard. His eyes searched the screen for results and in a minute he found out why the names sparked a sense of familiarity in him; they were all from a case, a case closed years ago because of financial crisis. A horrifying case of a murder of three people; a woman, a man and their son. Everything would work out fine if this case wasn't one of the hardest ones. They knew the culprits, every piece of information about them possible, the only small thing blocking the police from imprisoning them was the positions those people were on. One was the president, another a prime minister, their secretaries and – the most disappointing one – the defence minister. They possibly didn't have enough proof for those to be put away. And now someone else was doing the dirty work for them. He wasn't sure if he should thank her or put her behind the bars. After discovering this kind of connection between the victims, he searched for the file of the murdered family and read through it all. A specific line drew his attention: "They had a daughter?"
Closing the profile and putting away everything, he pulled up on his screen a shot from the camera directed forward to stare at the busy streets. An angle perfect for seeing upwards and downwards. The sound came a bit later than the footage but it was there. He saw a crowd forming where the body hit the ground beneath. He saw when the police cars arrived followed by an ambulance. And then he saw it. A small speck of black falling from a building, dancing in morning sunlight. His eyes squinted as he tried to recognize the shape of the bigger dot. He enlarged the recording and was met with a masked face surrounded by loose long hair flowing around. From body shape it could be visible it was a female falling and landing softly on the sidewalk. Mouth full of coffee he just drank suddenly opened, spitting out its contents.
And then just as he kind of recovered from shock seeing a person willingly jump from a skyscraper and living afterwards, his phone binged. He got a message. His hand wiping his mouth halted as he saw words Unknown number displayed on the gadget. And then a different kind of emotion took over him. Confusion and a pinch of fear.
[ you won't find me anyway ]
who are you
[ i'm your p.o.i.s.o.n ]
It sent shivers down his spine. Theo quickly gulped down the rest of his beloved coffee and marched towards the Inspector's office.
*
And before Theo knew, he was already on his way to a random apartment for many but a not-so-random apartment for him. It was a flat that belonged to none other than his criminal. The moment Inspector heard what detective Byrne figured out he called for the hacking team and they were able to track the phone's signal to the apartment complex Theo was currently on his way to. A Glock 43 in his hands as he made his way up the many flights of stairs. His mind was already celebrating and imagining himself standing in the court and finally putting the damn case under the map named 'Finished'.
There was a teeny tiny detail he forgot; he was dealing with a trained killer whether he liked it or not.