"That's the last of your things."
Brushing his hands on his jeans, Dayne looks at the firetrucks racing down the street, before turning to his twin brother's new house.
"I still don't understand why you decided to waste money and buy this house. We're only here temporarily, Caio."
The eldest twin pushes up his glasses, unpacking the final box.
"I know, Dayne. I just decided to get it because I like this city."
"You like the city or do you like who's living in the city?"
"Anyway, thanks for the help. See ya." Caio says, waving his brother off.
"My goodness, that young woman was so sweet! Sad she'll have to move away now."
Turning to their left, the two twins watch as a small group of people gather around a burning house.
"Wonder what that's about." Dayne says. "Well, I'm off."
"Yeah, I told you goodbye about two minutes ago."
Walking back to his car, Dayne almost bumps into a smaller running figure which ran towards the burning house.
"Wait a sec-
Turning back to his Caio's house, Dayne groans as his twin was no longer anywhere to be found.
Quickly making his way over to the house which was on fire, he stands amongst the crowd, watching as his co-worker talks with a few detectives and firefighters.
"Intentionally?! Who'd do something like that?!"
"Ms. Ellison, please listen to what I have to say." a detective says. "Now, we're not entirely sure, but the fire did start from the outside of your house."
A firefighter leads the young woman further away from the house to talk to her and Dayne watches as she sits on the sidewalk, bringing her knees to her chest.
Running back to Caio's new house, the youngest twin furiously knocks on the door, before hearing a few voices behind him.
"It's going to be alright, Nia. I'll help you get a new house, but in the meantime, you can stay with me. I bought a house here so that I'll have somewhere to stay when I visit every now and then."
Turning back, Dayne watches as Caio leads the devasted young woman over.
"Caio, I really do thank you, but I need some alone time right now. I'll just rent an apartment until I'm ready to purchase a new house."
Caio shakes his head.
"An apartment won't fill your needs like a house will, Nia. Seriously, I can't have you staying in a place where the utilities won't work properly half the time."
He cups her chin and wipes her tears away.
"Don't cry, Nia. I don't like seeing my bebé cry."
The young woman smiles a little.
"Are you sure I won't be a burden to you?"
"Of course not! If anything, I'd love your company more than ever. Now make yourself at home. We can go shopping for some new clothes later on today."
Leading her inside, Caio turns to Dayne, giving him a smirk.
"You were right, she really did run to me first."
-------
"Morning, boy!"
Walking into the kitchen, Kazimir grabs a piece of bacon, taking a bite.
"Hey, dad."
Sipping a bit of coffee, Mr. Cizetto points to his son's back.
"You strangled a bear or something?"
"No, it was from that tree branch back in Japan."
"Looks like a true warrior's scar." Alexei says, chewing on a piece of toast.
"Doesn't it?" Mr. Cizetto says with a chuckle.
"May I ask that all of you please put on a shirt? The house tends to get cold in the morning and I'd hate to take care of three grown men."
Kazimir, Alexei, and Mr. Cizetto turn to Mrs. Cizetto who shakes her head, handing Alexei a folder.
"Alexei, these are all of the documents pertaining to Camille's case."
"Thank you, my dear. I'll make sure to make a copy of these before I leave." the law student replies, taking the papers from her hands.
"Arf! Arf!"
Running into the kitchen, Caramel-Strawberry makes her way over to Alexei, sitting at his feet.
"Would you like the last of this toast?"
"Arf!"
He chuckles and feeds her the toast as Mrs. Cizetto picks the small puppy up who growls a bit.
"I'm sorry, Alexei. Caramel-Strawberry just really likes to join in for breakfast from time to time. Nikolai, come along with me to take her on her morning walk."
The older male groans under his breath, before grabbing a random coat and walking out of the front door with his wife.
"You don't have to start on the case right now." Kazimir says, looking at Alexei scanning the documents.
"I know, I'm just briefly reading through them. Where's her autopsy report?"
The young detective sighs.
"Never got it back. The department claims they misplaced it. Dad almost got himself locked up trying to fight them because he doesn't believe their word."
"I see. Well, that's one thing we can use against the department." Alexei says, putting a few of the papers on the countertop "Your father's right, the autopsy isn't misplaced; they'll know not to do that with something that important. Especially since your sister was dating Brent's son at the time."
"Yeah, we all kinda guessed that."
"Did your parents hire a lawyer to go over any of this?"
The young detective nods.
"He said he knew how much the police department could lie and cover things up, but in the end we didn't get anywhere."
"He knew alright." Alexei says. "Come here."
Walking over to the young man, Kazimir looks down at the paper Alexei pointed to.
"According to witnesses viewing from inside the restaurant, Cizetto was seen to be in an argument with Domonkos. Domonkos then left in a silver car, leaving Cizetto behind."
Kazimir raises a brow and looks up at Alexei.
"Camille was never at a restaurant. She was found-
"No, no. There's more." Alexei interrupts. "According to a witness that was waiting for her own ride, Cizetto was then approached by a tanned-skin male in a suit, brownish-blondish hair, and who wore a gold watch. The witness states the man offered Cizetto a ride home and she hesitantly but eventually agreed."
He flips to another page and points down at a name.
"Arnold Tamb, son of Ernest Tamb, is your sister's real rapist and killer."
"WHAT?!"
Grabbing the papers from the law student's hands, Kazimir flips the pages back and forth, shaking his head.
"You gotta have something mixed up, the detective said-
He stops mid-sentence, slowly putting the papers down to his side.
"Yes, Kazimir." Alexei says, taking the papers from the young man's hands. "The police lied, put it on Brent's son to make it seem he raped and killed your sister in an failed attempt to protect Ernest's name and son. You told me the previous lawyer who took up this case knew the department well. Whoever he was left your family with a box of believable lies."
"So that means Brent's son possibly committed suicide out of false guilt?"
Alexei nods.
"Probably. Maybe he felt guilty for what happened to your sister and couldn't take it anymore."
Hearing the front door open, the two young men watch as Caramel-Strawberry runs into the kitchen.
"How is it that she still has so much energy?" Mrs. Cizetto says, washing her hands.
Mr. Cizetto rolls his eyes, eating a piece of bacon.
"You were carrying her the whole time, Yuriko."
"Mr. and Mrs. Cizetto."
The couple turns to Alexei, who holds up their daughter's paperwork.
"I found a twist in your Camille's case that needs to be discussed."
Kazimir watches as his parents walk over to the dining table and take a seat in front of Alexei.
It almost seemed as if he was reliving the same scene from 5 years ago.
-- FLASHBACK --
"Okay, hold on! I gotta go refill my cup!"
Putting his headphones around his neck, 14-year old Kazimir Cizetto gets up from the floor, setting his game controller down.
Opening the door, he quickly makes his way towards the staircase before stopping upon hearing a multitude of voices.
"What do you mean my daughter's been killed?!"
Feeling nauseous, Kazimir watches from the staircase, seeing his father hold his crying mother.
"We're sorry ma'am, but there's no other way to tell you." a police officer says. "We identified her by her school's ID card. Your daughter's body is currently undergoing an immediate autopsy as we speak."
"Camille's...dead?" the young teen says, in a croak-like voice. "MY SISTER'S DEAD?!"
Looking up at the staircase, the group of adults watch as tears stream down Kazimir's face.
"Kazimir, come down here so we-
With a sigh, Mr. Cizetto watches as his son runs down the hallway, hearing the door slam shut.
Banging his fists against the door, Kazimir begins to scream, before repeatedly kicking it.
He didn't care that his parents told him to stop or the police threatened to intervene. All he cared about was the person who understood him the most. But she was dead.
------
"Kazimir!"
Snapping out of the flashback, the young man turns to his mother who gives him a sad smile.
"Your father and I are really grateful that you've brought Alexei along. At least we have some type of closure in Camille's death."
"Now do you see why I can't quit, mama? That fucking-
"We're all angry, Kazimir, but I won't tolerate the use of strong language in this household." Mrs. Cizetto says as her brows furrow.
"That department can't be trusted, mama. I just want to help other citizens who are going through the same as us. That's why I have to stay."
The older woman nods.
"I understand, Kazimir and I know there's no convincing you to quit. All I'm asking is that you be safe and don't lose your life over that faulty department. You want justice for your sister and I get that, but if you ever feel as if it's too much, it's okay to step back."
The young detective nods as his mother gives him a kiss on the cheek.
"Now, will you and Alexei please put on a shirt before you two catch a cold?"
--------
"And these are the photo proofs that he's been killed."
Looking at what used to be a CEO of a large storage company, Haruki nods.
"For an assassin, you sure do some messy work, Hatmanu."
Mihajl gives him a small smile.
"It's a specialty of mine. I prefer it that way."
Placing the photo to the side, Haruki hands the older male his pay.
"I heard about your fianceé. I can help some if you'd like."
Mihajl lets out a soft chuckle as he looks down at the check in his hand.
"Don't tell me you believe that story, too."
"Then you made it up?"
"Of course. I've never had a fianceé. It's just a cover story to excuse my work as a runner for you degenerates."
Putting the check into his coat, he turns back to Haruki.
"On the other hand, I believe your cousin Milette knows some things about a man who goes by the name Caio Níserraté; he's the one holding my potential fianceé hostage."