Elfrida
If there was one thing that utterly freaked me out about the Bane woods, it would be its ability to remain completely still. The kind of stillness that made you sweat even if your body was as cold as ice, the kind of stillness that would send sharp shivers down your spine. Even from the look on Picklewoods' face, I could tell she felt it.
The feeling of being watched, the feeling of something breathing near you, of being surrounded and trapped.
But that wasn't the case for me.
Instead of putting me on edge, the woods made me feel... belonging? It was like a part of me, a part of what I was, what I used to be, what I am. I shouldn't feel completely safe here, not when a kid had brutally died, and not when one was probably in here somewhere, hopefully alive and well... but I did. I felt like nothing could hurt me, even if something wanted to.
It was an odd feeling, one I didn't completely understand, one I had no idea on why I was feeling, but was anyway.
Looking over at Rhett, I could see that he had a very relaxed look on his face, his shoulders weren't tense like Picklewood's. He looked like he had been here a couple of times and he had nothing at all to be scared of. I felt like I could read his expression like a book.
I looked away the moment I sensed him turning to look my way, but I knew that he was well aware that my eyes had been on him.
The sounds of our feet crushing the dry leaves was the only sound we could hear, that was when Picklewood wasn't taking pictures of the woods. "Well this place sure is spooky." She voiced out, her eyes going around trying to take in everything at the same time. I was sure she would have a good story to tell her friends or whomever it was she hung out with, later.
The fog surrounding us wasn't lessening anytime soon.
"Don't complain, you wanted to come in here." Rhett's said, a certain edge to his voice.
"Well I-"
The sound of someone crying stopped Picklewood mid sentence, and also our footsteps as we all stopped to listen.
It was soft, coming from somewhere not so far from where we stood.
Rhett removed his gun from his holster, and so did I.
He stretched out his hand pulling Picklewood back as we both moved forward.
There she was, crouched down, her back resting against a tree, as she shivered, visible goosebumps all over her skin. She hugged her legs to her chest, her whole body shaking with cold and her crying.
"Volenbard?" Picklewood called out, shock apparent in her voice, almost like the girl in question was the last person she would have expected to be here. "Well, good thing he died before he could have screwed you, Brody was a prick."
"That's enough of that." Rhett shot Picklewood a glare as he walked over to the girl who slowly looked up at us, her blue eyes wide with fear, they looked tired and colourless.
She sobbed out as Rhett gathered her in his arms. "It's alright Mikaela, you're safe now."
* * *
It was busy in the police department, I could still hear the distant cry of Mrs Huffins, and her husband trying to comfort her. I stared at Mikaela through the two way glass.
She still looked pale, her eyes still brimming with tears.
The feeling of understanding swept through me as I stared at Mikaela through the glass. I understood that look, that body posture. Afterall, I had been there not long ago, and I had fought my way out of that dark bottomless hole... but would Mikaela be able to do it? To fight the guilt, the trauma, the terror? Was she strong enough?
The door to my side pulled open as Hec walked in with the file I had asked for in order to proceed with the interrogation. "Thank you." I thanked, looking back at the girl.
"None needed. Rhett will join you shortly." He informed, his eyes also on the girl.
"Did you know her?" I found myself asking him.
He looked my way, clearly not expecting me to ask that question. "Mikaela?"
I nodded.
He smiled. "Who wouldn't. The daughter of the town's priest isn't hard to miss." He said, his eyes going back to her. I didn't miss the questioning look he gave her, even though she couldn't see him. "I'm just confused."
I furrowed my brows at him. "Why?"
He hesitated, but spoke after a few seconds. "She's a sweet kid. She's got a nice voice that could bring angels down from heaven. Never hangs out with the rough crowd. You know, she was the pride of Mr. and Mrs Volenbard. The way they'd talk about her, you'd wish for your daughters to be just like her. But finding her in this position is still a huge shock to me. I wonder how things would go down with her parents." He said.
I sighed. "She is a teenager... no matter what background she came from, these things won't just disappear from her and her character. She's hormonal, and is currently going through puberty, just like every other teenager out there."
"Well, that you're right about." Hec said. "This is going to be a strong turn in her life cause, this is Westbane, people are gonna talk and judge. They might even change priests... Who knows, the mayor might not like the sound of this."
The mayor. I was told, would come down to meet me soon, since he was busy meeting people at the moment. I didn't mind though, even though I wanted to know what kind of person he was, and why on earth the Bane woods were off limits.
The door pushed open again, revealing Rhett. "You ready?" He asked.
"Yes." I breathed out.
"Okay, I'll leave you both to it." Hec said, leaving the room.
"After you." He said, eyes not meeting mine.
He had been acting strangely all morning, and I had made a mental note to ask him about it later today. Something was bothering him, and it probably wasn't any of my business, but I just had the strangest urge to ask him about it and make sure he was okay.
Maybe it was because no one ever asked me if I was okay, other than Sasha... when we met each other online.
It was the first time I didn't feel completely alone after the incident with my team.
I shook off the thought as I went into the interrogation room, watching how she raised her head immediately. "My parents are here?" She asked, fear in her voice.
"No." Rhett responded. "We just want to ask you a few questions, if you're okay to answer some."
"Yes... I'm okay with that." She said, although her voice wasn't as confident.
"Okay." He said as he took his seat in front of her, so did I. "First off, going to the Bane woods was such a bad idea, Mikaela. These warnings are not to be taken lightly."
Tears dropped from her eyes once more. "I know... I told Brody... I- I asked him to take us somewhere else, but he didn't listen to me. He said nothing was out there. When I heard it-"
"Heard what?" I interrupted.
She looked unsure. "I don't know... it was a rustle in the bushes. I saw the bushes move and I knew something was there. I caused this." She sobbed out. "He didn't want to go out, but I made him... if he had stayed in the car with me, it wouldn't have killed him."
I furrowed my brows, looking over at Rhett, who had the same confused look on his face as he looked at the girl again. "What are we talking about here?" He asked her.
She leaned in, almost like she was about to say something others weren't supposed to hear. "It was... it was The Night Monster."
I blinked, letting her answer sink in. Looking over at Rhett, the same expression washed over his face. It was easy to tell he was confused as I was.
"The nigh-" he stopped halfway, relaxing back on his chair. "Listen Mikaela, this is really serious... Brody is dead, and his parents want answers. I need you to be completely honest with me. Okay? The sooner we get this done, the soon-"
"Rhett," I stopped him by placing my hand atop his, causing him to flinch a little. "Just relax... I'll take over."
He swallowed, nodding as I removed my hand from his, my eyes going over to Mikaela once more.
I smiled softly at her. "I totally understand what you're going through right now-"
"No..." she cried out. "No you don't... I watched him die... I couldn't help him... I couldn't do anything, I just-- I just sat there like an idiot and watched him die. The Night Monster killed him... I saw it... I saw it with my own eyes."
I sighed. "I know Mikaela... trust me I know... I know what it feels like to watch someone you care about, die right in front of your eyes... that too, over and over again." I could feel Rhett's eyes on me. "I know you're scared, guilty, confused... and no matter how much you feel like you understand it, you know within you that you don't... and you just want to escape from the pain, the guilt... But I'm gonna be honest with you, there's no escaping it. It lives with you... you grow from it, and learn to live with it. The only thing you can do now is try and help us get the information that we need to help Brody's family, and eventually yourself, gain peace with it. Can you help us with that?"
She relaxed a little, sniffing as she managed a nod.
* * *
Back in Rhett's office, I sat on the visitors chair, while he took the one opposite me, looking tired and frustrated. "She doesn't look like she's lying." I said, watching as he raked his hand through his hair, the muscles rippling in his arm looking so attractive to the eyes, I looked away quickly so he wouldn't catch me staring.
"So we're gonna go with the night monster story?" He asked, disbelief glassing his tone.
"It was an animal Rhett... you saw the claw marks... maybe some animal made its way to the Bane woods, and- I don't know."
"We don't want to scare people, Elfrida."
"I know... but isn't this enough reason to tell people why the Bane woods are dangerous... woods like that can't just not have wild animals Rhett... I know you don't want to scare people... but sometimes fear is the only thing that keeps everyone safe." I said. "This kinda proves there are a few wild animals in those woods... we should let everyone know to keep people out of there."
He sighed.
"Brody huffins didn't have that kind of fear in him, that's why he died. If you want everyone to listen to you, and not just dish them the same old story about werewolves and vampires, then you have to tell them the real truth. The Night Monster is real. And it killed Brody Huffins. This way, no one would dare go in just to make sure." I said. "And when everyone is in check, we can talk to the mayor about hiring good hunters to hunt this thing down and make Westbane safe again."
He sat up. "I think you're right... I'll talk to Picklewood. The best way to pass this information across is through the papers."
I nodded. "Good."
He managed a small smile.
"Asides from all this... is everything okay with you? You seem troubled."
He relaxed back yet again, sighing. "All of this just... it makes me miss my dad. If he were here, he would know how to help... He'd know what to do... I feel like I'm a terrible sheriff, I can't even protect the people of this town."
I furrowed my brows. "You're not terrible Rhett-"
"Oh I am... look what happened to Brody... Dottie... I couldn't do anything. I let the town come up with stories that would make them sleep peacefully at night, and I just let the cases die eventually."
I shook my head, the urge to take his hand from across the table shot through me, as I satisfied it, he looked shocked by my actions. "It's not an easy job to protect the whole town, especially one as special as this. You keep the people happy, and safe and joyful... you make them not worry about these things, about the little crimes... you keep everything peaceful and calm. That's a really fine job you've done so far. And I'm 100% sure that everyone in this town appreciates every single thing you've done for them.
He smiled.
"I'm sure wherever your dad is, he's proud of you and how you've protected Westbane." I returned the smile. "So cheer up... I'm sure everything's going to be fine."
"Thank you, Elfrida... this means a lot."
I smiled, letting go of his hand and getting up. "I'll check on the Huffins while you finish up with Picklewood, sound good?"
"Yeah... send her in, will you?"
"Sure."