A bruised young man refused to run and remained sitting on the unclean ground as policemen approached him.
Despite his bruised and unclean physique, he appeared to be in good health, and it was clear that he was just emerging into a life of addiction.
He had Lilith's phone in his hands and was beaming with amusement at the sight of her.
'How did my phone get in his hands?' Lilith questioned herself, but she couldn't answer because the police officer was questioning him.
"How did you get your hands on that young lady's phone?" The senior officer inquired, interrogating the young man.
The drug addict smirked and scratched his back vigorously. "She… She gave it to me," he said, and Lilith's eyes widened with surprise.
"Huh?" One of the officers grumbled as he looked at Lilith.
She hurriedly shakes her head sideways, denying that she gave the drug addict her phone.
"Young man. We won't ask you again, so please be truthful with us." An officer spoke, and the man patiently nodded his head, waiting for the officer to ask him again.
"Who gave you the phone?" An officer questioned him.
He licked his bottom lips and winked at Lilith. "Why did you have to bring the cops here?" He inquired, forcing Lilith to take a step back, perplexed by his unexpected reply.
"Miss, do you know this him?" Another officer questioned her, and she instantly began shaking her head sideways, as if there was a fire on her head.
Lilith had no idea who the young drug addict was, and she could swear she had never seen him before, but the way the man was staring at her as if they had met was starting to frighten her out.
The young drug addict pushed himself off the ground where he had been seated, and as he attempted to balance himself, he swayed in line with the wind.
"Hi, Lilith Raziel! Why the hell are you pretending in front of the cops?" He inquired, reducing the distance between himself and Lilith. "You gave me the phone last night in exchange for a drug." He continued as he swayed closer towards Lilith and began caressing her chin, his actions sickening Lilith to the core as she took more steps backwards.
The officers were all taken aback by what was transpiring.
They raised their brows as they turned to face Lilith. "How come he knows your full name?" One of the officers confronted Lilith.
She shook her head sideways, and despite her inability to express herself verbally, Lilith hastily grabbed the book and pen she had brought with her which was when she left the police station. "I don't recognise this chap, sir. I suspect he accompanied the individual who stole my phone from my place of work." Lilith penned down, hoping that the officers would all believe her.
"You… you such a slut Lilith Raziel." The drug addict began walking away from Lilith, digging his hands deep into his pants pocket and pulling out a folded picture.
Everyone was perplexed as he unfolded the image, which showed Lilith and the homeless guy kissing one other.
"What evidence do you cops need agai…" he paused for a time, sniffing his nose and itching his hair as if it had lice. "Why did you have to do such things to me, Lilith? I thought you said you love me?" He spoke.
Lilith's heart raced as she stared at him, eyes wide open.
Lilith had never met the guy who stood in front of her before, but the fact that he claimed to know her and that she claimed to love him left her stunned.
She shook her head sideways and took a step back. "I don't know you!" Lilith signed using her finger. "I don't know you so why the hell did you have my phone?" Lilith signed once more.
The police officers gazed at her before returning their gaze to the drug addict.
They don't know who to believe, so without saying much, the officer in charge takes a handcuff and uses it to seal Lilith's hands. "You would have to come to the station for questioning." The officer spoke to Lilith.
She shook her head sideways in terror, and she instantly felt compelled to write a long text to the police in order to clear her name.
"Handcuff him also." The officer alerted his subordinate colleagues, who swiftly followed his instructions.
Lilith, the phone thief, and another drug addict were apprehended by the officers who quickly transported them to the police station and locked them up in a separate cell.
'I should have just listened to Morgana.' Lilith pondered within herself.
If she had listened to Morgana, she would not have gone to the police station, and thus nothing would have happened.
Three hours later, a drug test was performed on Lilith to determine whether she was also a drug addict; nevertheless, two hours later, the result revealed that Lilith uses drugs.
"You should be shameless to have come to a police station and lie to an officer." A police officer spoke to her through the iron gate of the cell.
Lilith bit her bottom lips and tossed her head sideways, tears building in her eyes that threatened to pour out. "I don't… I don't take drugs, sir. I am not a drug dealer, therefore please do another test. I believe something went wrong in the first one." She signed for the officer.
Despite her explanation and plea, the officer simply looked at her with raised brows, unable to understand what Lilith was saying through sign language.
He scoffed, rolled his eyes, and smacked Lilith's head with a pen. "You should be ashamed of yourself." He uttered as he walked away while looking disgusted.
Lilith's heart sank as it was shattered into fragments. It was already late at night, and she could see several officers preparing to go home, while others were resuming their night shift.
And then a figure emerged into the police station, shrouded with an ominous aura. He was dressed entirely in black—a long coat and trousers, with a black long-sleeved shirt beneath, and a nose mask obscuring his features.
His hands were clasped behind his back, adding to the air of mystery surrounding him.
With purposeful strides, the man headed directly to Lilith's cell, his mere presence commanding an air of authority that even the officers present couldn't resist.
They lowered their heads in a display of respect as if they recognized this figure as a superior or someone of great importance.
Arriving at the iron gate of Lilith's cell, the mysterious man offered a sly smile beneath his nose mask, his expression filled with a sense of satisfaction or perhaps even delight.
Holding the gate, he seemed to relish the moment, savoring the tension in the air.
"Looks like you won't be enjoying a comfortable stay here after all," the man remarked with a hint of sarcasm, his piercing, golden eyes fixed on Lilith.
Roused by his words, Lilith sprang to her feet, hastening towards the iron gate of the cell. With a fierce determination, she seized Merlin's shirt, her grip tight and resolute, as if trying to convey her pent-up frustration through the bars.
Lilith sensed a shift in the air as Merlin's golden eyes darkened, a chilling aura enveloping him.
Startled by the sudden change, she instinctively withdrew her hands from his shirt, a subtle flinch rippling through her body.
"I'm aware you are the one behind this, Merlin." Lilith signed with her fingers and he nodded his head.
With his nose mask obscuring his expression, Merlin's lips curled into a smug, inscrutable smile as he replied, "You promised to teach me a lesson, Lilith. And you are mistaken if you think a mere human like you can inflict damage upon me."
"Yo… you would hate messing with me, Merlin. I don't care to know how powerful you are but you will…"
Just as Lilith's fingers weaved together to form the next sign, Merlin silenced her with an abrupt interjection. "Lilith Raziel, save your breath from those empty threats," he said, his voice like shards of ice. "Enjoy your stay here, Lilith. Have a pleasant evening," Merlin added, his tone laced with thinly veiled malice and foreshadowing.
As if dismissing Lilith's presence altogether, Merlin plunged his fingers into his trouser pocket, then directed a beckoning gesture to the inmate in the neighboring cell—the drug dealer who had fabricated a relationship with Lilith.
Deaf to Lilith's insults communicated through a flurry of expressive sign language, Merlin departed from the cells, his cadaverous grin haunting Lilith even after his physical form was no longer visible.
She had a strong sensation that something terrible was about to happen to her tonight, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
And behold… She met the devil himself in her dreams.