The city felt colder the next day, even though the sun was high in the sky. Lucas couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. Jasper Blackwood's twisted vision had left a mark on him—on all of them. He kept replaying the events in his mind: the flickering shadows, the victims' eyes, and the distorted reality that had surrounded them. It felt like they hadn't just escaped a nightmare; they had brushed against something darker, something that had just begun to awaken.
Sitting in his car, parked outside his apartment building, Lucas ran his fingers through his hair, trying to shake off the dread that gripped him. The nightmare had ended for now, but his thoughts were scattered, chasing threads he couldn't yet pull together.
A knock on the passenger window broke his trance. He looked up to see Ava standing there, her eyes heavy with exhaustion. She had been the one to push him forward, to keep going after the warehouse incident, but even she seemed on edge now.
He rolled down the window, the crisp air rushing in.
"You okay?" she asked, leaning in.
"I should be asking you that," Lucas replied, his voice low. "We saw things last night… things that don't make sense."
Ava nodded, glancing around as if expecting someone to jump out from the shadows. "I've been thinking about what Jasper said. That this is just the beginning." She paused, eyes narrowing. "And I'm starting to believe him."
"Yeah," Lucas agreed, rubbing his temples. "There's more to this story. He wasn't just a serial killer… he was obsessed with creating something—something bigger than us. And now that we've disrupted his… world, whatever it was, it feels like we're in his way."
"We've already seen that he's not going to let us go easily," Ava added, stepping back and opening the car door. "We need to figure out more about him. Who he was before all of this. If we don't, we'll never understand what's really happening."
Lucas nodded, starting the engine. "You're right. Let's hit the records, dig into Blackwood's past. We need to know what he was before he became… this."
They spent the rest of the morning in the city's dusty archives, combing through old records, news articles, and art exhibitions. Lucas discovered that Jasper Blackwood had once been a promising young artist. In the early 2000s, he had made a name for himself in underground circles, showcasing dark, disturbing works that blurred the lines between painting and performance art. The exhibitions often involved real-life elements—people in cages, manipulated environments, and even moments of violence staged for his audience's shock.
But then, in 2006, everything stopped. Blackwood disappeared from the public eye, his name fading from the art scene entirely. Rumors swirled about his mental state—whispers of madness, obsession, and a failed relationship with a woman named Evelyn Ford. The last recorded sighting of him was at a private gallery showing. After that, there was no trace.
But one thing stood out—a piece of his work that had disappeared from public view. An abstract portrait, a dark swirl of colors and strange symbols, had been removed from a prominent collection right before he vanished. No one knew where it had gone. It was almost as if the painting itself had disappeared, never to be seen again.
Lucas and Ava exchanged glances. The portrait sounded like it could be more than just art. It was a piece of the puzzle.
"This painting," Lucas said, tapping the file in front of him, "it's not just art. It's tied to everything that's happened."
Ava leaned forward. "We need to find it. This painting could hold the answers we need to stop him."
They gathered their things and headed to the address listed for Evelyn Ford—a name they had only just discovered through the records. She was Blackwood's last known partner, and the key to unraveling the final chapter of his disappearance. They hoped she could provide some insight into what had pushed him from eccentric artist to murderous madman.
Evelyn Ford lived in a modest apartment on the outskirts of the city, a place that looked as if time had forgotten it. When Lucas and Ava knocked on her door, they were met by a woman who looked nothing like the portrait of a vibrant, ambitious artist's muse they had expected. Evelyn was pale, her face drawn and tired, her eyes filled with years of sorrow.
"I'm not talking to the police," she said, before they could even introduce themselves. "If this is about Jasper, I want no part of it."
Lucas felt a wave of sympathy for her. He had heard the stories—how Evelyn had been the one person who had tried to pull Jasper out of his spiral before he disappeared. She had been the anchor that tried to keep him grounded, but even she couldn't hold him back.
"Evelyn, we're not here to arrest you," Lucas said softly, his voice trying to bridge the gap between them. "We need your help. Jasper Blackwood—he's back. He's the one behind these murders, these… art exhibits that are more like scenes of horror."
Evelyn recoiled slightly, her expression faltering. "Jasper… he's alive?"
"Yes," Ava interjected. "And we believe you might know something about him that could help us stop him for good."
Evelyn's gaze hardened, but a flicker of something darker passed through her eyes. "I know him better than anyone," she said quietly. "But I don't think you're ready to hear the truth. Not the whole truth."
"Please," Lucas urged. "We need to understand what happened to him. What broke him."
Evelyn hesitated, her eyes filled with regret. "He was always obsessed with pushing boundaries. His art wasn't about beauty—it was about control. But after that show—the one in 2006—it broke him. He disappeared… and when he came back, it was like he was no longer the man I knew. He said he was creating the ultimate piece—something so powerful, it would change everything. I thought he was just lost in his own mind. But now…"
"Now we think it's more than that," Lucas said, looking at Evelyn intently. "We think his obsession with his art became a form of madness. And his 'ultimate piece'—it's tied to that portrait. The one that disappeared."
Evelyn paled. "You're looking for the painting," she whispered. "It was never just a painting. It was… a ritual. A doorway."
"Do you know where it is?" Ava asked urgently.
Evelyn nodded slowly. "The painting is hidden. But it's not just the painting you need to find. It's the place—the place where it was created. It's the gallery where Jasper first disappeared. The place where everything started."
The woman's words hit Lucas like a ton of bricks. They had a location. They had a direction. The final piece of the puzzle was within reach.
"We're running out of time," Lucas said, his resolve hardening. "Let's go."
As they left Evelyn's apartment, Lucas couldn't shake the feeling that the truth they were about to uncover was far more dangerous than they had imagined. And that the painting—whatever it truly was—could be the key to everything.
They had to find it. Before Jasper found them first.