Elise and Ken looked at the door, panicked by the unexpected development of the police already being here.
My reaction, however, was different. Things started becoming clear to me when the police first announced themselves. Why my father murdered my mother was still speculative. But, why he kept me alive, let me identify him, what he wanted from me. I think I finally grasped it.
"Relax. Don't worry, this is fine too. Just stick to the plan," I said to Elise and Ken.
They looked at me, seeming to have calmed down somewhat upon seeing my calm demeanor, and I started walking to the front door. I put the sheathed knife in my pocket, since I expected I would not need it.
When I arrived, I first looked through the peephole. Outside, two officers stood against the twilight. They were people whose faces I knew from the past. I opened the door for them.
"Good evening," one of them began. "We came by too…"
"I know my father sent you."
Both of their eyes went wide when I interrupted them. Seems like I hit the mark.
"You're too late. I want to report a crime."
***
After I said that, everything that happened afterwards turned into the predicted mess I imagined. I told the officers my mother was kidnapped, and they called in reinforcements to investigate the crime scene.
Elise, Ken, and I were questioned, before and while a team searched the crime scene. We told them what 'happened' exactly in the way we had discussed before.
A shadow appeared. I was wounded in the struggle. My mother disappeared in a sea of flames with the shadow. In shock and in pain, I thought she had died, and walked to the doctor. After he cured my hand, I started doubting what happened, and went back to the house. And there, I discovered that my mother was likely kidnapped. Before coming to terms with it, the police had already arrived.
I gave more details when asked during the questioning. But, all in all, during the whole process, one thing stuck out to me.
They believed me far too easily. Something supernatural had happened. Of course, they had dubious expressions when I told them that part of the story, but they accepted it rather quickly as fact.
After our questioning was finished, some forensic investigators came out of the house with a preliminary report confirming some of the same details I told them.
Signs of a murder they had not found.
Just like that, we were done, and the conclusion was drawn that my mother was kidnapped by supernatural means.
Ken was free to go home, and so he went under escort by an officer.
Elise was also escorted back to her house by two officers. They also wanted to question her father regarding his operation on me.
As for me, I was told to come to the police department, to talk about the procedure in finding my mother again and give more information in helping them.
I obliged, and was thus escorted. I was now sitting in an interrogation room with the same two officers who first arrived at my doorstep.
One of them was a broad man with messy black hair and a beard, named officer Rock. The other was a lanky man with a blonde buzzcut and had a stubbly beard, named officer Sprout.
"To begin with," the broad one started, "we want to ask you for more details that can help me find your mother. Every detail can matter, no matter how trivial, so please provide us with as much of it as possible."
I nodded, and then, a question-and-answer session between me and them began.
Most of the questions were standard. What clothes did my mother wear? Did she have a phone with her? Did I notice any strange behaviour from her in the days before? And many more of such questions.
I answered them all to my knowledge. It was a bit meaningless, since my mother was a pile of ashes and would never be found again, but I had to keep up the charade.
I answered without thinking much until one officer began to ask the most important question.
"The shadow you saw, can you give us more details about what it looked like or anything else about it?"
I focused. If I outright say it looked like my father, I don't believe that will end well for me. These officers work for him after all. And even more terrifying, there's also the possibility of the shadow being in this very room right now.
I couldn't find it at my house, but I'm now positive that it was still there, listening in.
I'm sure of it because the officers, sent by my father, arrived just after we were finished altering the crime scene. The timing was too convenient. It could have only happened like that if my father was there the entire time and informed the police at the exact right moment.
So, if I couldn't sense it in that house, I can't sense it in this interrogation room either. If I carelessly implicate my father, it might appear and murder me on the spot.
But, the police still need a culprit, and I want to point them to my father. It's a really dangerous tightrope to walk, leading them to my father without implicating him.
"It looked like a man. A slightly muscled man. It was a bit taller than me. When I attacked it, it disarmed me like a martial artist. And..," I paused, before continuing in a more hesitant tone, "it was entirely black, but it had a detailed face. Maybe I can sketch it or something?"
The officers looked at each other intensely, and then agreed. One of them went to get a sketch artist. After she arrived, we started producing a sketch.
She asked me a lot of details while drawing, with a black pencil. And, after a while, she was done.
The final sketch was a sharp, manly, intense and dominating looking face, entirely black. It was of course not an exact replica, but it was close enough. To me, it looked unmistakably like my father.
The officers saw the sketch too. They didn't react intensely to it. Seems they didn't realise it was my father.
It's expected. Without any color, identifying a face is difficult. But it's at least sufficient to be identifiable.
The breadcrumbs are laid. The face of the shadow which looks like my father, and the fact that I subtly sprinkled in about it being capable of martial arts, like my father is too. I think it's at least enough to implicate my father if someone were to realise this.
It might not be now, but maybe, someday in the future, somebody will follow the breadcrumbs I had scattered and connect the dots. Even if that's the case, I somehow doubted it would lead to my father's arrest. But, who knew? Might as well try if it could work.
It's enough for now. I seemingly haven't crossed any lines yet, since no shadow appeared out of thin air to murder me yet.
With the sketch done, the artist left and the officers continued asking me some questions. I answered them, but nothing meaningful was really added.
Then, their questions were done. And they started explaining what they were going to do to find my mother.
"We're a bit spread thin. But, we'll start with questioning people in the environment to start with and continue investigating your house for any evidence left behind. We'll also issue a MEPA for her so that the whole nation can look out for her and inform us."
What he said was reasonable, and the best thing to do in this situation, at least what I could think of. But something in what he just said caught my attention.
"You're spread thin?" I asked the lanky officer.
"Ah yes…"
The officer looked briefly at the other, but it seemed the broad one didn't object to him answering the question, so he continued.
"Ever since that 'white flash', as you called it, we've been getting bombarded with calls about… supernatural stuff. Some are just worried concerns, but quite a few are crime-related too, which we… have to respond to."
He hesitated at that last part, his face looking disturbed. I guessed he had already encountered or heard about a case similar or worse than my mother.
But that confirms that something really has changed in the world. Perhaps that's why they had believed my story so easily.
But, it was not the time or place to think about that yet. I focused back on our conversation.
"I see. But, I hope you will still give priority to finding my mother."
"Of course, we at this department will do anything in our power to find your mother," officer Sprout responded.
"Alright, I'm glad to hear that. I hope we'll find her soon."
With that said, it seemed like a natural end to conversation here. As expected, officer Rock started speaking.
"If there is nothing else that you want to add, I think we're done here and we can start with finding your mother. And also, regarding…"
"Actually, if I may, I wanted to ask…"
I interrupted the officer. They were done with me, but I was not yet done with them.
"Does the rest of my family already know what happened to my mother?"
It was a natural question, which veiled my intentions.
"We informed your father. But I don't know about the rest of your family," officer Sprout answered.
The rest of my family, of course. Regarding them…
"My father's wife and my sister are living with him. My brother is studying in Philadelphia, so he might not know yet. And…, my mother's parents are in South Africa, and I don't know how to contact them. I'll have to ask my father about that."
I then trailed off and acted a bit, first frowning and then forging a thoughtful expression on my face, before continuing to speak.
"You two work for my father, right? I mean, I recognise you from when my mother was stalked, and have seen you around the neighborhood since then, keeping an eye out. Are you in contact with him?"
The officers looked at me, not really knowing why I asked that, but the broad one answered.
"We have his number, yes."
"He just gave you his number? Do you know him personally?"
"No, of course not. The chief gave it to us to keep him informed during the stalker incident."
"Oh, yeah of course. But, he called you to check out our house in the evening?"
The thin one responded this time.
"He called us and said that with what was going on in the world right now, he feared for you and your mothers safety. He asked us to provide an escort for you two to him."
"Were you nearby when he called?"
"Uh yeah, we were in the neighborhood."
"I see. Too bad he didn't call you earlier, my mother might still be here then," I said despondently.
The officers also gained sad expressions. They knew my mother personally too. Of course she had charmed them too, like everyone that knew her, and they were sad she was missing now.
But, I said that to give them a reason for my questions and to make them emotional and not think too deeply about it. I had extracted a lot of information from them.
I see, so that's the excuse he's using, wanting to bring my mother and me back to him. After I realised what motives he has for me, that excuse makes a lot of sense. It's another confirmation.
It's also odd that he had called these officers, who he doesn't know, directly, instead of first going through the police chief, who he does know.
It's another implication of his guilty nature. He would have only done it like that because he wanted a shorter line of communication between the police department and the happenings regarding the crime scene, to more efficiently interfere if something was pointing towards him.
That's all I had inferred from the information. It's time to conclude this.
"Sorry. I've nothing more to add. Please, start with finding my mother now."
"Alright, we'll do that. But first…," the thin officer started.
"Since your house is still being investigated, you can't go back there as long as the investigation is going on. We don't know how long it's going to take. So, we can still escort you to your father's house in Washington."
An escort to Washington D.C. Of course, the idea seems logical to the officers. Perhaps the idea is even reinforced by the excuse my father had given them for visiting my house.
I'm not sure if it's a direct order to escort me. But, I've been sure of one thing, ever since the police officers arrived at my front door.
My father has plans, and he wants me by his side to help realise them.
Why did he not kill me, let me identify him and let me alter the crime scene, while he was there to witness it all.
It was all a test by him to see how useful I am in this sort of situation.
The world has changed. His power and control are not absolute anymore, if supernatural stuff has suddenly become more commonplace.
Then how does he plan to get back on top again? It will not be easy, he'll need useful commodities to improve his chances.
Me, who he witnessed expertly solving the situation he put me in through the shadow.
If I could solve this sort of problem myself, I could make myself useful for him in all other kinds of difficult situations.
I even learned just now that he arranged a police escort straight to him. How more on the nose can it get?
He even murdered my mother. What was the reason? Thinking that my father wants me by his side, even that suddenly gains a motive.
I'm 16. I need a parent. My mother was legally responsible for me. But, she's gone now, so the responsibility now befell on my father, naturally leading to me living with him.
That would have been all the reason he needed to murder my mother. He didn't have an emotional motive at all, only a cold, calculating one. That's the sort of man my father is, a complete psychopath.
All roads lead to my father. A scenario orchestrated expertly by him, and I had no choice but to follow it.
He knows I altered the crime scene. He can still pin the murder on me whenever he wants. I don't know if forensics could determine human DNA from ash mixed with dirt in a vase, but I'd rather not risk finding out.
Hell, pinning a murder on me might be too lenient for him. If I openly defy my father again, a shadow might appear to murder me outright.
He has all my strings tied tightly in his hands. I'm sure that egomaniac expects that I will quietly come to him and start wagging my tail. That he knows that I know he murdered my mother was not even a consideration to him.
He doesn't have any emotional attachment to anyone, only himself. Why would he expect me to be any different after spending all my childhood years teaching me to become just like him?
And even if they weren't, my emotions are irrelevant to him. He'll force me to do his bidding anyway. By horrifying means, if necessary.
What options do I have? Perhaps going to him was the best course of action after all? If I get close to him, maybe I could just murder him outright and be done with it?
No chance in hell. My father isn't that stupid. If I followed the path he had laid out for me, if I let him control me, I'm sure my fate would already have been sealed before I realized it.
Never underestimate anyone. He taught me that himself. But then, what can I do? I can't obey him, but I can't defy him either.
Is there a way out of my situation?
I can't think of one yet, but I have to respond to the officers. In that case, there's only one option left.
Buy time, until I figure out how to get out of this mess.
"Thanks. But, I'd rather stay in this town with a friend for now. Maybe, my mother will be found soon. I'd rather stay here if that's the case."
The officers briefly looked at each other. Now, how fiercely would they reject me staying here? I had already quickly prepared some arguments.
"That's fine too. Where do you plan to stay?" the broad officer replied rather casually.
…Unexpectedly, they didn't object. Well, perhaps I'm in luck that my father hadn't given them a direct order yet?
"Elise's house. Uh, William Ambrose's house, I mean. Otherwise, I have another friend I can stay with. But let me call Elise first to see if it's alright."
The officers agreed, and I grabbed my phone and gave her a call. I saw that it was already 8 o'clock, but she picked up right away. I asked her if I could stay with them for a while, and she agreed immediately. Having arranged it, I told her I'll see her soon.
The police then offered to escort me to the doctor's house, and I agreed. We exited the interrogation room, walked outside and entered the police car.
Yet, before we took off, I asked them in the car.
"By the way, can we swing by my house so that I can grab some essentials. Clothes and my toothbrush, and such?"
"Oh yeah, you're right. Sorry, we forgot about that. We can swing by, but we'll have to escort you so that you won't contaminate the crime scene," officer Sprout responded.
"That's fine, I understand. I would appreciate it if I could grab some stuff with you then."
They agreed, and thus we started driving to my house, discussing what I should and could get from there. All the while, before and during the drive, I kept thinking.
I currently had no choice but to dance in the palm of my father's hand, because he had leverage. He could at any moment send the shadow after me, or still pin the murder on me.
The shadow, I had no solutions for as of yet, but regarding the other problem…
That's why I had guided myself and the officers back to my house. Maybe there, I could
prevent my father from being able to pin the murder on me once and for all.
The vase with my mother's ashes was still standing on the dining table, the only evidence left that could pin the crime on me.
I needed to make it disappear as soon as possible, even though the police were still investigating my house.