Even as the thought formed, Klein opened the door.
The hotel manager immediately stepped backward. The dishevelled officer stepped forward, producing his badge. "Miss Kleya?"
"That's me."
Klein did a convincing impression of startled wariness. "What — what's happened, Officer?"
"Where were you last night around ten o'clock?"
"I was asleep."
"Are you certain?"
The officer's voice sharpened, something harder entering his eyes. "Where exactly were you at ten PM last night?"
Klein's heart gave a jolt. Was this about the museum? But how would they have found him? And besides, the times didn't line up.
Ten PM last night, he'd already left the museum and was working his way back with the master key — which was when he'd stumbled into the crime scene.
Is this about the murder?
Klein pressed his lips together and hesitated. "Last night… I went out to attend a gathering, and on the way back I stumbled into what the papers have been calling the serial murder scene."
The officer's expression eased very slightly. "You were the one who called for help at the scene?"
"Yes — because when I arrived, there was another person there. I thought they were going to silence me."
"Do you remember what this person looked like?"
Klein shook his head. "I didn't get a clear look. But I remember their build."
"Was it this person?"
The officer produced a photograph. It showed a mirror — inside the mirror, a shadowy figure. Klein recognised it immediately as the serial killer.
"Yes. That's them."
The dishevelled officer — Ikanser, as it turned out — removed his cap and dragged a hand through his already chaotic hair. "She's not the killer."
"What?"
"Her name is Christine. She was also a bystander who stumbled into the scene. She wasn't attempting to attack you — she was trying to say hello."
"You've already found her?"
"That's right."
Ikanser nodded, then shifted: "Miss Kleya — for the next few days, I'm going to need you to stay with us."
Klein looked surprised. "Why?"
"Don't misunderstand — we want to protect you. You may not realise, but you and Miss Christine are currently the only two people to have seen the serial killer in the act and survived. Based on what we know of this killer, it's highly likely they'll come for you."
"You just said she's not the killer."
"The actual killer was nearby when all of this happened. For reasons unknown, they chose not to act at the time."
"..."
Ikanser said, steadily: "So — for your own safety, please cooperate with us."
Klein's brow stayed furrowed. "You want to use us as bait to draw the killer out."
"Ahem."
Ikanser cleared his throat. "That's not it, precisely. Because we know the killer will move again, we're setting an ambush around you — not putting you at risk to lure it out."
"The cause and effect are different. The nature of the thing is completely different."
Klein considered this. From a pure safety standpoint, having official Beyonders "protecting" him was clearly advantageous. The problem was that his whole reason for staying out in the open was to monitor the Demoness Sect for the Church's purposes.
"Where would we go? The police station?"
"No."
Ikanser put his cap back on. "We've arranged a place for you and Miss Christine. You'd stay there for three days."
"And if the killer doesn't appear within those three days?"
A brief hesitation. "From my personal standpoint, I'd hope you'd continue to cooperate. But… if you insist on leaving after three days, we'll respect that."
"Alright."
"Then let's not delay. The other miss is already waiting in the carriage outside."
"Let me pack a few things."
Klein glanced toward Stephen's room. He sincerely hoped his bodyguard wouldn't suddenly materialise and try to teleport him away — or worse, put the officers on the ground.
...
A few minutes later, Klein followed Ikanser out of the hotel to a waiting carriage. "After you."
Klein gave a small nod and gathered his skirt as he stepped inside.
The moment he ducked in, he saw a girl in a black dress seated across from him, looking at him with quiet curiosity. Their eyes met — and both expressions changed at once.
Her?
The girl in the black dress. Klein had seen her twice before — on the steam train to Backlund, and outside the Church of the Evernight Goddess. If it happened once, coincidence. Twice, coincidence. Three times — wasn't that a bit much?
Klein, who had suffered so many times under the "coincidence" of the Beyonder Characteristic Convergence Law, felt something close to PTSD flicker through him. He even briefly wondered if Ince Zangwill was behind this somehow.
Then again — if this girl is on the Apprentice, Seer, or Thief Pathway, the Convergence Law alone could explain repeated encounters.
"Hello — good to see you again."
Melissa hadn't overthought it. She gave a warm, friendly smile and introduced herself: "I'm Christine."
Klein, carefully neutral: "Kleya."
"Oh?"
Melissa opened her mouth slightly.
"What?"
"Your name just… sounds familiar. It's almost the same as the name of a friend of mine — just one letter different."
(In Loenese — which was effectively English — Klein was Klein, and Kleya was Klea. One letter apart.)
Klein said evenly: "What a 'coincidence.'"
Melissa's gaze stayed on Klein's face for a few seconds. Then she asked, carefully: "Last night — was that really you, Miss Kleya?"
"It was."
"But…"
The person I saw last night was a man, wasn't it?
She didn't say it aloud. Whether the Mechanical Heart people had the wrong person, or whether there was something strange about this "Kleya," was none of her business. Right now, as far as she was concerned, she was just an ordinary citizen who'd been accidentally dragged into a murder case and was cooperating with the authorities.
"Did the officers explain the situation to you?"
"Yes — they said the serial killer might come for us, so they're protecting us while setting an ambush."
Melissa nodded. "Same as what I was told."
She extended a hand — slender and pale, though with a few faint calluses. "Three days of this, then. I hope we get along."
"Likewise."
Klein extended his gloved hand and gave her fingertips a light shake.
They didn't speak again for the rest of the ride. About ten minutes later, the carriage eased to a stop. Ikanser opened the door. "Both of you, we've arrived."
To be continued…
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