Eleven Graves

by Aman Gupta

  “You get out of this job as soon as you can. Promise me!” said Sarah.

  “I have been trying to do since the day I got in. I promise. Give me seven-eight months. I’ll get us out and we’ll leave this behind, and start afresh,” said Jay.

  Sarah and Jay hugged each other. Jay knew he had made a promise he didn’t know how to keep. But the last thing he wanted was a battle at home while he was engaged in many, at work.

  ◆◆◆

  Kate stopped her car. Few seconds later, two more police cars stopped a few yards away. Kate knocked on the door of Vik’s house.

  “Detective, it’s late. How can I help you?” asked Vik.

  “Step aside. We have orders from the mayor that we’re to search your house,” said Kate.

  “On what grounds?” asked Vik.

  “We have reason to believe that you’re behind the murder of Anthony Arnold,” said Kate.

  “Feel free to search,” said Vik, as he stepped aside.

  Officer Mortan and Trent stormed in and trashed the entire place. They searched for an hour and then some more.

  Eric, Emma and Joey had showed up while the search was ongoing.

  After two hours, ripped carpets, dismantled furniture and broken walls, Kate shouted, “All Clear!”

  She looked at Joey and Emma, but they refused to make eye contact.

  Vik told everyone to leave.

  “What now?” asked Officer Mortan, to Trent.

  “Your game’s over! Mine’s about to start,” whispered Vik, as he closed the door painting a picture of sad augury of the times to come.

  Kate arrived early morning at the police station, and saw everyone was already there.

  “Detective Kate Ericson, you’re suspended active immediately. Turn in your badge and gun,” declared Eric.

  Kate put her gun and badge on her desk.

  “What I did was necessary. I took an oath to defend the people who couldn’t defend themselves. After what happened on 1/1, I joined the police force for a reason, and I know in my conscience that everything that I have done leading up to this point, has been in the service of the people of this nation. I might have been wrong about Anthony’s murder but I’m not wrong about Vik – he’s guilty. I just hope every one of you can see it in time before it’s too late.”

  Kate looked at Emma and Joey one last time, before turning her back and walked out.

  A few days passed. The weekend had come and gone.

  Kate had spent her time stalking Vik, wherever he went. He would mess with her by going to bizarre locations, whenever he could spot the tail.

  Emma had spent her time going over the case files and surveillance footages to get leads. Joey spent his days following Kate, under the orders of Sheriff Eric.

  It was Wednesday. Vik walked into Eric’s room.

  “Another evening staying in, huh?” asked Vik.

  “Looks like that,” said Eric.

  “Sera called. He has something for me. Wants me to come tomorrow morning,” said Vik.

  “Did he say what?” asked Eric.

  “No, but says it’s a result,” said Vik.

  “I could use some good news,” said Eric.

  “Yeah, everyone here could,” said Vik.

  “People want to know more about Anthony’s murder,” said Eric.

  “They’re just bored and looking for something to keep their demons busy. It’ll pass over soon,” said Vik.

  “By the way, I forgot to ask earlier. Regarding that second body we found at Anthony’s house. Did you ever figure that one out?” asked Eric.

  “No, couldn’t get an identity. I had sent the DNA for a match but didn’t hear anything,” said Vik.

  “That’s a shame,” said Eric.

  “Would that be all, sir?” joked Vik.

  Eric chuckled.

  “You going somewhere?” asked Eric.

  “Just got some things to bury. A big day tomorrow,” said Vik, and closed the door behind him.

  An hour later, Emma heard some noise in Vik’s room.

  “Hey, I thought you had already left!” exclaimed Emma, before she saw there was no one in the room.

  She looked around and went to the far end of the lab which was being used as a temporary mortuary.

  A body tagged as Anthony was laid on the slab. She noticed that the skin had gone soft and felt like rubber. She took off the sheet and gasped in shock.

  She ran to Eric’s room who had fallen asleep. She woke him up and asked him to come with her to the lab. Eric followed Emma to the lab.

  She showed him the body. Eric was flabbergasted. He had never seen anything like that before. Lack of skin on some parts of the body was the least of their concerns. The spots with the burned flesh had exposed the internal body structure, where they found no bones. Eric grabbed a scalpel and started stabbing and penetrating the body at various places. Soon, he was carving up the body like a turkey. Half of the bones were missing, replaced by some strange liquid, while the other half were incomplete or missing huge sections.

  “What the hell is this?” exclaimed Eric, as Emma turned away to puke in the sink.

  “And where’s the other body?” asked Eric.

  Emma regained her composure and they started looking for it.

  Joey walked in.

  “What’re you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be following Kate?” asked Eric.

  “Yes, I am. She’s right outside,” said Joey.

  “Why?” asked Emma.

  “Because Vik is here. She’s following him, right?” said Joey.

  “What are you saying? The entire station is empty. There’s no one here except us,” said Eric.

  “His car is parked outside,” said Joey.

  “I heard some noise, so I came here,” said Emma.

  “Who’s that on the slab?” asked Joey.

  “Anthony Arnold.”

  “Why’s he so weird? I mean, what’s wrong with his body?” asked Joey.

  “No idea,” said Emma. Eric ran outside the lab and looked everywhere in the precinct for Vik. He returned few minutes later.

  “I haven’t seen anything like this before,” said Emma. “What’s wrong with this body?”

  “There’s only one person who could tell us that,” said Eric.

  “Who? Vik?” asked Emma.

  “Why wouldn’t he tell us about this?” said Joey.

  “What if Kate was right? What if he did kill Anthony Arnold and misled us all this time?” said Eric.

  “Why would Vik kill him? Didn’t he like the guy?” asked Joey.

  “Jay wasn’t exactly a fan of Anthony Arnold,” said Eric.

  Emma and Joey looked shocked.

  “We need to find him,” said Eric. “Get Kate, and the officers. Tell them Vik is the suspect and has presumably fled. Lock down all the exit roads. ”

  Eric, Emma and Joey ran out along with the officers.

  “Sheriff just issued a BOLO on Vik,” said Joey to Kate, knocking on her car.

  They all went in different directions. Driving at ridiculous speeds, they searched all night but couldn’t find Vik.

  Eric went to Vik’s home but found it locked. He knew that Vik wouldn’t leave town without discovering Jenna’s identity and directed everyone to go over to 23rd street as the sun came up.

  “Why are we here?” asked Joey, after waiting for ten minutes sitting in the car.

  “Vik will be here,” said Eric.

  “How do you know?” asked Emma.

  “I do,” said Eric.

  “Where’s Kate?” asked Joey.

  “On the other side of the road, if he tries to use that exit,” said Eric.

  “Where would he go from there? It leads to the bridge which goes to TS – 19,” said Joey.

  “At this point, we don’t know much. So we must cover all bases,” said Eric.

  “We don’t have any proof that he did anything, do we?” asked Emma.

  “No, we don’t. But he hid impor
tant facts, and we just need to know why,” said Eric.

  “But we’re waiting for him like he’s a criminal,” said Emma.

  “Unfortunately,” said Eric.

  “There’s something else too,” said Joey.

  “What?” asked Eric.

  “The list of numbers that Vik gave us – it had his number too. That’s why Kate started the entire thing,” said Joey.

  “Why didn’t you tell me that?” asked Eric.

  Emma looked at Joey as he looked back at her. Emma remembered that Vik had gone away to make a phone call while they were on their date.

  “What if we are late and he already left?” asked Joey.

  “Let’s hope that’s not the case. But I won’t be surprised if he is already here,” said Eric.

  A few minutes later, they got a radio alert from Kate.

  “I got him,” said Kate.

  “Where is he?” asked Eric.

  “I have looking right at him, so is the barrel of my gun,” said Kate.

  Eric, Joey and Emma rushed to Kate, and saw Vik covered in mud with his hands raised. He didn’t exhibit any emotion. He was just standing there with a straight face, and a strange calm on his face. He wouldn’t stop looking at Kate.

  “Vik, you are under arrest for the murder of Anthony Arnold,” said Eric, as he put handcuffs on Vik.

  They all headed back to the station where Eric instructed Joey to put Vik in the interrogation room.

  “We got you, Vik,” said Kate, as Vik was being taken by Joey.

  “It took you long enough. But all you had to do was call me and you would’ve known,” said Vik.

  “What do you mean?” asked Kate, as Vik and Joey stopped in the hall.

  “Go ahead. Call me,” said Vik.

  Kate dialed Vik’s number, and a ringtone was heard out loud on an otherwise silent floor. Everyone knew the only other person who had this ringtone. No one else was allowed to have it for at least a decade after the incident of 1/1 happened. It was the tone of defiance, the music which resonated in the ears of every alive civilian in the world and had become symbolic of the man who emerged through the ashes as a savior. Vik and Joey started walking as Vik smiled.

  Emma and Kate were asked to do the interview, while Eric stood behind the two-way glass so as to monitor the entire thing, unknown to everyone else.

  “So Vik, here we are again!” smirked Kate.

  Vik kept looking at Emma.

  “Look at me while I’m talking to you,” said Kate.

  “I see you got your badge back” said Vik, looking at Kate.

  Emma was nervous as she felt guilty about being Vik’s alibi at the time of the murder. She was furious that Vik may have used her affection for him as a cover for his crime.

  “Wow, you’re scary,” said Vik looking at Emma.

  “Answer her questions,” said Emma, with a furious look.

  “Oooh..” said Vik, smiling.

  “See, this is why I asked Eric to hire you and Joey. You are ferocious when you want to be,” said Vik.

  “Bullshit,” said Emma.

  “No, ask him if you doubt me,” said Vik.

  “You manipulate people for your own gain. Always have, always will,” said Emma.

  “Why did you murder Anthony?” asked Kate.

  “Is it just me or the entire room getting hotter all of a sudden? Perhaps Emma, you should step away so that you can regain a bit of a perspective while I pop my fingers.. Been a long 12 hours,” said Vik, smiling.

  “Shut up,” said Emma.

  “Or we can sit here staring at each other. Let me break the truth to you – you’re not in control here. I am,” said Vik.

  “Okay, we’ll play your game,” said Emma as she pulled her chair away to the edge of the room.

  “Where were you on the evening when Anthony was murdered?” asked Kate.

  “Home,” said Vik, which puzzled Emma who also started to notice a few things looking at Vik. He had rested his hands on his thighs, moving his fingers in specific patterns.

  A minute later, she got up, and said, “I need a break. I have to get out of here.”

  She wiped away her tears, hurtled out of the station, got in her car and drove away.

  “That’s not an alibi, Vik. Are you saying you have no way to prove that you weren’t at Anthony’s apartment when he was murdered?” asked Kate.

  “You have to prove that I was,” said Vik.

  Kate laughed and said, “I knew I would get you. And look at your face now. You can’t take it.”

  There was a knock on the door.

  The lawyer was here.

  “Why would you have a lawyer that works for Sera Crime Family, Vik?” asked Kate, as the lawyer pulled the chair and sat next to Vik.

  “Detective, I can assure you that I have more than one client,” said the lawyer.

  “You know what I think. I think you hired Sera to do the dirty work for you in exchange for getting rid of their guy’s body by staging an attack on Nucleus. That’s how you got Joey out too. See, it all fits,” said Kate.

  “Now, you are just imagining. You have been doing that for quite a while,” said Vik, as Joey entered the two-way mirror room to join Eric.

  “Look at my face for a long time, Vik. Remember this face. When you are rotting away in prison, I want to remember this face that put you there,” said Kate.

  “Oh, I’ll never forget your face,” said Vik.

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah! It took me long enough but I finally found you,” said Vik.

  “What are you talking about?” asked Kate.

  Vik didn’t say anything.

  “What, you losing your mind, Vik?” joked Kate. “Is that it, huh?”

  “My name is not Vik. It’s Jay Miller. And I am sitting across the person who betrayed her best friend, who happened to be my wife and killed her and her daughter in cold blood. I found you, Jenna. I found you,” said Vik, as Kate looked horrified.

  “It can’t be,” murmured Kate.

  “You have been hiding for so long, Jenna Mcbride, but now, you’re mine. You’re going to wish that you had died as effortlessly as you pulled the trigger and shot Sarah and Katie from behind. But don’t worry, you’re not going to die. I’ll make sure of that,” said Vik.

  Eric and Joey looked at each other in horror as Kate rushed out.

  Vik looked directly at the mirror, almost as if he knew Eric was behind the glass.

  After a few minutes, Eric came into the room and said, “I got a call from the mayor. He has asked for Vik to be transferred to Stanton Road Penitentiary as he believes that attempts might be made to break the suspect out of our local cells.”

  “He can’t do that, you don’t have any evidence against him,” said the lawyer.

  “Standard procedure for first degree murder cases,” said Eric. “Even Vik knows that. He’s the one who recommended it.”

  “It’s alright,” said Vik.

  Vik got up and Eric slapped on the handcuffs.

  As he was being taken away by Joey, he ran into Adam.

  “I thought you were a better man,” said Adam.

  “Ye of little faith,” said Vik, and started walking, while Adam looked.

  Joey put him in the backseat and asked Officer Trent to take Vik to Stanton Road.

  “I’m sorry it has come to this,” whispered Joey.

  “I know, but it’s not over yet,” said Vik.

  Kate came out of the restroom and went to Eric’s office.

  “Sir, can I talk to you?” asked Kate.

  “Yes, what is it?” asked Eric.

  “I was wondering if I could take a break?” asked Kate.

  “A break?”

  “Yes, with everything that has happened. I think I need a little time away from all this,” said Kate.

  “What do you have in mind?” asked Eric.

  “I would love to get out of town, maybe for a week. Clear my head,” said Kate.

  “Oka
y,” said Eric.

  “Thank you, sir,” said Kate.

  “Everything alright? What did he say?” asked Eric.

  “He was just playing games,” said Kate.

  “I see. Well I’m sure you’ve heard that he’s been transferred to Stanton Road till we get a time to build the case against him,” said Eric.

  “I think that’s wise,” said Kate.

  “And we need to build a case against him, soon. Mayor has said that he can’t authorize this for a longer time. It’s not like 10 years ago. Times have changed. Victor Daulton made sure of that,” said Eric.

  “He changed a lot of things,” recounted Kate. “How much time do we have?”

  “A week. Maybe less,” said Eric.

  “I’m sure you and rest of the team will be able to do it without me,” said Kate.

  “I’m not. You know this case better than anyone. Worked on it longer than anyone,” said Eric.

  “I wish I could help but I really need to go,” said Kate.

  “If that’s what you feel, I won’t stop you,” said Eric.

  Kate turned around and moved towards the door, when Eric continued.

  “That day, when you asked me if you can right a wrong with ends justifying the means, I hope you got the satisfaction that you wished for. It’s important to have that if we are to survive a longer life,” said Eric.

  Kate didn’t say anything and left.

  In the evening, Kate was surprised by a knock on the door. She picked up her gun and saw through the keyhole. She put the gun away and unlocked the door.

  “Going somewhere Jenna?” said Emma, as she pointed a gun at Kate.

  “Was going to. But changed my mind. I’m done surviving. I want to live,” said Kate.

  Kate walked backwards as Emma walked towards her, and put down a stack of files on the table.

  “What’s that?” asked Kate.

  “Vik’s research into Jenna, and Kate, and your photograph in this envelope dated today,” said Emma.

  “Where did you find it?” asked Kate.

  “At his home. You didn’t look hard enough, I guess,” said Emma.

  “How did you know where to look?” asked Kate.

  “Morse code. Old but reliable,” said Emma.

  “While we were interrogating him, isn’t it? I knew there was something peculiar about the timing” said Kate.

  Emma didn’t say anything.

  “What does it say?” asked Kate.