I know Elizabeth seems really OOC but that's only because she's changed over the years. I do not own Kuroshitsuji.
A crowd had gathered around the alley. Two women slowly made their way to the center.
"Back away miss," One of the inspector of Scotland Yard said, "This isn't something for a young lady to see."
"You must be new," the younger of the two women said.
At the sound of her voice, the Chief Inspector turned around, "My lady," he said in surprise. He then turned to the crowd. "All right, I'm going to need you all to leave right now. Go on. Go back to your lives.
There was a general groan from the crowd as they dispersed into the streets. The two women did not move, much to the displeasure of the new inspector.
"Ruddy crowds," The Chief Inspector mumbled, "What's so entertaining about a murder?"
"They just want something to gossip about with the neighbors." The young woman said.
The Chief Inspector looked very uncomfortable and refused to look at her. "Inspector!" The new inspector said, amazed that the young woman—practically still a girl—was not being sent away.
Finally, the Chief acknowledged her. "I apologize, My Lady, for Inspector Belle here, he's new. Mr. Belle, this is Countess Elizabeth Middleford, close friend to the Queen." He emphasized 'close friends' to tell his employee that she was something more, without completely insulting Elizabeth.
"Please, Inspector," Elizabeth said calmly, "although I never married the name, I am the head of the Phantomhive Household. Therefore, I would prefer to be called Lady Phantomhive."
"Forgive me…Lady Phantomhive."
The new inspector, Belle, frowned, "Phantomhive? As in, Ciel Phantomhive? The young lord who disappeared 5 years ago?"
"Yeah," one of the other inspectors said, trying and failing to whisper so Elizabeth couldn't hear. "'e was 'er fiancée, and 'e left everything to 'er, including the title 'Queen's watchdog.'"
"I guess that means," his friend said, also failing to whisper, "That makes 'er the Queen's Bitch!"
In less than a moment, the second woman had pulled a nine-millimeter and jabbed it into the inspector's throat. There was a loud clicking as the other inspectors pointed their own guns at her. Oblivious to them, the woman said in a croaky voice, "I wouldn't be saying things like that about M'lady if I was you!"
There was a moment's pause when no one moved. Finally, Elizabeth said "Meyrin, let the poor man go." Meyrin gave the man a final jab before releasing him and returning to her mistress's side.
"Now," Elizabeth said as if nothing had happened, "What are the details of the case?"
As one of the inspectors whispered the role of Queen's Watchdog to Inspector Belle, the chief led her to the body.
Overall, the murdered man was not as horrible as others she had seen in her work as Watchdog. There was only a jagged slit across the man's throat. However, she still wasn't—immune. She didn't know how Ciel had done this so calmly. "Who was he?" She asked, keeping her voice in control.
"Marcus Hopper," the Chief said, "Age 46. He was recently released from prison."
"What was he in for?"
"Smuggling, My Lady. Drugs."
She nodded. "The Queen said this was one in a string of victims."
"Yes, My Lady. All released convicts, all killed in the same manner. A single, jagged slit across the jugular."
Elizabeth stared at him for a moment. "Well?" She asked. "Give the list to my maid!"
The Chief motioned for another inspector, who reluctantly handed Meyrin the file. "Is there anything else of note?" She asked.
He fumbled for a moment before he said, "All 6 murders occurred within the last month."
"So the Queen told me," Elizabeth said, "Thank you, Inspector. I'll be taking the case from here." She motioned to Meyrin and the two of them left the Inspectors and the body behind.
18-year-old Elizabeth Middleford-Phantomhive was very different than her 13-year-old version. She was very beautiful, as she was often told, but instead of the cute frilly dresses she used to wear, all her clothes were black. Often, they did have some frill to them, some ribbons or other-colored highlights, but the main color was still black.
Meyrin and the other servants had not changed in the slightest. They, too, had passed into Elizabeth's service, and Elizabeth was grateful to have them. Although they didn't seem to know much about Ciel's Watchdog activities until now, and although they weren't really good servants, they were a great comfort, as they too were missing Ciel.
Once Elizabeth had found out about Ciel's past, and adopted the title for herself, she had recruited them for her sort of personal army. They were useful for defense, not to mention that they could talk to people and go places Elizabeth couldn't as a noble lady. Ciel had Sebastian, she thought, so why shouldn't she use these three?
Finny and Bard were waiting for them in the carriage. "Well?" Finny asked, "Any news, M'Lady?"
Elizabeth frowned in concentration as she sat in her seat. "Not a great deal of information. All we really know is that the 6 of them were released convicts. Hmm, this is interesting," She said as she began reading the report, "The order of murders corresponds with the order of release dates. Although, they're scattered. This first man was released over 20 years ago, while the most recent was released last month.
"So, where do we start, M'Lady?" Bard asked.
Elizabeth bit her lip. "We need more information."
Bard scowled. "I was hoping you wouldn't say that."
