Four words leave his mouth and you find yourself stepping back in bewilderment.
A witness protection program.
All the doubts you've been desperately trying to suppress for the last few weeks, collapse onto you with double strength.
Dozens of questions swarm your mind. Your flatmate peers at you impassively. The sound of your heartbeat. A pricking sensation in your back. Too many things happening all at once.
Levi lifts himself up from the coach and crosses his arms. He is fully aware of his decision's consequences, but still chooses to tell you everything. Even though that bastard Erwin had enough problems with the whole case already.
Two months earlier Hanji Zoe bursts into the Survey Corps' headquarters. Her hair is much more dishevelled than usually, and she keeps adjusting her glasses.
"Erwin!" she cries out, causing everybody's heads turn.
"What—" starts Petra Ral, but the brunette only dismisses her with a wave of her hand, and darts to her leader's office.
"Hanji," Erwin Smith lifts his attention from a bunch of papers lying on his desk, and casts his light blue eyes on her. "What happened?"
The brunette nearly doubles up, trying to catch her breath. She gazes at him, agonizingly.
"Sawney and Bean T. are dead," she wails, but composes herself before any further explanations. "I went to their rental, as requested, and found them both on the floor. There was no sight of Jose who was in charge of looking after them today. After quick examination, I have grounds to suspect that they were murdered. Someone slit their throats. I called the police immediately, in accordance with the standard procedure. Any orders?"
Erwin stares blankly at her for a moment, processing everything she said. He puts down the pen that was in his hands up until now and joins his hands as he sighs quietly.
"Get Richard Arlert."
"It was Leonhardt then..." Levi's voice is full of coldness. He flicks through the report written by Richard Arlert, one of the best investigators that ever worked in the Survey Corps.
"Annie Leonhardt," Hanji specifies.
"Motherfucking Annie Leonhardt," Levi snaps. He passes the report to the right, to Mike Zacharius.
"Remember that we're talking about an eighteen-year-old girl." Zoe runs her left hand through her brown messy hair. She has dark circles under her eyes, that her glasses cannot hide. Like everyone in the room, she seems exhausted.
"Eighteen-year-old girl who murdered two adult men by silting their throats," Levi retorts harshly.
Meanwhile Mike finishes reading the report and gives it to Dita, sitting next to him. The documents circulate around the room in total silence for a few minutes. When they finally get back to Erwin, he folds them neatly and puts into a desk drawer before locking it.
Hanji shifts in her chair impatiently.
"Has the police commenced any actions yet?"
"Yes. They've brought Jose to trial," Erwin responds briefly.
"At this rate they will probably have caught Leonhardt by the end of the next year," grunts Keith.
Levi gives a small 'tch' under his nose.
"Why so optimistic? They will have to have discovered that she's the killer before then."
Hanji almost jumps up in her seat.
"Then the solution is simple – we need to capture her." She leans back in her chair comfortably and looks up at the ceiling. "Any action plans, Erwin?"
"Actually, yes. I have something."
"Levi still hasn't returned?" asks Gunther, walking into the office.
His colleagues shake their heads in unison. Schultz flops on the only free swivel chair in the room, saved for him by his friends. Rest of the seats are occupied by, lively debating, other staff members. The noise in the office is slowly reaching an unbearable level.
"Neither did Mike," says Eld. "Or Hanji. Not to mention the other squad leaders."
Auruo rolls his eyes.
"No wonder. Terrible, terrible matter."
Petra's sigh is drowned out by the turmoil prevailing in the room.
"That one time I have to admit you're right. In the history of the witness protection program it is the first time that kind of thing had happened."
"We don't need a history lesson from you, Pe— Ough!" Auruo grasps his side, where his ginger colleague had just prodded him.
"Petra, Auruo, stop." Eld stands up from his seat. "They've finished."
The room immediately floods with silence.
You shake your head with disbelief. The whole case seems ridiculous, and the idea of Annie being the killer sounds like complete nonsense to you.
However...
"How am I supposed to believe you?" you persist. "You've been lying to me for nearly two full months."
Levi takes two steps in your direction, his arms still crossed over his chest. You're almost touching.
He doesn't break eye contact when he speaks up.
"We need your help," he says in a surprisingly throaty voice.