The red-eyed monster
A series of murders against young and innocent's women put in check the police and the society. Without clues or any links to lead the police to the whereabouts of this cruel monster, can Hinata Hyuga be saved in time before her name join the list of the victims of the so call red-eyed demon?
Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters don't belong to me, but Masashi Kishimoto.
Sorry for my english, it's the first time I write in english. I beg your pardon for my grammar errors.
Well, I don't know where to start. First, as should be obvious, I must express my great apologies for the overall delay of the story; but this 2018 has been the most chaotic year of my life. It was not my intention to delay so much the publication of chapter twelve, and neither publish it more than a year after the last time I publish, but this year was a mess for me. My mothe got sick a year ago, more or less, and she died on February. Because she had Alzheimer and I was taking care of her during her life, I got sick almost in the same time she died, and since then I had been taking care of my health. It has not been until now that I have had the clarity of mind and spirit to write. I hope you can understand me.
It has been so many time since the last time I published that I don't remember every critic I received from the last chapter, but as for Hinata and her obsession with "her men" there are a justification for it. In the first chapter I wrote that Hinata has a kind of obsession with Naruto (in the original story she is also obssed with him), and she is so used to have him in her life that when he offered to her his help and then, after the fight they had in the last chapter, he rejected her, Hinata could not let him go so easily, because of many years he has been her reference point, I don't know if you understand me. And, with Krupal, well is kind of obvious he is manipulating her, but with what purpose? That is a question that will be answer in the next chapters (introduce evil laugh).
Speaking of Hinata, maybe in this chapter she won't seem to be her, but you have to understand that she is in love with a man who control her and, because of this, she is going to do the impossible to help him, in spite of she is not aware of it.
Well, I finish here with this. I hope you enjoy the chapter, and if you like it, follow the story or leave a review (or both, why not). Thank you for reading, and I hope to not publish the next chapter so late.
Chapter XII
There is always a moment in our lives in which the circumstances force us to ponder about our decisions and the people with whom we shared our destinies. Should we continue through the path we have chosen until now? Or should we turn around and find another pathway that would possibly make us happier and more prosperous?
It was not a secret to anybody the strong and powerful sentiments that Hinata felt for Naruto; and neither were the many years that she had loved him in silence, time during which the young woman had not dare to impose the Uzumaki to love her in the same way in which she loved him. To Hinata, the idea of being corresponded by the blond was something she could not conceive more than in her imagination; and she never had thought, not even in her wildest dreams, that sometime Naruto could love her.
There was no doubt that the love confession Naruto had made to her had taken Hinata by surprise; and there either was no doubt that she would have accepted it with great happiness if it was not for the detail that she was in love with another man.
Krupal had appeared in her life in sudden way, and in the same unexpected manner he had transformed her life. To Hinata, the man had become her shine of hope in her darkest hours; and when he had offered to her his love, the Hyuga did not doubt to accept and share it.
If Naruto was telling the truth, if he really loved her, then she comprehended his feelings. Hinata knew all too well what it meant to love in silence and suffer for that. But if Naruto loved her as much as he said, he should respect and share her happiness. Hinata had respected his love decisions; even she had smiled with him and had congratulated him for being in love. But now, when it was Hinata's opportunity to be happy with someone else, Naruto was cruel, jealous and had not restrained himself from insulting her for the choice she had made. And Hinata was not going to tolerate it.
This time she was happy. She loved Krupal and Krupal loved her; and Hinata was not going to allow Naruto to ruin her happiness. She was tired to prepend his well-being to her own gladness. How many more tears she had to shed for Naruto? How much more she had to suffer for him? Hinata, definitely, had had enough.
These were the thoughts that went around her mind while the young woman ran through the campus with all the strengths her legs gave to her, following her classmate, to the place in which Krupal was being arrested. Hinata almost congratulated herself for being able to discern those reflections so clearly when in her head a turmoil of ideas and ruminations were entangled incessantly, in which the concern about Krupal's situation and the sorrow that had left in her heart her encounter with Naruto fought against each other, in an attempt to claim her attention more than the other one.
"This way", her classmate said, distracting her from her thoughts. "When I went to find you, the policemen were walking towards the Medical School. I hope that the news do not spread throughout the campus! If that it is the case, I can bet that all the people who live in the university will going to be around the school, trying to see what it is going on! You know how these things are!"
The two women approached as quickly as possible to the mentioned school and, when they finally arrived, Hinata saw that the prediction made by her companion had become real.
Indeed, a mass of people, in which where students of all the schools, teachers and campus's workers, were gathered around the Medical School, making a kind of semicircle near the building. Hinata heard cries of supplication between the people who were asking for a space to see was going on ahead, jubilance of joy of those who were enjoying the spectacle and other ones that were discussing about how the events had occurred until then. Thanks to the latter, the young woman learned that the policemen had arrived to the university about fifteen minutes ago, and after a brief encounter with the rector of the university, them, accompanied by the woman, had approximated the Medical School, and since then nobody had seen them leaving the building.
"And do you know why the police have come to arrest him?" Hinata asked to the person with which she was talking.
"For murder", the person answered.
"For murder?!"
Hinata felt as her mouth got dry and how her legs lost their strength to maintain her straight. Was Krupal being arrested for murder? No, no, no. The police should be committing a mistake! Krupal was incapable of killing someone! It was such the faith and the love that Hinata had for the man that in her mind was no doubt that everything that was happening was not more than a terrible error. Little could she know how wrong she was…
"I need to do something", Hinata said to her classmate. "I need to be with him."
"But how?" the woman who was with her said. "There are a lot of people between the building and us! If you try to pass through them, they are going to crush you!"
The Hyuga had to confess to herself that her companion was right. Hinata did not stand out for her height, and neither was the owner of a singular strength, and if she ventured to go through that tide of people, she would not have the opportunity to pass between them, or worse, she would result wounded. But even so she needed to be with Krupal. She needed to make him to know that she was for him in those harsh moments, just like him had backed her up in her moments of agony. She needed to say to him that everything was going to be alright, and that she would do anything she could to help him to get out in the disjunctive situation he was. But how she could go near to him?
The young woman reflected for some minutes; and finally said:
"The other entrance, the one that can be only used by the professors and students of the Medical School."
"What?" her companion asked, with a confused look on her face.
"The other entrance!" Hinata exclaimed. "That one that can be only opened with the electromagnetic cards we received at the begging of the academic year! I can go inside the building through it and go closer to Krupal…"
"But Hinata, the place must be crowded with policemen!"
"I must take the risk… I have to make sure he does not feel alone…"
Without waiting for an answer or a confirmation from her fellow classmate, Hinata walked quickly towards this other entrance, the one that she had talked about, took out her card from her school bag and let it the be read by the computer system of the door. When the electromagnetic reader confirmed her as a member of the school, the door opened to her with a soft movement. The Hyuga entered in the building as stealthy as possible.
Inside the edifice reigned a heavy silence, as if the sound itself did not dare to disturb the important event that was happening inside those walls.
Hinata took a moment to locate in which place she was. When she was sure where she was, she moved silently, following a direction that the destiny itself seemed to fix as certain. The greater the distance she traveled, sharper were the sounds of human voices and human steps that reached her ears. The Hyuga soon found the first policeman patrolling; and taking infinite precautions, moving behind his back, she moved forward while the man studied his surroundings.
Suddenly Hinata realized that her steps were taking her out towards the area in which were the offices of the professors who worked to the Medical School. There, the sound of voices and human footwear were clearer. As a shadow, taking care of where she put her feet, Hinata made her way through the building until reaching, for her surprise, the room in which Krupal was being held.
The young woman did not take long to recognize him. First she saw his characteristic orange hair, and later, while she got up and up (she had been walking in a crouch to not be detected), she observed more of him, like him seated in a chair, with his hands behind his back, probably handcuffed. Hinata felt as tears began to accumulate in her eyes, but soon she controlled herself, changing her emotion for a happy one when she saw that the room in which the man was being held was empty, except for him.
Hinata could not hold longer her emotions. She jumped towards him, crying with a mix of happiness and sadness:
"Krupal!"
The man turned around his head when he heard his name.
But Krupal was not the only one who heard her. At the sound of her voice, two policemen walked closer to Hinata.
"Miss, you should not be here!" one of them said, at the same time as he took her by the arm.
The policeman tried to drag her out of the place, but Hinata struggled with all her force, and such was the intensity of the fight between the two that Randhawa said, with an anger tone of voice:
"Enough! Release her! She is only a student of mine! Release her, I say!"
The policemen saw the professor with a challenge expression, as if they were asking themselves with what right that scumbag was asking for something when he had have committed a murder.
In that moment a third person made his presence in the room, surely attracted by the sound of the discussion. When he saw the scene that was displayed in front of him, the man said:
"Can someone tell me what is going on?"
Both men of the law hurried to answer as immediately as possible the question. The other one saw the four elements of the room, as if he could not believe all the problems a girl like Hinata had caused between his acolytes. After some minutes, exhaling, he said:
"Alright, you can stay, miss. But only for five minutes."
Hinata accepted the terms.
When the young woman was released, and she found herself alone with Krupal, she jumped toward him and embraced him, at the same time sad tears fell through her cheeks. Randhawa could not hug her, because his hands were trapped in the handcuffs, but nevertheless he put his chin over Hinata's head, trying to show to her his desire to hold her against his body.
They stayed in that way for some time, until Krupal said:
"You should have not done that. Now they are going to link you with me."
"I do not care", Hinata said with the tone of voice of someone who is sure of what it is saying. "I do not care if they do that…"
"Even though they consider me a killer?"
"I know you are innocent! All this is a misunderstanding!"
Krupal smiled.
"You do not know how happy it makes to me that you believe in me, my little one."
Hinata saved the distances and joined her lips with the man's one. Both shared an affectionate kiss, in which they expressed their love and the trust they had in the other.
When they separated, Hinata smiled.
"You are not alone", she said.
"I know", the man answered. "I have you by my side."
"I am going to do everything to help you. Tell me what you need, and I promise I will do all I can to make this easy for you."
"Hinata, do not worry. I promise I am going to be alright. Besides, your presence and your trust in me is all what I need."
Hinata smiled again, but this time she could not hold at bay her sadness. A silence grew up between the two lovers. The young woman felt, during those minutes, as if the heavy burden she had been carrying on her shoulders since her fight with Naruto was showing it effects on her face.
Her situation did not pass unnoticed by her companion, because Krupal said:
"Is there something bothering you, my love?"
Hinata shook her head, trying to show in her face a peaceful smile.
"I just had a little discussion with Naruto."
Randhawa drew in his face an expression of discontent.
"That boy!" he exclaimed. "I swear if I see him again, I will make him pay for making you suffer."
The young woman moved her head in disagreement.
"Do not do it!" she begged. "Now I feel good. You are the only one I need in my life…"
In that moment the third policeman entered in the room.
"Miss, I must ask you to leave", he said. "This man is going to go to the police station right now."
Krupal motioned for her to accept the conditions of the man, and Hinata left the place in silent. Some minutes later, as well as the others, she was a witness of how the policemen took the professor out of the university. The young woman felt as her heart broke in pieces at the terrible vision.
Some hours later, when the waters had calmed down and everyone had returned to their normal activities, the rector of the university made it known, through the sounds systems that were throughout the campus, that due the commotion that had induced the detention of one of the university's professors, she had made the arrangement so students, as well as the rest of the college's staff, could retire to their homes while she, as well as other important members of the campus, thought about the best way to cope with the terrible situation.
When, moments later, Hinata was leaving the residence in which she had lived during her period as college student, with her suitcases ready for the journey back to home, she encountered Sakura at the entrance of the apartment. The Hyuga had never seen the pink-haired woman as coldly as she was seeing her in that moment.
"I guess Naruto has told you what has happened between us", she said. "And I am also sure that Krupal's arrest makes you happy."
"Hinata…" Sakura murmured with sad voice.
"But you know what? I do not care… It does not matter for me anymore what both of you think… Tell Naruto that if he can not respect my happiness, then I do not want to see him again. And that go for you also, and for the others."
After she said those words, she left without waiting for an answer.
The days passed for Hinata with heaviness and a feel of uneasiness. After Krupal's arrest, there was not a single journal, television channel or web page that did not talk about the story of the professor, of how the police force had went to the university in which he was working to arrest him, and how they especially delighted to talk about the charge that was imputed to him. They spoke about the victim, a young woman, who aspired to be a policewoman, whose name was Alice Brown, and who had been murdered at the beginning of that brand-new year by nothing less than the terrifying and prolific killer, the red-eyed monster. It was about this point, more than anything else, with which the media got heated. As that detective that Hinata had met some months ago, and who had accused Krupal to be the red-eyed demon only because the color of his eyes, the mass media had had taken that aspect of Randhawa's physiognomy to say without second thoughts that he was the serial killer.
A pale winter morning, while she was having breakfast, Hinata read this article in one of the most important newspapers of the city:
ALICIE BROWN'S KILLER READY FOR BEING INTERROGATED
Yesterday at noon this newspaper has received the confirmation, from a true and reliable source, that Krupal Randhawa, the assistant of a renowned medical dean and, apparently, a prominent pathology specialist, is going to be interrogated by the police tomorrow about his role in the murder of the young woman Alice Brown.
David Craig, the detective in charge with his case, and who also has been chasing the notorious assassin, the red-eyed monster, for various months, has confessed yesterday to us how much excited he feels before the perspective to put in jail the man, who he believe is the famous serial killer.
"I am sure this time we, the police, have all the proof to demonstrate that not only Randhawa has killed Alice Brown, but also that he is the red-eyed monster himself", he said.
On the other hand, Krupal Randhawa, who is waiting in a maximum security prison for his sentence, seems confident about his innocence.
Did really kill Alice Brown? Is really he the infamous red-eyed monster? We, as you, can only wait for the truth to be unveiled.
Hinata could not help but make an expression of annoyance at the news.
"What happen?" her father, who was seated by her side, asked to her.
The young woman, in response, handed to him the newspaper.
Hiashi said, after he finished reading the article:
"And what do you want to do, daughter? I do not think that Randhawa is so stupid to commit a murder. He left in me a good impression when we saw each other, that night he brought you to home. He is an intelligent and sagacious man. I can not imagine him as a killer. But, even so, there is little we can do for him from our position…"
"There has to be something we can do for him!" Hinata exclaimed. "We can testify in his favor, hire a good lawyer for him… I am not going to abandon him in his moment of need!"
Hiashi opened his eyes in an expression of bewilderment. He had not surprised by Hinata's words as much as he was by the attitude with which she had said them. Beyond the almost infantile tantrum with which she had expressed her desires to help the man, there was something Hiashi had never seen in his daughter: a determined attitude that bordered on stubbornness.
It was not like Hiashi was amazed only by the fact that Hinata could be a stubborn person. No, it was because he had never conceived that his fragile and timid daughter could show the attitude of someone who wants to reach its goals at any cost. The Hyuga patriarch could not help but be surprised, more than amazed, be proud. For so many years he had tried that Hinata could show at least a bit of her Hyuga lineage, and now there she was, showing to him that she, at least for a few moments, could have a strong personality.
"Well", he said, trying to hide how proud he was, "I am going to talk to my lawyer. He is one of the best, so I hope he reaches your expectations."
"Thank you, father", Hinata said, with the happiness of someone who has achieved something important.
Neji, Hiashi's nephew and Hinata's cousin, who was assisting the breakfast, drew in his face a disbelief expression, as if he could not believe what he had seen.
Hours later, that same day, father and daughter headed down to the prison in which Randhawa was. At the first moment, the guards who secured the jail did not let them passed, but when Hiashi identified himself, the agents immediately gave them free access, wishing to avoid any confronting with such important man. They were accompanied by the lawyer Hiashi had hired to defend Krupal.
A guard led them to the place where visitors were received. He asked them to wait, since the prisoner was talking with someone else, and it was only allow a visit per time.
While they waited for their chance to see Krupal, Hinata looked around her. The jail was one of those high modernity prisons, equipped with all the new technologies that made prisoners and officers lives more comfortable. White walls, white floors, comfy chairs and wooden tables scattered here and there, a pair of televisions, which were tune in the news. In spite of being a prison, everything in it conveyed an atmosphere of order and calm.
But suddenly Hinata stopped her appreciation of the prison to look at something that attracted her attention. It was not a something, but a someone, a woman, who was crying silently in a corner of the room, holding between her hands a handkerchief, intended to dry her tears. She was a beautiful woman, of the same height as Hinata, with short and curly light brown hair and a delicate skin. Her eyes, irritated by the tears, offered a mesmerizing honey tone. She looked like an angel who had lost her path in that awful prison, a fallen angel who could not remember how Heaven looked like.
For a moment both women exchanged looks. Hinata felt compassions for her tears; but also she perceived the strange sensation that she was being observed by a person who knew her. As soon as the other woman looked in another direction, the sensation disappeared.
Why Hinata had had that feeling? Why it had looked to her as if the other woman knew her? The Hyuga shook her head, pushing away from her mind those thoughts. It was not the time to think about something more than Krupal.
In that moment a man entered in the room. He moved closer to the woman and said something in her ear. Hinata thought that maybe the both of them were related in some way.
Suddenly the man turned around and he made an expression of surprise when he saw the group formed by Hinata, her father and the lawyer. He came closer to them.
"You must be Hinata, I think", he said, stretching out his hand toward the young woman. "He", the man added, pointing with his head at a place inside the building, "has told me a lot about you."
Hinata blushed. She accepted the hand the man had stretch toward her. The young woman made the presentations, pointing out her father and the lawyer, who the newcomer greeted.
"Wow!" the man exclaimed. "The Hyuga family is helping him! How lucky he is!"
"Sorry for asking this, but you have not introduced yourself", Hinata pointed out.
"So sorry! I beg your pardon for my manners!" the man said, smiling. "My name is James Patterson, I am Krupal's lawyer."
The young woman saw him confused.
"His lawyer?" she asked.
"That's right!" the man answered, nodding. "Why do you ask?"
Hiashi said for his daughter:
"We have hired a lawyer to represent Krupal Randhawa. We did not know he already has had a lawyer."
Patterson laughed.
"Do not worry!" he said. "I am like Krupal's friend, and it happens that I am also a lawyer. I am not the best, but he trusts me! But I insist, do not worry. Even though it would be a pleasure to have the help of colleague, I can assure to you that this case does not hold water. Krupal is in jail more than anything by the whim of that detective, David Craig. But you know how the police are! A person is guilty until proven otherwise… Do not worry, miss", the lawyer persisted, "I am going to do everything in my power to make Krupal a free man, I swear it to you."
The lawyer's good vibes were so contagious that Hinata nodded, feeling sure that he was not lying.
After the conversation, the lawyer, followed by the woman, left the prison.
When the guard who had led them inside the building had asked which of the three were going to see the prisoner first, both her father and the lawyer let Hinata to have some minutes alone with Krupal. During their encountered, she promised to him once more that she was not going to leave him alone.
When the interview finished, the young woman returned to her home with her father.
That night, when Hinata went to bed, she prayed for Krupal's liberation.
David Craig smiled with a submissive smile, trying to hide his overgrowing happiness. Never in his life had he felt as happy as he was feeling in that moment. As a policeman, he had never sought revenge against another person, but with Krupal Randhawa things were different; and be there, while he was a witness of how his enemy was going up the stairs that led inside the police station with his hands behind his back, restrained them by the handcuffs, was a scene that not only meant for him that finally his revenge was within his grasp, but also the pleasure of a man who has imagined such panorama for a long time.
Alice, his cherished Alice, would be avenged! Her death would not go unpunished! The detective did not have doubts that it was Randhawa's hands the ones that were tainted with Alice's blood. He had killed her! And David Craig was going to make him pay for his crime!
The detective followed with his gaze the procession in silence and with impatience. He was looking forward to the moment in which the interrogation would go to start, for the moment in which he would let Randhawa know that he had won a victory over him. The prisoner disappeared inside the building, and Craig went along behind him.
For the important event, and sure of his success, the detective had invited the district chief and the mayor to be witness for the occasion. Both men felt as eager as him before the perspective to finally have the opportunity to put their hand over the man the policeman so firmly believed was the red-eyed killer himself. Craig thought, unable to avoid a sarcastic smile, that Randhawa could not complain of not having important observers for his interrogation.
Krupal was accompanied by his lawyer. The man and his client entered in the interrogation room, and Craig and a fellow coworker of him followed behind. The detective took a chair on the opposite side that the other two occupied; and Randhawa and he exchanged a look. They both challenged the other with their look, like two duelists who face a duel that they know that one of the two will not survive.
Craig cleared his throat and began:
"Mister Randhawa, I hope you cooperate with us."
"I am here only to help with what I can", the man said with a smile.
"Well, in that case, I believe you will not object if I ask you to sign this…"
The detective put a paper on the table, object which separated the two, and pushed it towards the man. After reading it, Randhawa and his lawyer understood that the paper was a signed confession, in which the accused, after signing, was committed to tell the truth and to know that everything he would say inside the room could be used against him in court.
After the lawyer and his client exchanged a look, the latter waiting for a confirmation of his attorney, Krupal signed the paper and handed it to the detective.
"Very well", the detective said with the confidence of the player who begin to move the pieces in the chess table; at the same time he handed the paper to his coworker, "let's start with this."
He cleared his throat once more.
"Mister Randhawa", he said suddenly, "did you kill Alice Brown?"
"My client does not have to…!" the lawyer began.
But Randhawa interrupted him, saying:
"No, I do not kill her."
"Well, I think you are lying", Craig said a challenging tone of voice.
"And I think you have something against me", the prisoner retorted.
The detective smiled and said with joy:
"Of course I have something against you! Proofs! Proofs that you were the last person who have seen Alice alive!"
"Circumstantial proofs", the lawyer responded, crossing his arms in a defiant attitude.
The detective laughed.
"Circumstantial proofs, you say? No! Accurate evidences! We know that your client was with Alice Brown, having dinner with her, in the days close to her death, that he had meetings with her and that even he shared some kind of… correspondence with the victim."
"And are not those circumstantial proofs?" the lawyer asked, frowning.
"Certainly not!" Craig retorted. "First, we have the testimony of a waitress who works in the diner to which mister Randhawa took Alice, and this woman can swear without doubt that this man is the one she saw in that opportunity."
"And what else do you have?" Krupal asked in a tone of voice that sounded ironic.
"The testimony of one of your hairs, which we found in the clothes Alice wore in her last moments", Craig said with certain brightness of madness in his eyes, sure that the other man did not expect that.
The lawyer seemed obfuscated, as if he had not imagined that such evidence could exits. He saw Krupal with a confused look, and then the detective, who had a smirk on his face.
Nevertheless, he did not let see his commotion when he said:
"What make you think that the hair belongs to my client?"
"First at all, its strange color. You will see, the hair has an orange tone, the same color of the ones that are in the head of your client. And second, the results of the DNA test our experts did to it, and the exam revealed that the hair has the same DNA as mister Randhawa here."
For a second time the lawyer exchanged a confused look with Krupal, who, unlike him, was calm, as if the proof presented by the detective meant nothing to him.
"Is that everything?" Randhawa asked nonchalance.
"No", Craig answered, still smiling. "We found, in Alice's residence, a group of envelopes, five of them. You can look at them if you want, but I think it will not be necessary."
The detective put on the table the mentioned envelopes. In all of them was written in a corner: "To David Craig".
"Envelopes?" the lawyer asked, frowning, puzzled.
"Yes", Craig answered, nodding. "Letter envelopes that were send to the victim by mister Randhawa."
"Did I send them?" Krupal said mockingly.
The detective nodded, feeling sure of what he had said.
But Krupal retorted:
"That is not my handwriting."
"We will see about that…" the detective murmured disdainfully.
"I can prove it immediately. Just give me a paper and a pen."
And he took from the table both objects and he wrote the same words, "to David Craig", on the paper sheet.
"Compare it yourself", he said, giving to the detective the sheet.
The man took the paper and one of the envelopes and studied them. Honestly, both handwritings were completely different, but the detective did not pay attention to this detail and said as if nothing had changed:
"Our expert in graphology will study it. Meanwhile, let's continue."
"Excuse me", the lawyer interrupted, "but what is the content of the envelopes? I talk about the letters inside them. You will not pretend that they are empty, will you?"
The detective was uncomfortable before answering:
"Well, in fact, inside the envelopes were paper sheets, but they are empty. Nothing was written on them…"
In that moment a thunderous laughter resonated through the room. It was Krupal, who was laughing out loud.
"Empty?!" he exclaimed, incapable to hold his laugh.
"Kur… Krupal, enough! Stop laughing!" the lawyer scolded him.
"I can not!" the man said, holding his ribs. "Did they arrest me, brought me here and present me to this pseudo detective for some empty letters?! Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
Craig felt pissed.
Randhawa breathed many times, trying to control himself, and when his laughter did not sound more around the room, he said sarcastically:
"Let me see if I understand. You, Craig, believe I murdered Alice…"
His lawyer motioned to him to keep quiet, trying to remind to him the clauses of the contract that he had signed at the beginning of the interrogatory, but Randhawa shook his head.
"No, James, let me finish", he said. "Let me end with this stupidity, because this charade it is nothing more than a stupidity. Let's go the beginning… What would you say, Craig, if I tell you that I knew Alice before her death and that all the evidences you have presented against me means nothing?"
The detective, his coworker and the lawyer saw the man astonished.
"You are lying…" Craig murmured.
"No, I am not doing it", Randhawa answered very calm. "I knew Alice. It could be said that we were friends. One day, while I was walking, I found her alone, in a plaza. She was very sad and angry because her terrible situation with her mother, so I offered myself to share her pain. Since then we began closer."
"Since when do you know her?" Craig's coworker asked for him.
"Less than a year ago."
"But you are working as an assistant for this medical teacher, August Blunt… When did you have time to see her?"
"You have said it, my friend, I am an assistant, not a qualify teacher. My free time is greater than the teachers who work in the university; besides, Alice and I only met at night, when she finished her duties, or on weekends."
The man who had conducted the interrogation for those brief moments fell silent, as if he could not think of anything more to ask to the accused.
But Krupal, eager to tell his version of the story, continued:
"We did not see each other every day, of course, but we had enough meetings to know many things about the other's life. I used to support her, to let her unload her frustrations with me. Effectively, the last time I saw her was this January. She was very sad because her mother had taken her brothers to a trip during Christmas, and she was spending the holiday alone. Since I also did not have any commitment during this last Christmas, I invited her to have dinner, and I was with her the following days. I am very sorry for her death, she was a great person."
"You are lying", David Craig said again. "Liar! Liar! Liar! Why did not Alice tell me about you?! We were close friends!"
"Because I asked to her to maintain in secret our relationship, and she accepted."
"How convenient! A friendship that no one knew about!" the detective scoffed.
"It is my words against yours", Randhawa said. "They have the same weight as your supposed evidences."
Craig draw a crazed smile on his face, while, and in a sudden manner, he leaned on the table, getting closer to Krupal. Randhawa's challenging smirk did not help his mood.
"Ok", the detective murmured. "If that is how you want things to be, let's let them be like that… Maybe my trump cards are not enough, but I know you killed Alice… Maybe you were friends, but this does not change anything… You can not deny the evidence of your hair in her clothes… That puts you as suspect of the crime against her…"
"Maybe there is another explanation of why my hair ended in her clothes…"
"And what other possible cause can justify it?"
Krupal smiled in a way his gesture irritated the detective.
"Maybe we were… more than friends… if you know what I mean", he said.
As soon as those words left the accused's mouth, something broke inside Craig. His hands twitched and his face turned all red, as if he was a steam oven about to explode. And in an instant, he jumped over the table, he approached Krupal and he put his hands around his neck, trying with all his force to strangle him.
"Apologize for what you have said!" the detective cried out.
Randhawa laughed at the situation, as if he was having a lot of fun.
At the same time Krupal's lawyer, the chief inspector – who had been seeing from afar the interrogation – and the two guests (the last three entered in the room hurriedly), tried to put apart the detective from the accused, one of them still exerting pressure around his victim's neck and the other man laughing no-stop.
"Hey, stop it!" the lawyer claimed. "If you do not end this right now…"
"Craig, stop what you are doing in this very moment!" the chief inspector instructed.
But the detective did not listen, totally consumed by his anger.
That man, that Krupal, was lying! His Alice could not have had a sexual relation with that man! It was impossible! No his Alice! Never his Alice!
But suddenly the grip he had around Randhawa's neck loosened.
He was beginning to remember a conversation he had had with Alice after the first time he had arrested the red-eyed man, when they were talking about the ravages that man had left in police station's female staff. She had said to him something like she had not let herself go for his charms because she already loved another man.
What if Alice had said this to not betray the promise she had made to the man? What if Alice did not have look like she was attracted by the man because she was already in loved with him? Even though they were friend, Craig did not know as much as he would have liked about Alice's personal life beyond her horrible live with her mother, and the consequences of it. If she and that man were lovers, he could not say if it was true or false.
But even so, he did not believe in such possibility. The Alice he knew was not that kind of woman that Randhawa wanted to make see. His Alice was a strong woman, with strong convictions, and he was sure that the misgivings he felt towards the man had impregnated themselves in her. She should know very well what kind of man Randhawa was, and it was most likely that she would not have approached him even if the man had promised to her the most marvelous things of the world.
Slowly he moved away the hands he had around Randhawa's neck, as if he was not convinced that this was the best way to act.
Patterson walked closer to his client to help him recover, as well as the chief inspector approached Craig.
"It was something stupid what you did", he said.
"I am sorry", the detective murmured.
"I think it is time to finish this", the chief inspector added. "Someone take the prisoner out of here."
Krupal, followed by his lawyer, was conducted out of the interrogation room by a pair of policeman. After he left the room, the rest of people exited the place as well, Craig was left alone with his thoughts.
"Well, that was interesting", the chief inspector, who had not left the room, said. "Despite having let you get carried away by your emotions, you did a great job. That man, Krupal Randhawa, seems like the kind of man you do not want to have as an enemy. Maybe he is very intelligent, but he also is a crazy man!"
Craig did not respond.
As if his companion could understand his mood, the chief inspector put a hand over his shoulder and said to him in a friendly way:
"Do not put that face, David. We still have some arms against him to explore. Here, we have to ask the graphologist to compare this handwriting on the paper sheet with the one in the envelopes; and also we can ask that waitress more about what had happened during the meeting between Alice and Randhawa. But I warn you…"
The chief inspector changed his voice for a serious one.
"If these things do not work against Randhawa, we will have to release him…"
The detective did not want to think about that possibility.
During the days that followed, the specialist studied both handwritings while Craig called again the waitress of the diner to interrogate her. From both sides there was not hope.
As it was obvious, there was not need to call an expert to compare Randhawa's way of writing with the handwriting in the envelopes. At first glance they were so different that, initially, the graphologist thought he was being subjected to bad taste joke. At the end, he confirmed that both handwritings were not similar.
As for the waitress, when the detective asked her what kind of relationship did she think was between Krupal and Alice, she answered that for her they looked like friends.
And with this last one, all the evidences Craig had managed to reunite against the supposed criminal went to nothing. In the way his boss had told him the news, the detective understood that there was not anything he could do anymore.
"I am used to this", he said with sad voice.
The next day a release order was issued for Krupal Randhawa. David Craig did not know how, but as soon as the order had been printed, the media of the entire city published the news. Krupal Randhawa was going to be free! The police had committed a mistake by blaming him! And now what was going to happen with Alice Brown's case? The detective felt that defeat as a personal setback.
Yes, he had become accustomed to be overcome by the red-eyed monster, whatever was his disguise. He could imagine the killer pointing out towards him, laughing and mocking for his defeat against the policeman.
But the detective could not even imagine what was going to happen to him in that occasion.
He was in his office, holding in his hands the only photograph he had of Alice, when the chief inspector entered.
"I need to talk to you", he said.
Craig did not know why, but the man's words put him nervous.
The detective asked the chief inspector to take a seat and the man sat in front of him.
"There is no easy way to say this", his boss began, "but I have to ask you to leave this case."
"What?" Craig said, astonished.
The detective could not believe his ears. Did he really have heard what he had understood?
"I am sorry", the chief inspector continued, "but after your behavior during the interrogation, especially when you put your hands around Randhawa's neck, it was not liked of the district chief and the mayor. They thought that you let yourself be carried away by your personal feelings. I know, it is partly my fault. I did not have to let you to follow the case when Alice was a friend of yours."
"But I did everything I can…" Craig mumbled.
"I know. This is a difficult case and I know it very well. The red-eyed monster is truly a nightmare. It is not your fault, but you have done enough, and without any result. And your obsession with Krupal Randhawa…"
"But Krupal Randhawa is the red-eyed demon! Why you do not believe me?!"
"Because you do not have any evidence against him, that's why! This is the second time you pointed him out as the killer without any proof!"
The chief inspector took a moment to calm down.
"Look, Craig, I understand how you feel. This is your work! You have put some much effort on it! But your feelings cloud your judgment. Between the desire of revenge you feel for Alice's death and your hate for Krupal Randhawa you can not think right. That is why you have to move aside and let this case be handled by another person."
David Craig felt as he could not breathe.
The chief inspector put a hand on his shoulder, as if he wanted to comfort him.
"I am sorry", he said again. "Look, think of this as a well-deserved holiday…"
The joke did not have the effect the chief inspector expected.
"I have to ask you to pick up your things", the man said before leaving.
Craig could not believe his luck. Once more he was defeated by the red-eyed monster, once more he had to pay for the consequences of his actions. This time he had lost his job, and with it the opportunity to catch him.
The detective took a glass from the table and threw it against the opposite wall, while crying out:
"Shit!"
"All ready, we can go", James Patterson said at the same time he entered the room. "You are officially a free man."
The man, with who the lawyer was talking, smiled in a satisfactory way. In his red eyes it could be read the peacefulness of a person who has achieved all it wants.
"Are the reporters and my "fans" still out there, waiting for us?" this last said, walking towards one of the window of room.
"Yes", Patterson answered, astonished. "I still want to understand how the news reached them so fast."
The lawyer, as his companion, approached the window in which the other was, and both men saw through it. They were still in the prison where the attorney's client had been held; and outside the building, despite all the best efforts of the guards who worked there, a mass of people had managed to be around the edifice, waiting eagerly to the ex-prisoner to leave the place.
Between the people there were not only journalists. A mass group of persons, who declared themselves as the prisoner's fans, were around the jail holding banners and asking to see his idol.
The man moved his red eyes over them, feeling nauseous.
"Humanity makes me sick", he said. "There are not here for me, but for what I represent. I am just an illness for the society, and in spite of that they commend me as if I am a hero."
"It is the law of Life. The worse you are, the more they love you. You have been smart, choosing this way of life. For a guy like me, who has chosen the path of integrity, they are only left the crumbs for me. What a life!" the lawyer said, pretending to be offended.
"Poor James! Are you waiting for me to cry for you?"
The lawyer beat in a playful way his client shoulder, and both laughed.
After that, Patterson said in a serious tone of voice:
"Are you ready? We should go now."
The man asked:
"Are we going to pass through the journalists and the other people gathered down there?"
"No, even though I would be funny to see you deal with them! But we do not have time to play. Maria is waiting for you, and I promised to her I would take you with her when your liberation order was ready. As for the people, the chief of the prison has for us another path out of here, where we can go without being noticed. My car is already at the end of this pathway, waiting for us."
"Let's go then", the man said.
The lawyer and the man began to walk towards the place where the chief of the prison was waiting for them. The man of law took them to the mentioned pathway; and effectively, as the man with red eyes could see around there, there was not a person outside the jail staff to disturb them. He thanked it in silence. He was not in the mood to talk to any journalist or have a moment with his fans.
When his lawyer asked him to enter in the vehicle, he did not wait to take a seat inside the car. Moments later, the automobile's owner ignited it and began to drive towards the city.
When they reached their destination, the lawyer parked his car near a house.
"We are here", he said. "Here, take your keys. I brought them for you."
The man accepted the object and left the car.
"See you around, K!" Patterson exclaimed after this. "Give my greetings to Maria!"
The lawyer drove in the contrary direction that had taken him to there, while the man waved his hand in a farewell sign. The car disappeared in the horizon, and the man was left alone.
Then the man turned around and saw the house, his home. The keys in his hand made him feel their weight, as if they were remembering him that he had to walk towards the door and let the destiny to do its thing. But the man did not move, like he was afraid of what was going to happen once he entered the residence.
But then something occurred that took all the weight off his shoulders. Before he could move, the door opened ajar and a little person poked its face behind it. And then the little figure abandoned its position and began to run towards him. It was a little girl, between five or six years old, with long light brown hair and honey eyes.
She ran in his direction, crying out:
"Daddy! Daddy!"
Suddenly the man crouched at the same time as the little girl reached him, and he let her come towards him and hug him. He put his arms around the small figure, embracing her with all his love, enjoying the corporal heat of his daughter.
When they separated, the girl put her hands around his face, like she could not believe he was here. The man took one of them and kissed it.
"You do not know how much I have missed you, my little Ava", he said.
"I have missed you too, daddy. But now you are here!" the girl answered, saying these last words with joy.
In that moment a third person said:
"Ava, enter in the house. It is cold out here."
The one who had talked was a woman. She was leaned against the doorframe.
The girl nodded and said:
"Alright, momma."
And she ran back to the house and disappeared inside it.
The woman saw the man like she was angry with him, which make him to smiled in that way she knew he did when he made her get annoyed. She was the same woman Hinata had seen in the jail, when she went to visit Krupal.
"You can enter", she said, almost as if she was defying him.
The man moved he was inside the house.
"Are you not going to let your husband to give you a kiss after all the months he has not seen you, my beautiful Maria?" the man said with an affected voice.
The woman saw him as if she could not believe his words.