Every night for a month, Melody would don her outfit and scour the streets in hopes to find this mysterious woman. She would wander every back alley and side street, ignoring those she took this persona for in the first place, focusing intently on her newfound target. At one time she had thought she found her, but lost her in a crowd of drunks leaving a bar. She hoped that Jackie would help her with some information, but every time she asked, Jackie would tell her to drop it.

"Why are you so interested in her anyways?" Jackie slammed her knife on the work table, glaring at Melody. "She's nothing but trouble, and the less she is in our lives, the better."

Melody stopped sewing up another corpse and returned an irritated gaze. "Because that woman irks me to no end. What gives her the right to just come barging in here and accusing us of being some sort of serial killer."

"Well, in her defense, you are one," Melody's inner voice chortled.

Jackie stepped closer to Melody with a concerned look. "I only remember her accusing me. When did she accuse you?"

Melody sat on a nearby chair and let out a sigh. "After I left the morgue that day to open up my shop, I discovered she broke into my room from the outside and tried to throw the blame on me. She said that you passed on your past deeds onto me like another form of apprenticeship." Jackie balled her fists up and her nose began to flare. "I didn't want to tell you because I was trying to avoid the reaction I'm getting now. That's why I wanted to know who she was so I could handle it myself." Jackie grabbed her knife and threw it at a post, nailing it dead center. "Nice shot. Remind me to take you to the pub next week when I take on Jacob in the darts tournament."

"I can't believe that evil, good for nothing, witch thinks she can trample over me and my friends for her own personal gang!" Jackie grabbed her jacket and threw it on. "I'm heading over to their headquarters and I'm going to have a talk with them."

Melody shot out of her seat and approached Jackie, "Can I come with you?" Jackie gave her a furious look, "You know, so I can say my piece in the matter."

"Absolutely not. The less you're involved, the better. Besides, there won't be much talking; just a lot of yelling and threatening. Stay here and finish up the sewing and start on the next one. I'll be back in an hour." Jackie rushed up the stairs and slammed the door behind her.

"There went our chance of ever finding her. Now she'll probably be put on desk duty in Siberia." Melody grabbed another knife and threw it at the same post, it missing and ricocheting off of the stone wall. "Stick to stabbing; less need for accuracy."

An hour and a half later, Jackie returned with a calmer demeanor and placed her jacket on the coat rack. Melody stopped weighing the organs and welcomed Jackie's returned.

"I guess everything went smoothly. You don't seem as stressed out as you did when you left."

Jackie grabbed the bottle of whisky from under her desk and took a shot. "Yes and no. At least she won't be bothering us anymore. They plan on shipping her off to another branch."

Melody took the bottle and poured herself a shot, "I can drink to that." As she drank, she could hear her inner voice groaning and shouting out explicatives. For another rare moment, Melody was in agreement with her. With the woman gone, she would then have to wait out old age to kill her; and who knew how long that would be. "So, when is she supposed to be gone for good?"

"If it's like the last one I had booted for the same thing, she should be on a train tomorrow."

Melody grinned to herself thinking there was still a chance. She would just have to try her hardest tonight and pray that she finds her.

They work with the rest of the bodies all the way until nightfall and turn in for the night. Once Melody was sure Jackie was in bed, she dressed into her outfit and hit the streets hard. She expanded her search beyond the alleys, and went into every seedy establishment she could find. She even checked the churches, remembering their tie to the Catholic Church. The night rolled into the next morning and Melody sat on a nearby bench. She leaned her head back and groaned in defeat. "I give up. This woman is long gone by now." A soft voice from the alley behind her startled her.

"So when the chips are down, you're just going to give up? I had higher expectations for you…Ms. Charm." From out of the shadows came the elusive woman. Her prideful smile stretched from ear to ear and made Melody sick to her stomach. "Ever since finding the killer's outfit in your trunk, it wasn't hard to figure out you were the one."

"What stopped you from telling your cult or Jackie?"

"And let them take over and have all the fun before me? Besides, I wanted to do my research on you before I let them in on the news. I just thought I was going to find some information on some street rat that found a job as an assistant and worked her way up to a respectable job, all the while masquerading as a gentleman killer; but you were far more interesting. Let's start from the beginning shall we?" The woman cleared her throat and started to circle Melody like a lion would circle their prey. "Melody Charm. First recording of that name was 1012 AD in Greece and then presumed dead fifteen years later. 150 years later someone by the same name appears in the middle of a field just northeast of here until a war broke out. That same woman moved to London and took a job at a college where she meets her future husband and adopts two kids. Unfortunate what happened to them." Melody gritted her teeth, feeling pain from the pressure. "Another time skip, and somehow the same woman travels across Europe during the plague until it ends and settles down with a certain count. How's the wound by the way? Still a bit sore? Anyways, a couple hundreds of years pass and she opens a shop in China. Medicines that were all the rage and made their way back to the western world. I guess you never thought you'd become so successful and they'd still be known today? She then hops a ship and spends a decade at sea until she ends up in France." The woman scratches at her neck, "I guess you can't have your cake and eat it too. And now we come to here. The super old woman takes a job with her sister, who is still oblivious by the way, and shares a bond in both profession and hobby. I think that pretty much covers it, don't you think?"

"You forgot one thing. I didn't learn to fight or kill from Jackie." She slid her knife out of her sleeve and caught it at the handle.

"Oh trust me, I studied that part too." The woman pulled a dagger from her jacket and Melody's eyes widened. "I see you're admiring my weapon of choice. The organization has had it since the 1500's. Picked it up in Bucharest." The woman lunged out at Melody and nearly shoved the blade into her chest, Melody jumping out of the way with little time to spare.

"That's impossible. Even if you did happen to find it, it looks no different than any other blade."

"That doesn't stop it from feeling any different." She struck again and Melody grabbed the woman's arm as they both fell to the ground. They wrestled for a while until Melody felt a sharp pain in her gut.

Melody got up and stumbled backwards as she looked at the wound. The blade was stuck in her lower abdomen and blood was pouring out. She grabbed it and ripped it out, yelling in extreme pain. She was filled with mixed emotions. She was glad to finally have the dagger back, but never wanted to get stabbed by it. She looked at the wound in shock until she noticed something odd. The gash that once was pouring out blood was starting to seal up. "It's a fake," she mumbled. She turned to the woman and shouted in anger, "It's a fake!"

The woman stepped away in terror. "No, it can't be. They said it was the real thing. They said if I killed you, I'd be back in their good graces."

Melody tossed the dagger into a nearby trash pile and gripped her's tightly. "I guess they were tired of your antics and sent you out here to die."

The woman backed into a fence and fell to the ground. "Wait, hold on. We can make a deal. You let me go and I promise to never bother you or Jackie again. I'll burn all of my research. The organization never has to know. Let's start over. I'll introduce myself; I'm-," she was cut off by Melody plunging the knife into the side of her neck.

"Nobody cares who you are. Now you'll just be another nameless victim." She yanked the knife out and blood flowed out of the woman's neck. The woman writhed and seized on the ground, trying to stop the bleeding and gasping for air. It was a painful death, but Melody reveled in it as she watched until the woman laid still. "And now to add my signature." Melody was about to start cutting when she heard a gasp behind her. She turned to see a disheveled woman staring at her in shock. Before Melody could say anything, the woman turned and ran. "Crap." Melody ditched her current project and ran after the other woman. If she let her escape, she would be turned in for sure. Melody caught up with the woman and threw her into a nearby dark alley. The lady fell to the ground and hit her head. As she tried to stumble her way back up, Melody pinned her to the ground and slit her throat. She thought about leaving the body here, but something inside compelled her to finish what she started. So she turned the woman over and went to work.

-o-O-o-

Melody woke up early and went down to make some breakfast. As she cooked, she hummed to herself gleefully, thinking back of how she finally caught that demonic woman. She was a little upset she had to kill the other, but got over it quickly knowing she was another prostitute she had seen a week ago. She was bound to kill her sooner or later. She stopped scrambling the eggs when she heard a noise coming from the stairs. She noticed Jackie coming down, already dressed for work. "Breakfast will be ready shortly. The sausages and bacon are already done if you want something to nibble on while you wait for the eggs."

"Don't mind if I do." Jackie grabbed a strip of bacon and walked back into the morgue. A few minutes went by and she could hear Jackie talking to someone. Melody thought Jackie was just getting a new body to work on. She chuckled, thinking if it might be the pain she took care of. Her answer was given when she heard the metal tools hit the ground and Jackie scream at the top of her lungs.

Melody placed the pan on an unlit burner and rushed out. "What is it? What's wrong?" Jackie pointed a shaky finger at one of the two new bodies that were covered. Melody pulled the blanket back and saw the twisted face the woman hunter. "I guess this is a reminder of why people should keep their nose out of other people's business." Melody turned to see Jackie with a disgusted look on her face. "Oh come on, don't look at me like that. If you want to look bad at anyone, look at the hunters that way. They're probably the one that did this after she embarrassed them."

"No, you don't understand. They never kill one of their own."

"They killed your father, didn't they? And if I remember correctly, you said he was one of them."

"That's different. He was excommunicated from the organization after falling for my mother. That made him fair game. She was still a member. Now they're going to think I did this out of rage. I need to start packing and run."

Melody grabbed Jackie to calm her down. "First, you need to breathe. Secondly, I can vouch for you if they come around. I didn't get the best of sleep last night and I could hear you snoring in the room all night." As if she said the magic words, the front door slammed open and a tall man with grey hair came flying down the steps.

"Where is she?! Where is my daughter?" The man stopped at the table with the hunter and caressed her blood stained cheek in her hand. His gaze turned to Jackie and hatred flashed in his eyes. "Did you do this?"

"No sir, I would never go this far. I was mad yesterday, but I came back here, worked some more, and then went to bed."

Melody looked at Jackie with disbelief. She talked to the woman with such bravado the other day, but she spoke to this hunter like he was her boss. "She's right, she never left the house since coming back from talking to you."

"Who are you and what gives you the right to speak to me?"

Jackie jumped in front of Melody as if to defend her. "I'm sorry about that. She is my assistant and is very protective of me. At times she acts almost like an older sister." Melody snickered to herself, thinking about how true the statement was. Jackie turned to Melody and shoved her towards the kitchen. "Why don't you finish breakfast while I talk to Mr. Flailing."

Melody went into the kitchen, but instead of working on breakfast, she stood by the doorway to try and listen. She could hear the one Jackie called Mr. Flailing clearly, but struggled to hear the meek responses from Jackie. She heard the front door slam closed and then footsteps approaching the kitchen. Melody backed away and made it look like she was putting the finishing touches on the meal. "So, how did it go?"

Jackie sat down, showing all color void from her face. "He wants me to investigate his daughter's murder personally. And if I don't come up with a suspect within the week, he'll tell the police I did it."

"But that's not true, you didn't do it."

"I know that," Jackie yelled at Melody. Jackie took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell. It's just I can feel everything I worked for slipping away all because of some lunatic."

"Haha, yeah. Just some lunatic." Melody gripped the wooden spoon so tight that it snapped in her hand. "Whoops, I guess I wasn't paying attention."

Jackie reached over and took the broken spoon out of Melody's hand. "Melody, you wouldn't happen to know anything about this, would you? You've been really adamant lately on finding her, and then all of a sudden she winds up dead."

"Just a weird coincidence is all. Now let's get started on these new incomings. The mystery won't solve itself." Melody took a step towards the door and Jackie walked over to block her.

"Sorry, but not this time. Mr. Flailing wants me to work on it personally; and only me."

Melody tilted her head, a slight twitch in her eye. "It's almost as if you don't trust me."

"No, it's not that at all." Jackie rubbed the back of her neck to think. Melody knew this as one of Jackie's tells that she was about to lie. "It's just the organizations way of keeping me accountable. I'll let you know if something comes in unrelated, but for now just work at your shop." Jackie walked into the morgue and bolted it closed from the other side.

Melody retreated back to her room and closed the door behind her. She went to open the outside door when she heard a voice behind her.

"She knows. It's only a matter of time before she confirms it." Melody's specter was standing in front of the mirror adjusting the top hat of her killer outfit.

"You don't know that. She's just under a lot of stress from the organization. It has to go perfect or fingers would be pointed at her." The apparition gave Melody a disgruntled look and then went back to adjusting her hat. "Who am I kidding? You're right. But how could she have figured it out. I was careful in hiding everything."

"Except for your constant demanding of the woman's identity. That's probably when she started to suspect things."

"I'll just have to find a way to alter the evidence; or I could kill everyone in the organization."

"You couldn't find one woman until she came looking for you. Do you really think you can find the rest of the hunters? And we both know that Jackie is never going to let you anywhere near the bodies. Face it, you screwed up big time here. You're only option is to run."

"I screwed up?! You're the one that encouraged this behavior."

"And after 700 years together, now is the time you listen to me? These are all your decisions."

She was right. She could never control Melody's actions. The specter was only a spectator and a critic. It was Melody that made the decisions. Melody sat on her bed and placed her face in her hands. "What have I done? I had something perfect here. A job, a family member that loved me, and a business that was just getting well established. And I squander all of that away because of a tantrum. Now I have to run and leave everything behind, and fast before Jackie finds out." Melody grabbed her bag and started to pack everything she could fit inside. She was nearly done when she heard a knock on the door.

"Melody, can you come down for a moment. We need to talk."

Melody closed her eyes and cursed under her breath. She already knew what she wanted to talk about, but hoped it would take a lot longer. She walked down while rehearsing different ways this could play out, and hoped maybe she could get Jackie to let it slide if she could make her believe she would never kill again. Melody found Jackie sitting at her desk with multiple files on top.

"Have a seat Melody." Melody sat at the chair on the other side of the desk and waited patiently. "Do you know what these files are?"

Melody quickly glanced at the envelopes. "Those would be the final reports we do for each body."

"Correct. I would like you to glance through them and let me know if you see anything unusual."

Melody grabbed the first one and recognized the inscriptions being the review of her first victim. She perused it, pretending to read and comprehend the information written. When she finished that one, she did the same with the other three. When she was done, she placed them neatly back onto the desk. "I don't know."

"The cuts. Except for this one," Jackie held up the file on the hunter, "all of the cuts are alike. They were done with the same knife using the same technique. A technique that is taught to surgeons," she looked at Melody, "and morticians. On top of that, each person has their own style of cutting, and it's never duplicated except for someone that was recently taught by another and hasn't had enough time to create their own. After studying the marks made, I have come to conclude that these are MY cuts. However, I know I did not do these, so that only leaves one other person." Jackie slammed the file down and leaned closer to Melody, "Why?"

"Why what?"

Jackie grabbed a knife and stabbed it into the desk in front of Melody. "Why did you go around and murder these women?! What kind of a psychopath are you? I should have known you were trouble from the start when you tried to kill me, but I took pity on you since we had a similar distrust in my mother. I grew to love you like a friend, a sister even."

Melody let out a small laugh. "Funny story. You may not believe this at first, but you'll learn to, knowing your mother. I actually am you sister, your much OLDER sister."

Jackie grabbed her glass of whisky and threw it into Melody's face. "That's not funny. Even if it were true, no sister of mine would betray me the way you did." Jackie sat back down and stared at Melody. "Though you do sort of look like mom, but that can just be the whisky talking." Jackie let out a loud sigh and leaned her head back. "Whether you're my sister or not, I can't stand by what you did. However, because of how close we've been, I'm giving you the same opportunity I gave mom. You have until tomorrow morning to leave. After that, I'll let both the hunters and authorities know you fled; then you're on your own." Jackie walked over to the coat rack and grabbed her jacket, "Until then, I'm staying at a friend's house and I'm taking the files with me. Goodbye Melody, and good luck." Jackie walked through the doorway and slowly closed it behind her.

"That definitely moves our time tables up a bit."

"It's not enough time. We're on an island. Whether we stay here or somehow make it to another part of Europe, we'll still be hunted."

"What's this 'we' stuff? You're the one in trouble. I'm just along for the ride. Even if you're locked away for all eternity, I'll always have someone to talk to."

Melody stared at the table trying to come up with an idea. A glint of light flickered in the corner of her eye and she saw the knife still sticking out of the desk. She extracted it and examined the steel edge. "I have no other choice. I'm going to have to kill her too."

"Did I just hear that right? You're going to kill you own sister. Wow, that is extremely dark…I'm in." Melody rushed up to her room to collect her costume when the other piped up, "By the way, do you know what friend she went to?"

Melody sifted through the trunk and grabbed the cape and hat, "Probably to her friend Mary who lives on Miller Court. She's always heading there when she had a problem that she didn't want me involved." She walked down the outside flight of stairs and made her way to Jackie's possible location.

Melody made it there just before midnight and waited in the dark across the street. She couldn't get a closer look or she would be spotted, but luckily the window was slightly ajar, so Melody could hear the voices inside. She could distinctly hear Jackie's voice and another woman discussing how she and Melody were having issues and didn't want to be in the house tonight. She stood quietly away from the street until the lights inside went out. She had seen Jackie lay down in the bed closest to the window, so that was where she would attack. She could only hope that her friend would not hear.

A half hour went by and Melody was sure they were both asleep by now. She crept up to the door and picked the lock. She slowly opened it and snuck her way into the home. It was small, just a single bedroom and a back door. She turned to the bed and saw a lone person sleeping in it. She believed Jackie's friend had left out the back for whatever reason, so she knew she had to act fast before the friend returned. Melody hovered over the bed, raising the knife high above her head. "Sorry sis, but it's all for the greater good." Forgoing her normal tactics, she plunged the knife several times into the woman's chest. She could hear gasps and gargles each time she struck, until the body went completely limp. Melody continued to strike in an attempt to make sure she was dead. On her last strike, the blade snapped from the handle and stayed wedged in the chest. She tossed the handle aside and escaped the way she came. She ditched the costume in the nearby trash and made her way back home where she grabbed up her belongings and made her way to the docks.

"I need a ticket to the first ship out of here," she demanded of the clerk.

He checked the registry and turned back to Melody. "First ship out is heading to New York City at eleven am. That will be twenty pounds." Melody handed him the money and found a bench where she cold rest her head.

-o-O-o-

She awoke to the sound of a kid yelling out about the latest headline.

"Extra, extra, read all about it! Leading suspect of the infamous killer now known as Jack the Ripper has been caught!"

Melody leapt out of the bench and ran over to the kid. She handed him five shillings and yanked the paper away from him. The kid stuck a tongue out at her and went back to selling the rest of his papers. Melody sat back down with the paper and started to read.

The notorious killer now known as Jack the Ripper was found today standing

over the body of her latest victim. Jaqueline Ripe, formerly known as

Silent Hill, has used her talents as a mortician to slaughter the women of London.

Suspect denies these allegations and states her apprentice, Melody Charm,

is the culprit behind these heinous crimes. Efforts to locate Ms. Charm

have been fruitless. Authorities believe she may be an unknown victim

of Jack the Ripper. Any information leading to the whereabouts of

Ms. Charm will be greatly welcomed. Ms. Ripe shall remain at the Tower

of London as she awaits trial. If found guilty, she will be hanged by the neck.

"But, I thought I killed Jackie. If I didn't kill her, then who-," Melody covered her mouth and gasped. She suddenly realized that who she killed was Jackie's friend Mary, and that Jackie must have left the premises. Melody crumpled up the paper and tossed it to the ground. Melody closed her eyes to try to forget this whole ordeal, but her inner voice wouldn't let her.

"So let's run down everything we know. You killed an innocent person, framed your sister for the murders, and now she is going to hang for crimes she didn't commit. Inadvertently you faked your own death and have a clean slate, so that's a plus."

"I should have walked away the moment I realized who she was. Maybe then for once a child of such a wicked monster could live to have a normal life. Every life I touch is destroyed. I ruined the lives of a husband, a son, a daughter, and now a sister. How cousin Storm and Thunder managed to make it out unscathed will forever remain a mystery."

"I think Alice took one for the team on that one."

"Thank you for reminding me. You always know how to twist that knife just right." The whistle to the ship blew, signaling that boarding was commencing. Melody grabbed her belongings and made her way up the gangplank. She looked out to the spanning city, hoping the vast ocean will help her leave her past behind.