Of course, the Chaotix were delighted to finally get a new case. They had enough money after a weekend of tips from the bar to get enough groceries to feed themselves for a couple of weeks- but there was still all of the destroyed furniture in Charmy's bedroom that had yet to be replaced. So, when their new client promised a handsome reward for their services, they jumped on the opportunity immediately. Only this time, Charmy accompanied them.
It was a short drive into the heart of the city, but the traffic was thick and unrelenting. Espio could name plenty of places he'd rather be than stuck in their little grey car in the middle of a busy street. But of course, for the type of money they were looking at, he couldn't complain. Even though he already had a headache from Vector and Charmy's excited ramblings about some zombie T.V. show they were watching the night before, he'd just have to bear through it until he got to the Hotel.
It was called the Oceanview Hotel because it sat on the coastline by the pier. They stayed there once when their electricity had been shut off after Vector had forgotten to pay their bill. They knew that it wasn't fancy, but it was an affordable option for tourists. So, they expected a full parking lot upon their arrival- one that would be hard to navigate. Espio anticipated that he'd have to calm Vector after an inevitable episode of spazzing as he struggled to find a parking spot- but it seemed that today just wouldn't be one of those days. He knew better by now that nothing was ever so easily predictable.
Their jaws dropped when they saw the scene. There were flashing lights from police squads scattered all around the hotel. Families were leaving in crowds, holding their children close with concern plastered all over their faces as they piled into their cars and minivans. Vector pulled into a front parking spot, then looked back at his two partners with excitement.
"This is it, boys. We've got a big case!"
"That must be why we were promised so much money…" Espio looked into the rearview mirror and watched as several policemen exited the hotel lobby. "You better be on your best behavior, Charmy." He muttered, turning to the bee, "The city police already think we're a laughingstock, we'll never get a case as big as this one again if we mess it up."
"Yeah, yeah," Charmy replied dismissively. "D'ya think they have a pool in there?" He peeked out of the back windshield and gawked at the hotel, "We didn't get to see if there was a pool last time."
"Tell ya' what, Charm." Vector laughed, "If you keep quiet for a few hours I just might get ya' that new game you've been wanting. Sound like a plan?"
The bee smiled deviously. "You've got yourself a deal, Vec."
The detectives received familiar dirty looks from the policemen as they exited their vehicle. Espio was used to this- law enforcement only cooperated with The Chaotix because they had to. If it were up to the Cops, they'd never have any cases at all. The Ninja could understand their disdain. They were private detectives with a less than perfect record who often impeded on their own investigations. Those officers thought they were nothing more than a mere annoyance. They actually got stopped at the lobby door by two officers, one of which had an entertained smile.
"Now where do you boys think you're goin'? This hotel is closed to everyone besides long term residents-"
"You know who we are, boys." Said Vector this politely, yet refused to hide the snark in his voice, "We're not goin' to go through this every time we run into each other."
"It's childish." Espio commented spitefully, noticing an eye-roll from the officer to the left. "The family has hired us to investigate, I suggest you respect their wishes and step aside so that we can get them the answers that they've been waiting for."
The officer to the right scoffed, glancing at his amused colleague, "I heard you abandoned your last case. Just disappeared. Are you sure you're here to offer closure to the family…?" The officer stepped closer to Espio, looking down at him with a smug smile. "Or are you just here to make a quick buck?" The Ninja felt challenged, so he too stepped forward and looked the policeman in the eyes.
"Unlike you, we don't get paid by the hour. You get paid even if the job is half-assed. If we make a mistake, we go home with nothing. Stop acting like you're any better than we are, it's embarrassing for you."
He pushed past them and strode right into the hotel lobby, and as his two partners followed him, he heard the officer whisper to his partner.
"See, if Sonic lived in this city, there would never have been a sixteenth murder. It never would have gotten this far."
Espio rolled his eyes and shook his head. It was always Sonic.
Sonic. Sonic. Sonic.
He couldn't help but be bitter. He knew that Vector felt the same way too. For years they've operated in Sonic's shadow. Sure, they put away some dangerous people. But Sonic? The fight he fought made a difference in the world. Everybody liked him, and everybody envied him. Espio, though he kept it hidden, felt the same way. They'd even helped Sonic on a few occasions, and the Ninja liked to think he played a prevalent role during the Zombot Pandemic. But Sonic got most of the credit. He didn't hate the guy, of course. They were good friends and they spoke often- but it was so hard not to feel competitive. He was a beacon in the eyes of many, something that Espio was embarrassed to admit was something he so desperately wanted.
"So, everybody's been cleared out. 'Cept for the uh, long term residents or the folks that plan on staying for a long time, of course. So, nobody else should be gettin' in our way." Vector explained as they passed the concierge and headed straight toward an elevator. "I've got three autopsy reports. A mother and two kids. The mother was killed with blunt force trauma to the head, and the kids… aw, geez." Vector shook his head as they entered the elevator. "Strangled."
Espio looked at the floor. "I assume we're looking for the father."
"You'd be right about that, Es. The father is the main suspect and fled the premises after the attack. What we're here to do is see if we can determine his whereabouts. He's been hiding."
"What kind of coward kills his own children?" The Ninja muttered, folding his arms as the elevator dinged and the doors slid open. "Assuming he isn't under supernatural influence-"
"-He was. That's why I called the family first."
"You what? Vector, that's against protocol-"
"Espio, look at the bigger picture. This guy used his wife's blood to draw pentagrams all over the hotel room just like the other fifteen ritualistic murders throughout the city. Unlike other detectives, we actually know what's goin' on. The same thing could have happened to us if it wasn't for Winona, you know that."
"So what are we supposed to do if you're right about that? Convince law enforcement that there have been mass demonic possessions throughout the city, forcing people to kill their loved ones? Those imbeciles think they're looking for cultists-"
"I haven't decided what we're going to do when it comes down to that, but I know we'll figure out what's right. We always do." Vector replied to Espio as they paced down the fifth floor, "Besides, maybe this will bring us one step closer to finding that missing Chaos Emerald. Wouldn't it be nice to find it before Sonic does for a change?"
Now, Espio couldn't deny that he'd love for that to happen. However, Vector clearly didn't realize the predicament that he'd just put them in. How on Mobius were they supposed to solve this murder if it was in fact perpetrated by a demon piloting the body of some poor man who'd just been forced to kill his entire family? It was no wonder that nobody else would take the case- it was impossible to crack. He sighed as they approached the hotel room that was blocked off by bright yellow tape that read "Active Crime Scene." They removed the tape and swung open the door.
It wasn't exactly a bloodbath, but it wasn't a pretty sight either. The two beds on the side of the room were completely untouched, but the left side of the room seemed to be where the incident mainly took place. Upon closer inspection, they found a generous pool of dried blood beside the electric fireplace.
'This must be where the wife was struck.' Espio noted internally as he scanned the room. There were indeed cultish-looking pentagrams painted all along the room's floral wallpaper, and Vector struggled to determine a purpose for them. They were simply there- they didn't glow like the circles that they watched Winona summon. They didn't float about mystically, and they didn't have such an aura as hers did either. They were just painted, bloody, dripping down the walls beside chicken-scratch letters from a language that they couldn't understand. Curious, Espio pulled from his pocket a little notebook. He scribbled the letters onto the paper, mimicking them as best he could before exploring the rest of the room.
"There was some strugglin', look." Vector pointed at the blood smeared on the white, broken trim of the door leading to the bathroom. They followed the trail all around the room, which led back to the pool of blood in front of the fireplace. Espio crouched and tried to envision just how many whacks it would have taken to the head for the wife to bleed this much-but without a murder weapon, he couldn't make that conclusion.
As Vector and Espio made their silent observations throughout the room, scribbling their thoughts onto their notepads- Charmy found himself trying to help as best he could nonverbally. He floated throughout the room, carried by his little buzzing wings. However, he just couldn't find anything that Vector and Espio hadn't already noted. That was until he finally got bored and rested his hand on the wooden mantelpiece around the fireplace. Instead of cold hardwood, he accidentally placed his fingers into something wet and gooey. He made a face of utter disgust as he slowly removed his hand from the bloody mantelpiece. He looked to his partners for help, but they were too engrossed with their own investigations that they didn't notice the blood on Charmy's gloves.
"H-Hey, uh- guys?"
"Charmy what did I tell you about stayin' quiet?"
The bee cleared his throat, "W-Well, I found more blood and-"
"There's blood everywhere, Charmy." Espio said, shaking his head, "If you can't handle it, maybe you should wait in the hallway."
"No, it's not that, just look!"
Disgruntled, Espio shot the Bee a look of annoyance. However, he soon realized that Charmy was right. It wasn't a common occurrence for the Bee to actually find valuable evidence during their investigations, so Espio was pleasantly surprised to see what it was that his partner was actually referring to. Atop the mantelpiece was a stamp of blood in a rectangular shape. It was as if something had been lathered in red, then placed on the fireplace for just a brief moment before being moved. Vector walked over to see what they were looking at and smiled when he understood what they were seeing.
"Nice one, Charm!"
"I don't get it." Said the Bee dully, "I don't really know what I'm looking at."
"The murder weapon." Espio explained, "He must have placed it here."
"But it's gone," Charmy muttered, still confused.
"He likely took it with him before he left. I assume he also brought the rest of his belongings with him as well, there are only three suitcases in the closet." Espio said as he dragged the suitcases out from the closet by the bathroom, "Let's hope the wife brought her wallet with her, if we can find some addresses we may be able to find where the husband is hiding out."
So, for the remainder of their visit at the hotel, they searched through the contents of the family's suitcases. However, they only found a few items worth their interest. One of which was, of course, the wife's wallet. Inside contained only a few dollar bills, a license with their current home address, a couple of business cards, and a work ID. Besides that, they found a diary that Vector promptly pocketed since they didn't exactly have the time at that given moment to give it a proper read, and they also found a polaroid picture of the entire family during their stay at the hotel.
"That makes me shiver, look." Vector pointed to the picture of their suspect, a caramel-colored rabbit in business attire. He looked normal, smiling at the camera that was held by the wife, acting as if he was perfectly content. Though, he did have a scratch on his face and bags under his eyes as if he simply didn't sleep at all during their visit. "How can someone go from vacationing and taking cuddly photos with their family to just-" The crocodile gestured toward the dripping blood on the walls.
"Well, if he is in fact under demonic influence, you already know that one doesn't have to necessarily be possessed to just become agitated and irritable. Think about it, you looked like you were going to rip my head off in that castle. If that can happen to you without even having a demon inside of you, imagine what you would have done if you were actually possessed." Espio pointed at Charmy, who wasn't at all listening, "This one overpowered the both of us. Imagine what horror this guy's family had to go through."
Vector sighed, "We better find this guy fast."
Winona woke to the sound of sirens. With a whine, she squinted into the hotel room which was lit with red and blue flashing lights that came from behind the sheer curtains of the window across from her. Rubbing her tired eyes, she lifted herself up into a sitting position slowly while feeling around on the nightstand beside her. Her fingers glided around the cold wooden surface until she finally found her glasses, which cured her blurry vision as she put them on her face.
She stood from the bed and looked over her shoulder. Klaus was nowhere to be seen. Since he didn't sleep himself, he found himself quite bored at night while she slept and would always be quite eager to greet her in the morning. His absence was odd, but she didn't think too much about it. He was quite busy investigating the first few murders that occurred when they arrived from the Spirit Realm, so she figured he'd be gone for quite a while- or at least, she secretly hoped he would.
Curiously, she peeked out of the window and peered into the parking lot a few stories below. She didn't understand what was going on at first, but as soon as she read "Police" on the side of the flashing car, she realized that something bad must have happened. It especially worried her when she watched them carry from the front entrance what looked like the obvious outline of a body in a bag atop a rolling cart. Then, shortly after, they carried out another body. Then, another body. She watched with her mouth agape, sensing a looming feeling of dread as they loaded them into a truck and drove off into the city.
She ignored the strange looks she got as she rushed into the hallway barefoot and dressed only in her pajamas. Her intuition was screaming in her head- she already knew what happened. She already knew that the sixteenth murder had taken place in the hotel she was staying at, but she had to hear it for herself. She headed straight to the receptionist's desk where there was a woman seated, speaking on the phone loudly.
"I'm so sorry to disrupt your summer vacation plans, ma'am, but due to certain unforeseen circumstances, I have to issue refunds and cancellations to everybody who planned on checking in tonight- Yes, I understand how frustrating this is- Well, we are being forced to comply with Police instruction- Oh?" The woman behind the desk scoffed angrily as she slammed the phone down onto the receiver and looked up at Winona, shaking her head. "People can be so rude over the phone- can you believe that nobody is even willing to consider the position I'm in? What do they want me to do? Everyone on the fifth floor has to be cleared out! There's no other option! It's an active crime scene, for crying out loud!"
"Active crime scene?"
"Yes, you haven't heard yet? One of those cult murderers checked in here then killed his wife and kids, it was awful." The woman spoke casually, aggressively chewing gum between her teeth, "I feel terrible for housekeeping, the owner is too cheap to hire a proper crime scene cleanup crew-"
"Children? There were children?" Winona's voice cracked and suddenly she felt frozen in time for just a moment. There was a numbness in her throat, and her chest radiated heat. Her thoughts were clouded with an uncomfortable, deep shame- but she maintained a calm expression in an effort to hide the suffocating guilt that weighed her heart down into her stomach. Her eyes darted to the Policemen working outside who were struggling to calm a crowd of worried parents. She wondered if they would someday learn that she failed to prevent her brother's arrival from the Spirit Realm and find her partially responsible for the deaths of these people.
"Isn't it awful?" The receptionist clicked her tongue and shook her head, "Anyway, we're asking most families to leave tonight, though you are welcome to stay if you have nowhere else to go."
Winona struggled to respond and uttered a quick and quiet "Thank you," before returning to her hotel room in a daze. She shut the door behind her and just stood there for a while. She stood alone for an hour, expecting for Klaus to eventually find her consumed in her bubble of self-loathing and guilt- but he never came. So, she sat there and grieved for a little while longer until a thought occurred to her.
What would her sister Theodora say if she could see Winona now? Crouched on the floor grieving somebody that she didn't even know? Taking orders from a demon whose mind was slowly spiraling? Cowering, too afraid to take action? Well, Theo would have thought that her behavior was simply unacceptable. Theo would have called Winona very mean names that would have inevitably made her cry, but then after breaking her down into her most vulnerable state, Theo would build her back up again until she was fully confident to handle the situation- even if she would have to do it all by herself. Her twin sister, albeit young at the time, was just very intense like that. She was everything that Winona wasn't- a wild-child who didn't care what anybody thought about her, a free spirit who spoke her opinion even if nobody asked for it. She solved her own problems, even if they were caused by herself- She looked up to her sister, even if they were the same age. So, the thought that Theodora could be watching her from the afterlife at this very moment, shaking her head in disappointment- well, it made Winona feel the responsibility to act, even if she failed again, and again, and again.
The dull pain in her heart still throbbed, but Winona forced herself to get up. There was something that she could do to atone for her negligence- but she just hoped that she still had it in her. She reached for her shoulder bag that was tucked behind the door and pulled out a delicate-looking box.
Divination was a strength of hers. Speaking to the dead had always come naturally- but she hadn't done it in such a long time. She didn't really utilize the skill when she was in the Aether simply because she didn't have to- Spirits lived there, after all. In the Spirit Realm, one could simply walk up to a Spirit and speak to it- but in the Realm of the Living, it was a bit more complicated than that.
She slid a deck of worn, intricately designed tarot cards from the box and forced herself to smile. She planned to get a head start on this murder, even if Klaus wouldn't be happy about it. Though she figured she wasn't technically going against his wishes- after all, she wouldn't be leaving the hotel at all. It was the city that was his real concern, right?
Right.
Content with the conclusion that she came to, she cleared the pessimistic thoughts from her mind and sat upright on the bed with the tarot cards in her lap. If she was going to do this, she was going to have to be sure not to allow her personal feelings to meddle with her intention. She was going to have to be completely and utterly calm. Her energy- her vibration- She knew no ghost would want to speak to a Witch with such a muddy aura.
She was going to have to uplift herself since she knew that there was no one else who could.