Chapter 5: Contact
The next morning was gray and the rain was falling hard. Vincent and Tifa were on their way to the morgue ran by Aeris. Tifa hated morgues, but what she hated even more was examining a dead human body. Vincent seemed to not be worried at all, so she guessed this was just a normal day for an FBI agent, but certainly not an officer of the MAPD.
Vincent] Are you ok, your awfully quiet?
Tifa] Honestly, not really. I hate dead body's and I know its just going to be nasty like the last ones were.
Vincent] You could stay in the car.
Tifa] No, we are a team, and you never abandon your teammates.
Vincent] Alright, well, here we are. Are you ready for this?
Tifa] No, but that's not important. Let's go…
Inside the morgue really didn't look that bad. It had nice white walls, with sky blue trim. But as they went lower, in the area where Aeris worked, it got worse. The paint was peeling, and finally gone, all that was left was the bare rock walls, dripping with moisture.
Tifa] God, this reminds me of something from the Temple of Doom.
Vincent] Tell me about it.
They entered the operating room. In front of them was a table, next to it a tray with needles and tools of all kinds.
Aeris stepped from a little back room and smiled, blood was stained on her operating clothes.
Aeris] Hi, glad you both could make it. I really think you both should look at this one. It might actually mean something for once.
Vincent slipped on some gloves, then handed a pair to Tifa.
Tifa] I don't think so, I'm lookin' but I ain't touchin.
Aeris] Hehe, alright wait here. I'll fetch Miss Dragner for you.
She leaves, then comes back with a body bag, she places it on the tables and unzips it. It is facing down, with the wound in plain view.
Tifa] Good lord, that's got to hurt.
Aeris] Well at least this one wasn't cut slowly like the others. But technically it was more painful. We found an inscription on her chest, along with an artistic design.
Vincent] What did the inscription say?
Aeris] As odd as it may seem, it said ''Till death do us part'. A wedding vow.
Tifa] Thanks for pointing that out, question is why would he say that?
Vincent] Maybe it has to do something with us, maybe he is hinting that he likes us coming after him, and he won't stop until one of us or both of us is dead. That would make sense.
Tifa] It sounds like maybe half of the puzzle, but something is missing.
Aeris] Exactly what I suspected, so I searched a little deeper, and I did a pelvic exam. And I found this.
She hands them some files.
Vincent] More than one sperm type?
Tifa] Hehe, she was cheating on her husband. Any of these fellas belong to the killer?
Aeris] No, according to my research she hadn't gotten that for with him. But technically she was…ahem… excited. I think he was setting her up somehow.
Tifa] Lure her in for sex, and kill her in the process. But why, it doesn't make any sense? Why kill her for no good reason?
Vincent] She was cheating on her husband… maybe that has something to do with it.
Tifa] A serial killer with a problem about cheating couples?
Aeris] It's a possible pattern. Of course I can't be positive. One of the victims was a male, we did the same studies on him, and he had no evidence of cheating, or even having a permanent spouse.
Tifa] Great, the plot thickens.
Aeris] The other woman was cheating though, that I do know. She made love hours before being killed.
Vincent] And again, not with the killer?
Aeris] I do not believe so, the DNA was off enough to make me sure it wasn't him.
Tifa] Ok, so we have a killer with problems against cheating spouses, and he kills a man who, of course, hasn't cheated, now if that makes sense to anyone say so.
Vincent] What was the mans name?
Aeris] A Mr. Jonathan West, why do you ask?
Vincent] I'm going to do a background check on him. See if anything odd comes up.
Aeris] Alright, anything else?
Tifa] Was there anything else at the site?
Aeris] Hmm… oh yes, words on the wall written in her blood. I believe it was something like… contact, yeah that was it. Contact, that's all It said though, sorry.
Tifa] No problem, well Vincent, anything else you need to look at?
Vincent] nope, I don't think so. Shall we?
Tifa] Yes, lets, I need to get home and take a shower and such.
Vincent] Alright, I'll meet you at the station, say 2?
Tifa] Yeah no problem, see you then.
They smiled at each other as he left.
Aeris] Are you two starting something?
Tifa] Is that any of your concern? Hehehe.
Aeris] Well you know me, the matchmaker.
Tifa] You thought Cloud was a good match for me, Aeris.
Aeris] Hey, we all have hiccups in the system, ok?
Tifa] Hehe, ok, talk to you later Matchmaker.
She left.
Tifa had a small house about 12 blocks from the station. It was big enough for one person, but she loved it. Her father built it for her when she joined the academy, but he died after she graduated. But she knew he was proud, and that meant a lot.
Inside Tifa undressed and entered the shower. She shivered a bit when the warm water hit her cool body, but adjusted quickly. She let her hair get wet and sighed, she wished something, but what?
Tifa] Come on Tifa, you know it won't happen. He's an FBI agent after all, I mean God, they are supposed to suck at… you know…
Suddenly the phone rang, it was the emergency line. She hopped out, wrapped a long white towel around her slender body and answered it.
Tifa] Officer Lockhart speaking.
Silence.
Hello? Look, I'm really not in the mood for prank calls.
Oh my dear, this is not a prank call.
It was a calm, clear voice, yet for some odd reason, it chilled her to the bone.
Tifa] Who is this?
Oh my pretty sapphire, I think you know who it is.
Tifa's voice went to a lower more quiet tone.
Tifa] Your him, aren't you?
Very good, my pretty sapphire, I'm glad that, that beautiful head of yours has a brain equal to its body. You have no idea how much it pleasures me to finally speak with THE Tifa Lockhart.
Tifa] Who are you?
Now, that's not a fair question, who are we all is more appropriate. I suppose the answer would be, we are what we are.
Tifa] That's stupid, I mean, I know who I am.
Oh yes, an officer of the law. But the law only goes so far, and what is the law anyhow? Rules made by false profits, and by men who don't know any better.
Tifa] Laws and rules keep this world together, sir.
Please, call me the white ghost. And rules were meant to be broken, no?
Tifa] I suppose, but then that violates it. That's how people get into trouble.
People make mistakes and need to be punished, but time and time again the innocent get the back of the fist, rather the shake of the hand.
Tifa] But that's just how the world works, White Ghost.
Exactly, which is why I will start making this world a better place for everyone.
Tifa] By killing couples for cheating on their spouses?
Yes, they did break a "holy" law did they not? You said yourself, laws make the world a safer place. Yet they are breaking a very important law. And before you try to trace this number, I will hang up before it finds me.
Tifa takes her hand away from the trace button.
That's a good girl, now, how about you take off the white towel?
Tifa looked out her window and saw motion leaving the abandoned room across from her.
Tifa] Hello… are you there White Ghost?… SHIT!