"I don't want to think something like this. I don't want to think that she would ever betray us. It's not in her nature. This Neptune woman knowing... I can promise you that it isn't because she betrayed us. We've known her for years. She was one of our founders. I highly doubt that she would simply turn her back on us after meeting someone randomly. There has to be some other explanation. I'm sure of it. We need to find her and ask before anything else goes wrong."

"If there is another explanation, then we need to find it. We can't let the truth get out. This Neptune Mercure knowing the truth is bad enough. We'll just have to carefully approach her and talk about it. This is Cassidy we're talking about. She's still the same kind and sweet girl that we've known for years. I'm sure that there's a logical explanation for this. If we ask about it, she's bound to tell us on top of that. She knows and trusts us with every fiber of her being, as I'm sure you all know."

BOOM!

"Was that... Was that an explosion?! Look over there! Look at the Ferris wheel! It's on fire!"

"That's where my brother was headed! He told Cassidy to meet him over there once they had both arrived!"

"Please tell me that they're both okay! They have to be, right?! Right?!"

"I... I don't know."

July 19

Morix Law Offices

3:45 PM

Yuri Rinko

Things had grown awfully quiet around the agency as of the past few hours. The day was winding down, which meant that we'd all be able to go home soon. I was happy for that. It was almost eerie how silent the building had become. Mr. Morix and Chrysalis had gone out that morning to go and see someone. They weren't saying much about it. From what I could tell, it had something to do with that Neptune woman that Lily and Chrysalis had defended. I couldn't say anything for sure though. I guessed I would hear about it at some point or another. With so few people working around here, information tended to get around easily. It wasn't all that hard to catch up on all the agency gossip because of the small size.

All of a sudden, I heard the sound of a door crashing open. I sat up after having previously been sprawled out on the couch in one of the main rooms. Whatever that sound was, I got the feeling something was wrong. After getting to my feet, I went to see what was going on. Did we have a client or something? If we did, then that could definitely mean a cure from my boredom. I wanted that more than anything. Hanging around the agency and doing nothing but paperwork can be a bit bland after a while so I welcomed the adventure that came with courtroom shenanigans.

"Hey! Is anybody in here?!"

The door to the room burst open. Prosecutor Lin was standing there, holding one hand over her chest. "Hi, Yuri..." she said between heavy gasps for air. "Sorry about my untidy appearance... I was... I was in a rush... I have bad news..." She walked over to the couch and flopped down on it, still holding her chest. Behind her was none other than Chief Prosecutor Bespoke. There was worry in his visible eye. He refused to meet my gaze, so I knew for sure that something had gone seriously wrong.

"What's going on?" I asked. "It seems like you ran all the way here. What could be so bad that you'd do something like that? You're already sort of freaking me out..."

"I'm sorry..." Prosecutor Lin murmured. "I'm really sorry for what you're about to hear... I wish it didn't have to be this way..."

"What are you talking about?" I questioned, my voice more demanding than before this time. I could feel my heart skip a beat in my chest from fearful anticipation. Whatever she was talking about couldn't really be that bad, right? At the very least, that's what I was hoping for...

"I need an attorney," Prosecutor Lin told me firmly. "Cotoli's been arrested for murder."

I let out a sharp gasp. "What?!" I cried. "But he would never kill anybody! The guy's as soft emotionally as a teddy bear! He's too timid to even tell somebody that he loves them, so how could he even think about stabbing somebody or something like that?!" This was all complete crap! I had known Mr. Morix for two years now. He had defended Venus and Cassidy back when he was first starting out. Because I had known him for so long, I knew well that he was not the type to go around killing people. Whoever made this sort of decision, to accuse him of murder, was obviously downright crazy! This couldn't be happening!

"That's not even the worst part," Chief Prosecutor Bespoke murmured. "I'm afraid that something even worse is also going to make this case even harder to solve... I mentioned that it's a murder already. However, the body was badly burned and can barely be identified. It took a lot of snooping as far as I know, but eventually, the police were able to identify the victim... I'm so, so sorry about this, Yuri... Cassidy... Cassidy is the one that Cotoli is arrested on suspicion of killing... She died this morning after being stabbed in the chest... I'm sorry..."

In that one moment, the world seemed to stop. This couldn't be happening. Cassidy couldn't be gone. I had just seen her this morning before leaving to come here, and now I was hearing she was dead? It hadn't even been six months since Venus had died! Cassidy couldn't be gone too! This couldn't possibly be real!

"I'm sorry," Chief Prosecutor Bespoke muttered. "I understand that this has got to be hard to take. Cassidy was fine just this morning, and now... She's gone..." I could have sworn I saw a small tear glistening in his visible eye, but I knew that he never would admit that it was there. I looked away, hoping that I'd be able to avoid shedding tears until I was alone. I didn't want to look like a mess in front of other people, even if my whole world seemed to shatter within the span of just a few moments. It didn't seem possible that Cassidy was really gone. I had just seen her a few hours ago, and now she was dead. Somebody had killed her. It was like the situation with Venus all over again. Last time, Venus had said that she was just going out for a quick drive to go and see someone. The next thing I knew, she was proclaimed dead on the news. Today, Cassidy had told me she was going to a carnival in town for the summer to see a few friends of hers. I never would have known that would be the last time I ever saw her. The next time I went to see her, she'd be lying on the ground, barely even there. If they were right and she had burned to death, then she wouldn't even look like my sister. She was gone this time. There was nothing I could do to change that. I felt something hollow gnaw away at my insides. I just wanted to curl up and cry. Why did this have to happen to me? Why did both of them have to die so suddenly? Who in the world would want Cassidy dead? She was only sixteen! It didn't make any sense. I just wanted to scream out my anguish until it was gone, even if I knew I wouldn't be able to do that.

"Is anybody else here? We need somebody to defend my brother," Prosecutor Lin said. "I don't want to make you do something like this. It must be an incredible shock to hear that Cassidy is gone, just like that... I don't know if it would be wise to let you investigate the case. I don't want you ending up even more hurt than before the more that you dig into things. I can just grab one of the new kids and have them help us out. How does that sound to you?"

"No," I cut in, my hands clenching into fists. "I'm not going to let this case be passed off to somebody else. I need to take it on. Cassidy is dead now. I can't change that, no matter how much I want to. However, I can help to bring whoever killed her to justice. Whoever they are, they're going to have to deal with all my fury the second I find out who they are. I just hope they're ready for it."

"Are you sure about this?" Prosecutor Lin asked gently. "I don't want you pushing yourself too far. The stress of something like this could easily get you sick. I don't want you falling ill on us. I'm sure that somebody else around here would be glad to pick up the defense case. If you still want to follow through with it, I won't stop you. However, if you feel like you need to stop because of stress, mental health, or anything else like that, don't make yourself go on. Coping with the loss of a loved one can be hard. Immediately going into something like this doesn't make it any easier. You can trust me on that. I won't try to influence your decision too much, just keep what I said in mind, okay? I don't want something bad happening to you because of this whole mess. That certainly would not be good."

"Got it," I nodded. I wasn't planning on backing out at this point. I had to figure out who killed Cassidy. Whoever they were, they were going to pay for it. I would lock them up in jail myself if I had to. Nobody could get away with doing something that awful so long as I was working with the agency. It was my job to lock people up for this, and I was more ready than ever to embrace my duty. I got to my feet and pulled my phone out of my pocket. I shot a quick text to Deirdre, asking her to come downstairs. She was in her office a floor above. I got the feeling that she'd be more than willing to go along with this case. She seemed like a sensible young woman. I'd need somebody who knew things like logic very well if we wanted to come out victorious. We had to find out who really killed Cassidy. I knew for sure that it wasn't Mr. Morix. He would never kill anyone, much less a close friend of his. All we really had to do was reveal that, though I couldn't say for sure how difficult it would be. It certainly wouldn't be easy, but I was more than ready for the challenge.

"You look like you have this covered," Chief Prosecutor Bespoke remarked. "I'm proud of you, Yuri. You've come a long way in the two years since we first crossed paths. You've changed a lot from the young and bubbly girl I once knew back then."

"Thanks," I said with a small yet forced smile. "I'm going to find out the truth. I promise you that much. Cassidy's murderer won't be getting away with this. I'll be sure to put them in prison no matter what. Nobody will be able to escape the wrath of Yuri Rinko."

July 19

Prosecutor's Office

4:00 PM

Niamh Wood

I was sitting in my office as the afternoon minutes passed by. I stared down at my feet, which were perched underneath my desk. My heart was pounding with anticipation in my chest, though I'd never admit that to anyone. I was a little bit nervous, in case it wasn't already obvious.

Apparently, a murder had taken place at a carnival in town. I didn't know the details quite yet, but apparently, it was going to be my ticket to gaining a strong reputation in the office. An older prosecutor had asked me to work with her for the time being. I didn't even know her name. In fact, it was Mo—erm, Prosecutor Lin who delivered the news to me. I would have to ask her again if I wanted a name. However, for some reason, she wasn't answering my calls. I couldn't say why. The last time I had seen her was this morning. She went out on business and told me that if any cases came in today, I could expect to be placed on them since another prosecutor wanted to work with me for a little while.

A knock at the door made me jump. I looked up to see a woman coming in. She had auburn hair that fell down to her waist. On either side of her head, there was a section in a small braid. She was wearing a black suit jacket over a deep indigo shirt. She had navy leggings on as well. Her shoes were black flats that sat on top of black tights. Black gloves were on her hands. They reached halfway up to her elbow.

"You must be Niamh Wood," the woman smiled. As she walked a little bit closer, I noticed a Prosecutor's Badge was pinned to her suit jacket. She extended one hand. Her azure eyes met mine. "My name is Amy Kalles. I'm the prosecutor who requested to work with you."

"H-Hi..." I stammered quietly. I wasn't exactly the best with other people. I never had been. I couldn't exactly say why. I just knew well that human interaction wasn't my strong suit. I always got really worked up when meeting someone new. However, there seemed to be an air of calm about Prosecutor Kalles. It made me relax a little bit, but the amount of tension that was released from my shoulders wasn't much.

"Have you heard about the murder that took place at the carnival this morning?" she asked of me after we had shaken hands. "That's the case that we're going to be taking on."

I nodded slowly. "I know a little bit about it... Like I know it was at a carnival... That's about it though," I admitted nervously. Man, I probably looked so stupid! I was fourteen, and I was still getting so intimidated by meeting somebody new! This could not be normal!

"That's alright," Prosecutor Kalles smiled. "Don't worry. I'd be glad to fill you in on what happened. I already have the autopsy report, in case you want it. You can look at it while we're on the way to the carnival. You probably know how important something like that is to a murder investigation."

"I do," I assured her. I was trying to avoid talking for the time being. Part of me was a bit suspicious that somebody like this would randomly want to work with me. After all, I hadn't ever taken on cases with people aside from Chief Prosecutor Bespoke and Prosecutor Lin. In fact, it was because I wasn't used to working with other people that I dropped out of the murder on the lake in late May. I was too scared to work alongside another prosecutor.

However, I was determined to stand my ground this time around. I wasn't going to let my nerves get the better of me. I was going to take on a case with somebody new, and I was going to do well on it! It would be a piece of cake! After all, Prosecutor Kalles had to have some sort of faith in me if she was willing to take on a big investigation like this one with me. Murder cases are no joke. They're incredibly intense. In a way, thinking that she trusted me like this made me a bit happier than I had been before. Granted, I was still incredibly nervous, but it was at least a start.

Prosecutor Kalles gestured for me to follow her. "It's in my office. I can explain the case in more detail while we're on our way. The whole incident is something rather peculiar, to say the least. The basics show that the victim is one Cassidy Rinko. She was stabbed to death at a nearby carnival passing through town. Her body was found badly burned and barely recognizable. Apparently, the Ferris wheel exploded while she was on it, so if the stabbing hadn't already killed her, the burn wounds most certainly would have. The whole crime scene is a mess of debris and glass shards. It's difficult to navigate at best," she told me as we entered her office. She picked up a file from the surface of her desk and handed it over to me.

"C-Cassidy? Stabbed?" I echoed. I hadn't been super close with Cassidy, but I had seen her a few times at school and around the office. She worked a lot alongside Chief Prosecutor Bespoke. It seemed so unreal to me that she could really be gone... The stabbing just made things even worse... I was already sick to my stomach just thinking about it...

"I'm afraid so. However, I can allow her to rest in peace soon. You can help me on it too. If we find the killer who ended her life, she'll be able to be put to rest. Murder is an awful way to die. I don't want her to be in eternal pain in whatever afterlife exists because of the way she died," Prosecutor Kalles said, staring out the window of her office. When she looked back to me, she let out a gasp. "Niamh? Are you feeling alright? You've grown awfully pale all of a sudden. You're even shaking a little bit..."

I looked down at my hand to see if she was right. Sure enough, she was. I let out a small sigh, hoping that my voice wouldn't tremble. "Sorry. I'm just... I'm not the best with stabbing cases..." I admitted. I hadn't wanted to do this. If other prosecutors knew about my weaknesses involving sharp objects, they'd ridicule me for sure... Prosecutor Bloom was already intense without knowing about my fears. I didn't need her to have any other reason to make me feel awful. I didn't want a repeat of the high school. Going there was miserable enough as it was. I didn't need work to be hell for me on top of that.

Prosecutor Kalles, lucky for me, didn't respond negatively at all. Instead, she placed a supportive hand on my shoulder. "It'll be alright. If you want, I can investigate the crime scene while you talk to witnesses once we arrive. Does that sound good to you? I don't want you having panic attacks or passing out on me. Sora would never forgive me for it." She let out a laugh, obviously trying to make me feel at ease. "That should make things easier as well. We'll cover twice the amount of ground in the same amount of time. It's rather productive, wouldn't you say?"

I felt my shoulders relax a bit more. "Sounds good," I smiled. Even if I hadn't known her for very long, I was already getting the feeling that this case wouldn't be too bad after all. Before, I had only worked with Chief Prosecutor Bespoke and Prosecutor Lin, but Prosecutor Kalles seemed rather nice too. She was patient enough to stay by my side despite my shortcomings. She was even being nice about my fear of knives! This case was already going better than I'd expected!

"Alright. Let's head down to the crime scene. We have some investigating to do. Even if it's a bit later in the afternoon, the trial is still taking place tomorrow, so we'll need to be prepared," Prosecutor Kalles told me. "We can drop by the detention center a little bit later too. I feel it would be beneficial to our investigation." I nodded. She took my hand and led me out of the room. I was already a little bit excited to get to the bottom of this. I had to for Cassidy's sake, and for once, I was actually a little bit ready.

July 19

Detention Center

4:15 PM

Deirdre Brigit

When we arrived down at the detention center, I only had a small understanding of the case at hand. Yuri had explained what she knew on the car ride over here. The deceased was her older sister, Cassidy Rinko. She had been stabbed before being caught up in an explosion. The crime took place at a nearby carnival that was in town for the summer, though we didn't know the name of it yet. The Ferris wheel had been turned into a pile of rubble thanks to the bomb that was planted on the center of it at some point recently. Apparently, she had heard all of this from 'Chief Prosecutor Bespoke' and 'Prosecutor Lin'. I hadn't talked extensively with either one of them before, but I was willing to trust Yuri's judgement when she said they were reliable and trustworthy sources. They had also told her who the suspect was, though I wasn't aware of that information yet. Yuri kept on telling me to wait and see each time I asked in the car to the detention center.

"Hello, Yuri. You too, Deirdre."

I gasped when a guard walked in our client. To my shock, it was none other than Mr. Morix. "You're the suspect?" I asked in surprise. "I knew that you weren't at work today, but I never anticipated it was because you were arrested as a suspect for murder..."

"I didn't expect this either," Mr. Morix admitted. "I only planned to go to the carnival to talk to someone, but... I guess that plan has crumbled now." He laughed for a moment, but it didn't take a genius to be able to tell that he was faking it. Looking a bit closer, I saw a few tear stains on his cheek. His eyes were rather puffy as well. I supposed that even the boss I had known to be strong since starting my work under him had a few weaknesses, not that I could blame him. This situation wasn't exactly a pleasant one. Not only was he under arrest on suspicion of murder, but the victim had been one of his friends. That could very easily get to anyone, especially in a negative environment like the detention center.

"So... What exactly happened?" Yuri asked. I suspected she was quicker than usual to get to the point since she wanted to know who killed her sister, which was completely normal. "I didn't even realize that you and Cassidy were going to the carnival today. It seems really weird, especially considering the fact that it's a work day today. You even came into the agency this morning before taking off. Were you just going there for your lunch break or something?" Under any other circumstances, I would have expected that to be some sort of joke, but I could tell by the serious aura surrounding Yuri that she just wanted to get to the bottom of this and close this case as soon as possible.

"I went with Cassidy, Sora, Ghastly, Polly, and Chrysalis to the local carnival this morning. We planned this a few days ago. We were going to have a fun meet up when we were all available. Ghastly, Sora, and Polly all took the day off. Chrysalis and I decided to leave and then come back in the afternoon after we were finished up at the carnival. Cassidy was somewhere else in the carnival when we arrived though, but we didn't quite know where. She had arrived earlier on. I sent her a call to see where she was. She told me that she was over by the Ferris wheel. I told the others that I was going to get her and come back. Cassidy never had the best sense of direction, so she didn't know where to go. I was on my way there when I heard the explosion on the Ferris wheel. Debris went flying everywhere. I heard a scream from the general direction of the Ferris wheel. A small remote landed at my feet. Instinctively, I reached down and picked it up..." Mr. Morix cringed and shook his head. "That was a mistake. I had just picked up the device used to make the Ferris wheel blow up in the first place. Since I didn't really have an alibi for the time of the explosion due to my departure from the group, I was already a suspect. My fingerprints being on the remote was just the icing on top of the cake. The police instantly thought that I was really suspicious and may have killed Cassidy. I don't know if they had a motive in mind at the time of my arrest, but they still thought that it was enough to make me dangerous."

I frowned. "That's going to be hard to worm our way out of," I remarked. "What else happened? Was there anything else of note going on at the time? I don't know any details regarding the case. I don't think Yuri knows much of anything either. She only heard that her sister was the victim and you were the one suspected of killing her... Oh, also, do you know who called the police? I feel like that could be a useful little piece of information to have up our sleeve for the trial."

"I called them," Mr. Morix replied. "I was thinking that the scream had been somebody getting hurt, but I wasn't able to get into the Ferris wheel to see what was going on. The area surrounding it was practically covered with glass and concrete from the explosion. I didn't want to risk getting severely injured by going into the fiery mess surrounding the ride. I believe that scream came from Cassidy. Apparently, she was the only one on the ride at the time. When I was on the phone with her not long before, she said she was going to get on it to get a better view of the carnival from above. Her body was badly burned to the point that it couldn't be recognized by any sort of test. However, it was able to be identified thanks to a small piece of evidence. Cassidy's wallet had survived the full force of the blast. Her student ID was in good enough shape for us to figure that she was the one who died. After all, how would the ID have gotten there if she wasn't the one who died in the explosion on the Ferris wheel?"

"I see..." I murmured. "Is there anything else important you think we should know about the case? We're headed to the crime scene after this to see if we can learn more about the murder. What about witnesses?"

"Will Prosecutor Lin be testifying in court? What about Chief Prosecutor Bespoke? Or Prosecutor Burke? Or Chrysalis?" Yuri asked.

"As far as what I saw, there wasn't anything else important," Mr. Morix told me. "For witnesses, there is one I can think of, and it's nobody you mentioned. There was one person that I saw while calling the police. The area around the Ferris wheel was mostly deserted, but there was one young girl standing nearby. You guys might recognize the name. She was the suspect in the last case taken on by our agency back in late May. Lily and Chrysalis defended her. Do you remember Neptune Mercure by any chance?"

"She's the witness?" Yuri asked. "Wow. I didn't expect that... Does that sound like it? Do you have anything else to tell us about the murder?"

"I don't think so," Mr. Morix said. "You should head on down to the carnival. It's called Happy House Carnival. The place wasn't very crowded this morning, but I bet it's swamped now since the police need to figure out what's happened there. You can probably get in if you tell the guards near the entrance that you're defending me in court tomorrow."

"Thank you for telling us all this, Mr. Morix," I told him with a nod. "We'll be sure to get you a not guilty verdict in court. I'm sure that you'll be home before you know it. I'm faithful that we can pull this off. It's just a matter of time before you're freed."

"I know I will be too," he smiled, though I could tell easily that he was trying to hide his exhaustion. "Good luck in the investigation. I'll see you all tomorrow."

And I did get around to updating after all. Nice.

I don't have much to say here. I did an author's note dump in Demon of Desire. Oops.

Now, I'm going to be on my way. I'll see you all later! I hope you enjoyed!

-Digital