Chapter 3

Hayes woke the next morning, but he wasn't remotely rested. He had tossed and turned all night, his mind spinning with theories and suspects. He wondered endlessly if the women he was surrounded with had carefully planned his brother's murder, if they'd had it planned all along. Perhaps he was next. What if they didn't stop until each of his family members was dead? Beck? His mother, his father. They'd already suffered enough, would they suffer more?

Hayes rubbed his chest and yawned, sitting up slowly. He could already feel a headache coming on, and he reached for the glass of water beside his bed. He was about to take a sip…but his paranoia got the better of him.

What if it's poisoned? What if while you were sleeping they contaminated it?

Hayes shook his head and tried to remind himself if they wanted him dead in his sleep there were much easier ways to do it. A knife to the heart, suffocation, slit throat…the list went on but Hayes refused to acknowledge those thoughts.

He stood, making his way to the closet and dressed in a simple, white dress shirt and khakis. He ran his hands through his hair and called it good. He went downstairs to the main hall where breakfast was being served.

His father and brother sat there, along with most of the Selected women. Of course his mother was nowhere to be seen, likely still hiding away in her room. Hayes took his seat and a servant brought him a tray of food.

There was nothing but clattering silverware and the rustling of clothes as the room ate their meal. But after 20 or so minutes a shaky voice spoke up.

"Your Highness?"

Hayes looked up, and saw that Kirlia Forbes had her hand slightly raised, indicating she'd spoken up. He nodded to her, and she fiddled with a charm bracelet on her wrist.

"I was just wondering if there was anything we could do to help? Or that would help make things easier for you? We all worry for you, and want you to find who did this…but with all due respect you will likely need support." Hayes said nothing, and after an awkward silence, she sputtered and then continued, "I mean- you could totally handle it. But we just…we want justice too. We all knew Vincent, and were part of his Selection. We want to help you."

Hayes sighed, setting his fork down. "If you want to help, you can always come to me with evidence that you have. Things you witnessed, or even things you've heard. Every little detail could lead to a bigger thread to pull. As for support, I don't plan on going to any individual for comfort or support who is not a part of my family. As far as I know any of you could be the murderer and you won't catch me with my guard down."

Hayes made eye contact with every single one of the girls, letting his point rest before he continued. "If any of you can't handle that, then I suppose we should all work together as smoothly as possible to catch this killer so you can return home. As for the Selection, I don't plan on falling in love with anyone, but I will do my duty and choose a future queen."

There was a quiet chittering as the girls took in this information. They whispered amongst themselves, but Hayes continued.

"Only after the killer is caught."

The girls fell silent again, but still exchanged looks. They seemed more suspicious now, even accusatory as they glanced at each other, then back at Hayes. Hayes wondered for a moment if they would all turn on him right here, but he held his ground. The girls then finished their meal and left. Hayes knew though that it was time to start questioning his suspects.

Hayes found Eloise in the spa, a nail technician working on filing her nails. Hayes walked over, and dismissed the nail technician so they could talk privately. He wanted to ask Eloise some questions about his brother and the night he was murdered.

"Miss Eloise, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

Eloise smiled up at him brightly, "Anything for you, Your Highness." She had a slight lilt to her voice, and she gestured to the spa seat beside her.

Hayes took a seat, awkwardly placing his feet around the foot rest, he was not about to relax with one his suspects. Eloise's hair was up in an elaborate bright blonde, almost white updo with pearls weaved into her hair. She was wearing a fluffy pink robe, and sipping some sort of pink, alcoholic drink.

"What can I do for you, Your Highness? Or did you need an excuse to talk to me?"

"I'm not here to flirt, Miss Eloise, please remain professional and respectful. I'm here to ask about your relationship with my brother, and what you know about the night of his murder."

Eloise took another sip of her drink, and hummed, "Relationship? There was none." She said it almost bitterly, "I couldn't stand him, no offense Your Highness but your brother was a Class-A jerk. He lost my attention the moment I met him." She turned her eyes to him, "But he insisted I stay, I think he just liked the way I looked. But as for his murder? I wouldn't know anything about it. He had problems with plenty of the girls, you're right to suspect us. Unfortunately I have nothing of use for you, I was here all night that night, my hair needs extra help to undo at night, my maids alone can't seem to handle it, so I come here. Then I take my time exfoliating, steaming, moisturizing, and getting a massage before bed."

"Every night?" Hayes thought it was a bit much, but Eloise nodded.

"Of course, how else am I supposed to keep my skin this soft? Care to feel?" She offered her hand to him, but Hayes didn't take it. She shrugged, taking another sip, and brought her hand back to the arm rest.

"And what of anyone else? Do you know of anyone in particular who I might need to question?" Hayes asked, watching as she fiddled with her robe. It slipped slightly, revealing more cleavage, and Hayes quickly looked away.

Eloise tilted her head, "Merri Deerfield, she was Vincent's favorite, or so everyone said. She certainly played into it if she wasn't. We all suspected she was in line to be Queen, but so was Lalia. There was some tension between them, being presumably the top two."

Hayes nodded, writing it down, he'd have to talk to those two, get their sides of the story. He glanced back up at Eloise, she was reaching over to grab cucumber slices, placing them on her eyes. Hayes was honestly a little relieved, he was always uncomfortable with the way Eloise stared at him like she was undressing him. She was a bit much- eccentric in every way. Especially with her flirting, which was clearly not allowed before his brother's murder, but she did anyway.

Hayes wanted to ask another question though, "What do you plan on doing with your time here, clearly the Selection is over."

"Well, this spa is to die for, but you still need a Queen don't you?" She looked over to him, and despite the cucumbers he felt her prying gaze.

"Yes, I suppose. But my criteria for my queen will be much more than looks and a nice smile. I need someone smart, driven, kind, respectable."

"Respectable?" Eloise laughed, "Oh, Hayes, half of these women aren't respectable, let alone kind. Your brother certainly had a type, and it wasn't that. Let's just say he preferred to try the merchandise before buying? But I suppose to each their own."

Hayes felt his stomach roll at the thought of his brother using these women, wasn't it a huge power difference to be Crown Prince? Hayes suspected he'd used that to his advantage, but not with as many women as Eloise made it sound.

"And...you?"

Eloise smirked, "I choose not to answer that, Your Highness. But as I said, there was no real relationship between me and Vincent. He wasn't my type."

Hayes nodded, "Thank you, I'll leave you to your manicure."

Eloise waved a gentle hand, "Any time you want to talk again, I'm always up for it."

The second woman he saw that day was Penelope Salazar, the governor's daughter. She had her dark brown hair tied up in a simple yet clean bun, and she was wearing a tan pantsuit. Her glasses rested gently on her nose as she read the book she was holding. He approached and cleared his throat, "Miss Salazar?"

Penelope looked up and nodded in greeting, Hayes indicated the chair across from her, "May I sit?"

Penelope's lip curled upwards, "Of course."

Hayes sat, and pulled out a notebook, "Miss Salazar-"

"Hayes, please, you know me. Call me Penelope."

Hayes grimaced, "I'm sorry Miss Salazar, unfortunately I don't know anyone here anymore." Penelope frowned but nodded, and he continued, "Do you recall anything from the night my brother was murdered? Or would you like to provide an alibi?"

Penelope sat up straight, shutting her book and setting it to the side. "I was with El Hargrove, we were studying. We do that every week, same time. 7pm to 10pm. I have nothing to hide, Hayes. In fact, I could help you. Diplomats are quite good at gathering information."

Hayes merely wrote down her alibi, and looked back up at her, "Miss Salazar, as I said I will not be encouraging anyone to help me personally. But…of course I will not say no to any information you may dig up and offer on your own accord."

Penelope smiled at that, her braces showing slightly. Hayes remembered her telling him about how she had not had braces when she was younger, and that her teeth had shifted. So she needed them now. It certainly made her stand out amongst the others…and may be a perfect identifying feature…he would need to make note of asking the coroner about bite marks to indicate the struggle that may have occurred.

Penelope spoke again, "How did it happen?" Her voice was quiet, for the first time since they'd met she sounded unsure of what she was saying.

"The coroner is still figuring it out. But-" He paused a moment, collecting his emotions before they spilled out, "it did not seem gentle."

Penelope carefully placed her hand upon his, "I'm sorry, Hayes. When my mother died I was heartbroken too, but I know how important it is to lean on family, my father and I are closer than ever because of it. Reach out, please."

Hayes glanced down at their hands, and for a moment he almost felt vulnerable enough to open up a bit. Almost. He did know Penelope, they'd been friends during the Selection, and as much as he wished her to be innocent, he couldn't count her out yet. He unfortunately knew she was also a good liar, and that this could all be an act to protect herself.

"Penelope, if you're lying to me-"

"I'm not. Hayes, I promise." She spoke quickly, trying to reassure him, but he couldn't help but hear the panic in her voice. Or had he just imagined it? He was doubting if he could even think properly thanks to his lack of sleep lately.

He wanted to believe her, he scolded himself for reverting back to his gentle and gullible self. He needed to be tough, he needed to be like Vincent. For the longest time he'd never understood how someone could be so detached, but now he was starting to understand. Everyone has their motives, and he just needs to figure them out before they're revealed in backlash.

What was Penelope's motive? He studied her face, searching for hints. Her eyes were sharp, calculating. They revealed nothing. Her face was steady, if she was lying she was very good. Penelope perhaps was trying to analyze him as well. Figures, he shook his head and leaned away. Her face softened as he did so, and she spoke again.

"Hayes, you can't carry the world alone. And you can't win every time. Politics is a tricky game, and you have to play it well or it will eat you alive. To be a good detective and to be a good politician go hand-in-hand. You need to know the people you're working with, what drives them, how they function, what their ticks and fears are, what their goals are, what their morals are. But be aware that no one truly knows another person."

Hayes narrowed his eyes, "Is that a threat?"

Penelope shrugged, "It's a warning. Be careful, Hayes."

Hayes frowned, he removed his hand from under hers, and snatched up his notebook. Penelope leaned back, picking up her own book again, her eyes bore into his, and for a moment he felt as though she could read his mind. He nodded his head, "Thank you, Miss Salazar."

He turned abruptly and walked away. He took a deep breath away from her line of sight, and rolled his shoulders. He felt so tense, she always managed to unnerve him. The funny thing was, before his brother's murder he thought it was affection making him nervous. Now he wondered if it was just fear and confusion.

Merri Deerfield had been mentioned to him earlier, and he did recall Vincent being quite fond of her. After all, she was everything Vincent wanted. Pretty, non-argumentative, a real trophy wife for a vain guy. But Hayes himself hadn't talked to her much, so he was surprised to see her in the gym.

She was wearing a pink sports bra and matching leggings, with white gym shoes. She had her hair in a high ponytail as she ran on a treadmill. Merri had makeup on even working out, and he was surprised to see how clean it was. He wondered what kind of makeup she used, because he was certain makeup usually did not survive workouts, especially since she was basically sprinting on this treadmill.

"Miss Deerfield?"

"Yes, Your Highness? I was wondering when you would come talk to me." She pressed stop on the treadmill, and stepped down, moving toward a yoga mat instead.

Hayes followed her awkwardly, "Yes, well, you were one of Vincent' favorites."

Merri turned to look at him, eyes wide, "Did he tell you that?" Her voice was quite squeaky and light, and Hayes tried not to wince.

"Well, not directly, but he did spend a lot of time with you, and the others seem to think so too."

"Oh, yeah we did spend time together. Like, all the time." She smirked, flipping her hair over her shoulder, and leaning down into her first yoga pose.

Hayes cleared his throat, "Yes, well, I was hoping you could tell me more about your relationship with my brother, I'm sure someone as close to him as you were would know of anyone who might want to hurt him?"

Merri stood, turning to look at him, and sighed, "Yeah, I get it. Well, honestly, I think everyone was a little jealous of me and Vincent. Especially that Lalia girl, she was my biggest competition, honestly. But I wasn't worried, I'm prettier, and besides, I had Vincent wrapped around my finger."

"So you, in other words, had the most to lose?"

Merri frowned, "I guess, but I already lost it, with Vincent-" Her voice cracked and tears began to pool in her eyes. Hayes grimaced, he didn't want anyone to cry. "Vincent was the one, I could feel it. I thought we were going to get married. But now-" She took a shaky breath, "now I guess I go home?"

Her big eyes turned to him, and he saw loss, but loss of what he wasn't sure. Did she truly mourn Vincent? Or was she only mourning her loss of power?

She continued, her voice soft and broken, "It's been so hard, you know? I can't imagine what you're feeling, but I loved him too. And now I have no one here to help me, the girls despise me, and I have no family here. But you-" She rested a hand on Hayes' shoulder, "you're trying to solve this. Thank you." She planted a soft kiss on his cheek, and Hayes stiffened.

"If you ever need anything, I'm here for you. With you." She offered a small smile through the tears running down her face.

Hayes offered a strained smile, "Thank you, I'll keep that in mind." He patted her hand, and dropped it. She seemed thrown off by the gesture and wiped her eyes. She turned back to her yoga.

"Anything else, Your Highness?"

"Is there anything you can tell me about the night my brother was murdered?"

Merri stretched, one arm behind her shoulder, while doing the splits. "Well, I'll be honest. I was with him that night."

Hayes flinched, "Really?"

"Yes. We- um- were together….all evening. It was great, god, but anyway he left my room around 9? And I don't know where he went after that. I was in my room the rest of the night, I needed my rest after." She giggled a bit, but sobered up when she looked up at Hayes. "Sorry, but it's the truth."

"I see, thank you, Miss Deerfield." Hayes made a note in his book and clicked his pen. He glanced down at her as she continued stretching. She was quite pretty, he could understand why Vincent was attracted to her, but she seemed too…fake. Emotionally.

He wasn't sure she was completely honest about how this affected her, but if she truly was isolated from the rest of the girls, and Vincent was all she had, perhaps that was all the more reason to find who did this. Her future had been stolen, as had Vincent's, and the rest of these girls'. Now there would forever be a red stain over the name of the Selection, his family's name, and these girls. How could they live normal lives after this? This whole thing was one, big, violent, deceitful mess. And whether this was premeditated or not, a murder had occurred, and the guilty party would pay. Hayes would make sure of that.

Hello everyone! So…it's been like two years, or just under since I published this lol. Waiting on forms and inspo and time has been rough. But hopefully this chapter is worth it! I have a pretty good idea of where I wanna take this story, so hopefully we can get rolling. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter and a closer look at 3 of the Selected girls!

Be sure to let me know what you think, and I currently have an open SYOC going! Have maybe 2-3 more spots open? So if you're interested check it out!

See y'all in the next chapter (hopefully not in such a long gap)~!