Seven: Missing

Despite initially being excited over the discovery of the Eyes, Senritsu realized this does me no good. The jars didn't necessarily belong to Kurapika; they could easily be one of the people's living here, or even Father Ariale's. And while she wanted to think they were his simply because it made sense, she couldn't really say that with any kind of certainty.

And how did I not notice them before? Granted, she'd been too busy staring at Kurapika, but still...

Crouching down, she studied the jars again for a moment, before deciding to take them with her. Maybe they would jog Kurapika's memory a little, maybe not, but she certainly couldn't leave them here either way because he'd want them. Lacking anything to carry them with, she scoured the chapel for a box, crate, anything. Eventually, she discovered a pillowcase in the basement. It'll have to do. Sighing, she plucked it off the floor and bunched it up as she took it upstairs.

Carefully stacking the jars inside, she hugged the case tightly to her chest with both arms and headed outside.

"Freeze!"

Somehow, she had sense enough not to drop the Eyes though she jumped at the sight of two police men pointing their weapons at her. She opened her mouth.

"Put your hands in the air!"

"I can't drop these!" It was true. Kurapika wouldn't have to kill her, she would kill herself over it.

"Ma'am, I'm warning you." The chief from earlier wasn't among the cops there, and she didn't remember seeing any of these men at the station earlier. She considered turning and running, but I'm innocent. Why should she run? So she threw one hand in the air, still clutching the jars to her chest with the other.

"It's valuable," she said. "I can't drop these. Take them from me. I won't resist."

One of the cops approached her carefully and slowly as he put his gun away. He took the bag from her and sat it on the ground delicately, while the other officer kept his gun trained on her. Then he handcuffed her.

"Why am I being arrested? Don't I have rights?" she asked.

"You're under suspicion for the murder of Tomin Vway. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used again you…" The cop tugged her gently towards the flashing car on the street as we went on.

"Uh really?" she said, feeling incredulous.But she was innocent and she could easily prove it...damn it. Maybe she wouldn't be able to prove it. Ariale had been her ticket to innocence actually when it came to Tomin, but now he was dead and she had likely been one of the last people to see him as well. Not a good record so far...

The drive to the police station was rather grim, and though she considered various escape methods along the way, they all make me look guilty. No, if she ran it would only further the suspicion that she did something criminal, which she hadn't. The Hunter's License would get her out of any serious trouble, and maybe she could use this opportunity to find out what, if anything, the cops knew about the murders. She also just didn't want to be on the run while trying to help Kurapika.

Closing her eyes, she leaned back against hard leather. Kurapika would be asleep for at least a few more hours, maybe longer if he were genuinely tired, and this would allow her to do some digging without worrying too much about him. Maybe even get some information out of the police.

Does he have anything to do with this? While she could certainly imagine Kurapika getting into a row of sorts with some shady men, she couldn't imagine anyone in the mafia having the sort of power to wipe out his memories, then kill everyone who might help him remember it before anyone got a chance to talk with them. Kurapika was no idiot or weakling, so how did he end up losing his memories? If someone really had a problem with him, they'd have just killed him.

"Where was the last place you were at…" she murmured, mostly to herself, but the cop in the front seat shot her a wary look anyway. And how can I find out where that is if he doesn't remember?

Before she knew it, she was being whisked into the police station, where she was finger printed, and taken to a holding cell.

"Uh can I talk with someone?" she said. "My phone call?"

The officer just gave her a look. "You get one phone call."

"I know. Look, I didn't kill anyone."

"Tell that to the judge."

Ire rose up her throat, but she pushed it down. She wasn't guilty, she was innocent, and she hadn't killed anyone. The policemen were simply doing their job arresting her and there was no reason to be upset with them. It would be easier if she cooperated with them now anyway.

"Can I get my phone call?' she asked. "Please?"

The officer gave her a tight-lipped smile, before nodding and opening the door. He led her to a wired phone. She thought long and hard about who to call, about three minutes in all. Her cellphone had been on her, so the police likely had it now, but Kurapika's phone was at her house and there was a good chance it was on; he would be able to attest to her innocence at least. But if she called and he slept through it, it was a wasted opportunity.

Outside of him though, who else do I call?

She dialed a number and waited.

"Hello, this is Chief Swartzenbarger."

"I thought you didn't think I committed the murder," she said.

Heavy breathing came through on the other line, and for a minute she thought he would hang up on her. She could hear a bead of sweat rolling down his chin and hitting the floor. He was either nervous, or doing something strenuous, like working out. And from the clatter behind him, she figured it was the latter.

"I'm sorry, who is this?" he asked.

"Senritsu. I spoke with you earlier about the murder of Tomin. I'm a suspect," she replied, keeping her voice even. "I was just arrested."

"Really?"

"Yes, I'm at the police station in fact. But you said you didn't suspect me."

"Sure. So why did you call me?"

"Because you know I'm innocent," she replied, feeling more annoyed at the man than was deserving. "I just want to know why I was arrested."

"I didn't put in the call, so I don't know. I'll look into it, but you'd do well to keep your nose out of this."

"Times up!" Officer Hently said.

The line was dead but she hung up and followed him back to her cell. And then she waited, unsure of what she was waiting for. Time seemed to pass by slowly, and she had trouble filtering out all the excess noise and focusing on any one thing.

Swartzenbarger made his appearance a little after midnight, or around midnight and told Hently to let her out as there had been a mistake of some kind, she isn't a suspect any longer.

"Look, I don't know what you were doing stealing evidence out of the chapel, or even being in the chapel in general," Swartzentruber said, giving her a hard look from the door of the cell. "But you're not making it easy for me to convince the others you aren't guilty."

"I'm a Hunter," she replied. "And I wasn't stealing evidence."

"Yeah, well tell that to my boss. He hates your type most of all because of all the shit you get away with." He shook his head. "I got one word of advice for you, stay away. I'm not bailing you out a second time."

And with those words, she was given her things sans the Scarlet Eyes and led outside onto the street.

Great.

She decided to walk back to her home mostly because she wanted to take some time to think. But really, her mind was only drawing blanks. No matter what she thought, she could only think Kurapika was storing the Scarlet Eyes there for some reason, which would at least partially explain Father Ariale's strange behavior and why he was there in the first place. Maybe. She was so unsure about that theory the longer she thought about it, the less likely it seemed to be. Why would he be storing the Eyes there of all places? It was far too insecure, or maybe that's the point. Sometimes, she forgot how valuable they were.

Her apartment door was unlocked and she pushed it open. Well, nothing's changed at least, which was a good sign. Kurapika wouldn't remember the Scarlet Eyes anyhow, so there was no reason to mention that she had lost them.

Speaking of whom, the living room was deathly quiet. Not even the sound of his heartbeat in here…

Panic spiked through her, did I kill him by mistake? But when she saw the ruffled blanket and empty couch, she relaxed for only a second. He likely wasn't dead, but he also wasn't in her apartment any longer.