"I clearly did not expect this," Ian murmured, a blank look on his face.
Amy, who wore a lovely deep blue dress, had a horror-stricken expression. Her eyes were wide and her skin had visibly paled. She quickly regained her composure, though, and rapidly walked over to the body laid on the floor.
Leo DiPaulo's body.
"C-call Ned and Hamilton," she instructed, getting out a pair of plastic gloves from her crystal-studded clutch –a gift from Ian, who said that it was a thank you present for Amy when she saved him from Hamilton's fists the night before. And even though that might've been the reason behind the gift, it was mostly to gain her trust and possibly his ticket out of jail.
Ian noticed Amy's hands were shaking as she grabbed a note from DiPaulo's chest, revealing a fatal wound caused by a bullet. A light feeling of worry came over him as he glanced around the suite, weighing on the possibility of the killer still being around.
"You go call them," Ian told her, walking over to DiPaulo. He winced once his pale face came into view. DiPaulo had been like an uncle to him. Kneeling down, he tried not to show the sad feeling that was suddenly arousing on him. "I'll stay here."
Amy, noticing that Ian wasn't really in the mood to be contradicted, sighed. "Fine, but don't touch anything. I'll be right back."
Ian didn't glance back as Amy pronounced those words.
Amy, biting her lower lip, looked down. "I'm sorry, Ian."
And without waiting for a response, quickly left to look for her partners.
Ian ran a hand through his hair, inspecting DiPaulo. Just three hours ago, they were happily chatting about their best painting robberies. People could say that DiPaulo was Ian's first step into his unpleasant hobby. That, and his father's instructions on how to gain a fortune as big as his. Ian pondered over the possibility of personally telling his father about DiPaulo's death. They had been friends, after all. But knowing Vikram, he'd probably hang up once he heard Ian's voice. He'd made that clear when he kicked him out of the Kabra estate and disowned him.
Ian's eyes narrowed bitterly. When his dad had heard the news of Ian's arrest a year ago, you'd expect him to be worried or mad at the authorities. But he wasn't, instead, he was extremely disappointed. Not because of Ian's hobby of stealing, but because he'd been caught. Ian wasn't surprised, though. The only people who had ever been like family to him were Natalie and DiPaulo –who was now dead.
Ian took out a pair of plastic gloves. After putting them on, he reached out and closed DiPaulo's grey eyes, which were once filled with a mischievous but serene glint. Now, they were lifeless.
"Goodbye, Leo," Ian murmured, looking at his friend for what would be the last time.
The door to the hotel opened. Ian snatched his arm away, not wanting to be caught in a sentimental act.
"Ian, are you okay?" Ned Starling's voice echoed in the hotel's suite.
Ian stood up, nodding solemnly.
Ned gave him a pitying look before glancing around the luxurious suite. His eyes stopped once he spotted something grey moving. Ian instantly recognized and was not able to stop the smile on his face. It was Saladin, DiPaulo's Egyptian Mau. Even though Ian loathed the cat, DiPaulo adored it and took it everywhere he went.
The cat meowed before revealing himself from his hiding spot.
Ned raised an eyebrow. "Uh… Hamilton, could you please grab the cat?"
Hamilton shook his head. "What if he bites?"
Ian smirked, trying to shake off his despairing feeling. "I don't think it would affect you in any way, Mr. Muscles."
For once, Hamilton didn't snap at Ian and, grudgingly, grabbed the cat. Once they were on their way out, Saladin hissed as he spotted Ian.
Hamilton grinned. "We've got something in common, buddy."
Ian rolled his eyes, suddenly remembering the note found on DiPaulo. "Amy, where's the-"
"Note?" Ned held up a folded paper in front of him. "Strange message, I might add. But since you were his friend and all, maybe you know what it is about?"
Ian grabbed it, feeling slightly curious. Opening it, he began reading out loud. "Once again showing you how superior we are compared to you, Janus."
Ian frowned. Janus? He began racking his brain for any mentions of the word, but found none. One thing he prided himself about was his ability to remember every single detail, so it was impossible that something would slip his mind.
"Maybe some kind of nickname," Amy suggested.
Ian slowly shook his head. "I was one of the closest to him… never heard of such a name. And if I might say, a ridiculous name. Janus! Sounds like some distorted way of saying Jane. I bet all of the-"
"That's it," Amy said, her face full of realization. "Maybe the note wasn't addressed to him or anything of the sort. But to one of his friends nicknamed that way!"
Ian's mood darkened even more. "Jane Rivers."
"Huh?"
"Jane Rivers," Ian repeated. He looked up at Amy and Ned. "She… she was about to become Leo's second wife. Her daughter, Sinead, and I introduced them."
Amy closed her eyes, sighing.
"I'll contact her as soon as possible," Ned nodded. He paused before continuing. "I've got to tell the party guests the bad news. But well done, you two. Hopefully, you feel better soon, Ian."
And with a curt nod, he left the room.
Amy lingered in the room, looking as if she was debating what to say.
Ian, trying to lighten up the mood, motioned at her dress. "I'm glad I chose that one. It doesn't look bad on you."
Amy glanced down at the one-shoulder gown, as if realizing she had it on for the first time. "Thanks."
Ian shrugged.
Amy looked up, trying to smile. "Hopefully, it wasn't too expensive."
"Ah, doesn't matter. You didn't even get to flaunt it," Ian replied, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"I'm not the flaunting kind," Amy informed him, slightly laughing.
"I'd already figured it out a long time ago," Ian breathed out, pursing his lips.
Amy nodded, then remembered something. "By the way, does DiPaulo have –or, well, had any relatives?"
Ian nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. "A son. However, that's one of the things we had in common –my father hates me just like his son hates him. However, I'm not sure if he'll still hate him now. That idiot didn't realize what he had until it became too late. I'd kill to have a father like DiPaulo."
Amy sighed, looking away. After a few seconds, she looked back at the mourning boy. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm sure you won't be going back to prison soon. I mean, you did betray your best friend-"
Amy stopped abruptly, realizing what she'd just said. She looked at him apologetically.
Ian shrugged, not really bothered by Amy's words. "I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't been sure he could've escaped prison the minute they locked him there."
Amy gave him a small smile. She looked out the hallways, sighing. "I should go find Ned. I need to ask him what's next."
Ian smirked, a mischievous glint replacing his unhappy look. "Be honest. You want to be around him while wearing that dress."
Amy's smile disappeared. "Be sure to stay here until the forensics arrive. Good night, Ian."
Ian couldn't help but laugh as Amy stomped away, red-faced.
He turned around, examining the dark blue suite. Trying to avoid looking at DiPaulo's body, his gaze shifted to the wooden floor. He didn't need any distraction, though. Something on the table by the entrance caught his eye.
He quickly grabbed the note and inspected the message. He cursed under his breath, since it wasn't handwritten. His eyes traveled to the top of the page, where a weird symbol was drawn. It was a dragon, spitting fire from his long mouth with its wings wide open. It was white, contrasting with the yellow color on the symbol's background. And right underneath the dragon, a word was printed on it.
Ekaterina.
A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! They made my day :) And even though I do like to keep my notes short, I do feel the need to answer some reviews:
taeyeonfan: sorry about that. What I meant to say was that he'd been sentenced to twenty years. But as I said in this chapter, he's only been arrested for one.
addicted2reading9: The main characters aren't part of the clue hunt... I hope this chapter helped you understand what I meant before about mentioning the clue hunt. Also, I got the idea of them being in the FBI after reading in the real FBI's site about their Art Crime Team. I thought it'd be cool to write a story about that :)
To the other reviews: thank you so, so much! I'm very happy with all the CC I got :D Also, I think it's important to say that my update times will vary, depending on my homework.
Once again, thanks! Peace :3
