It feels good to be back! The delay was due to a combination of writer's block, AP classes, and ex-boyfriend drama. But enough about me! Nothing here belongs to me but my writing. JB Kohl owns the plot and Atsushi Okubo owns the characters. But I did add a scene that was not in The Deputy's Widow. Please Read and Review!

Maka had deliberately put hatpins through the faces of these boys. Even Kid's... her husband's. But why? Then, Soul heard sirens. Had someone seen him sneak into the house? The sirens came closer... then slowly faded away. They weren't coming for him. Soul wasn't religious, but he found himself praying that it wasn't another murder as he pocketed the photo.

God must have called in sick that day.

...

Chupa Cabra's was the crime scene. Soul saw an employee being questioned by an officer. "It was almost closing time. He said he would use the bathroom quick and go home. But... it was a little while after closing, and he hadn't come out yet. I though maybe he drank too much and had passed out. But when I went to check on him... there was..." The woman buried her face in her hands. "Blood was on the walls! And Spirit was dead on the floor! I... I..."

The officer left her to report to the others. Soul walked towards the woman. Offering her a handkerchief, he asked, "May I ask how he died?"

"He... was stabbed... There was so much blood... I didn't think one person could bleed so much..." She was shaking uncontrollably.

"It's alright. You're safe," he reassured her with a smile. "Do you have any idea who could have done this?"

"There were only three employees besides me. And Spirit. None of the employees would hurt a customer, that's for sure. But there was no one else..." She paused to think a moment. "There is a small window high on the wall in both bathrooms..." She gasped. "The murderer must have gone through there!"

Soul hurried around the building in search of the small window the woman spoke of. There, he found a dumpster pushed up against the wall beneath a small window. Bloody hand prints were on the windowsill and dumpster. Only someone very thin could get through the window.

"What are you doing here, Evans?" Startled, Soul turned to find another police officer and Black Star standing there still in pajama bottoms and slippers along with his uniform top.

"I was just on my way to tell a widow that her friends and family are dropping like flies thanks to a bunch of letters," Soul answered. "Nice fuzzy slippers."

"You're still looking for those damn letters?"

"Yes, ma'am. I'm getting paid to look for those damn letters."

Black Star's face started reddening with anger. "And you think these murders are because of those letters? Got any evidence?"

"Even an idiot like you has probably figured out that these murders are connected. I have a photo of Kid and his pals. But their faces have hatpins in them. Obviously they pissed someone off and are being killed because of it," Soul explained. "My guess is that the letters hold the secret to all of this."

"I wanna see this photo," Black Star demanded.

"Maybe I'll get it to you later. Maybe."

"Maybe I want it now!"

"Maybe I want you to kiss my ass," Soul retorted, turning to leave.

Furious now, Black Star called out loud enough for everyone to hear, "All right, let's wrap things up! I have a wife at home waiting for me!" He brought down his voice only slightly so Soul could still hear him. "She can't stand being alone without me for too long. Must have been left all alone by some other guy. Probably the reason she came running to me in the first place."

Soul spun around and ran straight for Black Star. The officer held him back as the detective charged. "Let me at him!" he yelled at the man restraining him. "Come on, just one punch! That's all I'm giving him!"

Black Star crossed his arms across his chest, a smirk on his face. "Did I strike a nerve?"

Finally pushed to the ground by the officer, Soul glared at Black Star one more time before storming off in the direction of the asylum. And to think they'd been friends at one point. But that was a long time ago.

…

For once, the parlor of the asylum was empty except for Maka, who sat sadly looking at her hands. The Thompson sisters were always with her when Soul came to visit. But her father was murdered and now they weren't by her side?

He cleared his throat, and her head snapped up to look at him. Her eyes glistened with newly forming tears. "Please have good news, Soul. I don't think I can take much more bad news..."

"I didn't realize we were on a first name basis, Ma'am."

"You visit often. You've been kind to me and treated me like a friend. I'm calling you by your first name. Feel free to call me by mine."

"Well... Maka..." It was so strange calling her that. "I'm guessing you know about your father..."

"Yes... The police called... I sent Liz and Patty away when I heard... I... wanted to be alone," she replied, fidgeting with her hands a bit. "I am... slowly losing everyone... everything..." She stared at her hands for a moment before speaking again. "I want to go to bed. Would you please escort me to my room? Liz would always stay with me until I fell asleep... so I wouldn't feel so lonely..."

How could he say no to those sad, green eyes? He nodded, extending an arm that she took nervously. She guided them up a flight of stairs to her room silently.

Taking a seat on the bed, Maka nodded towards a chair in the corner of the room for the detective to sit in. She sighed and fell back as Soul sat in the chair. "I am all alone, Soul... My husband... his friends... my father... all dead..." She reached a hand out to the ceiling. "I wish... if only for a moment... that I could forget... Be a different woman... if only once..." The widow sat up and looked at Soul. "I know... about you and Tsubaki... You wish to forget, too... don't you?"

He looked away. "Yeah... Sometimes, more than anything..." He heard the bed springs whine as Maka got up and walked toward him.

"Maybe we can help each other out..." she whispered. She sat in his lap, straddling him. "I need something good in my life for once... Please... do this one thing for me... That's all I ask..." she pleaded.

It wasn't right. They shouldn't have been in that situation at all. But Soul didn't care at the time. When was the last time he'd been with a woman? Too long ago. Placing his hands on her shoulders, he leaned forward and kissed her. She smiled into the kiss, encircling his neck with her arms.

She pulled back after a little while and walked to the door to her room. He watched her with curiosity as she closed and locked the door. "Wouldn't want to be interrupted, now would we?" she said seductively. She returned to her previous seat on the bed and motioned for him to join her. Soul lowered her to the bed and kissed her again.

Maka shyly licked his lower lip, and he opened his mouth slightly. Her shyness changed to boldness as her tongue invaded his mouth. Things got hazy after the kiss. He was vaguely aware of his hands creeping up her shirt but was fully aware of her hands unzipping his pants. This was it. His monk-like existence was coming to an end.

Soul was surprised that it was Maka who removed all their clothing. She'd seemed somewhat childish when he came to visit her. But now she... He couldn't think straight. He settled himself between her legs and looked at her face. Suddenly, she looked terrified. Was she still a virgin? Was that why she was so scared?

"Have you done this before?" he asked quietly. "Should we continue?"

She nodded. "I just... haven't done this in a while..."

Kid must have been her first time. Her last time. But wouldn't she have been sad, not scared? She looked at him with wide, frightened eyes. He couldn't do it. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't go through with it when she was that scared.

Soul got up and retrieved his clothing, hastily putting them back on. Maka sat up quickly and looked at him with a mix of fear and sadness. "Please come back," she pleaded. "Whatever I did wrong, I'm sorry. Please, continue... I'm begging you..." He refused to look at her. She got up and hugged him from behind. "Don't you leave me, too... please... I can't take more people leaving me... Soul..."

Soul unlocked the door and turned slightly towards her. "I... can't do this.." he replied, taking her arms off him. With that, he left the room, closing the door behind him. He leaned against the door, straightening his clothes. He could hear her sobbing, apologizing over and over again.

He blotted out her crying and walked downstairs to the parlor. There, he found Liz and an older man smoking in a swivel chair. "What are you doing here, Detective?" Liz asked, venom in her voice. "And where's Maka?"

"Upstairs. I stopped by to see if she'd heard the news about her father. She went to bed," he answered. "You should probably stay by her side or at least get her a bodyguard." Liz cocked her head to the side in confusion. "I'm beginning to think Kami Esteed killed Kid, his friends, and Spirit. She's already pushed Maka down the stairs. Who's to say Maka's not the next murder victim?"

"'Kami' you said?" the older man asked.

Liz interrupted the men for introductions. "Dr. Stein, this is Detective Evans. Detective, Dr. Stein."

"May I have a word with you, Detective?" Stein asked. Soul nodded and followed Stein to his office. "I'm sure you've noticed that Maka seems to be missing some of her memories."

"She knows Kid is dead. She told me before... before she went to bed."

"I see... so she remembers again..."

"Again?"

"During our first few sessions, Maka could remember nothing about the night she and Kid were attacked. I thought it was amnesia due to shock. But she seemed to be missing chunks of her life, not just the events leading up to and following the wedding as with a true case of amnesia. And yesterday, something peculiar happened."

"What's that?"

Stein took a long drag on his cigarette before continuing. "We'd had a discussion the day before about how she and Kid had spent a weekend at his parents' lake house. Yesterday, I asked her to repeat part of the story. She insisted she would never spend the weekend with someone who was not her husband, regardless of their engagement."

"Sounds like amnesia to me," Soul replied, as the doctor put out his cigarette.

"Not if she clearly remembered the event the day before." Stein removed his glasses and cleaned the lenses with a handkerchief. "But that's not all. Typically, she is shy and modest. But there are times she is graceful and confident."

Soul remembered her change just moments ago. "Like she's a totally different person..."

"Exactly," Stein said, placing his glasses back on his face. "Are you familiar with Maka's family life, Detective?"

"She said her parents were divorced."

"Her mother, Kami, is dead. She died when Maka was still very young." Soul stared at the doctor in confusion. "Kami Esteed was Maka's mother's maiden name. She is also your employer. Maka Albarn and Kami Esteed are the same person. Maka has two personalities. She gave her other personality her mother's name."

"But Kami has been calling me. Maka said she was threatening her!"

"I believe Kami knows all about Maka. And vice versa."

"But they're the same person!" Soul cried out in disbelief.

"Kami Esteed is a completely different person. She just happens to share Maka's body. I hope to hypnotize Maka to see both personalities." Stein breathed out a small stream of smoke. "Something traumatic happened to that girl long ago. Most of the chunks of memory she's missing appear to be from after she entered high school."

Soul remembered the photo he still had in his pocket. Could those boys have had something to do with Maka's traumatic past?