Resident Evil Recall: Operation Arklay

Episode Four: Case #5081-G

Part Four

Chief's Office, RPD, 9:00 AM…

Two months ago…

Running on no sleep and still overly shaken by the events of the previous night, Liquid did his best to keep it all together as he stood in Chief Irons' office with the others who had been there during the events. Mayor Warren and Commissioner Yvonne were not in attendance, and it was assumed that Sheriff Thompson was having a similar meeting with his Deputies, so it was purely RPD personnel who were in attendance. Everyone was going over their version of what happened at the cabin, but then it was realized that something was off.

"Where's Lieutenant Brennan?" Branagh asked. "I haven't seen him since we got back to the city."

"Lieutenant Brennan is no longer with us." Irons explained. "Apparently he was adversely affected by the, um, events of last night, and he… took it as a sign that it was time for retirement. That Sergeant, uh, what's his name? Proske, yeah that's it. Sergeant Proske can head up Burglary for now, but let's get back to business. Continue, Captain Marini."

"So I called in the ambulance's crash." The S.T.A.R.S. Captain continued. "Because of the darkness and lack of resources, it was several hours before Lieutenant Liquid and I could get down to the vehicle, and we opened the doors, we found it empty. The bodies of Lillian and Isaac Liquid were gone, and there was no sign of the three paramedics, either."

"How can anything just walk away from a crash like that?" Branagh asked. "That ambulance was crushed like a little tin can by the time it reached the bottom, so where did the bodies go. There was a lot more blood in there than what came from the two victims, so the paramedics couldn't have taken them out, nor would they have had a reason to."

"Well, bodies don't just walk away." Liquid added once he found his voice again. "Nor do three men who were wounded in a crash like that, if not killed by it. The only answer is that someone else got to the vehicle before we did, and removed the bodies for some reason. If it was a Deputy or a civilian passing by, they would've contacted us as soon as they could, but they didn't, leaving only one conclusion: Whoever attacked my family took advantage of the crash, and stole the bodies to either hide evidence or… or… to finish their meal."

Liquid nearly fell over as he stumbled sideways, and the others helped him over to one of the chairs. Several deep breaths later the Detective began to regain his composure, while the Chief remained silent. The overweight man remained at his desk with his fingers interlocked, and he stared blankly ahead for well over a minute as if considering every detail of this rather extreme case. However, there were a few complications with how to proceed, and they had already been mentioned earlier in the meeting. None of them had gone out to Arklay Village expecting police work, so they had been without even the most basic tools for securing and inspecting a crime scene.

"We've got no eye-witnesses." Irons said. "No photographs, no fingerprints, and now we don't even have the bodies of the victims. So with this huge lack of any credible evidence, how do you all think we should proceed, hmm?"

"We go back and find the evidence." Marini answered. "I'll tell Wesker what happened, and we'll get all of S.T.A.R.S. out there to comb the mountains."

"And all of Traffic, too." Branagh joined in. "Hell, we'll get every damn cop in Raccoon City out there; Homicide, Burglary, and even Thompson's boys from Arklay County. This is gonna be the biggest manhunt of the 90's, and when we bring in the sick bastard responsible, I say we lock him in a room with Tobias, and let that shock baton of his deal out the justice."

Marini started clapping his hands and let out a cheer when Branagh was finished with his speech, and suddenly Liquid was feeling a lot better. With support from the RPD and Arklay County, there was no way that the cannibals that did this would get away. It wouldn't bring his family back, not even close, but it was something. It gave him a mission, something that he could focus on instead of losing his mind over what happened. And it was a good thing, too, because he was starting to have some pretty disturbing thoughts, and who knew if he would go crazy enough to act on them?

"That's a great plan, boys." Irons replied with a lot less enthusiasm than expected. "Unfortunately, there's a problem. You see… Sheriff Thompson and I have been talking before you got here, and I'm sure he's about to say the same thing to his boys right now. Now, as much as I would love to give you the green light and watch you tear the Arklay Mountains apart like a bunch of rabid dogs, I can't authorize a mission like this."

Then the whole mood of the room changed, and all three of them; Liquid, Branagh, and Marini just stood there with the same shocked and confused expression on their faces. Liquid also felt himself sinking back into despair, and his mind kept screaming for an answer as to why the Chief would make a move like this. There had to be a damn good reason for it, but in the darkest pits of his heart, he knew it was going to be something insignificant.

"I'm sorry, boys." Irons explained. "But there's just no tangible evidence to suggest that this was anything more than a bear attack, and even if it was caused by a human being, there's no evidence to suggest that it wasn't just a random, isolated incident. If we jumped the gun and moved in now, all it would do is cause panic among the people, and if we sent every cop into the woods, then who would protect the city? And let's not forget the impact that something like this would have on the tourist industry, which I don't need to remind you, both Raccoon City and Arklay County's economies are heavily dependent on."

From here it was a downward spiral of petty selfishness that should have had no bearing on police work whatsoever. Protests were lodged, of course, but Irons kept going on about how places like The Arklay Resort and little hick-towns like Delucia would suffer. This basically meant that the cannibalistic murder of Liquid's wife and son was being pushed aside so that a bunch of idiots from other States and Countries could go fishing in Lake Stoneville and see Delucia's stupid little flower festival in the summer. Still, the protests continued, and Liquid was glad for them because right now they were all that was keeping him sane. The protests, and the last lingering hope that this horrible crime would not get swept under the rug.

"I know how you all feel." Irons said with a tone that was probably supposed to be sympathy but fell short. "But Thompson and I have already spoken with Mayor Warren and Commissioner Yvonne, and they agree with us. The case will be left open as an isolated incident, and an investigation will be launched once the tourists go home in the fall."

"But Chief, the killers are still out there!" Liquid shouted as he jumped to his feet. "What if we let this go, and it happens again, huh? What if next time it's some of your precious tourists that get eaten alive, huh? Or what if the Mayor's daughter disappears when she's out camping with her boyfriend or something, then what? Will that get let go as easily? I don't think so, Brian."

Liquid was doing good. His arguments were making sense, he was managing to stay reasonably calm, and he was sparing none of the cold hard facts. It wouldn't end well for the city if they let this go; right now they had an opportunity to get to the bottom of this and prevent it from ever happening again. Who knows, maybe this was just an isolated incident, but it was unlikely to stay that way if they didn't act right now. If this was some kind of cult, or a bunch of drug addicts, then they could expect this to happen again, and that goes double if it was a deranged cannibal of some kind out there. Even if that was his first kill, everyone in and out of the city was in danger if he got a taste for it.

"Look, Tobias, I understand what you're going through." Irons continued. "But rest assured that this won't happen to anyone else. Camping is going to be restricted to areas closer to populated places, and the parks will be closed at sundown."

At this moment Liquid wondered how Irons had ever been the head of Homicide. Campers never listened to advice about where to put up their tent, and closing the parks would just encourage teenagers to use them as a hangout after hours for partying. He knew this because even he was guilty of it; going off into unauthorized woods to camp with Lilly, and as a teenager, he and Barry Burton would look for any isolated place to party with their girlfriends, who later became their wives. Why couldn't he see how big of a disaster this was about to become?

"I know what you're thinking from the look in your eye, Tobias." Irons said. "Now, I'm gonna tell you one time and one time only to let this go, at least for a few months. Once everything calms down and tourist season is over, then maybe we can look into this again, but hopefully we never get a reason to. The Mayor hopes that this will all just disappear, and he also wants me to pass on that he will hold personally responsible anyone who attempts to put this case into the spotlight in any way. I don't think I need to clarify what that means, so you're all dismissed, and Tobias… take a couple days off to clear your head."

And just like that, the meeting was over. The protests stopped, and Case #5081-G: The Murder of Lillian and Isaac Liquid was over. In the months that it would take for tourist season to be over, a good majority, if not all of the evidence related to the crime would be gone, and there was nothing that Liquid could do. If he lost his job, then he would never have a way to solve their deaths, but now his hope of retaining his sanity was gone, and he could feel dark thoughts coming to the surface as he and the others left the office. He didn't want to sit there helpless, he wanted to do something, but what? He had been given his instructions, and beyond them he could do nothing, because being a good cop was all he still…

More dark thoughts came to the surface now, feelings of anger and hatred toward the men who were now abandoning him as they went around their lives. The same now for everything that once gave him comfort; his home in the suburbs, his family, the RPD, and even the city itself. It wasn't just his family, it was Tobias Liquid himself that was being swept under the rug, but there were plenty of ways to show them that he was still there, and for a brief moment he wondered if this was what it felt like to go insane. Chuckling a bit to himself as he rounded the corner, his thoughts were stopped as he walked into a moving stack of papers.

"Oh damn, I'm sorry, Lieutenant." Jill Valentine said after almost dropping the folders she was carrying. "I didn't see you there."

He just smiled and nodded as she continued on her way toward the Chief's Office, but instead of continuing on his own way, he stopped and stared at her lower half until she vanished through the door.

"No problem, Valentine." He said to himself before finally turning away. "The pleasure is all mine."