A Touch of Red
By evolution-500
Genres: Horror/Friendship/Romance
Feedback: Always welcome
WARNING: This story contains violence, coarse language, mature themes and disturbing imagery. Reader discretion is advised.
Disclaimer: KILLER INSTINCT is a property belonging to Rare and Microsoft while RESIDENT EVIL is a property belonging to Capcom. I do not own any of these characters.
Chapter Nineteen: Awakening
The pain in her head was unbearable.
Stirring awake, Claire found herself staring up at a white ceiling fan that endlessly spun, the girl wincing as her eyes adjusted to the light.
Pushing herself up, she attempted to massage her forehead, pausing at the sight of an IV unit attached to her wrist along with a clip on the tip of her index finger that was connected to a heartrate monitor.
"What the hell?!" She murmured.
Looking around, she found herself in a recovery room, a large, spacious and sterile white on white space that smelled strongly of disinfectant.
Beside the bed, Claire saw an ECG monitor to her right that noted her vitals, her form dressed in a white hospital gown, making the girl feel slightly self-conscious. To her left, she saw a small white table with a white pitcher and cup.
Licking her parched lips, the teenager reached for the latter when she heard a door open nearby, turning to see Baron Von Sabrewulf being rolled into her room by Dieter to her left.
"Ah, you're awake!" Sabrewulf greeted. "How are you feeling?"
Claire swallowed. "Could I have a cup of water please?"
"Of course. Dieter, would you kindly get her a drink?"
Nodding, the bodyguard grabbed the pitcher and started to pour its contents into the cup.
Once he finished filling it up, he offered the cup to her.
Taking the cup, Claire appreciatively nodded then gulped her drink down, savoring the cold taste.
"Thank you," she said, wiping her mouth.
Dieter tipped his hat to her. "No trouble."
"Dieter, would you kindly wait outside? I would like to speak with Ms. Redfield alone," the Baron instructed.
"Got it, boss."
With that, the bodyguard left the room, leaving her alone with the Baron, the air tense as seconds turned into minutes.
"Where...where are we?" Claire asked, breaking the silence.
The hooded head tilted. "You are in Dr. Gupte's recovery wing," he explained. "Have you spoken with her yet?"
She shook her head. "No, I just woke up." Hesitating, Claire then looked around. "Ah, where are the others?"
"They are also being treated," the Baron explained, causing her to glance up.
"Treated?" she repeated.
"Ja. You are quite fortunate that my men had found you and your friends, otherwise the toxic gas that you inhaled would most assuredly had been fatal."
She blinked. "Toxic gas? N-No, there wasn't any poison-"
He shushed her, raising a gloved hand. "Please, Ms. Redfield, take it easy. Just relax-"
"Don't tell me to relax!" Claire snapped. "Someone died down there! I saw it!"
The hooded head of the Baron shook. "Ms. Redfield, please. I had reviewed the security tapes, so I know what happened. By all accounts, you went through a rather terrifying ordeal, so it is understandable that you would feel upset."
"Well no shit it was a terrifying ordeal!" Claire retorted. "First I get knocked out and kidnapped by some psycho that I think wanted to molest me or something, then I end up in some room filled with bodies, where I had to fight off some freak in a mask! And on top of that, one of your armed goons slammed the butt of his rifle into my face, so "upset" is putting it rather mildly!"
The recovery room was still as she glared at the Baron, the air tense. Seeing her angry eyes reflected off from his black sunglasses, Claire struggled to see his reaction, only to find nothing.
Finally, he spoke, his voice calm. "...Do you feel better?"
Blinking a few times, Claire placed a hand onto her forehead, shaking it in exhaustion. "Sorry, Baron."
"Nein, nein!" He waved. "It's perfectly fine, young lady. You had every right to react the way you had. From the sounds of it, the hallucinations that you've experienced were downright nightmarish."
Pulling her hand away, Claire's head snapped up. "Hallucinations? But...no, that's not right! I saw-"
"Hallucinations brought on by toxic gases from within the Spencer Estate, which also resulted in highly erratic behavior," the Baron explained. To demonstrate his point, he raised up from his lap a large iPad-looking monitor. Pressing with his index finger, Sabrewulf then turned the screen, revealing, to Claire's shock, herself and others unsteadily wavering around coughing, their speech slurred and eyes crazed.
Staring in disbelief at the screen, Claire grabbed the iPad, her mind trying to catch up.
"It can't be," she murmured, watching in mortification at the girl on screen as she stumbled and loudly spoke in an incomprehensible manner.
"I'm afraid it's true, Ms. Redfield," the Baron said, taking the screen back. "Your behavior had been highly erratic. So much so my men were having trouble trying to apprehend. My apologies for their rough handling, Ms. Redfield, but I had warned you all not to go inside, Ms. Redfield."
Crossing her arms, Claire turned her head with an indignant harrumph. "Yeah, well, I didn't go in voluntarily!" She retorted.
"That you didn't," the Baron conceded, giving a nod, his voice low and gentle. "I have seen the security feed and listened to the audio recordings, and it is safe for me to say that not one of you are at fault. Only Miss Urchin is culpable, and she has sadly paid the price for her actions."
At the mention of her attacker, Claire suddenly paused.
"...Suppose...suppose that what you said is true," she slowly spoke, "...what happened to her then?"
"Based on the security footage, the floor gave way beneath you two. I'm guessing the combined weight along with some underlying structural flaws led to its collapse. Miss Urchin had ended up impaled in some of the debris while you managed to survive relatively unscathed."
Claire dumbly stared, repeating, "Impaled by debris."
"Ja. You were quite fortunate, Ms. Redfield. A very lucky girl. I have security footage available as proof and am willing to show you and the others later as confirmation, but right now, you need to get some rest. The police will be coming along with the coroner to collect Miss Urchin's remains as well as your statements, so for the time being, the tournament will be put on temporary hold for a few days."
The girl blinked in surprise. "You're putting the tournament on hold?"
"For now," the Baron answered. "I will need to relay this information to the Board and see how this affects matters. It is possible that we may need to cancel the event altogether given the tragic circumstance, I don't know. We will have to wait and see." He then folded his gloved hands over his blanket-covered lap, staring at her intently. "Is there anything that you need?"
Shaking her head, Baron Von Sabrewulf dipped his in respect. "Very well then. I'll just let you rest. I hope you get better, Ms. Redfield. Take care."
As he started to wheel himself away, Claire suddenly spoke up, "W-Wait." Hearing her voice, the Baron glanced back in her direction. "Could...um...could I see the others?"
"You may," he answered, "provided that you feel well enough to stand and that Doctor Gupte approves - you will need to consult with her about that."
Claire watched as the Baron shifted uncomfortably in his chair, his tone taking on a lower and more grave note as he spoke. "However, on account of Mr. Coen, I'm afraid he will have to be the exception, as a serious matter has been brought to my attention concerning him."
Sitting up in alert, Claire's eyes widened. "What? Why? What's happened? Is he hurt?!"
"Nein, nein, he hasn't faced any harm. But...he is in a lot of trouble."
Furrowing her brows, Claire gave him a confused look. "What do you mean? Billy is the one who saved me!"
Even though his features were concealed, Claire sensed a frown forming beneath the hood and scarf. "That may be so, but I'm afraid this is one instance that I cannot overlook nor turn away from. It is a very serious matter."
Turning to face him on the bed, Claire narrowed her eyes. "Baron, I demand to know what the hell is going on! You can't just-"
"He's a criminal, Ms. Redfield," the Baron cut coldly, causing her eyes to widen.
Stunned, Claire's mouth parted in shock. "W-What?"
"He's a criminal," he repeated. "A war criminal, to be more exact. I got a call from the military police a few hours ago, and according to them, there is a warrant for Mr. Coen's arrest. They have faxed me a copy of his file along with a copy of a court order. Mr. Coen is wanted for not only the dereliction of his duty, but also for the murders of twenty-three people, three of them being men from his own unit. As of now, Mr. Coen has been detained and under heavy guard, so I must advise against you seeing him for your own safety, Ms. Redfield."
Claire stared in disbelief, her mind still processing the information.
Twenty-three people? Dereliction of duty?
"N-No," she said weakly, shaking her head. "No, that doesn't make any sense! He saved me!"
"That may be so, but I'm afraid that it's all out of my hands at this point. The military police have notified me that they are on their way to collect him and will be here shortly." Feeling helpless under his words, Claire watched the Baron as he shifted in his seat. "Now, can I rely on your discretion in keeping this conversation between us? The last thing that I want is for a panic to break out among the other contestants about a criminal being amongst them, let alone two." Feeling the Baron's concealed eyes on hers, Claire reluctantly nodded. "Thank you for your time and cooperation, Ms. Redfield. I'll let you get some rest now. Last night has been very difficult for you, and I think you had more than enough excitement for one day. If you need anything, just let me know, alright?"
Claire nodded again. "Okay. Thank you, Baron."
The Baron then tipped his hooded head back. "Take care, Ms. Redfield."
As he wheeled himself out from the room, Claire sat alone, her mind a torrent of thoughts and emotions.
It couldn't be true. This didn't make any sense. Twenty-three people murdered, and Billy chose to participate in KI?
She remembered how odd Billy's behavior had been, his warnings to her along with his attempt to leave the mansion grounds last night.
And yet, he still chose to save her regardless.
Stirring from the bed, Claire was about to get up when Dr. Gupte entered the room.
"Ah, Ms. Redfield!" The doctor greeted, closing the door behind her. "How are you feeling this morning?"
Mustering up a smile, Claire nodded. "Pretty good, doctor."
"From the sounds of things, you had experienced a lot of excitement last night."
Claire scoffed. "Understatement of the year."
"I can imagine." Gupte then adjusted her glasses. "Now then, I'm just going to check you over and do some blood tests, alright? Just to make sure there aren't any lingering poisons in your system."
As Claire complied with the doctor's request, her thoughts drifted back to Billy.
As soon as this examination was over and done with, she was going to get to the bottom of this, even if it meant getting answers straight from the source himself.
"All done."
"So we're finished?"
"We are," Gupte said, writing something on her clipboard, "but you might want to take it easy, Ms. Redfield."
"Okay. Thank you, Doctor." Getting up from the bed, Claire stretched.
Finally!
Massaging the bandaged spot on her arm, Claire grimaced at the sight.
More and more she was beginning to hate needles.
Shivering slightly, Claire glanced around the patient room. "Um, out of curiosity," she spoke up, drawing Gupte's attention, "...where are my clothes?"
"It's my understanding that they were taken to be washed," Gupte answered as she continued to write. "I don't know when they'll be ready, so you might want to check with the Baron about that."
"Is it alright for me to take the IV unit out?"
"I wouldn't recommend it, Ms. Redfield," Gupte advised. "At least, not until I've got the results back. If the results are positive, then you may."
"Hm." Claire then shifted in discomfort. "Would it be okay for me to go for a walk, doctor?"
"Of course! I can imagine that being cooped up in this stuffy room with nothing to do would be rather boring, so you feel free to do so."
"Um...could you help?" Claire asked sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head as she glanced at the IV unit.
Giving a rare smile that greatly looked out of place on her grey wrinkled features, Gupte helped detach the pole and various plugs from the rest of the equipment.
"There you go. Remember, take it easy. Don't over exert yourself. If you find yourself experiencing problems, contact a guard immediately, alright?"
"Okay. Thank you, Doctor."
With that, Claire stepped away from the bed and approached the door before stepping outside into a long white hallway, letting out a deep sigh of relief.
Finally!
"Claire?"
Turning her head, Claire's eyes widened as a smile formed on her face at the sight of a familiar figure that approached. "T.J.!"
"Hey, kiddo," T.J. greeted, wearing nothing but a white patient gown himself, wheeling around an IV unit. "Glad to see you up."
"Same here. It's good to see you." She then gave him a curious look. "Where's Hinmatoom?"
"Who?" T.J. gave a confused.
"Thunder," she clarified.
"Ah. He's around. Keeping to himself mostly." T.J. then gestured to her appearance. "I see that you are up and about."
Claire gave a slight laugh. "Yeah, I was feeling a bit stir crazy being in there."
"Don't I know it." The boxer then gave her a curious look. "So, how you holding up?"
"Oh, not too bad. I was just finished getting examined by Dr. Gupte," she replied.
Upon hearing the doctor's name, T.J. scowled. "So the old witch is taking blood from you as well, huh?"
"I heard that!" Dr. Gupte's voice called from an adjacent room, causing the big man to tense and Claire to let out a slight laugh.
"Did you get your results yet?" the latter asked.
"Not yet, but the sooner the better. The Main Man is ready to get back into the game again."
Claire smiled. "Good to see that you're still eager." She then gave a curious glanced around at the hallway and patient rooms, "Where's Jago?"
"Doc says he's still being treated," T.J. replied, shrugging. "Apparently he's had the worst of the gas and hasn't woken up yet."
"Right, gas," Claire's smile fell, her tone disbelieving.
Glancing in her direction, T.J. raised a brow. "Ya don't believe them?"
"Do you?"
Claire noticed the boxer looking uncomfortable.
Sighing, T.J. gave another shrug. "Meh. Whatever. None of my business anyway, and if I were you, kid, I'd keep it like that. Sometimes the smartest thing to do is to keep your head down and avoid trouble."
"But someone got killed, T.J.!" Claire retorted, keeping her voice low between them. "Granted, Lilith was a horrible person, but-"
"But nothing, kid!" T.J. interrupted, losing all patience. "So what if a piece of shit like her died? I ain't gonna weep for her, and let's face it, neither are you or anybody else. I've risked my neck looking out for you, and I made it too fucking far to just so toss it all away. I am not goin' back emptyhanded, and if you want throw it all away, then be my guest. I'm done playin' hero."
As the boxer stomped off with his IV unit, Claire stared at his at his muscled back, feeling lost and alone.
Letting out a dejected sigh, the girl turned her attention back to her task.
Finding the room where Billy was being held took some time, but eventually, Claire was able to find it.
Two security guards stood outside the room along with a pair of Theseus combat androids.
"Move along, miss," one of the guards waved her aside. "You are not authorized to go in."
"I need to speak to Billy," Claire said.
"We are under strict orders not to let anyone in," the guard replied, their features and expression impossible to make out through their visored helmets.
"But-"
The guard huffed, "Listen, lady, I'm just doing my job, so please step aside."
"I see that you are quite persistent, Ms. Redfield." Hearing the Baron's voice nearby, the trio turned to see him approaching along with Dieter from down the corridor. Turning his hooded head in the guards direction, Sabrewulf spoke, "Is there a problem?"
"No sir," the guard straightened. "Everything is under control, I was just telling this civilian to move along."
"Baron," Claire spoke up, drawing Sabrewulf's attention, "with your permission can I speak with Billy? I know he's going to be picked up, but I just want to talk to him."
The hooded figure exhaled. "Ms. Redfield-"
"Please?"
Claire watched as the Baron tapped the armrests of his wheelchair.
Relenting, he turned to the guard. "Let her in."
"But sir-"
"Do it."
As the guards parted from the door, Claire turned to the Baron and gratefully nodded. "Thank you, Baron. I appreciate this enormously."
"No trouble. You have five minutes, but if anything happens, let us know, alright?"
"I will. Thank you."
Turning to the doors, Claire watched as the guards unlocked it and stepped into the patient room.
"What do you guys want?" Billy said with a tinge of annoyance in his voice.
"You have a visitor," the guard drawled, turning to Claire.
Swallowing, Claire stepped into the room and maneuvered her IV unit around, then turned to the left, where she spotted Billy handcuffed to the bed.
Upon seeing her, Billy sat up in surprise. "Claire?!"
She smiled. "Hi Billy!"
"Remember, five minutes," the guard reminded before departing, sealing the door with a click once he had left the room.
Once the two of them were alone, Claire approached, an awkward tension between them.
"So, uh," Billy started, "how...how are you feeling?"
"Oh, uh, not too bad," Claire replied, brushing some bangs aside. "A bit of a headache, but nothing too major."
"That right?"
"Yeah."
Billy frowned. "I should have punched that guy out." He then gave her a curious look. "Why did come to see me?"
Claire uselessly worked her mouth, her lips feeling dry. "Billy..."
"Yes?"
She exhaled, "The Baron told me some things, and...right now I'm having a hard time accepting it, especially in light of the fact that you saved me."
Claire watched as the former Marine reached up and ran his hand over his mouth, looking deeply uncomfortable.
"Billy," she spoke slowly, "...I just need to know. I need to know the truth. Did you really kill twenty-three people?" The words lingered for an uncomfortable amount of time, causing Billy's frown to deepen at the reminder. "I'm not going to judge you, I just want to know the truth."
Billy scratched his chin and turned away from her. For a while, Claire wasn't even certain that he was going to answer her question. Leaning back in the bed, he stared up at the ceiling, letting out a deep, regret-filled sigh as he spoke.
"A few months ago," he began, "my unit was ordered to intervene in some civil war in Africa. Our mission was to raid some guerrilla hideout located deep inside the jungle. I cannot go into detail about the exact mission parameters, but needless to say, it had been a mission that required us to be armed to the teeth. We had been equipped with a ton of state-of-the-art equipment - digital camo exo-suits, special targeting headsets, armored combat support androids, drones, fucking AC Hercules Power Armor! You name it, we had it. Big, top-of-line stuff!"
"So what happened?"
Shaking his head incredulously, Billy let out a low laugh. "What happened? Jesus Christ, what hadn't happened? It was a clusterfuck of breathtaking proportions! All of the bloody machines either fried in the heat or got stuck in the mud instantly. Drones didn't work for shit in the jungle, with damp getting in their circuits. Those that did, they would end up either stuck in branches of trees or they ended up being taken by goddamned monkeys."
Claire blinked. "Monkeys?"
He nodded. "Monkeys. Believe me, there's nothing more ridiculous than seeing a group of Force Recon Marines running around the jungle after a bunch of baboons that stole their shit. Forty degree heat, with hundreds of pounds of useless fucking power armor that didn't work for shit. No air conditioning, moisture getting into everything.
'And the radios - shit!" He laughed. "Not even our goddamn transponders worked! I had heard that supposedly the Marine Corps had cut some sort of deal with some corporate fuck called 'Grace and Lamont Enterprises'."
"Can't say that I've heard of them."
"You and me both. From what I gathered, they're new kids on the block that had been looking to make a mark on the military industrial complex, but they were utterly incompetent. The only thing that I could find about the geeks was that they specialized in - I kid you not - haircare and tires. Fucking haircare and tires!"
"Are you serious?!"
"Yeah!"
"Jeez!" Claire shook her head in disbelief.
"Yeah! Exactly! And to think those morons wanted to get into the weapons market and have the Marine Corps test out their crap products? If I was the guy that had bought that equipment in the first place? I'd have punched them out for giving us such defective crap! None of that equipment ended up working for shit. None of it. None of our Power Armor, none of our optics, nothing! Some of the equipment was made from fucking tinfoil!"
Claire's mouth dropped. "What? That's outrageous!"
"Yeah! It was a joke. A giant, multi-million dollar joke, with everything being fucking garbage, and us Marines were the ones being fucked over! So here we were, in a combat scenario, miles deep in the middle of the jungle, with all of our equipment and the majority of our weapons gone to shit, with ungodly heat bearing over our heads and not enough water to go around - you can imagine things couldn't any worse, right? Wrong! Some of the guys ended up dying from the heat, others killed by the enemy and eaten by the animals. In the end, only four of us survived."
His jaw tightened, "Only, there was no hideout."
Claire blinked. "What do you mean?"
Billy's tone became thick and angry, his teeth bared like a dog's, "Apparently, Command gave us the wrong fucking intel and took us to the wrong damn drop point! Instead of dropping us off in the one spot where we're meant to go, they had ended up planting us miles away from where we're actually supposed to be!"
"Oh my God, are you kidding me?!" Claire pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Yeah! And we didn't find out about that until we suddenly found ourselves at a village that was not even designated to be among our targets after we consulted with our maps and compasses, at which point everyone in my unit became furious. But, we just couldn't go back empty-handed, oh no! So the Captain ordered us to attack the village."
Claire's mouth parted in shock as the eyes of the former Marine became dark, drawn and haunted, as if seeing everything happening before him.
"They were killing them," he continued, his tone low and flat. "Men, women and children - everyone and everything was being razed to the ground, and they were all laughing about it. I tried to stop it! I had begged my Captain several times for him to stop. I had begged the other guys, guys that I had considered my friends...but their eyes...it was like...it was like they were all...possessed. Demons given physical form. At one point, the Captain and the others dragged out a young woman out from a hut by her hair. They were pinning her to the ground and tearing at her clothes like animals. I had tried to stop them. God help me, I have tried to appeal to their sense of reason, but they only gave in to that dark voice in their heads. I remember having an awful headache at the time; the cacophony of noise. The smell of burning bodies and blood under the hot African sun. The screams of that girl and the jeers of those fuckers... I felt nauseous. I felt the world spinning around me for several moments, and for a while, I thought that I was going to collapse and die of heatstroke."
He swallowed, "I didn't hear the shots right away. I thought someone was shooting at us, but when I was able to regain my bearings, all three guys were dead, leaving only me and the girl standing. I had no idea what happened. B-But then I looked down...and saw the barrel of my weapon smoking. Horrified, I threw my weapon aside, took some clothes hanging from a clothesline, and just got the fuck out of there. I didn't know where the fuck I was, I didn't know where I was heading, I just wanted to get the fuck out of there, away from that insanity. I wanted to go home and never look back."
With his free hand, he scratched his jaw. "It had never been my intention on joining the tournament. At the time, I just wanted to go home. I didn't hear shit from the media about either me nor Africa, so I just...part of me couldn't help thinking, if not hoping, that...maybe I was in the clear. And yet, part of me couldn't help constantly looking over my shoulder. In retrospect, joining with Piers in the tournament was the dumbest thing that I could have done, but...then I started to do some thinking. If I won the tournament, maybe I could use the Baron's political influence to help get me out of this mess, get some sort of governor's pardon. I don't know, something! It's stupid, I know, but...I was desperate. I didn't know what else to do, let alone know where else to go or who to turn to. I just..." He sighed, slumping in the bed, "Growing, I used to think that the Killer Instinct tournament is...well...was...the place where dreams would come true."
"I used to watch the tournament with my dad growing up," Billy spoke up. "I had always used to think that there was something kind of magical about it. A person going in with nothing but the clothes on their backs, and then being able to change their luck by fighting their way to the top? To have everything that they ever wanted, to have any wish they want fulfilled?" He gave Claire a curious look. "Do you remember a fighter by the name of Ted Stevens?"
Claire shook her head.
"Stevens had been a competitor many years ago. Came from dirt, tall and skinny. Wild crazy hair. Decent fighter, but not the greatest. He had won the tournament, and I swear to God, I remember how afterward, despite being able to wish for anything he could ever want, he just simply said that he wanted a Subway sandwich and a Coke at the end of it. And the Baron had complied, despite his complete and utter confusion."
He laughed at the memory. "It's farfetched, I know, and an entirely different set of circumstances, but...part of me wanted to believe that I that I could be Ted Stevens and get my wish. Just this once." Letting his head fall, Billy sadly shook his head, his voice losing its volume, "Guess not all of us can be winners."
Claire stared pityingly at Billy as he fell into a state of melancholy, his eyes staring down at his lap.
"Perhaps not," she said softly.
Leaning forward, Claire chastely kissed his cheek, causing him to look up, startled.
"What was that for?" he asked.
"For saving me," she answered, nodding in appreciation. "Thank you, Billy."
Blinking in surprise, Billy's face softened, a small smile forming on the corner of his mouth. "Don't mention it, Red." Letting it fall, the former Marine lied back on the bed. "So, I gather the Baron gave an explanation for what happened back there?"
Claire hesitated, looking uncomfortable. "He..um...he said that it was a hallucination brought on by the toxic gas."
He scoffed. "Sure it was." Looking up to the ceiling, Billy stared, relaxing on the bed. "Then again, who knows." He shook his head, "I don't know what I was expecting going into the tournament, but this? This isn't the tournament that I knew of growing up. Something about it has changed - I can feel it in the air, and I don't think things are going to get better from hereon."
'There's a wrongness,' Thunder's voice whispered from the back of Claire's mind, causing her to shiver.
As Claire opened her mouth to respond, she heard the door open followed by footsteps.
"Your five minutes are up," the guard said.
"Okay." Looking back to Billy, Claire's eyes softened. "I'm...I'm sorry, Billy, but...I've got to go."
"Alright." As Claire was about to turn away, Billy called out, "Claire?" Looking back, she gave him a quizzical look. "Thank you for coming to visit me. I really appreciate it."
Mustering up a smile, Claire silently nodded, her eyes brimming with tears. "Goodbye, Billy."
With that she turned her back to the former Marine, her tears falling freely as she departed.
It wasn't long until the police came.
While Claire and the others were giving their statements, she spotted Billy being escorted out to a van in handcuffs by a pair of military police.
The last thing she ever saw was his kind and reassuring smile before he was loaded into the vehicle and driven off from the estate, the last time she would ever see him.
"Sign your signature here please."
Claire complied, applying it to the end of her witness statement.
"And that should be it," the detective nodded, taking the document. "Thank you for your time, Ms. Redfield."
Relaxing on the bed in the patient recovery room, Claire watched as he left, feeling drained.
She had been interviewed for what had felt like hours over what happened, and while Claire had to omit certain details due to her own uncertainty over what had happened, she tried to describe everything that she could leading up to Lilith's death.
She didn't know what either T.J. nor Thunder said in their statements, but Jago, according to Dr. Gupte, was too ill to give a statement at this time, which was incredibly convenient.
She had no idea what would happen with the investigation; the detective just gave her a card and told her to contact him in the event that she recalled anything else about what happened.
Once that was over and done with, Claire found herself alone in her room, brooding over last night's nightmare.
Outside, she spotted some men carrying three body bags, their features grim.
"Apparently that Urchin kid had murdered two guards," T.J. commented from outside her doorway, watching them.
"Do you buy that?"
He harrumphed. "What else would it be? Hell, she attempted to kill you, didn't she?"
Claire sighed. "True, I guess," she admitted, relenting.
Still, some part of her had doubts, though she was cautious not to voice them aloud.
The two of them kept watching in silence as the forensic examiner and various police personnel quickly gathered their things.
They left quicker than they came, as if wanting to get back to civilization as soon as possible.
As the police vehicles disappeared into the distance, Claire idly began to wonder what else lurked in Sabrewulf Castle.