Got some writing done early this morning. Just hit over 22k and only a stone’s throw away from 23k. But I feel as though I’m short some words. I was hoping the major reveal coming would hit around 25k, but I may end up about 1,000 words shy. Which, in the grand scheme of things, isn’t too far off from where I needed it to be. So it might still work. Full disclosure. I have no idea what’s coming up. I have some vague notions of scenes, but I think I will be as surprised as you at the way this story ends. I am hoping to take some time this weekend to check the road map again, maybe start picking out landmarks to visit on the way. We’ll see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
——————————-<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCaptain, I need a warrant,\u201d I said, but he held up a finger to stop me, picked up his cellphone from the desk, tapped it a few times, then set it back down. He waved at me to continue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI need a warrant,\u201d I repeated. \u201cI tracked down the photographer and I need a warrant to search his place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alistair leaned forward and placed his elbows on the desk. He steepled his fingers and arched an eyebrow, a sign I took as asking me for more information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe photographer\u2019s name is Xavier London.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd what is his connection to the murders?\u201d Alistair asked. \u201cDo you think he committed them?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This was where I needed to start walking the fine line between full disclosure and giving only required information. \u201cI believe he may be connected to the killer, but not actually be the killer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut he could be the killer?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPossibly,\u201d I lied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut there is still the question of why the photographer was targeting you. Do you know this London guy?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve never met him before.\u201d Before the other evening, at least. \u201cThat is why I think he is working with someone who does know me. Someone I have dealt with in the past who is seeking revenge.\u201d There. That much at least was the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cInteresting. Any leads on who this grudge holder might be?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I knew exactly who it was. I just needed to track him down. \u201cThat is what I\u2019m hoping I will be able to discover if I question this photographer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alistair closed his eyes for a moment, as if pondering my request. When he opened them, he gave me that stare that set off alarms in my head every time. \u201cWhat if I told you,\u201d he began in a voice that had chilled by several degrees, \u201cthat Mr. London had already reached out to me with evidence of who the killer is?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was suddenly unable to speak. What was Alistair talking about?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat if,\u201d Alistair continued, \u201cMr. London provided photographic proof of the killer at the scene of the crime, and more importantly, could provide a lead to several other deaths that had not been discovered?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The feeling that I was slowly being led into a lion\u2019s den overtook me, and I knew what I was going to see moments before Alistair opened a folder and pulled out a photo. He gently laid it on the desk, facing me. It was me. Entering room 312.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jack was finally springing his trap, it appeared. I would need to come clean if there was a chance of me getting out of this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can explain that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCan you now?\u201d Alistair asked, sarcasm evident behind every syllable. \u201cIf I remember correctly, you chose not to stake out the Twin Palms that night, claimed you had something else to take care of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI did\u2013\u201c I began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLike murdering a poor, innocent girl?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo!\u201d I yelled, a little too loudly. \u201cI was actually trying to stop a murder. I got a tip from someone that the murderer might strike there that evening.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhich he did. Conveniently enough while you were there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo,\u201d I repeated, a little more quietly. \u201cI left before the murder took place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo you say.\u201d Alistair leaned back, never taking his eyes off me. \u201cI always found it strange that you always preferred to work alone rather than with a partner. If you were going around killing women, it would make sense that you would not want someone tagging along.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSir, you have to believe me. I\u2019m being set up.\u201d Jack had painted me into a corner, and the only way out that I could see was to tell more of the truth than I felt comfortable with. \u201cI know who is actually behind the killings, and I have been chasing after him for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alistair raised his eyebrows. \u201cReally? Do tell. How long have you been chasing him?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Centuries. \u201cMany years. In fact, chasing him is what brought me to this town. Do you remember the Marla Walters case? Seven years ago?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOf course I do. Same type of murder. Same room at the Twin Palms.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cExactly. I read about it, and it sounded like the same person I\u2019d been after. That\u2019s why I came.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRight. So you move here about the same time as that first murder. That\u2019s quite the coincidence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I felt like someone who had been handed a shovel to dig himself out of a hole, but was instead digging the dirt out from under his feet. Everything I said seemed to make things worse. But I had to convince him somehow that I was not the one responsible for these deaths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter I got this photo from Mister London, I checked up on your last posting. Seemed there had been some murders there too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, that was the reason I had moved there as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt seems that death follows you around.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He had that backward. I followed death, and had been following it for so long now. \u201cGive me the opportunity to question London, find out why he\u2019s lying and who the killer actually is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI have to admit, writing your own name at a murder scene really would be the perfect way to throw suspicion off yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This was not how I expected our conversation to go, and I was not sure how to steer it away from it\u2019s ultimate end. If I could not convince Alistair, he would have me arrested and Jack would be able to get away. I could not let that happen. I had to tell Alistair everything. At least almost everything. If I started claiming to have lived three thousand years, he would have me locked up in a sanitarium, which would have been just as bad as a jail cell for me, and would again give Jack time to escape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know who the killer is,\u201d I confessed. \u201cAnd yes, it is someone who holds a deep grudge against me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The captain leaned forward again. \u201cGo on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHis name is Jack. Not his original name. When the murders in London happened, he\u2013\u201c I stopped. I had almost said he liked being called Jack the Ripper and changed his name at that point. \u201cHe had a fondness for Jack the Ripper and changed his name to match. His methods are similar to the Ripper\u2019s, and he has left a trail of destruction that I have been diligently following.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo, if you knew all along who this guy was, why not tell me? Why not work with the department to catch this guy?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI knew how dangerous this killer was, and I felt he was my responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The captain smiled, and something about that smile set my nerves jangling, but I couldn\u2019t say why. An itch in the back of my brain. \u201cYour responsibility, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes. I let him get away before, and it\u2019s up to me to find him and bring him to justice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo justice. And what does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This time, it would mean a swift end with a bullet, but I was not about to tell Alistair that. \u201cIt means that he will be brought to a court of law and charged for his many crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you sure that\u2019s what you mean by that?\u201d That cold stare again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat else could I possibly mean?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you sure that what you mean is a gun up against his temple? Again? Tell me, Leonidas, is that what you mean by justice?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I staggered backwards at hearing my ancient name for the second time today. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Got some writing done early this morning. Just hit over 22k and only a stone’s throw away from 23k. But I feel as though I’m short some words. I was hoping the major reveal coming would hit around 25k, but I may end up about 1,000 words shy. Which, in the grand scheme of things, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":917,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[176],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/981"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=981"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/981\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":982,"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/981\/revisions\/982"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=981"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=981"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.jacksontejada.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=981"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}