Night had fallen by the time Alya returned to the office. The black card found in the warehouse was still in her hand. The killer's words kept circling through her mind.
The closer you get to me, the more people will die.
Alya placed the card on the desk.
She wasn't afraid of the threat. But one thing made her uneasy. Adrian Blackwood was no longer just a mysterious name. His name had appeared in the victim's documents, and someone named Elena Voss seemed to be connected to the case.
Ryan came in carrying two cups of coffee.
“Drink. You look exhausted.”
Alya accepted the cup but didn't drink it right away.
“Ryan, who knows about our investigation?”
Ryan fell silent.
“Why are you asking that?”
“Because the killer knows about the key I brought.”
Ryan looked at her seriously.
“Maybe he's been watching you.”
“Maybe.”
Alya deliberately didn't mention that the message Don't trust Ryan was still stored on her phone.
She chose to observe.
A few minutes later, Ryan left to retrieve the forensic report. Alya reopened the documents from the warehouse. There was an address they hadn't checked yet.
Blackstone Street, Building 17.
It was the same place Adrian had mentioned in his message.
Alya grabbed her coat.
She didn't tell Ryan.
Building 17 stood at the end of an almost deserted street. The building was old, its walls covered in moss, and some of its windows were shattered. Alya went inside with a pistol tucked beneath her coat.
A dark hallway greeted her.
One step.
Two steps.
Then the sound of something falling came from upstairs.
Alya raised her pistol.
“Who's there?”
There was no answer.
She climbed the stairs slowly.
When she reached the third floor, a door swung open on its own.
Alya aimed her pistol inside.
The room was empty.
But on the table lay a photo of Elena Voss, a photo of the warehouse victim, and several pictures of Alya herself.
Alya froze.
Someone had been watching her for a long time.
Suddenly, the lights came on.
A man stood behind the windowpane.
Black coat. Dark hair. Sharp eyes.
Alya recognized him immediately from the footage.
“Adrian Blackwood.”
The man smiled faintly.
“You came after all, Detective.”
Alya raised her pistol.
“Turn around.”
Adrian slowly complied.
For the first time, Alya saw the face of the man who had been hiding in the shadows all this time.
But Adrian's expression showed no fear.
Quite the opposite.
He looked like someone who had been waiting for this meeting for a long time.
“Now,” he said softly, “you finally see my face.”
Alya kept her pistol trained on the man in front of her. Her index finger rested near the trigger, but her eyes never left Adrian's face.
“Don't move.”
Adrian only smiled faintly.
“If you want to arrest me, why are you still waiting?”
“Because I want to know the truth.”
“The truth?” Adrian slowly stepped away from the window. “Are you sure you can handle it?”
Alya didn't answer.
Adrian stopped a few steps in front of her. The light revealed his face clearly. He was far calmer than Alya had imagined. There wasn't a trace of panic, even with a pistol aimed directly at him.
“Did you kill them?” Alya asked.
“No.”
The answer came so quickly that Alya was slightly startled.
“Liar.”
“If I'm the killer, do you think I would have let you find all the clues?”
Alya narrowed her eyes.
“That's exactly what makes me suspicious. You deliberately left everything behind.”
Adrian smiled.
“Finally, you understand.”
Alya lowered her pistol slightly but remained alert.
“Explain the victim at the hotel.”
“I knew her.”
“And the victim in the warehouse?”
“That one too.”
“And Elena Voss?”
Adrian's expression changed. For the first time, the calm vanished from his face.
“Don't say that name.”
Alya noticed immediately.
“Why?”
“Because Elena is the reason everyone in this case is dead.”
“Who is she?”
Adrian didn't answer.
Alya stepped forward.
“I asked who Elena Voss is!”
“Someone who should have been dead five years ago.”
Alya fell silent.
Five years.
The number matched the date written on the back of the photo of Elena and the warehouse victim.
“If she's already dead, how could I have seen her on CCTV?”
Adrian fixed her with a sharp look.
“That's the question you should be looking for the answer to.”
Suddenly, footsteps sounded in the hallway.
Adrian turned at once.
“Someone else is here.”
Alya raised her pistol.
“Your partner?”
“I don't have a partner.”
The footsteps drew closer.
Then a gunshot rang out.
The bullet struck the wall beside Alya.
“Get down!”
Adrian pulled Alya behind the table.
“Let go of me!”
“If you want to live, stay quiet!”
Three more shots rang out.
The window shattered. Dust rained from the ceiling.
Alya peered out from behind the table.
Someone stood at the end of the hallway, a weapon in hand.
“Who is he?” she whispered.
Adrian answered quietly.
“The person who killed those victims.”
Alya looked at him.
“Why didn't you kill him?”
“I'm trying to find out who gave him the order.”
The attacker suddenly entered the room.
Adrian moved quickly. He struck the man's hand, sending the weapon clattering to the floor. The two struggled for several seconds before the attacker fled through the back door.
Alya was about to chase him, but Adrian stopped her.
“Don't!”
“I can catch him!”
“It's a trap.”
Adrian picked something up from the floor.
A black card.
Alya recognized it.
“The same symbol.”
Adrian nodded.
“Now you know why I've been watching you.”
Alya stared at him suspiciously.
“If you're not the killer, then who is?”
Adrian looked at Elena's photo on the table.
“The person who killed them is also someone who's been watching you.”
“Who?”
Adrian moved closer and said softly,
“The person you trust most.”
Alya fell silent.
Ryan's shadow appeared in her mind.
But before she could ask anything more, Adrian headed for the door.
“Where are you going?”
“Away from you.”
“I haven't finished questioning you!”
Adrian paused for a moment.
“We'll meet again, Detective.”
Then he disappeared into the dark hallway.
Alya stood alone, clutching the black card.
Now she had more clues.
But strangely, the more answers she found, the greater the mystery surrounding her became.
And for the first time, Alya began to ask herself—
Could the person she had trusted all this time actually be the real enemy?