Don't Scream (Complete)

Chapter 6

Eli Bensworth 

San Fransisco was hit with one of the longest and most severe crime waves since the month of June 2011. Following the arrest of Timothy Payne's murderer, Eli and Rhonda were yet again burdened with another stack of cases to go through. 

Thus, Eli did not spend his Sunday afternoon going bowling with his friends as they had planned. Instead, he found himself running through the subway, pushing confused citizens out of the way as he chased after a robber. 

"SFPD! Stop running!" Eli yelled. 

"Fat chance, bitch! Does a criminal ever stop running when you tell them to?" the robber called back over his shoulder. 

The robber, Harper Graves, had been a suspect in a ring of jewellery store break-ins. Rhonda and Eli had tailed him to the subway where unfortunately, he saw them and had tried to escape. But he wasn't going to get away that easily. 

Eli went to the gym once a day for one and a half hours every night, provided he didn't have to work overtime. He hadn't done all that working out for nothing. Eli knew he was gaining on Harper. The distance between them was closing. 

Just a little more. 

Eli reached out to grab Harper's shoulder when - 

Nutmeg Station. If you're looking to stop by Nutmeg Street, please leave the subway at this station. Thank you. 

Followed by - 

Doors opening. 

The doors to the subway slid open with a soft ding and Harper raced out, legs pumping ferociously. The oppurtnity of escape had given him the spurt of energy he needed to slip out of Eli's grasp. 

Cursing, Eli rushed out after him but Harper was already rounding the corner, slipping from Eli's sight. 

The key here is to keep him in sight. Eli thought. Don't lose him, Eli! 

Manouvering expertly through the crowd, Eli ran towards the direction he had last seen Harper running in, looking for his distinctive blonde - 

"Gah!" 

Despite the noise of the people milling into the station from all directions, Eli's ears were sharp enough to pick up the sound of Harper's voice. 

Moving with more purpose, Eli came to a stop as he saw Harper on the ground, being roughly handcuffed by Rhonda. 

"Next time we say stop running, stop running, b/it/ch!" Rhonda cursed maliciously, propping a leg on Harper's back and assuming a pose that resembled the statue of the Thinker. 

Rhonda smiled. "Case closed." 

* 

Next morning, as soon as the rays of sunlight first flitted through the blinds of Eli's windows, he heard his phone buzzing. 

Eli groaned, but forced himself to open his eyes. 

Fumbling, he sat up in bed, lightly slapped himself in the face to wake him up a bit before grabbing his phone and answering the call. 

"Yes?" 

"Eli, get your butt down to the address I just SMSed you. Homicide." 

Moan. 

"Don't you moan at me, now come on!" 

* 

Approximately 1 hour and 27 minutes later, Eli drove up in his grey Sedan outside a large two-storey mansion situated in an extravagant but homey neighborhood where rows of houses stretched out as far as one could see.