This Thing A Quiet Madness Made

Chapter 43

"We believe you can help us identify who the second man is," he stated as he took a seat across from her. "Based on the damage sustained during the breach, we believe this person possesses a sound-based quirk, and surviving footage shows it was a man of medium build, approximately in his twenties." He placed a series of images in front of her, seemingly taken from a security camera. They clearly showed a man running alongside the Manager, but the photos were grainy and indistinct, making it all but impossible to see his face.

"I don't know.... He doesn't look familiar, and I don't know anyone with a quirk like that."

"Try to think. It's possible you've seen or heard something about him before and simply forgot. The Manager's quirk can affect memories, and it's also possible with Amnestica's quirk as well."

"Amnestica never used her quirk on us," Unknown snapped, her brows drawing sharply.

"Would you remember if she did?"

"What's your point? Even if she did, that memory's gone, I wouldn't be able to remember no matter how hard I tried."

"Unknown, you're the best lead we have right now," he stated calmly, slowly, as if speaking to a child, "I understand this is difficult, but I need you to think carefully. It might have been something you overheard once, maybe he was speaking with someone you didn't recognize?"

Unknown grit her teeth as she concentrated, trying to recall anything like what he suggested. "No, I never saw anyone come to the house."

"Perhaps it was a phone call?"

"No, there was nothing like that."

"There must be something, Unknown."

"I'm telling you, whoever that guy is, I've never seen him before. I don't know how the Manager knows him or where they met. He never let us in on the details of anything unless he had to."

"Alright, then let's think of something else. Where would the Manager go at a time like this? Was there anywhere in particular he felt safe? Somewhere he was familiar with?"

"Besides the house? ...I don't know. He would leave sometimes, but he never said where."

"Then what about people he might go to? One of his friends could be hiding him."

"He didn't have any friends, I never saw anyone with him."

"Did he ever talk about anyone you weren't familiar with?"

"The only time he brought up anything like that was when he told us what to do if he was ever captured."

"The instructions to contact a certain phone number, right? What you mentioned in your original statement."

"Yea, but what does that have to do with anything? None of the others had a chance to make that call before they were captured, that was kind of the whole point."

"That might be true, but the person on the other end could have been watching regardless, considering how public the case has been. It's possible they're involved, or at the very least, they might know who is."

"So you've found who the number belongs to?"

"No, unfortunately. The search was a dead end."

"Then what else can we do?" she demanded, growing more agitated by the minute, "I already told you everything I know, this isn't helping! And shouldn't those policemen be out there looking for him? What good are they doing here?!"

"They're here to protect you-"

"I don't need protection! If anything, they should be protecting the other three!"