Canvas of Deception

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Detective Victoria Blackwood and Dominic Gray

Detective Victoria Blackwood

With a good sleep and a refreshed mind, I made my way to the station to be met with silence. The station was completely empty and it was already the 12 in the afternoon.

As I stepped into the deserted station, a sense of unease settled over me like a heavy shroud. The usual bustling activity was conspicuously absent, replaced by an eerie stillness that sent a chill down my spine. I glanced around, searching for any sign of life, but found only empty desks and abandoned files strewn haphazardly across the room.

"Hello?" I called out, my voice echoing off the walls. But there was no response, save for the hollow sound of my own words rebounding in the silence.

Something wasn't right. The station should have been teeming with activity at this hour, but instead, it lay eerily quiet, as if frozen in time. My instincts screamed at me to proceed with caution, to tread carefully in this unfamiliar territory.

With each step, the tension mounted, my senses on high alert for any sign of danger. But the silence remained unbroken, a palpable presence that seemed to envelop me in its suffocating embrace.

As I reached the heart of the station, a sinking feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. The investigation room lay ahead, its door ominously ajar, beckoning me forward into the unknown.

Steel­ing my nerves, I approached the threshold, the creak of the door echoing in the stillness. With a deep breath, I pushed it open, steeling myself for whatever lay beyond.

Pushing open the door, I was met with a scene straight from my darkest nightmares. A figure cloaked in darkness stood before me, a glint of malice in their eyes and a chilling smile playing upon their lips.

And there, in the dim light of the room, I was again face to face with the man I had seen in the alleyway. His face covered with the same hood and a knife in his gloved hands dripping blood.

"Victoria Blackwood," he spoke, their voice dripping with menace. "You're next."

I awoke with a start, heart pounding, the remnants of the dream still lingering like a sinister whisper in the recesses of my mind. Frantically scanning my surroundings, I sought solace in the familiar confines of my home, but the sense of unease refused to dissipate.

It was 9 in the morning. I called Xander to find out the progress in the investigation.

As I dialled Xander's number, my fingers trembled slightly, betraying the lingering effects of the unsettling dream. Each ring felt like an eternity, the silence on the other end amplifying my growing apprehension.

"Victoria?" Xander's voice cut through the stillness, a welcome relief amidst the uncertainty that surrounded me.

"Xander, it's me," I replied, my voice steadier than I felt. "Have there been any developments in the investigation?"

There was a brief pause on the other end, followed by a heavy sigh. "Nothing substantial yet," Xander admitted. "We're still sifting through evidence, but it's like trying to find a needle in a haystack."

I felt a pang of frustration at the lack of progress, but I couldn't let it deter me. "Keep me updated on any leads," I instructed, my tone firm. "And let me know if anything comes up."

"Will do, Victoria," Xander assured me. "And hey, don't worry too much. We'll get to the bottom of this."

I forced a small smile, grateful for Xander's reassurance. "Thanks, Xander. I'll talk to you soon."