The Devil & The Draxon

12. Victim Three

⚯

Nyx knocks on the door of the case's lead suspect.

"If you're selling anything, fuck off," calls a voice from inside.

"I'm merrily here to speak about a serial killer case from two years ago that I believe you were a suspect in," Nyx says loudly.

"You got a new lead?" The door opens, revealing the middle-aged brunet man known as Dominic Kane. "Are you any closer?"

"We are," Nyx replies. "If I may come in, I just got assigned to the case and would like to hear first hand what you know of the murders."

"Oh, yes, come in."

Stepping inside, Kane guilds the draxon to his living room.

"Can I get you anything?" Kane asks, faintly twitching in an anxious manner than many would miss.

"One of your finest knives and a rag cloth should do fine," Nyx replies with a sweet smile, sitting back on the couch.

"W-what?"

"Well, we don't want the neighbours to hear you screaming, now do we?"

Before he can scream or run, Kane finds his limbs no longer under his control. Expression twisting into one of horror, Kane's breathing quickens as he watches his body walk to the kitchen and pick up a long knife, the one he used on two of his seven victims.

Nyx makes Kane walk back over to him. "Now, let's see... Yes, take off your shirt and use that to gag yourself."

Kane finds he can speak, spitting out, "who the fuck are you?! What do you want from me?!"

"Me? Who I am is of no importance," Nyx replies. "You however. Dominic Kane, uncaught serial killer of the kidnap-and-torture case. Seven known victims, yet no sufficient evidence left behind to lead to the culprit. I must applaud you on that one, you are quite careful."

"I didn't do it, I told the police before I'm innocent," Kane says, eyes wide.

"That's what you say, but your memories tell otherwise. Dear, three victims that were never found and should currently reside at the bottom of a lake... Crafty, I haven't seen that before."

"Who the fuck are you? H-how do you know that?"

"So you admit to it then?" Nyx says. "Well, as a reward for that, I'll tell you who I am. I am the draxon, imprisoned for centuries in Hell and now free. Tell me, Kane, do you hold any regret for what you did to those poor women and men?"

"Yes, of course I do."

Nyx smiles widely, looking through the man's mind. "Wrong answer. But when I'm done with you, at least the police will believe that."

⚯

"Espinoza," Pierce says, stopping at Dan's desk. "How's your progress on that new murder case?"

"Already solved," Dan replies. "Dominic Kane, thirty-nine years old. It was a suicide, a very violent suicide. We found a letter addressed to the LAPD as a whole written in the victim's handwriting. Confessed to all the murders in one of the unsolved cases as well as three others that our divers are already looking for. Apparently he couldn't handle the guilt anymore and decided to end it."

Looking over the letter in the evidence bag handed to him, Pierce nods. "Good work Espinoza."

"Thank you sir," Dan replies, watching the lieutenant walk away with the letter.

Chloe walks over, interested. "What was that about?"

"Checking up on a case that came in while you were investigating the Firehawk case," Dan replies, showing her some of the forensic pictures taken of the victim.

"Oh my god," Chloe whispers, stunned. "This... This was a suicide?"

"Suicide?" Lucifer repeats disbelievingly, looking over Chloe's shoulder, having walked over silently. "He looks like he went through a meat grinder."

"He did what he did to his victims," Dan says. "Slice them up and let them bleed out. He wrote a suicide letter, said he did it, was overwhelmed in guilt and included some details no one but the killer could know."

"No, I won't fall for it," Lucifer says. "This was a murder."

"Lucifer," Chloe says.

"What? If you decide to kill so many people, you'd have to be incredibly attached to the idea and wouldn't have a speck of guilt afterwards. This criminal says what, that he wallowed in guilt for the rest of his days until he couldn't take it? You don't kill that many people in such a brutal way and not mean to do it."

"Actually, you've got a point, Lucifer," Dan says. "People who knew him said he never showed any hint of depression or suicidal thoughts whatsoever. "

"Thank you, Daniel."

"Well, do you want some help looking deeper?" Chloe asks. "Get an extra set of eyes, make sure you don't miss anything?"

"That would be great, thanks."

Pierce watches the three from his office, Nyx's presence at the front of his mind.

'Seems they're suspicious,' Pierce thinks.

'Yes, it does, doesn't it,' Nyx hums. 'I guess playing the guilt card wasn't very creative, was it... but it was fun.'

'Did you really need to pull his teeth out?'

'I didn't do anything; he did it all to himself.'

'Nyxeus.'

'Don't tell me picturing it doesn't amuse you, Cain. He looked terrified as I made him pull them out one by one. It was incredibly entertaining, maybe you should accompany me next time.'

'Next time?' Pierce repeats.

'There is always a next time, Cain.'