Who is Ivy Rose?

Chapter 15 - Lies and Betrayls

Author's Note

Surprise! I felt horrible for being a bit late with the latest chapter so I sat for hours writing and working on it. I hope it was worth the wait and that you all enjoy it!

Again if you've not yet listened to the song. Please give it a listen so you can understand more about what the chapter will be about!

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Chief Inspector Taylor Sharpe

I tapped my finger on my desk, my teeth chewing the top of the pen in my mouth as I stared aimlessly at the pile of paperwork and photographs on my desk. I've been over the case for hours, re-reading every statement and scanning every inch of the suspect's list. I sighed and dropped the pen, my hands rubbing my face. It's been three weeks since Sheila Watson's murder and I was nowhere near solving the case. It was frustrating. A killer was on loose, free, probably on the lookout for a new victim, and here I am, stuck and empty-handed.

I picked up the latest lists of suspects, going down the list for the hundredth time, but frowned when once again nothing stood out. Normally I would have spotted something by now, but this murderer was clever, leaving no trace behind. But did he or she have help? It wasn't easy to clean that crime scene, not without help.

A knock on my door snapped me out of my thoughts and I looked up from my desk to see my partner with two mugs of steaming hot coffees in his hands. My eyes lit up and I smiled grateful for the distraction, at least for now. I took my cup from his hand and eagerly took the first sip, moaning as the bittersweet taste trickled down my throat. It was pure bliss, a brief getaway from this agonizing case and my troubled thoughts about my personal life.

'You look like you could use a break, Taylor! Have you had anything to eat today?'

I bit my bottom lip and guiltily shook my head no. I've been so obsessed on a case that I didn't have the time or luxury to eat. I had to catch whoever did this before they strike again. 'Taylor house need to eat! You can't go the whole day without eating something, you look like you could drop dead any minute!'

'Chris, I can't, this case really needs to be solved before whoever did this can strike again!'

'But what makes you think there will be another murder? For all, we know it could just be random.'

'No, I don't think it is, this all seems planned and little too personal for it to be random. This wasn't just any victim Chris. This was a goddamn therapist. A therapist. Who would want such an important person dead? She's had lots of threats in the past, we've just got to figure out which one of those threats got her killed.'

'I know, believe me, I have been going over the case too, but I've not had any luck, have you had any luck with the new list of suspects?'

I sighed and stared at him for a brief moment before pulling up an old case file we had months ago. The victim was in her mid 20's, found in the middle of nowhere, strangled. Megan Myers. There were similarities in both cases. Both deaths seemed personal and deliberate. Megan was strangled. Sheila was hanged. Both were slow and personal deaths.

'Wait. You think these two cases could be connected?!'

'They have to be, they both seem personal. And have you noticed the methods? This is the second victim that was found dead, hanging by the neck. Megan was strangled. The murderer wanted this to be slow and painful. If it was random he or she would have just stabbed or shot the victims. I've just got a feeling that these two deaths are someone connected. I just need to find out how and why.'