"And there he is, the man of the hour!"
Andy allowed a small, smug smirk to take form on his lips as he entered the room, hands casually in the pockets of his black, wool trench coat. He pulled a hand out, running it through his hair calmly. His boots clicked on the tile floor, although the clicks were masked by the applause and cheering he was currently receiving.
"And what's all this about? My birthday isn't for another two months." Andy feigned confusion as he slid the coat off of his broad shoulders, draping it over his desk chair with one swift movement.
"You know exactly what this is, Biersack!" One of his colleagues tapped his shoulder, a proud smile on her face.
"Do I, now, Ms. Lindel?" He smoothly replied.
That was an easy question; of course he knew. Everybody in the state knew.
The past few weeks had consisted of brutal crimes committed against innocent civilians; a case that had been assigned to Andy as he had just recently achieved the status of head detective. At the time, the case were only two murders. Elderly woman, age 87, found dead in her home. The autopsy reports revealed that she did indeed die of heart failure, and given the woman's age, foul play was overlooked entirely. The week following, another death had been reported.
That time it was a 27 year old male, found dead in his work cubicle by the building custodian. Andy found it quite odd to hear of a perfectly healthy man of such a young age to die of a heart failure, and as did the department coroner. After the toxicology report came back, it was learned that the past two victim's had been injected with potassium chloride. Potassium chloride, when injected, mimics a heart attack and kills within minutes.
After learning such vital information, an investigation was sprung almost immediately, with Andy leading it proudly. Over the next few weeks, a total of seven victims had been unfortunately rolled into the morgue. According to those they spoke to regarding each killing, whether it be a family member, friend, or co-worker, the victim had supposedly received an envelope with nothing but their first name written in sloppy black ink. There was no address, meaning the killer had either personally known them or had been secretly stalking them. Inside each envelope was a message, although each individual note seemed personalized to the person receiving it, and each message was signed with a number. 27.
Everyone was hopelessly perplexed by the situation, especially Andy.
The victims all ranged in age, race, background, occupations, sex. There was nothing that Andy could find that connected one to the other. The fact that random killing was ruled out only puzzled him more. The question that plagued Andy's mind the most was what the hell '27' meant and why it was this guy's signature?
Actually, now that he thought about it, that still didn't add up...
"You caught the guy, Andy!" Alice, the colleague beside him, laughed and removed her hand from his shoulder. "So.. let's celebrate!"
Andy smiled a bit. "Right... I did, didn't I." He mused and looked over as a paper plate with a slice of cake was presented to him. "Seriously? You guys bought a cake for me?" He laughed, sitting in his chair before accepting the plate and fork.
"Uh-uh. Not bought. Made by yours truly." Alice grinned and went to get her own.
Andy laughed again quietly. "Well, thank you!" He shrugged and took a bite.
As he pulled the fork from between his lips, a chair was pulled up beside him. Andy looked over and saw a few of the newer members of the department had gathered around him, all staring in awe and wonder. Andy would be lying if he said he wasn't flattered by the attention...
"Yes, boys?" He chuckled and set his cake on his desk.
"Tell us everything.." The one that had first grabbed Andy's attention spoke up, his brown eyes wide with anticipation. "How did you know it was him?"
Andy smiled a bit. "What's your name?"
"Me? Um- Chris, sir. Chris Mora." Chris cleared his throat, straightening up a little. "Or- Officer Mora, I guess. I'm not quite up to detective status yet, but-"
"You'll get there someday. Trust me." Andy smiled reassuringly, patting him on the shoulder. "Now, Officer Mora, you said it was? The key thing to being a lead detective on a case like this is to always, always, keep an open mind. Remain one hundred percent aware of everyone and everything around you at all times. If I had let myself off guard for even a second, I would have missed the smallest detail that pointed me in the direction of getting the guy."
Chris nodded, eyes wide and still in awe. "Yeah- Of course, that makes total sense. So what was it that lead you to him?"
Andy leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs. "Well, I'll admit that it was incredibly complicated to piece together, but in the end it seemed that it was-"
His sentence was abruptly interrupted.
"Andrew, my office. Now." The dangerously calm voice of the chief sent a chill down Andy's spine. God, he hated when she used his full name like that. Andy nodded and stood, going to the large double doors that led to the chiefs office. He closed them behind himself, and took a seat in front of the desk.
"So, uh... Wanted to congratulate me personally, then, right?" He laughed uncomfortably. The cold stare he was met with answered his question, and instantly frowned. "Uh.. Chief Fenton? What's that look for?"
Her eyes narrowed before she broke her gaze away to reach into a drawer, still silent.
"Megan, you're really freaking me out here-"
"Andrew, I need you to turn your badge in until further notice." She deadpanned, setting something before him. Andy's face drained of color, heart stopping.
"What!? Why!? Megan, what the hell did I do to get suspended?" He stood up, too stuck on the fact of having to turn his badge him to observe the object she had presented.
"Andy-"
"No, I followed protocol down to the last period! What did I do wrong!?" He panicked. "I'll fix it, whatever it is, but don't-"
"Andrew Biersack, sit down and look." She snapped, her green eyes less angry and more concerned now that Andy really thought about it. Slowly, Andy sat down, running a hand through his hair as he pulled his chair up to the desk.
"Look.. whatever it is, I'm sure it's noth..." He trailed off, mouth pausing as his eyes gazed upon the envelope before him. "...nothing. Megan, what the hell kind of a sick joke is this." He hissed.
"It seems the man you apprehended isn't the mastermind behind this." She said quietly. "And you've become his next target... Which is why I need you to hand over your badge. Until we can finally catch him, your presence only pose as a danger to the rest of the investigation, and to yourself."
"Chief Fenton-"
"No. I'm doing this for your own safety." She held a hand up and then extended it. "Please, Andy. Don't make this any harder than it already is... You're one of the smartest detectives this department has ever had, I hate that I have to do this."
Andy stared at her, breath slow and heavy as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his badge and credentials. "Here..." He whispered and stood. "And what do you want me to do with this?" He lifted the sealed envelope.
Megan gazed at it and then looked away. "Like you had written in your report, the messages were personalized. So I say you take it with you, look it over, and shoot me an email when you figure out what it means. Got it? Now go home. Get some sleep." She waved a hand and leaned back in her office chair, using her other hand to rub her eyes. Andy slid the envelope into his pocket and left silently, grabbing his coat from his desk.
"Andy, where are you going? What was that all about?" Alice frowned, watching.
Andy said nothing, ignoring them all as he left the building in total silence.
He drove home in total silence.
He went inside and changed out of his work clothes in total silence.
He sat down at his desk in total, complete silence.
He stared at the envelope in silence, observing each stroke that spelled out his name.
Andy held his breath as he carefully opened it, sliding out the neatly folded piece of paper with small handwriting all across it.
Andy.
Andy, Andy, Andy... What a nice name. I quite enjoy it.
However, I do not enjoy that someone with such an adorable name has such ugly intentions for me.
I'm just misunderstood and lonely... And you want me to rot in a cell? I'm hurt. So deeply hurt.
I figured it was only fair I pull a fast one and beat you at your own game.
You see, I'm just like you, Andy.
We're both too smart for our own good... We just use our quick and clever nature to aide different playing fields.
I'm sure you'd love to smack me around that wretched interrogation room and lecture me on how we're nothing alike, but that would all be a lie... Just you see, my dear Andy.
Now, back to the fun part.
The man you managed to capture was not me, is not me, and will never be me. Although, you got close. That man just so happened to be my... source. He provided me with the 'goodies,' if you will. The ones that I so graciously gift to each of my specially chosen toys.
I only have enough left for one more dose... So who better to gift it to then the beloved Detective Andrew Biersack?
You're a special toy, though, Andy... I won't waste this opportunity like I did with the others. I'm not going to rush into this. Instead, I think I'll have my fun and wait... See if you can catch me. Like a game of cat and mouse, but.. more fun.
Your only rule?
Leave your friends in blue out of this, unless you'd like a front row seat to watch them burn. I suppose that would be fun to see, but I'd rather not go through the trouble, so I suggest you follow your rule for the both of us.
Am I understood?
Of course I am.
Don't worry, my sweet. You'll soon thank me for this game.
Perhaps I'll write you again, perhaps not.
Your beloved,
xo 27
PS: It's a shame to hear about your grandfather. I'm sure he was a wonderful man, just like yourself.
Without a single word, Andy rushed into the bathroom that was connected to his bedroom. He turned on the faucet and splashed handful upon handful of cold water into his face, his chest rising and falling rapidly as his heart beat violently. His stomach churned as every word echoed in his head.
How the hell did he know about his grandpa passing away?
How the hell did he know his name?
Why was this lunatic speaking as though they were lovers to be?
Who was this psychotic motherfucker?
Andy felt around for the towel as he turned off the water, and held it to his face for a moment. When he lowered it and hung it back on the towel rack, he approached the desk once more, where the letter sat in all of it's hellish glory.
"You're sick." He spat, swept it into the waste basket, turned off the lamp, and climbed into bed.
A/N: Ayyy! Okay. So, This was hella long, and I apologize haha I kept telling myself I'd wait until Wolf or Game Over wrapped up, but I got so excited about this idea so eee I did it haha. I apologize in advance if any of the details sound off or incorrect, I did a bit of research on potassium chloride and stuff, but I don't know if I understood it enough to incorporate it, but I did anyways so oops!!! Also, I'm sorry if this chapter sounds rushed or choppy, or confusing.
Please, please let me know what you think down in the comments. I'm super proud of this so far, and I hope you guys like it. <3