A sharp pain in his head brought Erik out of his black out. The ache seared through his brain like something had ripped through his skull and decided to rampage in his brain for a long while. His heartbeat raced in time to the quick pace of his shallow breaths. Erik cracked open his eyes. Everything was blurry, even the sounds as a few murky voices talked over him.
The last time Erik had such a bad black out was after fighting that drunkard outside the tavern.
Erik's breathing quickened when he realized he didn't know where he was. He couldn't see or register anything. Without Jean to help him, this black out was definitely worse.
Someone shook Erik's body. "Erik. Erik, are you okay?"
Erik groaned in reply.
"He's alive," that person said.
"So's this one," another person replied. "The only victim was the husband."
Erik squinted his eyes and tried to make something of the blurry shapes. Gradually, after a few minutes of effort, he could see again. It was night. The only light came from the guards' lamps. He was outside someone's house, one in the more unkempt parts of Meryl. There were two guards on the steps over there. Erik's uncle stood over him. Erik forced his arms to take the weight of his body as he tried to stand up. The pain in his head prevented him from getting entirely up, so he settled for sitting on the ground.
"You're awake. Do you remember anything?" Erik's uncle asked.
Erik glanced to the side. Jean was here too. Another guard was interviewing him.
"No, I don't," Erik said. "Where are we? What happened?"
"We think you and Jean had a run in with The Ripper," Erik's uncle replied. "We found you two passed out here with the lightning scar on the sides of your heads."
That explained the tearing ache Erik felt in his skull.
"The Ripper attacked again?" Erik asked.
"Yes. He killed Lady Dulane's husband inside. We think you and Jean were attacked when you apprehended The Ripper outside."
"Why didn't he kill us?" Erik murmured.
Erik's uncle shook his head. "We have no idea. The best guess we have is The Ripper only wants to kill his targets. Are you all right? Can you stand?"
With his uncle's help, Erik stood up. The pain in his head hadn't subsided much, but it became more bearable. The guards interrogated him and Jean with a few more questions before allowing them to leave. The next day, both were to stop by the guardhouse to answer more questions.
"I can't believe The Ripper attacked again," Jean murmured. "It hasn't even been a day since the last murder."
"Yeah, there's usually a gap," Erik replied. "Something must have changed."
Erik rubbed the side of his head and felt the small ridges of the scar. Feeling a little self-conscious, he grabbed the handle of his sword and began to speed up the healing process so the scar would fade faster.
"Good thing you can heal that up. I'm stuck with it for a few days," Jean said and scratched at his scar.
"What were we even doing there?" Erik asked. "I remember traveling around the city looking for clues but not much else."
"I don't know. Last thing I remember is your mother asking me to bring you home," Jean replied.
The two were quiet the rest of the way home and only traveled the well-lit roads. It was unspoken, but Erik was sure Jean felt unsettled too. They had met The Ripper, the murderer of Meryl, and survived. Yet, in spite of it all, neither of them could remember the encounter.
As the approached their homes, Jean asked, "You really don't remember anything?"
Erik nodded. "It's like I passed out then just woke up hours later. You?"
"Nothing," Jean replied. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight."
After saying goodbye to Jean, Erik went inside his own home. A scowling father and upset mother sitting at the dining room table greeted him with silence. Erik said nothing, averted his gaze, and took his own seat at the table.
"Where were you?" Erik's father asked.
"I went back to the murder scene," Erik replied.
Erik's father sighed. "Son, you should've come straight home. I thought you were here helping your mother all day."
"I'm sorry."
Erik glanced up at his upset father then quickly turned away again, which made it easier for his mother to catch notice of the scar on the side of his head. Erik's mother stood up, walked over to Erik, and gingerly touched the scar. Erik winced and braced himself for more trouble.
"What--" Erik's mother started before breaking down into tears.
Erik's father's eyes widened.
Erik bit his cheek and took a deep breath before explaining. "I, uh, had a run in with The Ripper. I think."
It took a bit of time to tell the whole story in between his mother's sobs, but Erik managed to get everything out. As he talked about encountering The Ripper, Erik felt lightheaded. He had actually faced a murderer, and he couldn't even remember it.
The aftermath of the whole ordeal was to be expected. For the next few days, Erik laid low. No going outside to hunt for clues, no hunting murderers late at night. Erik woke up, played with Chris, then went with his father to work at the guild. Erik and Jean gave the guards their testimony. The guards searched for The Ripper with no luck.
One week went by before The Ripper struck again. This time, he killed the wife of the last victim, which made three victims from one household. For the second time in his killing spree, The Ripper left a message:
Infidelity will be paid with blood.
The day after The Ripper's latest murder, Erik stopped by Jean's bakery to pick up some bread for his family. It was the first time the two friends had time to really talk since Erik's father insisted on Erik joining him at the guild from dawn to dusk.
"Here you go. And a little sugar cookie for Chris," Jean said with a smile.
"Thanks," Erik said and took two loaves of bread. "Hey, you hear about the new murder?"
Jean nodded and leaned forward on the counter. "Yeah, it's all anyone can talk about. It actually came out that the people who died were Lady Dulane and her lover."
"You mean her husband?"
"No, it was an affair," Jean replied.
Erik went quiet, a little unsure of how to respond. Jean's mother had an affair a few years ago that nearly tore their family apart. His parents managed to reconcile, but things were still tense.
"Can't believe she had an affair while her husband was bedridden," Jean muttered. "Not that the greedy weasel of a man was any better." Jean clenched his fist.
"Hey, you okay?" Erik asked. It wasn't like Jean to get so worked up like this. He was usually so even-tempered.
Jean sighed and relaxed his shoulders. "Yeah, I'm fine. My bad, I shouldn't speak ill of the dead anyways. Your family doing okay?"
Erik nodded. "Same as always. Luckily, nothing else has happened. Father says there are more riots though on the outskirts of town. People are getting more agitated."
Erik left out the fact that his father's guild had rocks thrown through the windows. Between being a merchant and marrying someone from the Decapolis, his father was making more and more enemies. It wasn't fair. His father did nothing wrong. Erik remembered many times when his father would forgive debts of people who couldn't pay them because of illness or death in the family. He ran a good business, and he shouldn't have been punished for marrying a foreigner.
"Say," Erik said and leaned on the counter in front of Jean, "You want to help me out with something?"
"Depends," Jean said.
"I want to help search for The Ripper and stop him."
Jean sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He slumped on the counter and groaned theatrically. Erik rolled his eyes at his friend. He knew he could be reckless at times, but this reaction was over the top.
"Very funny."
"I'm sorry, but it's like you want to get killed," Jean replied, facedown on the counter. "You keep getting yourself into dangerous situations for no reason."
"It'll be less dangerous if you join me."
"I highly doubt that."
"Come on, Jean," Erik replied. "My father can't do anything about it since he's a merchant, scandal and all that. My uncle isn't having any luck." Erik poked at his friend's cheek to get him to lift his head up. "This guy is ruining my family's good name."
"He could kill you," Jean replied and lifted his head. "Aren't you scared of him?"
Erik shrugged. "I guess. But if he wanted me dead, he would have killed me already."
Their conversation was cut short as another customer walked into the bakery. Erik pretended to be browsing around the empty store while Jean helped the customer with his bread order. He was sure he was receiving some strange looks. Erik was staring at a brick wall like it was made of gold after all.
"He left," Jean said. "And so has your sanity."
"I can do it," Erik said. "I have to. It's only a matter of time before the riots attack my family. I can't let that happen."
"I know you want--"
"Jean, I have to catch this guy. He's evil," Erik interrupted.
Jean went quiet. "Evil, huh?"
"He's killing people for no reason," Erik said.
"There's probably a reason," Jean replied.
"Why are you defending him?" Erik countered, feeling his face flush. Because of The Ripper, he and his family were being targeted by riots. It didn't matter that his skin was the color of Meryl, it didn't matter that his family were good people. Meryl was going crazy.
Jean held his hands up and sighed. "Sorry."
Erik shook his head, which still felt hot. "No, you're right. There's probably a reason." Erik stood up straight and headed for the door. "And I'm going to find out what it is."
As Erik opened the door, Jean stopped him.
"Erik, wait."
Erik turned around to see Jean standing next to him. His friend had a strange look on his face. From the way his eyebrows furrowed to the grimace on his mouth to the red flush on his cheeks, Jean looked like a strange combination of frustrated, worried, and scared at the same time.
"I'll go with you," Jean murmured.
Erik smiled.
"But only to make sure you don't get yourself killed," Jean added.
Erik smiled and left. He knew he could always count on Jean. Jean, the first friend he made when his family moved to the Decapolis. The boy who played with him when they were children. The boy who carried him home after the cart accident.
The boy who helped him home after the bar fight that knocked him unconscious. The boy who went looking for him when The Ripper attacked Erik.
Jean, his best friend.