Regression.

[Boredd]

Hi everyone, I thought I'd share this story with you guys. It's my attempt at writing a love/crime fiction story.

I've just got to warn you first that story is plot-driven so there will be love scenes in it but its not the point of the story. So if you're looking to get off, I'd suggest looking elsewhere.

I'm going to apologise first for the multitude of characters introduced in this chapter. Theres a lot but bear with me, most of them are important as the story progresses.

But other than that, welcome to Regression. I hope you enjoy the read.

Chapter 1: Reunion​

Late! Late! I was very, very late.

The sudden downpour didn’t help much either. I was struggling to keep the umbrella standing as I frantically meandered my way through the busy peak hour streets of Sydney. Why would anyone even choose this place as a venue? It was a nightmare to get to ever since those streets got closed. I scurried past the crowd of people being careful not to trip. However, as soon as I got into a sprint, I was forced to halt.

The flashing ‘red man’ had me standing impatiently. I was only five minutes away! Instead of panicking, I steadied my umbrella and pulled out my phone to check the time. 6.46 p.m. The dinner had started 46 minutes ago. I shouldn’t’ have stayed back at the lab, I completely lost track of time. The red man became green and I started to hurry. I didn’t even know why I was so concerned; it wasn’t like I was overjoyed when the invitation came. If it weren’t for the sentimental 10-year guilt trip, the invitation would have gone into the trash. Yet, I felt oddly excited. Maybe that’s why I was sprinting. Maybe somewhere deep inside me, I had wanted to go to this all along.

I caught my breath as I approached the familiar double wooden doors. It was closed. I suddenly felt very nervous like a boy on his first day of high school. It was a little ironic actually. Should I knock? I doubt anyone would hear me in this rain. Instead, I took a breath, step forward and pushed.

***

Arriving early was usual for Detective George Odin. Instinctively, he scanned the area before proceeding forward. The courtyard was like he last remembered, dusty, battered and worn out. He didn’t mind it though; this place was ‘home’ and he hoped it never changes.

“George!”

Odin saw the man before his name was called. Max Geyers. Max has become the man everyone envisaged him to be - broad shoulders, tall and booming but very, very kind.

“Good to see you,” Max smiled as he approached.

“You too, Max. It’s been ten years huh?”

“Yeah it has. Come on in. You’re early but a couple of people are here already.”

Odin proceeded through the double wooden doors and into the hall. The immaculate red bricks had faded to a dusty orange throughout the years. Even though this place stopped operating for ten years, the squeaky, clean tiles that lined the floor remained exact. Odin was quite surprised when he heard the venue would be here. He had thought it became abandoned after he left, and had pictured on of those old, creepy buildings that rotted from the abstinence of human care. Yet, the hall still remained quite robust. Either Max had somehow found a way to breathe life into this place or it never really rotted away.

Ever since the government decided to axe the cathedral, Odin was positive this place would be next. They didn’t. The building stayed and over the years had faded into the background of the busy Sydney streets. Today, the hall looked decadent. It was littered with those fancy round tables used at weddings, arranged in an outwards circular pattern forming a semi-circle shaped floor space at the front. Odin also spotted a DJ stand on the stage and a makeshift bar area to the right. The ceiling was decorated with fancy lights converging into a magnificent centerpiece. Max really did go all out. As Odin marveled at the lighting, he caught sight of Matthew Pinton in his peripheral.

“It’s amazing huh?” Pinton said as he approached.

“Yeah, Max went all out didn’t he?”

“Well of course, it’s been ten years. And apparently everyone’s coming tonight.” Pinton answered.

“Everyone?” Odin went wide-eyed. He wasn’t aware everyone would be coming.

“Yep. All one hundred and twenty something of us.”

Odin was shocked at first, but then he was glad. Everyone would be here. That was a good thing. Suddenly, he felt his heart flutter a little and he didn’t know why. Actually, Odin did know why but he didn’t want to acknowledge it.

“How did Max manage to pull that off?”

“Who knows? He has his ways. Come one lets go and sit,” Pinton said.

Odin followed. Pinto and him were quite good friends in high school. They kept in contact quite frequently afterwards until Odin realized Pinton and most of everyone he hung around with were either meatheads or bullies. The communication got sparse, as the years past and he haven’t spoken to most of the guys in a while. He was quite curious how everyone was doing though. Odin arrived at the table to be greeted by Ben Stevenson.

“Ben,” Odin said. “How have you been?”

Stevenson looked up. Odin noticed that he was bulkier, although he wasn’t sure whether it was ‘muscle’ fat or ‘fat’ fat.

“George! Good to see you man. I’m okay. How are you?”

The night mostly continued this way. As the halls filled, Odin felt strange seeing so many familiar faces that wasn’t so familiar at all. Most of the boys he hung out with came up and spoke briefly before sitting down. They laughed and joked but somehow it all felt a little forced. Odin wasn’t sure if he would have hung out with these guys if he had the chance to do over. His interest waned as the conversations turned into girls and ‘conquests’ – he was a little sick that these types of conversations still dominated the minds of 28-year-old men. Instead, Odin looked around the room. The hall was definitely filled by now. Odin was only looking for him. As he continued to search, someone plopped down on the chair next to him and his attention was pulled back.

“Spacing out like the good ol’days George?”

“Brendan!” Odin exclaimed. He was happy to see his best friend again. They haven’t spoken since Brendan had a promotion and had to suddenly move to London. He knew Brendan was back in town but he hasn’t had time to catch up with his old friend.

“Congratulations on your promotion by the way,” Odin said. “Becoming a partner must feel great.”

“Yeah. But not as col as becoming a detective.” Brendan laughed.

This made Odin feel a little sad. He had always been happy being in the police force and he knew that he had made the right decision. However, he couldn’t help but think where he would have been now if he continued his law degree.

Brendan had started talking to other guys at the table so Odin scanned the room again. He still couldn’t find him. Where was he? It’s past six and rapidly approaching half past. Didn’t Pinton say everyone would be here tonight?

***

The door was much heavier than I expected. It required a few good push to budge. As I entered the hall, the chatter stopped. Everyone’s eyes were suddenly on me. My palms started sweating. Stop it! Calm down, your palms haven’t sweated in years.

“Kayden. You’re here.” I looked up towards the stage. It was Max Geyers speaking to me.

“That makes everyone.” Max continued.

I swiftly unfolded my umbrella and made my way to the right most table in the second circular row thing. I had quickly spotted Will when I entered the hall. I sat down next to Will and silently waved hello to the rest of the guys. Apparently Max had been in a middle of some speech.

“Great interruption there. Max was going on and on about the most pointless thing,” Will muttered.

It felt like we were in year 10 math class again.

“Was that why everyone looked at me?” I muttered back.

“Yeah. We were all looking for a reason to get him to shut up. Why were you late anyways?”

“Got sidetracked at the lab.” I answered casually.

“As per usu-.”

“Will you too shut it?” Lester whispered. He was glaring from across the table.

We smiled at him playfully but stopped talking to look towards the stage. However, Max seemed finished. He announced dinner service was to begin and disappeared behind the stage. Not long afterwards, waiters came out with entrées.

The dinner was the usual, nothing too exciting. Even though I called these guys my closest group of friends, I haven’t spoken to most of them in over three years. Life had a way of holding you up. The only person I kept in regular contact with was Will. He had become a vet after school and was doing what he loved. Animals always meant so much to him. Sitting to Will’s left was Josh who was talking about some kind project he was currently working on. Josh became a graphics designer after high school and was now working at Metticulous, a design firm in the city. Across the table was James and Lester, we used to call them ‘love birds’ since they did everything together. James became a pharmacist and Lester was working as a freelance architect. Lastly, on Lester’s right was Pete. I kind of had a falling out with Peter after graduation. He was the one that was obsessed with popularity but realized that he wasn’t so popular outside of high school. He was the only one of us who didn’t make it to university. I’m not really sure what he does now but I did hear he had a brief modeling stint. And that brings the table round full circle back to me.

“So Kayden, I heard you’re back at uni again?” Pete asked. It wasn’t really a question though. I answered him anyways.

“I actually finished my dissertation last November. I’m due to fly out soon.” The guys stopped their conversations mid-sentence and looked over to us. It felt a little tense.

“Fly out?” Pete continued.

“Yeah. To London.”

“London?”

“Yeah I did my doctorate over there.”

There was a slight pause.

“So was it difficult? I assume PhDs are quite challenging… even for you.” Pete asked.

“Um, this is my third doctorate. I was personally asked to undertake the research as a favour for the university so I wasn’t really being assessed.”

Silence.

I wasn’t quite sure if that was what Pete wanted to know so I continued talking trying to diffuse the awkwardness.

“What do you do now?” I asked.

“Nothing.”

Pete just stared at me. I felt a little nervous. The tension was so tight right now, I wasn’t sure if the other guys were even breathing.

“You know what Kayden, I’m sick of you getting EVERYTHING handed to you. You think you’re so much better than everything else but really you’re just pathetic.” Pete spat out before getting up and walking away.

I felt like I just got slapped.

“I’m so sorry Kayden, he’s a little… sensitive,” Lester said. “Don’t let him get to you though. He’s just - ”

“Don’t worry about it Lest,” I stood up. “I need a little fresh air.”

I headed out into the courtyard and stood over the balcony watching the cars past below. The rain had cleared up a little was now a light sprinkle. I shouldn’t have come tonight; I knew everything would turn out awkward and uncomfortable. I had closed this chapter of my life quite tightly; there were just too many things that hurt me. I turned around quickly to leave and bumped head first into something quite bulky. He grabbed me before I could fall. I looked up and came face to face with the warmest smile and the most golden brown eyes I have ever seen. My heart skipped a little. After so many years, he still resembled the boy that turned around and smiled at me on the first day of Junior English.

“George,” I quietly breathed out.

“Kayden,” he replied smiling at me.

I couldn’t help but smile too. “How are you?”

“Good. I saw you come out and thought I’d come too.”

“Remember this day ten years ago George? We didn’t even say good bye,” I said.

George’s eyes bore into mine with an intensity that was so unique to him. “You were the one that left. I didn’t want you to go.”

The tone he used made me feel so guilty. I did leave, and because of that I remained silent. Instead of replying, I set my gaze out to the night.

“Did you get even my messages? Or my emails?” George asked.

“I did.”

“Did you read them?”

“No.”

I could feel George looking at me. I turned to face him and notice a glint on his hand.

“I came back to Sydney three years ago, you were engaged,” I said trying to be as emotionless as I can. “And from the looks of it, you’re married now.”

My eyes gazed down to the ring on his fourth finger. It was his turn to remain silent and look out into the night sky. My insides felt a little hollow. It was the same feeling I get every time I thought about him. I put on a brave smile. It felt like I was in year 12 and getting my heart broken all over again.

George looked back at me. “So do you live here now?” he asked.

“Yeah, I just accepted a job in Sydney last month. I work at–”

My sentence was cut short by the blood-curdling scream that pierced through the blanket of night. It came from inside. George’s body went tense and his eyes narrowed. He looked at me quickly and then ran inside. I followed. The hall was a complete chaos. Everyone was everywhere. Chairs and tables knocked over. Utensils lay scattered on the floor. People ran in a multitude of directions shouting incomprehensibly. George made a beeline for the stage; a group of people was gathered up front. I made my way forward pushing through the disarray of people. The sight that greeted me made my blood run cold.

~

That's all for now. I appreciate any comment/critique you have.

 

[Autolycus]

Thanks for sharing this with us. Your start has the potential of becoming an intriguing story

 

[Boredd]

New chapter! A little shorter but it should clear up a couple of questions.

Chapter 2: Disarray​

The police sirens were still ringing in my ears a good thirty minutes later. We were all standing outside now. The graduating class of 2004 stood miserably wet in the mist that followed an evening downpour. Everyone had remained, no one left. For the first time we were united as a group instead of individual cliques. For the first time we all stood together. All but one.

I spotted Jefferson’s old Camry before he saw me approaching. Jefferson looked grim, almost withered. The rain and somber atmosphere had only added to his solemn disposition. With the long trench coat and briefcase, Jefferson looked downright depressing.

“Kevin,” Jefferson said surprisingly. He had spotted me. “I didn’t know you got paged.”

“I wasn’t,” I sighed. “Look, it’s a long story. I’ll explain when I get back to the lab. But more importantly, we need to be inside.”

“Why aren’t you in there?”

“They won’t let me through,” I nodded towards the two policemen. “I didn’t think I’d be needing my badge tonight.”

He looked at me curiously before turning around and heading to the double wooden doors. I followed. Jefferson crossed the yellow tape and flashed his badge at the policemen. They examined it carefully before moving aside. I stepped forward to follow Jefferson through the door when one of the policemen stopped me. He was quite handsome, dark hair and a muscular jaw.

“I’m sorry,” he said sternly. “Detective Odin said no one can – ”

“He’s with me,” Jefferson interrupted.

The policeman looked confused. “I can’t –”

“I’m the chief medical examiner here, you can trust me when I say he’s with me,” Jefferson interrupted again.

The policeman shoulder’s slumped and he went a little red before stepping aside to let me past.

“Sorry,” I muttered before following Jefferson inside.

The hall, although now empty, still carried the chaotic remnants of the previous hour. A scatter of utensils and food lay abandoned on the floor. Jefferson carefully maneuvered himself past this and walked towards the stage. The other people besides us in here were a couple of guys from the crime scene unit, and George.

“What are you doing here?” George directed at me, as Jefferson proceeded forward.

“What are you doing here?” I countered.

“I’m a detective.”

“What? Since when?” I asked, incredulously.

“Since now.”

I was very surprised finding out George Odin was a detective, although his ‘hotness’ factor did increase considerably.

“Now can you tell me what you are doing in here?” George asked.

“I work for the NFI. I’m a forensic pathologist.”

“Wait. You’re the new recruit the NFI been obsessing over for months?!”

I smiled triumphantly. He still makes me feel like a little kid after all these years.

“If you’re done with the catch up,” Jefferson stated out of the blue. “It’s quite clear that the victims been burnt. However, I don’t think that’s the cause of death. The burn was post-mortem and somehow the fire had stopped before it was able to engulfed the entire body.”

I approached the stage. The scene that lay before still sickened me. Max Geyer’s body lay lifeless. If they say the eyes were the window to the soul, then Max’s soul was consumed with fear. His eyes lit up in horror suggesting that he had been scared to death. His body was soaked with blood and there were slight charring on his neck, which extended up past his mouth and across his nose. I cringed inwardly, how could someone manage to do this was beyond me.

“I need the body back at the lab by tomorrow morning,” Jefferson muttered before standing up. “There’s nothing more that can be observed here.” With that, Jefferson disposed of his gloves and walked out.

I sighed deeply. I felt really exhausted suddenly, like I had just ran cross country. The air felt colder somehow and I shivered.

“Do you want my jacket?” George offered.

“No I’m alright,” I sighed again. “What the hell happened here tonight, George?”

“I don’t know, Kay. I’m not sure I want to know.”

It was a rhetorical question but I smiled at George anyway. He was always so clueless. We walked out of the hall together leaving the crime scene unit guys to document everything up. Everybody was still outside, waiting. They all looked at us expectantly.

“Kayden. George. What’s going on? Is Max…” Lester asked but his voice started to falter.

“I don’t know,” George replied melancholically, looking down.

This wasn’t what the group wanted to hear. They had all wanted answers and the shouting began again.

“Look,” I raised my voice to silence them. “You all saw what happened in there. There isn’t much to say. There’s nothing you guys can do now.” I glanced over at George but he was still gazing at his feet. “Just leave this to the police… leave this to me and George. I promise you we’ll find the bastard who did this. But for now, I think it’s time to call it a night.”

“How?” Someone shouted.

“Who did this?” More shouting.

“Who put him in charge?” The volume was rising as everyone began talking over each other.

“Shut up,” I screamed, getting annoyed. “I only know as much you do. We need a little more time to sort this out. So please, it’s time for everyone to go home.”

They all looked uncertainly at each. People began muttering again but slowly started dispersing. It was getting late.

“Are you alright?” Willem said as he approached me. Lester, James, Pete and Josh all followed behind him.

“I’m good. Thanks. I’m going to head off. You guys should too,” I said before turning around and walking away. I could hear them talking to each other but I didn’t want to remain. I felt very drained and I wasn’t up for answering any questions.

“Kayden.” I felt a slight tap on my shoulder and turned around. It was George.

“How are you getting home?”

“Train.”

“What? No, not at this time. Come I’ll give you a lift.”

I was going to decline but the thought of catching public transport back to my apartment felt too depressing. I didn’t want to be alone tonight.

~

 

[Craiger]

Welcome to the story forum, Boredd. No need to apologize for anything. I like the beginning chapter and look forward to many more. Already the intrigue and mystery is evident. There is something very exciting about a lost romance and how that could possibly be rekindled.

Craiger

 

[Craiger]

That was quick... I barely posted and then found the next chapter, which by the way, does answer many questions. Except who killed Max and how. I am going to enjoy the investigation and what lies between....

Craiger

 

[Boredd]

Hi, a new chapter! I was a little busy with college assignments and suffered a little bit of writers block but am now back on track... hopefully! As usual, send me all your critique. However, I must say that this chapter may be a little off putting to some because it goes a little into detail about Max's death, but this is a crime based story so what did you expect!

Chapter Three: Partners​

The bitter, stale aroma of coffee still lingered on my taste buds as I entered the National Forensics Institute. It was quite a surprise when the federal government announced a national forensics service. I was glad to be back in Sydney though; I had really missed this city when I moved to London for my dissertation.

Even though I had opted for a pick-me-up espresso this morning, I still felt groggy. The events of last night kept playing through my mind like a horrible movie. I had such broken sleep I had slept through my alarm. It made me miss the routine Monday morning meeting so it wasn’t unexpected that I found a bundle of case files on my desk. I quickly sifted through these, only looking for one case.

It wasn’t there.

I sighed and walked out of my office and into Jefferson’s across the hall. He didn’t look up as I enter.

“Where’s my case?” I asked, placing the bundle of folders onto his desk a little too forcefully.

Jefferson stopped what his doing and looked up at me expressionlessly.

“You weren’t at the meeting this morning. Those are your cases,” Jefferson said, nodding to the bundle of manila folders.

I shot him an annoying look. “These are just routine autopsies, one of the junior doctors can do them.”

Jefferson’s mouth thinned. “If I gave everyone what they wanted to do, I wouldn’t be running this place.”

“I was there last night,” I said, trying to persuade him. “I know what happened.”

“The more reason you should be off the case,” Jefferson stated.

I was getting sick of his counter reasoning so I went for another route. “Who’s working on Max’s autopsy?” I asked, wanting to go directly to that medical examiner and threaten him/her to give it to me.

“I am,” Jefferson answered, smiling.

I groaned. That bastard! He knew I wanted to work on this from yesterday. I closed my eyes to calm myself before taking a seat.

“Look Tony,” I tried to explain. “This case is personal to me. I need to find that killer. Max worked hard for last night. I don’t want everything he did to go in vain.”

Jefferson looked at me blankly. I probably shouldn’t have said what I said. As medical examiners, we have to remain completely objective. Jefferson was right, bringing a personal background into a case is not ideal.

“Kayden, you were late this morning. This case is affecting you already. I can’t-”

“No!” I interrupted. “I have to work on this. I need to. If me and George were in there, Max could have…”

I wasn't able to finish my sentence and looked down. Jefferson sighed.

“Fine,” Jefferson said as he reached into his drawer. He pulled out a beige manila folder and handed it to me. "But, you must keep me informed every step of the way.

I nodded quickly and thanked him before accepting the folder. I swallowed hard. This was the part I dreaded. I didn’t want to do this but I knew I had to. “I’ll get down to the autopsy lab,” I said turning around.

“No need. I already did it.”

I turned back around to see Jefferson had stood up as well. He looked grim. I opened the case files and started reading. What I read made my heart jump into my throat.

***

George Odin looked like a little boy sitting in my office. Who would have thought after ten years, we’d be sitting face to face discussing a homicide that happened to one of our classmates at our own school. Fate was funny sometimes.

“How can I help you…” I glanced at him quickly before finishing my sentence. “…detective?”

George looked nervous sitting in the chair. He had gained a few pounds through the years but he filled his suit out quite nicely.

“Uhh, I came here about Geyer’s autopsy and someone told me to see Jefferson who told me to come to you.”

“You’re investigating this?” I asked. I didn’t let him answer. “But you shouldn’t be. You know the victim. You’ll know the suspects.”

“Why are you on this case then?” George countered, narrowing his eyes.

I paused before making up some random bullshit. I wasn’t going to tell him and poured my heart out to Jefferson and begged him to let me have this case. “It’s different here. We’re not restricted like you. You’re a cop.”

“Well this is my case whether you like it or not.”

I can see George getting heated. He looked so hot fired up. I can feel the blood rushing down and had to cough to try and stifle the hardness in my pants. This was so unprofessional.

George continued. “So can you tell me what you found in the autopsy?”

I frowned at George blinking a few times before speaking. I wasn’t sure if I could explain what Max had went through. “Are you sure you want to hear it?”

“Yes, of course,” George said, almost immediately. “Why? Was it really painful?”

“No it wasn’t, rather Max didn’t feel anything at all,” I sighed, opening up Jefferson’s manila folder and retrieving the autopsy pictures. I pulled out a photo and placed it on the desk in front of George.

“These puncture wounds…” I said, indicating to the consecutive, small red dots lining Max’s neck. “…were made to the cervical spine region.”

George looked confused at first but he connected the dots quickly and his face contorted to a look of shock. So he does have some knowledge of human anatomy.

“I don’t like where this is going,” whispered George, shaking his head.

“Those puncture wounds severed the roots of the spinal nerves between C1 and C5. Max lost complete sensory and motor control of his body.”

“But why, why would someone do this?”

“There’s more,” I stated, pulling out another two photos. One showed Max’s right hand and arm. “His fingers were all snapped broken, and there’s a comminuted fracture to the shaft of the radius, consistent with a direct blow. Something like a hammer or a steep, pointed rock.”

I paused allowing George to take it all in. He remained silent staring at the photos so I continued. The second photo showed Max’s slightly charred neck and the left side of his face. I pointed to it. “He was also burnt from the neck up. Origin of the fire probably started on his shirt collar. That was the part of the shirt that was charred as well.”

George looked up at me after I finish explaining. His stare was intense but blank.

“Why would the killer cut off his senses and then cause him pain? It doesn’t make sense, unless he cut off his senses after but then we would have all heard it.”

“No, those puncture wounds definitely came first. This killer is evil. He cut off Max’s senses and then forced him to watch as his own body got destroyed. That’s a pain that no one can imagine.”

“What was cause of death?” George asked.

“His heart stopped.”

We both didn’t speak after that. It was awful enough speaking to Jefferson about it. The silence wasn’t tense or awkward. We both needed it to get used to the idea that someone we personally knew suffered horrendously. When George spoke, he looked a little wearied.

“Ten years and this shit happen,” George said, standing up. “Anyways, I have to go check something.”

“Check what?” I asked, almost immediately.

George looked hesitant.

“George, you have to keep me in the loop. This is my school as much as yours.”

“I thought you hated the school.”

“I did,” I answered. “Probably still do. But then again you were there so how much could I have possibly hated it.”

For the first time since he entered my office, George smiled. The mischievous grin was back again.

“So does that make us some kind of partners then?”

“I need to know what’s going on,” I answered him, trying to maintain professionalism.

George’s grin grew. He nodded once and like that he was gone.

Partners huh? I liked the sound of that.

***

It was a little bit before noon when George burst into my office without knocking. He quickly slammed the door and pressed both his hands on my desk, leaning forward.

“George, what’s goi-”

“Kayden,” George said, aggressively. “What do you remember from last night? I need you tell me everything. And I mean it when I say everything.”

George looked manic. He was breathing hard and I could see sweat dripping down his forehead.

“Calm down. What’s go-”

“Kayden, please!” He more or less shouted this time. “Tell me everything you remember from-”

I quickly stood up. The sudden movement made George jerk backwards.

I placed a hand on his shoulder. “You need to listen to me and calm down,” I said, very slowly and very clearly. “Now tell me, what the hell is going on?”

George breathed before looking directly into my eyes. The mixture of fear, disbelief and concern in them made me inwardly gasp.

“When I left here this morning, I went to Dickson and Smith,” George began.

“The security company?”

“Yes. Apparently the hall still had a back to base monitoring system even after it got closed.” George paused for a moment before continuing. “No one entered or left the hall after you came in late at 6:53, until we went out again to get air at 10:41.”

My eyes narrowed, as I understood what he's trying to say.

“The killer is one of us.”

~

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I look forward to hearing your critique or any comments or questions you have about the characters or direction of the story.

 

[Craiger]

Very interesting, Boredd. Is it allowed that we, the intrigued readers, could see the autopsy photos......j/k This mystery is going to prove very fascinating to say the least. One of the alumni being the killer and who knows but he may strike again... I can't wait for the next segment.

Craiger

 

[lakesinclair]

Welcome to the story board Boredd. Very good story so far. I enjoy stories that writers lay down the
plot so that you are not clueless as you start reading. Keep up the good work. I look forward to more chapters.

lake

 

[Boredd]

Hello hello sorry for the lack of update in two weeks but writers block combined with uni work is so not motivational. That being said however, I hope you enjoy the next installment of Regression.

Chapter 4: Prefects​

“One of us?” I repeated. “What do you mean?” I already knew the answer to this but I refused to believe it.

“I mean, it was someone who was there,” George answered slowly. The sheer thought of that made my stomach turn in anger. I could feel the acid bubbling up to my throat.

“We have to get him,” I said as my jaw started clenching. I rarely got angry but this bastard had stood with us, he had grieved along with everyone else. I could feel myself starting to lose control; this whole nightmare was becoming too real.

George placed his hand onto my shoulder. “I know,” he said. It was a simple gesture, but it calmed me down. I wanted to pull him into a hug; I wanted him to tell me it was all going to be okay. Instead, I retreated backwards into my chair.

“I don’t remember much,” I said, answering his first question when he entered my office. “Everyone was everywhere. I remember going outside, seeing you and hearing someone scream.”

George looked at me carefully before taking a seat as well. “Yeah, I don’t remember too much as well.”

We sat in silence for a moment.

“Do you have time of death?” he asked.

I paused before replying. “It’s difficult to determine exactly,” I said. “The degree of bone remodeling, or lack of it in this case, places death within the last four to five hours of when the body was found.”

George frowned. Max’s body was discovered at 11:00 p.m. so that timeframe didn’t provide anything we didn’t already know. “So we’ve got nothing?” he looked deflated.

“Not exactly, there were early signs of rigor mortis on his neck and facial tissue.”

“Rigor mortis?”

“It’s when the body goes stiff because residual calcium doesn’t get broken down,” I answered. “It occurs about 3-4 hours after death.”

George continued to look at me expectantly.

“Since there were early signs of rigor mortis around the face and neck and those are the parts that exhibits stiffness first, I’d say Max died around 3 hours before his body was discovered.”

George’s eyes narrowed in concentration. “He was found at eleven, you’re saying he died at around eight?”

“Yeah,” I nodded. “That was when his heart stopped.” I continued to ponder the times and began to piece things together. I arrived late at 6:53 p.m. Max finished his speech at 7 and dinner service started shortly after. It’d take the killer time to speak to Max and coax him to go behind the stage, and it’d also take him to time to sever the root nerves. I had expressed this all to George out loud before I made my conclusion.

“He was killed between 7:30 and 8:30.” Just as I said it, a synapse occurred. “George! Dinner started at seven o’clock!”

“So?” He asked, looking perplexed.

“I remembered that everyone was in their seats, excited for entrees to be served. If you had a look at the camera and track down everyone who left their seat during that time, it would narrow down the suspect pool.”

George sighed and shook his head. “I wish we could, but there’s no cameras in the hall.”

“I thought you said there was a security system?”

“There is but it was only used to monitor the entrance and exits.”

I groaned. We had reached a dead end. George looked weary; his eyes became dark and solemn. “I spoke to his parents this morning,” he stated. “They’re still in shock.”

I could imagine they are. Max became the person we all expected him to be; smart, successful and a leader, but above all he always had everyone’s best interest in mind. That was the reason he was chosen to become school captain. “Did you find anything from his parents?”

“Not anything we don’t already know,” George replied. “He had no enemies, no disputes and no reason to die that night.”

“Well let’s start with ‘that night’ then,” I said. “Didn’t the prefects organize it?”

George nodded. “I’m surprised they got everyone together. They were so dysfunctional.” I made a small smile at his reference to the past. Yes, the prefects were a dysfunctional group when it came to getting things done and organized. Max’s best quality was also his weakest. He was so concerned about making everyone happy that he couldn’t resolve any conflicting opinions or ideas. Even so, they were all quite close and it was hard to imagine any of them capable of killing their captain.

George’s voice snapped me from my thoughts. “I don’t know who to start with, it’s going to be exhausting talking to all 12 of them, well 11 now.”

I thought for a moment. “Actually, we should speak to them as a group, it’d reveal any lies that they would tell us individually.” Being a close-knit group also means that more often than not, there were buried secrets.

“Good idea,” George said. “But we?”

“You said we’re partners, I’m going with you.”

He smiled at my response. “Alright, I’ll call them all into the station now.”

“No wait,” I said, stopping George from rising. I had a better idea. “Do you have Max’s phone?”

“Yeah, I do,” George retrieved an evidence bag out of his briefcase. “I went pass to pick it up from the tech guys before coming here.”

“Found anything?”

“Clean as a whistle.”

I opened the bag, taking out the phone and typing in a couple of words.

“What are you doing?” George asked, making a grab for the phone but it was too late, I had already sent off the messages.

Meet me at Café Trimm in Centennial Park in half an hour - Max

***

“I still can’t believe you did that,” George scowled. “You out of all people should know that’s considered tampering with evidence.”

We were driving down Paramatta Road, taking a direct route into the Sydney’s CBD. “Not when the phone contained no evidence,” I replied casually looking at the window. There was no traffic at this hour.

“Still, there are formalities to follow.”

“I didn’t know you like to play by the rules.”

George narrowed his eyes and looked at me as we pulled over to the curb opposite Café Trimm. I ignored him, focusing my attention on the restaurant. I vaguely remembered Lester telling me that the prefects had bi-annul lunches at this place. We waited for about ten minutes before the prefects arrived. One by one, they all trickled in.

“Let’s head in,” George said as he opened the car door. I quickly followed. All eyes were on us when we entered the café. There was an unusual silence, a little tense.

Lester looked at me. “Kayden! George! Whats –”

George raised his hand to silence Lester. “For a normal person, getting a text from a homicide victim would elicit an immediate for call to the police.” George’s voice was commanding. I had never seen this side of him before. He paused before continuing in barely a whisper. “So tell me then gentlemen, why didn’t any of you contact me as soon as you got that text?”

Total silence.

We had spoken about this tactic of questioning on the way here. Good cop, bad cop, a trick as old as the ages but it usually worked. It was best for George to intimidate with questions, whilst I sat back and observed. Placing pressure onto the group would surely get one of them to crack and I would be right there to pick it up.

“Did you guys lose your tongue?” George’s began again. His voice not as loud but still holding enough power to power an electric chainsaw.

Silence.

“Why. Didn’t. You. Contact. The. Police?” George said through gritted teeth. I could tell George was getting irritated.

Lester’s face was going red. “Because we thought he might still be…” Lester left the sentence hanging.

“Alive?” I finished it for him. All eyes were now on me.

“We need to know what happened that night, don’t let Max leave in vain” I said.

After that, the prefects were co-operative enough to answer our questions. Like us, they didn’t remember much but they did remember Max leaving the stage and mingling before disappearing again. As for the organisation of the event, Max single handedly handled everything. The prefects did help but it was minimal, apparently Max had put everything together.

When almost everybody had left, we had two surprises. Lester approached me handing me a small, black notebook. “I thought you might need this,” he said. “I wrote down everything I remembered from that night.”

“Thanks,” I said. I did find it a little odd but Lester formed strong emotional connections with people. He and Max had been really good friends so maybe it was hard for him to speak about it.

When Lester left, only Matthew Pinton remained. He didn’t move from his seat. He just sat there staring blankly at the wall. I tapped George on the shoulder and nodded over to Matthew.

“You found him didn’t you?” George asked.

“Yeah,” Matthew answered. “He was just lying there over on the side.”

All of us remained silent for a couple of minutes. “Do you have something to tell us?” I asked.

Matthew looked up at me. “Earlier in the night, Max told me he was thinking about restarting the school.”

“Restarting the school?”

“Yeah. He wanted to fund it again. That was the main reason why he gathered everyone. He was going to announce it at the end of the night.” Matthew paused and took in a deep breath before continuing. “That was why I went looking for him, I thought he went to the back of the stage to set up the laptop so I went up and I, I – ”

Matthew didn’t finish his sentence. When he went up on stage, he had found Max’s body.

“A laptop?” I asked.

“Yeah, he was going to call Conrad Homes via skype. He wanted Br Perry to announce it, it was Br Perry’s idea after all.”

I looked over at George. Br Perry was our old headmaster. He had resigned after we graduated, and the school closed down shortly after. Looks like it was time to go down memory lane.

***

The elevator doors opened with a soft ding. I had asked George to come up so I could give him back some stuff of his I had from years ago. Well, they were technically mine since he gave them to me but it didn’t feel right for me to keep them. However, asking him to come up somehow became an invitation for dinner. We had stopped to order Chinese takeaway.

My heart pounded as we approached my apartment door. George stood behind, watching me fumbling for my keys. My fingers chose that exact moment to tangle and the keys fell to the floor. George laughed nonchalantly before bending over to it up. He held them forward. As I reached for them, I jumped as my hand grazed against his making me drop the keys for a second time. I went red. My medical professor would have frowned at my hand co-ordination skills at this moment. George laughed picking up the keys again, placing it into my hands this time. “Sorry,” I mumbled before finding the correct key and opening my apartment.

“Nice place!” George shouted as he entered. He placed the two bags of food onto the kitchen counter to his right before dropping onto the sofa.

“Aren’t you eating?” I asked as I walked passed him, taking off my coat.

“Oh,” he grinned and walked over to the dining table. Sometimes I forget his actually a detective.

Dinner was delicious. I ordered takeaway often since I would work late at the lab and was always too lazy and tired to cook. It was nice sharing it with someone though. Usually, I’d eat alone in front of the TV. I really enjoyed George’s company. He was light hearted and the conversation flowed naturally, just like how I remembered. I told him about me discovering my passion for forensics and in turn, he would tell me about the police academy and training to become a detective. The conversation dulled however, when we started speaking about the pass and me mentioning his engagement.

“You got married?” I asked

“Yeah.”

“To Catherine?”

George nodded. He looked uncomfortable.

“Right after I left?”

“Um-hm.”

“Kids?” I continued asking.

“No.”

“You always liked children. A boy and two girls.”

“You remembered?” George said, looking surprised.

I nodded, smiling. He had told me once on a lazy Sunday afternoon that he wanted a boy first and then two girls. The boy would grow up and protect his sisters from weirdos. As we lay on the grass that afternoon basking in the evening glow, George had told me their names too. That was the moment I knew this was the man I’d want to start a family with. However, life never worked out how you want it to.

“Ten years huh?” I asked looking at the metallic band around his right, fourth finger.

“Just about yeah, its our anniversary in a couple of weeks.”

“I’m glad it all worked out for you,” I said, smiling.

He nodded again. We stayed silent after that. It wasn’t awkward or tense. It was a nice sort of quiet. Like nothing else in the world mattered but the person you’re sharing that quietness with.

“Oh yeah,” I said, “This is what I wanted to give you.” I reached underneath one of the chairs, picking up a box and placing it onto the table. It was a simple cardboard box, with the initials ‘G.O.’ written in sharpie on top. George lifted the lid and looked inside. He frowned. They were all the stuff he had given me: cards, presents, toys, and photos. I wanted to give this to him before I flew out of Sydney ten years ago, but I didn’t have the heart to part with it.

“This is how you think of me?” George asked. “Just some old remnants in a cardboard box?” His tone wasn’t accusing, far from it. He sounded disappointed, sad even.

“Yeah,” I replied. The look he gave me made my heart ache. I never wanted him to look like that again. The sadness in his eyes made me feel terrible. “Listen George, this was ten years ago. We were in high school back then and we didn’t know what we want.”

George didn’t speak. He just looked at the box and frowned.

“Besides, everything worked out right? You’re married and happy now,” I continued, shrugging my shoulders. “And I’m happy too.”

We remained silent again. This time, the silence descended over us like a shadow waiting to strike. It was uncomfortable; very awkward and tense.

After a couple of minutes, I stood up. “I’ll take the plates,” I said, reaching over. I loaded up the plastic boxes as well and carried them all into the kitchen. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t still a little heart broken. The nights I’d stay up late, thinking what it could have been if I had remained in Sydney, if I had fought. I placed my hands flat onto the sink, thinking hard. I was happy to see George again, I was happy he was even here with me. In another life, maybe he wouldn’t be leaving at the end of dinner but heading off into bed with me.

I was about to turn around when I heard footsteps into the kitchen. Before I fully spun, two arms came either side of me trapping me into place. When I turned around, I saw George looking at me. The look was intense.

“Kayden, do you still love me?”

“N-no,” I stammered. “I told you, that was high school, we, I, um…” I felt like I needed to explain myself but the words were all muddled.

“There’s something missing from that box,” George said.

Oh crap. I had forgotten to take it off.

“You still wear it,” George said, reaching up and pulling out the chain around my neck. I was so used to having it on, I didn't even think about it.

George’s face was very close to mine now. Even though he was looking at the pendant, I could feel his soft breath on my face.

“I still have mine,” he said, reaching up with his other hand and pulling out an identical pendant beneath his shirt collar. George had given me it at the end of our senior year as a promise he’d always be there. Each pendant was a slightly opened palm attached to a silver chain. When the palms joined, the fingers intertwined, connecting to form a heart shape. We each wore a half.

“I really missed you,” George said, looking at me. The pain in his eyes made me catch my breath. Before I knew it, he had dropped the pendants and his lips were on mine. I didn’t respond at first out of shock, but the familiar softness elicited an almost carnal reaction in me. I didn’t realize how much I needed him. I reached under his arms and up his back pulling him closer to me. Our lips danced together and I parted my mouth, letting his tonged in. I was getting lost in the kiss. I wanted him. No I needed him. George’s left hand came up and he placed it gently behind my head and his right hand reached for my face.

Suddenly, I felt the cold metallic band come in contact with my cheek and my eyes snapped open. I quickly withdrew my hands and pushed him backwards.

I breathed hard.

He looked confused. “Wha –”

I shook my head to stop him from continuing. “You’re married,” I said through heavy breaths, “You need to go home.”

George narrowed his eyes and started moving forward again.

“No!” I shouted, pushing him backwards. This time I didn’t stop pushing until he reached the door. “Go home George, you need to go back to your wife.” He looked downwards, obscuring his face. Without a word, George turned around and left.

As the door closed, I leaned back against it sliding down slowly into a sitting position, with my knees bent. In the corner of my eye, I could still see the cardboard box lying on the dining table. I buried my head wrapping my arms around my knees, and started crying.

~

 

[Craiger]

That was an intense chapter, Boredd. Kayden and George seem to work well together as a team in the investigation, but the past years have caused a wrinkle in their lost love. How does someone deal with such a thing. Morally Kayden is right in stopping George's advances, but love can be an extremely hard emotion to fight. Is George really happy in his marriage? His dream of a son and two daughters has not been fulfilled. Hopefully the two pendants will once again be united and the future will be brighter for both. Also, we need them to work together to solve Max's murder... Looking forward to the next installment.

Craiger