It’s been two days, Kaeron still hasn’t come back down to Nochtarn.
She called me this morning and briefly said she’s having some trouble back in Solemnia. Nothing serious.
I’m trusting her with my theories, and she’s going to present them to the FDRE.
She urged me to keep investigating on my own, and I am.
I put a sign at the front door, no more P.I services for a while due to ‘vacation’. Lowe knows I’m with the FDRE, so she stopped calling me for gigs.
And now...I’m in front of a board. Notes, pictures, and copies of Kaeron’s reports.
I’m trying to figure it out alone...by mere thinking. It’s not going well.
I light another cigarette and lean against my desk, Elima would scold me for ‘stinking up’ the office without lighting up her scented candles. Truth is, I don’t want them to consume and disappear...they’re the only memory I have of her.
I shake my head from unnecessary thoughts and get back on track.
I need to think, not like a cop...but like a storyteller.
Alice Dellis – The compliant who was indulged.
Agathe Leuseur – The traitor who was punished.
Claire Eisern – The weak who was exploited.
Lila Berniech – The unwilling who was coerced.
Each case is a different reflection of the mysterious Elaine and the psychology behind her actions.
“So...Elaine. What the hell is going on in your little head? How do I predict it?” I say out loud, feeling the burn of whiskey washing my throat next.
A fact that I’ve overlooked before is that she picks women around their twenties. When I took a look at her at the parking lot, I could see youth...so she’s definitely in her early twenties too. But how does it translate?
The Blackened Theatre never states the maiden’s age, but by the looks of it, it sounds like it’s a being not bound by mortality and aging...yet she’s described as someone beautiful, perfect. I don’t know if it plays a role in the choice of Elaine’s victims yet.
I suddenly grab the book and stare at it.
The book holds a deeper significance, one I cannot understand yet.
Alice had it open on page 42. It’s a generic scene, the protagonist is wandering through the setting and wondering where he is.
I still don’t clearly understand what it means. I tried to read between the lines, but nothing struck.
Agathe had it open to page 78, a scene where the white Maiden’s body is described.
Agathe was beaten up because she was interested in the maiden’s body, but not in the act of copulation presented later in the story.
Who beat her up anyways? Elaine or her man? And who decided that she deserved it?
If it was Elaine, then she might have just gotten angry at the fact that her victim betrayed her expectations. If it was the man...then it could be that Elaine lost control over him, and Agathe’s beating was an accident. This specific information is lost in the past, and I may never reach an answer.
Claire’s book wasn’t even found at the scene...it was tucked into her library, slightly protruding and closed.
Why? Claire is the most mysterious one, and it’s the girl who got me into this mess in the first place.
What could the tucked-away book mean? That she was the only one who finished the story completely? But then...what do I make of Alice Dellis’ book, opened at a random page? Alice was compliant, since there are sign of consensual intercourse.
Wait...no. I’m looking at it in the wrong way. The missing book doesn’t have to be a positive sign for Elaine.
Claire wrote in her diary a particular timeline of events.
She met Elaine, fell in love with her.
Elaine left, and the White Maiden hallucination came back instead.
Elaine left Claire in emptiness, so much that she even saw Linda as Elaine due to delusional episodes.
After that, the White Maiden attacked and grew hostile towards Claire, leading her to be the first and ONLY girl to ask for help before death.
Something is amiss with Claire’s case...I think the book shouldn’t have been there at all.
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Kaeron told me she started to investigate the case after Lila Berniech...so all she had to work with was police reports. However, in Claire’s report, nobody found the book in her home, despite searching for it thoroughly.
When I went to her house, I noticed that it was slightly misplaced in the bookshelf, as if whoever was going to be in the room next was bound to notice it.
Moreover, Claire’s diary was sent to ME….and Elima was targeted.
I think that Elaine took Claire’s book away from her.
Claire asked for my help...and thus, betrayed Elaine like Agathe. Maybe the first version of the crime scene was orchestrated to have NO book at all...to symbolize that it was taken away from her.
But then she ‘ruined’ her own crime scene, and used it to lure me into her case after she discovered I was going to visit Claire’s house.
This is scary. This could mean either Elaine or the man was stalking me or Claire in a moment where it was clear I was getting interested in Claire’s situation.
Why pull me in instead of pushing me out? Why did she not just dispose of me when she saw I was getting dangerously close, as a stranger, to her business?
She wants me in her game. She wanted me here, staring at this board...she’s probably planing her next move according to what I’ll do next after that message in the diary.
???? ??? ??s??? ???, ??????????
??? ????’? s?? ??, ??? ? ??s ?????.
??? ?????? ?? ?? ????, ?????????.
??? ?????? ????, ??s???? ???? ??s???s.
??? ???’? ???? ???? ?????.
? ???? ??? ???? ?? ????.
??? ???? ?? ???? ??? ?????.
??? ??? ???'? ???? ??? ????? is ?? ????? ?? ???.
??'S ???? ?? ???? ?????.
????s?, ?????????.
???? ?????.
I kept reading it over and over during the time that has passed. I still don’t get it. None of it.
She’s playing me...playing us all.
Maybe that’s what it is. She wanted to see if I’d figure it out. She wanted to see how far I’d go, compared to the police...how much I’d risk. Maybe this whole thing is just another way for her to feel in control.
And then there’s Lila’s book. Opened to page 1. This is self-explanatory.
Lila refused to fall into Elaine’s mind trap, and she wasn’t afraid to show it to the public with that...setup. The door was even open wide, as if she was saying, “this is what happens to those who don’t believe”.
I take a good look at the book again.
I should ask an experienced writer. Someone who writes books may know something more...maybe they’re gonna allow me to have an insight of why Elaine loves this tale so much.
Maybe the writer could also tell me a bit about the author’s psychology.
“Alright,” I put out the cigarette and grab my phone.
Time to make some calls.
- December 16th -
Angelique Armann.
She’s the hot new name in the literature community, known for her complex style.
She’s the author of the bestseller “The Poisoned Heart”. A book about a woman’s diary, where she keeps the darkest, most twisted desires and thoughts. Critics called it a masterwork of the modern psychological genre.
I’ve read a few of her interviews in the newspapers, and it’s clear she has a grasp on psychology
I got lucky, because she’s been giving public lectures...one on December 16th, at the Grand Library of Nochtarn Central.
It’s been quite the drive, but I reached the place.
Humans value the writing craft a lot. It’s the best way to portray the difference between the creativity of a soulful person and the coldness of an Other One.
This building is tall and huge, having thousands of books and events every month. It’s a huge library, protected and constantly updated.
It’s said that no one can steal a book without being discovered, they have a thorough security system. You can only read and finish the books inside the building, with a subscription of course.
I’m not much of a reader...but to find Elaine, I must discover why she’s so interested in the Blackened Theatre in the first place. I should have come here sooner to find out about the book...I just didn’t think it was going to be so mysterious and hard to figure out.
Inside, the atmosphere is colder, quieter. It feels like Nochtarn’s chaos is completely blocked off here. People speak lower than the air moving, barely audible as they either debate books, study or read. I see some youngsters as well, having fun.
I walk through a hall after asking for directions. The lecture had already started, but I’m not going there for that...so I take my time and walk slowly.
Countless quotes and paintings of old authors. It makes me feel small, almost useless. They’re going to be on this wall forever, while I, at the age of 44, am going to be remembered by no one...not even my clients.
I chuckle at my own silly thoughts as I push the doors of the hall, there she is.
In her late twenties, with beautiful red hair, she had a cute bun. She’s wearing a very elegant black dress, contrasting with the bright light cast on her from above.
As she stands atop the stage, she speaks into a microphone.
“The characters we write are often projections. Desires, fears, unresolved trauma. But sometimes, they are not ours. Sometimes, they are things that come through us. We call it inspiration..."
The audience listens carefully, taking notes, whispering opinions. I lean against the wall, hands in pockets, looking at her.
When the lecture finishes, Angelique is autographing her books at a desk right outside the hall, one by one, as people leave.
I get in line, and when it’s my turn. Her deep, green eyes stare deeply into me.
“You don’t have my book, where do I write?”
I show her my badge.
“Hello, Miss Armann. I’m Detective Edward D’arbie. I’m working on a case and I’d like to ask you a couple of questions.”
The two bodyguards behind her glare at me.
“I’m sorry...am I a witness or under suspicion of a crime?”
“No.”
“Then I refuse to cooperate,” she kindly says.
“I’d really just use a small portion of your time. I need to ask you about this book...”
I take the book out of my inner pocket, shoving it into her face. Her eyes scan it all over, growing slightly curious.
But the bodyguard grabs my arm and moves me away from the line.
“Didn’t you hear what she said? Leave.”
I grunt, defeated.
“Wait, detective.”
She suddenly speaks, causing my head to make a full turn.
“I changed my mind. Meet me at the entrance after I’m done here.”