Maya's car sped down the empty road; the only thing driving her forward was the tainted weave of red and black. 'It would seem that they really came this way.' Her car sped past a sign welcoming her to Willowfen. The town was silent, something she didn't mind as she parked outside a hotel, the same one the three had lived in.
'Why are the residents of this town so scared of coming outside?' She couldn't help but wonder as she looked around, streets were deserted; the only thing that she saw. Making her way to their rooms, she found nothing that advanced her clues, forcing her to leave. 'If not for the tainted strand, there's no way I would think that they came all the way out here. And even that's fading as time passes on.' She sighed, ready to get back in her car before a town resident cut her off. "Excuse me, but are you associated with those people who were here a few days ago?"
Her brows rose; her interest piqued. "No, but I'm looking for them. Do you have any clue where they could have gone?" Her question met with a shake. "I just wanted to thank them for getting rid of that pest of a hound!" Maya, after some questions, was perplexed with what had transpired in the town. "Are there any disappearances that have occurred during their stay?"
The man paused, looking around before his answer came. "Well, there were some kids and a church matron gone. Not to mention the caretaker of this hotel. They all vanished after they left." Maya looked around, traces of another weave coming into sight. 'Looks like this is the only thing I have at the moment.' She followed the weave trail, though faint which led her to a cave on the town's outskirts where she found a massive hound, presumably the man from before was talking about and a body already rotting.
"He seems to fit the description of the caretaker that the man had told me. I never thought that they would be capable of doing something good!" A defeated laugh left her lips as she left the cave, unable to bear the stench before settling in her car. "The trace has already faded, making this a dead end." Her figure leaned forward, unsure of what to do. 'Should I go back and look for more clues? Maybe something should pop up in a bit of time.'
Her car ready to head back to Stillwater as she turned on the radio, ready to hear any major changes occurring. "…. It would seem that a military base has been attacked, as well as people seeking refuge in a mall. From their injuries, it would seem familiar to the ones from Lara Grale. Their heads pierced by a small projectile, by the grating, experts have guessed that it could be a penknife or a scalpel…."
*Screech*
Slamming on the brakes, she turned up the volume. "…. Interviewing a survivor who was living near the attack says that screams and explosions filled the air. From a glimpse, they say that some form of attack was enacted on the base, suspected from the people inhabiting a nearby mall in the city's heart…" She pulled out her phone and checked the city. "It's near here, and given that this didn't happen long ago, there should be something for me there."
Whipping her car around, she made her way to the dreaded city filled with ashes and death.
. . .
After the gas station incident, it wasn't long before the three ran into a motel. "Looks like we're going global, and by we I mean you, Andrew," Brittany spoke with her playful smile, her hands cupping his face. "Does it bother you?" She tilted his head, admiring the face she was looking at. "As a matter of fact, it would be best that you're famous, so that the world can know that you're mine." Lara reached for the handle before pausing. "Don't tell me you're going to kill any people we run into here. I'm looking at you, Brittany!"
Lara's sharp gaze landed on the blonde lady, who remained perched on Andrew's lap. "Oh, silly me? I would never touch a soul. Let's go already; I'm sweating and a shower is due." Her figure leaving the car and the three booking a room. "Each with their own." Lara's insistence forced a sigh out of Brittany, who didn't have the energy to fight her.
"Fine, just let me get my room already, Mom." Her displeased groan followed by her figure leaving the store attached to the motel. Lara made her way to her own room where, after a shower, her figure finally let loose. 'To think that I'm being accompanied by killers like this. After this, there's no way that I don't go to jail.' Her palms covering her face, her back on the small bed as she mindlessly stared at the ceiling.
Reaching for the remote after putting on her clothes, her heart sank. "I expected the news to be all over this, but isn't this a bit too much?" A defeated chuckle left her lips as she stared at the headlines. Nearly all channels talking about Andrew's feat, some calling it inhumane, others addressing her as a tragedy to the country given the means by which the corpses were. 'A tragedy…' Her brows rose in pure disbelief of her situation.
"There's no way that any of this is real." Her hands reached for the remote and turned it off.
*Knock-knock-knock*
Her figure arrived at the door before the owner of the store came into view. "Miss, there's been a murder and we can't have any of the other tenants leave at this moment. You'll be forced to stay here before the cops arrive!" The man then went to another door, repeating the same thing .
*BOOM*
Lara slammed the door shut, a helpless smile forming on her lips. "These two! Can't they go for any over five minutes killing no one?!" Her chest heaved as she reached for a pillow and threw it across the room. The air was silent save for her heavy breathing before she made her way downstairs where a small crowd had formed.
"What do you mean that we have to stay here for a few days?! I have a family waiting for me!" A man in a suit shouted at the manager of the motel, who seemed tense at the onslaught thrown at him. "Look! Getting mad at the manager for something like this won't achieve anything. All we can do is wait, and when the cops arrive, have them look into this matter. It'll only take two days, so we won't be here for long."
An elderly woman spoke up, her words eliciting groans all around. Lara quietly made her way to the pair who watched the whole scene unfold. "Don't tell me that the two of you had something to do with this!" Her tone mixed anger and desperation. "It's been twenty minutes, and the two of you just can't help yourselves, apparently!" Brittany, standing next to Andrew, let out a sigh before looking at Andrew. "I told you she would think that it was us who did this! So much for trust." Brittany now looked at Lara, half disinterested, half bored.
"Even if I tell you this, I know you won't believe us, but it wasn't us for once that caused the murder. Looking at the body, it seemed to be poisoned, and you know how we kill." Lara let out a sigh, her long face ridden with exhaustion. "I don't have the time for this! Knowing you two, you'll end up killing everyone here, so you might as well get on with it!"
Her voice was now audible to those around them, attracting weird glances. The two looked at her like a crazed individual; her appearance to those around her one of a madman. "What are you talking about? Do you know who could be behind this?" The elderly woman from before came interjecting. Lara looked at the old woman, numerous thoughts running through her head.
"I…I'm just tired, is all. I don't want to do any of this, and yet here I am! Fuck my life! What the fuck is the point in caring at this point?!" Lara stormed back into her room, Brittany and Andrew taking their leave as well. "Do you know who could be behind this? I think maybe the man from before, seeing how quickly he wanted to leave. Stress can drive one insane sometimes!"
Brittany stopped, stunned by the old woman's words. "Why the fuck are you talking? I don't have the time to be talking to a piece of shit hag like you!" Her words visibly drew rage from the elderly woman. "Oh! You should be more mindful of your words, dearie; after all, karma is a powerful force." Brittany flipped off the old woman before she disappeared with Andrew.
"Kids these days, no manners whatsoever…"The woman let out a heavy sigh, solemnly shaking her head.
. . .
"We should keep a close eye on Lara," Andrew said as he locked the door behind him. "If she has any more outbursts like that, then problems could easily arise. Right now people already think that we had something to do with the death of that woman." Brittany recalled the corpse, a woman in her late thirties with foam coating the sides of her mouth, her eyes wide open in horror.
"Do you know who could be behind this?" Her question met with a slight nod. "Oh, then you wouldn't mind divulging, right?" A playful smile on her lips as Andrew inched closer to her.
. . .
Lara slammed the door behind her, this time louder than before, as she paced back and forth. "Every time I'm with these two, someone has to die! It's clear that they don't care for finding it amusing, so convincing them otherwise won't work! Her fingers dug into her ash hair before she met her reflection. She paused, the sound of her heartbeat the only thing echoing in her ears. Her eyes with bags underneath, her hair undone, and her soft smile replaced with a helpless smile. The one that belonged to a person who knew that the game was rigged and kept on playing the game, regardless.
"To think that my life would be dragged like this! When I'll be remembered as a murderer! Luckily my family's dead so I won't have to deal with their worries!" Her frantic words, heavy with each word, her pacing faster and faster. "At this point, why should I keep going? The more time I spend with these monsters, the more deaths I see!"
A laugh from a madman left her lips as she crumpled into a ball, her hands digging deeply into her hair.
*Knock-knock-knock*
The knock jolting her back to her surroundings, her maniacal laughs ceasing as she cleared her throat and hastily adjusted her hair. At the door was the elderly woman, her face grim. "So you are her." Her words took Lara by surprise. "What are you talking about? I don't even know you!" A brow now raised. "The pale death. You're all over the news, records of you killing an entire military base, not to mention a gang. Quite the reputation you have."
Her words made Lara's stomach drop. 'Does this mean that other people know who I am? I should just disappear into the woods for my safety!' She shouted in her head as the old lady scanned her figure. "There's no need for you to put on your scared act; your performance back then was something that blew me away." An uneven, maniacal smile formed; Lara was now unsure of what to do. "A performance? Do you really think that all of this is a performance?!" Her tone now laced with rage, her voice rising, startling the old woman.
"This isn't a fucking performance, granny! I'm not acting! This…all of this is real, and the world thinks that I'm a fucking killer!" Her throat sore, her hands gesturing at her ruined figure.