????ABIGAIL
INOCENCIO????
(The Murderer….)
By, Precious Pinky
Copyright ©️(Don’t copy this story if you don’t want to see madness!)
CHAPTER 81&82
••••
{ THE KILLER IS… }
Robert ruffled his hair, balling his fist.
“We’ve found the killer.”
______
“What killer?” Tessa asked, confused.
“We’ve been working on this case for over two years and now that we finally have this video, I think we can catch the killer.” He answered.
“So what are you going to do now?” Richard asked, stretching his muscles and yawning.
“I will have to take this phone to Emma and show her the video so we can analyze it.” He answered.
“Emma,” Tessa repeated, smiling. “My friend. How is she?”
“Emma is your friend?” He asked, raising a questioning brow.
“Yes. Wait, you didn’t know that Richard and I dropped by her house a day ago to ask her to help us talk to you?” She asked.
Robert nodded his head slowly. “I know of that. In fact, she is one person who gave me the courage to forgive you.”
“Oh, really? I will have to thank her then. And, I owe her for her help.”
“But wait,” He paused. “How did the both of you become friends?”
“Does that matter?” Richard groaned, plopping down on the bed.
“I just want to know.” He pointed out, giving his sister the ‘What are you waiting for? start talking’ look.
Tessa slightly shrugged her shoulders and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Well, Emma is a nice girl and I don’t really have friends… so I asked her to be my friend. You don’t mind, right?”
“I…don’t. Does my opinion even matter?” He scoffed.
“Of course, it does. She is your girlfriend after all.”
“My what!?” Robert choked on his saliva and started coughing. Tessa rushed to stand behind him and started patting his back.
“Are you okay? F**k, there’s no water here.” She looked around, searching for a bottle of water but found none.
“I’m…I’m okay.” Robert cleared his throat. “Listen, Emma is not my girlfriend. She is only a friend and partner. Where did you get such a naughty idea from, by the way?”
“Uhm, I thought she was your girlfriend, honestly. The both of you will make a wonderful couple.” She wiggled her brows, smiling.
“I don’t think so.” He started packing up his things. “Richy, can I use your bathroom?”
Tessa and Robert turned to look at Richard and found him on the bed, fast asleep.
“He must be very tired. He didn’t sleep a wink last night because of the work I gave him.” Robert mumbled.
“Richard will always help you whenever you need him, Robby.”
“I know. And it makes me wonder if I’m worth his love and care. I even cut off our friendship, remember?”
“Hey, the past should remain in the past. Let bygones be bygones. I don’t think Richard remembers that. To him, you are still his best friend.” She smiled. “And yes, you can use the bathroom. What belongs to Richy, belongs to you as well.”
Robert snickered and nodded his head, walking towards the adjoined bathroom.
“I can take one of his shirts and trouser to wear to work this morning, right?”
“Feel free.” She encouraged.
“Thank you.” He entered the bathroom and slammed the door shut.
Tessa’s lips stretched into a wide smile as she stared at the closed door and heard the shower running.
“This feels so nice.” She mumbled, releasing a deep breath of relief.
••••
“I brought hot chocolate for you,” Jersey announced, approaching Abby.
She smiled at him and collected the cup of hot chocolate he handed over to her.
“Thank you.”
“Anything for you, babe.” He sat down beside her. “What were you thinking about?”
“Everything. A lot has changed lately, hasn’t it?”
Jersey nodded his head in agreement, taking a sip of the black coffee he got for himself.
“Yeah, right.”
“You know, happiness doesn’t last forever, right?” She turned to face him.
“Sure.”
“I have something to tell you,” She muttered, holding his gaze.
“What is it?”
She ran the tip of her tongue over her lips and exhaled deeply. “You can’t judge me, Jersey.”
“I won’t judge you. What is it?” He urged.
“I can’t cry.” She blurted out.
“What?”
“I know, it’s crazy and scary. I’m a monster, Jersey.”
“No, don’t say that, Abby. You are not a monster.” He corrected. “But why can’t you cry?”
“Because I was tortured to stop crying as a kid. Every day was like a nightmare to me. He would take me to the basement and torture me until I can’t feel myself anymore. And the pain increases depending on how much I cry.”
“Oh, my God.” Jersey mouthed, not knowing what to say or even do.
“My mother and unborn sibling died because of him. He beat my mother up to her death not knowing that she was carrying his unborn child.” She explained, lowering her gaze. “It was that same day I realized that I can’t cry anymore. I didn’t even shed a single tear during her funeral. Aren’t I a monster?”
He vigorously shook his head, reaching out to hold her hand. “You are not a monster, Abby. I can’t believe you went through all of that and you are…” His voice trailed off. “Now I understand why.”
She snickered and nodded her head. “Yeah… I can’t keep doing this, can I?” She hesitated. “You were the one who sent me that message, saying that you know what I did. Why didn’t you say anything to anybody?”
“Because I couldn’t. I really tried, you know. But getting you into trouble isn’t what I wanted. I’m sure that’s when I realized my feelings for you.”
“It’s your hospital, Jersey. You should have…”
“I don’t regret the decision I made.” He cut her off. “I am ready to hide the truth for as long as it takes, my love.”
“I am tired of running,” She mumbled. “And I am scared. Not of getting caught but I’m scared of seeing the look on Emma’s face when she finds out the truth.” She sighed. “But I have to do this. I want to get stopped.”
“What do you want to do, babe?” He asked.
“End it.”
“I understand. And believe me, I am going to stand by you in all of these.”
“I don’t want you to get involved in my mess, babe.”
“It is already too late to tell me not to get involved, my love.” He pecked her forehead. “So what’s the plan?”
••••
“I wasn’t expecting to see you here in my office this morning, Mr&Mrs. Hart.” Chief Desmond said, rising to his feet.
“Good morning, Chief.” Mrs. Hart greeted, pulling out a chair for her husband.
“Thank you, honey.” Mr. Hart appreciated his wife and sat down while she took the seat next to him.
“Good morning,” Desmond replied and also sat down. “Do you care for tea? or coffee?”
“I didn’t come here to drink tea or coffee, Chief.” Mr. Hart said harshly. “It’s been over four weeks and no news from you.”
“The case is not as easy as you think, sir.”
“Oh, really?” He cocked a brow, giving the man an annoyed look. “Do I need to remind you that this case has been on since two years ago? Are all of your detectives incompetent?”
“Honey, I think you should calm down.” Mrs. Hart whispered to him, squeezing his thighs.
He let out a sigh and kept quiet.
“Don’t be offended by his harsh words, Chief.” She apologized.
Desmond forced a smile to his face as nodded his head. “It’s fine, Mrs. Hart.”
“You know, we are just worried. This case can’t keep escalating like this. Did you hear about the disappearance of a nurse that works in our hospital?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“We don’t even know if her disappearance is related to the hospital case or not.” She sighed. “Our son is going through a lot as well. We don’t know who the killer’s next victim will be. It’s all so scary.”
“I understand, ma’am. And believe me, we are doing our best.” Desmond assured.
“Your best is not enough. Or maybe I should take this investigation to somewhere else.” Mr. Hart stated.
“Honey, stop being rude. We are not here to argue but to talk.” She warned him.
He rolled his eyes and huffed. “I’m sorry.”
“Good. Now stop talking and let me.” She told him and he nodded his head. “Which team is handling the case again?”
“Team 1.” He answered. “I can call them_”
“No need for that. I want the case to be given back to the other team.” She said.
“What!?” Mr. Hart and Desmond gasped in sync, giving her a surprised look.
“Why?” Her husband asked.
“Jersey requested it. I don’t know why but he knows best.” She said.
“You should have talked to me about it first before now.” Mr. Hart whined.
“I’m sorry.” She faced the Chief once again. “It can be possible, right?”
“Well… I guess.” He shrugged.
“Tell me something, Chief.” Mrs. Hart leaned forward. “What do you think about the team? Are they competent enough?”
Desmond smiled and nodded his head. “I can beat my chest for Emma and her team, ma’am. Last two years, the case was their first murder case so they didn’t know what to expect and that’s why they weren’t able to catch the killer. But I assure you, the detectives of two years ago are completely different from the detectives of now. They are well trained and experienced now.”
“Hmm. You are bragging about them.”
“That’s because I trust them to do a good job.” He responded.
“Alright then. We will take your word for it and besides, this was a request from my son. Give them back the case.”
••••
Robert hasn’t resumed work yet.
Emma was busy going through every detail of the victims of the killer.
She marked out the common things the victims had but one of the victims has nothing in common with the others and that victim was Minty.
Obviously, the killer killed Minty because she was a witness, and turns out that was where the mistake of the murderer started.
Other victims were all patients, suffering from life-threatening illnesses.
“I think I know the reason for the murders.” Emma states, grabbing the attention of Ginny who was scrolling through her phone.
“What?” She rushed towards Emma.
At that moment, Robert entered.
“Why are you just resuming?” Emma asked.
“I was stuck in traffic.” He said.
“What’s the reason for the murder?” Ginny asked, pulling Emma back to the matter at hand.
“Oh, yes.” Emma cleared her throat. “I went through the details of the victims to identify something common between all of them.” She paused, taking out all of the victims’ profiles and pictures excluding Minty’s. “They are all patients in Santos Hospital. All suffering from a life-threatening illness. However,” She dropped Minty’s picture and profile on the table beside the others. “Minty’s death has nothing in common with the other victims. And remember, it is at her crime scene we found the bottle of the murderer, and her body was packed up in a body bag. The killer made mistakes during Minty’s murder and that’s because…”
“She wasn’t supposed to be a victim,” Robert completed.
“But she knew too much so she had to die.” Ginny added.
“Exactly.” Emma concurred. “The killer’s victims are weak people. Those who are at the risk of dying. For example, patients suffering from a life-threatening illness. The first victim suffered from heart disease, the second one suffered from Alzheimer’s disease, the third suffered from Chronic diabetes, the fourth suffered from cerebrovascular disease…”
“What is cerebrovascular disease?” Ginny questioned.
“Stroke.” Emma answered. “The fifth one suffered from tuberculosis, the sixth one which is Tara suffered from Hepatitis B that almost led to lung cancer but as for Minty, she was healthy and that is where the mistake of the killer happened.”
“You are right.” Ginny frantically nodded her head in agreement. “The murder wasn’t a perfect one like others that was untraceable.”
Robert dropped Minty’s phone on the table. “Richard was able to crack the password of the phone and…” He scrolled through the phone and clicked on the video. “We saw a video.”
“A video?” Emma and Ginny repeated.
“Yes.” He nodded as he handed the phone over to Emma so she and Ginny could watch the video.
••••
Thelma was fast asleep when she heard the sound of the gate unlocking and then the footsteps of someone.
She couldn’t see because of the blindfold that hasn’t been taken away from her eyes since she got there.
She hasn’t had anything to eat or water to drink.
Thelma winced in agony as she tried to sit upright, turning her head in every direction to pick out where the footsteps were coming from.
“There you are,” She heard the voice of the man who spoke to her the first time she realized she was kidnapped but it doesn’t seem like he was talking to her. “I have been expecting you.”
Whoever entered the warehouse was surely the murderer and her kidnapper.
Thelma was keen to hear the voice of the person but he/she didn’t say anything.
However, the man spoke up again. “I see. The end is finally here.”
A few minutes later, Thelma heard retreating footsteps and then the sound of the door closing.
“What just happened?” She asked out loud, hoping that someone will hear and answer her.
Her wish came to reality because the man answered,
“Nothing hides in the dark forever. The sun is about to shed light on the darkness and reveal the truth to everyone. This is going to be fun.”
••••
Emma, Ginny, and Robert have been watching the video for over thirty minutes, picking out the odds and clues in the video.
By the time they were done, they started analyzing all they’d picked out.
“How can a killer operate using heels?” Ginny asked.
“Probably because the killer wasn’t there to operate but to witness the death of the victim.” Emma stated, narrowing her eyes at the paused video of the hooded person coming out of Tara’s ward, dressed in all-black while wearing red stiletto heels.
“Wait,” Ginny examined the shoe. “I can brag about being an expert for shoes but I don’t think I’ve ever since a style like this. It’s so unique and different. It’s like the shoe was specially made for whoever this person is.”
“It was,” Emma said, sucking in a deep breath. “I specifically bought this shoe for a friend as a birthday present.”
“What?” Robert and Ginny gasped in sync.
“Does that mean you know who the killer is?” Ginny questioned.
Emma started remembering all the things that happened that tragic day.
Abby bought goodies for Tara and had them delivered to her ward. She remember the flowers Abby personally made for the girl and also delivered them to her, covering them with a transparent nylon, saying that the flowers should only be smelled by Tara.
“Wait, the flowers…” She remembered that Tara wasn’t the only patient Abby had delivered that same flowers to and she hurriedly started gathering up the pictures of every crime scene. “Every victim’s room had this bouquet and they ate lots of goodies before their death. Does this mean…?”
“The killer sent them poisoned goodies.” Ginny completed the sentence.
“Or the flowers are what’s poisoned.” Robert added. “Because they are the repetitive symbol.”
“And also the empty bottles, they got the same energy drinks.” Emma added.
“Just like the empty energy drink we found at Minty’s crime scene.” Robert pointed out.
“That’s right.” Emma agreed.
“Why didn’t you guys investigate these goodies two years ago or even the bouquet?” Ginny asked.
“I blindly trusted my friend.”
“Wow.” Robert ruffled his hair.
“And if we are right with all these analyses. That means…” She played the video again and watched the person cat-walked towards the stairs exit and the hoodie fell off, Emma quickly paused that part before the video could end. She zoomed into the photo, squinting her eyes a little bit. “Blonde,” She noted.
“What’s blonde?” Ginny asked, confused.
“The person is a blonde. If the killer is who I think it is, she wasn’t able to take off her shoes because she had somewhere else to be. She was in a hurry because she was heading out to meet her alibi. Someone that would stand as a witness if being questioned about her whereabouts that night.” The analysis made a lot of sense.
Emma started remembering some suspicious things her best friend did that she stupidly ignored,
≤!≥I am a monster, Emma≤!≥
≤!≥I want to make Tara happy before she dies, can I do that?≤!≥
≤!≥Rest in peace, kitten≤!≥
≤!≥My mother died at the hands of the one person she feared the most. I don’t want anyone else to die from something they fear. It sucks≤!≥
≤!≥Tara was afraid of dying from her illness. She is ready to die from anything else but not from the sickness≤!≥
≤!≥When I looked at Tara, she reminded me of my weak self. I hated myself as a child because I was weak≤!≥
≤!≥I can’t cry, what makes me different from that monster? He created a mini version of himself.≤!≥
≤!≥There are some things you don’t know about me, Emma. Trust me≤!≥
≤!≥There’s no happy ending for me≤!≥
≤!≥If I ever do something bad, will you arrest me, Emma?≤!≥
“What am I even thinking? Abby can’t kill a fly, she is one of the nicest people I know,”
★PSYCHOPATHS ARE USUALLY THE LEAST PERSON YOU WILL SUSPECT. THEY ARE NICE, CALM AND ALWAYS A FRIEND★ A little voice said in Emma’s head, pushing her denial of the truth aside.
Emma’s phone chimed, pulling her out of her thoughts. She read the text, and instantly started crying, dropping to the floor.
ABBY: MONSTERS AREN’T BORN. THEY ARE MADE. MEET ME AT THE WAREHOUSE TWO STREETS AWAY FROM OUR HOUSE. I HAVE A CONFESSION TO MAKE. IT’S TIME FOR ME TO SURRENDER.
“Oh, God!” Emma screamed in tears, clutching her chest in pain.
“Emma, what is it?” Robert asked worriedly, reading the text on her phone. His eyes went wide immediately when he was done reading.
“The killer is…”
Robert completed the sentence. “Dr. Abby.”
TBC.