"Nope. Nice to meet you Scarlet Sinclair. My name is Jaxson White, leader of this investigation. You'll be a part of today's investigation which you were assigned to." He began.
I walked up to the top of the steps as he stepped back to give me enough room to confront him.
"Pleasure is all mine." I greeted; my confusion remained apparent in my low voice.
I proceeded to lift my hand out to shake his; the gesture only contributed to the wide grin spread across his handsome, sculpted face. Regardless of our familiarity, appearances still mattered, and I couldn't let our outside lives affect my final exam or his work.
"Today’s assignment you will be a part of Team Seven, as we work on this homicide case. The remains have already been transported for an autopsy. For now, we're gathering evidence and trying to match it to a person. You'll be shadowing me this round." He explained.
I nodded, wondering whether to be bitter or excited that I had really passionate sex with my temporary boss or should I say, the leader of my final assignment. I seriously did something to get karma's interference. I bet it's Cece's doing.
"Since we are working this scene together, you’ll address me as agent, and I will do the same. Therefore, Agent Sinclair, you'll refer to me as Agent White, until I state your assignment is over. Understood?" His face became serious as his eyes bore into me.
I stood at attention, nodding.
As private investigators under Paranormal INC, we were the people the police called when a case was marked “special” or too complicated for the police to solve alone, along with the cold cases they investigated on their down time. With the increased crime rates, murders and questionable disappearances, PINC was created to assist.
They had special teams who’d be assigned to a specific section of cases; being summoned to look into and solve those matters after the police had done their initial assessment of the crime scene. Unfortunately, due to some of the cases they handled, information on the team was limited.
Sure, they were all over the news and on the papers for their amazing accomplishments – solving cases the police department couldn’t handle or resolve after months of no leads, but there was no other information given to the public regarding the details of the unsolved cases.
Seeing as I was still considered an “outsider,” I, too, was under restrictions. Even with the secrecy, it didn't stop me or many of the students at Mc. Ryerson from wishing to be apart of the prestigious organization.
"Agent White. It's a pleasure to be a part of your team for this investigation. I will do my best shadowing you and providing any useful information that can lessen your burden on this case." I stated with confidence as I looked at him with determined eyes.
I was back in investigator mode and ready to prove to Agent White what I was made of.
"Excellent. The team has high hopes for one of Mc. Ryerson’s perfect Aces. Let's begin." He commented before winking, turning back and entering the house – holding the door for me.
Yes. Let the games begin.
Chapter Seven
"It's nice to see you again, Agent Sinclair."
It took everything in me to not start fan-girling when my eyes landed upon the tall, amethyst eyed driver...I mean, the private investigator who stood before me – Christian Ross.
"Likewise. It's nice to know what your other job is." I struggled to keep a straight face; his radiant, silk smile made another appearance. Fuck, this is going to be hard if he keeps smiling like that.
"Is this the fierce, sexy female you were talking about with bright orange hair and voice that could make any male beg?"
Myself, Christian and Jaxson all turned to the kitchen; a male appeared at the doorway with a smug smile on his face.
His smoky ash blue hair went from a light blue to a dark blue – the ombre effect complimented his stunning green eyes. These men and their contacts.
He was six-four, and as his elbows relaxed against the frame of the door. The sleeves of the black t-shirt he wore stretched across his large biceps; both of those sculpted muscles were wrapped in Celtic tattoos. He had a trimmed waist and wore black pants and shoes. His oval sculpted face matched his small stubble beard as he looked at the other two agents before those eyes landed on me.
His words registered in my head; my face went completely red as I blinked. I slowly turned to look up at Christian whose shoulders shook as he tried to hold back the laughter rumbling in his throat.
Jaxson sighed, rubbing his eyes.
"You know what? Fuck this professional shit. I can't stand it. First off, she's shadowing me today so keep your petty hands off her, especially you Christian. Her ass is mine. Second, can we leave the descriptive commentary of Scar's sexy voice till after we're done here, and third, Scarlet, this is Ethan Roseblade.”
I looked from Jaxson to Ethan as he gave me a dramatic bow.
"Ethan Roseblade at your service. Who would have thought we'd get a hot chick like yourself on our team? Can we keep her?" He inquired; my cheeks continued to flush. He sure has character and is not afraid to say what he's thinking.
Jaxson rolled his eyes.
"Yup, I suddenly changed my mind. You and Christian will go to the second spot. Junho will come with Michael and me." He commented.
"Oh C'mon. That's not fair. I don't want to go with Christian. I'll die before we get there with the way he drives." Ethan complained; his Australian accent leaked off the second sentence emphasizing on the words ‘I’ll die.’ I had to admit, his accent was hot. Or maybe Australian accents, in general.
"Christian’s driving is amazing. Why would you die?" I questioned before raising my head to the three pairs of eyes. Aww shit. Not my place?
Christian slipped a hand around my waist.
"See? Scarlet likes my driving." He emphasized my name, as a nice cologne scent hit my nostrils. He smells delicious.
"Uh oh. Jaxson’s giving you the look of death, mate." Ethan’s Australian accent quivered as he turned around to go back into the kitchen. I glanced back to Jaxson who had a fierce expression on his face as he frowned at Christian.
"Don't worry. She's all yours, for now." He teased. Jaxson sighed; his eyes landed on the arm around my waist. Christian laughed before his hand slipped from my waist.
"Alright, why don’t we get back to work?" Jaxson prompted; his words reminded me of the garbage bin I’d taken pictures of. OH.
"Have you guys been around the area yet?" I brought my serious tone back as I looked between the two of them. Ethan walked back into the room with a camera around his neck.
"We got here about two hours ago. We haven't done a thorough check of the area yet. The police team just finished their investigation, and we're going to go through what they had discovered and gathered up."
"Which is nothing but garbage." An unfamiliar voice announced.
All four of us turned our heads towards the stairs. Well, shit.
My eyes took their time looking over the six-seven tall male. He had a medium build, wearing a black dress shirt with gold buttons and Armani pants – the brand logo designed on the front pockets which were enough to tell me it was limited edition. He wore brown Timberlands, and his Rolex watch peaked out from his long sleeve. I didn't know if his accent was Korean or Russian with the way it altered in five words.
This guy could be a model for Vogue rather than a private investigator.
"Scarlet, this is Junho Suk. He's also apart of our team assigned to this case.”
He walked down the remaining stairs before approaching us; his eyes took one good look at me before turning to Christian.
"Is this the hot, orange haired babe, you were –"
"Alright, back to the case." Jaxson ordered
I giggled; all four of them turned to face me. I put my hands up, laughing.
"Sorry, I can't help it. You guys are hilarious and very opposite of one another." I continued giggling.
"We're not that different." Junho noted.
"We’re tota
lly different, mate.” Ethan argued.
"We get a new recruit with a hot body and fine ass, and you guys get distracted."
All five of us turned to see an ash blonde male walked into the house down the hall, closing the door behind him as he knelt down to switch shoes – his current white shoes were changed to black converses.
He rose back to his full six-foot-six inch height as he strolled down the narrow, creaky hall.
His ash blonde hair went past his shoulders and could have easily been tied into a ponytail with some hair still dangling. His face was unmatched by any…the strong jaw line was the foundation in which his classical features lay. Soft lines and highlights accented his cheeks and eyes. He was classical in many ways, like those angels that had been painted on the ceiling of that church. He wore a similar black-on-black outfit like most of the others, but the most striking characteristic was his bright, gold eyes.
"How can all of you have amazing colored eyes? Do you guys wear contacts just to change your look?" I questioned as I glanced around them.
"Contacts? They're our natur–" Ethan began till Jaxson cleared his throat.
"It's a secret." He winked at me as I frowned, narrowing my eyes.
"Uh-oh. That's the look every woman gives when you begin avoiding conversations with her. It's like declaring war as they secretly vow to discover all your dark secrets in three days flat." Junho announced.
"Of course, you'd know that." Christian commented.
"Hey, Playboy. I think you've seen enough of that look, you could probably write a book. No, a SERIES." Ethan commented.
"Not my fault. The women just throw themselves at me. I simply dodge and turn them down. Scarlet’s one of the first to not throw herself at me.” He proposed, staring down at me as he crossed his arms, tapping his finger on his lips in wonder. I licked my lips. I'd love to be his finger right now.
“Maybe you finally wore out that ‘charm’ of yours,” Ethan noted.
“Finally.” Junho emphasized.
"Anyways, I'm Michael Moore. A pleasure to meet you." He stood next to Jaxson as they all turned to face me.
"Jaxson, Michael, Junho, Ethan and Mr. Gre- I mean Christian." I pointed at each of them as I quickly corrected myself. Christian gave me another wink while the others shook their heads; smiles plastered across their lips.
"Let's get serious. We don't have time. Scarlet, why did you ask if we’d been around the area?" Jaxson’s stern voice returned as his smile faded into a blank expression.
"12:55 PM just on the corner of ESSENCE St and Maple…Uh, do I have to get all technical?” I questioned, frowning.
The others snickered, and Jaxson sighed before a smile formed on his lips.
“Just do you, Scarlet.” He encouraged.
I smiled back, continuing. “I was jogging up the hill cause my ass was running late, and I noticed there’s a blood smear on the side of the green garbage bin. The ones located on the corner of ESSENCE St and Maple. It looks pretty fresh, but with the heat, it’s probably going to dry soon. I took some pictures before hustling over here, and I noticed glass shards that appear to have blood stains on them, too. I’ve done some research on the area and it states garbage duty is today. So…uh, maybe we should check it out?”
*Silence*
"Junho, Christian, outside now. Investigate the entire street and make sure you make a detailed review. I don't want a fucking hair missed. Ethan, look at all the video camera footage from the time of the reported disturbance to when we arrived, if Scar says the blood looks fresh means the culprit was hiding in the home until the cops left and could have been able to escape during the gap between their departure and our arrival. Michael, review the police reports for anything that looks suspicious in terms of objects or documents out of place. Make sure you review the picture catalog as well. Once you're done and the others can potentially get a sample from the garbage bin and the shards, run an analysis on the blood and see if it matches the victim and if anyone else shows up in the database." Jaxson ordered.
They all nodded before scattering like birds on a mission for food. It was just me and Jaxson standing in the middle of the living room. I blinked out of my transfixed daze before frowning.
“Did that help?” I questioned.
"Scarlet, you just picked up on something the police and their investigators hadn't caught after raiding this place from top to bottom, or so they claimed. With what you just provided, we might have a face of the primary suspect in the homicide of Adelia Nokolah. She's a psychic who worked as an apprentice under Saikikku, the infamous psychic that everyone is buzzing about." He praised.
"Wait, so what are we going to do? Wait for them?" I questioned, thinking about the murder victim and trying to determine why she was murdered instead of the – Saikikku Madore. I guess a psychic could gain a lot of enemies depending on who they dealt with. Doesn’t explain why her apprentice was killed though…
"Nope. We're going search this place from top to bottom. Anything discovered that you may think is suspicious we’ll analyze for any clues or fingerprints.”
"Okay. Let's get digging."
"Achoo." I sneezed, shaking my head as I pulled back from the dust coming off the crystal ball I carried.
"Bless you, Scar," Jaxson walked into the living room, where the table of suspicious items was set up, ranked from least suspicious to red flashing alarm lights – the crystal ball I carried apparently fit that category.
I’d already reviewed the files and photographs of the victim, Adelia. The only image we had on hand of her alive was of her standing right next to this crystal ball; her wide smile and brown eyes displayed how happy she was to be an apprentice at this place. It was completely different from the image of her lifeless body.
I set the heavy, clouded, purple, crystal ball on the edge of a shelf before sneezing again.
"You'd think this psychic would dust off her belongings more often. This thing looks like it hasn't been used in months." I mumbled before sneezing again.
"Allergic?" Michael questioned as he looked up from the stack of photos on his lap as he sat in the plastic wrapped corner chair.
"No. I just have – achoo. A sensitive nose." I finished.
"Your gloves have dust on them that's why." Christian pointed out as he walked past me, looking at criminal profiles; each file had a picture of a potential suspect.
"Oh." I looked down to my second pair of gloves – the pink pair covered in dust. No wonder. My goodness, there's enough dust I can create a dusty bunny family.
Normally, as investigators, we would have to wear the standard blue or clear gloves, especially when dealing with evidence, but Jaxson had pulled me off to the side, giving me permission to keep my gloves on. It made my heart melt for the fact he showed concern and remembered about my gift. I sat the ball down on the corner of the table and pulled them off, shaking them repeatedly in hopes the thick pile of dust would fall to the floor.
Ethan began to come down the stairs.
"Ethan stay up there till Scarlet gets that crystal ball to the desk." Junho called out; his figure leaned against the kitchen door frame as he inspected an object with a magnifying glass.
"What? Why?" He questioned, stopping three steps from where I was positioned.
"Because you're clumsy as fuck and you'll probably trip, crash right into Scar and that crystal ball will go bye-bye. Remember last time?" Junho continued, taking a quick glance to raise his eyebrow at the blue haired male who frowned.
"That wasn't my fault. Who puts a fucking string in the middle of the road? There are no strings here."
"You mean the caution tape used to prevent you from damaging evidence? Especially in a sterile area?" I questioned.
"Yup, that bright, yellow tape. But our clumsy investigator didn't listen, tripped and ruined all the evidence in three seconds. That’s a new record actually." Michael explained, placing the stack of photos on the desk as he held five of them.
"I guess it wasn't as b
ad as the time he fell from the top of the stairs, crashed into a suspect’s mistress, knocked her out cold and damaged evidence in six seconds flat." Christian reminded.
"I'm surprised she didn't sue." Jaxson commented as he came from the entrance hallway.
“You know, you guys are all assholes. Fuck all of you. Except for you, Scar." He glared at the others before smiling at me. I giggled.
"Well, give me a second, I need to put my gloves back." I announced, placing the old pair down and pulling out the other pair.
A phone began to ring – Poker Face by Lady Gaga blasted loudly from the kitchen.
"SHIT! That better not be my assistant manager, or I'm so fucking screwed." Ethan swore, rushing down the remaining stairs.
"Etha–" Junho began but it was too late. His leg tripped as he hit the step, bumping into my shoulder which knocked into the table.
"SHIT!" A number of voices called out as the crystal-rolled forward. Aw fuck!
I quickly rotated my body; everything slowed as I felt my eyes begin to sting – my body slowly fell towards the floor. I reached out; my hands caught the heavy crystal as I lifted it up – face planting to the floor. Fuck, thank god, I took my glasses off earlier...
I heard another crash next to me before multiple steps and curses followed.
"Fuck, Scar!"
It was taking all my arm strength to keep the crystal ball upright as my consciousness began to spin even with my eyes shut.
"Take. Crystal. Now." I mumbled into the floor as my arms shook, struggling to keep the weight from dropping. I felt relief as it was lifted out of my hands, but the same moment the wavering sensation hit me.
I gritted my teeth as I struggled to sit up on my knees; something warm fell down my face.
"Shit, Scar's bleeding. Michael!" I heard Jaxson call out. I opened my eyes ready to announce I was okay, but the room began to shift.
The guys who surrounded me with worried expressions blurred; the house morphed – the room grew dark as smoke drifted past me. The strong odor of incense breached my nose as I looked around my surroundings.
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