The impact slammed his forehead violently into the top of the steering wheel. His head was thumping aggressively when he pulled it back. The tree had stopped the car but the front did not look good. The wipers were still working however and they continued to temporarily clear the windshield unaware that their services might no longer be needed for a while. Doctor Jacob looked outside his window, trying to see something he could at least recognize. It was too dark to see anything. The never ending rain made it worse. He rubbed his head several times with one hand whilst the other groped around under his seat. He finally found the flashlight. He opened the door and stepped outside. He walked towards the bonnet, waving his flashlight in every direction. He could see several houses about a hundred to two hundred metres away. When he got to the front of the car he realized that there was not much damage. He opened it and smoke immediately steamed into his face. He took a step back an

‘And what have you been up to?’ Sineas asked her.She sighed deeply. ‘Inspector Charles threatened me with a summons last night.’‘A summons?’‘Yeah, that document that demands your presence in court and or whatever. It concerns the deaths of Justin and Miss Bale.’‘He doesn’t honestly think that you did that, does he?’ He sounded bewildered.‘Perhaps…perhaps not. He claims that it’s just “standard procedure”. I’m convinced that it has something to do with the fact that I dated Justin.’‘But you said he only threatened you with it…’‘Yes. He said he’d drag me to court if I refused to come to the station tonight for an “interview”, he called it.’‘So you’re going?’‘What choice do I have, Sineas? I’ll look even guiltier if I don’t.’&lsqu

Inspector Charles’ mind was a labyrinth. So many twists and turns were sprouting in his head. Like a spider web with no beginning and no end. He was suffocating inside it. He tried to reach for the surface but he felt something pulling him back into the deep. Into the cosmic nothingness. He stood staring through his window onto the dark and empty street. He was silent, looking hard…at nothing in particular. He had told Clarissa to sit on a bench in the waiting room. James was standing behind his desk, right beside the chair Clarissa had been sitting in. Finally, the inspector spoke. ‘How did he die?’‘Sir, I’ve already told you twice…’‘Yes, but I want to hear it a third time. Now tell me; how did Doctor Jacob die?’James sighed. ‘Murder, sir. He was murdered. The same way Brittany Bale and Justin Foyer were: countless and deep gashes in the spine, dismembered body parts: arms, legs, torso and head.’There was a short silence between them.‘And where did you say y

‘I don’t, Aunt Janice. Believe me, if I did I would tell you.’ ‘Maybe you’re thinking that you can keep her safe but she’s in danger, Sin. She could hurt someone, or herself.’ ‘When I last saw her she looked pretty fine to me,’ he mumbled angrily. ‘And when was that?’ She asked now eyeing him closely. ‘I saw her not too long ago...’ he noticed her look getting more and more suspicious, ‘…before she escaped,’ he concluded. ‘Sineas, I thought we talked about this. You do not see your mother without me.’ ‘I’m sorry, Aunt Janice but this is my mother. I have every right…’ Smack!  She had slapped him clean across the face with her left, just below his right eye. His face burned with pain. He had felt the flesh on his right cheek shift to the left from the force. She shot up onto her feet. She was fuming, her fists clenched shut. She looked in the opposite direction, her right hand pointing towards the stairs. ‘I

‘You can tell me, Claire. Did that psychopath hurt you?’She answered amidst uncontrolled sobs, ‘I think he threatened me…I honestly don’t remember. I think he said something about the night being full of woes or something.’ She began crying a little louder. Luckily the bench sleeper was still knocked out and the left bench was yet to be occupied. Sineas’ heart melted in anguish. Her cries were cries of one in pain, yes, but there was something about the way she cried. It was so low and innocent. It was like watching a harmless kitten drown and there was nothing you could do to stop it. Powerless and shaken by the deep, cold waters that threatened to swallow you both if you dared to jump in. All you could do was stand and watch, waiting for the next person to step in and do something. Sineas decided that he was going to be that person. He was not going to allow her to sit there and wallow in her pain while he idly watched. She ha