Chapter 12

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The sounds resounding from the heart monitor had slowed down considerably, making them resemble the calls of a dying siren. There would be a time span of about three seconds between each one, and Genevieve waited with expectation for every beep. Each one would fuel the glimmer of hope in her. The hope that Amber could survive.

Genevieve leaned against the edge of the hospital bed, where a barely conscious Amber dwelled. Her eyes were fixated on the screen nearby that displayed a green line on a black background. The strand would move when Amber's poor heart did, and it's dull pattern made it seem like the organ was hanging on for dear life.

The distraught officer averted her eyes from the monitor and settled it onto Amber, before she closed them shut for a fleeting minute. A sharp exhale left her lips, and she had wished that the guilt would leave her with the small gust of wind. It didn't.

"I have never killed anyone... and I hope it stays that way." Genevieve knew her earnest admission was not heard, but a small part of her wished that it had somehow made its way into Amber's subconscious.

It was the truth. She had never taken someone's life, even though some scenarios in her job as a police officer called for it. The most extreme length she had ever gone to was when a crook had been subject to her interrogation, and she had beaten the living daylights out of him. But he still survived. Somehow.

The sound of a door opening, followed by the click clack of footsteps resonated from behind Genevieve which made her eyelids pull back. Her gaze lingered on her blacked out colleague, and a masculine voice urged her to look behind her.

"Are you officer Perez?

She held a hand up in the air as a 'yes', instead of verbally replying almost immediately. However, the voice was unrecognizable, which only spiked her curiosity.

"Yes, that's me." Her arm dropped to her side as she pushed herself off of the bed. The sounds of his strides had stopped, and that fact was confirmed when she turned around to face him. She didn't say anything more. Instead, her stoic gaze urged him to introduce himself.

"I'm Samuel. Samual Anderson." He offered gently, and he approached Genevieve with a few steps. His hand was then held out in her direction for her to shake, to which she complied politely.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Likewise." She answered upon retracting her hand, but the hint of confusion still remained on her face. Who was he, and what did he want from her?

"I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind. I'm the detective assigned to Ms. Smith's case." His gaze darted over to Amber for a quick second, and his courteous expression took a sympathetic turn. When he looked back at Genevieve and noticed her faint hesitancy, he simply brightened his smile.

"I was transferred to this station from another one, so that might be why you don't know me."

Samuel's smile was infectious, and as a result. a small one formed on Genevieve's mouth in return. She nodded her head to his first statement.

"Ask away, detective."

And he did. The generic and routinely questions were asked, and they weren't too foreign for Genevieve. After all, she had been the one to ask questions similar to those some time ago.

"Who attacked first?"

"Amber."

"At the beginning, did her mannerisms seem off to you?"

"Yes. She looked extremely worn out from the lack of sleep. And every time I'd ask her something, she would look away."

"Did she mention anything alarming before, after, or during your hostile exchange?"

"She said something about her mother. That 'He' would kill her if she didn't kill me."

Everything was going smoothly up until his very last question. Genevieve's brain blanked out, and she gaped at him in deep thought.

"Why did you go to the Blue Swan Banquet Hall right after the incident?"

Samuel waited in anticipation for a reply, and the only thing he received was plain silence. His eyes scanned her features as if the answer was written on her face. But still, he wasn't skeptical. Yet.

Genevieve was completely tongue-tied. She was aware that the consistency between her impulsive answers had broken, and she had to reply soon if she didn't want to attract any sort of suspicion. But what was she to say? That she asked Amber about a sky-coloured bird? Even more questions would arise because of that, and she'd inevitably have to confess her crime.

She cursed Alec out internally. Because of his stubbornness, Genevieve had now reached the point where she had to lie through her teeth. If only he had listened to her and not insisted upon stealing the letter, things wouldn't be as they are right now.

"They were her last words." She paused to run her tongue along her lips, since they had dried out because of her internal panic.

"She gave me an address and said that our mayor was in danger. There was no time to lose, so I had to leave her alone and run."

Samuel eyed her intently, and his eyes bore holes into hers. He was simply observing her, and all Genevieve could hope for was that nothing about her expression gave it away. The truth nearly bubbled to the surface because of his persistent staring. But before the words nearly left the tip of her tongue, he spoke and inadvertently stopped them.

"Alright, that will be all. Thank you for cooperating." The previous expression overtook his serious one, which in turn made a huge wave of relief wash over her.

"I'll be on my way then. Goodbye."

Genevieve reciprocated his smile as a farewell. Her line of sight remained on him even as he spun on his heel to leave the room. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding when he finally left, and she looked behind her to glance at Amber.

The newfound guilt because of her unabashed lies multiplied with every step she took towards the occupied bed. Genevieve's gaze dropped to Amber just as her movement stopped, and a rather sheepish look settled on her face.

The monitor was still beeping, albeit irregularly, and she had taken that as a silent encouragement to speak up.

"I'll make it up to you." She began, her hand reaching out to grab onto Amber's icy cold one.

"I'll save your mother from him."

Surprisingly, Genevieve did get a response. The device beeped loudly all of a sudden, but this time, the sound dragged out for far too long. After a couple of seconds she looked up to catch a glimpse of the monitor, and the sight that met her eyes was beyond excruciating.

For you see, the green line was completely flat.