Mad Scientist?

Ryan recalled that there were two empty houses in that street. According to Julian's reports, one of them had been vacant for years since the previous owner had passed away. The other one had an owner who rarely stayed at home and she was away on the day of the murder. Even so, the detailed Julian had already contacted her and taken her statement.

"You mean No.3B?" Ryan deducted that it could only be the latter.

"Yes, Captain. I only saw the plants from the windows. There were actually a huge stack of them" Julian answered.

It came as a surprise as although the plant was a type of naturally growing grass, its habitat did not include the area around city X where there was scarce sunlight and abundant rain. The plant Allen found must have come from that house.

Ryan thought for a bit before he said more to the rookie. Since Julian started working under him six months ago, he had never defied any of his orders. In addition, his instinct was telling him that Julian was a trustworthy person.

"Tell me what you know about the owner" Ryan asked after making the decision.

"Actually, I don't know much about her either. Even her neighbors had not seen her much because she was a quiet and antisocial person. When I was talking with her, she only talked about what was absolutely necessary and the conversation only took about 2 minutes" Julian answered thoughtfully as he was trying to remember the details as much as possible.

"Do you still remember her name?" Ryan asked.

Julian took out a notepad from his pocket. After turning some pages, he found what he wanted. "Her name was Vivienne, Vivienne Byrne"

"Give me her contact details." Ryan said.

After that, Ryan told Julian to keep everything that happened in the office to himself and Julian heeded his words without any question.

When Ryan called Vivienne Byrne, she readily agreed to meet them and even invited them to come to her house.

At the appointed time, both Ryan and Allen went to her house. When they saw the person who answered the door, they could not help but looked at each other in a daze.

However, the woman was already expecting to see them as Ryan introduced himself in the phone earlier.

"You're here," she only said that and walked back into her house. They took her words and action as an invitation and followed behind her.

Vivienne gestured them towards the sofas and she herself sat in one of them.

"Why didn't you tell me it was you?" Ryan asked the woman as soon as he had taken a seat.

"Did you ask?" The woman, who introduced herself as 'doc' previously, frowned a bit as if she was recalling the conversation on the phone.

"How could I ask that question if I didn't even know that it was you?" Ryan asked patiently.

"How could I tell you if you didn't ask me?" Vivienne retorted.

Allen sighed inwardly as he watched the two conversing in front of them. Both of them were obviously in their thirties and yet they were communicating like teenagers.

"And what's with you and hoodies? Do you have to wear them even indoors?" Ryan asked incredulously at the woman whose face was partially covered by the hood.

"Did you come here to question my fashion sense?" Vivienne immediately asked back.

Right! How could he forget about the important matter?

"One of my officers said that he found some sweet vernal grass in your house" Ryan's eyes turned solemn.

"Yes, there are some in my house. Why do you ask?" But before Ryan could answer, she found the answer by herself.

"…you think it's connected to the drug"

"Why do you have a stack of those grasses?" Ryan asked.

"I don't have just those grasses…" Vivienne stood up. "Follow me. It's easier to show you."

She led them upstairs and shocked the two detectives with a whole floor filled with various kinds of plants and animals in cages. There were even cupboards full of jars containing animal carcasses and body parts.

"Is this… human?" Allen who had been quiet the whole time asked a question hesitantly as he pointed towards a glass container which contained a pair of lungs.

"Yes but don't worry, detective. Those people were already dead before I removed those organs," Vivienne answered nonchalantly.

Because of her choice of wording, Allen took a better look and realized that, that particular cupboard was filled with human body parts and not animals'.

'Don't worry my as*!' Allen cursed inwardly. Even as a detective, he had never seen this great number of organs in display in one place. There was even a male organ immersed in chemical liquid in one of the containers. Is she some kind of mad scientist? Is that why people call her 'doc'?

"Ahem," Allen let out a dry cough to restore his nerves which had almost broken down. He looked at Ryan to find the latter comparatively calmer as the man studied everything in the room with full attention.

The three of them went back downstairs after taking a tour of the "Dr. Frankenstein's lab".

"Do you think that grass is connected to the drug?" Ryan asked.

Vivienne pondered for a bit, "May be. But it's only part of the drug as not all of the drug's effects are related to it."

Ryan nodded and then looked straight into her blue eyes. "Your statement mentioned that you were at Anios at the time of murder"

"Uh-huh," she admitted.

"Do you often go there?"

"Whenever I'm not here," She answered naturally.

'Who said that this woman was quiet and antisocial?' The detectives thought.

"You don't seem like someone who enjoys the nightlife" Ryan smiled as he imagined this robot-like-woman on the dance floor.

"Why not? It's quite fun to watch people"

Collecting body parts and watching people for fun… Ryan had to admit that this woman's had the most peculiar hobbies.

"So, you knew Jean Moore?"

"Well, she used to make drinks for me," she answered thoughtfully.

Allen suddenly sympathize his captain for having to question this woman. It must be quite exhausting. Anyone would have known that Ryan was asking this question for some elaboration on Jean Moore's character and the relationship between the two of them and yet she gave an answer like this. Who would make drinks for the guests, if not the bartender? The boxers?!

Allen gave a pat himself on his shoulders for being smart enough to leave the questioning to his reliable captain. He had been wary to have a conversation with this woman since their first encounter. May be hearing Allen's inner thoughts, Vivienne added some words to her answer.

"The only conversation we had between each other was me asking her for a drink and her asking if I wanted a drink or what kind of drink I'd like"

Okay…. Allen clearly overestimated her socializing skills.

"Why do people call you 'doc'?" Ryan changed the topic after realizing he could not ask her for more information about the bartender.

"You still don't know after visiting upstairs?"

They would think Vivienne was mocking their intelligence with that question if they were not seeing her expressionless face. Ryan wondered if that mask like face could show any emotion, even a mocking one.

"We could see that you are some kind of scientist, but…" before Ryan completed his sentence, Vivienne's phone started to ring. Both of the detectives became dumbfounded when they heard the sound filled the room. It was normal for her phone to ring. After all, who did not have a cell phone in this day and age? However, setting a child's voice singing "You are my sunshine" was not compatible with her image at all!

Oblivious to the internal turmoil happening in the detectives' mind, she checked the caller's name and said, "It's from my work. I'm sorry. I can't entertain you anymore"

Vivienne showed them to the door and Ryan only nodded in acknowledgement as he was still thinking about the strange ringtone.

By his side, Allen twitched his mouth when he heard the woman's words. Entertain? What entertain? He was almost shocked shitless by the unpleasant display and had to watch her converse in a robotic manner. She should not use the word 'entertain' even as a figure of speech.

Ryan was silent the whole time on the car as if he was in deep thoughts. Allen did not disturb him either and quietly drove him back to his apartment as they had already clocked out before coming to the distasteful woman's house. Only after Allen had finished parking the car, did Ryan voice out his thoughts.

"She said that she's always at the club whenever she was not at home. I don't think she's lying as the employees of the club had already testified for her alibi on the day of murder"

What was the point in lying to be a regular of Anios when they had already confirmed her alibi? Allen shot a look at Ryan meaning 'So?'

"You know I've been to Anios almost every night for the last month but I've never met her there"

Allen got an idea of what Ryan was trying to say. "You think she's a VIP guest?"

If she was a normal guest and a regular there, there was no way Ryan could not have seen her for the whole month there.

Ryan nodded.

"That is highly possible," Allen concurred.

"And there's also one more thing," he added. "You have sharper senses than mine and there's no way you did not feel their presence. You said you also felt it during the second time you met her."

"I felt it" Ryan knew Allen was talking about those watchful eyes they felt whenever they were around her.

"I've been thinking. They are always around her and yet they never harm her. My first thought was that they were watching her movements. But if so, they could have just sent any random people. Not highly-skilled people like them. As far as I can see, Vivienne does not look trained at all nor does she seem like she's trying to hide her moves"

Ryan agreed as he remembered the pale woman with bony figure. Moreover, he could sense the level of skills of those people by the way they hid their presence. If he had not encountered some elite snipers during his career life, he would never have discovered them. And Allen would never have actually noticed them if Ryan did not pointed them out. He would have kept thinking that he was just being paranoid.

"Then, another thought occurred to me that maybe, they are protecting her"

Ryan again fell into deep thoughts after hearing Allen's words.

'A VIP guest of Anios who is being protected by elite professionals?'. Really, who are you, Vivienne Byrne?