17 Co-operation?

Bones looked at Victoria, who was shock-struck. As he watched her standing in a daze, his heart became complex. He did not know why this change appeared in his heart. His eyes lingered on her face, and he saw a drop of blood appearing on the corner of her eye, and slowly slide down the cheek.

Staining her beautiful pale face with a stroke of grief. He did not expect the girl to be so close to her mother. Bones took out a handkerchief from his trouser pocket and passed it to her. He said, "I know you are grieving but please calm yourself. Only when you are calm can we figure out the cause of her death." his cold voice carried a trace of warmth.

Victoria took the handkerchief from him and wiped the blood tear off her face. She took deep breaths and asked, "What do I need to do?" a strong resolve was evident in her speech.

Bones took a deep breath and said, "First, I will need you to answer some questions for me. Then we will see what to do. Can I ask you some questions?"

Victoria gave him a nod. The hunter asked, "When was the last time you saw your mother?"

The girl said, "Last night, around 10 when I got back home."

Bones asked, "When was the last time you met your half-brother, Aran Vlad?"

Victoria replied, "Yesterday evening when I killed him for sexually harassing me." her voice did not shake and she did not hide the fact that she killed Aran Vlad.

Bones raised an eyebrow, then he said, "Did your mother talk to you about something?"

Victoria shook her head and said, "In the morning, I was given a note by a maid in the household."

Bones asked, "Can I see that note?" his tone was stable, calm.

Victoria nodded and took out a neatly folded note from her bag. She handed it to Bones. The hunter took hold of it and skillfully unfolded the paper to look at the content. He just cast a glance at it and said, "Olek, Olek, Olek, using the same old trick."

Victoria asked, "What do you mean?" her eyebrow raised high. She was not sure what this man was implying but her heart was tight. She had a very bad premonition in her heart.

Bones gaze in her eyes, "This font is written by a special technique. Almost non-traceable. Only a few can use it and your father is one of them. The person who wrote this note was put under a charm. Do you see that the words are slightly tilted?" he turned the note to Victoria to check.

The girl noticed that the alphabets were tilted to the right just slightly, it could be said that the tilt was microscopic but it was uniform. Every alphabet was tilted to the side. She said, "Is this enough to determine that he is the guilty one?"

Bones said, "Do you not notice anything different in this note?" his voice was calm and his tone was steady.

Victoria glanced at the note again, unconsciously her gaze lingered around the footnote, Argentia. She said, "She always signed it as, Mother and not Argentia when she passed me any notes."

Bones nodded, "When you are put under a charm, you forget your relations and become a puppet with a name. You can use charm, so you should be clear about that." he said.

The girl nodded and then asked, "What to do now? How will you prove it to the Tribunal?"

Bones said, "I can do it alone but it may take some time, or we can co-operate. This way we can find some more clues about this mishap and convict the culprit. Until and unless he has a genuine reason, which might be rare, I will have him in an urn."

His words brought Victoria a subtle warmth. She kept her silence, Bones did not push it either, after all, he was basically asking her to help him kill her father. After some silence, Victoria said, "Can you give me some time to think about this?"

Bones nodded and took out a card from his pocket placed it on the table in front of Victoria, he said, "It is a calling card. When you drop some of your blood on it. I will appear." with that said, he walked out of the cabin.

Victoria did not try to stop him this time, she was not trying to stop him today, her mind was filled with a lot of things. It was chaos in her mind. Her complex feelings for Bones, her father's cruel acts, and now her mother's disappearance. She sat down in her chair with her gaze locked at the card.

Suddenly the door was knocked and Gloria peeked in. She said, "Madam, may I come in?"

Victoria came back from her train of thoughts and said, "Yes, Gloria, what is it?"

Gloria put down a file on the table and said, "The contract is done and signed. Also, you have a meeting with Constellation Liquor farms."

Victoria nodded and said, "Good. Have the proceedings completed and assign someone to follow up. Where is the meeting?" she asked Gloria. Sometimes the corporate meetings are held outside the office.

Gloria said, "Imperfecto, a pub in the southern extension of the city."

Victoria sighed, she said, "Have my guards ready, I hate those places and that pathetic man, Alphonso Carter." her intention was clear. If they were out of the line, then it will be a brawl with just the getting beaten up.

Gloria nodded solemnly. She said, "Madam, Alphonso Carter is not a fuel-efficient lamp. Please be careful while you are there."

Victoria nodded and said, "I know that guy is scum, but want to move on me? He is too green. Let's go. I want to see, what Mr. Carter has in store for me, or is it just a hocus claim like always."