Desperate measures

Fatigued and restless, Kelvin's frustration had reached its limit.

He had been up all night, trying desperately to find any clue he had overlooked in Sarah and Mia's murder. All he needed was a clue, anything significant for him to hold on to and start from.

"There has to be something I missed damn it!" He shouted, running his hands through his hairs as he leaned back on the chair he was sitting on.

He had gone over all the documents and photos a million times, this time however, he had more incentive than ever to crack the case.

If he could somehow figure out who might have killed his wife and daughter, and do so before midnight, he could simply decline Zafira's offer, and she would go away. Rather, he hoped she would stick to her words and disappear.

He looked at the clock and it was 3:46pm, there wasn't much time before midnight.

A sudden knock on his apartment door startled Kelvin. ‘Who could that be?' He wondered, with a frown.

Hopefully not Zafira, though she had already proved to be the type not to knock.

Looking through the peephole, Kelvin saw someone he didn't recognize at all. A man about his age with a goatee and dark hair, wearing a black suit.

He waited patiently outside, the reversed collar and prayer beads dangling from his neck hinted at his calling.

A priest maybe?

Kelvin was very sure he had never seen this man before, and he was really curious at what business the man might have with him.

He cautiously opened the door just a few inches.

"Yes? Can I help you?" he asked

"Good day, sir. I'm looking for Mr. Kelvin Light. Is he in?" the man replied with a gentle smile

"Who wants to know?" Kelvin asked, a deep frown evident on his face

"I'm sorry, where are my manners? My name is Father Gabriel Korvenus. I am with the Congregation of the Holy Cross." The man said with a gentle smile

"Sorry, but I'm not looking to find God today," Kelvin said coldly as he started to shut the door.

"Wait! Please, Detective Light!! I think I have some information about the recent night club murder." He quickly explained, before Kelvin could shut the door.

Curious, Kelvin stared at the man for a while, before he opened the door and invited the man inside.

Father Gabriel looked around and beheld a motley mess of police documents and gruesome crime scene photos. He fingered his prayer beads and mumbled something under his breath.

The gruesome nature of the photos would unnerve anyone, anyone except Kelvin who had unintentionally made it his home decor.

Father Gabriel looked at a picture hanging on the wall of Kelvin and Sarah on their wedding day.

"Is she the one in the other photos?" He asked

"Not that it's any of your business, but yes," Kelvin answered

"I thought you had information for me?" He asked

The priest shifted his focus back to Kelvin. "Right, the news reports claimed you saw a woman in the room with the victim, did you notice anything odd about her? For instance, did she have tattoos of large bat wings on her shoulders?" Father Gabriel asked

'Those were not tattoos of bat wings, those were actual bat wings, and a long f-----g tail.' Kelvin thought.

However, the similarities were entirely too coincidental, did this man know about Zafira, and what she actually was?

"Sorry, but I didn't see any tattoos, why do you ask?" He lied with a straight face.

Father Gabriel turned to Kelvin. "The day of the murder, a young girl of great physical beauty came into my church for confession. She mentioned that she was about to do something horrible but never said what it was exactly, and as she left, I noticed that she had bat wing tattoos on her shoulders that covered most of her back. I thought maybe there was some kind of connection." The priest explained.

All those years as a detective had refined Kelvin's ability to detect bullshit down to a fine art. He knew that this man was hiding something, and he wasn't a very good liar.

He'd seen tattoos on her shoulders?

That would mean that she would have to have worn an open back dress or something else equally revealing, who would show up in church like that?

Not to mention, who would confess to something before actually doing it?

It seemed too far-fetched for Kelvin's taste, this was pure bullshit.

Kelvin's suspicions were further heightened by a small cross-shaped scar on the side of Father Gabriel's neck.

He wouldn't have noticed it if the priest's collar hadn't shifted while looking around the room.

No kind of accident leaves such a mark on one's skin, it had to have been done on purpose.

Nonetheless, this priest must know something about Zafira, was he one of the 'entities' that she mentioned she was trying to avoid?

Kelvin thought for a brief moment about disclosing what really happened.