Chapter 2: Thank you for the offer

[EVE]

Eve gets on the Bitter Pill's office after her conversation with Villanelle on the bridge. A very intimate exchange in which they mutually decide to turn back and walk away. One exceedingly surprising choice to what Eve assumes Villanelle would suggest. The assassin could have proposed to run away together and Eve will not have any second thoughts of saying yes. No matter how dangerous her life might be, she knows she will endure it. For them. For Villanelle. At that time, at that moment, she is willing to risk it all but it did not happen.

Nevertheless, she is here now at Kenny's former workplace and far away from Villanelle. Removed from the possibility of living a fairy tale life with a beautiful monster she admits to laud on and obsess. No matter how much she yearns to be with the woman, the option to protect each other from danger is the considerably reasonable one. They need to stop. They need to walk away. It was a terrible plan but they have to do it either way.

Cold turkey!

Stepping towards the three people gathering at Jamie's small office makes her let out a sigh of dismay. Their investigation concludes with no decent news to proclaim. They uncover the man accountable for Kenny's death too late. And the glare that the three people imply is far from the attention that Eve expects.

"What?" Eve inquires as she enters the small room where the three people gather. The horrifying look on their faces suggests they saw a ghost, wandering around the corridors.

"T-The assassin... c-came here looking for you. W-We...t-thought...s-she...s-she killed you." Bear says stammering at his words in fear. Slightly sweating from the memory of meeting the assassin.

"She did," Eve replies with a rigid expression and Bear drops his pack of candies while their faces lose their color. Seeing them almost faint with terror.

"Hahahahahah!!!" Eve cackles out loud as she tries to mimic a ghost by putting her arms up in front of her to say, "Oooohhhhh."

The three people shrug their heads and look away from dismay. They were extremely concerned about the woman who only laughs at them. They turn around and walk away, scattering away to head back to their table.

"We have a video of Kenny before he died. Do you want to see it?" Jamie offers, lowering his eyes. He still feels awful with the boy's bitter end and he trusts Eve will offer closure to them. They have been struggling to find Kenny's killer for weeks, even involving an organization named the Twelve that the man was investigating. They believe he found vital information to utilize against them but they caught him and directly put a deadlock on the case.

"No." Eve refuses with a low voice of resignation which makes the people inside the office feel conflicted with her reaction. Their eyebrow raises in unison. Eve is the first person who initiates pursuing the man's case and yet here she is rejecting a step for development.

"Carolyn killed a member of the twelve tonight and spared the man liable to her son's death," Eve explains, feeling the annoyance of her announcement. The result of their search is not what she foresaw. They went after the Twelve for no reason at all.

"Carolyn killed someone???" Bear asks with a shocking voice that echoes throughout the room. His eyes got larger than they should.

"It doesn't matter. I'm here to solve Kenny's case and Carolyn has it all figured. He jumped to his death, he wasn't killed by anyone. Now our investigation is done. I'm leaving and I came here to tell you all that." Eve declares with a straight face, gesturing her hands to point out the people inside the small office. "And also get some of my stuff here." She adds then turns and strides towards Kenny's table to open one of the drawers.

Eve scurries the items inside and collects them piece by piece but Bear interrupts her hand in bringing them inside her satchel. "Those are not yours, Eve. You borrowed all that from me." Bear corrects her mistake.

"Fine." Eve retorts and halts her plan. Tonight she has been declined more than once. She sees the thumb drive that Kenny left and unconsciously picks it up with the keys to her former apartment.

"Thank you," Eve smirks sporting the keys in her hand and taking them inside her bag. Then left promptly without looking back.

"Take care, Eve," Audrey mumbles into the air as the woman left without a care.

[BITTER PILL]

"Where are you planning to go?" Jamie curiously asks following Eve who is standing in the hallway waiting for the elevator to come. His voice mellows with care and eyes peering at the woman.

"Anywhere but here." Eve answers. Her voice is the same tone as before. "There is nothing else to do but move forward." She adds with a blank face, looking away from the man that seems to attach himself to her inconvenience.

"I was planning to ask you to join us in Bitter Pill. You're deduction and methods are remarkable. You have potential as a good investigative journalist." Jamie proposes emphasizing the woman's undeniable talent. He wants to persuade the woman to stay.

"Thank you for the offer but the only answer I have is no," Eve replies politely. She gazes at the man with his deep lonely eyes and grins. When the elevator door opens she nods to say goodbye to him.

Inside the cold metal room, Eve closes her eyes, breaths deeply thru her nose, and exhales loudly with her mouth. Her head is full of thoughts about the man. She knows a part of her imagines a life with someone like him. Gentle, soft-spoken, and intelligent. She senses Jamie's loneliness is the same brand as what she posses. They are both culpable by the discretions they created. A commonality that gives comfort to their battered soul which is why the man feels affectionate towards her. He is afraid to be alone. Fear that sometimes can be mistaken for love and she knows better not to fall for that. Desperation has led her to dark places and her obsession with Villanelle is part of it.

Eve goes out of the Bitter Pill structure and stops on her tracks. She looks up and questions herself if falling was an easier option for the lad. The sadness and hate she had for losing the man who she treats like a brother has now gone. The relief of knowing the truth gives Eve a piece of comfort. She clutches her coat tighter on her body and inhales the damp air before stepping away from the unpleasant memory. Far away where she will not feel the lonesome coldness the night brings.

[CAROLYN]

Carolyn breathes the cold air deeply as she waits outside Paul's house for the investigators to finish. Her frowning face is transparent when the facade begins, standing straight at the corner of the street like a military man. She wants to be certain that nothing else will be implied to the death of an MI6 head officer in his lodge. The lengthy straining investigation from the head office will be a horrendous ordeal than death and Carolyn will rather experience ending it all in one shot. For a long time, Carolyn wields an unfortunate power, the knowledge that a person will soon perish but not with her arrow. A tricky capacity, one that she oversteps using tonight. Shooting Paul was effortless but making it suicide is tough.

Loud vibrating noise in her pocket disturbs Carolyn's attention. She opens up her phone and stares at death once more. Her brows furrow in curiosity as she realizes the picture is addressed to a surprisingly specific person.

Thoughts rumble inside Carolyn's mind when a tall male investigator approaches her and confidently states, "Paul shot himself. A suicide note was seen at his place addressed to his ex-husband that refused to be contacted."

"Okay. Thank you for your hard work Detective Stark." Carolyn replies and gleams honoring the agent's position to better compliment the man.

"Do you know any other relatives of Paul we can call?" Stark inquires with a straight face. He knows that Carolyn works closely with the former MI6 agent.

"What do you do when a demon sent a letter to another?" Carolyn consults the man with her nose crinkling. Her concerns won't let her grasp for a reason.

"Relay the message. You don't want to be caught in an endless war between them." Stark responds with his eyes focusing on something else and his cold breath forming smoke in the air.

"Hmmm, that's very constructive. Thank you for your insight." Carolyn replies with her attention still at her phone staring at the image that has been sent to her minutes ago.

"About calling the relatives of the deceased?" Stark begs for a reaction.

"Not my problem." Carolyn vaguely explains. Her face goes blank as she inserts her phone back into her pocket. She walks away from the detective and goes back to her car. She drives away feeling wasteful for killing one man.