Chapter 103

—- 9:00 A.M., Vancouver, Canada —-

Unlocking the door to his hotel room, Kazimir looks around as he places his luggage on the floor.

"Kinda small for a 4.5 star hotel. I'll have to judge the rest later."

Closing the door and locking it back, the young man takes the elevator back down before walking back over to the receptionist.

"Excuse me. Would you happen to know any places around here that'll let me rent a car?"

"Yeah, there's a rental place not far from the police department."

"Okay, I'll find it. Thanks."

"You're very welcome!"

Leaving the hotel, Kazimir flags down a taxi and steps into the backseat.

"Nearest rental car center."

"You don't sound like you're from around here, sonny. I mean, I'm from New York, but I've lived here awhile to tell who's familiar with the place."

"I'm originally from Japan. But now I live in Kyrja. Claiza City to be exact."

"I got a nephew who lives in Kyrja." the man responds, turning a corner. "He said the country's beautiful but the people are mean."

"Yeah, it has a nice landscape. You like living here?"

The taxi driver stops in front of a large car dealership and smiles as he turns back to Kazimir.

"Eh, the same to me though I do miss the pizza. Don't worry about the fare; it's on the house, sonny. Thanks for chatting with me."

"No problem."

Walking through the car lot, Kazimir scans the line of cars.

"Hot morning, isn't it?!"

"You can say that again."

The salesman laughs as he shakes Kazimir's hand.

"So what kind of car are you looking to rent?"

"Just one that can hit over 100 MPH with tint."

Taking a look at the detective, the salesman nods.

"I think I have just the car for you. Follow me!"

The two walk a couple more steps until stopping.

"You familiar with the Dodge Challenger?"

"Yeah, I know a couple of things about it. Heard it comes with a lot of issues. Guess it just depends on how the owner takes care of it, though." Kazimir replies, looking in one of the cars. "This one's clean."

"We actually just got this one in yesterday. All new, no miles. And don't worry about the issues; just give us a call if it causes you any troubles and we'll be right over to fix it!"

"Yeah, I think I'll take this one."

Clasping his hands together, the salesman nods.

"Well, let's get your paperwork started then!"

After a half hour of filling out paperwork, Kazimir watches as another employee pulls forward with his temporary car before passing the key over.

After getting in, the young man sets directions to the Vancouver's Police Department and heads towards there. Once arriving, he gets out and pulls out his badge and ID from his own city's department.

"Good morning, sir. What can I do for you?"

"My name is Kazimir Cizetto. I'm a detective from Claiza City, Kyrja here on business operations."

"Alright, I'll let the chief know."

Kazimir watches as the receptionist makes a quick phone call before turning back to him.

"You're all set, sir. The chief will be in room 3C."

"Thanks."

Pressing an elevator button, Kazimir looks back at his reflection through the shiny elevator doors.

"Nia was right; I can't even recognize myself."

Stepping into the elevator as the doors open, the young detective enters and presses the third floor button.

After around 45 seconds, he steps out and walks down the long hall to room 3C.

*KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!*

"Door's open!"

Opening the door, Kazimir looks over at an older male who sat at his desk on a computer.

"You must be the detective from Claiza City. Cizetto, wasn't it?"

The young man nods as he shakes the chief's hand.

"Nice to meet you, son. I'm Chief Lindhan. So, what brings you all the way out here?"

"My family was recently murdered."

"Ah, I thought the last name rang a bell."

Pushing up his glasses, he sorts through a few papers before taking one out of the stack.

"These are all the details we have for the case so far. The name and number of the chief of detectives will also be found on that paper as well. He'll be in room 5F if you'd like to talk to him."

"Alright. Thanks for your time."

Walking out of the office, Kazimir closes the door behind him and takes the stairs to the chief of detectives office.

*KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!*

The door opens and a man a few years older than Kazimir himself smiles.

"Morning. Chief Lindhan just called and said you were coming up to see me. I'm Chief Michaud. Nice to meet you."

Following the man inside, Kazimir takes a seat in front of his desk.

"We have footage from the neighbor's camera that shows the perpetrator entering the house a few minutes before the incident."

"Is there any way that I can see the house for myself?"

"Yes, I'll give you the address."

"Could I also see the evidence you guys have collected so far?"

"Of course. This way, please."

Kazimir follows the man to the evidence room and he takes out a folder.

"Unfortunately, we only have a shoe print so far. Looks to be a dress shoe: men's 12.5."

"So either this isn't this person's first time or he's just really good at covering his tracks."

Sighing, the young detective looks around the room.

"Thanks for your help. Message me the video footage whenever you get a chance."

"Certainly." Chief Michaud replies. "See you later, Cizetto."

Walking out of the room, Kazimir makes his way back to his car, driving over to the house where his family had been brutally murdered.

After parking, the young man steps out and watches as a small child lays a few flowers at the front doorstep.

"Excuse me?"

Turning around, the little boy gives Kazimir a nervous smile.

"My name is Kazimir Cizetto and I'm a detective trying to track down the killer of this family. Well, my family."

"This was your family?!"

"Yeah. First off, I'd like to ask you for your name. You can sit next to me if you'd like."

"I'm Felix Kingston." the boy says, taking a seat next to Kazimir. "Am I in trouble?"

"Far from it. May I ask how'd you get to know my family?"

"Mr. Shoichi was the first person to talk to me and my dad when we first moved here. And then when my dad died overseas, he and Mrs. Mirie took me under his wing for a few weeks until my aunt moved over here to take me in. I miss them and Christian! Christian was like the closest person I had to a big bro and he even dropped me off at school in his cool car!"

"Before their deaths, when was the last time you saw them?"

"Uh, 4 days before. I went to the arcade with Christian and then we went to get burgers afterwards."

"Did you notice anything about their behavior? Such as showing signs of fear?" Kazimir asks, taking notes.

"No. They all seemed normal."

"When you were staying with my aunt and uncle, did you ever hear them talk about anybody in a bad or negative light?"

Felix shakes his head.

"Nope."

"What about Christian?"

"Not even him. Wait, he did say he has a cousin who was rude to him but that's because he can't fight. You must be his cousin!"

"Yeah, and that's a lie." Kazimir replies, tapping his pen on the notepad. "Christian just used to say whatever to look big and bad."

"So he really didn't beat you in a car race?"

"No, we tied."

"I feel like you're lying. Christian said that if I ever met you, you might lie to make yourself feel better." Felix says, tilting his head.

"Like I said, Christian was known for not being truthful. Anyway, that's all the questions I have for now."

"Wait! Can I take a ride in your car?"

Kazimir chuckles and nods as he look back at the car.

"Sure."

————-

After dropping Felix off at his house, Kazimir follows the directions Alexei sent him to pick up his weapon.

Putting the car in park, the detective watches as a man walks over to him with a box.

"Kazimir Cizetto?"

"Yeah."

"Sign here." the man says, handing him a clipboard. "Do you have the full-auto AR?"

Reaching into the backseat, Kazimir grabs the weapon and hands it over to the man.

"The weapon is already assembled and extra missiles are included. Further instructions are also included as well. Have a good evening."

Pulling out of the dimly lit building, the young man finds an empty lot and stops to open the box.

*KNOCK! KNOCK!*

Kazimir groans as a flashlight blinds him for a few seconds and he rolls down the window.

"You're on private property, sir." a security guard says.

"My bad."

Putting the car in reverse, Kazimir speeds off, finding another empty lot.

*BRRRIIINNG!*

"What?"

"Yo, can you please talk to this girl?! She won't stop crying!"

"Put Khristina on the phone, Pierre."

A few muffled sounds come from the other end of the phone before gunshots and a loud scream.

"Khristina?! Miracle?!" Kazimir screams. "KHRISTINA OR MIRACLE, ANSWER THE DAMN PHONE!"

"Mr. Pierre's going after the person and MIRACLE'S NOT MOVING!"

"IS SHE BLEEDING ANYWHERE?!"

"No, she fainted!" Khristina says, holding her friend's hand.

"The guy that shot at us got away!" Pierre says, taking the phone from Khristina. "I'll take Miracle-

Hanging up, Kazimir speeds back to the hotel and runs in, grabbing his unpacked luggage from his room.

Running back out, he throws the luggage in the trunk. Driving near an unoccupied field a few feet away from an airport, the young man drags his suitcases out of the trunk and pulls out the javelin from the backseat.

After placing his luggage in a safe place, Kazimir positions the javelin to where it would perfectly hit the car and fires.

Watching the car burst into flames, the detective lights the weapon on fire, chucking the match into the unoccupied field.

He runs a little over to the airport and begins to walk, watching as hundreds of people ran outside to check out the loud explosion.

"OH MY GOSH; A FIRE!"

The crowd of people scream and run in circles, either panicking or hugging their loved ones.

Cutting through the scared people, Kazimir sprints over to the ticket desk and jumps it, printing himself a one way ticket to Kyrja.

Running from behind it, he sprints over to the gate that had a plane ready to be lifted.

Getting on, the young man brushes himself off and looks around for a seat.

"You can sit right here."

Turning to his right, Kazimir watches as a couple, a few years older than him, motions for him to come over. They had a small baby with them who watched as the young detective sat.

"Thanks for letting me sit by you guys."

The woman nods as she bounces the baby up and down on her lap.

"No problem."

The small baby giggles and reaches out at Kazimir, who waves and makes a silly face.

"What's her name?"

"Cristina."

The young man's breathing hitches a little as he tries to keep his composure.

"She's very adorable. How old is she?"

"She'll be 8 months in two days! We're throwing a unicorn themed party since she seems to really love unicorns!"

"And we still haven't had time to call everyone." the man replies. "She's a joy, but goodness, taking care of a small child isn't easy."

"If you want, I can watch her for you while you two get everything settled into place." Kazimir replies, watching as the little girl looked up at the ceiling.

"Oh no, we don't wanna trouble you. She may look adorable, but this little one can be very troublesome."

The young detective shakes his head.

"I don't mind. I'm currently taking in a little girl with the same name, actually. I know how it feels, the constant crying and making sure she's okay, the sleepless nights, and having to say no to certain things even though you may not want to."

The man and woman turn to each other, before turning back to Kazimir.

"If she gives you too much trouble, please don't be afraid to hand her back to us. Here's her milk bottle and pacifier."

"I thought we were trying to get her off the pacifier." the man says as he looks over at his wife picking up the baby care bag.

"Well, it's better than having her chewing on her thumb."

"Aaaahhhh!" the small baby coos as she looks up at Kazimir.

"Hello to you too. I'm Kazimir. Does she have a favorite TV show?"

"Oh, that'd be Handy Manny."

The detective raises his brows and smiles down at Cristina.

"Really? I used to love that show too when I was younger."

Watching as the kind stranger played peek-a-boo with their daughter, the two parents smile at each other, thankful to have a nice man help out.