Hidden suspects

The atmosphere was silent as the two sipped their coffees sitting opposite each other yet not facing the other.

"So you are here to threaten me once more?" Ethan questioned eyeing her.

"quite the opposite actually" Evelyn announced, placing down her cup. She knew what she wanted to say but the words seemed to have jumbled in her mind, lost..

"Elaborate" he raised one of his eyebrows judging her.

"I want to help you with the case" she ripped off the bandage.

Ethan considered returning for a moment before he responded. "Well good to know the star of the city has a terrible sense of humor"

"And you have a terrible sense of judging when someone is joking or not" she shrugged retorting.

"No thank you very much I work alone" Ethan responded to her earlier statement.

"We can be partners," she pressed, not accepting defeat.

"No I can't make you the partner in my case. I don't want the killer to run away when he sees you" he reasoned sitting up straighter.

"I can put a mask on," she suggested, only earning an eye roll as a result.

"Mask isn't the problem. With that dressing of yours anyone can guess it's you from miles"

"Was that a compliment?" the corner of her lips lifted in a smirk.

"I meant that over expensive clothing of yours and that silver watch, they all scream rich. You stand out like a sore thumb"

"First of all these clothes aren't even that expensive, secondly this watch isn't silver, it's made out of pure white gold with intricate..." Before she could finish her sentence he had leaned across the table placing a finger on her lips. Evelyn looked down at his long finger gracing her lips eyeing his peculiar behavior. She looked up at him in question but he was staring outside the cafeteria. A man bound in handcuffs was being dragged by the older man she had met at the entrance. The criminal stared at them, no it was staring at Evelyn And her watch. The second the criminal had gone inside Ethan moved back away from his position. "Are you that eager to die?" he scolded her voice a mixture between a whisper and a yell. "You arrive at a crime scene in the middle of the night and then you flaunt your expensive items in a place bustling with criminals"

"But isn't a police station technically the safest place to be" she commented silently, surprised by his scolding.

Ethan sighed, aloud standing up from his position. "If that's all you came here for you have received your answer" he turned around to leave but the words he heard next forced him to pause in his spot.

"If you refuse to accept my help there will be more people coming to you to force you to drop the case" she clearly remembered her uncle's words, she just couldn't figure out the reason behind them. "And you and I both are aware that since it has somehow become a high profile case there is no information lying around the place. And If my family is really on the list of your suspects I am the best shot you have at infiltering them"

"I thought you said you would destroy me if I even came near your family?" He confronted, turning around to face her.

"I am still doing that, I'll know to what extent you are searching my family. I get to keep an eye on you and you get your answers win win"

"For your information someone from your company already approached me threatening me to drop the case"

"Why didn't you?" His persistence made her curious about him.

"I don't back off from challenges" he simply shrugged.

"Do you have a picture or a name I can check who sent him through the employee file" she suggested.

"Yes you do that" he nodded "and wait for my next instructions" he turned around to leave again.

Evelyn scoffed at his behavior. "Bold, of you to assume I'll just simply follow your advice. I want to actively participate in the investigation" she stood in front of him now stopping him from going further.

"Aren't you awfully confident that I would accept your offer?" He looked at her with a tilted head.

"Being a young millionaire heir to the city really does things to one's confidence" this time it was her turn to leave. She stopped by the door handle turning to look at the agitated boy. "We are going to the crime scene first."

Ethan pulled up the yellow tapes motioning Evelyn to move forwards and he followed suit from beneath the tapes. Evelyn took in the cafe again. The place that used to once only be theirs, but now it was now a complete broken mess, prior to last night's events the chairs were on the ground in a haphazard position. This time she clearly saw the chalk tracing around stains of blood where….she couldn't finish the sentence.

"You literally destroyed this….." Ethan complained but he was cut mid sentence by her signal asking him to shut up. She followed around the place with careful steps, aware of Ethan's eyes following her every movement. She could hear it loud and clear, the shallow breathing, the abnormal heartbeat. She moved across the room towards the counter.

The hidden pair of eyes looked up at her from beneath the counter. As soon as her eyes met the person's they went up and dashed before Evelyn could process the person was already gone from beneath the counter.

She swiveled around ready to catch the person but Ethan was ahead of her. It was a young teenage girl. She faced the opposite side of Evelyn looking away caught from her arm by Ethan.

"Who are you?" Evelyn questioned walking towards the girl. Ethan forced the girl to face the other side. It took Evelyn a minute to recognize her with her hair covering half of her face.

"Mal?" She questioned in confusion as the girl looked up, her hair falling away from her face.

"Do you know her?" It was Ethan's turn to question.

"She's my maternal cousin" Evelyn answered as the said girl looked away.

"Should have guessed from her presence at a crime scene" Ethan deadpanned judging the girl who kept staring down at her shoes.

"What are you doing here Mal?" Evelyn ignored his comment focusing on her cousin.

"Nothing that concerns you" She pulled her arm from Ethan only to be jerked back again.

"Are you here for this?" HE pulled out a star laced bracelet hanging between his fingers.

"Where did you get that?" She reached for the bracelet but he pulled back, raising his hand higher.

"Exactly where you lost it"

"Where were you three nights before?" Evelyn questioned the younger girl.

"I was at the mansion preparing for the new year's ball, '' she screamed again trying to pull from Ethan's hold only for his hold to be tighter.

"You are lying," Ethan declared easily.

Evelyn didn't know how he guessed it but she believed him. "Fine I'll call Aunt Lily and ask her then that where was her daughter doing on the night of the shooting"

"I get it you are my mother's favorite no need to drag her into this" Mal gritted out glaring at her cousin. "I'll tell you myself. I was here for a part time job"

"What job Mal" Evelyn let out with force annoyed with the girl's silence. "I'll ask you one more time" she pointed towards Ethan "or I'll let him take you down to the police station and I would do nothing to help you"

"I really didn't do anything. It was my first day at work. I had come here for coffee with my friends the day before and had seen the flier for part time. I really was just working here" she ah begun crying now out of frustration. "I had just arrived… I was changing in the back when I heard the gunshots and then…." she hiccupped, finding it hard to continue. "And there was a lot of blood everywhere . I was so scared I didn't know what to do so I ran away. I swear Evelyn I didn't do anything. I feel like someone keeps watching me to come after me."

"The CCTV didn't catch you leaving or entering" Ethan inquired.

"I entered and left from the backdoor." she replied, wiping her tears.

"Did you meet someone there?" Ethan continued.

"I am telling you I don't know anything" she kept on insisting. "I didn't do it"

"That's enough" Evelyn intervened before she could be questioned more. She walked towards the two pulling Mal away ignoring Ethan's hiss of "What are you doing?" She escorted Mal to her car watching her leave before returning inside the cafe.

"If our partnership means you interrupt everything I don then keep it to yourself"

"She was already scared" Evelyn defended herself observing Ethan's steaming form. "You wouldn't have gotten anything out of her anyways. I'll bring her to the station myself once she has made peace with the scene"