The Devil's Bride (Book 1)

Chapter 33- Cause of Death

THIRD PERSON

He taps the microphone with his fingers, staring aimlessly into the flock of people who gather around him. Reyna raises her two hands in the shape of thumbs up and he continues speaking. "While no news of his whereabouts is not entirely bad news, it is becoming increasingly difficult to track down the location of Peter O'Brien," he adds, setting his eyes of Reyna's innocent stare. She looks so upset in the moment yet she holds herself in the sea of people and she remains positive he'll follow the words she asked him to speak. Nathan stares down at the two loose pieces of paper in front of him on the podium. He stares and he begins to wonder if those few sentences Reyna drafted for him were ever going to become true. They aren't lies, but they aren't the truth, and he cannot bring himself to tell this small town yet another lie about a missing person. There comes a time when you learn to accept their fate. He flips the two pieces of paper over. "This does break my heart, but I believe it is time to let this case come to rest. Peter O'Brien cannot be found. Peter O'Brien must be assumed to be dead, for investigation's sake."

The crowd falls silent. Reyna's blossoming hope crumbles like petals in the fall; she stares dangerously at Nathan. Those words were not the words she had hoped to hear from a police officer when the case began, no matter the case and no matter the missing person. Only unless the person is guilty of a crime. She knows in her heart that Peter is not guilty of any crime that could ever be committed, but Nathan's cold stare crushes her heart. His worried, depressed and lonesome look does not heal the bullet wound he has just caused in her heart.

One of the many standing around closer towards the front of the room pipes in. "How can you believe someone is dead without proof of their body?" she asks and watches intently as Nathan scans the room for an answer. He shakes his head.

"As I have commented before, we cannot prove he is dead, but it is our safest bet. Without evidence, we cannot prove if he is alive either," he interjects, his eyes still searching the room for more answers. He's disappointing Reyna each day this case continues. Maybe he thought that telling what he thinks is the truth to the town would remove any suspicions about foul play, but he's only breaking her heart even more. Peter is her best friend, and confessing that he's dead may have been the worst idea he had, but it is the one he'll stick with.

The citizen nods her head silently and continues pondering to herself. Another person raises their hand slightly, pauses to stare directly at the officer in front of her and continues with her question. "You think someone murdered Mr O'Brien with the intent to hide his body and never reveal his location?"' Her whiny voice and nagging continues as she leans closer towards the officer. He shakes his head, staring directly towards Reyna.

"No, we don't know who intended to murder him or even if he is dead, however with the limited evidence we have, it is hard to suggest that he is alive," Nathan adds, focusing his attention back to the whiny-voiced citizen. "We have no clue where Peter is." Reyna sighs and begins to walk away from the crowd and Nathan stops speaking to stare as she goes. The questions continue to stream in but he drains them out and only stares in the direction she left. The direction Reyna left.

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Peter steps into the quaint little room, pressing his hands on the sides of his body. He bites his lip as he stares down at the small crib, the ambient cry of a small child echoing throughout the small space. The baby wails and turns slightly to its left, its cold blue eyes staring towards him. "Hey, little one," he exclaims, stepping closer towards the wooden crib. "How's my little cutie this morning?" The little child squeals happily as he allows it to wrap it's tiny fingers around his pinkie finger.

The baby squirms in the small crib it sleeps in. Peter stares silently at the baby girl. The walls of the tight nursery room are covered in images of scenery and bright sunny skies, but the cold reality of the room settles in and it is not sunny or peaceful. In reality, this room only reminds Peter of the everyday pain he faces waking up in this hell-hole of a home. It isn't his home. It never will be his home. This baby will never be adorable to him; all he can see is the hate, the torture and the misery in the eyes of a small devil.