Bendy and Boris in The Inky Mystery

Chapter 5: A Q&A That Leads to More Qs Than As

Notes:

Oh boy! I am so excited to share this chapter with you. I am working on the ones that come after and wowie am I excited for this story. School is being tough but you don't have to really worry, I think Bendy and Boris are good until at least the middle of next month, if my schedule stays like it is supposed to. Fate, you're not allowed to throw any curveballs at me!
Anyway, I'm holding you up, enjoy!

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It was about noon when Detective Featherworth and Detective Ringtail entered the Dancing Lady. They had spent the day chasing one lead after another. They had tried the brothers first, but neither of them had been home. After that they had decided to go after the most promising witnesses and wait for evening to see the brothers. They weren't getting very far, to Joan's frustration. Rachel had finally called for a lunch break, since the crow would work through it and dinner if she could. Rachel knew better than to let the crow make all the calls.

The pair got a table on the second balcony overlooking the dancefloor.

"Can you read me the statements we've collected so far?" Featherworth asked.

"Again?" Ringtail complained. Joan gave her a sharp look that only birds were able to pull off. Ringtail sighed, knowing there was no helping it. "Fine."

Ringtail flipped open her book. "Mrs. Deer said that she saw the victim flee from the woods into town fifteen minutes before the accident. She said he seemed panicked and exhausted. She didn't remember if there were pursuers, since her baby started crying and she had to attend him."

"Mr. Hooferson said he saw the victim run past his shop toward the center of town. He remembered seeing two other individuals run the same direction a while later. They were fast. The only details he gave was that they had oddly shaped heads and one of them wore a long scarf. I think he couldn't see beyond his giant quarter inch lens glasses, but what do I know," Ringtail snarked.

"Your opinion has already been noted Ringtail, keep going," Featherworth stated. The raccoon rolled her eyes, but complied.

"After that, we have conflicting accounts of whether he was pushed by one of the pursuers, thrown by two or three or ran over with no one near him. These mixed accounts were from a Mr. Furwise, Mrs. Peckerton, Miss Antlerson, and Mr. Cow. The descriptions vary. They were in black, they were big, they were tall and skinny, they were lions, they were wolves, they had long tails. One had horns like a devil, one was a fish." Ringtail let out a disgruntled sound, finishing the list.

Joan sighed. "This isn't getting us anywhere. We don't have any clear description of the pursuer or pursuers. No physical evidence. It seems we're stuck."

"Well, you said that the little guy, Ben was it? He was hiding something. The driver, Devin reported that Mr. Wilson said some strange things like 'They watch? Run,' and something about an 'ink machine.' It didn't make any sense to Devin, but it seemed that the Ben kid got it," Ringtail said lightly. The waitress came up and took their orders.

"Right, that's our best hope right now. If he knows anything about what Wilson was talking about, then we may be able to piece things together about why he was running in the first place. And his name is Bendy, Rach." Featherworth sighed.

"Hey, don't call me Rach. No nicknames on the job. That's your rule, not mine Joey."

Joan pulled a goofy face that made Rachel snicker before Rachel became serious again and continued, "It can't be this simple. Anyone that seems to know anything about Wilson ends up dead shortly after, before we could get anything from them or even offer protection." Ringtail grit her teeth. "You sure we shouldn't be losing our minds over this kid?"