The Gate

35. The New Suspect

Lena Matthews

"Okasan!" Tiffany shouted over her shoulder. Mrs. Moriyama came to the doorway at Tiffany's call. The two of them looked more like sisters than mother and daughter, most likely because Mrs. Moriyama had stopped aging a while ago.

"We're actually here to talk to you, Tiffany." I explained.

"Oh." said Tiffany, surprised. She waved her mother away and let Jacob and I inside. "Why did you guys want to talk to me?" She asked.

"We're doing a project." I explained before Jacob could say anything. "We're doing a survey on near death experiences." I wanted to hit myself for how dumb I sounded, but there was no going back now.

"Oh." said Tiffany. "Well, it's not very dramatic, but one time I almost got in a car accident. My life certainly flashed before my eyes then." She smiled good-naturedly, but I could tell that she was uncomfortable.

"This is going to sound a little strange, but do you remember where you were on the night of January 18th?" I asked. At this, Tiffany's eyes darkened.

"I know what you're asking, but it wasn't me," said Tiffany. "Actually, I think I might have something. Give me one moment." She quickly left, leaving Jacob and I standing in silence. After what felt like ages, Tiffany came back with an official-looking paper and handed it to me. It was her birth certificate.

According to the document, Tiffany had been born in 1983, which made her the same age as Makaya's profile claimed. In other words, it seemed like Tiffany had been aging for her entire life, and no Forbidden should be able to say the same.

I didn't have any strong feelings that Tiffany was the killer. If I were to find the yuki onna, I felt like I would know instinctively. Something would overwhelm my senses the second I saw her, but that wasn't happening.

"Thank you." I told Tiffany, handing back the certificate. She nodded. At least she wasn't offended about being questioned.

"I do hope you figure it out." She told me meekly before closing the door.

"Okay, let's try the next person." I told Jacob, walking to the car.

"What's going on?" Jacob asked.

"The project, remember?" I answered. I tried to smile off the tension, but it didn't work.

"Seriously. What are we doing here?" Jacob asked.

I froze, unsure of what to say. I didn't have another lie to explain this, and I definitely didn't have enough time to sit through another trial. The whole reason I was drawn to Jacob was because he was outside of the Forbidden chaos.

"If it makes you nervous, then just say the bare minimum. If you don't want to tell me everything, that's fine. I just need a vague idea of what's going on." said Jacob.

I took a shuddering breath. I was an idiot for thinking I could drag Jacob along without any consequences, but Kiara was an idiot for inviting him in the first place. Still, deflecting the blame wasn't going to help.

"I can't tell you how I know, or where I got this list of people from, but everyone we're visiting is a suspect in some specific crimes. We can't get the police involved, because this is all as crazy as it sounds." I said, dancing around the important details. "Does that make sense?"

"Not exactly." Jacob admitted.

"Look, this whole thing is insane, and it's not going to make sense until it's over. In the meantime, you have to trust me. I know that's asking a lot, considering we just met and how weird everything's been, but I'm asking you anyway." I caught my breath for a moment. "So, do you trust me?" I asked.