Picking up the pieces

Sirens blaring. People screaming and rushing. Fire alight and burning everything within it. Including...my family.

I wake startling with the sound of my phone's ringtone and the banging on my door. Seeing Alden's name on the screen of my phone with groggy eyes I answer all the while slowly stumbling to the door, still feeling hungover.

"Why bother calling if you are just going to keep hitting my door?"

"That isn't me. She insisted on going to fetch you herself since you were late. I just wanted to let you know. See you soon."

"Wait. Who? Alden?" When I looked at the screen, he had hung up.

At the same time, the door opened; with it, a tall slim woman with long caramel hair and coffee-colored eyes walked in. I could only assume she was my new assigned partner, which I had been avoiding to meet for weeks and therefore, didn't even bother to learn her name, nor her appearance. Every partner I had always changed unit within the first week anyway.

"Hey lady, you can't just intrude like that! Don't you have manners?"

"Nice to finally meet you, detective Biron Diggory. I came to fetch you since you don't have the dignity of showing up when you are called to a crime scene."

"Listen, I have a serious headache and there are capable people, like Alden, that will solve this case. Now leave me alone. Whoever you are."

"Are you done rambling?" She throws my coat on my face. "We have wasted enough time. Your passed partners might have let you do whatever you wanted but I won't." She turned to leave but stopped at the door. "You got 15 minutes to get ready. I'll be waiting in the car out front. Oh, and my name is Nadya Brayleigh; nice to finally meet you, partner."

*****

Along the way to the crime scene, we didn't speak to each other. When we finally arrive, I went marching directly towards Alden who was inspecting the victim.

"What is wrong with you?! You gave a stranger my address and a key to my home!"

"It is nice to finally have you again Detective Diggory. Thank you, Detective Brayleigh for doing me the favor." Nadya nodes at his appreciation.

"Don't ignore me, Alden."

"Biron, don't get so mad. It is your job after all, which may I remind you, you haven't been showing up and have caused me a lot of trouble for it."

I take a deep breath to calm down and rubbed my face once in frustration. He was right after all. It is a wonder how he has kept me on the job for so long. "Fine. Tell me what you got."

Nadya spoke instead while I inspected the victim and surroundings of the backyard of this man's house that was situated on the corner of the row of houses in this street. "32-year-old male, multiple lacerations on forearms, was found hung on that tree facing the sidewalk. His neighbor saw him this morning while walking his dog and checked it in but said he didn't hear nor hear anything that seemed suspicious last night. There were no suicide notes found nor phone calls made by the victim last night."

"What's his background?"

Alden spoke now, crouching beside the victim's head. "Office worker, no kids, simple life...but I did find some emails that may seem suspicious."

"Suspicious for you. He got killed then carried towards the tree and got hung to make it seem suicidal. Footprints on the lawn seem like it could be a woman and a man. Lacerations on his forearms indicate that the struggled to hang him and let him hit the tree several times. Those bruises on his neck are signs of choking and by the size of them, and how tall he is, it means it was the man who choked him. Most likely the husband of the woman he was having an affair with."

I turned to leave but was stopped by my new partner who grabbed my arm. "We aren't done inspecting and you are making speculations based on simple observations and suspicions."

"I am done. If you want to keep struggling with the facts on plain sight that's fine by me. The next step of interrogation isn't my field nor my responsibility."

"Of course it is! Where did you get that idea?! That is part of being an investigator."

I step closer to her. "I am passed that part. That is why a lazy-ass like me get to have a partner." As I turned to leave a stunned detective behind I said: "Don't barge in my home again and don't scream. My head hurts more by the second I stand beside your ignorance of investigating. Text me if anything comes up. Later Alden."

"Can he just do that, Detective Conelly? Aren't you the chief?"

"I am the chief, but it's best to leave him be. He is an excellent detective, even if you can't see it right now. Don't pressure him too much, otherwise, he will find creative ways to escape you."

The chief went inside to inspect other materials and Nadya kept watching Biron disappear into the street.

*****

Almost a month has passed since my newest partner, Nadya Brayleigh, started forcing me to work every single day. She would waltz inside my home without knocking to wake me up early in the morning so as to not arrive late at the crime scenes. Whenever I left to go to a bar, she would follow and make sure I wouldn't drink too much as a precaution to not be sick the next morning.

As we are on our way to the next crime scene she keeps me up to speed on the other cases that I had left incomplete. Not that I care about that.

There was something different about this new case. Something that Alden was trying hard to keep me in the dark until I saw it with my own eyes. I don't like being kept in the dark. Not one bit.

As we arrive at the crime scene and go near it, I felt a hole in my stomach. The sight of the house burnt to nothing. Bodies the color of charcoal. The smell of burnt flesh mixed with wood and fuel.

"Are you alright?"

I could hear Nadya trying to talk to me, but all I could hear was the blaring of the sirens when I went back home that night. The night my family was murdered.

"Detective Diggory!"

"Tell Chief Conelly that I am off this case and I accept any and all punishment of suspension if need be."

"Wait...what? You can't just do that!"

I walked away as far as my feet could carry me into a decent bar with lots of strong alcohol and no stench of burnt flesh.

*****

"It has been a week and he won't answer his phone. He can't just disappear like that and leave me with this case all alone. Why aren't you doing anything? Aren't you the chief? His boss."

Alden raises an eyebrow at Nadya's comment. "Wow, you really like to rub my position in my face."

"Then why are you doing nothing when it matters most?!"

Exasperated he put down his pen and looked and Nadya, who stopped pacing in his office and was looking directly at his grey eyes shaped like almonds. "Did you ever stop to ask yourself why he had that reaction at the crime scene?" Realizing she hadn't, she sat on the seat in front of Alden. "This case is similar to the "Einar the Smolder" case. Have you heard about it?"

"Yes, of course. It was horrible. Einar liked to kill in cold blood and then burn his victims while they are still agonizing in pain. A psychopath."

"Exactly. Two of the many victims were Alyssa and Zinnia Diggory." The realization of what Alden was saying hit Nadya's features. "Instead of judging him for his behavior be proud you have an outstanding hero as a partner that was the brain in putting on death row that psychopath. Now, go to the tavern called "The Unforeseen", it's located in the basement of his apartment complex."

"He was hiding in plain sight."

At Nadya's comment, Alden laughed and wrote down the details to enter the tavern and handed her the note. "Listen, I don't expect you to understand how he feels, not entirely, but try to do it."

"I'll be off on my next case, chief. I'll name it: Picking up the pieces."

"Good luck!"

*****

I can't remember the last day I was soberer than these past few days. Everything was a blur. Except for the fact that a copy-cat of Einar appeared to relive that night like it was yesterday. It already has been a little bit over 10 years.

Nadya suddenly sat beside me. "Figured Alden would spill the beans eventually. Better find another hidden tavern."

I emptied my glass in one go before I noticed she was simply staring at me with a sad and apologetic expression. "I don't need your pity-party. Douma! Give me another round, please!"

A tall dark-skinned bartender appeared in front of Biron and filled his glass with what smelled like vodka. "Can I get you something, Miss?"

"No, I'm fine. Just came to pick him up."

He laughed a little. "Good luck with that." With that said, Douma left to attend the others at the bar.

"Biron, answer me this...are all the answers you are looking for at the end of every glass?"

"It's all I got left."

"No, you are a talented detective that can help save other lives by putting away criminals like the smolder. Einar is gone. He's been dead for almost a decade."

"I am not afraid of another smolder to show up."

"Then what are you hanging on to?"

"The guilt." I finished my drink and waved at Douma to fill it up again before continuing. "That night, I was having an affair and ignored my wife's desperate phone calls, text messages and even voicemails; which she rarely left any on my recorder. When I finally saw my phone and took off desperately towards my house, it was too late. Everything was on fire, all firemen, paramedics, and policemen did everything they could but...they didn't survive."

"Let's finish this case."

"Have you been listening?! I won't do this case."

"It's precisely because I am listening that I want you to finish this case. You need to make peace with yourself. Your betrayal wasn't that killed your wife, Eiran did. You picking up the phone wouldn't have made the difference even if it had assured your wife, Zinnia, that you were on your way because then you would have hated yourself for not getting there in time. Instead of drowning in vodka and self-guilt, do better. Help save future victims, and only then can you proudly face in another life your wife and daughter and say that you did everything you could to help others."

I stood and hugged Nadya so she couldn't see my tears flowing out of my eyes. Those words were exactly what I needed to hear from someone, not the apologetic words that everyone keeps repeating like a broken disc. "Thank you for your words. I'll do better from tomorrow on; to be a respected husband and father they deserved." I pulled away to clean my tears and see her expression.

She smiled brightly at me, making me feel warmth once again. "Let's get you cleaned up then. A long journey awaits."