Serpent's Deceit (Entry 021)

 

I need to find Dax. I need to find him right now in any way I can. Even if I have to pull him from the depths of hell, I need to do that.

That is the only thought occurring in my mind when I search through every corner of the house for him like a lunatic. Interesting enough to say that he is nowhere to be found. I do not even see his shadows as if he has vanished from the house. I have even gone upstairs to call him. His phone is switched off.

The frustration of not finding him, the anger of how Rick has forced me into a kiss, and the alcohol are all mixing up inside me and fucking up my head. I feel like weeping, throwing up, screaming, and burning down the house all at once. But before anything…

I NEED TO FIND DAX!

Somehow, for the purpose of finding him, I reach a corner at the front yard of the house. There is….. a crowd for some reason.

None of my business. I need to find my boyfriend.

As I turn around to go back to the direction I have come from, I hear something that makes me pause. Someone is calling Dax’s name and telling him to ‘kill the bastard’.

And knowing him, there is a high chance he is obviously the center of the crowd's attention. 

I immediately turn back and walk up to the crowd. It is hard to push through the crowd to get to the front. But I manage somehow.

And I have been right. Dax is the center of attention. The scene is … grotesque. He is standing with his right leg on someone's chest. I cannot tell who it is because their face is fully covered in blood. They are breathing, thank God, but must be unconscious already. A few more punches from Dax and he might be a gone case. 

And my boyfriend… he looks like death itself, cold, bloodied, and merciless. You can easily tell the blood on his face and hand is not his. He has thrown off his shirt and his upper body also has flickers of blood. He is looking down at the person beneath his feet with murder in his eyes.

I step forward with purpose. He has raised his punch to hit that person again. But his hand does not make contact with that bloodied figure; it does with my palm. That startles Dax. He jerks his head to me. As soon as he sees me, the murderous look flees away. 

“You-Your highness. What are you—”

Slap!

I will never be able to remove the look on his face after that slap. The crowd gasps but that sounds like a very distant thing. My only focus goes on how surprised and confused he looks, how he moves away from the bloody figure, and how he stumbles to me. It is as if I have electrolyted him. 

The following events are some chaotic scenes that my foggy alcohol filled brain does not remember correctly. I am pretty sure I have walked away with him following after me and calling my name. After that, I have a memory of me violently vomiting on the side of the road. Then there is a memory where I am arguing with Dax, both of us yelling. I am not sure but maybe we are in his house. I do not recall anything more after that.

The next thing I know is I am walking up with a violent headache and someone banging on the front door. As I open my eyes I realize I am indeed in Dax's house, naked in his bed and I do not know where he is gone again.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

“We are here to interrogate you about your friend's murder.”

I stare at the cops standing outside Dax's door trying to decipher what the fuck that means. What friend? What murder? What are they even talking about?

I try to think about what happened last night. Nothing particularly happened before I found Dax. Well, what happened to me is my personal issue but other than that, nothing happened. Definitely not a murder. Then I found Dax, and somehow I ended up in his house. After I woke up, I did not find him or my clothes. I threw on one of his t-shirts I found in the bathroom and came downstairs to see who was threatening to break down the newly fixed door. And here I am before the cops. 

“You sure you're not making a mistake?” I ask them, not sure if it is something appropriate to ask the police. There are three of them, a lean White man with grey hair, a buff Black middle aged man, and an Asian woman. Judging by their expressions, I probably should not have asked that.

“Tulip Garcia?” The grey-haired guy asks me with a scrutinizing gaze. Suddenly I feel a weight drop in my stomach. So, they have not made a mistake. Then who….

I nod my head solemnly. The middle-aged guy checks something on the device in his hand and then looks up at me. “You were at the party in Miss Rachel's house last night?”

I nod again with my heart in my throat. I have a very bad feeling about it. Who has died?

They see something on my face that makes their expressions soften a little. Or it might be simply my eyes playing tricks on me. However, they seem to understand that I am unaware of the situation. They exchange a glance among themselves. Then the woman turns to me and speaks with a rather gentler tone, “Are you aware of the murder that happened there last night at around 8 pm?”

That is….. around the time Dax and I had an argument, I think. Is that…. Oh God, is the person murdered the one Dax was beating? Is that why he is not here right now? Oh my God! Dax, what have you done now!

“I don't think so.” I shake my head. Is it okay to lie to the police? I am not exactly lying either. It might be better if I get more information. So, I ask, “Can I get the name of who….it is?”

The middle-aged man nods before checking on the tablet again. “It's Rachel Rosemary, the host of the—”

“What?” My sudden exclamation makes him startle. He quickly composes himself which I cannot. “What are you talking about? Ray is alive and perfectly fine. Why would be—There must be some sort of mistake here. What the hell—”

“We are sorry, ma'am, that you had to find out this way. If you—”

“No!” I scream like a madwoman stepping back. “What are you talking about? She is alive. She is my best friend. Why would she be dead? Is this—Oh, I get it now. You guys are pranking, right?” I suddenly smile. “I get it. Now stop. That is not really a good prank. It is her idea, right? Where is she?” I walk to the door and peer outside past the police. “Ray! Come out now! I caught you.”

“Ma'am.” The female cop puts a hand out to draw my attention. I reluctantly turn to her. “It's not a prank. We are here to take you up for interrogation about… Miss Rachel's. She…is in a better place now.”

“Do not!” I hiss at her. “Do not say that! What better place? Her better place is here. SHE IS HERE! Damnit! What is this bullshit y'all are pulling first thing in the morning? What are you guys….”

My words get caught as I double over, throwing up everything in my stomach on the female police officer. It goes on for a few seconds. Then I do not remember anything. Most likely I have fainted after that.