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François Gerard
(1776 - 1835)

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"NOW think, what could be the motivation behind the disappearement of these girls, and why someone is copying the style of this murderer?" Will Graham presented his class. The big auditorium paid attention to all his words. His knowledge was incomparable. A student raised his hand, he ignored. "The first murder showed 'respect' towards his victim, he couldn't 'honor' her so he returned her to where he caught her. But the other one killed another girl and displayed it with cruelty, with mockery..." Will glanced to the side for a moment, his sentence was interrupted, his eyes couldn't move away from the room's exit. "We may continue tomorrow, class is over for today"

The students left one by one, he waited for the crowd to disappear until only the person remained. "I'm sorry, didn't want to interrupt your work." The figure entered the room finally.

"It's alright...but I gotta say I'm... surprised." His eyebrows were a bit lifted up, his shyness had increased, the palms became sweaty. He crossed his arms and relied back on the desk behind him, trying to ignore how much his heart started to speed inside his chest.

"How long has it been...3, 4 years...?"

"About to become 8 years at the 25th, next month" he spoke with precision. An awkward pause in silence between them, Will tried to gain courage to speak, adjusted the glasses in his face. "But you still look just the same..."

Alice held her hands behind her back, didn't realize how hard it would be to face him again. "Well that's very kind." She smiled lightly. "You too, with the exception of the uh...the beard" she gesticulated to his face, he smirked. "But it's nice, I like it."

▫️

10 years ago

"DID you get your jacket??" She checked the small little boy for the 5th time just that morning, his hair brushed as a bowl of cereal upside down, the huge shiny eyes staring back at her from his small stature, as she took off some invisible dust from his shoulders. "And your lunch? Don't forget-"

"Alice, calm down, poor Colin will never get to his first day in school if you don't give him a break." The loud bite of an apple echoed around, as Bree Mallory grabbed her purse with her other available hand.

"Yeah! I'm fine!" The 7 year old exclaimed, giving little jumps excited. Her heart melted by his reaction, but was almost breaking down into tears.

"I know..." Alice Mallory muttered, carressing his soft dark brown hair as she stared into the eyes of her little world, him. "Please take care okay? If something happens, please-"

"Nothing will happen and Colin will have a great day." Bree took charge and tapped gently her sister's back as she threw the rest of the apple away. "Now, who's ready for a ride??" She made a playful pose as the small boy exclaimed excited, standing his arms in the air. "You hear that, Ali? Soemone's happy."

"Yeah, I guess he is..." The oldest tilted her head to the side, unsure if she should be happy or sad. "Take him there safe, okay? Don't speed too much on that motorcycle"

"You're the velocist here, remember?" Bree joked and Alice couldn't help but smile. "Hey." She held her shoulder, staring deep into her sister's eyes. "He will be alright, and you will too."

Alice sighed anxious. Of course she wasn't nervous just because of Colin's new day at his school, besides him it was her first day too, in college.

Forensic Science, at least she was good in biology, but that wasn't why she followed that objective. It wasn't for passion, money, or success. Only for revenge. If she could achieve that purpose, then it would be worth it. But until then, she'd have to take her degree in 4 years.

Seemed easier to think than actually put it into work. Bree's warm touch helped her ease a bit the tension, yet not completely.

"Thanks..." Alice muttered. "Maybe I am a bit stressed."

"You know there's still time to change your mind." The middle child lifted one of her eyebrows.

"No way." Alice shaked her head. "This is the best way we can get rid of him for once and for all."

"Framing someone is illegal Alice. Even if you are an authority in an organization, someday you might get caught, have you thought about that?" Bree continued serious. She was extremely concerned since her sister made up this decision and informed her of her plans. "Have you thought about what could happen to you, me, or Colin?

"Nothing will happen." Alice made it clear, looking into her eyes determined. "Besides, once I get rid of Edgar, I will continue in the FBI, helping people."

Bree sighed, shaking her head. Colin called her from afar, they were going to be late. She looked again into her sister's eyes. "I hope you know what you're doing, Ali."

"I always know what I'm doing, Bree." The oldest retorted.

"No, you don't." Bree chuckled. "And you just realize the trouble you get into when it's too late."

"BREEE!!!"" Colin shouted from the door, holding his backpack and giving little jumps.

"He's impatient." Bree widened her eyes.

"I wonder who he got that from." Alice teased, Bree pushed her with her shoulder.  "Have a good day you both. Be safe."

"You too, and don't do anything I wouldn't do, well, unless it's fun, then do it." Bree joked and hugged her sister before heading to the door and leaving with Colin.

Now, it was time for Alice to do her part. "College...here we go."

▫️

Washington University was huge, the constructions were a bit of vintage but reformed, the campus was wide and green, with a fresh air that entered her lungs and awakened her soul into a boost of energy.

As a shining sparkle walking through those areas, Alice Mallory kept her head held high, into that extravagabt colorful outfit of purple shorts and a yellow shirt that contrasted against all the other students, she was ready for everything.

Well, not everything.

"Um, hello do you know where-" No one gave attention and simply ignored her questions. "Sorry, could you please-" Another person passed by in silence. "Hi! Is room-" Another one.

Until she found where the exact location of the class was, she arrived late for it. The teacher already explained something on the board full of drawings and sentences. The class was crowded, the auditorium styled seats filled with students, she found her seat at the back of the room, trying to understand what was happening.

The multiple soft subtke noises of writting, typing and low conversations had either a calming and anxious feeling to her. She took off her Smurfs notebook from her packpack and would start taking notes when...

She forgot her pen.

Pens, pencils, highlighters, EVERYTHING.

"The kitchen balcony." She realized. "I forgot it while I was focused on Colin. Ah, come on!" She cursed mentally and stared at the tall ceiling above her head.

She couldn't waste time any longer, the explanation continued and she wouldn't understand it later if she delayed herself. Alice promptly started to look around her classmates, leaning close to her right and whispering to a blonde girl. "Um...excuse me?" The girl ignored. "Could you please-"

"No." She responded sharply.

"I just-"

"Shh!" The girl complained and ignored her.

Alice took a deep breath in order not to stress herself and asked to the boy by her left, who, just as the girl, refused promptly.

She frowned her eyebrows frustrated. How could people not lend a pen? Seriously? College had barely started and was being rough on her.

Alice looked behind, a shy boy with curly hair strands falling above his face covered his tense dark chocolate brown eyes. He was writting down as much as he could while the teacher spoke, fully focused on the class, and it would be a shame to interrupt him, but she had no better option back then.

"Hey..." She whispered to him, the guy ignored. "Excuse me..."

"Shhh!" He put a finger above his lips telling her to be quiet, then glanced back to the professor.

Alice looked around, no one else paid attention to them, she wouldn't give up yet. "I'm sorry!" Her whisper got even louder, he looked at her annoyed. "Can you lend me a-" He pratically threw the pen in her direction, Alice struggled but could catch it in the air. "Thank you!"

In a smile of happiness by having the pro lem solved, Alice started taking her notes. Well, almost did, she could distract herself very easily and wasn't so interested in the subject...so many numbers and logic...it was just boring.

When she realized, she had taken a page from her notebook to only draw as the teacher spoke, immersed into her imagination and creating figures with the borrowed blue pen.

She only hoped that Colin wouldn't be such a bad student as her.

▫️

Once class was over and people started leave, Alice packed fast her stuff and glanced back, watching the boy from before get up from his seat. She quickly went after him, stepping in and interrupting path so he wouldn't leave.

The shy man, could finally look properly at her. She was a bit short, the hair was a dark brown bobcut with bangs, the eyes were blue to green jewels that just left him clueless when they stared back into his. Her presence was strong, decided and goofy, a contrast from his reserved and shy one.

His eyes blinked in her direction, feeling somethibg cold inside his belly. That was the most gorgeous woman he has ever seen in his life...

...and the most annoying too.

He looked at her irritated, expecting her to move away.

"Thank you, really." Alice had a bright smile on her face while giving him a note. "I hope I got your nose right." His expression was confused at those words until he landed his sight on the paper, where a drawing exposed the profile of a man, one very similar, almost identical to him, full of details in blue ink of the pen he lent her. "Sorry, for interrupting the class, hope you accept my apology." She said embarrassed, her hands stuck behind her back. "Anyway, thanks again." The brunette waved at him and turned around to walk away.

The class was already empty and he could listen to her bright yellow heels on the floor when he gave an unexpected answer. "What is your name?" He asked.

She turned to him, already by the door, her joyful expression gave him butterflies, her smile could light that whole campus at that moment. "Alice Mallory."

"It's...a great drawing, Alice...Thanks." He said a bit shy, finding her name just as beautiful as her.

"You can retribute it by having lunch with me" she suggested to him, he blinked twice surprised.

"You don't even know my name" He gave a half smile finding her a bit crazy.

"What is your name?"

"Will Graham." He introduced himself.

"Now I know." She said, he held a laugh, she was definetely something, he thought. Something that appearently was trouble but also blesssing. "I know a place that has an incredible mac n' cheese, seriously."

He sighed, Will wasn't a very "friend maker type of person", neither enjoyed much to interact much with others, but something in that girl was so comfortable, so kind, as a warm sunshine in a cold windy day.

"I guess some cheese wouldn't hurt." He commented, almost not believing in his own words.

Alice opened a huge smile and pratically dragged him by the arm outside the class, he blushed but didn't complain about her touch. It was kind of electrifying, in a good way. "OH, by the way, I forgot my wallet too" She commented, and Will Graham finally surrended to that sweet creature and laughed.

▫️

He was shy. During the whole path until the diner, Will maintained himself in silence, sometimes answering yes or no questions, but mostly was Alice babbling nonsense.

For some time, she started to think that he already regret coming to that restaurant with her, or worse, that he couldn't stand her talking any longer.

But it was the opposite, Will found her incredibly funny and interesting instead, he liked her silly, happy mood, filled with brittish slangs switching from fancy vovabularies to absurdly horrible jokes.

He could listen to her for hours without getting bored of it, and get lost into her eyes without even trying to.

"I'm sorry, I talk too much." She chuckled embarrassed as the waiter finally delivered their dishes. "Thank you."

The smell of cheese was incredible, and she promptly started eating, observing him still quiet through her lashes. He was quite handsome, she wouldn't lie, and his quietude just intrigued her even more.

"Tell me about you,Will" She sniled and asked suddenly. He looked at her surprised. "...I am just trying to get to know you better, you don't need to answer if you don't want to." She hesitated once she saw him avoid her question.

It took some minutes for him to reply. "Why do you want to know about me?" He said and finished fastly the mac n' cheese.

"Uh...so we can be...friends, I guess?" She tilted her head to the side. "Is it a problem for you?"

"I don't have much to talk about." He simply justified.

"Ah, come on, everyone has something to talk about." She chuckled and standed her hand to reach his at the table. He quickly avoided her touch.

There was a long and awkward pause in silence. It's not that Will didn't like her, he just...didn't know her, and he preferably didn't want to know so he wouldn't become...attached.

People like him couldn't have friends.

"It was good." He said suddenly. "The food." He got up and put the money to pay for it. "I should get going."

"Oh. Yeah." She got up as well and paid the waiter. She followed him in quick steps, not realizing he didn't want her to accompany him.  They headed out and sudddenly met that scene.

Multiple police cars gathered across the street. Her eyes quinted at what it could be  a body lied on the ground. People tried to look, oversee through the bodies, and some whispers started to echo in the air "Oh my God, did you see that?"

Alice looked at Will, who seemed to have stopped on his way just as her. Staring at the scene, from where he was, it was possible to see the body, and the blood puddle beneath it. But he didn't just stare at the body, he looked at the cops, the surroundings, smelled the fresh air breeze, and closed his eyes for a moment.

"That must've been a very bad accident." She commented.

"It wasn't an accident." He somberly established. Alice looked at him confused. "It was a homicide."

Will's expression was different now. Something dark, nitid in his eyes that lightened up as fire could be seen. It was strange, something she has nevee seen before.

"How do you know?" She asked. In this moment he looked at her, a brief gap formed between his lips, but he couldn't answer. And something in the way she stared at him, the way her eyes looked inside her soul, made him loose his breath for a moment.

"I just know." He wouldn't say the truth. He then adjusted the backpack on his shoulder. "I'm going now."

"Are you going to the dorms-"

"Alone." He let it out coldly. Alice looked at him surprised, a bit embarrassed, realizing he didn't ant her close.

"Okay...goodbye."

"Bye."

He turned around already leaving, when she yelled sweetly "IT WAS NICE TO MEET YOU WILL!"

He blushed looking at her, and even if he treated her coldly before, she had the cutest of the smiles in her face, waving at him. Surprisingly, he shyly waved back and muttered quietly, forming a tiny smile on his lips. "Nice to meet you too, Alice..."

▫️

"How was your first day?" Bree Mallory set the table as Alice insisted that Colin would eat his vegetables.

"Bittersweet." She tilted her head to the side. "Yours?"

"Great, I love my class." She said excited. "Colin seems to be excited to, he said he got along with the kids very well."

Alice sighed relieved. "Well, I hope that never changes." She turned to her brother.  "Dinner is ready, come on"

"I'll yeet any brocoli out of my plate." He threatned as he ran and took his usual seat at the edge of the table.

Bree rolled her eyes and put more vegetables into her brother's dish, as he yelled back saying he wouldn't accept them. The duel continue for a few minutes until the doorbell rang.

"Are you waiting for someone?" Alice asked.

"No, I didn't even have the opportunity to flirt today." Bree joked and Alice chuckled.

"I'll see who it is." The oldest sister got up from the bed and verified outside, no one was there anymore. Her eyes lowered to the floor, where she could soit a single piece of paper. She took the page in her hands and her eyes scanned at the tilted and scarlet letter that she knew too well:

"I found you."