"Oh most definitely." Paul nods rather prominently, he seems so sure of himself that I can't help but to believe in him. "When we were kids, he would rip the wings off 'a the butterflies an' rip the legs off 'a them daddy long legs, just 'cause he could. That's one of the reasons why I made him a part of ma crew." His hands slowly tighten around the wheel as his speed increases. "He was fearless, he could tell a lie an' 'eryone thought it were the truth. He was good. But I had something he didn't...," he pauses for a moment, eyes still fixated on the road. "An' he didn't like it."

"So, what did he do?" I look at Paul, his rough gaze becoming gentle. The man who intimidated me yesterday was not the same man that sits next to me now.

"He came to me an' told me to back off." He bites his lower lip a bit and then he continues, "when I told 'im no, he said our friendship was over. When I asked him why, he said I was being selfish. An' den he left."

"I'm sorry," I began but he looks at me and I stop.

"Don't be kid, it ain't yer problem."

A loud honking sound scream from behind us, it quickly grows louder before the car we are in juts forward and smashes into a tree on the side of the road. Everything happens so fast, my head jolts forward before the airbags pop open and meet it halfway. Glass from the windows scatter everywhere and my heart beats quickly as though it was running a race inside of me.

Suddenly, I hear a door open and from the corner of my left eye, I see a figure standing over Paul. My ears are ringing, so I can barely hear the mumblings the figure is saying, and then they strike; jabbing what looks like a shard of glass into Paul. They rip it out from his chest and appears to smash it upon the ground, probably trying to get rid of any evidence. I inhale deeply, though my chest shoots pain through me and I release a cough, but the figure does not seem to notice- if they did it didn't look like they cared that I survived for they simply just walked away. An engine roaring followed by rumblings sounds before getting softer at at slower rate than when it came.

I decided to wait a few seconds before trying to move, I waited till my head stopped spinning before lifting my head back and attempting to undo my seatbelt. I manage to look up over the airbag and I see that the entire front of the car is wrapped around the tree we hit, it looks like the car is giving the tree a hug, a very painful hug.

I reach my right hand towards the passenger side door, luckily I was able to open it, but only by a foot wide. I slide off my seat and squeeze myself through the small gap, I gasp for air once I'm out. Man that was a tight squeeze. I exhale and groan as more pain shoot through me.

"Noir?" I call out, grabbing onto the closed door's handle and using it to support myself as I stand to my feet. I peer through the the shattered glass of the window to the back seats, but Noir is not there. Her seatbelt is still locked in, the door is still closed, but the glass is missing from the window. It's almost as if she just disappeared.

I hear a groan and I quickly remember that Paul is injured. Using the side of the smashed up sports-car, I slowly make my way over to him.

"I'm coming," I call out to him, instinctively wincing at the pain. I finally make it to his door, and with his help, we are able to pry it open just wide enough for him to slip through.

"Where's yer friend?" Paul coughs, moving his head to face me as I reach my arm past him to unbuckle his seat belt.

"I don't know." I mumble, pressing down upon the release. I gently slide the seatbelt off of him and return it to its resting place.

"P-promise me somethin'?" He coughs, blood staining the white airbag. I look into his eyes, I can see him fading away slowly, my heart leaps into my throat as I begin to worry about him.

"Anything." I nod once.

"C-catch him...before he...catches...you." He starts coughing violently and I fall to my knees to kneel beside him. "In his office- gurk...is where...clugk...you'll find...the......"

I hold my breath as his chest lowers and he rolls forward, no longer moving, no longer breathing. I exhale slowly and realize that he is no longer alive.

In his office is where I'll find what? I sit with my thoughts as growing sirens and flashing lights draw nearer. Is it, the murder weapon? I inhale, finally putting a few pieces together. My moment is cut short when a vehicle screeches behind me, the blue and red flashing lights behind me give the element of surprise away and I slowly turn my shoulders back to face the officers.

"You're too late. He's already gone." I mumble before I feel something grab me and lift me off the ground. The pain jolts through me and I utter a scream to show it hurts. "Careful! What are you doing?"

"Ryan Dayton, you are under arrest for interfering with an investigation," a woman, that I've never seen before, walks up to me. Her short, stout, black hair stands tall upon her chocolate head.

"But I still have five hours left." I squirm in my captor's grip.

"You didn't let me finish." I can feel her glare through her large, circular, black shades. "You are under arrest for interfering with an investigation and for murder."

"Murder? But I didn't do anything." I plead.

"I suggest you remain silent." The person behind me pushes forward and I try to push back, but in my injured state, they easily overpower me. "You do have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in court."

As the officer attempts to shove me into the back of the squat car, I see Dave standing off to the side. A dark grin is painted upon his face as he looks at the corpse being placed into a body bag, my eyes flicker as I realize that look was the same look the figure had. Dave killed Paul! I lean back and stamp my feet on either side of the door's frame, resisting against being put into the car.

"He killed Paul!" I call out, trying to ignore the pain jutting through me. "Dave killed Paul and he killed the Red Lady!"

"Remain Silent And Stop Resisting!" The woman demands, but I rebel and I keep yelling. The more I yell, the more the woman yells after me.

"I have proof-" a jolting pain shocks through me and I feel my limbs begin to go limp. I let out a scream at the pain before everything goes black and slowly, the pain fades away too.

———

"Hey....? You awake?" I feel a poke against my cheek and my eyes flutter open. A blurry person appears to be standing about a foot away, and I can see their finger slowly moving towards my cheek again.

"Hey!" I slap their hand away and try to push them back as my vision becomes clearer. "Stop touching me." I snap.

"Hey," they take a step back and cross their arms. "If you wanna get along for the next ten years with me, you're gunna have to play nice."

"What?" I look at them confused, "what do you...." I notice their orange jumpsuit and then I look down at myself and see that I'm weird an orange jumpsuit too. "Oh no."

"Don't you know? Yer in jail." I jump up rather quickly and grasp my head to keep it from spinning too much.

"No, no, no. But I'm innocent." I mumble and begin to pace in a circle.

"That's what we all say." My cellmate sighs heavily as they climb onto the bottom bunk bed where I sat.

"But it's true. I'm not guilty." I turn to face them, my face morphing from confusion to possibly crazy determination. "I need to get out of here." I quickly begin thinking of a plan, anything. Is there anything I can use to break out?

"Ho-hold up kid!" My cellmate practically jumps up and grabs me by my shoulders. "What do ye think yer doin'? You tryn' to get caught or somethin'?" They hold me back and push me onto the bed.

"No..., but I need to get out." I reply.

"I understand, but I got a plan."