THE TRUTH - CHAPTER 5 SEMI FINALE

 

BLOG 5

TOPIC 2

CHAPTER 5

THE TRUTH

The weight of five hundred souls. That’s what I was carrying. Between the body count at the hotel and the ongoing chaos, the city wasn't just bleeding—it was hemorrhaging. I looked at Johnny Sir through the thick glass of the ICU. A titan, now reduced to a rhythmic beep on a monitor.

The hospital was a fortress now. I’d cleared out every patient not tied to the case, turning the wards into a high-security bunker. Once I knew he was safe, I took his keys.

The black and gold Impala felt like a beast under my hands. Driving it felt like wearing a dead man’s armor. It was legendary, classy, and far too loud for a quiet investigation, but I didn't care. I needed the world to know I was coming.

The hotel was a graveyard of luxury. Forensic teams moved like ghosts through the blood-stained lobby, their camera flashes illuminating the carnage in rhythmic pulses. One technician waved me over, holding up a sleek digital camera found near the center of the room.

"Sir, I think we have the footage," he started to say.

I reached for it, a grim smile pulling at my lips. Proof. Finally.

CRACK.

The sound didn't hit me until after the bullet did. A sniper round hissed past my head, close enough to sear the skin of my ear. In a heartbeat, the camera in my hand turned into a cloud of plastic and glass shards. The bullet tore through the device and punched a hole clean through my palm.

The pain was a white-hot iron. I didn't scream—I roared. "ASSHOLE SNIPERRRRR!"

I didn't wait for backup. I saw the muzzle flash from the mezzanine and sprinted. Another round caught me in the forearm, spraying red across the white marble, but the adrenaline had turned my blood to gasoline. I was no longer a cop; I was a predator.

We hit the terrace. The killer was fast, leaping across the gaps between buildings like a shadow. I followed, clearing the jumps by sheer force of will, my boots thudding against the gravel rooftops. I was gaining. I could smell the gunpowder on him.

I lunged, my good hand grabbing him by the collar, dragging him down. I began to rain blows upon him, my knuckles splitting against his tactical gear. I reached for his mask, desperate to see the face of the man who had destroyed my city.

Pop-pop-pop-pop-pop!

A burst of six, maybe nine rounds tore into the back of his head. The impact turned his face into a mask of gore. He slumped, dead before he hit the ground.

I spun around. A figure was retreating across the next roof. I drew my sidearm and fired, the bullet catching him in the thigh. He tumbled over the edge, falling twenty feet onto a lower balcony.

I dropped down after him, landing hard. I grabbed him by the hair, ready to finish it. I ripped the mask away.

My heart hit the floor. "Steve? Why?"

His breath was a wet rattle. "Sir... I’m not the guy... I’m just a pawn... but I know... I know who he is..."

"Who? Tell me!" I screamed, shaking him.

Thwip.

A silencer. A single shot from a distant skyscraper punched through Steve’s temple. His blood sprayed across my face, warm and metallic. My eyes stayed wide, locked on the distant silhouette across the skyline: a man in a long coat, a wide-brimmed hat, and a scarf fluttering in the wind.

He didn't run immediately. He stood there, watching me through the scope of his malice.

This wasn't about the law anymore. It wasn't about the 500 murders. It was ego. It was revenge. It was the fire in my gut that demanded his blood. I chased him through the labyrinth of the city, my face a mask of blood and tears, my breath coming in ragged, broken gasps.

I cornered him in a narrow alleyway, but my body finally betrayed me. The blood loss from my hand and arm turned the world grey. I stumbled, falling to my knees.

A heavy boot stepped into my field of vision. Someone had come up behind me—someone I hadn't heard. A blunt force crashed into the back of my skull. I hit the pavement, the world spinning into darkness.

A voice, calm and terrifyingly familiar, leaned down to my ear.

"You want to know the name of the killer, Albert? You’ve been looking at him your whole time."

He leaned closer, his whisper cold enough to freeze my soul.

"The killer is..."

TO BE CONTINUED...