Lena fought the urge to look as surprised as she felt when the Shroud called her Detective. She schooled her expression into a mask of calm, though every nerve in her body screamed for her to react. The silence that followed was suffocating, filled only by the heavy breathing in the room and the occasional twitch of Diana’s limp body.

Shroud broke first, standing upright with the grace of a predator. Lena slid out from under the workbench, her muscles aching as she rubbed feeling back into her legs, her eyes never leaving him.

“How long did you know I was down there?” she asked, voice steady despite the tension thrumming through her.

“When indeed…?” he mused, cocking his head. Then he clapped his hands together softly. “Hmm… oh! When she slammed the chair into the floor.” He pointed to Diana’s body and let out a childish giggle. “You made this tiny little gasp. Couldn’t help yourself, could you?”

Lena cursed herself inwardly but didn’t respond.

“But are you not gonna ask what you really wanna know?” Shroud teased, voice sing-song.

From the corner of her eye, she caught Richard watching them, gaze shifting between Shroud and where he assumed Lena stood.

“Should I… leave you to it?” Richard asked cautiously.

Shroud flicked his hand limply in dismissal. Richard nodded and dragged Diana’s body across the concrete floor, the scraping sound grating in Lena’s ears. She instinctively jerked her head toward the curtained-off section of the basement where he disappeared with her. But Shroud stepped in her way. He raised one gloved hand, and she swore she saw a smirk tug from beneath his mask. He clicked his tongue and wagged a finger at her like she was an unruly child.

“Ah, ah, ah. You don’t need to worry about them. I made him promise to return them to their rightful places. So focus on me, won’t you?”

He reached out and twirled a strand of her blonde hair between his fingers. Lena flinched and ripped it from his grasp, earning a soft chuckle.

“What do you mean by that?” she asked, venom in her voice as she backed away from him.

“I know you probably won’t believe me,” Shroud began, pinching the air like he was sculpting his words, “but I don’t want to completely ruin the timeline. I just… want to twist the facts a little.”

Lena’s glare sharpened. “So you find it fun to kill people you’d otherwise never get close to without your power? Is that it? Is that why you corrupted Richard? To watch chaos unfold due to your involvement?”

The Shroud threw his head back with a delighted laugh, clutching his chest.

“Corrupted him? Me? Oh no, no, no!” he said between chuckles. “He was already deliciously dark when I found him. Just… unrefined. I simply couldn’t allow that. As a fellow murder enthusiast, I just had to help him blossom to his full potential!”

The term made Lena’s stomach churn.

“So you trained him to be a better killer?” she spat. “You’re sick.”

“But I feel perfectly healthy, Detective!” Shroud quipped.

Lena didn’t so much as twitch. Silence settled again, tense and suffocating, until Shroud let out an exaggerated sigh.

“Not much for jokes, huh? You’re no fun…” He kicked lightly at the ground, as if sulking.

“How do you even—” Lena started softly, then cut herself off. She wasn’t about to tip her hand and reveal how much she suspected he knew. Shroud’s head tilted like a curious animal, and then he snapped his fingers in realization.

“Oh!” he gasped. “You want to ask about how I know you’re a detective, right~?”

Lena tried not to react, but a tiny twitch betrayed her.

“I think I’ll keep that to myself,” he hummed, folding his arms behind his back. Suddenly, a blood-red portal rippled into existence beside him, bathing the room in an ominous glow. He sighed dramatically.

“Ugh. I hate leaving so soon, but I’ve got a schedule to keep.” He clapped his hands together. “Until next time, dear Detective!”

Before Lena could react, he stepped into the portal and vanished. Lena raised a hand, her instincts screaming at her to chase him, but the portal blinked out of existence, leaving her standing there with her hand still in the air.

“Damn it…” she muttered. ‘He knows I’m a detective. But… he didn’t say my name. Maybe he doesn’t know it yet?’

She shook herself out of it and ran toward the curtained-off section, heart pounding. She yanked the curtain aside, determined to see what Richard had done with Diana—

—and immediately stumbled forward as her own portal snapped open before her, obscuring her vision of the room.

“What—?!” She cursed as she was swallowed by the darkness, and when she emerged on the other side, she was back in the Cold Case Division office.

“Lena?!” Hayes was on his feet in seconds, rushing toward her before stopping at her furious glare. “You… look kinda pissed.”

“I got pulled back too early,” she grumbled, slumping into her chair.

“Oh…” Hayes scratched his neck, cautiously setting a sub sandwich and drink in front of her. “Did you at least get what you needed?”

Lena took a long drink before answering with a curt nod. “Yeah. Got his name and face. But…”

“But what?” Hayes pressed. Colby approached, wringing his hands. “H-How d-did the c-camera do?” he stammered. Lena winced and handed him the camera hat. “Sorry,” she mumbled. Colby’s shoulders slumped as he silently turned away, clutching the hat like a failed experiment.

Hayes leaned closer, whispering, “Didn’t work, huh?” Lena shook her head, biting into the sandwich. "Anyway,” she said after swallowing. “Shroud showed up again.” Hayes’ head snapped up. “Wait, what?!”

“Not only did he change how the victims died, but he trained the killer,” Lena said, voice grim. “It was… brutal.” She set the sandwich down, staring Hayes dead in the eye. “And that’s not even the worst part.” Hayes raised his brows. “What else is there?”

“I’m not sure how much he knows…” Lena took a breath. “But he knows I’m a detective.” Hayes froze. His jaw dropped.

“…What?” he asked.

To be continued…

*edit* I almost forgot about adding this since I made one after a while. It's... decent, but wraps the cases up nicely and makes it feel a little more authentic, I think 🤓