Justin found the keys to unchain Leila in Isiah’s pockets. Even with all the commotion, Leila remained unconscious, fortunately, Justin could feel her pulse. “She must’ve been drugged.”

“You found her in time, Justin. You saved her.” Tristan said with a smile.

“I didn’t do much. I mean, the clues were all there, the past detectives just refused to look at them properly.” Tristan said.

“Give yourself more credit. If you didn’t realize the reason shy she went out of the front door and took that long to get to the backyard, we wouldn’t find the clues she left.” Tristan said. “Now, that creep would rot in jail.”

“He’s not alone, Tristan. Leila couldn’t have known about this place by herself, she wouldn’t know the secret contraption in the well without anyone telling her. It couldn’t have been Isiah because he hadn’t interacted with her at all. And, he couldn’t have gotten rid of Toby’s body in the mountain by himself.” Remembering the sense of death Tristan felt from the Eyes of the Night, Justin was convinced that it was one of them. “Eyes of the Night. Someone else in there is working with him. The clues about this well, it must’ve been on the map they handed to Leila.” He could easily confirm that suspicion once he gets access to the recordings of Isiah’s hidden cameras.

“Now, how do we get here out of here. Climbing down was easy, but climbing up, that would be something else.” Tristan said.

“There’s another entrance from the utility room. We’ll use that one.” Justin said.

“What about him?” Tristan pointed at Isiah.

“Cuff him, I already asked for backup, they’ll be arriving anytime soon.”

There was another to the dungeon that was hidden on the utility room’s floor. Its movement was the most likely cause of the rumbling they felt during the tour. The shriek was probably Leila shouting for help and pain.

“Justin, what are you looking for?” Tristan asked as they walked up the utility room. “She’s not that light, you know. Let’s go.” Tristan complained as he carried Leila.

Justin opened the locks using the keys he got from Isiah. “Go on ahead, I need to find out something else.” There must be another secret passage connecting Isiah’s room and the utility room, it was the only way he could go to the dungeon without being seen on the CCTV.

The secret door leading to Isiah’s room was hidden on the wall and was opened when Justin found a small hole on the wall that looked like a keyhole. After trying several keys, he was finally able to open it.

Isiah’s room looked harmless enough and there Justin found the computer holding the memory for all the hidden camera. He was about to walk towards it when he felt a chill on the back of his head.

Turning back, Justin saw the same ghost that he had been seeing all throughout the night. Slowly, she inches towards Justin and stopped just in front of him. Being near her was suffocating.

She pointed at a bookshelf and Justin walked towards it. Justin went through all the books until he found what she wanted him to see, a journal.

Police cars swarmed the hotel within minutes after Tristan carried Leila out to the lobby. She started regaining consciousness but was still too weak to move or speak. She was taken by medics as the police stormed the hotel.

“What’s going on here?” Wendell and his team asked as they walked down the stairs.

“A secret dungeon was found below the utility room. A woman was found there, about to be sacrificed in a sick ritual by Mr. Crowley.” Tristan said as he observed their reaction.

“Is that true?” Bethany asked Tristan.

“He was caught red-handed.” Tristan replied.

“Then is he being arrested now?” Ronald asked.

“He is, but his accomplice is still on the lose.” Tristan said. “So, tell me, who is it? Crowley’s sick accomplice?”

“Why are you asking us? We don’t know anything about that.” Wendell replied in a defensive tone.

“I was able to finally get out of the apartment after two weeks, but instead of enjoying my weekend out, I was put through a lot of pain.” Tristan hissed impatiently. “So tell me who it is before I lose my patience!”

“Take them.” Justin said as he walked out into the lobby.

The police officers with him then walked towards the trio and cuffed Ronald and Wendell.

“It’s these two?!” Tristan asked angrily. 

“Both of them were recorded in the dungeon by Crowley’s hidden cameras.” Justin replied. “And if my guess is correct, Wendell helped to lure the victims while Ronald helps with designing and building the traps and contraptions.”

“So, you built that thing? I was put through in a lot of pain, you bastard!” Tristan tried to attack Ronald but Justin pulled him back. “Hey, just let me hit him just once.” He shouted as he struggled to get away from Justin’s hold.

“Take them away, quickly.” Justin told the officers.

“I can’t believe this…” Bethany slowly lost her energy and sat on the step of the stairs. “I’ve been working with monsters…”

“How long have you been working with them?” Justin asked.

“This would be the second year.” She replied. “The medium before me went missing on the mountain, so they approached me.” She said.

“I have a feeling she didn’t really get lost. There’s a chance that she found out about the dungeon and was silenced by the group. You’re lucky you weren’t meddlesome enough.”

“It’s the kids.” Bethany said.

“The kids?” Tristan asked.

“You said the dungeon was under the utility room, right? I always had a bad feeling about that place, and I tried sneaking in once, but the ghosts of the orphans suddenly appeared and scared me away. Now, I think they’re just trying to protect me.” Bethany said.

“Can you do me a favor?” Justin asked. “Can you help correct the history of this place?”

“What do you mean?” Bethany asked.

“I found this at Crowley’s room. It’s a journal belonging to his father. The truth about this place is written there. The caretaker, Ms. Gallager, I think that’s what she was angry about all along; how the Crowleys twisted the truth and made her the villain.” Justin said.

Justin and Tristan only had a few hours of sleep and they both looked tired, but Tristan seemed to be very frustrated. He wasn’t very subtle about it and kept on complaining about how he would be stuck inside Justin’s apartment again once they got back.

Along the way, Tristan had fallen asleep, he was tired, exhausted even. That hotel was just so full of death that it was hard for him to ignore it and relax. He could feel the dark presence everywhere he goes, and even after those three were apprehended, the horror of what they’ve done still remains in the hotel.

“Tristan, we’re here.” Justin woke him up with a gentle tap on the shoulder. He was expecting to open his eyes and see Justin’s apartment building.

“What the…?” Tristan exclaimed as his eyes widened after seeing the amusement park right before his very eyes.

“Do you want to go in or do you want to just go home?” Justin asked him.

“Are you kidding me? Of course, I want to go in.” Tristan said excitedly as he opened the car door. Tristan was really excited. He was tired of being cooped up in Justin’s apartment and being in that haunted hotel and seeing that sick torture dungeon didn’t help boost his mood at all.

Justin felt bad for keeping Tristan in his apartment for a whole two weeks, but he had no choice, it was the best option to keep Tristan’s secret hidden. At one point, Tristan has to start a new life, and Justin had already prepared to help him in doing so.

He still wanted to solve Tristan’s case, it was his duty and responsibility. But with the case being shrouded in complete mystery with no clues at all, the only thing that might help him solve the case would be Tristan’s memories.

That’s why Justin was willing to do everything to help him regain those memories he had lost. He was unsure how he could help Tristan, but he was sure that nothing would happen if he keeps him cooped up in his apartment all the time.

It had been a rainy weekend, so the park wasn’t that crowded. The lines were short and they were able to ride many attractions in a short span of time.

“Do you always work on weird cases like this one?” Tristan asked as they ate lunch at the park.

“I used to work on homicides.” Justin replied. “But when our division was made, I was asked to transfer. The pay was better, so I couldn’t complain.”

“Really? Did you transfer division because of better pay? I thought you were this honest-to-god detective with a very strong of justice. Serving justice to criminals left and right.” Tristan teased with an animated tone.

“I still need to make a living, you know. And I also have a brother to send to college.” Justin replied with a chuckle. “Besides, I was tired of all the deaths. It was breaking me, piece by piece.”

“So, you’ve seen a lot of deaths before.”

“Do you know what’s the most heartbreaking thing about working at Homicide? It’s not seeing dead victims week after week, it’s breaking the news to their friends and family. Seeing how devastated they are, how heartbroken they are, it makes you more motivated to solve the case, but it also tears your heart, one small painful piece at a time.” Justin replied.

“You’re too nice.” Tristan said. “Death is inevitable, it just means that their time is over, that they’ve fulfilled their purpose in life and that they’ve reached their fate.” He added.

“Not everyone is so embracing of death like you are.”

“Everyone is afraid of death, but I think I craved for it.” Tristan said and Justin froze in surprise. Tristan looked serious and it gave Justin the chills.

“Tristan, I told you, there is a line you shouldn’t cross.” Justin told him. “If you keep entertaining those kinds of thoughts, it wouldn’t take long before you cross the line.”

“We can’t deny it, Justin, I have a weird relationship with death. Doesn’t it make you wonder why? What if I hurt many people before? What if I was just like Crowley or even worse? What if experiencing the pain of death over and over again is my punishment?” Tristan asked.

“Maybe you should look at it differently. Instead of seeing it as a curse of never-ending death, maybe you should start considering it as a gift of never-ending chances in life.” Justin told him. “You said people die because they’ve fulfilled their purpose that they’ve reached their fate, maybe your given that gift because you have a grander fate, a bigger purpose in life.”

“I don’t think I am destined for such grandiose.” Tristan said.

Tristan was in the bathroom when Justin got a call from Andrew. “I heard you just solved another case.” Andrew said.

“You didn’t call to just congratulate me, do you?” Justin asked rhetorically. “Do you have the results?”

“There’s nothing.” Andrew said.

“What do you mean nothing?”

“His blood and DNA are all normal. Scientifically speaking, nothing is unusual or special about him.” Andrew replied.

“So it’s beyond science…” Justin sighed.

“You don’t sound so surprised.”

“After everything I experienced in this case, I think I am able to accept any explanation for his condition. Scientific or not. In any case, let’s keep this between us.” Justin said as he saw Tristan walking out of the bathroom. “We might not understand what he is now, but we still have to protect him.”

“I understand, I’ll make sure no one finds out about this.” Andrew agreed.

He already failed to protect Tristan once, and Justin won’t let that happen again. Protecting the innocent is part of his sworn duty as a police detective.

“Do we have to go or do we have more time?” Tristan asked.

“It’s my day off today, we have more time.” Justin replied.

“That’s great! I saw some carnival games and the stuffed toys looked really squishy.” Tristan said.

“You like stuffed toys? That’s… new.” Justin said with a chuckle. “So is it just stuffed toys or is it anything cute?” He teased.

“I may have a really close connection to death, but I could like cute things, you know.” Tristan said. “I’m not some sort gothic, emo, dark-eyeliner type of guy. I hide my darkness on the inside, like everyone else.”

“That doesn’t sound better.” Justin said with a chuckle.

“It does sound weirder.” Tristan agreed with a chuckle.