Blue and red lights swept across the living room walls, making the bloodstain on the rug look different every second.
"Detectives," my mother said her voice was steady and confused. She sounded exactly right "I don't understand, HOW? The alarm company said..."
"Silent tripwire, Mrs. Thorne," the officer said. He was older, wearing a raincoat that smelled. Detective Miller, I knew him. He had been on my father's payroll years ago "We got a signal from the perimeter fence probably just a glitch, but with a house like this..."
I stood in the shadows of the hallway, the tablet heavy against my thigh.
My father's body was gone. We had dragged it to the wine cellar in the twelve minutes we had and the floor was cleaned. The blood was scrubbed, but the smell... the smell of bleach was faint, but it was there.
Bzzzt.
The vibration against my thigh was violent.
I pulled the tablet out, shielding the screen by piller.
TASK 01: THE LOOSE END.
TARGET: DETECTIVE MILLER.
TIME: 03:00 MINUTES.
NOTE: THIS ISN'T ABOUT THE ALARM RATHER IT'S THAT HE KNOWS.
My stomach dropped.
Miller wasn't looking at my mother, he was scanning the room his eyes lingered on the coffee table. His eyes stayed on the table too long.
"David," Miller said, his eyes snapping to me. "Didn't see you there, son. Rough night?"
"Just... studying," I lied. My voice cracked.
"Studying," Miller repeated. He took a step into the room, mud from his boots tracked onto the marble "Funny. The perimeter sensor that tripped was the one near the wine cellar vent. You studying down there?"
My mother froze. Just for a fraction of a second, but Miller saw it.
Bzzzt.
TIME: 02:15.
ACTION: NEUTRALIZE.
Neutralize? I looked at the tablet and a schematic of the house appeared. It highlighted the breaker box in the hallway, right next to me.
INSTRUCTION: CUT MAIN BREAKER. LOCKDOWN MODE.
If I cut the power, the house's automated shutters would slam down and It would cause chaos. It would give us a chance to... do what?
"Mind if I take a look downstairs?" Miller asked. It wasn't a question. He was already moving toward the cellar door.
If he opened that door, it was over and we both are in prison. That's the end of the Thorne legacy.
My mother stepped in his path "Detective, I really must insist...."
"Step aside, Mrs. Thorne," Miller said, his hand dropping to his belt not to his gun, but close.
He wasn't here to arrest us. He was here to collect, he wanted a cut or maybe he wanted it all.
Bzzzt.
FAILURE: PRISON.
I didn't think and just obeyed.
I reached up and yanked the master breaker handle down.
CLACK.
The penthouse plunged into absolute darkness.
"Hey!" Miller shouted.
The emergency shutters slammed down over the windows with the force of guillotine blades. SLAM. SLAM. SLAM.
"David!" my mother screamed, panic finally breaking through her mask.
I didn't answer and the tablet screen was the only light in the pitch black hallway. It shifted from red to green.
POWER CUT CONFIRMED. NVG ENGAGED.
The screen flashed a blinding white, turning the tablet into a flashlight. I aimed it down the hall.
Miller was spinning around, disoriented "What the hell are you playing at?"
"Run," I whispered to myself.
But the tablet didn't say run. It updated with a new command, blinking rapidly.
OBJECTIVE 2: PUSH HIM.
LOCATION: STAIRWELL.
Miller was standing at the top of the marble staircase, blinded by the sudden dark, disoriented by the shutter noise.
I looked at him and looked at the dark void of the stairs behind him.
I realized then what "Play the part" meant. It didn't mean pretend to be innocent.
It meant doing what came next.
I took a step forward.
"Detective?" I called out, my voice trembling.
"David? Turn the lights on!" Miller stepped back, trying to find the wall.
He stepped back one foot too far. His heel found nothing but air.
He flailed, his arms catching the railing, his body teetering on the edge of the dark drop. He scrambled, pulling himself back up, breathing hard "Jesus! I almost..."
I was already behind him.
I didn't feel like myself, I felt empty. Controlled.
I put my hand on his chest.
"I'm sorry," I said, and I meant it.
And I shoved.