A Fateful Night

Moonlight peeked from behind the clouds, the night was young. And so was Amanda Young when she died – staying true to her name. Not funny? Okay. Her dress was soaked with her own blood; carotid artery cut. The bed was a mess, blood-stained pillows and blankets scattered around the room. The medical staff has estimated her time of death to be just an hour ago, 8:24 PM. People crowded the hall, trying to get a glimpse of the body. The witness has stated that she knocked on the door several times but seeing that no one responded and the door was unlocked, she opened it. And it all led up to this moment.

The victim's friends, seemingly informed last, arrived late on the scene – each wearing their own expressions. Martha Laurens, Amanda's closest friend, tried to barge into the scene with tears flooding out of her eyes. Jason Smith covered his face and distanced himself from the crowd. Holding back the hysteric Martha was Bill Madison, the glue that keeps their friend group together.

The staff asked the crowd to disperse, telling them they were interfering with their jobs. Martha and the rest proceeded to drink their grief away in the cafeteria. The others went their own way, with some going to the cafeteria, others to the recreation center, etc.

"This is our first trip together in 5 years. Why did this have to happen to us?" Martha sobbed, still unable to hold back her tears. "I'm sorry, this trip shouldn't have happened. We fucked up." Bill replied, full of regret.

"What do you mean?"

"Jason, why don't you explain this mess? Since you started this anyway."

"No, do you really think I'll say shit when there's somebody around us?" Jason refuted, his head tilting sideways.

"D… don't mind him, Jason. Isn't that what photographers do?" Martha replied in an attempt to pacify him. She poured him another cup and handed it over.

"He can do that elsewhere. Fuck off while asking nicely," receiving his drink, Jason hissed.

"That guy's quite creepy, really. He never talks, always everywhere, and he's got a weak presence. He usually gets ignored, but I heard he keeps visiting the kitchen late at night." Bill whispered warily.

"People say his dad just died."

Jason looked at Bill and then back at Martha. "The thing is…"

Martha's eyes grew wide at the revelation. The group continued to converse as their whispers turned to murmurs.

…

Meanwhile, there seems to be a ball going on in the center. With Taylor Swift's "Lover" on play, the ladies sang to the tune. The guys are all smiles as they try to forget a murder just happened on the ship. Not all guys are as carefree though.

"Who do you think is next?"

"Dude, you're being too paranoid. I don't think the killer's brave enough to do it again. He's not even sure if he's entirely safe right now. Besides," the guy in sunglasses pointed at the crowd. "Why do you think we hosted this? Isn't it to prevent people from panicking and acting like what you're doing right now?"

"You can never be too careful. I'd watch out for myself if I were you, Victor."

"Whatever man," Victor walked towards his seat and ate his dinner. "Hey Carl, you're gonna pass on this?" He then proceeded to put a whole steak into his mouth, its oil sticking on his cheek.

"Eat properly, you asshole," Carl rushed to his seat and took a portion of Victor's meal.

"Goddammit!"

"You let your guard down. That was entirely on you."

A soft voice whispered from behind their ear. "Would you like to dance with me?"

"I don't dance. Victor, it's your time to shine."

"No. Buishy. Eathing.". Victor replied with his mouth still full.

"Hey how about that g-" Thinking of passing on his burden, Carl looked for a scapegoat. The only choice he saw seemed difficult to deal with so he awkwardly smiled and sighed. He now has no choice but to step up himself. "You know what? Fine, I'll go."

The lady wore a questioning look before smiling and taking Carl's arm. The pair walked towards the center and danced. If you can still call that dancing, that is. Carl was awkward as hell, rigid too. He looked very happy, they seemed to be having a conversation. Too bad though.

"Ho, this guy. Careful my ass, you look like you're having a great time right now. I wouldn't even be shocked to hear you say 'I can die in peace.' I pity you, lady. You'll have to deal with Carl." Victor smirked as he ate a mouthful of rice.

At this moment an announcement rang. "Can I please have your attention? I want all of you to cooperate with me and come to the temporary interrogation room."

…

Finally, some warmth. Morning has come, the birds are loud as fuck. Everybody's faces were a bit brighter getting ready to eat their fill. That didn't last for long, though. The sound of someone running echoed through the halls. Victor's panic-stricken face was as clear as day. "Has anyone seen Carl? HAS ANYBODY SEEN CARL?"

"Isn't he in his room? Stop overreacting."

"Do I look dumb to you? You think I didn't check?"

"Yo, calm down, calm down. I know we're all worked up here but you shouldn't add fuel to the fire." Bill interfered, getting in between the two. "We'll check the room once more and all of us can he-"

"Aaaah!"

A scream interrupted Bill.

It was Martha's. Bill frowned, rushing towards the direction of her voice. Everyone else, including Victor, followed suit.

"What, what happened?" Bill asked, catching his breath.

"It's Jason…"

"What about Jason?"

"Look," Martha pointed forward. Bill turned his head and Jason was there.

The interior of the supposedly monochromatic kitchen has been painted red. A pool of blood gathered around Jason.He was sprawled on the floor, his mouth was carved up, turning into an everlasting smile. His chest was cut open, his heart taken out. In its place was a note composed of letters taken from different magazines.

"I'm heartless"

Of course, no one would laugh at this masterpiece of a joke considering the situation. Plop. A woman dropped down to the ground, her legs seemed to have given out. Few people even vomited. They were to blame though, they knew what they were getting into. If you can't stomach gruesome things, you shouldn't have looked.

"For Pete's sake, they're not letting us breathe."

"Oh hey, David. How was last night's autopsy?"

"Equipment was severely limited since we're on a ship. Only a few details were found. Victim died due to severe blood loss, the carotid artery was cut. The killer seems to know the human body quite well and has a twisted personality. The key to her room was found lodged in the wound. No traces of the killer were found and the murder weapon is assumed to be thrown to the sea for disposal," David briefly paused and looked through the papers. "Victim's screen shows the contact list containing the names of: Lance Jefferson, Martha Laurens, Nick Tyson, Niel Welsh, Oprah Luster, Phineas Unferb, Quincy Crow. Two of which are passengers of the ship. It is likely that Ms. Young has attempted to ask for help from her friend Ms. Laurens." David adjusted his glasses. "The alibi I got from the people also doesn't help, everyone's clean. Too clean."

"Sheesh, what the hell is wrong with the world? Who do you think it is?"

"I don't have a clue, at all. I'm not a detective. We're lacking so much manpower that I have to work as one. Why don't you help me out?"

"I'll have to politely decline," Justine awkwardly laughed. "That definitely isn't part of my job description. I'll work with the bodies, you'll need an expert like me to do the autopsy of Jason. What will the others do without me, right?"

"Alright, fine. We'll continue the procedures. Please escort those who are barfing away. Mr. Bill Madison, can you cooperate with us?"

"Of course, no problem."

…

While the investigation was being conducted in the kitchen, the other people were dragged around Victor's goose chase.

"Let's just check his room one more time, maybe he overslept," a plump man, obviously tired from all the searching, frowned.

"It's locked."

"Then we just have to open it."

Several people working together managed to forcefully open the door. A sigh of relief could be heard as Victor saw his friend sleeping peacefully on his bed.

"Wake up, Carl. How long do you plan on sleeping?" He repeatedly nudged his friend. "He's… He's not waking up."

Only then did he notice a detail that he had ignored due to his enthusiasm. There was a note on his nightstand.

"He did die peacefully, Victor. Just like you said.

P.S. It wasn't supposed to be you but your actions compelled me to."

It was written in childlike handwriting using crayons.

"Who is it? Who heard me say that? I… I can't remember. Fuck, I drank too much. No, no way." Victor shaked his friend one more time. "CARL! CARL!"

And then silence. Victor just froze there, tears silently running down his cheeks.

Swiftly reaching into his inner pocket, Victor took out a gun. All of us were caught off guard.

"Come out before I completely lose it. I won't mind shooting you one by one."

Rushed footsteps approached the room. David appeared with a few of the staff, as well as security. "What happened to Carl?"

"He's dead. And if you don't find out who did it, you might be next."

"Okay, just calm down and we can work. We all know it's stressful but don't we all want this to end?" David amicably approached Victor, slowly getting closer.

The security apprehended Victor upon being given David's signal. "I'll be confiscating your gun for a bit. I promise I'll give it to you once everything is over. We'll be back on land soon."

"David, Sir. Traces of amygdalin have been found in the kitchen." Another medical staff entered the room, reporting the findings from the kitchen.

"Amygdalin… No way. Where'd he find the time to-" David paused, realizing something. "Is that it? He only took action now because it took that long to create?" He checked up on Carl, trying to look for clues. "Then, did he kill Jason because he saw him taking it out or is he one of his targets? Too many questions unanswered. We need to examine both bodies thoroughly, quick."

…

Everybody wasn't in the mood for breakfast but it is vital. I mean, even the medical staff is here and they have work to do. The dining hall is the best place for filling your stomach and acquiring information. Lots of things get carelessly talked about here.

"So the thing you're escaping from… you think it's related to this?"

"Hey, I miss Mr. Jefferson who died just recently. I'm glad his son followed in his footsteps."

"Yes, it is."

"Hey, Cassandra just lent me this taser thingy."

"I liked his photographs. He took my son's graduation picture one time."

"Let me borrow that OMG!"

"His killer's on the run, I hope they find him."

The place was bustling with activity. The sound of utensils bumping, the smell of beef emanating from the kitchen, and the cold uncomfortable steel chairs completes the whole experience.

…

With the rest of the day being uneventful, another commotion has disrupted the "peace" of the ship. "Please, I just want to ask one thing. Let me talk to him," Bill, being out of character, looked frantic as he pleaded with the security.

"I already told you, there are two bodies to take care of. We're already understaffed as we are, we can't have you waste our time for no reason."

"It's important, I heard Mr. Zar talk about something in the dining hall."

"And what could that be, Mr. Madison? Also, did your mother not tell you that eavesdropping is bad?"

"I'm sorry, I'll accept any punishment but you have to hear me out. I… I was involved in the death of Mr. Jefferson, it was by accident but we panicked and before we knew it, we were wanted by the cops. The reason why we're on this cruise ship was to escape. We were planning to start over in another country." Bill kneeled on the floor, his head hung low. "I… I'll surrender, just keep Martha safe. He's after me, his son is after us. I realized that as soon as Amanda died. As long as you promise me that, I'll cooperate."

David's eyes were filled with disbelief, he clenched his fist in anger but held himself back. "You're going to pay for your crimes, kid. And about Martha? Just make sure she's innocent and I'll keep my end of the deal. The moment I notice any form of deceit, you're dead." He pointed to a security personnel. "Hey, you. Escort him to where they keep the list of passengers. Look for a person with the surname Jefferson."

"Yes, sir."

…

Amanda and I were, at some point in my life, lovers. My father was very supportive of us, he would take care of Amanda in the same way he took care of me. Oddly though, all of a sudden, his attitude towards her changed. We would not be able to contact each for days. I blamed my father, angrily cursing at him for meddling in my matters. I did that everyday until one night, he didn't come home. I looked for him, fear overwhelming my mind. When I finally did, I saw three people and my father's corpse.

I couldn't believe it, time seemed to freeze. The days where I berated him came back to me. He didn't even give me a chance to ask for forgiveness. I wasn't able to tell that it really wasn't his fault, and I knew it. In my most vulnerable state, I needed comfort – I needed Amanda. But, all of a sudden, she was unreachable. I couldn't contact her on any social media platform.

At first I only tried to see how she was doing but then I saw her go out with one of the three people one day. Was this the reason I couldn't contact her all of a sudden? I eavesdropped on their conversation, and there I found out they were boarding the recently available cruise. They also talked about something along the lines of escaping.

I needed to talk, I needed to talk to Amanda. I also bought a ticket to the cruise. At this point I've barely groomed myself, it was so bad to the point where my own father won't even recognize me.

And that's where it all started. The origin of this hellhole.

…

Shuffling through the room, the officers got busy, scouring every nook and cranny. They wouldn't let carelessness get in the way of their investigation. And there it was, the master list of all passengers – something I couldn't destroy as I didn't have any access to it.

We were finally looking through the list. And although there were a lot of people, it was time. Grabbing Martha away, I pointed Victor's gun at her head.

"Greetings to you, Bill Madison." I smiled like a madman.

This is the final part of my revenge, I've waited for days. I've spent countless nights thinking about how I'll make you people pay. I'll make you suffer the same fate as I did. Your girlfriend will die in front of you while you helplessly watch. Laughing, I chambered the round and-

Bam!

The sound of a gun was less loud than I imagined. Ah, is that Bill? Why is he still standing?

Bam!

Am I… on the ground? Huh, what is this warmth?

"At last," Victor laughed just as I did. Was that how I looked? "I knew it, I knew it was you. I remembered it, you were there. Carl, I've avenged you. It was your gun that did him in, Carl. It was yours."

David stepped in before things got any messier and ordered the security to quickly disarm Victor.

"Lance Jefferson, I understand your frustrations but did you really have to go this far? You even involved Carl, an innocent bystander. Your dad wouldn't want to see you in this state. I tried to protect you with all my might. I discarded my honor. I stood by and watched as people died."

No, you're wrong. He killed the woman that he danced with last night. Ah, it's pointless. My voice won't come out. I feel sleepy. Dad, can I sleep? Just a bit...