Chapter 5 Silver Sprinkles

Asher's POV

"He is outside!" someone yelled, the loud voice cutting straight through my racing thoughts. I snapped out of my daze instantly, my feet moving on instinct as I turned and ran toward the station entrance alongside the other officers.

When we burst through the doors, the sight made me freeze. The suspect was just standing there in the middle of the courtyard, his arms spread wide to the open air. A creepy, satisfied smile was stretched completely across his face.

"Stay right where you are or I shoot!" the officers shouted, their voices echoing. They all raised their guns on him, clicking off the safeties as they began taking slow, tense steps closer to him.

He didn't move an inch. He just stood there, tilting his head up to the sun as if deeply inhaling the hot sunlight air.

The next thing he did, he dropped his arms slowly.

Then he reached down, took off something from his fingers, and then looked right back at us. His eyes locked onto mine, and I could swear he was completely fixated on staring at me.

He smiled again, and... the next horrifying thing happened. His whole body was suddenly engulfed by hot burning furnace.

"Ahhhhhhhhh!"

He screamed, a blood curdling sound as all of us just stood there, frozen to the spot by the horrific sight of the man instantly burning alive unprovoked.

"What's happening?!" a lieutenant yelled, his voice cracking in sheer panic.

I had never felt so much crippling fear in my entire life. I stood there, trying to blink multiple times, desperately needing to know if I was actually seeing right or if I was losing my mind.

Minutes later, the fire finally quenched on its own, leaving behind nothing but a dark, smoldering heap on the pavement.

My legs felt like lead, but I forced them to move, stepping closer and closer to the body until I finally got there. I leaned down and stared at the burnt remains. He was completely unrecognizable.

An hour later, the station was quiet again....the heavy atmosphere hanging over everyone. The forensics had already carried the body out of the station because they needed to do an immediate autopsy on him. I sat on a bench, my head in my hands, my mind spinning. I mean... how can someone just be on fire like that without gasoline or an accelerant?

"Hey," a soft voice suddenly caught me off my thoughts.

I looked up to see a young guy standing there. He was a police officer, complete with a gun, a badge, and everything, sporting bright ginger hair.

He sat down right close to me on the bench.

"My name is Aiel Littletown," he said, stretching out his hand for me to shake.

I brought out my hand from my pocket to meet his. "I am Asher Rider," I said, shaking his hand with a tired grip.

"Sorry about your friend," he said softly, looking down at his boots. "Jace was one of the best men we had here. Really funny guy."

Best man? I didn't exactly agree with that in honestly, Jace absolutely hated work and jobs, but a really funny guy? That was definitely true. I let out a little scoff, a sad smile slipping out before I could stop it. "I need to get drunk, man," I muttered, staring at the floor.

"I know a place," Aiel said, turning to look at me.

I tilted my head, turning my face to meet his gaze.

Hours later, the clock had already ticked past 9:00 PM in the evening. I was back at my house, and I had just finished getting dressed.

When I stepped outside, Aiel was already waiting for me right at the front of my house, the car engine idling. I didn't know what else to do, I just wanted to get drunk enough to completely pass out. If I could, I wanted to sleep for a whole week, that suffocating feeling of just not wanting to face your reality anymore.

Almost an hour later, Aiel pulled up to the curb, and I realized he had driven me straight to a club.

The entire street was buzzing with loud, heavy music, and honestly, I was expecting a quiet bar... not a full blown club.

"What's wrong? Let's get in," Aiel said, opening his car door.

I stood on the pavement, looking at the massive crowd of people swarming into the club's entrance.

"I just wanted to get drunk, man. Not this..." I muttered, gesturing to the flashing neon lights.

"You will enjoy it," he said, not taking no for an answer as he grabbed me by the hand and dragged me straight into the noisy venue.

A little while later, I sat at a small table in the corner, just gulping down strong alcoholic drinks one after the other. They were incredibly strong... I didn't even know their names, nor did I care. I was already three bottles in, and my eyes were burning, the whole room getting blurry and spinning around me.

"Waiter!" I yelled over the music, slamming my empty glass down. "Please, give me more drinks! Someone killed my friend!" I shouted into the noise.

"Hey... hey, easy," a familiar voice said somewhere right in front of me, though the words sounded muffled.

Suddenly, through the loud music, I heard the surprisingly loud clicking of heels approaching my table. I tilted my face up, trying to look at the towering image standing over me... but I was way too drunk to see clearly. I saw a tall wall? No... a tall suit... with silver sprinkles glistening on top of it.

I squinted my eyes hard, trying to know if I was even seeing right. But no matter how hard I tried to focus, I still just saw a tall, black painted wall standing right in front of me.

I forced myself up from my seat, swaying on my feet, and started reaching out to touch the wall. My fingers brushed against it......it felt soft, like expensive fabric... something exactly like a suit.

"Ahah!" I slurred, letting out a loud laugh. I was right. "This is a suit."

I kept moving my hands, touching the fabric until my fingers finally slid upward and touched bare cold skin. Instantly I pulled my hand back at once, a sudden jolt running through me.

"Hey... why is it so cold?" I muttered, shivering slightly.

It felt like the skin... was actually made of pure ice.

"I could sue you for sexual harassment, love," a cold smooth voice said from above.

I immediately took a clumsy step back, my eyes widening. Wait? Was I actually touching... a person? I honestly thought it was just a piece of clothing standing there.

"Like....you weren't enjoying my touch," I blurted out, as my stomach began to flip...a nauseous feeling rising up my throat. "I think... I want to throw up."