“Well, thank you for your hospitality,” Octavia began. As she turned back to Mrs. Smile to say her final farewell, bowing her head, she saw Colette half hidden behind her mother.
Colette stared unblinkingly at Ann. Clutching tightly at the hem of her mother’s dress, she didn’t say a word. Of course, she could no longer remember Ann—this was to be expected.
Ann gave Colette a quick glance, but she was also expressionless. She had lost her memories of Colette, too. Again, this was to be expected. Octavia had no right to sigh about it. So she simply turned on her heel, prepared to leave things as they were.
But Colette, apparently having found some courage, stepped forward. “Excuse me!” she cried. “Would you like to be my friend?”
“Eh?” Raven blurted out in surprise. He probably didn’t know to whom Colette was referring. Mrs. Smile also looked perplexed.
“Would that be all right, Lady Octavia?” inquired Ann, however, assuming naturally that this referred to her.
Silent, Octavia gave Ann a slight nod.
Ann turned to face Colette again. “If you would be happy to have me as a friend, I would be delighted.”
As if meeting for the first time, but also as if there had always been some sort of bond between them, the two faced each other.
Hat, Octavia called out quietly.
The all-knowing, all-seeing hat replied, “This can sometimes happen.”
“Why, it seems as if I’ve been rejected. She hasn’t given me so much as a glance.” Raven smiled, standing next to Octavia.
She looked at his face in profile for a moment. Pursing her lips, she opened her mouth again. “Ann, Colette, the two of you should exchange addresses. Mrs. Smile, would you kindly lend me a notepad?”
Mrs. Smile had been standing by Colette, looking surprised, but then she said, “Ah, yes. Yes, you’re right,” expressing her agreement again and again until she seemed to come to her senses. She went to fetch the notepad. While they waited, Colette and Ann started to introduce themselves.
“I’m Colette.”
“My name is Ann.”
I think I can leave the rest to them, thought Octavia. Grabbing Raven by the wrist, she dragged him to another corner of the grounds around the mansion, out of view and out of earshot.
“What is it, Octavia? Could it be that you want to comfort me, now that I’ve lost this prospective marriage?”
“Where were you last night?”
Raven blinked at this sudden question. “Where, you say? Just where I told the police I went. After you ran off in pursuit of the doll, I went with some constables to apprehend our prime suspect. Since we were already acquainted, I said I would try to talk to him first, so the constables waited outside while I went into his mansion. However, by the time I found him, the suspect was already in his present state and in no condition to talk to me. Well, since he confessed, there shouldn’t be any problems.”
“Were you really not left alone at any point? Not even on your way to the suspect’s mansion?”
For an instant, Raven’s expression turned serious. Or so Octavia thought—but then he smiled, the corners of his mouth curling up and his eyes narrowing into inverted crescent moons. Before reason returned to Octavia’s mind, she felt her skin crawl.
“Let me see. I took the car to his mansion, so I suppose I was alone for that span of time. But I was sure to arrive at the mansion along with the constables, so I could just as well say that I wasn’t alone. After that... Well, directly after I entered the mansion, I guess I was alone. I did have the constables wait outside for a moment. But as soon as I heard the culprit scream, I immediately met up with the constables, so you can hardly say I was left alone.”
Octavia was silent.
“Octavia, it looks like this man really is—” Hat began.
“Why do you ask?” His smile was like a thin sheet of ice, hiding his emotions perfectly. Raven peered unblinkingly at Octavia’s face.
I’d been wary of the man this whole time, even though he hadn’t done anything. I kept wondering why I felt that way. Octavia finally had the answer to her question. She was frightened of him.
This man—still smiling, licking his lips—was apparently enjoying himself from the bottom of his heart.
This is a bad man. Catching a glimpse of Raven’s eyes, Octavia clenched her fists tightly. I have no doubt that he would deceive me without a second thought. No, he may already have done so. And he would enjoy it. He was truly an enigma. What has he done? Why has he done it? Now that Octavia had considered these questions, she could no longer take her eyes off of him. Now that she was aware of this fear, she could do something about it.
“Could it be that you suspect me of some wrongdoing?”
“No,” Octavia replied. “Not at all.”
Raven blinked, looking almost disappointed. Octavia once again thought to herself that it was unfair of him, acting so childlike, but only whenever she interrogated him like this.
She couldn’t help but find it cute, and that was why she would end up being deceived.
“I don’t suspect you,” she said. “I mean, there’s no evidence.” And I am a detective.
“Is that right?” Looking either bored or satisfied by this response, Raven rejoined the conversation. “Then I’m not suspicious.”
“No, you’re not.”
“In that case, you’ll make me your assistant, then?”
“Sure.”
Raven had been sneering, as if to say, Of course you won’t, but Octavia’s curt reply wiped his face clean. He froze.
“Are you serious, Octavia?! This is no joke. I’m dead against it!” cried the all-knowing, all-powerful hat on Octavia’s head. He wanted her to know she was making a mistake.
But in order to avoid being sucked in by the eyes that stared back at her, Octavia just smiled. “I’ll make you my assistant. If that’s what you want, of course.” Before he could steal what he wanted from her, she’d give it to him.
Raven scowled, flabbergasted, as if he had been physically slapped. This man who so loved to toy with others apparently did not enjoy being toyed with himself.
Octavia had uncovered one mystery. This feeling of superiority was the best part of being a detective.
“Well, then, shall we head home? I’ll leave the driving to you,” said Octavia to Raven, slapping him on the back to urge him along. She would leave the driving to Raven, but how would she decide their next destination as they moved forward? Everything rested on Detective Octavia’s shoulders.