Sarah's Promotion

Sarah's Promotion
Sarah's POV

In my hands, the coffee mug exploded.

Hot coffee splashed all over my desk, and I jumped back. With little clinks, the ceramic fragments dropped to the ground. Once more, my hands glowed silver.

"Sarah?" Detective Martinez raised her head from her file. "You okay?"

I lied and grabbed paper towels to clean up the mess. "Yeah, just clumsy," I said.

I had broken three things this week. On Monday, a computer mouse. Tuesday, a door handle. My favorite coffee mug right now. Since Elena gave me her power, I've been unable to control my emotions when I'm upset or stressed.

And lately, I've been under a lot of stress.

"Detective Chen?" Officer Rodriguez entered our office and peered around. "Chief Morrison would like to see you. At this moment."

I felt sick to my stomach. There were only two reasons why Chief Morrison summoned people to his office. Either something terrible had happened, or you were in serious trouble.

I tried not to think about all the rules I had broken while working with Elena as I made my way down the hall to his office. Every instance in which we didn't precisely adhere to the correct police protocol.

When I knocked, Chief Morrison was seated behind his large wooden desk.

"Sarah, come in. Shut the door.

It was never good.

I took a seat in the chair across from his desk. Chief Morrison was a large, gentle-looking man with gray hair. For ten years, he had been my boss. I was afraid of disappointing him, but I also respected him.

He looked at a file on his desk and said, "Sarah." "We must have a conversation."

"About what, Chief?"

"Relating to your recent cases. Rivera, Marcus. The case of the college killer. that company at the parking garage of the courthouse."

My heart began to race. "I can explain—" said Chief.

He extended his hand. "In my thirty years of working as a police officer, Sarah, I have never witnessed anything like what you have been doing."

There was no doubt that I was in trouble.

"You discovered three bodies and obtained a complete confession, but the Marcus Rivera case was unsolvable. There could have been a massacre at the college, but you saved dozens of students and apprehended several murderers."

I blinked. "Chief?"

"And even though Mike Foster was armed and dangerous, you managed to persuade him to surrender peacefully yesterday rather than shooting him."

"I spoke with him just now."

Chief Morrison bent forward. "How long have you been working with Elena Voss, Sarah?"

My blood became icy. "I'm not sure what you mean."

"I've been a police officer longer than you have, Sarah. I can tell when one of my investigators is concealing something.

I gazed at my hands. Shall I be honest with him? That Elena wasn't a person? That I had superhuman abilities now? That the normal police couldn't deal with the monsters we'd been fighting?

"Chief, some cases call for... unconventional methods."

"I understand." He took out a few pictures from the file. These images are taken at crime scenes in five different states. every unsolved homicide. All with the same peculiar details.

I studied the pictures. No evidence was found for the bodies. murderers who appeared to disappear. Odd symbols are painted on walls.

"The FBI has been following these cases for the past two years, Sarah. They believe that a nationwide network of supernatural murderers is at work.

My jaw dropped. "The FBI is aware of crimes involving supernatural forces."

Chief Morrison's gaze darkened. "A tiny division works. Very little. Extremely confidential. They also desire you.

"Me?"

"This morning, I received a call from FBI Agent Martinez. You've demonstrated a unique ability to solve cases that seem impossible, she said. She wants to give you a job offer.

I remembered the fictitious FBI agent Martinez who had attempted to murder Elena and me. "How do you know this Agent Martinez is real, Chief?"

"Because I've known Sarah for fifteen years. Prior to her joining the FBI, we collaborated. He crossed the desk and slid a business card. "This is Agent Martinez in real life. Not the person posing as her last week.

I took the card. The fake one had the same official appearance.

"I don't get it, Chief. Why would I be wanted by the FBI?

"Because you are capable of things that other detectives cannot. You resolve cases that shouldn't be resolved. You notice patterns that others overlook. He hesitated. "And because you could be the key to stopping something really bad," says Agent Martinez.

"What kind of bad?"

"Some people hunt supernatural beings, Sarah. To apprehend them, not to prevent them from harming innocent people. to do horrible things with their abilities."

Under the desk, my hands began to glow silver. "What kind of people?"

"The type that abducts families. The kind that steal supernatural abilities through rituals. Chief Morrison's voice became very quiet. "The kind that could have killed your parents last week."

I leaped out of my seat. "You know about that?"

"Sarah, we look into the disappearance of two veteran police officers. Twelve of our officers, your sister, and your parents. The same group took them all.

"The Organization."

Chief Morrison gave a nod. "For years, Agent Martinez has been pursuing them. She believes you can assist in locating them.

"How?"

He took out a second file. I'm elevating you to Lead Detective, Sarah. You will have access to all of our information on supernatural crimes, including FBI databases and state police records.

My mind was racing. "I don't get it, Chief. Why are you telling me all of this?

"Sarah, because there are other supernatural beings attempting to assist people besides Elena Voss. Additionally, there are other groups attempting to harm them besides The Organization.

He pulled out a map of the United States from his computer. There were red dots all over it.

"Unsolved supernatural crimes are represented by each dot. Unusual attacks, murders, and disappearances. The pattern demonstrates how they are all related.

I tallied the dots. They numbered in the hundreds.

"We believe The Organization is assembling an army, Sarah. They're gathering supernatural creatures in an attempt to produce more individuals just like you.

"People like me?"

"Supernaturally gifted people who maintain their human appearance. Those who are able to work during the day, when most supernatural beings are less powerful.

Elena had informed me that I was no longer fully human. I was starting to see why that was so risky now.

"What specifically do you want me to do, Chief?"

Collaborate with Agent Martinez. Track The Organization across state lines with your new role. Look for patterns we haven't noticed."

He gave me a fresh badge. It read "Lead Detective - Supernatural Crimes Division" and was silver in color.

"You're the first police officer to ever work in this division, Sarah. You were specifically requested by Agent Martinez.

I felt the weight of the badge as I held it. Compared to my previous one, it was heavier.

"How about Elena?"

Chief Morrison's face darkened. "No government database contains Elena Voss, Sarah. No social security number, no birth certificate, and no records in any location.

"She's not dangerous because of that."

"No, but it indicates that she has been evading the authorities for a very long time. "Why?"

Elena's silver eyes and superhuman abilities came to mind. About the numerous lives she had spared from murderers the police were unable to apprehend.

"Perhaps she was hiding from individuals such as The Organization."

Perhaps. Or perhaps she has been evading us.

A text message buzzed on my phone. My blood froze when I looked at it.

"Sarah," the message read. "This is Agent Martinez in real life. Nobody at the police station is trustworthy. Your boss is one of the many people in the organization. In an hour, meet me at the old church on Main Street. Come by yourself. Your family is dependent on it.

Chief Morrison was grinning at me like a proud father when I looked up at him.

"Sarah? Is everything alright?

I gazed at my new badge, then at the text message, and finally at the man I had trusted for a decade.

Chief Morrison was employed by The Organization if the message was authentic.

I was on the verge of falling into yet another trap if the message was fraudulent.

Someone was lying to me, anyway.

Furthermore, I was unable to identify which one it was.

"Chief," I said slowly, "I have a question for you."

"Obviously."

"How did you find out last week that my parents were abducted? I never filed a missing persons' report.

Chief Morrison's grin dimmed.

"You naturally reported them missing, Sarah. Do you not recall?"

However, I did recall. I was certain that The Organization had taken them, so I had not filed a missing persons' report.

Chief Morrison could only be aware of my parents if he was employed by The Organization.

Or if I was going crazy and he was telling the truth.

Under the desk, my hands began to glow brighter.

"Chief Morrison," I said cautiously, "what's my middle name?"

He blinked. "What?"

"My middle name. For ten years, you have been my boss. What is my middle name?

Chief Morrison gave me a long loo
k.

Then he grinned, but it wasn't the warm smile he usually had.

It was hungry and cold.

"You're asking the wrong questions, Sarah," he said in a voice that no longer sounded like him.