Skyfall

Niall let a large grin come over his face as he waved goodnight to the rest of the lads. The concert had been one of the best ones he’d ever done. But when you were performing in the Tacoma Dome only the best was expected. He yawned, completely worn out from three encores and the drive back to their Seattle hotel and stopped, stretching in the hallway. He then reached in his pocket for his keycard, but it was gone. He frantically searched his other pocket and his wallet, but couldn’t find the card anywhere.

With a long sigh he made his way back down to the lobby, grabbed another one from the front desk, and made his way back up the stairs. He just hoped some crazed fan hadn’t grabbed it and snuck into his room. He opened the door slowly, expecting a naked teenager to be sprawled out across his bed, but the sight he found was much, much worse.

The first thing Harry heard was the scream. He threw open his door and raced down the hall to where Niall was standing, complexly white and shaking, in his doorway. “Niall, what happened?” The blonde boy said nothing; he didn’t do anything but stare into his room. Harry walked over and peered inside before his heart all but stopped in his chest. Louis, Zayn and Liam soon also made their way over, their eyes widening at the horror before them. “Louis.” Harry whispered.

“What?” None of them could look away from the scene. Harry swallowed nervously before turning to Louis, his green eyes clouded with some unknown emotion.

“Call the police.”

Aerabella Haddock groaned as her phone buzzed loudly on her dresser. She pulled herself up and looked at the clock. She grumbled again, knowing a phone call at two am was never good. She grabbed it off her nightstand, not even bothering to check to caller id. No one ever called her except the Seattle crime lab or police station.

“P.I. Haddock.” She said, trying to hide the sleep still tangled in her vocal chords.

“Aerabella.” It was Samantha, her inside C.S.I. for all the crime scenes. “You’re never going to believe this.” Aerabella held back a groan. A simple homicide was something Samantha thought she’d never believe. And for waking her up, this had better be something more than a simple robbery gone wrong.

“Try me.”

“You know that band that was supposed to be here? The British one?”

“Yeah, what about them?”

“A dead girl was just found in one of their rooms.” Aerabella shot up, instantly awake.

“What?”

“That’s not even the worst part.” Samantha said grimly. “Liver temp puts her T.O.D. around five tonight, right before their concert.”

“And I’m guessing none of them have solid alibis?”

“Nope.”

“So why are you telling me this? I can’t investigate unless-”

“I was getting to that.” She said. “You see, the only fingerprints on the inside doorknob are from the five boys.” Aerabella bit her lip, knowing what this meant.

“So you’re telling me one of them did it? They don’t even look like they could take a punch, let alone kill someone.”

“I know, but there’s this one… He’s got black hair and dark eyes, really really hot, anyway, he’s been way too calm about this whole thing. He doesn’t say much, he just keeps smoking his cigarettes, it’s starting to stink up the place.”

“Are you at the crime scene?”

“Yes but…”

“But what?”

“We’re not going to investigate.”

“What?” She whispered.

“Captain says that this one is untouchable. They could take our entire department down if they wanted. We can’t do anything.” Aerabella sighed, running her free hand through her hair. This was like Rickie all over again. The young girl was soon racing through the P.I.’s mind, refusing to leave. Her white eyes just staring at Aerabella... She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to get the small girl to leave her.

“So you want me to risk my career instead?” She finally said. She could just envision Samantha giving her sad nod.

“Captain Ross is calling you down come morning.”

“Well, tell him I’ll be right down. I’m already awake and I want to see the crime scene.”

“Alright, we’re at the Hilton.”

“I’ll see you in ten minutes.”

“And Ella?”

“Don’t call me that.” She said quickly. Samantha was a little taken aback at how cold her voice was, even over the phone. It was just a little nickname, what did it matter?

“Sorry, Aerabella. Anyway, good luck.” Aerabella sighed.

“Thanks.” With that she got up, her shoulder length brown hair falling around her face. She shoved it back again with her hand as she quickly got dressed, grabbing her gun and jacket before heading out the door.

The first thing she noticed about the hallway was the smell of smoke. She attempted not to gag as she kept walking over to where Captain Ross was. He was a short, round man, one who’d gone soft after leaving the front lines of the department. His grey hair was thin and his blue eyes clouded with age. His face was littered with wrinkles, most concentrated around the corners of his eyes and under them.

“Haddock.” He said simply as the young woman walked over to him. He could never understand what a young, beautiful girl like her would ever want to get into this line of work. With her once warm brown eyes and full lips she could have easily been a model. But instead she chose endless stress and sleepless nights.

“Ross.” She said plainly.

“The crime scene is right here.” He said, leading her down the hallway. She coughed lightly and he immediately frowned.

“Sorry, Zayn wanted to smoke and, well the kid did just see…” He stopped, pressing his lips together.

“Isn’t it illegal to smoke inside a hotel?” Aerabella asked, raising an eyebrow at him. Sure, they weren’t going to investigate, but letting him smoke inside a hotel? She rolled her eyes at how the whole SPD could be such kiss asses.

“What are we going to do, have him go outside and risk him running?” Ross quickly said, trying to cover his brown nosing. Aerabella simply sighed as they passed the room the smoke was originating from. She took a quick glance at the boy inside and was stunned at how beautiful he was.

His skin was tanned and dark with perfectly groomed eyebrows and defined cheekbones. Not one of the raven hairs on his head was out of place, all of it offset by a large blonde streak in the front. He took a long drag before he looked up, his honey brown eyes catching her. He pulled his hand away from his inviting lips and smirked at her, blowing smoke slowly out of his mouth as he sat on his bed.

He was far too calm for someone who just saw a body.

She narrowed her eyes as she walked to the next room and ducked under the crime scene tape. In the center of the room lay a girl. Her green eyes were dim as she stared at Aerabella. There were ligature marks around her wrists, she’d been tied up. Her pale skin was littered in scratches and cuts; some of them were almost fatal they were so deep. Her blonde hair hung limply around her shoulders; it was wet, as was the rest of her. Aerabella assumed immediately it had something to do with the endless rainstorm that was Seattle. She knelt down before turning back to Ross.

“Have you documented the body?” She asked, not looking at him.

“Yes.” Aerabella simply nodded before putting on gloves and closing the young girl’s eyes. She then stood up, looking at the rug. Judging by the deepness of the cuts and the lack of blood she assumed this wasn’t the primary crime scene. Someone had just dumped the body in the room.

“Where are the rest of the boys?” She asked, turning back to Ross. She had seen all she had to, besides, she knew that the CSI’s would have thoroughly documented the scene.

“They’re in their rooms, except Niall, he’s with Liam I think.”

“Alright, I’ll just talk to them while they’re all right here.”

“Haddock they have to rest for their show-”

“Look.” She snapped, getting in the plump man’s face. “I know that you guys are too scared to interrogate them, but I’m not. Call their manager and tell him to postpone the tour. They don’t leave Seattle until one of them is behind bars.” Ross sighed, he knew why she was like this, but she didn’t understand. There was so much political bull shit she didn’t have to worry about because she didn’t work for the state anymore. He hated it too, and that was why he knew that no one but Haddock could solve this case. She didn’t give a shit about anything but justice. It was great, especially with a case like this one.

“Follow me.” He said simply.

“Wait.” She said as he started leading her away from the room. She narrowed her eyes. “Smoking boy first.”

Zayn smirked again as the sexy woman from earlier walked in. He took another long drag as he sat up to look at her. She closed the door behind her and extended her hand. “Give me that.”

“Give you what?” He asked, trying to figure out how old she was. He didn’t normally go for older woman, but he might be able to make an exception for her. The layers in her hair framed her frame perfectly, and her ass was perfect; especially in those skinny jeans.

“The cigarette, either put it out or I put it out for you.”

“Didn’t you hear? I just witnessed something traumatic-”

“Save the bull shit for the cops.”

“You’re not a cop?” He asked, intrigued.

“I’m a Private Investigator that’s been assigned to your case, now put out the fucking cigarette.” She growled. Zayn bit his lip, loving the way she bossed him around.

“Yes ma’am.” He cooed, putting out his cigarette in the ashtray by his bed. “Now, what did you want to talk about? Because I would love to go downtown if you’re my escort.”

“Show some respect.” She snapped. “A girl was just murdered.”

“I didn’t know her.” Zayn said simply.

“Really?” She asked. “Because the only fingerprints on the inside of that door belong to you and the rest of your little boyfriends, so I suggest you start cooperating before I book all of you.” Zayn was seriously getting turned on by her just barking at him like that. He smirked and patted the spot on the bed next to him. She narrowed her eyes and grabbed a chair, sitting in front of him.

“Aw now come on, don’t be like that love.”

“Don’t you have a girlfriend?” She asked.

“Maybe.” He said, chewing on his lower lip. “But I’ve always wanted a mistress.”

“Not even in your dreams.” She said. “Now, where were you at five?”

“I’ll answer all your questions love, if you give me a kiss.”

“Fuck off.”

“Come on, just one little kiss and I’m all yours.” Aerabella scrunched up her nose, unable to believe what a pig this kid was. She stood going to leave before his voice stopped her.

“Where are you going?” He asked.

“If you won’t tell me what you did, maybe one of your little buddies will.” He pouted at her but she just rolled her eyes. “I hope you like Seattle, because at your rate of cooperation, you’re going to be here for a very long time.” She then slammed the door and made her way to the other boy’s rooms. The next one she went into belonged to a blue eyed brunette who looked up nervously at her.

“Hello.” He greeted. “Are you here to arrest me?”

“Not unless you’re the killer.” He chuckled.

“Trust me love, I’m not a killer.”

“That’s what they all say.” She said, pulling up another chair and sitting across from him.

“What’s your name?” He asked, his blue eyes watching her every move intently.

“I could ask you the same thing.”

“I’m Louis Tomlinson.”

“Aerabella Haddock. I’m the Private Investigator that’s been assigned to your case.”

“May I call you Elle?”

“You may call me Haddock if you don’t mind.”

“Fair enough, just trying to be friendly.” He said, shrugging.

“Alright, so where were you at five today?” He bit his lip.

“Five? I was here getting a quick nap before the show.”

“Do you have anyone who can verify that?”

“Not that I can think of, unless someone was watching me sleep.” She nodded.

“So you took a nap and then what?”

“Haz woke me up to go to the show around eight or nine.”

“Well which is it?” Louis pressed his lips together.

“I think nine, but you might want to double check with Haz.”

“Haz?”

“Sorry, Harry. The curly haired one with big green eyes.”

“Right. So he woke you up and…” She said, prompting him to continue.

“We got ready for the show. Performed, came back. I was just about to get in the shower when I hear this blood chilling scream. I ran out into the hallway to see Niall and…” He stopped, running one of his hands through his hair. “Harry told me to call the police, so I did.” Aerabella sighed, not wanting to bother him any further.

“Hey.” He looked up at her. “If you really want, you can call me Elle.” He smiled at her.

“Thanks, Elle.”

“Just don’t skip town or anything, alright Louis?”

“Will do.” With that she got up, going into the room of the boy Louis had just been talking about. He looked up at her with his stunning green eyes.

“I assume you’re Harry.” She said, looking at him. He flipped his moppy brown curls out his face.

“Yeah, who’re you? I’m not talking to any damn pap.”

“I’m a private investigator; I’ve been assigned to your case.” Aerabella answered.

“Oh.” Harry said, blushing lightly. “Sorry, you just don’t look like and investigator.”

“I get that a lot.” She said. “Now, where were you at five?”

“Getting ready for the show, then I watched a movie, then I woke up Lou around nine and we left.”

“What movie?”

“Casino Royale. You, know, the James Bond movie?”

“I know it. So you got ready, watched that and then went to the show. What happened when you came back?”

“I heard Niall scream and ran out. Then I told Louis to call the police.”

“Why didn’t you call them yourself?”

“I think I forgot my phone in a cab or something. I haven’t seen it all day.”

“Hmm…” Was all Haddock said. Harry looked at her nervously. “Is it true what they’re saying? That it was one of us?”

“I can’t tell you that.” She said simply.

“That can only mean one thing.” He muttered. He looked back up at her, his green eyes looking like emeralds in the light of his room.

“Alright, I’ll be keeping in touch.” She said.

“Miss.”

“Yes?”

“It wasn’t one of us. It’s not possible.” He whispered.

“We’ll see.” She said simply before closing the door. She let out a long sigh. The only one who seemed fishy so far was Zayn, but she still had two more boys to go. She knocked on the last door before it was opened by another handsome brunette. Aerabella felt her cheeks get warm as his brown eyes met hers. He looked much older than the other boys, with his cropped brown hair and intense eyes. But it was his lips that she couldn’t seem to pull her eyes away from, they looked so soft. She quickly cleared her throat, remembering why she was here.

“I’m P.I. Haddock; I’m here to question you guys.”

“Right.” He said. “Do you need me to leave?”

“I can just talk to you out here if you’d prefer.” He nodded quickly before closing the door and leaning against it. In his tight shirt she could see the outlines of his biceps and felt the blush trying to creep back onto her face. She fought it back as she looked at the hypnotic young man. “So, where were you at five?”

“I was getting dinner.” He said. “I threw out the receipt, but I’m sure the waitress will remember me.”

“Where was this?”

“Some place called Dick’s. It’s a-”

“Burger place, I do know my city Mr…”

“Payne. Liam Payne.”

“Aerabella Haddock.”

“Nice to meet you.” He said coldly. “Anyway I was there before I came back and got ready for the show. It was the one that’s closest to the hotel.”

“How did you get there?”

“I walked.”

“In the pouring rain?” She asked. He simply shrugged.

“It doesn’t bother me. Now is that all you needed to know?”

“What did you do after the show?”

“I heard Niall scream and ran out here.”

“Is Niall inside?”

“Yeah. He’s a bit of a wreck though.” She nodded, pulling her eyes away from the beautiful man.

“I’m used to it unfortunately.”

“Would you rather he be skipping down the halls?” He growled. That was it, she was done being polite to this handsome bastard.

“Obviously not.” She snapped. “Now let me interview my last witness.” He glared at her before moving away from the door and sliding his key card. She stepped inside, slamming the door in Liam’s face. She then turned to the blonde boy shaking on the bed. A wreck was putting it mildly; he looked like he was going to be sick. She walked over and sat down next to him.

“Do you need a doctor?” She asked. He shook his head before looking up at her. His blue eyes were glistening with tears.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Aerabella Haddock; I’m going to be investigating your case.” Niall nodded, looking back at the ground. “Now, I need you to tell me where you were at five.”

“Today?” She nodded at the blonde boy. “I was getting ready for the show, then I took a nap, then I ordered room service before we left.”

“And what about after the show?”

“I was about to go in my room when I noticed my key card was gone. I went back down to the lobby, got a new one, and came back up to see…” A tear slipped down his cheek before he quickly wiped it away. “I’m sorry.” He whispered.

“It’s alright.” She promised. “Take your time.” He nodded.

“Obviously I screamed. Everyone came running and then Lou called the police. Then Liam took me into his room and I’ve been here ever since.” She nodded, patting him lightly on the shoulder.

“Thank you Niall.” She said. She started to leave, but his voice stopped her.

“Wait, Miss Haddock.”

“Yes?”

“Did she…” He looked up at her with those beautiful eyes. “Did she suffer?” Aerabella thought of all the stab wounds and the marks. That girl had gone to Hell and back, but she couldn’t ruin this poor boy anymore tonight.

“No.” She lied. “It was painless.” He nodded lightly.

“That’s good I guess.” He whispered.

“I’ll be seeing you soon Niall.”

“Miss Haddock?” He said, stopping her again. His eyes were breaking her heart. “It couldn’t be one of us. It just… it couldn’t. Could it?” She was silent for a long time before opening the door.

“Goodnight Niall.”