"What?" Anthony seethed, his fists clenched. Carter killed Eric? But...

Emma's and Scarlett's eyes doubled in size, all the color draining from their faces. They were so still, one would think they were statues if it hadn't been for Scarlett's left eyebrow twitching furiously.

Carter got up, inhaling a shaky breath. "I... I need," he gulped, his words raspy and quick because of how fast he was breathing. Feeling hot all over and suffocating within his own body, he took two shaky steps before gripping the sofa for support.

His fingers dug in the soft cushion, knuckles turning White because of the pressure, he turned his head slowly to look at Levi.

"You... you know..."Carter's eyebrows furrowed, breath still coming out short.

"I know," Levi stated simply.

A long look passed between the two men, each staring at the other without blinking.

"I can't be here," Carter said shaking his head, leaving the room with wobbly steps.

The room got silent after that. Extremely silent. Scarlett could hear her heartbeat in her ears, could hear Emma breathing next to her. The creepy silence was deafening, almost sucking the air out of the room.

"What just happened?" Ella asked, her wide eyes even wider, shattering the silence.

Levi regarded Ella with a cold look, forgetting that she was even there. He got up straightening his coat and started making his way to the exit.

"Wait-" Matteo called out before Levi interrupted him, his voice deep and authoritative.

"Not now."

Charlotte bit her bottom lip as she saw her husband leave, his steps stiff. Levi was distressed, she could tell. Normally he would be cocky, his demeanor cool as he'd regard the police or detective with a look that said, "I'm better than all of you."

This time, however, Levi was deeply disturbed, his face void of any emotions.

***

Carter was sitting on his bed, gazing at the object clenched tightly in his left hand. It was a diamond-studded ink pen, gifted to him by Emma on completing his thesis. Carter rotated it in his hands, watching how the clear diamond sparkled as it caught the light.

Seeing it, his memory took him back to the day when Emma had thrust the box excitedly in Carter's hand, urging him to open it that second.

Despite the situation he was in right now, Carter smiled softly at the memory.

"Open it, open it!" Emma said, shaking Carter.

Carter laughed after getting over the shock. He took the Black velvet box, a ribbon wrapped neatly around it. Feeling the weight of the box in his hand, Carter's mind wondered as to what it could be. With bated breath he pulled one end of the ribbon as it opened effortlessly and loosened, gathering in his hand.

Carter quickly shoved the ribbon in his pocket and finally opened the box.

Emma held back a squeal as she saw Carter's expressions morph from confusion to shock and then finally to awe.

Carter stared at the beautiful, sleek black pen sitting snugly in the box. He took it out cautiously and turned it upright to look at the diamond embedded at the top of the cap. His breath got caught in his throat.

"Emma..." he whispered, "It's beautiful! Thank you so much!"

"I knew you'd like it!"

"You didn't have to," Carter smiled at her, his heart expanding. Without thinking, he grabbed Emma's hand and pulled her into a tight hug, breathing in her scent.

Emma wasn't expecting the sudden gesture but melted into the hug nonetheless. Carter wasn't one for showing emotions or physical interactions. The air around them had gotten awkward when they released each other.

"This is not for using okay?" Emma cleared her throat, trying to dissipate the awkwardness.

"I can't even if I wanted to," Carter smirked and then simply said. "It's an ink pen."

"Okay...?" Emma frowned.

He only laughed, putting the pen back in its case.

Carter felt his heart constrict as his vision got blurry, not being able to hold back the tears anymore. Even though he could barely make out the pen, he still twirled it in his hand, the weight and feel of it calming his nerves a bit.

How many times had Carter sat like this, Emma's gift in his hand, taking comfort in it whenever he felt down?

The pen was the most valuable and treasured thing to him, and not just because of the huge diamond embedded into it. A couple of tears silently escaped Carter's eyes and fell on the pen still clutched tightly in his hand. He desperately tried to wipe the tears, his wool sweater not doing a great job at drying them.

A sharp knock sounded at the door, startling Carter. He didn't think anybody would want to see him right. Maybe it's Anthony coming to beat me into a pulp? He knew how possessive Anthony was about Eric. But it made sense to him.

Composing himself, he got up, squaring his shoulders and unlocked the door. He was not expecting the sight that greeted him.

Levi stood impatiently in front of Carter's door. Had he made a mistake? He thought as he shuffled his weight between his feet.

Moments later, the door swung and Carter stood there, mouth agape as he looked at Levi. He noticed the redness in Carter's eyes and nose. He had been crying, shit...

"You have some nerve," Carter gritted.

"Can we sit and talk?" Levi asked, then noticing the anger in his eyes, he said, "Please."

A few seconds passed before Carter sighed and opened the door wider, allowing him to enter the room.

"Were you writing something?" Levi started out slow, eyeing the pen in Carter's hand.

"What?" Confusion swam in Carter's eyes before he realized what he was referring to. "No, I was just looking at it."

"It's nice," Levi said awkwardly. He squinted his eyes in concentration when he spotted the diamond. "You write with a diamond pen, fancy," he continued. Levi knew he was stalling.

"I don't. I'm left-handed and writing with an ink pen is a-"

"Disaster," Levi finished for him.

Carter looked at him coldly before saying, "Why are you here? Why do you want to talk to me, a killer?"

Levi released a deep sigh. "Can we sit?" He gestured to the chairs by the window.

***

Scarlett was in her room, lying on the bed. Events of the past hour kept replaying in her mind like a broken reel. She still hadn't fully calmed down but felt emotionally numb, her mind had shut off.

Next to her, her phone buzzed, lighting up. Mindlessly, she picked it up and saw the notification. It was a reminder of an important date.

Eyes glued to the date, some life came back into Scarlett as her heart rate started to pick up gradually before thumping furiously in her chest.

She didn't need a reminder of it, she already knew, was always aware. It is his birthday tomorrow.

Scarlett felt the tears pricking her eyes, searing them. She unlocked her phone and pulled up his contact, gazing at his picture, her heart breaking all over again. The green call button tempted her to press it, her broken heart desperately yearning to hear his voice again.

She closed her eyes tightly, tears pooling at the corners. Her mind took her back to last year when they both were still together celebrating his birthday.

Scarlett bit her lip from excitement, trying to calm her heart down before she gave away her hiding position. She was in his home, hiding behind the sofa in his dining room, already having everything set up.

As soon as Scarlett heard movement outside the main door, she had scrambled to light all the candles on the cake before he came in. It was a surprise for him, for his birthday.

It had only been two years ago when she came across him, and she was grateful for it every day. Her whole life had turned upside down but in a good way. He gave a new meaning to her life.

As soon as he entered the room, Scarlett jumped from behind the couch, scaring him and watched in delight as she saw shock replace pure happiness on his face.

"Scarlett! Omg... what is all this?" He said with a huge grin, eyes wide as he took in his surroundings.

"It's your birthday stupid! I knew you wouldn't remember what with all your exams," Scarlett's smile stretched from ear to ear, eyes filled with adoration for the man standing in front of her.

"Come on blow the candles before we're forced to eat wax cake!" Scarlett laughed.

"Thank you so much!" he beamed. "Don't I get to hear you sing a birthday song?"

Scarlett smiled weakly at her phone's screen as she longingly gazed at the picture that was illuminated. It was taken right after they had cut the birthday cake.

He had taken the selfie in which both of them were smiling, the happiness clear in their eyes. The cake was smeared all over their faces and necks and yet, they had been unbothered by all the mess they had caused.

The longer Scarlett stared at the picture, the blurrier it got until it was impossible to see through her tears. She threw the phone away from her and buried her face in the pillow, sobbing quietly and soaking it with her tears.

***

"You okay?" Charlotte asked Levi after a long time of him just sitting with his eyes closed. She knew he wasn't sleeping because he was sitting too still for that.

Levi opened his eyes slowly and looked at Charlotte. He was aware he had zoned out for a long time. Running a frustrated hand through his hair, he let out a huge sigh, cracking his neck to release some pressure.

"I talked to Carter," Levi said slowly, meeting Charlotte's eyes.

"Were you so annoying and miserable that he found death more desirable than you?" Charlotte smirked at him. "Come on, tell me what's wrong," she shoved him playfully. "If you want to talk about it, that is."

This is why Levi loved Charlotte with every fiber of his being. She knew when he needed to talk and when he needed his space. Right now, it was the latter.

Levi took Charlotte's hand in his own, giving it a little squeeze. "I'll tell you soon, okay? My mind is all over the place right now," Levi sighed, "I just can't figure out why Eric was suffering from anxiety in the first place!" He ran both his hands across his face.

"Why is it so important?" Charlotte asked warily.

"It's the thing which matters the most! Solving a murder isn't hard. It's the why that's more difficult," Levi said as he dropped his face into his palms. Charlotte rubbed his back, trying to soothe him.

"Didn't you figure out why? You said Carter did it for love-"

"People don't kill for love! Unless they are psychopaths. And trust me, Carter is no psychopath," Levi said, his voice rising with every word. "There is something that I'm missing, something big..." his voiced lowered again, the last few words almost a whisper.

"Okay..." Charlotte said, not knowing what to do. She had never seen Levi like this. "I know you'll figure it out," she said with a warm smile.

Levi cracked a smile at that, "I know that too," he said with a smirk that didn't reach his eyes. "I need to go do something," he said, grateful when she didn't ask any follow-up questions.

Levi put on his Black coat and gloves, and with a quick wave to his wife, he was out of the room and in the corridor.

It was pitch black outside, the storm had stopped but it still continued to snow heavily. Levi checked the time, it was 10 pm. He looked for the single seater sofa he had asked Robert to place in the corridor earlier, spotting it in the exact place he had requested it to be.

Since his room was in the wing directly opposite to the friend's wing, the huge Christmas tree in the middle of the intersection obstructed his view. It was annoying at first, but now he welcomed it. The sofa was placed in the shadow of the Christmas tree, its lights dimmed down at his request as well.

Grateful for the reliable hotel manager, Levi went and made himself comfortable on the sofa. It was placed strategically so he could see everything that went on in Carter's wing, but nobody could see him. The black coat and the shadow hid him well and half of his body was covered by the humongous tree.

Levi leaned back in his chair, but then sat upright again. He couldn't be too comfortable if he wanted to stay awake. So he leaned forward instead and rested his hands on his knees, then played the waiting game.

He didn't know what he was waiting for, but he knew that it was important.

***

Levi had dozed off.

He got up from his sleep when he felt his neck hurting badly, arms almost numb because of slumping awkwardly, and then immediately realized that he was supposed to keep watch. A string of colorful curses almost left his mouth when he spotted movement outside Carter's door.

Levi forced himself to be more alert and leaned forward trying his best to see as clear as possible without getting caught. A frown slowly took over his face when he saw Scarlett and Anthony quietly leaving Carter's room.

How long had they been in there? Levi checked his time, it was almost 11:30 pm. Judging by how quickly he sleeps, he estimated the time duration to be somewhere between thirty to forty-five minutes.

Anthony and Scarlett stopped outside Carter's door, closing it behind them so softly, that even he couldn't hear the sound in spite of the pin-drop silence.

Levi watched as the two friends shared a look between them, and then went in their rooms without uttering a single word.

What are you two up to?