I made myself at
home...

In the cobwebs and
the lies
*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓

THE AUTUMN BREEZE OUTSIDE HAD tousled the womans hair and pinked her cheeks. The warmth that had been in the wind just last week had either evaporated into the sky or leached into the earth. It gave life to the long grass at the side of the road, still yellowing from the high August sun. 

Just walking down the hallway of the Thrombey mansion Katerina's breathing was rapid and shallow. She could feel her pulse pounding in her temples. It was a relief to get to a chair and see Marta waiting nervously for her interview, because between the heels and her legs shaking, Kat was afraid she would collapse.

"Marta?" She spoke gently.

"Kat." Marta's hug was stronger than anything Katerina had ever known, as if holding her wasn't quite enough, she had to feel every ounce that Kat was press into every ounce that was her.

Marta snuggled in, "I'm so glad you're here."

In that moment the arms squeezed a fraction tighter and Marta breathed more slowly, her body melting into Kat's as every muscle lost its tension to the Autumn air.

"Are you alright?"

Kat watched as her throat bobbed, anxiety written over her face. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just worried."

"Worried about what?" She asked with uncertainty clear in her voice as she slid her hand into her pocket, teeth softly biting into her lower lip.

"N-Nothing. It's just the stress."

Marta frowned, thinking back to the events of that night. Katerina, catching sight of her frown, took her hand in hers, entwining their fingers together, and gave her a quick, reassuring squeeze.

"Hey," She spoke after a moment, causing her sister to lift her gaze back to Kat. "You know if somethings bothering you, you can tell me. You can tell me anything." Marta's brain stuttered for a moment and her eyes took in more light than she expected, every part of her goes on pause while her thoughts catch up.

Her eyes and her mouth were frozen wide open in an expression of stunned surprise, and although she was staring straight at Kat she appeared not to notice her at all.

"Marta, what happened that night?" She asked, barely a whisper. Her voice was quieter now, less sure. All thoughts of negativity came flooding in, as if her body chemistry just sent them a blanket invitation. She could feel the soft panic that could grow or fade depending on what was said next.

Her own hurried footsteps and the squeak of the door brought her heart racing as fast as a gunshot. Her head snapped in an instant from gazing down the hallway with unfocused eyes to the doorway in front of her.

"Joni?"

"Oh my god, Kat! Sweetie, what are you still doing up?"

"I was finishing up some work for Linda, but I thought I heard a noise." She said in return, already irritated at the older woman.

"Me too, it woke me up. I think it came from Harlons room, we should probably go check up and see if everything's ok."

"So," Joni began as they made their way up the set of stairs leading to Harlons room. "Have you spoken to Ransom recently?"

"Ransom? Why would I have spoken to him?" Katerina's muttered rather absentmindedly, clearly avoiding the conversation Joni was desperate to begin.

"Oh come on, Kat. You can't tell me. Sweetheart, we all know you two were seeing each other on the side line if you know what I mean." She muttered subtly, a small devious smirk on her lips.

Joni's presence seemed to buzz around Kat like a fly that you could never swat. Every word, movement and breath she performed seemed to infuriate her to no end.

"Joni, I'm going to be honest with you... " She began in a sweet voice, not meaning to be blunt or rude, rather just stating facts. "I don't think it's really any of your business."

A look of shocked surprise came onto the face of the young woman. Then without another word she climbed the rest of the stairs in her fluffy bed socks, before knocking on the door of Harlon's room.

"Hi Joni, Katerina." Harlon nodded.

"Hi...Hi." Once again the eldest Cabrera sister rolled her eyes. Like a homemade sweater Joni was beautifully composed and thoughtful in appearance, but itchy and irritable in comfort. "I just thought I heard something."

"I just knocked over the Go board, go to bed girls."

"Ok, bye. Love you!" Joni blew the man a kiss before continuing to make her way down the narrow steps towards her room.

However, just as Harlon began to close the door Katerina stopped him. Slipping through the door unobtrusively, she whispered softly, "Are you sure you're alright, Harlon?"

"I'm perfectly fine, darling. Don't worry yourself about me. We don't want to worry her." He said with a suggestive raise of his brows.

"Worry who?"

"Your practically glowing." Although Harlon had a hand tremor and constant waggling and bobbing of the head, the man was in no way naive.

She smirked in response - just a small pouting of the lips; a narrowing of the eyes and a tilting of the head, it was so subtle. "Why am I not surprised you figured it out, Harlon."

"Promise me. Promise me you'll take care of yourself, Kat." When Harlon grasped her hand it was meaningful yet stressed.

"Harlon, what's going on, you're scaring me." Katerina's spoke hurriedly yet softly, her eyes stealing a quick glance at Marta further in the room.

"Everythings alright. But you will look after yourself, and the baby?" His voice broke away as his chest heaved.

"Of course, I promise."

"Good, i'm proud of Kat. You know that, don't you?" Staring wasnt quite the word for what the old man was doing. His eyes rested, not unblinking but slowed; yet the effect was soft and inviting instead of harsh. His lower lip quivered as words slowly made their way out of his mouth.

"You know I do."

Katerina's could see his gravity-drawn shoulders painting a picture of his heart, as if neither it nor his soul would welcome a beat. "I'll see you in the morning, go get some sleep."

Behind the masked smile he wore on his face, there was sadness and shock. Harlon anxiously looked at his left and right, repeatedly as a single sound passed by.

"OK, sure." She agreed reluctantly. "Marta, i'll see you at home tomorrow?"

And in that moment Katerina felt her heart drop. The anxiety sat below her smile and her actions as she made her way down the narrow staircase. Even Katerina Cabrera could not guess what would happen later that night.

"I..." Marta began as she continued to contemplate what she was going to say next to her sister.

However, before she could begin she heard the voices of Benoit Blanc and Lieutenant Elliott.

The eldest of the two sisters watched as Marta gracefully raised from her seat and made her way towards the window and leaned against it, almost as if she was attempting to listen to the conversation of the two investigators.

"Marta, what are you doing?" Katerina's asked alarmed, before the women released a quick gasp of shock as Mr Blanc appeared at the doorway.

"Harlon Thrombeys nurse." The detective began. "Marta..."

"Cabrera."

"Marta Cabrera." He smirked, pointing towards the woman herself.

Katerina's was cautious. Benoit Blanc was close shaved 24/7 and he spoke with a baritone voice and clipped legalistic words. It was as if life had no colour for him, no shades of grey either, it was all black and white. Right and wrong. Legal and illegal. He seemed to be the perfect detective. However, Kat didn't trust him. She didn't trust anyone without a visible weakness, it made her wonder if it was all a facade to solve the case.

Just as Katerina was about to step outside and make her way towards her sister she was stopped.

"Actually, Miss Cabrera I think it's better if we speak to Marta alone."

Katerina's caught Marta's gaze as her younger sister sat on one of the outside chairs. Kat's line of sight fell onto the table in front of her as she swallowed heavily.

"Of course. I'll see you later, Marta."

After having the worrisome conversation with Harlon, Katerina had went back to her office. It was provided for her by Mrs Drysdale when her working hours became longer and she typed in to the late hours of the night.

The office was painted grey, and it had only one floor-to-ceiling window, which faced the main road. On the grey desk sat a desktop computer, a notebook lying open, and a stack of papers sitting under a turtle-shaped paperweight. In a corner, the air conditioner was blasting at medium, and there was a swivel chair in the middle of the office. A bookshelf, bursting with books was in a corner, with yet another stack of papers under a paperweight that was shaped to look like a tuft of grass. A few pens were lying on the papers, but some had fallen onto the top of the bookshelf.

There's a kind of tired that needs a good night's sleep, and another that needs so much more. For Kat, one became the other, starting out as the "one night kind" until one day it was ever present - like it once was a heavy jacket but became heavy bones. It was then she knew that being tired could be a wearing of the emotions too, that it could come together with a tired body, and become an ingrained part of a life that isn't lived, but endured.

Her gaze fell onto the desk in front of her, before she began rubbing her eyes and swallowed heavily as she rested her hand on the small bump forming at her stomach.

"You're really taking it out of me, you know that?"

Suddenly, the buzzer of Kat's phone went off like an annoyed rattlesnake. With great effort, she leaned forward over the desk and searched through the stack of papers to find her phone.

Finally grasping the device, she lifted it towards her face, her eyes taking a second to adjust to the bright light before reading the most recent text message.

'We need to talk. Go outback and meet me outside.' - Ransom

𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞 !

another update ! i've got
so much planned for this
book, and my drafts are
filled so please show your
support !

however, i need serious help
with this, do you want more
flashbacks of ransom and
katerina's relationship before
the 'murder' or will I just
continue with the movie plot ?