The Beast

Detective Inspector Belle Barbero examined the latest photos taken of Abigail Chung or “Belle” to her friends.

Reported missing over six months ago, Abigail was set to go on vacation prior to her disappearance with no indication of when or where she was ****. As far as the police knew she checked in at the airport for her flight but there were no images of her entering the aircraft or leaving the airport.

A successful and young businesswoman Detective Barbero could not help but be amazed at the woman they found wandering the streets of Villeneuve.

Physically Miss Chung showed no signs of malnourishment but there were signs of ****, in the form of whip marks, ligature marks from various restraints, and it was very clear that she had been kept somewhere dark for several months. Yet when pressed for details she was tight lipped save for a single statement Detective Barbero had grown accustomed to hearing- “I failed to please him.”

Of course, the young Detective heard this statement before and knew who she was referring to. There wasn’t a single member of the Villeneuve Police who didn’t know of him, but they could never find definitive proof that he exists.

All that they found were women who disappeared seemingly at random throughout the decade only to appear months later with the same marks as Abigail Chung. Yet each of the women came from different background, ages, locations, and most importantly ethnicities. None of it made any sense to the Detective save for one simple commonality she herself shares with the victims- they all go by the name of Belle.

Thus, many in the Police and media have come to refer to the culprit as “the Beast” after the fairy tale of course.

The first official victim of the Beast was a twenty-five-year-old librarian named Belle French who was reported missing by her boyfriend after she failed to return home from work. Her last sighting was on the subway after which she was found nearly a year later roaming the same subway station.

Next was Ellie Coleman, an eighteen-year-old University Freshman who was reported missing after she failed to appear for orientation. Found in a back alleyway trying to entice an Undercover Officer nearly a year later though many chalked it up to the pressures getting to her. It wasn’t until years later that she came forward and admitted that she was **** by the Beast but refused to go into detail out of fear.

After that another University student was **** this time a Senior named Karen Belle Butler who failed to appear for her graduation. Found a remarkable two years later at the front door of her parent’s home with a simple note written by Belle herself. The words- “I want more” was written on the very same notebook Belle carried with her on the day of her abduction.

The interview itself made it appear as though Belle had developed a relationship with the Beast that ended poorly. Yet that wasn’t enough for her to give any details into the man and the Detective could not figure out why, but the breakup gave the city three years of peace before Miss Abigail Chung was ****. Now the case was hot once more and now the police have an advantage no one else ever had before- her.

Staring at the board before her Belle knew there was always a chance that the Beast might come for her and should he try, she would be ready.

Despite this fact there was a small part of the Detective’s mind who was curious as to how he managed to keep so many women quiet and how many others there were before Miss French.

What did he do to the women? Why were they targeted and why did he let them go?

These were the answers Detective Barbero wanted to know as her mind became awash with ideas and theories as she decided to revisit the victims to get the answers.

Do we follow Detective Belle Barbero or another past victim of the Beast? You decide.

Who do we follow?

A) Detective Belle Barbero

B) Librarian Belle French

C) Ellie Coleman

D) Karen Belle Butler

E) Abigail “Belle” Chung

F) Other (Ideas)