The Seven Deadly Sins: Demon of Pride

The three detectives arrive at the cathedral at 8:30am on the dot. Eva, donning sun glasses for light sensitivity, parks the car and takes and Advil.

“Oh, dear God, I hope this goes by swiftly,” she moaned, feeling the hangover at its peak.
“Tell me about it,” Andy added, “I haven’t felt this shitty since my 18th birthday,”
“You two stop your complaining,” CC said, fixing the collar on his dress shirt.

Receiving death glares from both of them, he gets out and heads over to the alley where a pool of blood stood.

“So, how bad did I get last night,” Andy asked, unknowing of what happened after drink number six.
“Well, let’s just say you are one hell of a lover,” Eva teased, lifting her shades to give him a wink.
“Fuck, you’re serious?” Andy exclaimed, sitting back in the passenger seat.
Eva said nothing, just stared into the rearview mirror, and began to get out of the car.
“Eva, I’m sorry I –“
“Andy,” she turned to him, and looked at him seriously, “We didn’t sleep together; I was just yanking your chain.”
“You bitch,” he huffed, although he felt relieved.
“Thanks, Biersack,” she turned to make her way towards the cathedral steps, “But, my oh my, what mighty impressive equipment you have.”

Before Andy could say anything, she had waltzed over to the police chief and began getting debriefed. Andy smiled, shook his head, and followed suit.

“… The witness was hysterical; he was in his early twenties, on his way home from a party.” Chief Davis concluded, guiding the pair of detectives over to the blood spattered steps, “He said he was walking, minding his own business, when he heard Durrant cry the words ‘Have some mercy,’. The assailant took pause, only long enough to inform him of something, but the witness only heard bits and pieces. Something about pride and sins.”

Andy walked over to the drainage ditch, and spotted something white.

“Hey, Brookes,” he started, motioning for his partner to come look at his find, “It looks like a note of something.”
Pulling it out of the crumpled pile of leaves, it indeed was a note; but to and from whom.
"God is stern in dealing with the arrogant, but to the humble He shows kindness."- Proverbs 3:34
“What does that mean?” The virgin investigator asked Eva.

Her eyes, narrowed and searching, finally widened.
“The seven deadly sins.” She said plainly and without hesitation.
“Ok, so what are the seven deadly sins,” Andy asked, getting a look shout in his direction, “Sorry, but I don’t remember much from Catholic Private School. Not my favorite childhood memories to be honest.”
“The seven deadly sins: pride, gluttony, greed, envy, lust, anger, sloth.” She paused, to wander back over to the Cathedral steps, “If the suspect is making his kills designed after the seven deadly sins, what would prompt them to kill here, and why Durrant.”

She took out her phone, and called Ashley.

“Yellow,”
“Hey Ash, I have a favor to ask,”
“OK, E,” he took a pause, “What is it?”
“Can you look up Tyler Durrant in our system, and find out what exactly his line of work entailed. Please?”
“Sure can; give me about twenty minutes, and I will give you a call back.”
“Ok, talk to you then.”
“Ok, so Ash is finding out a bit more about Durrant’s business life, so we should probably pay his wife a visit in the mean time.”
“Sounds good to me,” agreed the young twenty-something.

Say good-bye for now to the police chief, the pair wandered three blocked north, and two blocks east until they reach the condo building the Durrant’s lived in.

“Huh,” Andy glance upward, “Doesn’t look like a place a middle class family would live in,”
“Good call,” Eva smiled, patting him on the back, “Which is why we want to talk to the misses.”

Entering the lobby, Andy and Eva flash their badges to security, who directs them to the office of the condo manager. A middle aged woman, roughly in her forties, but already having a head full of grey hair, looked up from her desk.
“Good morning, officers,” she said politely, “How may I help you today?”
“Good morning,” Eva stares at her name tag that read Helena Stanton, Hotel Manager, “Mrs. Stanton. I am Detective Brookes, and this is my partner, Detective Biersack. We have some question regarding the disappearance and murder of Tyler Durrant.”
“Oh, but of course, come in,” she said, shuffling them into her office and closing the door, “Please, sit down. Make yourselves comfortable.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” Andy spoke as we sat in front of her large, mahogany desk.
“Now, Mrs. Standton,” Eva began, “When was the last time you saw Mr. Durrant?”
“He came downstairs to the laundry room last night around 9 to get this work clothing from the dryer,” she started, “ He was stopped by a man in a suit, asking him how his building contract was going. After a while of quiet chatter, the man in the suit started yelling about how Mr. Durrant was arrogant, and had no right to be saying what he was saying. After about ten minutes of this, I called security.”
“Did you get a look at this man, ma’am,” Andy asked, clasping his hands while leaning forward towards the rim of the desk.
“I didn’t have to,” she stated “It was Mr. Robertson, the man who runs the diner down the street. He was supposed to have his building remodeled by Mr. Durrant next month.”
“So what do you think set him off?” Andy said, looking in my direction.
“Helena, can you direct us to where Mrs. Durrant might be,”
“She is upstairs, on the 7th floor. Room 727; I will let her know you are on your way so she is expecting you. Poor woman has been badgered by the press all day,”

Getting on the elevator, Andy couldn’t help but look at Eva; her eyes were especially beautiful today. A dark forest green with a hint of grey; he couldn’t place why he liked them so much.
“Biersack, do you have something you want to say,”
It was Eva, and he had been caught looking at her extensively.
“Sorry,” he stammered, “Your eyes are just really beautiful today; I hope that is cool for me to think.”
She smiled, and blushed a bit.
“Thanks, Andy,”

Reaching the 7th floor, they find 727 with ease.

Knock knock knock

“Coming,” the tired sounding voice inside said.
“Oh, Detective, I’m relieved it’s you.”
“Hello, Les,” Eva said, sadness in her eyes
“Oh dear, Evangeline,” she began, tears starting to fall down her face, “I didn’t know it would be you.”
“Who else better suited for the job, my friend.” She stated, “However, I will have to be non-biased during the investigation, okay?”
“Yes, I understand,” the woman said, wiping her eyes with a Kleenex.
“Leslie, can you tell us about your husband’s personal life a bit, aside from what we have on file?”
“Well, Ty was a member of the yacht club, which he went to every Wednesday at four until eight. He ran the meetings at the local Lions Club center. And I think he went to a book club every Saturday.”
“Do you know where he may have met Mr. Robertson?”

Her nose wrinkled in disgust.

“That horrid man; yes, I do. He belongs to the same yacht club Ty did. Posed as some ne’er do well, but I saw right through him. I had my Ty tell him off when he came to brag about how his children were in the best private school in all of Los Angeles, when I know for a fact the school my children attend has the best reviews.”

She rambled on about how her husband and this Mr. Robertson were high school baseball buddies, and once planned to open a restaurant together. That all ended when Tyler met Leslie at a gala, and fell in love.

“His first name is Allen; Allen Monroe Robertson.”
“The owner of Monroe’s Family Diner?” Andy exclaimed, confused for a brief moment.
“Yes sir,” she said meekly.
He nodded at me, telling me he finished questioning.
“We will keep you up dated, Les.” Eva started, shaking the distraught widow’s hand, “and please be safe.”
“You do the same, Evangeline,”
An elevator and car ride later, we had information on the man in the lobby, but no phone call back from Ashley.
*cell phone ringing*
“Hello, Evangeline Brookes,” Eva said,
“Hey, E,” Ash started, “You aren’t going to believe this, but Durrant was in some deep shit with the church.”
“Go ahead,”
“Oh, so you know how that Catholic church on 5th and West Avenue was bulldozed last year, causing a riot to break out?”
“Yea, I remember that,”
“Well Tyler led that demolition,”
“Huh,”
“The priest at the church at the time was your diner guy’s father, Blake Robertson. He was furious, and labeled Durrant a demon of pride, saying he was filled with nothing but self-perversions and hatred.”
“And where is this man now?” Eva asked.
“No one knows, chief. The held a memorial for him six months ago at the West Angeles Cathedral, so I’m assuming he died.”
“I guess there is only one way to find out,” Eva paused, staring up at the giant structure made of stone, “Oh, and thanks Ash,”
“No problem, babe. Keep me posted.”
“Will do.”
After hanging up with Ashley, she nodded towards the cathedral.
“Wait,” Andy spoke, clear and plainly, “I would figure you would want to question the guy at the diner first,”
“Nope,” Eva replied, “We have to find out if our man’s father is really dead, or just missing indefinitely.”

Notes

It just got even more confusing in the lives of Brookes and Biersack.