Cruz Alvarez

**Cruz Alvarez** was the killer of his ex-wife, Adora Mandelio, in Ships In The Night (Case #26 of Zorro Island). He was found to have masterminded the murder of Ignacio Rubio in Happy Deathday (Case #28 of Zorro Island), before he was murdered in Jailbroken (Case #29 of Zorro Island).

## Cruz Alvarez

### Relatives

Ellis Mandelio  (Child)
 Bela Alvarez  (Daughter; Deceased)

## Info

Cruz is a 29-year-old emcee from Saint's Valley. He has tan skin and brown eyes, with a buzz cut. He wears a vest with a rip on the side, and black leather pants with boots on as well.

It is known that he eats macaroni cheese, listens to *Rebel Radio* and plays *Karaoke Knight*.

At the time of his death, he wears an orange prison jumpsuit.

## Events Of Zorro Island

### Ships In The Night

Cruz was flagged as a suspect after a locket of himself and Ellis was found in the abandoned arcade, as Cruz told the detectives that he had previously scouted the location for a concert, and dropped his locket while there. Upon learning of Adora's murder, he was shocked, saying that he couldn't image such a dastardly thing happening to someone as pure as Adora, saying that while the pair may have been divorced, and they certainly had their differences, it wasn't to say Cruz didn't care for her still. He then wished the detectives a good day before leaving.

Cruz was later spoken to again after threatening to shoot Javier when he attempted to enter the Mandelio home, as he was arrested, and told the detectives in prison that Adora wasn't as nice as he made her out to be, saying that he had made several attempts to reconnect with Ellis since he was their father, and he was accepting of who they were, but Adora had blocked him every step of the way, accusing him of crimes he couldn't even commit and didn't ever do, which angered him as all he wanted to do was see his child.

In the end, Cruz turned out to be the killer. Upon being apprehended in prison, Cruz admitted to the murder, saying that he had been attempting to gain visitation rights so he could see Ellis, but had been blocked by Adora at every attempt, as he grew exhausted with her sabotage and decided to kidnap both Adora and Ellis, taking Ellis to his house while he stabbed Adora so she could never stop him from seeing his child again. Cruz admitted that what he did was wrong and that he would've tried something else in a heartbeat, as he begged the detectives to see Ellis one last time, to which they refused. Shocked by Cruz's morality, Judge Vargas sentenced Cruz to 11 years in prison for murder and kidnapping.

Post-case, Cruz *did* get to see Ellis one last time. As he apologised, Ellis merely slapped him, leaving.

### Happy Deathday

When Kaede Shou was confronted in regards to her killing Ignacio, she told Rhea and the player that she had been anonymously blackmailed by someone, as she promised to co-operate for a shorter sentence. When spoken to, she informed the detectives that she'd left their conversations printed off at the party, as Alita discerned that whoever wrote the note had a grudge/infatuation towards someone on the team, as the team eventually identified that Cruz was the only valid suspect, as they then learnt that Cruz had escaped prison along with five other criminals.

## Murder Details

Cruz was dead in a railway tunnel, with multiple stab wounds and his throat slit. Per Rosa's autopsy, she said that Cruz had been stabbed in the stomach, heart and lung, before his throat was slit. Rosa commented on Cruz's strength, since he survived the first three strikes, and then died when his throat was slit. She then suggested that Lucas and the player look for some kind of chisel, since that was what seemed to have killed Cruz, before also saying that the killer must have a knowledge of anatomy to penetrate three vital organs and his vital arteries.

Later on, Lucas and the player found the chisel in a trash can in the railway tunnel, as Francesco confirmed to the detectives that the chisel was the one used to kill Cruz, as he said that he had found some strands of brown hair on the chisel, and since Cruz had a buzz cut, it meant the killer had to have brown hair.

## Relationship With Suspects

Cruz shared a cell with Kenny Rogers, who had been arrested for the highway bombing, as Cruz and Kenny were quite close, to the point that Kenny grew concerned that Cruz had romantic feelings towards him, as he did not quite approve of homosexuality, as proven in a previous case. Cruz also worked very closely with Rue Jenkins, who had masterminded several murders in the Woodlands, as Cruz seemed to be mildly frightened of Rue, despite Rue thinking that Cruz was pretty strong. Cruz recognised Icónico from his upbringing in Hielo Pueblo, as Cruz was best friends with Diego Sanvrille, Icónico's late husband, as the pair forged a strong bond once again that was said to have become something more. Cruz had another daughter with another woman, something which Natalie Milton-Trent found out about and was disgusted by, thinking Ellis was their only child. Finally, Cruz had been in several physical altercations with Guthrie Zober, since he was hell bent on protecting the team, as the pair had physically fought after escaping the prison.

## Killer And Motives

Shockingly, the killer turned out to be Natalie.

Despite stagnantly denying the accusations, Natalie eventually gave in, admitting to killing Cruz. She then informed the detectives that Cruz had a child with another woman other than Adora, a girl named Bela Alvarez. Natalie said that she and Bela had lived on the same block, and that they got on like a house on fire, as there was "nobody on earth" quite like her. Natalie then said that she had always been aware of Cruz's many rivalries due to the stuff Bela would tell her, but didn't know just how bad it was until Cruz got involved in a shootout outside his house, which resulted in Bela being caught in the crossfire. Now crying, Natalie said that her best friend had been collateral damage in a "stupid feud", and she never could forgive anyone for letting her friend die. She then said that when Cruz was arrested and taken into prison, she was shocked to see him, but overheard his plans to escape and befriended him in order to execute her plot. Upon the six escaping, the other four went their separate ways, as Natalie confronted Cruz about Bela's death and blamed him for it, to which Cruz said that she needed to "get over it". Natalie then told the detectives she saw a chisel and just blacked out, waking up covered in blood and with Cruz dead nearby. She then pleaded not to go back to prison, as Judge Vargas said that what had happened wasn't fair on anyone, and it was bound to take a toll on her mental health, as he transferred her to the care of Dr. Madeleine Vorrhmann at Wellgrove Asylum.