"Inspector Furuno Shigaraki, I think you need to see this". Kurono Samura, my squad leader says, holding out a file to me.
I eye him wearily before I take the file from him. We usually never see eye to eye, hence the suspicion. He always questions my authority and my methods.
I open the file. It contains images of a man with a neck wound. He had been found dead by a passerby who had been jogging by six am.
The jogger’s statement is written there in blue ink.
I flip to the next page.
"So what do you want me to do, Kurono? I already have a case on my hands". I say and lean back on my swivel chair, sizing him up with my narrowed gaze.
"If you cannot handle it, I can always give it to Inspector Kim Seohjun". Kurono says to tempt me.
I snort at his antics. He knows that Inspector Kim is my archnemesis. He always competes for my special cases and never hesitates to try and take my credit. I would rather they even give it to Inspector Poll.
"Alright, Kurono-kun. You have tied my hands. Take me to the crime scene". I finally yield.
The guy just smirks at me and takes the file.
Twenty- something minutes later, we are pulling up in front of the crime scene.
I get out of the car without a word to him and cross under the tape to get closer to the body.
The victim is a beefy man. I can tell that he is well to do from his watch and shoes. This must be his house.
"Is there anybody inside?" I ask one of the forensics.
"No. But there are things you need to see, Inspector". She says with a disgusted look on her face.
I glance at the body one last time. One of the lab scientists hands me a pair of gloves. I slip them on.
I crouch down beside the body curiously.
The forensics lady clears her throat.
"I will join you shortly". I say to her curtly.
I inspect the wound. It is not a gun shot wound. It is a knife wound. A skilled knife wound.
I could picture in my mind as the knife drove into his neck. It is no ordinary knife. It’s a dagger. And it was also done last night.
Could it be the same culprit I am chasing for mass murder that did this?
No, it can’t be. The other one was using a sword, and he had a partner. Well, that does not exactly cross them out, because sword wielders are also excellent dagger swingers.
I’ll just keep an open mind for now.
I walk up the stairs. Even if the crime had been committed hours ago, there is the possibility that a scent was left behind.
My gloves are bloody from all the probing I did on the wound. I remove them and hand them over to Kurono-kun. He takes them, holding them out and wrinkling his nose in disgust.
I pretend not to notice his childishness.
I am led into a dark room. As my eyes adjust to the dim light, it takes only a few seconds for me to realize exactly what I am looking at.
The room smells exactly like the orgy room of one of my previous targets I had been asked to eliminate in my good old days.
The forensics chief, who is already there, hands me a new pair of gloves.
"There are no car tracks around the perimeter. We have searched for them within a mile’s radius and have found none". He reports.
I see a strand of hair on the head rest of a torture chair.
There are loose ropes on the floor that have been wrinkled from use. Torn clothes on the ground, blood on the floor. I enter the adjoining bathroom. The toilet is dirty and covered in blood. The bathtub as well is stained with blood.
"What do we know about the victim?" I ask as I return back to the room.
Then, I notice the bed. I lean down to sniff it, ignoring the subtle whispers from my squad members.
It smells like blood mostly, but also like the soft scent of a child. I grab the strand of hair on the head rest of the chair and hand it over to the lab scientist. She puts it inside an clear evidence bag.
"We have taken several blood samples". She says.
"Make sure you run the hair sample as well." I instruct.
I turn to Kurono again.
"What do we know about the victim?" I ask again.
Kurono opens his file very slowly to annoy me. I remain unfazed.
"We ran his fingerprints through our database and found that his name is Frank Windsor. He is ex-military. There is no information on him being married, or having any children. His record is clean". Kurono-kun reads from the file.
This room is clearly a torture room. People have been raped in this room from the look of things. There is no way such a person’s record can be clean. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ NoveIꜰire.net
Another officer hands me his cell phone in an evidence bag. I take it from her.
"It is unlocked by facial recognition, Sir". She says.
I remove it from the nylon and go through his contacts and messages. Most messages have been deleted, but the ones from the previous night are still there.
I go through them. Someone was requesting for a female child sex slave from the victim. That explains a lot.
"Are there any signs of anyone else living here?" I ask.
"Have you checked the basement and the attic?" I ask.
"Yes, sir. Still no trace".
I just nod my head. The man is good at what he does.
Then, another officer walks in with a photo. It is some kind of family photo with the victim, a woman and a little girl.
It seems like there is more investigation to be done.