Chapter 13: Crime Scene_1

Under the skilled horsemanship of Song Lan, the two traversed several city blocks to arrive at a district where one of their colleagues lived.

The section chief selected a blind box gift hamper, readjusting the hair on his forehead that had been blown into even more of a mess by the wind.

"Wait for me at the entrance," he said, walking ahead.

Song Lan, who was following the section chief, gave no response. Before ascending the building, she surveyed the layout of the complex.

It was a high-end district, with spacious asphalt roads and properly trimmed green spaces on both sides. The housing block where their colleague lived was near the north end of the district, which leads to the main road, and after a short drive to the left, was a complex network of business streets.

Before taking the elevator, Song Lan had already planned the escape route in case of any unforeseen accident.

Of course, if it is possible, she genuinely hoped that this errand won't turn into a chase with hooligans.

As for the colleague they were about to visit, Song Lan didn't have any distinct memory of him.

If her memory served her right, this colleague was the one who had yelled, "Don't think you can leave alive after killing us in District 17" before Chai Ke fired his gun.

Although they both worked in administrative departments, they belonged to two different sections. In the law enforcement system of District 17, the surveillance department, crime analysis department, auditing department, etc., fell into the category of administrative personnel. Their work environment was fundamentally different from that of the atmosphere group. To describe them as the unsung heroes behind the scenes would not be an exaggeration.

Every mission of the special operations team required reference to the opinions of these departments.

If a food chain existed within the law enforcement department, then as members of the atmosphere group, they were clearly at the bottom of the food chain.

Due to these factors, they didn't have much status in the large court and belonged to the type who did not interact with others even during lunch breaks. This included even the section chief.

Song Lan has worked in the courtyard for quite some time, and her interactions were limited to just their section members.

With a "ding," the elevator door slowly opened.

27th floor.

The lighting in the corridor was surprisingly dim, the hustle and bustle from the district could no longer be heard, leaving only the footsteps of the two in the corridor.

Right after, a sudden chill washed over her.

Not sure if the section chief also sensed an ill omen, he didn't utter a word as he walked along.

In no time, they were standing before the apartment door at the furthest end. The partially open door seemed to foretell everything.

He stared at the door frame for more than ten seconds before he turned around, made a silencing gesture towards Song Lan, and put his ear to the door. He listened for a few minutes.

Only after confirming that there was no sound coming from inside, did he point Song Lan towards the direction of the safety exit. Once she hid inside the safety passage, he mustered the courage and pushed the partially open security door.

About two minutes later, Song Lan heard gagging noises coming from the room.

...............

Twelve minutes later, colleagues from the Crime Scene Investigation Department arrived at the scene.

The housing district was quickly sealed off, and Song Lan and the section chief were held at the scene as those who reported the incident.

"The ankles, wrists, abdomen, and waist have multiple tears; we found the victim's left thumb, index finger, and right eye in a container by the sink."

The report from the colleague of the Investigation Department made Song Lan extremely unsettled. Sitting in the living room of the apartment, she was just a door away from the corpse. Right now, she was very grateful that the section chief, while gagging, stopped her from stepping inside and saved her from a horrifying scene that was enough to give her nightmares for a month.

"The victim was tortured before his death."

Lu Xiang, who just emerged from the washroom, had no change in her expression. After arriving at the scene, she immediately started working. "The murderer is not the remnants of Chai Ke, but a professional Assassin."

As she said this, she looked at the Section Chief of the Crime Analysis Department. The old section chief, who had experienced numerous crime scenes in his 50s, had fallen into a state of dementia.

Song Lan had heard people mention earlier that the victim was a member of the Crime Analysis Department. After the Chai Ke incident, the old section chief considered the mental state of his subordinates and gave them all a week's leave.

"The murderer has at least modified his eyes prosthesis and can accurately monitor the victim's heart rate and blood loss during the crime process. We found a stimulant in the victim's body, which kept him conscious during the torture. In addition, the nerve system in his right eye socket has been damaged. This suggests that the murderer confirmed before leaving that the victim had not had a prosthesis eye transplant."

Even Song Lan, who had no experience in case handling, could understand from Lu Xiang's brief explanation just how terrifying the victim's last moments must have been.

For the one being tortured, even death became a long and painful process.

Reminded by Lu Xiang, the old section chief of the Crime Analysis Department seemed to have woken up from a dream. He promptly said, "I'll take someone to check the surveillance now."

After assigning the work, Lu Xiang came over to Song Lan and the section chief.

The scene in the toilet seemed to have left a big psychological shadow on the section chief. After calling for support, he has kept his head down and sat on the sofa without uttering a word.

"Thanks for your efforts, but there's no need to continue the consolation visits. Ke Bu's body was found at Qishan Apartment by the second team five minutes ago."

The section chief weakly nodded his head.

Ke Bu was the next one they had planned to visit. If this hasn't happened, they should have already arrived at the Qishan Apartment by now.

This was an expected outcome. Since Director Lu had mentioned that the killer was a professional assassin, his target would not be confined to just one person.

Someone was hunting the survivors of the Chai Ke case.

"We will leave then."

Song Lan stood up. The longer she stayed here, the more bad news she heard.

"Do you need counseling?"

Lu Xiang looked at her and asked earnestly.

"No, Director Lu, you carry on with your work."

Hearing this, she seemed as if she wanted to say something but stopped herself. In front of everyone, she merely nodded and watched as Song Lan helped the unsteady section chief walk out of the apartment.

Not long after leaving the apartment, Song Lan received a text message from Lu Xiang:

"Won't be home tonight, I need to stay guard at the hospital"

After Song Lan responded with an "Okay," she helped the section chief into the elevator. The colleague who was still unconscious in the hospital was the last of the three survivors of the Chai Ke case. Whether the professional assassin had not yet taken any action because it was a public place was not known.

"Little Song,"

As the elevator door slowly closed, the section chief, who had been silent for a long time, seemed to come back to his senses and advised, "Don't overthink today's incident. Go home, get a good night's sleep, and forget this if you can."