Miasma

'He lay there with his eyes closed as the waves hit him. The bullet that went straight into his head became a fatal wound that took the life of a full of vitality young man.'

---------------------------------------------

Ten o'clock at night, at the city police headquarters,

The elevator door was opened. A person hurriedly entered the floor of the area of the special team to investigate and prevent the crime. In his hand was an autopsy paper. Ignoring the tension and trembling of his hands, he pushed the door of the room hard. Inside, many people were looking at him. Everyone seemed to stop all action when that man enters. The atmosphere suddenly fell into silence.

The sound of the door opening from the room in the corner broke the silence. Another man with a serious face stepped out. He carried the breath of integrity and courage on his body. His voice also made people have awe.

"Already have the test results?"

Dai nodded. He quickly handed the paper to his boss and gathered with his teammates.

"Sir, according to the report of the forensic department, the injuries and handling are the same as in the previous cases." - Dai's words caused everyone in the room to tremble slightly. A chill run down their spines, resentful and helpless. However, the boss's face remained calm. Perhaps, he foresaw this. He told everyone on his team before entering his room.

"This time, everyone continues to work overtime. Daisy and Patrick, the two of you go to the census room to find out about the identity of the victim and see if anyone has reported a recent disappearance. Magnus, you investigate what connection these victims have to each other. The rest of you take turns going to the forensic evidence and forensic medicine rooms to see if there are any more clues. We will have an urgent meeting tomorrow afternoon."

"Yes, Boss."

Everyone quickly carried out their tasks. The boss walked into the room with a wrinkled test paper in his hand. On the surface, he showed himself as a calm and cautious person in everything. However, he was now trying to hide his anger and helplessness. He smoothed the paper and placed it on the table. The five sheets of paper were stacked side by side and placed behind the nameplate of Senior Inspector Lance Norwood. The phone on the table suddenly rang. Lance reached out to answer the phone, his eyes still focused on every word on the paper. The other end of the line was superior.

"Lance, superiors have heard about the case where a new victim has appeared. They want us to have this resolved within a week. Because the media is reporting extremely fiercely, this will make people confused and distrust the police"

"Yes, Boss. We are still doing our best to investigate. We will catch the killer within the next week."

"Okay. If Matthew was still alive, this case would surely have been solved in the hands of the two of you..."

After talking to his superiors, Lance hung up. He leaned back in his chair and did not hide the sigh on his face. He looked at the previous photo of the party, his eyes focusing on a smiling man standing next to him.

"Matthew, what should I do? Boss is right, if you were here, you would have given me the most perfect direction."

Lance Norwood and Matthew Collins were the same pair in the previous crime-solving team. The two of them always found the real culprit after thrilling cases. Everyone in the police department was a fan and proud of the two of them. The last mission that the two of them worked on together on was to investigate the case of a criminal gang that smuggles organs. When receiving the message of the two people pointing and needing support, everyone at the police station quickly gathered at the reported location. However, what they did not expect was that except for the criminals who were defeated in the workshop near the river, Lance and Matthew also disappeared without a trace.

Everyone immediately splits up to search for traces of the two of them. Not long after, Lance was found unconscious near a riverside barrier, his arm hanging out causing everyone to have thoughts of fear. They looked below in the hope of not seeing Matthew. However, their thinking was correct. Matthew was lying in the river. He lay there with his eyes closed as the waves hit him. The bullet that went straight into the head became a fatal wound that took the life of a full of vitality young man.

The criminal gang of organ smuggling was finally caught, in exchange for the loss of the police department. One person died and the other suffered a severe head injury. After days of treatment, Lance was officially discharged from the hospital and was promoted to the senior inspector by breaking a wanted criminal gang. He replaced his former boss and led this team to glory.

Two weeks ago, the body of a teenage girl was found in a small city theater. The girl was wearing a delicate white dress. She was hung by the perpetrator standing on her toes like a professional ballerina. After the autopsy, the forensic department discovered that the victim's uterus was removed, especially since the perpetrator did this while the victim was still alive. However, there was no sign of a fight or protest from the victim. Everything on the victim's body was spotless.

The old case still has not progressed, but a few days later, there were three new cases in a row with the same method. The body of the second lady was found in a drawing room with the shape of a beautiful goddess. The body of the third girl appeared at the riverbank, her whole body was sitting on a chair facing the sea with a large brim hat covering her face. If it were not for the jogging man nearby, her body probably would not have been discovered so soon. The next two girls were found in two parks near each other. All had their uterus removed while still alive and showed no signs of resistance.

Senior Inspector Lance Norwood felt for the first time being teased by the killer. His superiors were urging his team to quickly solve these consecutive cases. However, after two weeks of investigation, he still could not conclude. As an elite senior detective in the police industry, he certainly would not give up so easily. He slammed his fist on the table and promised himself that he would bring the killer to light. That night, the crime prevention task force did not sleep.

The next morning, everyone collapsed on their desks. Some people were still holding unfinished coffee cups in their hands. Lance opened the door to his room and witnessed this scene. He rubbed his forehead, then gently went out to buy some breakfast food. He looked at the familiar road and suddenly thought that he wanted to change to create a little stimulation in his mind and at the same time wanted to have new thoughts about recent cases. Not only that, but he steered the wheel through another stretch of road and headed for the unfamiliar restaurant.

After buying a burger and coffee, Lance leaned back in his car and enjoyed breakfast. He did not know if this would give him any good, but the food here just was not to his liking. The familiarity with the taste of old things was hard to let go of. He managed to finish his bread, then crumpled the paper up and threw it in a nearby trash can. However, the paper did not easily get inside the trash can as he thought it would but hit a man walking by. He immediately stepped forward, picked up the paper on the ground, and said.

"So sorry. Did I dirty your shirt?"

After picking up the paper, Lance straightened up. Unexpectedly, his chin hit the umbrella in front of him. He looked up at the sunny sky, and at the same time remembering the weather forecast saying there would be no rain today. So why was the person in front of him carrying such a big black umbrella?

The black umbrella slowly lowered. The appearance of a young man's face made Lance dumbfounded. This young man gave Lance a different feeling compared to other people his age. His eyes and face were full of dark, cold, and unapproachable emotions. The black suit on the young man's body accentuated what Lance is thinking.

"Meow!" - A cry rang out.

Lance frowned slightly. Only then did he notice that a jet-black cat with bright yellow eyes was wrapped around the young man's shoulder. If it had not spoken, Lance would have thought it was just a decoration on the young man's outfit.

The young man in front of Lance raised his hand and gently patted the cat's head as if patting it. He pretended not to see the curiosity coming from Lance but slowly said in a low voice.

"No problem."

Then, the young man passed Lance and went straight to the tea shop. Lance could not take his eyes off the strange man. However, there was one thing that made him feel weirder. There were two tea shops on that road. The young man's tea shop was decorated in dark and somewhat murky tones, seemingly without a single visitor. The other tea shop had a bright color and the customers were all young girls full of life. At this moment, the ringing of the phone interrupted his thoughts. After answering the phone, he immediately ignored the strangeness of the man and the two tea houses with different styles, then rushed back to the police station.