Hyathic Homicide - The Mage of Lost Magic

Chapter 3

She walked into the precinct, making her way past the lobby, and nodding to the officers manning the desk. She made her way to the back, past the barracks for the regular patrol officers and up to the second floor, the detectives' quarters.

The second floor had a very open plan, with most detectives sitting at desks scattered haphazardly through the room. She took in the various detectives under her employ. The meticulous types, whose desks were clean, papers stacked neatly, pens in a cup. There was also the freehanded types, whose desks were littered with notes, some even on the ground around them. She liked having detectives with differing styles. She believed the more diverse points of view set to work increased the chances of someone breaking a case.

Selevin walked up to Ghorza as she made her way to her office. He handed her the usual cup of tea, pausing to sip from his own, before following her through the doorway.

"So, Chief, what've you got?"

Selevin knew Ghorza had a few criminal informants that she liked to check in with. She'd told him to develop his own, instead of riding on hers. It was important for a detective to see the other side of things. One of her many lessons.

"Rumors, nothing more. A foreigner, they say, though that hardly helps. And even less credible, there's talk that his killing spree is a means to getting vengeance on someone that wronged him. Informant rumors are a useful tool, but they must always be corroborated by some other manner."

"Well," said Selevin, beaming, "that just might have been helpful. I have here the sketch of the shoe print. I took it to a number of cobblers while I waited for you, and they all agree that it is of foreign make."

"Good for you, taking the initiative." Offered Ghorza. "How could they determine it was foreign by the print?"

"Here, let me show you." He said, stepping up to the desk and placing the sketch of the print in front of her. "See this little mark right here." He pointed to a small circle with three lines crossing through it. "Some cobblers like to mark their work, the way an artist will sign their paintings. This one in particular was made by a well-known cobbler from the Herdachian Kingdom. He is famed for his work amongst their nobility. Two of the shops I spoke to even said they sometimes are commissioned to make imitations, though out of professional courtesy they leave off the mark. A print like that in a back alley likely wasn't made in passing. Our suspect has to be a noble, or at least of the higher class."

"That is some excellent detective work Selevin, though don't go jumping to conclusions just yet?"

"How's that?" Selevin asks somewhat defeatedly.

"Never get too attached to a theory, no matter how convincing it might seem. We do have to consider the slight possibility that it was made in passing. Odder things have happened. Or that the boot was made by one of the more unscrupulous imitators. Remember that ring making knock-off handbags last year?" She spoke.

However, noting Selevin's disappointment she rushed to add, "That said, this is our best lead so far and I'm proud of you chasing it down. We'll send some junior detectives around town to the more high-end inns, and a few more to the gatehouses to speak to the guards. Maybe our suspect was sloppy, and we catch a break that way. Like I said, excellent work my boy."

That had worked to assuage some of Selevin's disappointment, which she was glad to see. This was a very solid lead, but it was important for the man to never frame his mind in terms of certainty until the killer was caught. Many detectives grew too attached to the first theory that seemed plausible and end up missing clues that run counter to it. Grooming Selevin to take her place someday meant she sometimes had to be harder on him than the others, which she knew her young partner understood.