The Crimson Chariot

05 | Hands of Justice

October 12, 2012
Friday
5:02 p.m.

Dear Janet,

Well, I'm a part of the quiz team now, not exactly excited I'm only doing it to watch Paul. I'm your replacement on the team, though no one could ever replace you. Paul is so unreadable, I'm not sure how to get into his head, but I will.

I met this girl in class today, she's kind of cute, to be honest. Brunette hair, and round brown eyes that pull at your heartstrings. Perhaps you knew her? Her name is Amara and she's captain of the quiz team. I'd been watching Paul when she tried talking to me, trying my best to figure out his thought patterns, and his mannerisms and more importantly, look for any possible weak spots.

"JEREMY!" Amara screamed at me and snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Yes?" I asked her and she rolled her eyes which bespoke nothing but rage and disappointment.

"I've asked you the same question five times and you can't get enough of staring at Paul! You got this spot on the team because of your capability to win not because of your sister, remember that!"

I felt humiliated by her words, I won't lie. But brushing my thoughts aside, I realized that whatever she had just said had truth to it. I need to blend in, be one with the crowd, and not stick out of it. I need to show everyone that I am capable of being on this team. I need to be a worthy competitor.

I apologized for my mistake and answered the question she had asked. She then moved on to the next member.

I need to let go of my recklessness, which I will, starting now. I will avenge you, Janet. Don't lose hope in me.

I love you.

Your brother, Jeremy

***

AIDEN AND I GET OUT OF THE POLICE VAN and make our way over to Thomas' apartment complex on Pioneer Lane. We take the elevator, reach the seventh floor and approach his apartment. Aiden and I flash our badges as we duck under the yellow police tapes and meet Captain Hale on the other side. The door which would've separated us has broken off its hinges. All that remains is a doorless entrance/exit.

"You were quick. Come on, follow me," he says and leads us into Thomas's apartment, and we finally come across his dead body laying on the bedroom floor. Savannah is hunched over it as she examines the murder victim. A putrid and nasty smell lingers in the air, one that the corpse produces when it's quite far down the line of decomposition.

One interesting detail, however, are Thomas' missing hands. They've been chopped off from the bone. Normally, it won't be a surprising feature. Murderers may cut off their victim's hands to erase evidence that would've otherwise been found under their fingernails, but I noticed a pattern in this case with the missing body parts. First, Ethan's genitalia, and now, Thomas' hands.

"What happened?" I ask Captain Hale as I wear my forensic gloves.

He scratches the back of his head and answers, "Well, the neighbors heard his dog barking continuously inside this room and Thomas hadn't come out of his apartment for a few days. There was a rotting smell every time they passed the door and so, they decided to check up on Thomas."

"So, they broke down the door and found the body?" Aiden asks and Captain Hale nods.

"They called us right after," the Captain adds.

"Thomas's German shepherd has eaten parts of his torso," Savannah cuts in, pointing her scalpel at Thomas' chest. Bits of fabric are bitten off from his shirt at spots where his dog gnawed off the flesh of its dead owner. "That's not the cause of death though." Savannah continues, pointing at his neck this time. "You see this laceration around his neck? He was strangled to death, probably with that phone charger over there." We turn to the victim's left where said phone charger is lying before an officer picks it up and bags and tags the cable.