Nerium oleander

Grubbing

"So, he didn't take anything from Kirkland?"

Kiku nodded, fixing his eyes on the report again. The lack of sounds made Alfred's mind uneasy, he couldn't help but cough, gaining the attentión of Dr. Honda.

"Arthur Kirkland was poisoned, there are unusual discolorations of the mucous membranes of his stomach and several foxglove bells inside his torso," Drumming his fingers on the desk, Kiku's usually serene face was distorted with anxiety, he stood up, pacing a bit before sighing. "The signs of violence before the death also match those in Antonio Carriedo's case, marks of abrasion on his wrists and a flower carving on his hand, though Kirkland had two fingers broken."

Alfred frowned, not sure of what else to ask, it was strange to be there alone with Doctor Honda but he was also wary of admitting that he didn't know what to say or do. He took the report in his hands, skimming through it even when he wasn't sure of what to look for. "Dr. Honda, do you remember case 15F44? Her name was registered as Xiao Mei, do you know something about it?"

"Xiao Mei..." Dr. Honda lowered his gaze, rummaging through another document. "I do remember her, it was very strange to have such a... young victim here," He paused, gazing at Alfred for a moment before adding. "What exactly do you wish to know about her?"

"Were there any traces of red soil on her body? The waterfall is located near the quarry is it not?" Alfred said, pondering for a moment. "Also, is there a way to find more information about her? I was trying to check the records but there weren't any more documents regarding her or her family's information."

"There was red soil under her nails, I do remember it was on her report," Kiku shook his head, tossing the document in his hands into the table and opening a drawer harshly, facing away from him. "About her family, well... If the information is not on the record then I am afraid I don't know more than that."

"How about Amelia Jhonson, did she have red soil on her too?"

"Amelia Jhonson was reported as missing, there's no autopsy without a body," Kiku paused, sparing him a glance and fondling with documents on the drawer and fishing one "Why are you asking about her?"

"I think we have to change the approach this investigation has had until now, if we are facing a serial killer, then we might as well think of previous cases as a whole and not as mere coincidental happenings. Ivan... Officer Braginsky thinks we are dealing with two killers," Alfred explained, adjusting his glasses. "You said that Emma had red clay soil on her, so I supposed that if the other female subjects have that in common, then we might be able to trace their crime scene back to the quarry, and in that case, the warrant for the search has indeed a probable cause. Plus Amelia's name was on Kirkland's crime scene, I think -as wicked as it sounds- that Kirkland's killer is leaving clues on the girls' murders."

"We'll need a detailed and convincing document for that," Kiku hummed, a faint smile appearing on his face as he gave him the file in his hands. "Detective Jones, if I have learned something from my years of work is that the evidence doesn't lie, and sometimes it even speaks to us, perhaps you should try revising the evidence of Amelia's case."

Alfred nodded, grimacing at the thought of having to pay a visit to the archive. He had gotten out of the autopsy report with more questions than answers, but somehow, Dr. Honda's behavior had soothed his nerves, at least he was assured that one person in this department tried to work dutifully.

---

The archive was relatively small, Gilbert allowed him to look around, though his prying stare made Alfred uneasy. He sighed as he went over the section marked with the letter J, no traces of what he was looking for. He sighed, giving Gilbert a tired gaze. "Where do you store the evidence of the cases?"