The Shadow

Chapter 3 - The Revelation

"How did he kill a room full of mobsters in five minutes?" asked Ren curiously. "I mean, in records, there are no details of what happened and how they were killed."

"They were killed with acid," replied Commissioner Azhar. "They were drenched and killed with sulfuric acid. The water sprinklers and tanks were made of mild steel, which could hold sulfuric acid. When the power went off, he started a fire, which set off the smoke alarm, activating the sprinklers filled with acid. The doors were locked from outside, so no one could escape. Within 5 minutes, in darkness with nowhere to run, they were burned with the acid and fire."Ren and Donny looked at each other in shock at how brutal the killing was.

"The crime scene that spooked you guys in the morning was nothing compared to what we saw that dreaded morning. The details of the case could have created widespread panic in the public; that is the reason the witness and the murder procedure were off the record," Commissioner Azhar added.

"I saw him. He looked at me as he left. I begged him to spare me while bowing on the ground, promising I would never tell a soul of what I saw," said Natasha. "He just patted on my head; his face was covered, he was wearing all black. The only thing I saw were his eyes for a moment in the moonlight. It was like a predator's, but there was warmth in them."

"Can you describe his eyes?" Ren asked.

"I am not sure. My eyes were filled with tears; I could barely look at those eyes, and he just disappeared into the shadows after that," Natasha replied.

"Great! So all the evidence we have is a hat, an overcoat, and eyes with 'warmth' in them. I guess we will have to buy a thermometer to check the warmth in the suspect's eyes. Natasha, how warm were they?" Ren asked sarcastically.

"Did anyone tell you yet you are not at all funny, Ren, is it?" Natasha responded.

"He gets that a lot," smirked Donny. "So, let's ask the right questions. How tall was he, and what was his body build?"

"He must have been around 5'10 or more. He was lean, and his voice was deep if that might help," replied Natasha.

"That is all, I guess. If you guys have any specific doubts again, I'll share her contact info, get in touch with her," Commissioner Azhar informed.

"Thank you for having me, but I hope you guys don't bother me again with this case. Wish you guys all the best. Especially you, Ren, guys with sarcasm like yours have lived the least in my experience," smirked Natasha.

"At least I won't beg for my life if I come face to face with the shadow," Ren retorted.

After staring at each other slyly for a few moments, Natasha left along with the lady escort and Commissioner Azhar.

"Why do you have to pick a fight with everyone, Ren? She seemed to be a nice woman, and you did a pretty good job getting on her nerves," Donny said.

"Alright man, I am sorry. I am just frustrated that we don't have a single thing on the shadow yet. That guy might be targeting another victim, and we are just sitting ducks here," Ren replied.'

"It's okay. Let's approach this case step by step. Let's go back to the crime scene and look closely once again. There will be something we can start working with," Donny affirmed.

"Alright, let's go," Ren replied.

Ren and Donny left for the crime scene with a team of 5 who were assigned to them for the case: Pratik, Sonal, Bhargav, Yusuf, and Raj. They were young officers with promising careers ahead of them, tasked to assist Ren and Donny on the Shadow case.

They started at the place where the first murder happened. They searched the area and found footprint marks, hair follicles of the hit and run murderer, along with the murder weapon, i.e., the cutting blade disposed of at the crime scene itself. The first murderer was sloppy and left a lot of evidence.

With no luck about the shadow at the first murder spot, they moved on to the second crime scene. The odor of death and the stains of blood were still haunting the crime scene of the gruesome murder. The team started looking around, and the crime scene was crystal clean with not a single slip-up or evidence. Ren was frustrated.

Raj and Yusuf arrived at the scene after talking to locals and neighbors. "No luck, sir. Since it was very late at night, no one saw or heard a thing at the time of the murder or after that."

"Damn it all, man!" yelled Ren, infuriated. "You guys keep looking; I am gonna need a smoke or I am gonna break something," and left the crime scene into an alley with a cigarette in his mouth.Donny found it peculiar to see Ren so rattled. The usually calm and collected Ren was fuming with frustration on the first day of the investigation. He followed into the alley while encouraging the team to keep working on it. He saw Ren walking around while smoking and cursing.

"Hey man, what's up? What's the deal with you? You seem so rattled and unsettled. Is everything alright?" Donny inquired.

"It's nothing. I am just frustrated about the case. I am sorry to bother you guys like that," Ren replied.

"Are you sure? I have known you for almost a decade. Since we have taken this case, you have been on edge; I know when something is up with you, you can tell me. You are like my 'brother,' man," Donny replied.

"I am gonna need your word that you will be discreet about what I am going to tell, and I can have your back," replied Ren.

"You have my word, buddy," Donny affirmed.

Ren continued to take a puff of smoke while Donny was shoving away the smoke to avoid passive smoking. "This case is personal to me," said Ren.

"What do you mean personal?" asked Donny curiously.

"I joined the police force a decade ago after 3 years of training, especially to catch The Shadow. I have been following this case since then. This case is personal to me because out of the numerous people he killed 13 years ago, one of them was Assistant Commissioner Saadhak, my father." Ren Confessed