Cases Uncovered

6 | Shadows of the Past

"A secret makes a woman, woman"

-Vermouth

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Chapter 6:
Shadows of the Past

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ZANE

"You? What do you think?" Her direct question took aback me. My mind reeled as her gaze fixed upon me. "What do you think?" she repeated.

"M-Me?" I stammered, surprised by the sudden attention.

"We don't have time for that, Mr. Nuñez. We only have a few minutes before George's colleagues ask us to leave," she explained briskly. "You wouldn't have pursued a major in science if you weren't naturally curious, right?"

A chill ran down my spine. How the heck did she know about my college course?

"Time's running out," George reminded us.

I turned my gaze towards the woman lying before us. "What do you think of all this?"

The sight of tears in her eyes was the first to catch my attention.

"Any interesting findings?" George inquired.

"She has tears in her eyes. While I can't determine the exact cause, it's possible she cried before her death. Alternatively, it could be due to bodily fluids from changes in pressure and decomposition," I explained.

A faint smile touched George's lips, though he didn't meet my gaze. Instead, his attention stayed fixed on the corpse.

"Time's up! Hurry, get out of there!" the man who had stayed outside the room called, interrupting our examination. "We'll be the ones to solve the case first, George."

"We're being ushered out, sir. Best of luck," Raine said to George with a fleeting smile, which she immediately returned after stepping away from him.

As I was about to exit through the doorway, a hand touched my shoulder, stopping me. I turned to see George standing behind me. "You did an amazing job in there," he said with a slight smile.

"It was nothing, uh... sir," I replied, feeling slightly awkward but appreciative of his acknowledgment.

"How did you come to know Raine?" I intended to catch up with my companion, who was already striding away, but I couldn't resist answering the policeman.

"I stay in the same flat," I replied.

"So, does that mean that..." George trailed off, giving me a cryptic smile before releasing his grip on my shoulder. "Alright then. Go catch up with that girl."

"Sure thing," I responded, mustering a smile.

Stepping outside, I scanned the area, but Raine and the car that had brought us were nowhere in sight.

"Are you looking for Ms. De Verra?" A woman guarding the premises approached me.

"Uh... yes," I confirmed.

"Ms. Santiago already took her home," the woman informed me, appearing to be in her thirties.

"The woman in the car parked there earlier?" I pointed to the place where the woman had parked the car earlier.

"One of the officers. The car you're pointing to was already gone a few moments after you arrived," she confirmed.

"I don't have a lot of information about this place," I muttered under my breath.