Bloody Bracelet

Part 5

I didn't like it, at all. We arrived at the crime scene, yet another alley, but this time it was way, way worst.

"Fuck me."

Detective Dany was crunched down, looking up at the naked lady hanging upside down from a fire escape. Her throat was slit wide open.

"I don't believe it, Tom."

"Yeah, you and me both. Dany, what the hell happened here?"

Dany stood up and looked at me with two horrified eyes. Even he couldn't grasp what happened here.

"It's the same as the last one, Tom.", said Dany. "Except this time, there a whole lot more blood."

I looked down at the red lake at our feet. They say the normal human body has about 5.5 litres of blood in one. Well, you never really know how much 5.5 litres is until it's spread across the concrete floor.

"This one was killed here."

She had to be. Otherwise the murderer brought along all her blood and that seems a little fucking ridiculous.

"Tom, let's get up and see what's go- Wait a minute.", Chief took a step closer to look at her face. "My God, we know that woman. It's Dana Oakland."

There could be no way. Dana Oakland was a High Court city lawyer. There's no way someone so powerful could get murdered like this. We got to the floor right below where she was hanging. The murderer planned it perfectly. The woman was in fact Dana Oakland. She was around 40 years old, brown hair, no struggle marks on her body and a braclet around her wrist with the a engraving on it, the letter 'A'. It was the same guy. OUR guy.

"Ok, Tom, THIS is now placed on display. How are these two women connected? I mean one's a kindergarden teacher and then this is a damn High Court lawyer."

"I don't know. They look nothing alike. As far as I know, they're from two different birthplaces as well."

"Two different countries actually, Dana was born in Montreal, Canada.", said Dany.

"Then why Dana, and why Sarah."

These two are related in no way possible.

"Hey Chief, do me a favour. Lift up Dana's top lip for me?"

"What?"

The Chief's tone of voice said just how willing he was to do it, not at all.

"Fine, you big baby. Dany, you mind."

Dany actually pulled some rubber gloves from his suit pocket and sticked his to fingers into her mouth. What a team player.

"What do you see, Tom?", Chief ordered.

There it is.

"You see that behind her tooth, Chief?"

"No, I do- Wait, is that a- Is that a 2?"

"That is yeah, and Doc gave me this right before we left his office."

I held up the A5 photo that Doc has printed for me. I could see the Chief's squint to try to focus, that look of confusion on his face is always recognizable.

"That's a 1?", Chief finally answered.

"Right again. So maybe this guy is warning us of possible next victims?"

"Yeah, but how many?, asked Dany.

I have no idea, Dany. I just hope not at all.

Later that night, after they cut down Dana Oakland, I was at home with a bowl of stew in front of me. I was dead quiet, staring into the stew, hoping to find something between the meats and vegetables. Like the perp's name and motive would just pop up right in front of me. Like 'Dick Jones, cause he was fucking bored.' Case closed.

"You haven't been so quiet, since the first time you were at the farm, dear."

I snapped back at reality with my white-haired grandma sitting right next to me. To be honest, I forgot she was even here.

"Work stuff, Ab."

"Now you know you can't bring your work home."

"I know, kinda hard not too. Found another body today. That lawyer woman that's pretty good. Also found her naked in an alley, throat slit."

"But, wait-", Ab has the same look Chief had today, "That sounds familiar."

"It's the same guy, or guys, that murder that young lady last week. This is getting too intense."

I hope rubbing my eyes would make this massive headache go away. Well, I guess it won't. Ab usually grabs my hand when I'm like this. She just takes it and smiles and tries to talk me through it.

"You know, after your parents died, I took it my sworn duty to protect you until you were out of school, but I was all wrong. It was you who took care of me, without me even having to ask. You never got to be a child, you were already a man, a man who grew up too fast and was way too curious."

I felt a smile managed it's way out.

"And after Jesse", she continued, "I thought that would be the end of you. The one thing to finally break you, but you stood strong. That was a very hard hit for you, and you stood back up and faced the world again, you even wouldn't take a day off from caring for me."

"This story seems very long, Ab."

"What I'm trying to say is, wise ass, is that tougher problems tried to break you before and they have all failed. There is no doubt on my mind that you could withstand and beat this one."

I couldn't help but smile. This old, frail woman who understand me better than I understand myself, has always looked up to me. Not because she's short as shit, but because she still believes I can change the world. That, is what drives me. Proving her right. I recided to my cave. To think and to recharge. Tomorrow is gonna be a lot harder, after all, we do have a seriel killer on the loose.

What will that asshole do now?