The Murders at the Beilschmidt Manor

Chapter 8

Another Murder

"You do?" Maria asked, looking up at him still a bit stirred from when he scared her. He nodded.

"It's--"

A scream pierced through his sentence. The two looked up and ran out quickly. Lili, a pale white, stared at the scene before her. Allistor was next to her, his eyes wide. His cigarette was on the floor besides his foot. Arthur and Francis ran down in a blind state, running into Berwald and Maria. Maria fell forward, her face mere inches from the body, her hand covered in it's crimson blood.

"Yao?" Maria choked out.

The Chinese man was mangled from the inside out. He was barely recognizable. His face had large gash marks from what looked like animal claws, his chest was visible, and his ribs looked like they were gnawed at by some kind of animal. Maria noticed something peculiar. On his neck was a small puncture hole. She stared at it for a short moment before coming to a realization.

He was stabbed in the neck with a syringe.

Maria quickly examined the wound. 'Someone with a weak grip stabbed it into his neck.' Noted Maria quickly into her notebook. Something glimmered inside Yao's chest.

Maria took in a deep breath. She pulled her gloves up slightly and, even though she didn't want to, moved her hand slowly into his open chest. 

"M-Maria!" Arthur gasped. This scared Maria, making her release the shiny thing and fall backwards onto her bottom. 

"Arthur! What is it?" She hissed. 

"What were y-you doing? Reaching your hand into a dead man?" He asked, disgusted. 

"My job!" She hissed at him. "Now let me collect my evidence!"

She released a huff of breath and reached back into his abdomen. Slowly, she searched around causing a horrific 'squish-splash' sound to occur. Arthur stared at her unphased, while the others barely kept down their lunch.

Maria slowly pulled out her gloved bloody hand and in her hand was Mei's hairpin.

"I knew it..." She muttered. Quickly, she turned to Arthur. "This look familiar?"

"Her hairpin? Why was it in her father's sto-" He cut himself off. "No. No it can't be!"

"But it is. The murder... It might be-"

Lili fainted, causing everyone to avert their attention to her.

"Don't just stand there! Help the lassie!" Allistor yelled. Arthur went to her side, fanning her. Maria looked at Lili with suspicion.

She was up to something. Maria could sense it.

But what?