9. Chapter 9 - Another Dead Body

Chapter 9 - Another Dead Body

Alexei

T he morning sun cast long shadows across my office as I sat hunched over the security footage from the peace treaty, scrutinizing every frame for a clue, a hint, anything that might unravel the mystery surrounding Mark's death and the missing talisman.

The room was quiet, except for the computer's subtle hum. The air held a weight of anticipation as if the answers we sought lingered just beyond our grasp.

I scanned the footage again, searching for anomalies or signs of unusual behavior. The supernatural community had gathered in Harmony Grove for the peace treaty, yet darkness had lurked somewhere within that congregation's life, claiming the werewolf alpha's life.

As my eyes fixated on a particular frame, my phone buzzed on the desk. I reached for it, recognizing Marie's number from the Sheriff's Department. Her crisp and efficient voice cut through the quiet of the room.

"Mayor, sir, we've got a murder on our hands. A dead body was found at the supermarket just now. The Sheriff and others have already gone to investigate the scene. I sent the address to your phone."

My heart sank. Another death, another murder to solve in such a short time.

"Thanks, Marie." I muttered before ending the call. Without hesitation, I grabbed my coat and rushed to my car to prepare to drive downtown. Evelyn needs all the help she can get right now in solving the murders. We have to find the killer before things get further out of control.

When I arrived at the supermarket, I found Evelyn and her team already at work, examining the crime scene. The air in the room was tense, with a palpable sense of urgency in the atmosphere.

Evelyn looked up as I entered, her expression a mix of disappointment and subtle anger. "Alexei, another one. It's getting worse."

I nodded, a knot tightening in my stomach. "Tell me what we know."

She gestured toward the victim, a lifeless form on a stretcher. "Scratches on both arms, blood on the knuckles. Looks like the victim put up a fight. We ran a preliminary blood test on the knuckles, but there's no match in the system."

I approached the body, studying the telltale signs of struggle. The supernatural world was unraveling, and these deaths were ominous threads weaving a dark atmosphere.

"Any witnesses?" I asked, my gaze still fixed on the lifeless figure before me.

Evelyn shook her head. "No one saw anything. It's as if the shadows themselves claimed another victim, this time a human."

A frown creased my brow as I considered the implications. "We need to find a connection, Evelyn. Something that ties these victims together. Anything."

She sighed, frustration evident in her eyes. "We're working on it, Alexei. But it's like chasing ghosts. No patterns, no apparent motive. Just death."

I paced around the crime scene, my mind racing.

As I circled back to the victim, I examined the arm scratches. A thought struck me, and I turned to Evelyn. "The scratches, they look like more than just defensive wounds.

Evelyn huddled with her team in a corner of the supermarket, their heads bent together in earnest conversation. I couldn't help but overhear snippets of their dialogue as I continued my examination.

Evelyn's voice, authoritative yet tinged with concern, cut through the ambient noise of the crime scene. "We need to run every test possible. Look for any patterns or connections between the victims. There has to be something linking them together."

Deputy Rodriguez, a seasoned investigator, nodded in agreement. "I'll cross-reference their backgrounds, see if there's any common ground. Maybe connections we're not aware of."

Evelyn glanced toward the scratches on the victim's arms, her eyes narrowing with determination. "And focus on these scratch patterns. There might be a message hidden in them. Something we've overlooked."

Deputy Olivera chimed in, her tone measured. "We also need to reach out to the bystanders. There might be someone who saw something they do not believe to be important."

Evelyn acknowledged their suggestions, her expression revealing the weight of responsibility she bore as the leader of this investigative team. "Good. Let's work quickly, efficiently. We need answers before another victim appears on our doorstep."

As they dispersed to carry out their assigned tasks, I approached Evelyn, my gaze lingering on the scratches on the victim's skin. "Any insights from the team, Evelyn?"

She sighed, a furrow deepening on her brow. "We're trying to connect the dots, Alexei. It's like chasing a shadow. No clear patterns between the murders, no apparent motive yet. It's as if these deaths are meant to keep us guessing."

I nodded, the frustration in her eyes reflecting my own.

I turned away from her to examine the victim's body again. As I approached the victim's knuckles, stained with their blood, a sense of frustration gnawed at me. Whoever was behind these deaths operated beyond the bounds of our understanding.

***

Back at the Sheriff's Department; "Alexei," Evelyn called out, drawing me back to the center of the investigation. "We've run every test, but we can't find a match for the blood on the knuckles. It's like this person doesn't exist in any record."

I sighed, the puzzle growing more complex with each passing moment. "Keep digging, Evelyn. We can't let this go unsolved."

I was about to say something when an unfamiliar man approached Evelyn and me.

"Sheriff. Mayor."

I gave him a nod to acknowledge his presence. Evelyn turned to look at me and saw the confused look on my face.

"Oh. Alexei, this is Ryan. He's a new recruit that started at the Department a few days ago."

"Nice to meet you, Mayor," Ryan said.

I studied him, examining his features. He looked young and bright-eyed. Looking at him, I could tell he seemed eager to do his duty.

He looked oddly familiar, almost like I had met him before. I didn't dwell on it too much; it might just be a harmless coincidence.

"Nice to meet you too, Ryan. So, what do you have for us."

Ryan handed Evelyn a USB drive.

"What's this?" Evelyn asked, frowning.

"It's the drive that contains the CCTV footage from the supermarket."

His expression held a mix of eagerness and trepidation as if he stumbled upon something beyond his expectations.

Evelyn gave him a nod of appreciation, and Ryan's gaze darted between us before he quickly returned to his duties.

The bustling atmosphere of the Sheriff's Department carried on around us, a stark contrast to the shadows that clung to our investigation.

Evelyn motioned toward her office, and we stepped inside. The door closed behind us, shutting out the ambient noise, and the room became a haven for our shared pursuit of truth.

I leaned against the edge of Evelyn's desk as she inserted the USB drive into her computer. The screen flickered to life, displaying the CCTV footage from the supermarket. The grainy images captured the mundane moments before the discovery of the lifeless body, shoppers navigating aisles, oblivious to the darkness that lurked beneath the fluorescent lights.

Evelyn's brow furrowed as we watched, a subtle realization crossing her features. "This footage... it's been altered."

I squinted at the screen, my eyes narrowing in concentration. The subtle nuances in the timeline, the glitches that betrayed a deliberate manipulation—clearly someone had tampered with the recording. The shadows that surrounded us extended even to the surveillance of the supermarket.

"Who would alter the footage, and why?" Evelyn pondered aloud, her gaze fixed on the screen.

I ran a hand through my hair, frustration mounting. "It could be someone trying to erase their presence or mislead us. The question is, what are they hiding, and what the hell went down at the supermarket last night?"

That was a rhetorical question, one that Evelyn and I had no answers to. Ryan stated he was given the footage by someone at the supermarket directly. We need to find out who.