Chapter 180: The Cat’s Belly

2022-05-20

Guan Zengbin gently wiped the blood from my face before finally speaking. “Go rinse off in the kitchen. You look like a mess. Once we’re done here, you should probably get a rabies shot.”

I nodded and made my way to the kitchen, washing my face and hands under the tap. As I did, I called out, “So, did you find anything?”

Guan Zengbin replied, “Still no sign of the killer anywhere in the apartment. But I did see marks on the balcony railing where a rope had been tied. That’s likely how the bodies were taken down. Even so, there isn’t much else that’s useful. The culprit seems slippery. If we want to catch someone like this, we’ll have to unravel their story first.”

He went on, “Trying to find any traces of this killer is near impossible. By the way, where’s everyone else?”

I gave Guan Zengbin a rundown of what happened to me in that hole. He couldn’t help but gasp in surprise, especially when I described how the killer moved in total darkness without any panic, almost as if he could see everything in the dark.

Guan Zengbin studied me, his expression serious. “Humans aren’t nocturnal. Without any light, we’re basically blind. Animals, though, usually have a tapetum lucidum—a membrane that lets them see clearly in the dark. If that person could really see down there, their eyes must’ve looked green…”

I shook my head. “No idea.”

Guan Zengbin rested his hand on his chin, thinking aloud. “At the very least, this killer clearly spends a lot of time in the dark.”

I let out a deep sigh, unsure what to say.

Clouds drifted lazily across the sky as I waited. Finally, Gu Chen called me back, but what he said was a letdown. He told me they’d searched everywhere but never found that person in black—doesn’t matter if it was a man or woman.

I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. Only when I couldn’t breathe did I finally drop my hand and gulp in the fresh air.

Guan Zengbin asked, “What are you doing?”

I replied, “Someone once told me that when your brain is deprived of oxygen, your thoughts can race. I’m giving it a shot.”

A little later, Gu Chen came back with a large group of people, but still, no trace of the killer. I was frustrated—if only I’d grabbed that hand the moment I felt it, the killer would’ve never escaped. That might’ve been my closest chance, and just like that, it slipped away.

Gu Chen muttered, “If only we’d known that path was a dead end, we might’ve caught him.”

I let out a slow sigh. “Maybe the killer knew about it and used that to escape. Forget it, no point worrying now. Did you get the bodies out? It’s getting dark. If we don’t hurry, it’ll be even harder to deal with once night falls.”

Gu Chen looked annoyed. “Xiao Liu crawled inside. He told us there are three bodies, right?”

I nodded.

About half an hour later, all three bodies were carried out, each one brought out singlehandedly by Xiao Liu. When the last body appeared, Xiao Liu collapsed on the ground. His face was white as a sheet—he’d clearly been through a lot. Guan Zengbin handed him a piece of fabric to wipe his sweat. Xiao Liu managed a shaky smile.

He said, “I’ve never felt anything like that before. I knew you all were right outside, but the moment I went in, it felt like I was in another world. Like I was the only person left. It was terrifying.”

I chuckled. I knew Xiao Liu was hardly the timid type. Back with the Liu Yinyan case, he went in alone for Gu Chen without a second thought. When you know there are bodies, the fear of the unknown isn’t as strong—not like when I went in for the first time, startled by the sudden terror.

But Xiao Liu probably had his reasons for saying that, maybe wanting to prove his worth in front of everyone. I wasn’t about to call him out.

Still, seeing those three bodies lying in the middle of the road weighed heavy on everyone. For me, it brought a crushing sense of helplessness. Letting the killer slip away meant another tragedy could happen—a new story, another victim. And it all started with my own moment of fear.

Especially when I saw the little girl in front of me. I couldn’t bring myself to look at her body. She couldn’t have been older than thirteen, just about to discover the big, wide world—then she was brutally murdered. Her belly was carved with English letters. Anyone would feel anger and grief seeing her.

Gu Chen cursed, “He didn’t even spare a young girl like that, and in such a cruel way. He deserves to die a thousand times over!”

Team Leader Shao looked at the three bodies, pressing his hands to his own face. After a long pause, he finally said, “The best way to honor the dead is to catch the killer. For that, an autopsy is essential. Come on, may the dead rest in peace. I, Shao Shilin, swear on these three bodies that I won’t rest until we’ve brought the killer to justice!”

By the time we returned, the sky was already fading to black.

Before the bodies were taken into the autopsy room, Guan Zengbin gave me a rabies shot. After being scratched by more stray cats than I could count, maybe I’m the first investigator in history in this situation. I wasn’t sure if it should be considered a work injury.

Captain Li also sent over a forensic doctor to help with the autopsy, cutting down Guan Zengbin’s workload. The doctor’s name was Zhang Qinrui—a big, tall man who seemed a bit shy. They started dissecting the two adults. By then, their bodies were practically nothing but bone.

According to the forensic expert, the most important bone in an autopsy is the pelvis. From there you can tell age, gender, and more. For these two, the muscle, fat, even internal organs were mostly ripped to shreds.

Both skulls were so clean, nothing left but the scalp and some hair on top. You could barely see any trace of flesh—standing back, they just looked like skeletons wearing wigs. The whole thing was unsettling.

Both stomachs had been slashed wide open, and standing nearby, I could pick up a stench that was almost impossible to describe.

The only relatively intact parts were the arms and thighs, but even then, ‘intact’ was a stretch. They were pockmarked with hollows and holes.

By now, I’d already pieced together an answer in my mind.

Some time passed, and Guan Zengbin said, “The cause of death for the woman was suffocation. Her hands and feet are frozen in a grasping position, so there was clear struggle. We found black fibers under her fingernails, which means she made contact with the killer. Those black fibers probably came from the attacker’s clothing.”

Zhang Qinrui added, “Same for the male, but I found sevoflurane in his blood.”

“What?” Gu Chen and I exchanged glances.

Guan Zengbin explained, “If you inhale that stuff, you’ll pass out within five to ten minutes. It has a faintly sweet scent, but it’s colorless, tasteless, and hard to notice. If the killer planned ahead, it’s no wonder the two victims didn’t see it coming.”

I nodded. “So, the killer knocked the man out first, killed the woman, then finished off the man?”

Guan Zengbin paused, then said, “That sounds about right. I didn’t detect that substance in the woman. The killer clearly knows some chemistry. This guy’s a real all-rounder. First hacking into the apartment’s surveillance system, then sending out stories without Mary catching him, now using chemicals to take down the victims. And, his methods are unique.”

Guan Zengbin glanced at Zhang Qinrui, and Zhang Qinrui added, “We also found paper in both their mouths.”

“Paper?” I asked.

Zhang Qinrui explained, “Not sure if you’ve heard of the ‘ten tortures.’ What the killer did was stick wet tissues over their faces, one by one, until they suffocated to death. The woman, not being drugged, was able to struggle, but the man had it much worse.”

I shook my head. “No, to the killer, the man was luckier—he died in his sleep. The woman probably struggled for a long time.”

Guan Zengbin said, “Too bad the killer didn’t use mulberry-bark paper. If he had, we wouldn’t have found even the tiniest traces left in their mouths.”

“Time of death was around midnight yesterday. The story got posted at dusk, and later that night the killer went into action.” Guan Zengbin looked over at Zhang Qinrui.

Zhang Qinrui said, “Same for the male victim.”

Guan Zengbin continued, “As for why the bodies ended up like this—it’s creepy and gruesome, but the signs are obvious.”

I frowned. “Do cats really eat corpses?”

In unison, Guan Zengbin and Zhang Qinrui replied, “They do.”