Recap of the Present
"Two murderer and one victim. The victim is uninjured other than some bruises. Has poison been found in his blood? Yes? Very well. One murderer poisons him, and the other, with blood on his body, throws him out of the gates. Since the victim isn't bleeding but still has blood stains, he probably got the blood smeared on his carrier."
"Carried? I don't think so. The murderer didn't carry but drag him out. Seen those marks on the damp ground?"
"Tch tch. Too small. Those are the carrier slipping because of the victims weight."
"Well the real thing is where did the murderer escape? Because there is only one type of footprint escaping to the streets. Where did the second murderer go? Did they separate paths to stay hidden?"
Orion looked at the ground. Robert was right. Two types of footprints leave the building but one goes out of gates and disappears in the street. The other, the carrier, keeps the body resting to a tree and disappears from the spot at once. Both of them looked at each other with the same thought.
They didn't climb the tree, did they?
They just looked around, both of them, confused. Robert began after sometime, "Whoever killed was a genius to break the system."
"System, hmph. What do you even know about it, Robert? Let me tell you. A lot. There's a lot you don't know. And you never will. They won't let you know."
Robert looked into his eyes searching for answer to his riddled response.
Orion smiled and closed his eyes. He opened them and looked to the sky. "There's a lot that we need to know. Obviously, I know just a little more than you on this topic but I won't explain it to you. I am not sure myself. I don't want to fill your brain with misinformation."
Robert stared at him, his mouth gaped open.
"The heck you blabbering about?"
Orion smiled and shook his head. "Nothing," He said and took his leave.
He had far more important places to go. He searched for a pin in his pockets. When crouching near the body, he had picked it up. A crimson pin.
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Continuation
Orion kept the pin inside his pocket as he walked towards the river. Crop fields came to his view soon.
He kept walking by the riverbed, looking out for the footprints. He finally found it. Two types of bootprints, together.
"Found you." He whispered and searched his pockets for a pen, hoping to draw the marks on his skin since he had no paper.
Tsk. Where is it? Did I forget it? Oh! Oh...
He threw the crumbles of waste paper from his pockets onto the ground.
He sighed at his final idea.
He took out his pin and crouched down to check the quality of the mud.
You will work.
He then carefully rolled the tip of the pin on some mud then slowly, carefully he traced out the bootprints on the skin of his volar area. It took a lot of time as he worked on it like a mahendi artist, although the mud was his mahendi. He drew the most easily identifiable areas of both shoe marks to save time.
By the time he was done, the heat made his sweat trickle down his forehead and neck. He licked his dry lips as he stood up, raising his right hand in a way so that the mud won't get rubbed by his clothes.
He carefully cleaned the pin tip, put it inside his pockets then his eyes followed where the murderers came from.
"Seems like they took the train. So they are far off."
He looked at the river water, the constant lapping sound on the rocks attracting him. He went towards it, bended down and let the water flow between his fingers. He smiled to himself then started washing his sweaty face and neck. He spent some time playing then was hit with a realization.
The mud drawing. Shit. Why? Why? Not again.
He groaned.
He spent another 30 minutes drawing with the pin once again.
By the time he was done, it was already noon.
Time to head back.
As he returned, he arrived at the construction site on his way. Now, it was all empty. Too empty. He frowned. Then he saw some people in the building walking.
He went inside.
He climbed.
First floor.
Second floor...
...
Third floor.
He halted at the floor as he recognised a familiar voice. Robert.
He entered the rooms, the crowd getting denser as he went forward gradually.
In the final room, he saw. Another body. This time a terrible sight. A body full of long red whipped marks, blood trickling down slowly from certain parts and flys being chased away. The smell made him nauseous.
He looked away with disgust. He walked out of the rooms hurriedly. The sound of someone else followed him.
A hand gripped tightly on his shoulder.
"Orion."
He halted and took a deep breath. His face turned to look at Robert.
"Change of status, Orion." He informed with a stern face.
"This time, don't go." Robert continued as Orion tried to move but couldn't. His grip was stronger.
Orion gave out a low sound in defeat.
He gave a nod to which Robert let go his shoulder.
" I would like to be let alone while doing my own investigation. And I hope nobody would-"
"Nobody will make you leave. I assure you." Robert said in a serious tone.
Orion nodded but inside he was tense. All the story he had made up in his mind was spoiled. The story was never that simple. When he had entered the site, he had seen the shoe mark of the victim by the tree. It was the one he had found by the riverside. The one that he had thought belonged to a murderer. And now, another corpse. All that he felt was at least partially true was wrong.
He gave a long sigh.
Yes. I would like to be unbothered.
And so he got ready for his investigation on the real case.