ENGLAND (2 Years Later)
"Checkmate."
"Ahh!! Not againnn!!"
"Well, I am rather good at this game."
"Damn it! I lost again. You're not just an assistant detective for a show!"
"Hank!! Where's my coffee?!"
"Right on it, sir! Gotta go, mate."
"Hey, come on, just one more round! I'll beat you this time, for sure."
"You've been saying that for the last 20 rounds. Alright, after I finish my work, we'll play again."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever…"
"Oi, old man! This isn't your house, go have your fun somewhere else!"
"Oh, shut it! Who are you calling an old man? I'm only 65!"
"Yeah, and that makes you old!"
"John, come on," Hank interrupted, trying to settle the brewing argument with a nervous smile.
"Oh, and guess what, young man?"
"What?"
"This old man has a beautiful wife waiting at home with a tasty meal!"
"Y-you old bastard!!"
John clutched his chest and dropped to his knees, pretending to have a heart attack.
"Where's my coffee!!"
"Ah! Coming! John, I'm off!"
"Yes…" John replied with a devastated look while the old man walked away with a victorious smile.
Hank hurried to the cafeteria, grabbed a freshly made espresso, and rushed back to the detective's office.
"Hello, Tina!"
"Hello, Hank! Looking good today."
"You too, Tina. Is he inside?"
"Yeah, waiting for his espresso. Although he seemed a bit grumpy."
"Huh…" Hank made a nervous face and headed toward the door.
With a small sigh, he walked in and saw piles of papers and documents stacked high on the desk.
A middle-aged man sat at the desk, scribbling in a file.
"Sir, your coffee!"
"Took you long enough."
"S-sorry, sir. Mr. Tin came to visit, but knowing you were busy, I tried to kill some time with him until he left."
"...Tin came? That guy still visits?"
The detective stood up and walked toward the window.
"I still recall his case from ten years ago."
"You mean the Martha murder case?"
"Yes, Martha—Tin's daughter."
"You said you never found the killer."
"Martha attended a friend's birthday party but left her friend's gift in the car. She went back to get it and was stabbed from behind."
"Yes… the parking area was right next to the house. There were no signs of resistance and no witnesses. No sounds were heard. It was almost as if—"
"As if she let it happen and didn't even feel it until it was too late."
Martha had been studying criminal law and was also an athlete in her late teens. She was active enough to at least make a run for it or scream for help.
"The first stab was near her waist, suggesting the killer was a bit shorter than her."
Martha was six feet tall and had a promising future ahead of her.
"The second stab was on the back of her thigh. The third was to her chest."
"The killer must have been an amateur… probably a child."
"Yes, that would explain why she allowed the killer to get so close."
The detective walked back to his desk, picked up his cup, and took a sip.
"Though we never found the killer, all the children in the town had solid alibis."
Sip…
The detective stared at his coffee for a moment, then looked at me.
"You're a good kid. Very talented."
"Huh! Ye-yes, sir."
The sudden mood shift caught me off guard. Who gives a compliment with a straight face like that?
"Now help me with these reports."
"Ye—"
Ring… ring…
The detective's phone rang. He put down his coffee and answered it.
"Yes… What??"
His face turned serious.
"Hank! Let's go. We've got a new case."
"Huh? Me?"
"Yes. It's not like staying here will do you any good. You'll learn on the job."
I was a new assistant detective, and most don't get involved in a case so soon. I was both confused and excited.
"Yes, sir! Let's move!"
I grabbed my coat, grinning from ear to ear. This was my first case, and even as an assistant detective, it felt exhilarating.
But that grin didn't last long.
We arrived at a mansion surrounded by police and paramedics.
Inside, a horrifying scene awaited us.
The couple's corpses were brutally dissected, their internal organs scattered across the floor. It looked like something straight out of a horror film.
"Who could do something like this?"
It took me a full minute to regain my composure. That was my first question.
"It was their own 13-year-old son who killed them," a police officer said as he approached us.