Solomon stood up. A murder!?
The woman nodded.
There hasnt been a murder since Potts earliest days. The people here would never hurt their fellow deadn!
Kit leaned forward and looked at the woman. Was it a fight that got out of hand? Do we know who the culprit is?
The white robe shook her head. No. A body was found in the Western part of town. Its Miss Lydia.
I didnt know who that was, but I saw Mamas eyes turn downward at the na.
Lead to the body, I said, putting the information into the R.A.S. to open an investigation.
The white robe looked at the Honored Dead.
Do it, said Mama, answering her look.
We cant let Donovan do that. We still havent even voted on whether or not to exile him. Besides, he doesnt live here with us, he doesnt rember our ways, said Jim, Solomon nodding in approval next to him as he spoke.
Who else could we ask? offered Julian. You may not like him, but the system has granted him the Marshall job and he has more experience with murder and death than anyone else here. We could certainly ask Nico, or have so Undertakers take a look, but lets be honest, this is beyond their expertise.
Solomon sighed. Agreed. He turned his gaze to . Who better to catch a killer than another killer after all. You may investigate.
I returned his gaze. I wasnt asking your permission. This is my jurisdiction. I turned to the white robe and gestured for her to lead the way. This ti, she didnt look to the Honored Dead for permission.
The woman lead the way back out of the mausoleum and onto the street. I could hear panicked voices and even crying as we wove down the paths between buildings and got closer to where the body had been found. Around it, a massive crowd was gathered, and we were unable to push our way through to the body.
Everybody clear out! I yelled, and the group parted to look at . Dont stand around here gawking, just go about your business. Ill find who did this.
There were glances at , looks of concern, and so of fear. A few people looked like they might challenge , but when we made eye contact they lost their nerve and soon everyone was clearing out of the area. I made my way over to the body. It was in a semi secluded alley between two houses and I turned back toward the white robe when I reached it.
She was staring blankly at the body, clearly in shock. It surprised for a mont to see that reaction to a single corpse, but in a way it was almost a kind of praise for how good things in Potts were. Id seen the average waster not bat an eye at a pile of the corpses of their nearest and dearest friends. That was just their Thursday.
I went and stood in front of her, blocking her view of the body. Maam, can you go back to the Mausoleum and see if we can borrow a few Undertakers. I want to make sure that this area stays clear of any regular foot traffic.
She continued staring forward.
Can you do that for ? I asked.
She shook her head slightly, clearing a bit of the fog she was in, looked up at and nodded before she began walking back in the direction of the Mausoleum.
I turned back around and bent down to look at the corpse. The woman had been wearing a light green wrap that was now stained red with blood, chunks of it had been ripped off of her, along with pieces of flesh. Her yellow eyes were open and staring at the sun above us, while her mouth was open, as if shed been killed mid-scream. I reached over and closed her eyes, then I started looking over the wounds. I felt a surprising bit of relief for a mont. The wounds looked as if theyd been made by a wild animal. Flesh had been taken off in bites, and claw marks were all across the body. I had a mont where I though that rather than a murder, this may have been a case of so creature wandering out of the cut and making its way into town sohow.
The relief didnt last long though. I took a closer look at the bite-wounds and realized sothing. They looked exactly like the wounds Id left on the n Id carved my way through in the bunker. Theyd been made by the teeth of a deadman. Shed been killed by a fellow resident of Potts.
I heard the sound of several pairs of feet behind , and looked to see four Undertakers arriving behind . Three of them I didnt recognize, but the fourth was Nix, leader of the Undertakers.
I gave my attention to her underlings first. You three, make sure no one wanders in here. I need to be able to look over the cri scene without any interference. Dont want people to panic too much either.
They looked over at Nix, who nodded the affirmative, then they went to do as I asked. Potts didnt really have a police force, but when a fight needed broken up or so beasties wandered into town, it was the Undertakers that took charge of the situation. They were the only group that was trained to fight and there was usually a sizable amount of them in town between trips into the wastes. It made sense to involve them.
Nix went and looked over the body. She had a grim expression on her face, but didnt show nearly the shock over it that the white robe had. She bent down to look closer. Looks like it might have been an animal of so kind.
I shook my head, and started looking through the alley around the body rather than just at the body itself. That was my first thought, but those bite marks are those of a deadman.
She looked up at . How do you know?
I looked into her black eyes. I know.
She crouched back down to look at the body, and I continued my search around. Eventually I found a pair of bloody handprints on the walls of one of the buildings that ford the alley. They were massive, showing hands easily twice the size of my own, but I couldn't tell if that was the result of sared blood, or that was their actual size. I looked around the prints and noticed two more, though there was less blood on this print so it almost looked as if the hands had shrunk as theyd reached the next point. I began picking at my teeth. Whoever the killer was, had climbed up the side of the building to make his escape. It made sense, the buildings were all dos so it was possible, if difficult, to scale them. I rember Deux actually breaking his leg climbing halfway up one when we were both at the orphanage.
I approached Nix. Did you know her?
She nodded. Yes. Lydia was picked up by the sa Undertaker caravan as . We havent spoken in so ti though. Last I talked to her was a month ago.
Any enemies?
Nix looked up at with a sad smile. No one has enemies in Potts.
Other friends then? Maybe so people who wouldve spoken with her more recently?
Nix nodded. She ntioned shed been shacking up with another woman. A white robe nad Deliliah? Or maybe Deborah?
I nodded, taking ntal notes. Id have to go back to the Mausoleum next to see if I could find that woman. I looked at the body. We should probably have her moved. I dont think well get any more information from the corpse.
Nix nodded. Ill have soone grab so cloth to wrap her in and well take her to the graves.
I looked around. Ill need to ask around to see if anyone saw another deadman covered in blood. Or anyone with large enough hands that might fit this print. Theres no way an attack like this wouldnt result in soone getting more than a little blood splatter.
Ill have so of my Undertakers handle it.
Thanks
She shook her head. A murderer in Potts is not sothing were really equipped to handle. The quicker we get this solved, the stabler things stay, and stability at ho is what Undertakers need to do their jobs.
I nodded and left her to it, making my way toward the Mausoleum. It was getting dark, but that didnt an much for the people of Potts. The murder had happened while it was still light out, when most people were busy working. The murderer had left the scene of the cri over the dos, likely to avoid being seen covered in Lydias blood. The murderer was at least moderately clever. The murder itself seed to be a thing of wild abandon, but once it was done the killer found a smart thod of retreat, and hed managed to keep himself in check long enough to make sure his target was isolated and out of sight before he struck. Motive was what I needed. A cri with such extre violence was likely done out of passion. I couldnt even think of another reason for such a thing to happen in Potts. Everyone had food, shelter, and a family in their fellow citizens. Sure sotis work drama would lead to things spinning out of control, but this this could only have been the result of much more highly elevated feelings than that.
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