Chapter 67: The Mark of the Killer

Kate noticed that the front door of the house was wide open, and a member of the forensic team was examining it for fingerprints.

"You mentioned that you came back from the office to get ready and pick up Sasha and Ella, which means, Mrs. Paula, you must have been at home," Kate said, directing her gaze towards Ella, who was walking beside them.

"No, I also go to Shawn's office. I’m the managing director of Paula Chemicals," Ella replied, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

"This morning, I left the house with Shawn. At that time, Sasha was still asleep in her room. After attending a few meetings, I got home about an hour before Shawn, since I take longer to get ready," Ella explained.

"Why was Sasha at home?" Kate asked, her curiosity piqued. She realized she didn’t know anything about the victim.

"Sasha recently finished college, and she’s taking some time off," Ella replied.

"Hmm... and when you came back, you didn’t see Sasha or try to check on her?" Kate pressed, sensing a disconnect.

Ella hesitated, her eyes flickering before answering. "I’m Sasha’s stepmother, and she never really accepted me as her mom, so I tend to keep my distance."

Meanwhile, Kate and Jason had crossed the large living room and entered the lobby. There were four doors on both sides of the lobby, and Shawn informed them that all of them were bedrooms. Police officers and forensic experts were already inspecting the rooms to collect any evidence.

"Where’s Sasha’s room?" Jason asked.

"The last room is hers," Shawn replied, pointing toward the last door in the lobby.

Kate scanned the lobby briefly before speaking up. "Turn on all the lights in the lobby," she instructed. The dim, yellowish lighting wasn’t doing them any favors.

Shawn approached the switchboard and flipped a few switches. As he did so, the entire lobby lit up with bright white light.

Kate’s eyes quickly caught a few drops of blood on the floor outside Sasha’s room.

"Have someone collect this blood sample," Kate instructed Jason before entering the room herself.

Thanks to Jason, Kate was allowed into the crime scene. Normally, as a non-relevant person, it would’ve been against the law for her to do so.

Upon entering the room, Kate immediately noticed the off-white walls, now splattered with blood. Her eyes moved to the bed next, and she saw that the bedsheet was soaked in bloodstains. It was clear that the violence in this room had been brutal, and it only added to the growing sense of urgency. Something wasn’t right here, and they were going to have to dig deep to figure it out.

"Do you think this is Sasha’s blood?" Shawn asked in a broken tone, his pale face now turning ashen.

Jason and Kate didn’t answer him, their attention fixed entirely on the chart-sized paper pasted on the wall behind the bed.

In the center of the paper, a photo of a girl was pinned, surrounded by various symbols. Among them was a goat-headed monster, a symbol Kate had been encountering more and more lately. Other symbols included the circle of continuity and the distinct mark of the killer. Beneath the symbols, a few quatrains of the Rubaiyat were written in Persian. After drawing the symbols and pasting Sasha’s photo, blood drops were splattered across the paper.

Kate stepped closer to the wall and noticed the words “Tamam Shud” written beneath Sasha’s photo in bold, red letters.

The chart-sized paper made one thing clear: the person who had abducted Sasha was also responsible for the deaths of Ryder, Jonathan Miller, and Pauline Miller.

Jason continued to stare at the chart for a moment, then turned to Kate, his voice weary. "Once again, he succeeded in abducting his target. Right now, he’s probably laughing at us," he said, his frustration palpable.

"He gave us clues to find and save his next target before he went to take her... but we failed," Jason muttered under his breath.

Kate shook her head slightly, her expression hardening. "Now's not the time to mourn our failures. The girl could still be alive, and we still have a chance to save her."

She turned toward the door where Shawn and Ella stood, waiting. "Mr. Shawn," Kate called out, her tone gentle but focused. "Did you receive any kind of warning letter?"

Shawn blinked, confusion crossing his face. "What kind of warning letter?" he asked.