Chapter 5

The recovery site was sealed off with yellow police tape.

In the end, Sean still came.

He had left Jessica at the hotel, making an excuse about urgent paperwork at the precinct.

He stood outside the yellow tape, lighting a cigarette, watching the officers use a circular saw to cut open the metal drum.

Dr. Evans, the medical examiner, walked over and took off his gloves. His face was pale.

"Sean, we have the preliminary findings."

"Female, late twenties."

"Cause of death was ligature strangulation with a thin wire, causing cervical fracture and asphyxiation."

Sean flicked the ashes off his cigarette, his tone still seemingly detached.

"A body dumped in the bay? Just check the recent gang wars."

He turned to leave.

"Sean, there are some unique skeletal features," Dr. Evans called out.

"She had three broken ribs and a old penetrating wound on her right wrist that damaged the nerve."

The cigarette slipped from Sean's fingers.

It fell onto his hand, burning his skin, but he didn't even flinch.

A wrist wound.

Three years ago, during an internal mob dispute, someone had lunged at him with a knife. I had blocked the blade with my bare right hand.

Sean slowly turned around, his eyes blown wide, though his voice remained defensive.

"A lot of women have injured wrists. That doesn't prove anything."

Dr. Evans sighed and pulled two evidence bags from his kit.

He handed the smaller one to Sean first.

"We found this on her right ring finger."

Sean's gaze drifted down.

Inside the plastic bag was a tarnished, blackened silver ring.

On the inside of the band, the name "Sean" was crudely engraved---something he had carved himself while drunk years ago.

Sean stared at the ring, his breath catching in his throat.

He reached out to take it, but his fingers shook so violently he couldn't grasp it.

Seeing his pale face, Dr. Evans pushed the second bag into his trembling hands.

"Also, we found this in her pelvic cavity."

Inside the bag was a cluster of tiny, fragile bones.

"Based on the bone development, it was a fetus. About seven months old."

Seven months.

I remembered the seven drops of blood that had dripped from his hand when he broke the glass.

"This is impossible..."

Sean's voice was barely a whisper.

"Vivian was greedy... she ran... how could she..."

He suddenly looked up at Dr. Evans, his eyes bloodshot.

"This must be a setup by Ghost! He found a matching body!"

"Run a DNA test! Right now! Use her family's DNA from the database!"

He screamed, turned, and stumbled over a rock. He scrambled up and fled like a terrified animal.