"The moon does not mourn over the dead. What it does is shine light on the truth."

- Shinichi Kudo

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Chapter 27:
Five Orange Pips

· · ────── ·𖥸· ────── · ·
ZANE

"What do you mean by 'he'? That calligraphy is beautiful!" I said, admiring the elegant script.

"Could still be a she, but the police can identify it better," she replied, carefully slipping the contents back into the red envelope. "The smell convinced me my hunch was right."

She brought it closer to me, and I caught the scent of an expensive men's cologne.

"Whoever sent that might be an admirer," I suggested, raising an eyebrow.

"What about my phone?" she asked. We started walking again, and she stopped as we reached her room.

"I couldn't open it because of the PIN," I replied, feeling a bit awkward. I still didn't know her birthday.

After sealing the envelope in a clear plastic bag and removing her gloves, she handed me back my phone. With a quick tap, she unlocked it using her fingerprint, revealing the same photos from the envelope.

"Let's go!" Raine said urgently.

"Wait, let's change first. We might get in trouble—"

"Okay!" She shut her bedroom door swiftly. Feeling the urgency, I hurried to my room and changed out of my uniform.

࿐ ࿔*:･ﾟ

"It still needs to be examined by the experts."

From a plain brown door on our left, George emerged. Aware that we weren't allowed inside their offices, we waited in the second-floor waiting area.

We had been sitting there for almost half an hour before he returned to us.

"Maybe it'll take a while—" he continued, but the door cut him off with a sudden opening.

"Alright, let them in here," said the newcomer. It was the guard from our first case with Raine.

They guided us inside, where we saw several police officers at their stations, absorbed in their work.

We continued down the corridor until we reached a door on the left, marked "Interview Room." It looked just like those rooms I'd seen on TV shows where suspects are interrogated.

"Why are we here?" I whispered to Raine.

"They probably found something," she whispered back, nodding towards a police officer inside wearing a vest with a badge and his last name, Lee, displayed prominently. He was focused on his laptop, seated in one of three chairs in the room.

My eyes shifted to the same memory stick from the envelope, now plugged into his laptop.

"Just in case the stick has any virus, we used a specialized computer," the police officer said. "Take a look at what we found."

The computer screen flickered with an encrypted MS Word file, its text blazing in crimson red at an oversized font of 80, stark against the pitch-black backdrop.

Do I have your attention now?

"That's the only thing inside the folder on the memory stick they gave you," he added. "The only file."

"Do you have any suspicions about who sent you the photos and this memory stick?" the other officer inquired, his voice low but steady.

Officer Aguilar, according to the name on his badge, turned to Raine, his gaze lingering on her before shifting to me, where I stood in silence nearby.

"Uh, I'm just accompanying my friend," I replied.

"I don't know who sent that or how it got into our flat, but I strongly believe it's connected to the recent cases in the past few days," Raine answered.

"Cases you shouldn't be meddling in?" Mr. Aguilar, still gruff, asked.

"We're tracing the number of the sender and looking into CCTV footage that might identify who gave that to you," Officer Lee said.

"Are you sure no one else entered your house besides your sister?" George asked.

"No one did, but as far as I remember, it was already there before my sister arrived," Raine replied.

"We'll add that to the investigation," Officer Lee added in his calm tone. "Plus, we also have to wait for the handwriting analysis."

"There's a good chance this will take time, especially since there were no fingerprints on the envelope, memory stick, or even the photocards," Detective George said.

Officer Lee leaned forward slightly, his gaze shifting from Raine to briefly meet mine. "We'll keep you updated on the results, Raine. Stay safe, and keep your companion close for protection," he advised calmly.

That's my real purpose, Officer.

"I'm being summoned to the field now. Are you coming along, Detective?" Officer Aguilar asked.

"Sure," George replied.

"We'll be quick, Ms. De Verra. You probably already know where we're heading, right?" Officer Aguilar asked.

"To the river?" Raine said.

"As I suspected, you already know. You might as well have been there, you crazy kid!" Officer Aguilar teased.

"As long as Detective Ferrer is called, Raine's there," Officer Lee joked.

"Just remember, we have class tomorrow. There's a lab activity, so you shouldn't be absent," Officer Aguilar reminded before leaving the room with George.

"Okay, Sir Ron. We'll head out first," Raine said to the remaining officer inside.

"Alright. Take care, okay?" he replied, giving us a warm smile that crinkled his eyes.

That reminded me of Aliza again.

"Let's go."

As we left the police headquarters, memories surfaced of when Raine's sister had visited us before. "Does your sister know about this?" I asked, wondering about her sister's involvement and position.

"Yup," Raine replied.

"Did she notice the envelope, too?" I added. "She seemed to pick up on things about me pretty quickly."

"She just told me I have an admirer," she replied.

While walking towards the vehicle terminal back to the suburbs, a motorcyclist wearing a helmet with a black visor stopped beside us.

"Excuse me." He removed his helmet, revealing a gentle face. "Someone asked me to give this to you."

Judging by his appearance, he looked around twenty-five or older. He handed another red envelope to Raine, his demeanor calm as I observed.

"Who gave this to you?" Raine asked.

"I don't know him. He just said to give it to the girl in the photo he showed me," the motorcyclist replied. He unlocked his phone, slightly cracked, and showed us the picture of Raine at the library. I wasn't there, but I remembered it happened just yesterday.

"Isn't it—" I started, but Raine interrupted with a new question.

"What else did he say? How did you get that picture?" she asked the motorcyclist.

"He sent it to me via Bluetooth," he answered. "And he just asked me to deliver it."

"Can I see the file?"

"Sure, but make it quick 'cause I've got work," the man said, handing his phone to my companion.

—

Upon tapping on the notification, there were some details about the photo.

Receiver.jpg. Sender. 1.57 MB. Received complete.

—

After tapping on it again, there was indeed a large photo confirming that it was her.

—

"Thank you," Raine said as she returned the phone. "What did the person who gave it to you look like?"

"I didn't see his face because he wore shades and a hat. I also didn't hear his voice because he just made me read what was on his tablet screen," he replied. "He said he couldn't speak, so that's how it went—"

His phone rang, interrupting him. It was his boss.

"I need to go. I'll leave this with you." He handed me the red envelope before disappearing among the passing vehicles.

"Weird!" I exclaimed, perflexed.

I handed the envelope to Raine. By then, the calligraphy was no longer present.

"What's going on here?" I asked, my confusion growing.

When she opened it, another photograph greeted us on the photo paper.

The picture showed a girl in a red Sunday dress standing inside a room that bore a striking resemblance to Auntie's flat.

The photograph appeared old, devoid of any timestamps. Raine handed it to me, and as we examined it, a scent reminiscent of citrus fruit wafted through the air.

Raine's eyes widened as if she had seen a ghost. "What happened? What is this?" Her phone rang at the same time.

"Hello, Lorraine De Verra." A familiar voice spoke.

"How did you know my name?" Raine asked, trying to hide her fear.

"Is that the man from earlier?"

She nodded at me and turned up the volume on her phone.

"I now have... my first victim... who w-will die because of you," he added, fear replacing his earlier calm voice.

"Who are you? Why are you doing this?" Raine asked.

"I just want to continue the... game that was started," he replied. "I'm giving you twenty four hours to resolve that case. The... The game will start again... from what was... started before."

Beep.