Investigation

"What? They moved next door? What kind of scheme are they plotting now?" Noel's irritated voice shot through the speaker of my phone. 

After I returned back to my apartment, I explained everything to Hazel and called Noel to inform him about them moving into our building. At first, Sam and Aleck moving into our building didn't seem as suspicious as I thought it would be until I related the circumstances around which they'd come here — The killer was on the loose, Noel had been attacked and all of a sudden they appeared infront of the apartment I live in, which is originally Noel's. 

As expected, Noel too, thought that it was unsettling that they were moving next door. We couldn't help but think if they were related to Noel's assault in any way since they'd been holding a grudge against him since forever. I shared my theory with him but he seemed unsure and skeptical about it. 

"But that's unlikely of them. They wouldn't dare to lay a finger on the director's son." He said mockingly, "They know that my father would find out. But still, it would be better to keep an eye on them for the time being. Let me know if you see anything suspicious. I'll get discharged tonight at 7 pm.  I'll be visiting the murder scene of Damon Michelle along with Ms. Elisa after my discharge so I'll return home late."  

I frowned. "You will what?! How will you manage to go there when you haven't even recovered completely?" 

"I've mostly recovered. It's just a small scratch."

"How unconvincing." I scoffed.

"Really, I am fine. And, shouldn't you be worrying about yourself? You're the one who's likely to die." He snickered.

I could understand from his voice that he was trying to lighten up the mood but it wasn't convincing at all. I knew how stubborn he was and that he wouldn't back away from his words. And like always, he expected me to give up. 

I sighed. "Take care."

"Yes, sir." He said sarcastically.

"Don't call me that." 

"Yes, ma'am!"

...

Ms. Elisa patted Noel's shoulder with a challenging smile. "Here's your ID. You're legally a prosecutor now. I hope you're ready to start the first day of your work." 

Noel grinned proudly on seeing his name and photo printed on the ID.

On their way to Damon's murder scene, Ms. Elisa explained in detail to Noel about all the evidences they'd gathered.

When they finally reached his house, Noel noticed several police cars parked right outside the door which was blocked with "Do Not Enter" metal boards. Passerbys glanced at the scene and whispered among themselves. As soon as they walked to the doorstep of the victim's house, they were prevented by the police officers from entering into the house. 

"This property is off limits, sir." A cop stood infront of the door, guarding it while staring sternly at Noel.

 

"I know that very well. I am Prosecutor Noel. I'm in charge of this case, so I'd really like it if you do not waste our time and move out of the way." He cocked his head and flashed his ID infront of the cop with a smile. 

His stern gaze softened with defeat and he quickly moved aside.

"S-Sure, my apologies." He scurried out of the way after a quick glance at them. 

As soon as they set foot inside the house, they could hear the clicking of photos and police officers grimacing. They wore the gloves and entered into the bedroom where Damon was previously murdered. 

"The killer left no trace of his fingerprints. The substance that the killer used on his victims consisted of a special type of steroid that could increase the effect of drugs on the people who consume alcohol or cocaine and eventually cause them to go berserk within a few hours. I can't figure out how he'd managed to inject that substance into Damon when there is no trace of him. Damon met no one except his family that day. And there's also the fact that he stabbed himself because of the injected substance. It's clearly a murder but the police intend to close the case if  nothing turns up, and the victim's family is also persistent in getting justice for their son." She sighed, shaking her head in disappointment.

Memories flashed across Noel's mind and his frown deepened with every passing second. He knew very well what it was like to lose someone. He quickly shook it off his mind and focused back on the matter at hand. Perhaps, he feared that thinking too long about it would open old wounds. 

 

Noel inched closer and stood over the blood stained carpet with a focused expression. 

He analysed it carefully for a while before asking, "Did you find any traces of drugs or alcohol in his DNA results?" 

"Except for that poisonous substance, no." 

"That means he didn't stop by at any bar when he was on his way back home. Is there any chance that he was injected during that time?" 

"I don't think that's possible since we've already seen the CCTV footage of the streets where he was passing by without anyone following him that night."

"Is there a CCTV camera anywhere around his house?" 

"Unfortunately, no. This is all we've got."

 

"If only I could know what he was doing after he left from his family's place..." Noel clicked his tongue in frustration, "Please ask the cops to check the house once again—every single inch of it. I'll go take a look outside."  

Ms. Elisa nodded and watched him go out of the house.

He carefully walked to backyard of the house and began scanning the place bit by bit. While he was examining the place, the glimmer of an object caught his eye among the bushes in the backyard. His eyes narrowed as he crouched closer to the bushes and parted them with his hand, only to see a golden pendant resting on the grass attached to a silver chain. Its half was missing while the other part remained with the pendant. 

 He picked up the pendant and frowned, "A woman's accessory..? I remember Ms. Elisa telling that he'd long divorced his wife, then why is this here?"