Federal Division of the Royal Empire – Criminal Analysis Department.

  Subject: Victim Profile – Case Reference #WMK-04

  Name: Lila Berniech

  Age: 23

  Sex: Female

  Species: Human

  Occupation: Banking

  Residential Address: 103-A Mary Rose, Flowerbed Sector of West-End district.

  Date of incident: October 15, around 5:00 PM

  Location: Victim’s residence

  Status: Deceased

  Cause of Death: Asphyxiation

  Body discovery: October 15, 8:00 PM. By deliveryman.

  - DETAILS (curated by Special Agent #204184, Kaeron Karthea.)

  The victim was found nude in a seated position in her living room. Her body was slumped over the table, sitting in one of the chairs.

  No signs of forced entry or disturbance in the immediate environment, indicating the victim likely knew the perpetrator.

  The time of death determined with autopsy estimation and environmental indicators is approx. between 4:00-5:00 PM

  There is evidence of recent sexual activity (penetration), with the presence of male DNA inside the victim’s genitals (semen).

  Along bruising on her genital area, signs of restraint over her wrists and calves were found, matching with four spearated ropes that were shortly after discovered tied to her bed’s frame, suggesting another rape. The location of the act is the bedroom, where several types of DNA was found.

  The victim, after the rape, was strangled to death and sat on the living room’s chair post-mortem, making this the first case involving a spatial relocation of the corpse during or after death.

  Lastly, the victim suffered the same evisceration process. Her organs and entrails were scattered all over the table.

  A cup of black tea filled to the brim and gone cold was placed near the head of the slumped-over body. No fingerprints on the body OR the cup were present at the arrival of forensic scientists.

  A copy of “The Blackened Theatre” was found right beside the cup, opened to page 1. No fingerprints of the victim were found on the book.

  The Mental Health Profile, unlike the other three victims, had no results.

  Lila did not display signs of psychological instability, trauma-related disorders or documented mental health concerns.

  She lived a solitary life but was not socially isolated. Described by coworkers as “grounded, solitary, and private,” she had no known romantic entanglements at the time of death.

  However, a week before her death, Lila stopped going to work.

  A week prior, she ordered a new decorative plant, and upon delivery...the delivery man found the door wide open, looking straight to the living room’s table.

  I stare at the cleaned-up table, picturing the poor Lila slumped over it, naked and defiled. I grimace and take a deep breath. I’m relieved this is the last one.

  “This one was completely different,” I say, “first of all, Lila didn’t buy the bullshit of the book.”

  “Exactly. And the fingerprint-free, page 1 book clearly says the killers want us to know that,” she adds.

  “She was raped, killed and then her body was moved...it never happened before. She was sitting with the open book and the cup of tea…” I brush my chin, “they were trying to display her corpse, finally reading the book after death.”

  “Though I wonder...she wasn’t beaten like Agathe, why?”

  “Because, unlike Agathe, who interrupted the whole thing in the middle, Lila never wanted to start it,” I reply.

  “Though there is still no forced entry. So the two clearly knew each other.”

  “Maybe Lila is a failed attempt. Either she wasn’t a big reader or just wasn’t buying the White Maiden’s story. Elaine probably just befriended her and decided to kill her nonetheless,” I say, walking to the table as I brush my beard, “the staging is almost theatrical. It’s saying: ‘don’t want to believe in the White Maiden? Here, now you’re dead...and you’ve got all your afterlife to catch up’.”

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “But Lila was clearly a normal woman, why would Elaine target someone sane after finding something easy like Claire?”

  I look at her, leaning against the table, “WMK is evolving. Elaine’s trying different tastes of what she loves doing most. I think it’s as simple as that.”

  “Hm…” Kaeron walks closer to me, putting her hand on the table.

  Standing stiff beside the table, her expression is unreadable. There’s something about the way she glances at the table that makes me think...she’s remembering something. Something personal, maybe?

  “She stopped going to work a week before her death. What happened during that week is crucial...because she didn’t die immediately,” Kaeron says, looking at me.

  “Right,” I mutter, averting my gaze, “it’s quite an important clue, the only one Lila left us. It could be that Elaine held her captive. We don’t know how long and when the two began interacting.”

  “It could be, yes. Maybe she forced Lila to read the book at first. After some time, she got fed up and staged this ‘'page 1 after death’' instead,” she agrees.

  Seven days.

  That’s how long she vanished before death.

  Seven days where she might’ve begged, resisted, read, cried...or just sat in silence, waiting.

  Was this Elima’s fate too?

  Kaeron sighs and stretches slightly, “this is the last known victim. It’s as if the killer stopped after Lila.”

  “We have a lot to work on, all we did today was rationalize our criminals psychologically,” I said, lighting up a cigarette.

  I suddenly realize I haven’t smoked at all today.

  “Okay...so,” Kaeron starts pacing back and forth, “let’s put this tiring day of reasoning to the test. What does all of this mean for us? These two weirdos…how do we catch them, Detective?”

  “Let me think for a second,” I reply, inhaling a good chunk of nicotine before thinking.

  This case sounds creepier than I thought.

  At first, it was a suspected creep...but then more things added up. Elaine, the book, the deep manipulation, and the various victims.

  “Elaine has to be the puppeteer. And this man who kills and rapes is probably someone who has been manipulated himself.”

  “I see, we both agree on that,” she nods, “so you think she’s the one behind everything. This man, too, is part of her twisted modus operandi.”

  “Yes.”

  “But why…? And why would she need a male to kill anyways? Why would she need anyone at all? Is there a specific fetish for watching someone else kill and rape in her place?”

  I shake my head again, turning to her as I blow a cloud of smoke, “it’s way deeper than that. I can feel it. The Blackened Theatre itself has to play a role in this question you just asked,” I pull out the book, “the obsession she has for the story might be so deeply rooted that the tale itself is what she’s after. She wants people to see what she saw in this story.”

  “So she wants them to do the final scene of the book, where the two characters copulate...and then she kills them?” She asks, crossing her arms.

  “Exactly,” I nod, “she picks the ones who are willing to believe and become obsessed with the White Maiden ...and thus ‘complete’ the reenactment. Obsession, love...and then copulation.”

  “And where do you put the killing and gutting?”

  “In her head,” I simply reply, taking another drag, “she craves control, power...and by manipulating the narrative, she’s a force of fate. She guides their victims to HER end...no one else’s...which is why she did what she did to Lila. She didn’t want to accept that she couldn’t control her.”

  “So she’s not the killer...but she’s the author. That’s what you’re saying.”

  “Yes, and based on the very different way each victim goes, I know that she’s pushing limits…”

  I walk to her, stopping her from pacing around nervously.

  “During my studies in crime science and psychology, there was this particular thing I still know about murderers that kill in sequence, making them serial.”

  She looks at me with pure curiosity.

  “You start with easy things. Then you move on to the unbroken and hard to get…”

  “That’s how you test your godhood."

  That’s what she’s doing. She's growing, each killing she makes.

  She smiles faintly, closing her eyes, “I knew you were worth my time, D’arbie.”

  I chuckle, “thank you. If only I could use these skills in all my cases. Most of them are so straightforward.”

  After a bit of silence, I speak up again.

  “The important thing we have to note down, Agent Karthea...is that she’s evolving, like I said. Each victim has a different setting...which is very good for us.”

  “Good?” She asks.

  “She’s new at this. She’s very surgical and methodical already...but not enough to avoid accidents like Agathe’s and Lila’s. Either that, or she has such a huge ego that she wants to take risks...and that’s where we’ll catch her. An additional point? She’s playing with me.”

  “Oh, right...you said you met her in person,” she looks at me with very interested eyes, “can you tell me about the whole event?”

  “I was getting into my car, and she was passing by, going to my apartment complex. I asked her if she was a new face, since the complex is so small we all know each other. She said she was visiting a friend...and she had a black book under her arm.”

  “Such a close encounter...it might be extremely valuable to use as a weapon. Please do let me know if something similar happens again. Have you asked your neighbors about her?”

  “Mhm, I did. No one saw her. She was just teasing me and blurted out a quick lie. She sent me that message, teasing me about Elima...and she showed herself to me the same morning.”

  “She’s not scared of getting caught, and that’s where we’ll have to play harder.”

  “Indeed,” I nod, putting out the cigarette on the table and putting it back into the pack.

  She grabs her suitcase and goes to the door, “it was a very productive day...you gave me good insights and completely wiped all my theories...since I was convinced the perpetrator was a single male.”

  “What’s our next move, agent?”

  “For now, I’ll ask you to write a full report of your theories and reasoning. I’ll show it to my division and we’ll see what to do next. I’m also going to call you for a sketch of Elaine, since you’re the only one who saw her.”

  I grimace...for some reason, I don’t like that she’s sharing all of this to those dogs. But it’s her job, and transparency was in the contract. I can’t complain.

  We get out of Lila’s house and head to her car. She has to bring me back to my apartment.

  Before she turns the ignition key, she looks at me with a genuine smile.

  “You’re good at this, D’arbie. I look forward to working with you.”