Goddess Bless You From Death

Case File 18.

"See!? I told you, Sei! You said I was just scared for no reason. Look what happened now-it serves you right!" Darin had just arrived, wearing her green pyjamas with big-eyed frog patterns.

"Did it sound believable? Think it through," Sei threw a pillow at Darin with a weary expression.

"That's why I said, just because you don't see it doesn't mean it's not there! So, what do you plan to do next, Singh? Are you really going to continue with the case when everyone's getting spooked like this?" Darin turned to Singha, who was sitting on the opposite sofa. The forensic department's lounge was now crowded with people involved in the investigation: Singha himself, King, Darin, Sei, and Thup, who had been dragged into this out of necessity.

"If not us, then who?"

"But it's dangerous, Singh. You've seen what everyone's gone through. And don't forget the forensic unit's car crash."

"I'm just here to explain. If you guys aren't okay to continue working on this case, I won't stop you." Once everyone was present, Singha began recounting the whole story, with Thup assisting. At the very least, those working with him needed to know what they were up against. "But I have to catch this serial killer, or it'll just happen again."

"Sigh. I want to help, Singh, but with what I've encountered, I can barely take care of myself," Darin admitted, glancing nervously at the three dolls on the table. Just by seeing them only from the corner of her eye, they already gave her goosebumps. If she had to examine them closely, she might just have a heart attack. "I'm leaving, Singh. Call me if you need anything, as long as it's not about those dolls."

Darin quickly stood and left the room. The image she had seen lingered, making her too scared even to close her eyes.

"So, what now?" King broke the silence.

"Do you believe this?"

"If you say it's true, I believe you." King looked up and met the eyes of the person sitting not far from him. "But how are we going to catch the culprit? We can't put a ghost on trial."

"Thup, you said someone, right, must have done this?"

"Yes, sir. These are ritual items. There has to be a living person behind it."

"Then, how do we find them? So far, we haven't found any leads," King asked, leaning back on the sofa, his sharp eyes glancing at the young man sitting too close to his former lover.

"We've found some. The CCTV from the convenience store opposite the temple captured the victims entering. I've checked two so far: the boy named Jom and Ms Meen. Jom never came out after entering the temple, while Ms Meen was seen driving out. We'll need to check the footage for others."

"Are you suggesting someone in the temple is a suspect?"

"Possibly. The autopsy revealed similar food in almost all victims' stomachs, except for those where digestion had already advanced," Sei explained, getting up to fetch the autopsy reports and tossing them to King before sitting back down. 

Despite the earlier shocking events and stories, Sei, who believed in science more than superstition, felt compelled to investigate further, as such an event rarely occurred. "Chicken, curry spices, and wheat flour used for noodles were found in the victims' stomachs. During my visit to the temple with Darin, I noticed they have an almshouse. The food could have come from there."

"Food from the temple... Thup, did you bring any samples?"

"They're on your desk."

"Go fetch them. Here's the key."

Thup received the room key from his big brother before leaving to fetch the items as instructed.

"Do you trust him that much?" King asked when only three of them were left.

"I just asked him to fetch something."

"Even though he's a suspect? A stranger? You let him stay at your place and take him everywhere. What are you thinking, Singh?"

"I'm thinking we should focus on the case," Singha replied, glancing at King as if to caution him. King sighed.

"Sei, check this too."

"What is it?"

"Clay from a pottery item," Singha handed Sei a small evidence bag containing a handkerchief with traces of clay. "I want to know if it's the same type of clay used to make the dolls."

"Where did you get this?"

"Under the abbot's quarters."

"The abbot? Don't tell me you suspect him."

"Yes."

"So, what's the plan now? Any ideas?"

"Not yet. We need to find all the dolls first."

"If the kid's hypothesis is correct, we need to find them based on the days, right? We have three dolls, four more to go."

"What do you expect to find from these dolls?" King asked after a long silence. "Fingerprints are probably long gone."

"Maybe. But it won't hurt to check. Most importantly, we need to figure out what ritual the killer is performing and why."

"Hopefully, it's not some sort of human sacrifice," Sei said with a grimace. He never imagined such beliefs would still exist today.

"It might be," Singha replied, leaning back on the sofa and running a hand roughly through his jet-black hair. "Don't bother with the dolls anymore; I'll handle it. Sei, check for fingerprints and see if the clay type matches. Let me know if you find anything. King, review the CCTV footage from the temple and track where Ms Meen's car went."

"I can handle checking the dolls, but will there be more incidents like before?" Sei asked, eyeing the Sia-Kaban dolls with the heads of a tiger, a lion, and a horse.

"Get a Buddha image to keep the place safe then."

"Which one?"

"How would I know? Just get one."

"Fine, I'll ask Darin. But not today. I need some time to recover from this ghostly absurdity first."

"I'll take the dolls home for now. I'll bring them back tomorrow," the young inspector said, standing up and stretching to relieve some stiffness.

"Isn't that dangerous?" King asked, standing up with Singha.

"So what? You want to take them?" Singha asked sarcastically.

When King didn't reply, Singha laughed under his breath. "I'll be back. If Thup comes back, take those food samples for testing. I got them from the almshouse. Tell him to wait here; I'll be back soon. "

"Got it."

Singha picked up the three dolls in the evidence bags and left the forensic department.

Thup arrived at Singha's office, quickly unlocked the door, and grabbed the items. When he stepped back out, he locked the room securely. On his way back to the forensic department, he paused when the well-lit corridor ahead turned dark. Thup stepped back, knowing it wouldn't be easy to get through. Just as he was about to retreat, the lights flickered before coming back on. 

But now, at the far end of the hallway, there wasn't just the connecting door-a twisted, deformed woman was standing there blocking the way. Thup's legs felt nailed to the floor, unable to move as he wished. His hands tensed, fingers digging into his palms. As the ghost took each step toward him, the hallway lights flickered out, leaving only her white eyes and terrifying smile visible.

'Hee, hee! The Yaksha isn't here. Who will save you now?' Thup knew who the 'Yaksha' referred to. He acknowledged the risks of leaving Singha's side, but he couldn't cling to his big brother forever. It might not be happening yet, but Singha wouldn't want him to be too deeply involved in his life going forward.

"-I don't know wh-what you want."

“I've eaten seven, and I'll eat more!" Seven? Could she mean the victims?

"Doing this will only grow your karma. Please stop."

This was the first time Thup dared to take action. He 'dared' because he knew Singha could save him, whether he was alive or dead.

!!!

Thup frowned slightly before jumping in shock as a hand landed on his shoulder.

"Are you alright? I saw you standing here trembling for a while."

"I'm fine," Thup shook his head repeatedly, then glanced back down the corridor.

The ghost was gone.

"Then, please excuse me."

"You... were part of the group of four this morning, right?"

"Yes. Our case is still ongoing because the police are busy with other things, so we're still here."

"I see," Thup nodded. "Thank you, uh...?"

"I'm Bom. Nice to meet you."

"I'm Thup. Nice to meet you, too."

"You seem to know the police well. Could you please ask them to wrap up our case? I'm getting tired of staying here."

"Well, I'll try to ask for you." They exchanged brief goodbyes and went their separate ways. Thup glanced back down the corridor once more before heading to find Singha.

As he was about to reach the forensic department, he overheard voices and saw cigarette smoke wafting out. Recognising the voices, he knew who they belonged to.

"Are you going to stay mad forever?" King exhaled smoke as he gazed at the sky beside Singha.

"If you're going to talk, step inside. You're annoying," Singha replied, frowning as he inhaled nicotine.

"I'm here to apologise, Singh."

"You think saying sorry will fix everything? How shallow can you be?"

"What do you want then? Are you going to spend all your time with that kid to spite me?"

"And what does this have to do with Thup?"

"After all these years, you think I don't know what you're thinking, Singha?"

"After all these years, ha!" Singha repeated King's words with a mocking tone. 

"Three years, King. Three years of you betraying me, Sei, and Darin. Three years of me being stupid enough to be fooled."

"I'm sorry," King said, grabbing Singha's wrist and speaking more softly.

"Taking my work wasn't enough for you, huh? You also blamed me for your mistakes. And now you come back and just say 'sorry' like it's nothing?" 

Singha threw his cigarette butt to the ground and stomped it out, then shrugged off King's hand and pushed him hard, sending him stumbling back into the wall. 

"Before asking for forgiveness from others, think about who you stepped on to get where you are today."

As Singha was about to walk back inside, he paused, laughing under his breath.

"And whether or not I have something with that kid, it's none of your business."

Sitting in the forensic department's waiting room, Thup remained silent, the conversation he overheard still replaying in his mind.

"Is this what Singh wanted us to check?" Sei asked, looking at the items on the table. When he received no response, he looked up at the daydreaming boy again. 

"Hey, ghost-seeing kid! Thup!"

"Yes?"

"What are you spacing out for? Did you hear what I asked?"

"Uh, yes, yes, this is it."

"That's all I needed."

"Mr Sei, can I... ask you something?"

"Make it quick. I have work to do."

"P'Singh and Mr King... were they ever together?"

"Well, not exactly together. It wasn't official. They didn't have any defined status. Just knew each other inside out without words."

"Oh, I see."

"But something happened, and now they're like parallel lines."

"What happened between them?"

"You probably know some of it already. Telling the whole story would take too long. Just know that King nearly got Singh kicked out of the service and sent to jail."

"P'Singh must be really angry, then."

"Yeah, Singh's the type to give everything if he trusts you. But if you break that trust, he won't forgive easily."

"I understand." Thup pursed his lips with a determined look in his eyes. He wouldn't let Singha down.

"Why do you ask? Are you planning to woo him?"

"N-No! I just saw them talking outside earlier. I-I wasn't planning anything!"

"Then, why are you making a fuss? I was just joking."

"I was just worried about a misunderstanding... I wouldn't dare try to woo P'Singh." Thup's last words were barely a whisper.

"Thup," a voice called, and the door opened, startling him.

"Yes!!!"

"Why are you shouting? I'm here to tell you to go home."

"Oh, Singh's here. Just now, this kid-"

"Let's go home! Come on, P'Singh. Goodbye, Mr Sei!" Thup quickly interjected, pushing Singha out of the room, afraid Sei would reveal his earlier question.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Are you hungry? Can we stop by the supermarket first? There's no fresh food in your fridge." Thup clung to Singha's arm, nervously chatting.

"What did you do wrong?"

"N-Nothing!"

"Thup!"

"Really, nothing!" Thup looked up at Singha with innocent eyes, but seeing Singha's stern gaze, he quickly pursed his lips. "I heard you talking with Mr King outside."

"And?"

"So I asked Mr Sei about your fight." Thup looked at Singha anxiously. He didn't want to be seen as meddling in such a sensitive matter. "Are you mad?"

"Ridiculous. Where do you want to stop? Don't take too long- I want to sleep." 

Seeing Singha walk to the car as usual, without anger or annoyance, the boy smiled with relief and clung to his arm again.

"Somewhere near home... But really, are you taking those dolls back home? Please don't."

"Do you want to leave them here and risk another incident?"

"Then at least leave them in the car."

"Fine, fine."

"I have something to tell you, too."

"What is it?"

"I saw the ghost lady from Ms Meen's house again." As soon as he finished speaking, Singha turned to look at him immediately, since this time he hadn't tagged along.

"Did anything happen?"

"P'Singh... I heard her speaking Khmer."