Goddess Bless You From Death

Case File 22.

Darin sat among the three young men, who were looking at the laptop screen with serious expressions. She could still feel the chill running down her spine when she saw those animal corpses. Just one look told her they hadn't died naturally. The scattered incense sticks around them only confirmed that it hadn't happened just once or twice.

"Here's the abbot's record," King handed a document to Singha.

"Mr Anupap, 62 years old, ordained for 15 years under the monastic name Phra Amaro, became the abbot of Santidhamwararam Temple five years ago."

"Five years ago?"

"Yes, that's what the record says."

"That's the same period as the interval between the murders. And before that?"

"Before that, he was a wandering monk and had a record of receiving treatment in a northern province."

"Northern province?"

"Yes, it matches the previous incident location, doesn't it?" King looked intently at Singha.

"Hmm."

"But he's a monk," Darin spoke up, her voice trembling.

"A monk is still a man. Just being in their saffron robes doesn't mean they can't commit crimes," Singha said with a calm face. "Right now, we don't have any evidence linking him to the murders. These clips alone aren't enough; we need more solid proof."

"S-Singh, I have something else to tell you," Darin called Singha with a worried tone. "Before I went to the temple, I had a dream about a female ghost. A-And she kept saying 'Wednesday, Wednesday'. D-Do you think I'll die? Will I end up like the seven previous victims?"

Singha reached out and gently patted Darin's head to calm her down. He knew how afraid of ghosts she was and how terrified she was by what she had encountered. He couldn't bring himself to say that nothing would happen because he genuinely didn't know what was really going on.

"For now, don't go anywhere alone. Stay with me or with Sei. In the meantime, I'll have someone keep an eye on the temple. Sei, finish investigating the soil from the doll. King, have you checked the CCTV footage?"

"All done. I'll write the report. But it's clear that out of the seven victims, six entered on different days and times, but none came out, except for Ms Meen. It's quite clear that someone from the temple is behind this."

"Find out where Ms Meen's car went. As for the doll and other freaking ghostly matters, I'll handle them myself."

"Singha," King interrupted with a calm expression.

"I  have to go to the next victim's house now. Darin, take care of the kid in the infirmary."

"B-but that kid is... The ghost also targets him, isn't he?" Darin clung to Sei's arm, even though her friend tried to shake her off repeatedly.

"Thup said the kid mentioned Tuesday."

"See!!"

"If these ghosts keep causing trouble, the investigation won't go anywhere," Sei complained before leaning back against the sofa.

"I'm not too sure about this either. We'll have to ask Thup," Singha replied.

"I have a way!!" Darin shouted, standing up and walking to her bag before hauling it onto the table. Its heavy sound made everyone else look at each other. "Buddha statue! Yantra cloth! Holy thread! Holy water! Amulets! I brought everything."

Darin set everything on the table with a sigh of relief. She had brought everything from her home to ward off ghosts and unseen entities. She didn't know if it would really work, but it was better than nothing, at least for peace of mind.

"P'Singha," a voice called from inside the room, catching the attention of Singha and King.

"I told you to rest."

"I can't sleep," Thup walked out and sat next to Singha, looking at the items on the table with curiosity. "What are... these things?"

"Little Thup, these are my protective charms! Please take a quick look and help me see if they'll work," Darin pointed excitedly. She had gone to great lengths, worshipping in many places to acquire these items, and was hopeful they would work.

"I don't know how to check these things, P'Darin."

"What?"

"Otherwise, why would I still be haunted like this?" Thup said, slumping his shoulders a bit, causing Singha to chuckle.

Singha stood up to his full height, ruffled Thup's soft hair lightly, and walked into the inner room. At the bed by the window lay a 24-year-old man who had just received treatment. One of his wrists was handcuffed. Beside the bed, two people were sleeping because they couldn't go home yet.

"Where's the Lieutenant?" Singha took out his phone and called his trusted subordinate immediately.

[Out front, sir. I'm contacting the relatives of the kid named Jump.]

"Any response?"

[Yes, they're in Satun' and will return tomorrow.]

"Alright, let me know when they arrive."

Understood, sir. Well, what about the other two kids?]

"I'll talk to them first."

[Yes, sir. Oh, Inspector, one more thing, Sergeant Moo and Sergeant Em have taken leave today.]

"Why?"

[Sergeant Moo had an accident and is in the hospital. Sergeant Em is sick. I don't know what's happening at the station; there are so many issues.]

Singha ran his hand through his shiny black hair. Previously, he would have dismissed this as nonsense or called it pointless. But now he wasn't sure if everything was still normal.

"Tell everyone to be careful."

[Understood, sir.]

Singha hung up and checked on the man in the bed, glancing at Bom and Dear. Who sent the emails to these kids? What did the sender hope to achieve by disclosing the case and crime scene to outsiders, when keeping it quiet would have been better?

The young inspector walked back to the lounge, where only King and Thup remained; Sei and Darin were gone.

"Thup, let's go. I'll take you home."

"Huh?"

The older man didn't repeat himself; he only walked towards the door, but was stopped when his wrist was grabbed.

"Stay and talk," King said in a flat voice.

"Say it then."

"Just the two of us." Although his tone wasn't pressing, his words gave off the same feeling.

"I'll wait outside then," Thup said, getting ready to leave, as he didn't want to make them uncomfortable.

"No need." The big brother's voice halted his long legs immediately.

"What do you need? I gotta work."

"Not now," King sighed, releasing the other's wrist. "But tonight, I'll send you the address. If you don't show up, expect a call from the commander."

King walked past Singha, bumping Thup's shoulder in frustration.

"That jerk," Singha muttered, pressing his tongue against his cheek in annoyance.

"P'Singh," Thup grabbed the hem of his elder's shirt. He had heard the entire conversation just now. Tonight... They would meet tonight.

"Let's go. I'll take you home first."

"Let me go too. Let me go with you."

"You're this hurt but still wanna go?"

"I don't want you to go alone. At least I can warn you. Please let me tag along."

Singha turned to look at the young man behind him, who was looking at him with hopeful eyes. Seeing the bruises on his neck, he sighed in resignation.

"Alright, but don't wander off alone again. If a ghost drags you away, I won't care."

"Okay," Thup smiled broadly and clung to his big brother's arm as they walked to the car.

They headed to Orn's house next. According to King, when he checked her friend's house, where she last stayed, he found nothing. Moreover, the friend with whom she had visited before disappearing said that Orn had already returned home. Thus, the doll must be at her house.

The luxury car was parked in front of a silver iron fence. Inside was a medium-sized, one-story house with its own area. Singha and Thup got out of the car just as a pair of black-and-white dogs ran out of the house, barking at them furiously before starting to howl.

"-I don't see anything," Thup said anxiously, not seeing any ghosts or spirits. He didn't know what the two dogs were seeing.

"Shhh! Cotton, Onyx, stop barking," a woman in her forties came out and shooed the two dogs back inside. "Sorry, those two don't like strangers. Who are you 

looking for?"

"I am a police officer. We need to investigate and ask a few questions about Orn's case. Here's the search warrant," he said. Her face fell, but she opened the gate to let Singha and Thup inside.

"I'm sorry, but my husband isn't home today. I can't offer much hospitality."

"That's alright."

"My daughter..hic... How is she? When..hic... when can we get her body back for the ceremony?"

"The autopsy is complete. I'll have someone inform you about the return of the body soon," Singha replied with a calm tone, more composed than usual. "Where is Orn's room?"

"Over there," she pointed to the last room down the hallway. 

"I still can't come to terms with her death, so I haven't moved anything."

"May I go in?"

"Please."

Singha opened the door, with Thup following closely behind. The room was ordinary, with everything still in place. Singha examined the room, while Thup stood still, expression blank.

"Have these things been left as they are? No one has moved anything, right?"

"That's right."

"Then why is this here?" Singha pointed to a notebook on the bed that seemed out of place.

"It wasn't there initially. I had just brought some water into the room, and it wasn't there then."

Singha glanced at Thup, then put on gloves and picked up the notebook to read. Inside, it was filled with red pen scribbles, random lines with no discernible letters or words. Thup stepped closer and whispered into Singha's ear.

"I don't see any ghosts."

"And?"

"That means the doll isn't here." Thup scanned the room again before shaking his head to confirm.

"I'll take this notebook with me," Singha informed Orn's mother, who was standing at the doorway with tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Is there a spirit house here?" Thup asked gently. Losing a daughter was already painful; adding more worries wouldn't help.

"Y-Yes, it's on the side of the house."

"May I take a look?" After receiving permission, Thup immediately went to the side of the house.

A pristine white spirit house stood in the northeast corner, slightly away from the main house, perfectly positioned so that no shadow fell over it. It was raised a foot above the ground. On the platform, there were miniature statues of guardian spirits, a man and woman, along with elephants, horses, and traditional dancing figures, all surrounded by flowers and offerings. Thup clasped his hands in a respectful gesture before peering inside the spirit house.

"With a guardian spirit here, that ghost definitely can't enter." Thup looked beyond the house fence and spotted a large tree standing alone, barren of leaves, its branches pointing in various directions, creating an eerie sight. The tree's trunk looked dried and withered. Thup's eyes widened as he saw a dark figure emerging from behind the tree.

The figure's white eyes glared at Thup with displeasure. The once wide, torn grin was now a tight line. At her bare feet lay a doll, its head broken off.

"Thup," Singha called out as soon as he noticed the boy standing still, staring at one spot as if seeing something.

"The doll... It's over there." Singha followed Thup's finger until he saw the large tree.

"Stay here," Singha instructed, walking out of the gate while Thup watched him closely.

Singha made his way to the large, desolate tree. He bent down to pick up the doll's body and head.

A gentle breeze blew past him, rustling the leaves. As it passed, he saw Thup watching with a concerned expression. It had been a while since he'd seen such a look. Singha glanced at the Sia-Kaban doll in his hands again. The body was human, but the head was that of a buffalo. Its name was Lady Yakborisut, Mae Seu of Tuesday.