Chapter 29: A Strange Case
"Why are you coming to me for a murder case?"
Gideon Black handed Gordon a cup of holy water.
Gordon downed it in one gulp.
"It was originally under the department's jurisdiction, but... this case is odd."
According to Gordon, the report came from a local political figure in Philadelphia—someone well-connected with the higher-ups. Naturally, the department responded immediately, dispatching top investigators to the scene.
The assigned officers weren't rookies either. Most assumed it was a classic case of political infighting.
And in cases like these, the safest approach is always the same—side with your benefactor.
Whichever camp your boss supports, you support too.
But once they arrived at the scene, things took a strange turn.
The two deceased were officers from a certain "special division," assigned specifically to protect the politician's family.
Gordon and his team arrived within 30 minutes of their deaths.
Yet... the crime scene showed no signs of struggle.
Surveillance footage and witness statements confirmed—no outsiders had entered.
The deceased were calm, with nothing abnormal in their behavior.
In fact, they'd just made coffee minutes before their deaths.
There were no screams, no signs of panic—nothing.
"This kind of clean kill, with no trace left behind in such a short time—no one could pull that off," Gordon said grimly.
"Forensics did an initial check—no wounds on the bodies, and the food they ate didn't contain any toxins. So they proceeded with an autopsy…"
The results were… baffling.
All of the internal organs and blood were gone.
"Gone?" Gideon raised an eyebrow.
Gordon nodded seriously, stroking his mustache.
"Gone—as in literally disappeared. The cuts were incredibly clean, as if made with some kind of high-precision tool, but…"
He hesitated, as if trying to make sense of it himself.
"…but every single cut was that perfect. Even the tiniest blood vessels were severed without any surrounding tissue damage."
"Not even the most advanced surgical lasers can do that. There's always some collateral damage. But with these two—it was like the organs were wiped out of existence."
Gideon rubbed his chin.
This… definitely wasn't normal.
At first, he suspected some kind of vampiric creature.
But if there were no external wounds, then it didn't match that profile.
Because of their past cooperation—and Gordon's awareness of the hidden world—he knew strange things did exist.
"What's your official conclusion?" Gideon asked.
Gordon poured himself another cup of holy water.
"Publicly? 'Food poisoning.' But the case is still open," he sighed.
It had already been over 72 hours since the incident, and they still didn't have a single suspect.
The politician was furious.
Given the man's position and influence over law enforcement, any misstep could end up damaging the entire department.
"And with an upcoming public speech, he's getting desperate," Gordon added.
Apparently, when Gordon visited the politician's home earlier, he saw several other "professionals" like Gideon—clearly occult experts—coming and going discreetly.
But since politicians and "witch doctors" don't go well together in the public eye, everything was being handled under the table, and progress was painfully slow.
"Has this politician recently come into contact with anything unusual?" Gideon asked.
"A strange group, a weird object, maybe?"
From his experience with supernatural horror, misfortune usually started when someone messed with something they weren't supposed to.
But Gordon shook his head.
"We looked into that. The guy doesn't even keep a Bible in his house."
"He despises anything religious. Thinks all of us are just con artists scamming government funds."
"It was his wife who insisted on hiring experts. The man himself isn't convinced."
Says he doesn't believe, but here he is calling in the cavalry...
Gideon couldn't help but roll his eyes internally.
"The department's under a lot of pressure," Gordon continued. "So I was hoping you could take a look at the scene."
Gideon clicked his tongue.
"I still haven't forgotten about those two demon-infested kids you sent me last time."
"C'mon, no need to bring that up!" Gordon gave a nervous chuckle.
"You're the only one I trust with something like this!"
Gideon was instantly at a loss for words.
"With great power comes great responsibility!" Gordon slapped Gideon on the back.
"Thanks to you, the recent string of suicides in the neighborhood finally stopped!"
Then he added, almost as an afterthought:
"Oh, and the politician's wife personally offered a $50,000 reward to whoever can solve the case."
Gideon immediately stood up and extended his hand.
"I'll take the case."
Just then, Emma walked into the living room, freshly blow-dried hair swaying.
"Oh, you sly dog! Haven't seen you in a while, and now you've got a daughter?"
Gordon's face was full of exaggerated surprise as he approached Emma.
"Hey there, little lady. What's your name? How old are you?"
Despite the officer's overly kind expression, Emma found him nauseating.
Still, she smiled sweetly and replied:
"Emma. I'm temporarily staying with Brother Gideon."
So polite. So adorable. So lovable.
And that "Brother Gideon" part? It hit Gordon right in the feels.
He couldn't help but recall those daily goodbyes to his daughter as he left for work.
"What a beautiful little princess! Don't you agree, Gideon?"
Gordon praised her lavishly—one of the few American habits Gideon genuinely admired: affirmation-based parenting.
But Gideon, recalling his restroom encounter with Emma earlier, silently gave the opposite opinion in his heart.
Just then, Emma walked up and held out a hair tie in her palm.
"Hey, Gideon—can you help tie up my hair?"
Seeing her little devilish act, Gideon immediately suspected a hidden agenda.
"Be a gentleman, Gideon!" Gordon chimed in cheerfully.
"I'm a priest, man…" Gideon grumbled internally.
Still, he inspected the hair tie—no traps or tricks.
But… as a proud representative of the male species, "hair styling" was simply not in Gideon's skill tree.
So—
"Split it evenly, then crisscross the strands..."
He was about to knot Emma's hair like he was tying rope when Gordon quickly stopped him.
"Oh no, no, no!"
He shoved Gideon aside and demonstrated the proper method.
Meanwhile, Emma casually tossed her hair and discreetly removed a razor blade hidden within.
"Nosy bastard," she muttered under her breath.
A few minutes later, Gordon had finished styling Emma's hair.
He called it a "West Coast Pacific Ponytail."
To Gideon, it looked like a simple braid.
What's so fancy about that? he thought. Any non-single person would've learned this ages ago.
…Though Gideon was single.
Just like everyone else in the room.
And so, after unknowingly foiling Emma's latest scheme, the three of them piled into Gordon's car.
Gideon had decided to bring her along—better than leaving her unsupervised at the church where she'd probably start trouble.
Thirty minutes later.
They arrived at an upscale residential district.
The surroundings were picturesque—manicured lawns, scenic landscaping with boulders and ponds, and rows of sleek modern wooden villas.
The homes were secured by blast-resistant walls.
Infrared detectors scanned the premises around the clock, carefully avoiding the private areas.
Security patrols drove through the neighborhood at regular intervals.
Even with Gordon's endorsement, Gideon and Emma had to go through three rounds of screening before being granted entry.
They entered through a discreet side gate, completely off-limits to the public.
Clearly, breaking into this place would be near impossible.
And that was exactly why Gordon had asked Gideon to come.
At the doorstep of House 24, the trio had just stepped onto the porch when shouting erupted from inside:
"Where the hell did you find this bunch of useless idiots?!"