When he arrived at the indicated location, he saw Zeyang's car and parked beside it. The werewolf came toward him with a tense expression and summarized what had happened.
Lu Shen traced an arc in the air with his right arm and moved toward the forest, followed by Lombardi.
Shortly after, the three officers came toward them.
"Take me to where you last saw Zeyang," the sorcerer ordered.
Liam led the way and brought them to the clearing where the lamb still lay.
"What do you see?" he asked Andrea.
The girl focused. "Little residual magic on the animal and around it. Nothing else."
"Which of you was with Zeyang?"
Liam stepped forward and recounted once more what had happened.
Lu Shen took some photos. "I need to know the exact locations where the murdered men were found."
"Let's go back to headquarters," Lombardi suggested.
---
They were about to enter when Andrea stopped them. "The protective shield is gone!"
Lombardi looked at her. "Are you sure?"
The girl nodded. "Since the first time I came here, there's always been this bluish light surrounding headquarters. Now it's gone."
Lu Shen had gone rigid. "Check whether the same thing has happened at your other sites in the city and at the other protected locations."
The chief nodded and sent Andrea and Matt to key places around the city, then ordered Liam to call the other branches of the Unified Police, while he headed briskly to his office, followed by the sorcerer.
Before entering, he told Sally to make some calls, then closed the door behind Lu Shen. "What's going on?"
"Something big. But I don't know exactly what. I need a map."
Lombardi unrolled a map of the city and the surrounding territory.
Lu Shen picked up a pen from the desk and marked the points where the three bodies had been found. Then he located the place where the lamb had been killed and marked it as well.
Sally knocked and entered. "All the shields have been nullified."
"Go to Captain Miller and send officers to sensitive locations."
"How was it possible to nullify all the protective shields at once?" the werewolf asked.
"With very powerful magic," the sorcerer replied, marking a point on the map. "Here," he said. "They should be here." He indicated the intersection of the lines connecting the crime scenes, corresponding to the four cardinal points.
"Are you coming with us?"
"Of course."