I gazed at the photograph with a rigid face, but the trembling of my hands betrayed me.. It wasn't the first time I had seen this image, but it was the first time I was seeing it in an official case file.
The strange man spoke in a steady voice:
"We have strong evidence of a connection between these incidents and the murder of Eva Clark twenty years ago."
The sound of my heartbeat rose in my ears.
But I didn't allow my face to move.
"What kind of connection?"
The woman spoke for the first time.
"We suspect that the same criminal is behind a series of operations.."
I looked at her in astonishment..
"After all this time?"
"Yes.." she replied, looking into my eyes, and the melted honey in her gaze was full of certainty.
"And what makes you think it's the same person?"
"The same method.. the same digital signature and the same pattern of blackmail."
"Blackmail?" I asked, my attention caught this time.
And this time, instead of the simple file I had been given, she handed me a tablet device..
"Blackmail messages sent to the three victims before their deaths.
The same intermediary server.
The same encryption pattern.
The same digital fingerprint."
I exhaled before calmly placing the device back on the table and looking at the three officials in front of me..
"Eva Clark's killer died twenty years ago.. he was found dead in an alleyway," I said in a dry voice.
The strange man leaned forward slightly.
"That's correct, but he wasn't the only one involved.. because the same method appeared again this year.. in four crimes."
Silence fell.
"Your mother's case was never solved.. it was only closed due to insufficient evidence."
"And now you want to reopen the investigation," I said slowly.
"That's correct," the woman replied.
"I requested the case be reopened three years ago.. but my request was denied.."
I looked my direct superior in the eyes.
"You told me to stop chasing the past and live in the present.. and here you are wanting me to ignore your valuable advice.."
The division chief opened his mouth to object, but the strange man stopped him by raising his hand.
"The situation is different now, Adam.. we have evidence.. and an active criminal.."
"This is the biggest nonsense I've heard in my life.. you don't have evidence, you have suspicion.. and you want me to go on a mad chase looking for leads for you.. to stay up and exhaust myself finding real evidence in a nearly impossible mission, and when I find it, you'll remove me from the case, claiming my emotions cloud my judgment.."
My lips curled in sarcasm.
"You're trying to use me, gentlemen, and I'm done with this.." I stood up to leave, but the young woman's voice from behind me stopped me.
"We didn't come to you to use you.. but because this matters to you.. and because you are a diligent person.. and you will seek justice.."
"Justice.." I shook my head in disappointment.. "Ma'am, you're literally repeating my words in a stylized manner."
I emphasized the word slowly.
The strange man said quietly:
"You know this pain, Mr. Clark, and that is why we hope you will see what other investigators could not."
Silence prevailed.
I looked at the photographs again.
The empty stare in their eyes.
It wasn't natural.
It was closer to… a person whose soul had been pulled out by hand.
"I want to see the messages again," I said.
The woman opened an encrypted file.
A short message appeared on the screen:
"Truth doesn't die. But it costs."
I moved to another message:
"Time is not on your side."
And another:
"Pay… or pay in another way."
"Did they pay?" I asked.
"Yes," she replied.
"And yet they died."
I closed the file. And looked at them.
"This is blackmail. It has nothing to do with an old case."
The strange man didn't smile this time.
"The man who died in his office… was a witness in the initial investigation twenty years ago."
Something inside me froze.
"He wasn't an official witness," I said.
"But he gave an unrecorded statement," she replied.
"How do you know that?"
He gave a small smile.
"We know many things."
I looked at the division chief again.
"For the last time, why me?"
"Because you're the best at tracking cyber blackmail," he said quickly.
"And we have a whole unit for that."
Silence.
Then the strange man added:
"And we want someone who understands the weight of this file."
"I can't judge the weight of this file if I don't understand the real reason for your move."
The man and woman looked at each other before the woman replied..
"This file is under the highest classification.. if you want the real details, you have to be part of the case.. but the only thing I'm willing to disclose is that there is much more than just kidnapping and blackmail.."
The man nodded and looked into my eyes..
"Trust me, Clark, you will regret it if you don't agree to be part of this case."
"Is that a warning… or a threat?" I asked.
The division chief said:
"A warning.. you wouldn't want to learn the truth from someone else.. would you?"
I looked at the photos one last time.
"I don't see a direct link," I muttered.
The strange man said:
"We will grant you full access to the old archives."
That had never happened before.
Never.
"Why now?.. I doubt these deaths are your real motivation."
No one answered.
Suddenly, I felt something different.
Not in the file.
In the room.
The woman looked at me as if she could see my soul.
The strange man watched my body language.
The division chief avoided my gaze.
As if they hadn't expected my analysis…
I closed the file slowly.
"I want all the evidence.. the original, unredacted file."
"You'll receive it."
"And I want permission to search the victims' homes and workplaces, if any."
A short silence.
Then the strange man said:
"Granted."
I stood up.
"I haven't accepted yet."
And this time, the woman smiled, and the honey in her eyes turned to cold certainty. "But you will."
I stopped at the door.
"If I don't find a real connection… I'll close it myself. And you'll regret manipulating me."
No one replied.
I left the room.
The hallway seemed longer than usual.
My steps were steady… but my head wasn't.
My mother's photos.
The victims' photos.
The digital signature.
A heart stopping for no reason.
I reached the elevator.
My reflection in the metal door stared back at me.
For a very brief moment…
I felt like my reflection didn't blink when I blinked.
I closed my eyes and opened them.
Normal.
Just fatigue.
I entered the elevator.
The phone in my pocket buzzed, showing an unknown number.
I rejected the call.
And started tapping my foot on the floor impatiently..
A few minutes later, my phone buzzed again.
This time with a message.
Another unregistered number.
I opened it.
"Don't dig up graves, detective."
My breath caught for a second.
There wasn't enough time for news to leak.. and I hadn't even formally accepted the case..
The elevator stopped.
The doors opened.
I stepped out slowly, belying the storms I contained within.
The phone buzzed again.
A second message had arrived.
"Not all hearts stop by chance."
I raised my eyes. At the end of the hallway…
I caught a glimpse of someone's shadow..
"Who's there..?" I called out with a confident voice as I drew my gun from my hip and moved towards the end of the hall.
And as I took the last step…
He had vanished.
I looked at the message again.
Not all hearts stop by chance.
Something in my chest began to constrict.
Not fear.
An older feeling.
The same feeling from that rainy night.
When I felt that the world would never be the same.
I put the phone in my pocket.
And moved forward.
Whether I formally accepted it or not…
The case had already begun.
And I wasn't sure if I was the one leading this investigation…
Or if it was leading me towards a past I was running from..