Murder

The body was wet, blue and swollen under the purple sky. Maybe it would have been a beautiful evening under the setting sun, at the seaside with slightly different conditions. The rain had stopped for now, but the police had set up some kind of temporary tent on the rocky where the body was found, both in case of raining again and to keep prying eyes away. The body was lying on the stones, washed ashore with the old boat pieces in an unused part of the dock.

The corpse was waiting to be removed, indifferent to the flashes of photographers, to be opened inside and carved out. Jason, too, could have been patient as he was no longer sleepy. The body belonged to a tall and broad shouldered man. He was lying face down and his pink shirt was torn in patches on his back. The thing that smashed his once white shirt could be a rock he hit while dragging, or a claw. The only thing Jason was sure was that it was the man's blood that made the shirt pink. Dried blood would probably look brown if the sea hadn't been washed it. Jason saw the man's eyes, more precisely where his eyes should be, when someone revealed his face to take his picture.

Zhou was the first to ask, ''What happened to the man's eyes?''

''Something living in the water has eaten his eyes. Or at least that's what I was told.'' Farah said. Zhou's face changed color. He muttered a few apologies and went out of the tent to the air that was fresh and without the smell of corpse.

''Was he killed and thrown into the water or died because of drowning?'' Jason asked.

''Before the autopsy it is difficult to say anything for sure. However, the body shows obvious signs of putrefaction. We estimate that it has been in the water for no more than six hours. Salt water should have delayed rotting, if not completely preventing it. Even in a suitable environment, days are required for such decay.'' Farah explained in a callous voice. It was as if instead of speaking, she was repeating the things she had memorized. Maybe she really was.

''You say they wait until the body decomposes and then threw it into the sea? Why would they do such a thing?'' Jason took his eyes off the corpse and turned to Farah. ''Did you say less than six hours? A few of the seafarers working here must have seen who did it.''

Farah shook her head. ''The body may have been dragged here from anywhere. They may have dropped it off from any boat or even a cargo ship. We question the seafarers, but there are hundreds of them here. Even if one of them is lying, we cannot arrest them all and use the talismans in the interrogation room.''

Although Jason didn't know how he knew it, he knew that the body was not dragged here, but dropped here in the first place. But how would he explain this to Farah? 'Hey chief, the sea whispered to me that the corpse was dropped from this dock. You have to find a way to question all of the sailors.' It wasn't convincing enough.

''Zhou said it was a sailor who first found the body,'' Jason said.

''Not one, two sailors came here to drink when their shifts were over. And bum,'' Farah pointed to the outside of the tent with her hand, where officer Zhou was talking to the two men. Jason turned his head and looked where Farah was pointing. The sailors' backs were turned to the tent. The men must have felt their gaze, they both turned and answered the gaze. One of the men waved at them.

"Do you two know each other?" asked Farah.

"I guess so," Jason sighed. Jason came out of the tent before Farah started asking her questions. He approached the man who smiled at him like an old friend, and Zhou.

"Jason," said Zhou, "I forgot to tell you that your daughter was waiting in the car."

"I have no daughter," Jason frowned. "Did you bring Eve to the crime scene? Are you out of your mind?"

"Chill dude. I received the call on my way back from the hospital to the station. If you're wondering, the girl was in perfect condition." Jason kept staring. "Have you met these gentlemen? Those who called police were Mr. Garry and Mr. Nilsson."

"Sorry about last night man," Garry said.

Sorry? You mean you're sorry because the other night you lost yourself and jumped on me and almost changed your shape into a lion? Are we really going to talk about this with Zhou? Jason thought. But all he said was "Just make sure it doesn't happen again."

When Farah called Zhou to drive the approaching reporters away, he was about to ask something. Jason looked at Garry and Nilsson after making sure Zhou had walked away.

"Don't worry," Garry said. "Nilsson is one of us. You can speak freely."

Jason looked at the man from head to toe. "Are you also a pack member?"

"No, lizards have no packs." Jason's eyes opened wide.

"You said three murders weren't enough to start a hunt. Is four enough?" Garry asked.

"Is that why you left the body to be discovered? Is it because I said no to Rajid?"

"We need to convey the answer to our leaders. Is four enough?" Jason shook his head. The two men looked at each other. "Okay. But this is not the end." Nilsson said.

Farah called Jason. How did he know the sailor? Just a coincidence. Could he say anything about the corpse that would help them? No, Jason's job was to hunt non-humans, not analyze corpses. Could he, as a hunter, return to the police station and fill out the forms to declare that he had witnessed and confirmed the handling of the case? Sure, why not?

Jason found Zhou's car to take Eve with him. The little girl was sitting in the back seat, waiting with Jason's jacket on her lap. She was wearing those uncomfortable gowns and slippers given at the hospital. She had washed her face, but her sun colored hair was still full of sand. Her eyes sparkled when she saw Jason.

''Ja-son!''

''Hi, I said we would meet again, right?'' Jason put a smile on his face. ''Come, we're leaving here as soon as possible.'' The little girl followed the man quietly. When they got into the car, Jason told the girl to buckle up and he had to show how to do it.

Before leaving the dock completely, Eve's face turned ashen. "Who is that man?" She asked, looking out the car's window.

''Cops, seafarers, curious public and journalists. Who are you asking?''

Eve looked at Jason and she slipped into her seat as if no one could see her if she tried hard enough. ''I don't like him.''

''So it's good we're leaving here.'' Eve gulped and nodded.